The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1884-07-15 00:00:00


ANOTHER LARGE TEMPERANCE GATHERING.

Another large gathering in connection with the
temperance clause we, hell in St. Mary's schoolroom
on Monday evening, when the attendance was surry
uutnerous. The rector. the Rev. J. H. Seutt, occupied
the chair. and was supported by the Rev. H. Pelham
Stekee, Rey. Owen Manse], Rev. Canon Stephenson,
and the Rev.—Kennedy. After singing the hyena
" Itmcne the perishing," the Chairman offered up
prayer, and afterward. &Linseed the meeting. Ile
expreess.l the great pleasure he always felt in taking
part in meetings such as tho present ens. The society
rec outlined three principles, one of which WM ih3t it
enlisted everybody in the work. It was founded on
what was °ailed the olouhle laws—that all, whether
abstainers or moderate drinkers, could aenlet in the
cons,. They cleared to improves newt all that it Wee
• question in which everybody was interested. It was
a *eclat question, a•od the operatic., of the society
were based upon Christian principles. Wherever the
&temente/ went they p 4 side by site with the tem-
perance work the gospel of .70,11.1 Christ. He woe
very glad t say that in that pariah they had a very
'wciehing Band of hope, and he hoped theme parents
trasent would be stirre 1 up that evening t o make
their children join it. The hymn "Stan I up, stand
up for Jesus" WM then sung, after which the Rev.
Pelham Stokes delivered a tmg adolros.. He said he
hat wondered why he had been asked to come there
and speak after they had j out hat such a splendid
meeting, but he believed they culd not have too
many meetings of that sort, and he W 65 therefore very
pleased to be present. A frien I whom he met in the
train said to him that the Blue Ribbon Army was
making • revolution, and a thorough change in the
nation. The Yeomanry week at Weymouth waa very
different now from what it used to be, an I the young
mon ii.ste pl of spending their money in the way they
formerly .lld were to ow steady, eel returned to thsir
homes ic health, instead of having t coil in the tontoor
at the close of the traluiag. He (the speaker)
had not known what a day's illness was
since toe put hi. Inn I to the pie Igo. 1141:1
had come to him anti ukal him t enrol them as they
saw he was wearing the blue ! ibbon, and he thanked
God for that little piece of ribber!. was wanted
some time ago to speak at Winchester, and when he
got mac at the station he noticed five p orters wearing
the blue ribbon, and directly they SAW him with Ilia
piece on they realised tower Is him, and wanted too
carry his little bag, lie told them he could carry it,
and he than notlyed several passenger' on the plat-
form calling for portent. By wearing ths blue ribbon
he thought they could be • greet help to others. !le
hardly knew in speaking on temper-nice matters where
to heeto ; he c onl.l take the a seal rile and ho could
take the thrift side, but there were a few observations
he .lesired to make. and he h tool they would not
object to • little homely chit chat from • rustic
oeuntry panon. Man's help was very little, and what
they wanted to recognise w. that Jesus wee the
perfect man, and the same yesterlay and to-day and
tor ever, Let them make iiioA their beano Friend,
they could not do anything .for the cause hula.
they laid down their lives for the brethren. Some
wonderful temperance miasi one had been held, 6111 he
(the speaker) had receive.l so many Levitation/ to
attend meetings that he hardly knew •nostiones what
to de, and he remembered NICKI hearing his old coach-
man say as he brought him th o tenth telegram that
day. This will shorten maeter's life.' (Laughter.)
lo order to keep up the work of these missions, they
wanted weekly meetings In every pariah, and he
Intended to start them lot he owe parish at ono*.
They w.oull be varlet, one went I boa right down good
hot It unperance meeting, auoth.-r would be a prayer
meeting, and the third would be of another
description; their meeting, would be • refuge, and he
wanted every wee in his parish t know that they
would be free and *nay meetings, and that all who
attended them woull he welcomed. They hat male
a rule that every member of their deciety should take
up a caw. lie had a little coabler to take charge of,
and he got him to take the plehte. Afterwards he
sent him and hi. wife • (Itch of bacon ant soon,
gruceriea, and the next time when he called to owe
them he found them vary happy, and the wife said
the flitch came in very handy. (Laughter.) Their
work without sympathy would cams very far short of
Perfection. fftwolosthe was love, and they were not
only to tell their friewlit that they level them, but
to prove to them their love. He related
the caw of a honaekesper who told him of her
love for Mr. Moody, and spoke in • dis-
paraging tone of the Church of E ogland clergymen,
who wore colt and reserved. Ile thought that was
lopoon f ir him, an.l hid termined too learn it. After
urging co eperati-po and no half-beartados., the rev.
gentleman allude I to the readiness with which clergy-
men were fount to go out to the leper hospital, to cer-
tain death, st the bid n.r.of :,!!! oof • he us isei on ary societie s.
After referring to the attack by C..uvicti on • warder
at Dartmoor last weak, the speaker c oncluded by a
reference to 51r. Cumberland and Ms thoaeht resting,
and said as Mr. Cumber's-id could not succee 1 in his
thou.rht reading in the House of Cernmong without
bolting the hand of Mr. Astimead B ortlett neither
would thsy be able to carry on the work of the society
hoboes they depended on, and were led by Oct. The
hymn, "There is • gate that stands ajar." wao then
sang. and Mr. Owen Mansel afterwards address el the
meeting. He sahl this was his third meeting denier
his stay in Weymouth that he bad had the pleasure
of addressing. Ile wanted them to look at the Toes-
thou in • reasonable manner, and to know thst the
reason why they should j yin Lbs soci-ti and try to :
stamp out this evil was that it waa ,he parent of co
many of their sin.. (Hew, hew.) The rev, gentle-
man refetred to the case of suicide of • young man in
the Mersey, who had reeineatel tly 'ten °enfeebles shouti
be mad, shout him, as his life hid been wretchel
through hia having given way to drink, and coil th it
WO or 300 letters were received from parent, asking
fur • desoription of the unfortunate young 0n.., an
evidence of the havoc the drink was .hoing
with the young men. He WA, a few years ,
ago one of the guardians of the Wareham Union,
and it was his duty to oso round the house and inspect
It. On one occasion he noticed • little chilii, whoops
: peculiar look attracted him, and on the next time he
went r mud the house hews, t old that the little fell-,w
wee deal. Ile decide) to make enquiries about the
chilt, ant founl that the parents were given to int -tu-
parance, c. midi not agree, ant hal separated. The
man went away with the chill, aril after an a'oseoce
returned ant decide] to leave his child with his
brother. Oa the parent leaving the hones, the chill
clung to him, and the father, then giving the child a
knife to play with, male his wane, and WWI never I
beard of again. Ile thanked God that that little child I
had gone into thy arms of a kinder Parent than ha had
on earth. If thla took place in the country whet, the
rev. gentleman asked, must be the Buffering, of the ,
poor on the large cities—they ware terrible to think I
of. an lit was for them to try arpi rem ore this great
blot on their country, The julgeo told them that
drunkenness! we, the canoe of much of the crime
committed, an-i Lord Justice Litallsy recettly raid '
that if it were nOt for the drink noue tooth/ of the
'stilton" could be shut up. The speaker then went
Into figures te prove that abstainer, lived longer than
moderate drib:ikon, and sold in en insurance eoni.wy
of 1,110 deaths of the abetaioera expected to take ,
place only 001 occurred, but of 2,002 &moths '
moderate drinkers expected 1977 ready occurred.
Referring to • Court of F..resters sd 150 memb.rs,
of whom 45 were teetotallers, and the amount of nick
pay paid away was ECod, be sail the amount to whieh
the abstainere were entitled was L'2o, but they did soot
receive any. (Laughter.) They must straggle against
the temptation, and Good would help them. Parents
knew the temptatlons their chitiren woul I have to
contend with, and weal they not by example bring
them up in strict sobriety? He urged the ladies to
nes their influence, as they could do ranch among •
certain section of H.3,1.'8 aubject.—(laughtst) -andlbi
rained the tale of the young lady who had so many

admirers whilst on board ship that she went to the
capt tin to know what eho cull I. He &demi bee
to throw herself overboar I, cc the wetsr was cslin and
three waa td,t any •(anger, and dee which of her lovers
remit comet, her reecoe. :in, dli so, and found
that three out of four jutnis-d overboard &S.A. her.
This pot her in q Ul7O • pre tic ,inent, and guilts to the
rapt ,in ehe Nola sought his 01, ice. if., then advised
her to take the dry I MIL Oa ILO Ism/liter.) His
hesrets coati apply the case i them.etves. and he
believed if they did the same —to k the dry ones—
they w ,uld be hsppier. (I.anghter.)—Csnon Stephen-
son was called upon to easy • tsw words. He thought
very few causes would dew inch gatherings as their
Ivo temperance meeting' had. He spoke of the evil
drink wee doing, and urond them all to j ,in in lizliting
agsio,t it.—The meeting dna dog/dim the 'burl way.