The Ashland union. [volume] (Ashland, Ashland County, Ohio) 1854-1868, 1855-01-31

AAC ODJCOS OA ny pECocAb NCpAJ 10 "
state the case just as 1t is: First, that
for ten years the anguish of my spirit
has been indescribable, the sense of my
danger staring, but the consciousness of
my guilt worse than all 1 have prayed
with drops of agony on my brow; trem-
bling not only bofore the justice of my
Maker, but even before the mercy of my
Redeemer. " I gave thee so many tall
ents, what hast thou done with them ?''
Secondly, overwhelmed, as am with a
sence of my direful in6rmity, I have
never attempted to disguise or conceal
the cause. On the contrary, not only
to friends have I stated my whole case
with tears and the very bitterness of
shame, but in two instances l have war
ned young men, mere acquaintances, who
have spoken of having taken laudanum,
of the direful consequences by an awful
expositiono fits tremendous effets upon
myself. Thirdly, though before God 1
cannot lift up my eyelids, and only do
not despair of his mercy, because to
despair would be adding crime to crime
yet to my fellow men I was seduced to
the accursed habit ignorantly. [ had
been almost bed-r,ddep for many months
with swelling in my knees. IN . mod
cal Journal 1 unhappily met with az ac-
count of cure performed IN a similar
case Tor what appeared to me SOY by rub
bing iu of laudanum, at the same time
taking given dose internally. 1t ae-
ted like a charm, like miracle recov-
cred the use of my limbs, of my appe-
tite, of my spirits, and this continued
for near a fortnight. At length the
usual stimulus subsided, the complaint
returned, the supposed remedylwas incur
red too; but L cannot go thro ugh the
dreary history. Suffice it to say that
effects were produced which acted upon
me by terror and cowardice of pain and
sudden death, not ESQ help me Cody by
any temptation of pleasure or desire
of exciting pleasureable sensations.
On the very contrary, Mrs. Morgan and
her sister will bear witness so far as to
say that the longer I abstained the
higher my spirits were, the keener my
enjoyments, till the moment, the direful
moment, arrived when my pulse began
to palpitate, and such dreadful falling
abroad as it VISA of my whole frame,
such intolerable restlessness and incipi-
ent bewilderment, that in the last of my
several attempts to abandon the dire
poison 1 exclaimed in agony, which 1
now repeat in seriousness and solemnity
am too poor to hazard this Had
1 but few hundred pounds, but E200,
half to send to Mrs Coleridge and half
to place myself in a private nsad-hOatse,
where could procure nothing but what
physician thought proper, and where
q medical attendant could be constantly
with me for two. or three months, lin
less than that time life or death would
be determined,) then there might be
hope now there is none 0 God how
willingly would 1 place myself under
DIR. Fox, in his establishment; for my
case is a species of madness only that it
is a arrangement, an utter impotence Of
the UoLitio1s and not of the intellectual
faculties. You did me rouse myself
Go bid man paralytic in both arms to
rub them briskly together and that will
cure him. Alas he would reply, that
I cannot move my arms in my complaint
and my misery.
+" May God bless you and your affec-
tionate but most afflicted,
S. L. CoLERIDGE."
This, be it remembered, as the case of a
highly intellectual man. Nay, so pow
erful became the habit with Coleridge
that he took from two quarts of laud
anum per week to pint day. On
one occasion he took a quart in twenty
four honrs Imagine the condition of
human being so situated and in needy
circumstances. But that condition
could not be more vividly described
than in the language Of Coleridge him
self
& Dear Sir, for [ am unworthy TO cah
aay good .naH friend. much less you,
8hese hospit ality and ioye | haye abused
accept however. ny entre&ttrs for your
forgiveness and prayers. Corcsive II
poer, n SCRABBLE wCcsch, who for naay
ears has been attempting 10 beat oii
pan by CONSTANT recurrence to the
vice that produces il. Conceive spirit
i'll nell empio.; et ia tracing. out for 9th
ers the road TO that heaven from which
his crimes exclude himi In short, con-
ceive what is most wretched, helpless,
and hopeless, and you will form as toler-
able notion of my state as it is possi-
BILE for good man to have. used to
Inl0K In6 GeXC III OC. u duleS, Iudt NC
who offended in one point ofends in all,
very harsh; but now L see the GaefuI
the tremendous truth Of IL. In the one
crime Of opium what crime ave l not
made myself guilty y-of? Ingratitude to
my Maker, and to my benefactors, injus-
tice and unnatural cruelty to my poor
children; self-contempt for my repeated
promise-breach, nay, too often actual
falsehoodI After my death I earnestly
entreat that full and unqualified nara
ton CT my wretehedness and of its gull
ty causes, may be made public, that at
least some little good may be effected by
the direful example. May God Al
mighty bless you, and have mercy on
your still afectionate and, in his heart,
greatful,
S. T. CoLERIDGE."
Comment is unnecessary. There is;
indeed, no more adject wretch on earth
than the victim Of opium eating. His
anxieties and his agonies may be imag-
ined, but they cannot be described,
According to late census returns, there
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