Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1859-09-15
For the Yorkville Enquirer.
LETTER NO. I.

For the Yorkville Enquirer
LETTER MOL.
To JESSE, who is Distller. habitual Drinker,
and a Retail Vsnder of Spirituous Liquors, and,
protssssdly, a Christian man:
My Dear Sir: I am happy to find, that have
met with one distiller who appecls to the Holy
Bible, as the rule and standard of his faith and
practice in his distillation Of sprituous liquors.
both to the precepts and examples in that Holy
Book. find that you contend by the Holy Bible,
that it is moral for yourself and others to distill
whisky and all spirituous liquors, and to drink
tail. find also, that you repudiate all temper
ance and total abstinence societies Of men and
women as in error, and as pests to good society,
and enemies to the liberty Of men. q,
My Dear JESSE: I challenge you to shew in
ell the Bible, one moral precept or example, which
is your warrant to do these things. lido deny that
one such precept or example is in all the Holy
Scripture, as warrants you to distl, habtually to
drink, and to selat retail, any sprituousliq liquors to
be consumed by drinking at your pleasure.
know that the arts and trades, and medicine, re-
quire alcohol in some measure in their use !; to
distill for these, grant is moral, but to distill
spurious liquors with the intention that they be
consumed in habitual drinking, even unto drunk
enness, is immoral the law and the testimony.
All things are the property Of the Lord, and
men are stewards, and responsible to him for
their stewardship. For convenience, will con-
slider the distllston, the drinking, and the retail
vending of spurious liquors, apart and separately
l. OF the distillation of spiritous liquors. JEs-
Sc, you contend that the wine-making Of the Bi-
Bile is moral-that the distilation Of whisky, &c.,
is the same in process, and the result the same,
and is, therefore, moral also.
Ans. That wine-making from the juice of the
grape is moral do grant, and that the distillation
of whisky, &c., per Sc. is moral, do not deny;
but that the making Of either one, with the inten
tion that they be consumed in habitual drinking,
even unto drunkenness, is immoral The guilt
ness of distlling whiskey &c., consists in the ntsn
ton of the dstiller accompanying his action.
1t is useless here to quibble, by saying you have
no control over the form Of the consumption Of the
liquors distilled by you; whether they be applied
to one of the arts, trades, or medicine, &c.. the
question here i, what is your intention in the dis
tillation? Ifyou do dstil liquors with tie inten-
tion that they do be consumed in drinking them,
even unto drunkenness, then for you to distill is
immoral, because your intention is immoral in
distillng them.
You plead here, that the Lord Jesus Christ
made water into wine John 2.) with the intention
that it should be consumed by drinking it OF q
marriage feast at Cana in Gallilee; his sanction
here to drink it, made it moral, hence you argue,
that for you to distill sprituous liquors with the
intention that this also be consumed by drinking
it, is also moral.
Ans. Wine made of simple water, and by Al
mighty power, and for special occasion, is one
thing; but spirituous liquors distilled from fer
mented malt beer, by human power, for no espe-
cial occasion, is another and very different
thing. However, if you do distill whisky &c.,
out of simple water, do not here contest with
you the morality Of so doing, even when accom-
panied with the intention that this may be con-
sumed in drink; but if you do distill spirituous
liquors from fermented malt beer, &c., with the
said intention, do deny the morality thereof,
sanctioned by this example Of the Lord. The
whole face Of the thing is different and disagree
ing.
Again. You say, that on the said occasion Of
said marriage in Cana in Gallilee, another wine
was provided with the intention that it be con-
sumed in drinking it. You contend that this was
wine made of the fermented juice Of grapes, and
on this account is on parity with whisky, &C.. ;
and you argue, that since this wine was provided
with the said intention, and sanctioned as moral
by the Lord Jesus, so whisky may be provided by
distillation with such intention also.
Ans. know another wine was provided at this
feast, to be drank by the guests who were called
to this marriage sand both Jesus was called and
his disciples to this marriage, and when they
wanted wine," or ''the wine having fallen short, "
&c. But, that this was wine made of "the fer
nented juice of grapes" find not, nor that it is
on O parity with whisky; and that whisky may be
distilled with the intention to be drank at mar
riage feasts, I find not. You have assumed too
much.
Here JESSE, you ask for the evidence of an
intention in distiller, for the consumption of his
= Ii
Ans When distiller advocates his right to dis
still spurious liquors to be consumed in drink,
and to be retailcd for drink it is high proof of his
intention; he thus himself declares his intention.
2nd When distiller makes no other form of al-
cohol, (for the use Of the arts, trades, and med-
cines) but the diluted form called whisky, bran
dy, &c., or "raw spirits" which is consumed in
drinks it is high proof of his intention in distil-
ling them. g. When distiller makes war against
reform in drinking in society, and against oil
Temperance societies" which set up pledge of
s'total abstinence against the making, drinking,
and selling all spirituous liquors, &C." and when
he advocates the morality, lawfuness, and health
fulness of drinking his kind of liquors. it is incon-
testabe proof of his intention in distilling them,
viz: for drink.
JESSE, you here denounce the rule by which
your distilation of spirituous liquors, with the
intention that these be consumed in drink, is made
immoral. answer. In so doing, you directly
or indirectly violate all, nearly every command
ment in the Decalogue. BIBLE. Exod 20. lst.
The first commandment requires, that you ''glori-
fly God as your God, in honorng, loving, delight