y decline since that year, the figures for 1905-1906--34,109,263
barrels--were in excess of those for any year preceding 1897. It is
interesting in this connexion to note that the writer of the article on
Brewing in the 9th edition of the _Encyclopaedia Britannica_ was of the
opinion that the brewing industry--which was then (1875) producing,
roughly, 25,000,000 barrels--had attained its maximum development. In the
year ending 30th September 1905 the beer duty received by the exchequer
amounted to L13,156,053. The number of brewers for sale was 5180. Of these
one firm, namely, Messrs Guinness, owning the largest brewery in the world,
brewed upwards of two million barrels, paying a sum of, roughly, one
million sterling to the revenue. Three other firms brewed close on a
million barrels or upwards. The quantity of malt used was 51,818,697
bushels; of unmalted corn, 125,671 bushels; of rice, flaked maize and
similar materials, 1,348,558 cwt.; of sugar, 2,746,615 cwt.; of hops,
62,360,817 lb; and of hop substitutes, 49,202 lb. The average specific
gravity of the beer produced in 1905-1906 was 1053.24. The quantity of beer
exported was 520,826; of beer imported, 57,194 barrels. It is curious to
note that the figures for exports and imports had remained almost
stationary for the last thirty years. By far the greater part of the beer
brewed is consumed in England. Thus of the total quantity retained for
consumption in 1905-1906, 28,590,563 barrels were consumed in England,
1,648,463 in Scotland, and 3,265,084 in Ireland. In 1871 it was calculated
by Professor Leone Levi that the capital invested in the liquor trade in
the United Kingdom was L117,000,000. In 1908 this figure might be safely
doubled. A writer in the _Brewers' Almanack_ for 1906 placed the capital
invested in limited liability breweries alone at L185,000,000. If we allow
for over-capitalization, it seems fairly safe to say that, prior to the
introduction of the Licensing Bill of 1908, the market value of the
breweries in the United Kingdom, together with their licensed property, was
in the neighbourhood of L120,000,000, to which might be added another
L20,000,000 for the value of licences not included in the above
calculation; the total capital actually sunk in the whole liquor trade
(including the wine and spirit industries and trades) being probably not
far short of L250,000,000, and the number of persons directly engaged in or
dependent on the liquor trade being