The Belmont chronicle, and farmers, mechanics and manufacturers advocate. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1848-1855, 1853-08-05

tendencics--ns the law Of last wintet. giving |
legislative powers TO Trustees OF Townships, |
(which brings TO mind the saying; IL YOU put a
Monkey In china shop IL can do no g0od and |
may do much harm,) and they, like the Trustees
Of Kirkwood township, or should have laid a
majority Of them mstaking the word may for |
must, have entered upon the duties with a zest |
only known to those, (who like the swcarcr
who changed coats with the old Quaker, he did
not swear any while he had IL on, but
he had an eternal itching to cheat
our Trustees entered upon the duty
with gusto only known TO those who selt an e.
tcrna itching to have the world, and all the rest
OF ofmankind to know that such shining lights,
such brilliant scholars, such profound legisla-
tors as John II Johnson and Jesse G. Cowgirl,
hailed from kirkwood Township, and that they
could not only enact an ordinance, but could say
what should be deemed the meaning Of the Stat
ute, also,-hence | believe the time has come
that, with every other man who is opposed to
such legislation, should lay aside all scrupes and
unite and say to those who advocate such legs-
lations; if you have right by law to say to us
what we shall drink, you have the same right to
say to US what we shall cut, what we shall wear
and what we shall believe, from all Of which we
beg leave TO dissent. II is to the principle Of the
thing we object, we are not the advocates of in
temperance no more than they are, yet VIC have
some confidence in our abilities to keep sober
And void respectfully ask ifthere oreany here
who are advocates of legal suasioD; what induc-
ed you to forcgo, to renounce the use Of spiritu-
Gus or fermented liquor? Was it the effect Of
laws and ordinances passed, either by the gene
raj assembly, or by trustees of townships,o' was
IL OF your own free votion, an effort OF the will
guided in its decision by reason, that Heavenly
attribute that distinguishes mon from the brute
Then in the name Of liberty, in the name Of
common sense, in the name Of all that is dear
to freemen, and in the name of God himself,
leave us to be guided in our choice as you have
been. We are rational creatures, fashioned.
by the same almighty hand that you we've, en-
dowed with all those heavenly aspirations that
makes man mmortal; then why arrogate to
yourselves the especial guardianship of the pub.
lie morals-why in effect say to u.s. as we have
| constituted ourselves your especial guardians we
will hedge you in lest You do something hurtful
to yourselves, your neighbor,or corrupt the NOR.
ais of the rising generation. And who, | pray,
| yon, are those who set themselves up as the es.
pecial friends of ftemperance-how many Of them
my friends have you behel1 what the sailors
call three sheets in tho wind-how many OF
them have been engaged in the manufacture or
sale Of this life destroying poison, (as they call
it, and yet will have the arrogance TO set them
selves up rs models of temperance, and who
have the impudence, not to call il by any harsh
or namo, to call all those lwho do not subscribe
to their greedy Drunkards, Tipplers, ,Grogselers,
Rumsuckers, Anarchists, High priests of Bac-
chus, CaatlIumpians, with all the epithets that
the lowest billingsgate slang can iEvent--to cal
men by those names, men who never breathed
any thing elso but sober breath all their days
yet because these men see at least honestly J
believe thoy do, n blow aimed at both civil and
religious liberty, covertly aimed by a class oil
men banded together under the imposing name
OF Sons Of Temperance, and because they feel i
to be their right and duty az freement to point t.
where they believe they see the danger and t.
uulr Iaro Of 81 ~ sl,o..
rights, and to warn the public that they will
not suffer those rights to be trampled on with im
punity. Why sirs, all the malgnancy that wa
ever concoctUd in He'll itself must be poured ou
on them.
But let me say to you that it is my firm con
viction that all the human legislation enact
ments can ever be passed will not lessen The
quantity of intoxicating liquors drank. Tn,
spirit of hostility implanted in the breast Of eve
ry man TO anything like an impertnent inter
ference OF one part of community, with tho con
vcntional notions of the balance, no matter how
r pure their motives, no matter from whence il oma
mates, it will meet with that contempt it iustl,
: deserves; it has tendency to awaken hostility
to it's authors and their purposes, and rea ction i
the consequence, and your temperance caus
will retrogrude moro rapidly than il ever ad
vancod, and l will say to you now, the presen
step 80 far overlapping tho bounds of prudenc,
has placed the temperance cause far behind wha
u
portion Of our citizens who drink wine, beer, o.
other liquors, who are yet to be convinced they
ure doing any hurt, either to themselves Of
neighbors; they know the ablest and most taion
ted men in the land drink, the most shinin,
lights Of all ages drank in moderation and will
neither justify or condemn them for it, but on,
thing is certain, men will drink and no powo
on earth can prevent il; then would say to vol
nll-confnc your efforts to mitigate tho evi
which do believe il is vain, yea childish, [,
seek to destroy. What effect will your ordn
unce or your Maine law either have on commu
ntyi Those IF us who nre yet to be convinced
that the temperate use of wine or. alchoc Ii
quors il wrong, and are not willing to be gagged
why sirs we will needs bring 1t home by tn,
quantity to our domestic firesdes, and there fa
nliiarize our wives and children to its use.
tell you, my temperance friends, men will no
suffer themselves to bo choked out of even O
nero folly. But while man had faith in man
the principles of moral suasion were considered
all sufficient to reform the bascst Drunkard, o
tho most determined dealer, all must admit Oh,
: arm Of intcmpennce was Observation-Disclosures
vanished before that truly christian remedy
But men; christians have not only lost faith IL
man, but faith In God and his revelation. They
now tell us we must have something else, what
that something else is, the Kirkwood township
ordinance disclosos-tbe Statute book-whos,
principlcsare coercion and Of mans originating
| Think ye protesting christians OF laying aside
tho command to overcome evil with good, and o
adopting tho doctrine that il thy brother er
imprison him. ls this the doctrine of christian
temperance men-n,en who have given up the
command of God and the Bible rs having spent
| its force, and embraced the law of man and the
Statute book, fines and the dungeons as the mos
potent remedy for sin. llut we live in great
age, the age OF Spiritual rupping and spiritual
manifestation. The age of temperance rofor m
ers, and ! may add; the age of ordinances. We
have outlived the age of good old fashioned Re
publicanism, tho days Of old fashsionod christi
anity, when they believed it to be their right
and enjoyed tho privilege Of worshipping God
according to tho dictates of their own conscience O.
when men looked upon tho word OF divine rovola.
tlon as the only rule Of faith and practice; when
men considered the Bible US oil sufficient TO guide
and direct them in all truth, and the preaching
OF the gospel OF Jesus us oil powerful in the con.
version OF sinners. But il il written, God made
man upright; but ho has sought out many in.
ventions, (wonder il tho Kirkwood ordinance bo
one Of thenh) ever since the time old Noah
drank too freely of tho juice Of tho grape, alco.
holic liquors have injured society now Noah was
mn N wa hau Is~(.