The following report is from the Yorkshire Telegraph and Star dated 15th January 1907. It was written by the papers Special Commissioner and brought the readers of the newspaper up to date on "the hardened topers who take methylated spirits".

Drinking to excess amongst the lower orders was a constant theme in the nineteenth century press. Throughout the century, reports and editorials highlighted the lamentable evils that arose from over-indulgence in drinking. For instance the Sheffield and Rotherham Independent dated Friday March 17th 1837 stated

“It is a melancholy fact that Mr. Badger the coroner of Sheffield has within the short space of ten days had occasion to hold inquests on 13 persons who have come to their deaths by accidents solely from indulging in the baneful vice of drunkenness"

The same newspaper 23 years later (Sheffield and Rotherham Independent) dated Thursday February 9th 1860 noted that 

“The Sheffield Coroner within ten days held six inquests into cases of death caused by drunkenness, and the number of children who had been left fatherless in those six cases was between 25 and 30.”

The reasons for the prevailing abuse of alcohol by the lower classes are many and varied and these were discussed and debated ad-nauseum by the political and professional classes. Numerous attempts were made to resolve the problem but none succeeded. The above report states that the drinking of methylated spirits had increased markedly in the late nineteenth century and so the Customs and Excise demanded that the spirit would need to be adulterated with a noxious tasting vegetable oil before it could be sold to the public. It appears that the adulteration of the spirit did work for a time and the incidence of drinking methylated spirits declined. But it was only relatively short lived. It is inferred in the report that an increase in the price of drink generally and the activities of "the temperance bigots" led to a resurgence in meths drinking throughout the country. It also appears that amongst Jews and Scotchmen of the lower orders, the drinking of methylated spirits was deemed to be a socially accepted custom - hints of anti-semitism and racism?

But the problem that bedeviled the authorities was that  methylated spirits was widely used in the home and at work and there were no restrictions on its sale. And it was cheap compared to other forms of alcohol As the chemist stated, he could refuse to sell the spirit to a customer but that customer would just go elsewhere to get "topped up."

It is comforting to note that the article ends on a note of optimism - the dealers who sell the spirit were unanimous in saying that "the vice is not so prevalent as it was" and that those who still indulge "in one of the most obnoxious and vicious forms of drinking" are confined to the most demoralised drinkers of the "submerged tenth"    

Sources

Yorkshire Telegraph and Star dated 15th January 1907

Sheffield and Rotherham Independent dated Friday March 17th 1837

Sheffield and Rotherham Independent dated Thursday February 9th 1860