The following portions of Mr. Dixon's letter referred to, will be
found interesting:--
"DEAR SIR,--
"Your last letter, I think, will arouse the attention of thinkers more
than any of the series, it being on topics they in general feel more
interested in than the others, especially as in these you do not
assail their pockets so much as in the former ones. Since you seem
interested with the notes or rough sketches on gin, G * * * of Dublin
was the man I alluded to as making his money by drink, and then giving
the results of such traffic to repair the Cathedral of Dublin. It was
thousands of pounds. I call such charity robbing Peter to pay Paul!
Immense fortunes are made in the _Liquor Traffic_, and I will tell you
why; it is all paid for in cash, at least such as the poor people buy;
they get credit for clothes, butchers' meat, groceries, etc., while
they give the gin-palace keeper _cash_; they never begrudge the price
of a glass of gin or beer, they never haggle over _its_ price, never
once think of doing that; but in the purchase of almost every other
article they haggle and begrudge its price. To give you an idea of its
profits--there are houses here whose average weekly takings in cash at
their bars is 50_l._, 60_l._, 70_l._, 80_l._, 90l_._, to 150_l._, per
week. Nearly all the men of intelligence in it, say it is the curse of
the working classes. Men whose earnings are, say 20_s._ to 30_s._ per
week, spend on the average 3_s._ to 6_s._ per week (some even 10_s._).
It's my mode of living to supply these houses with corks that makes me
see so much of the drunkenness; and that is the cause why I never
really cared for _my trade_, seeing the misery that was entailed on my
fellow men and women by the use of this stuff. Again, a house with a
license to sell spirits, wine, and ale, to be consumed on the
premises, is worth two to three times more money than any other class
of property. One house here worth nominally 140_l._ sold the other day
for 520_l._; another one worth 200_l._ sold for 800_l._ I know
premises with a license that were sold for 1,300_l._, and then sold
again two years after for 1,800_l._; another place was rented for
50_l._, now rents at 100_l._--this last is a house used by working men
and laborers chiefly! No, I honor men like _Sir W. Trevelyan_, that
are teetotalers, or total abstainers, as an example to poor men, and,
to prevent his work-people being tempted, will not allow any
public-house on his estate. If our land had a few such men it would
help the cause. We possess one such a man here, a banker. I feel sorry
to say the progress of temperance is not so great as I would like to
see it. The only religious body that approaches to your ideas of
political economy is Quakerism as taught by George Fox. Carlyle seems
deeply tinged with their teachings. _Silence_ to them is as valuable
to him. Again, why should people howl and shriek over the law that the
Alliance is now trying to carry out in our land called the Permissive
Bill? If we had just laws we then would not be so miserable or so much
annoyed now and then with cries of Reform and cries of Distress. I
send you two pamphlets;--one gives the working man's reasons why he
don't go to church; in it you will see a few opinions expressed very
much akin to those you have written to me. The other gives an account
how it is the poor Indians have died of _Famine_, simply because they
have destroyed the very system of Political Economy, or one having
some approach to it, that you are now endeavoring to direct the
attention of thinkers to in our country. The _Sesame and Lilies_ I
have read as you requested. I feel now fully the aim and object you
have in view in the Letters, but I cannot help directing your
attention to that portion where you mention or rather exclaim against
the Florentines pulling down their _Ancient Walls_ to build a
_Boulevard_. That passage is one that would gladden the hearts of all
true _Italians_, especially men that love _Italy and Dante_!"