' AGRICULTURAL ALCOHOL IN GERMANY. 7 
production of heat was an old field in the application of alcohol. 
Alcohol burners and alcohol cooking apparatus had been used for 
"a very long time. Its application for illuminating purposes and for 
generating power were, however, new. The courses to be pursued 
were indicated on the one hand by the invention of the incandescent 
mantle by Auer von Welsbach, in consequence of which such rapid 
strides were made in gas illumination, and, on the other hand, by 
the invention of the internal-combustion motor. However, in order 
to accomplish anything of real importance, the price of alcohol had 
to be reduced to such a point that it could compete with petroleum, 
the most widely distributed substance used for a like purpose. 
DISTILLATION TAX OF 1895, AND BONUS ON INDUSTRIAL ALCOHOL. 
The mere freedom from taxation did not suflice for the purpose 
desired. Other means had to be sought to attain this end. In con- 
sequence, there resulted the idea of the distillation tax (Brenn- 
steuer), which was incorporated in the law of July 16, 1895. The 
distillation tax is a progressive tax on production, levied on the 
products of the distilleries.) The revenues from this source are 
utilized for paying the refund (Riickvergiitung) ; that is, a sort of 
premium or bonus paid on alcohol used within the German bound- 
_aries for other than beverage purposes. In other words, the money 
necessary for this cheapening of industrial alcohol was raised within 
the distilling industry itself. The effect of this distillation tax 
became apparent at once. Whereas the alcohol used for industrial 
purposes in 1894-95 amounted to 18,967,765 gallons (71,800,000 
liters), in 1895-96 it amounted to 21,345,000 gallons (80,800,000 
liters). 
INCREASE IN POTATO CULTURE. 
During the decade after the enactment of the law of 1887 the 
production of alcohol remained fairly constant. With one excep- 
tion it varied little from 73,969,000 gallons (280,000,000 liters) a 
year. The exception occurred during the industrial year 1895-96, 
when the production rose to more than 79,252,500 gallons (300,- 
000,000 liters). From the year 1897-98, however, the production of 
alcohol in Germany made enormous strides. As a result of the 
progress made in the cultivation of potatoes, harvests increased to 
an extraordinary degree. ‘Those yields which formerly were re- 
garded as enormously high were looked upon as barely average. 
From 1896 the potato crops increased annually until in 1901 they 
culminated in a harvest of 107,341,970,000 pounds (17,890,329,000 
bushels), a yield that was attained a second time in 1905. 
That this development should prove of consequence to the distill- 
ing industry was inevitable. The excess of potatoes naturally was 
