The Belmont chronicle, and farmers, mechanics and manufacturers advocate. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1848-1855, 1853-10-07

e them Tor.
/. J recollcct once reading description Ct tn
i. Paradise of fools---but had better say moth
: ing about that les, bring the whole hiv
upon me. But have already done so--bu
like drones they are stingless. They ar
, like snarling ours who run behind and snaI
and bark. They have not the moral courage
to face the music openly. | never believes
in the Indian mode Of warfare, to hide be
hind rocks and trees, in swamps and chap
parels, | never believed in bushwhackng. |
my nameless assailants will have the manly
courage to come openly TO the light, thel
may elicit passing notice. Until then al
l will say is, o, that mine enemy might write
book, and that book might contain an Ow
story, and be signed s. s. l had INTENDED
to take view of this professed temperance
crusade religiously (pardon me ye professors
| am not going to commit sacrilege) Re
ligion, says certain author, "may be COM
pretended under two general heads-what
we are to believe, and what we are TO prac-
tice. What we are to believe are all those
things revealed to US in the Holy writings
called the book of divine revelation, and what
we could not have acknowledge OF by the light
of nature. What we are to practice, are all
those duties to which we are directed by rea-
son and by natural religion. The first is styl-
ed faith, the second morality. Some lay SO
much stress on faith they neglect morality, O.
some so much on morality they pay no regard to
faith. The perfect man should be defective In
neither. Nonecan be perfect in their schemes OF
morality who do not add to it the faith OF the chr:
tian and they need apprehend no danger to theiI
morality from IT, Pure and unc ,rruPted christi
anity iseasily distinguished from the spurious
kind, by its never prosecuting men for opinions
sake. 1t never imbitters the mind with indigna'
ton, nor does it use spurious pretexts to ensnare
men to profes what they do not believe.
Neither does it engender stri(es and brols in
society, to distress their neighbors, to injure
their regulations by calumny. by backbIting,
by secret intrgues, cndeavoring to ruin their
families by making their lives painful or by
destroying tn EN-. When see such conse-
quences arising from principle, will ut
terly discard it. cannot make it part of
my religion. The principle that actuates is
plainly not of divine origin. If religion pro-
duced charity as well as zeal, it would not
show itsel: in acts of cruelty and hatred.
Our Maine Law friends are seeking to man
ufacture public opinion in favor of enacting
u law to prohibit the manufacture and sale
of Wine and other alchoholic liquors, con-
trary to that rule Of right laid down by the
great law-giver Of the universe-the scrip
lures of divine truth-in that where will you
find the manufacture g. sale Divine forbidden!
But our professed temperance reformers
seem to hold to the doctrine Of supererogation
that by doing more than their duty in GER
tain externals, they calculate to lay up stock
of merit to balance their short comings and
transgressions in the other particulars. This
doctrine was taught by the Pope of Rome,
some six hundred years ago. But. say the
advocates of the Maine Law, remove the
temptation and men will not commit the sin.
Why, sirs, Christ himself suffered temptation
in order to show his ability to overcome the
tempter, and to set all example to his follow
ers and encourage them, by promisngto to sue
cor all those who put their trnst in him. But
professors who advocate the Maine Law are
unwilling to bear the cross of Christ-they
have found an easier way to Heaven than by
bearing the cross. The Maine Law will save
them of that burthen. There was an old
canting on the evils of liquor selling. A wag
being present asked him what made him quit
the busl.iess! HIS reply was, because it was
wrong. He then asked who set him, to do
ing wrong! His reply was, the Devil. He
then asked if the Devil was his partner. His
reply was, that he believed he was. The wag
then said, saw him few days ago, and he
requested me to say to you he wanted his
share of the profits. How many of the OLD
liquor sellers who now advocate the Maine
Law would be willing to divide the profits, i
J they honestly believe they done wrong ir
taking the poor inebriate's money for naught
or what they call worse than naught! Why
not make restitution, Why not pay over tC
the families the poor starving, famished fam
. lilies of the drunkurd, which is the only evi
| dence they can give the world Of the sinceri
ty of their repentance is to make restitution
so far as in their power to do so. But coul'
point to some who would rather thrust thei
/ hand arm and all into He'll fire itself to pro
cure dime than to give cent of their i'll
t gotten gains to feed the famished families o
) the poor, degraded drunkard, that they pro
fess so much false sympathy for. To hea
them talk and read their horrifying picture
of the misery and starvation arising from in
temperance, we might be led to believe over
it not that we know it mostly the offsprin
/ OF dstempered magination;) that our -four
, ishing State was mere Lazar house. Money
l 1t is said, is the root of all evil, which easily
) accounts for the pocket argument used by tn
r advocates of the Maine Law. That argument
: based on false hypothesis, that if the Main'
r Law was in force it would remit our taxes
: depopulate our jals and poor-house, schoo
S our children, and that crime and poverty wou
a be unknown IN our land, it would be pana
cea for all the ills that flesh is heir to, i
a would speedily usher in the Millennium.
There is certain Maine Law scribbler il
!, the county papers, he signs his production J
w. N, know not what those letters stan
/, for, without it be Jack Writes Nonsense. H
: is true Son of Temperance, for like ther
9 he shuns the light. He says, "the self-style
y Sons of Liber;y had a meetingin Kirkwood
0 Well, il we are self-s,yled Sons of Liberty