BREWING AND SUGAR.
(To vas EOM% or Tae " SPECUTOIC.")
Sra,—The Spectator may be right. If this be so, there is no necessity for Lord Devonport to wait until April let to make a change, for when the man in the street realizes, as he will do this month, that we are now absolutely on our own; that no neutral steamers, except those already on the high seas, will come to this country; that wo have only four million tons of available tonnage (as against twenty-two million of our own and five million neutral in pre-war times) to bring all that we require from outside to this country; and that we therefore havo to make our choice between Beer and Bread and Sugar, he will unhesitatingly choose P.S.—The sugar ration of three-quarters of a pound per head per week is adequate, but where can this quantity be obtained? ,In tha North of England the average household of five cannot obtain more than two pounds per week, and then only under a system of blackmail. That is, if a pound of sugar be required, goods to the value of 2s. 6d. must be purchased. All shops appear to work on a pro rata basis. This is wrong. No one to obtain his rightful share of sugar should be compelled to buy goods that are not required. It results in waste. Farther, it is unfair to businesses such as chandlers, for the purChases formerly made there are diverted to the general grocers and stores.- If the available supply of sugar be four-tenths compared to pre-war times, then on the basis of three-quarters of a pound per head the supply must have been two pounds each per week. Is this correct? The consumption was certainly less. The proper course to adopt, so that all should be on an equal footing in regard to sugar, is to open Government retail sugar depots at which each household could obtain its fair share on presentation of ration card and cash
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