Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1859-09-22
For the YorkvIlle Enquirer.
LETTER NO. q.

professedty, Christian man: .."
My Dear Sir I'm my letter mo. 1.) to you,
showed that the dstillation Of spirituous liquors,
with On intention in the distller that these be con-
sumed in drink, is immoral. now. proceed to
address myself to you, who is habitual and daily
drinker of said distilled liquors. -,
I'd. Of drinking pirituous Hquors.-You do
claim it moral in yourself and Others to drink
wine and whiskey, &C., when, where and in what
measure you please, provided this. be no. unto
drunkenness or excess, to staggering or falling.
Ans.-Here you do set up the ariW of the drink
er, the rule Of his right action in this matter /;
whereas, do find the Holy BIBLE; the only rule
for man in all his moral duties. Conformity and
non conformity to the Bible rule in the agent, is
what makes mans actions right or wrong
"Cursed is every one that continueth not in all
things written in the Book of the Law, to do them"
Gal. 3:10. The will of the drinker, therefore,
Is not his rule for=the morality of the drinking
spirituous liquors, the Bible only is the rule.
JESSE, you do claim to find in the Bible war
rant to drink wine, &c., at your pleasure short
Of drunkenness, in the practice Of the antedelu-
Wan world, Luke 1925, 81. .. b. - --.
,Ans.-There is no evidence here or elsewhere,
that the antedeluvians drink wine, whiskey, &C.,
or that these were known to them at all (; nor,
that this drinking was Of wine at oil. 1t may
have been any form of det-drink, as in Matt IL:
IS, 10. And even if this drinking was of wine,
or of strong drink, 1t is not divine warrant for
your benefit; for we know, that for the wicked
ness of the antedeluvians world, "the floods came
and destroyed them ALL"
But sir, you do profess to find in the diet-drink
of the Israelites in Palestine, warrant, divine
warrant, for your drinking fermented wine, &c.,
at meals. r
Ans-Thore were many sorts of wine made
and drank in Palestine, (Neh. s: 49, and for
aught which appears to the contrary, their diet
drinks was sweet -wine-the juice of grapes-the
unfermented wine. But no doubt "the drunkards
of Ephraim" did often overstep the boundary line
of right, and did drink the fermented wine at
meals and at other times; but, even this is no
divine warrant for you to do the same thing
This is no more than historical fact recorded in
the Bible, even as Abraham is there reported to
have had o concubine, and Jacob his two wives
This record does not make these moral.
But sir, you also claim the example of our Lord
in Matt II 10, for divine warrant to drink fer
mented wine, &c., at your pleasure, short of in
toxication.
Ans.-"John the Baptist came neither eating
nor drinking" but was abstemious and austere in
his manners, Matt. 8: 4 IL: 18, 10. "The son of
man came eating and drinking; )" but this does not
say of "fermented wine." "He came in more free
and social manner than did John he ate and
drank such things as were set before him without
austerity he partook of entertainments as cir
cumstances required and for this his enemies
called him glutton and wine bibber;" not that
he habitualy drank of "fermented wine" at meals:
but that he did eat and drink as did social men,
The Greek Pinon (drinking) here used, is from
Pine ITO drink); and is applied to water (Jno 4
"A; Mark 9 :41,) TO blood (Jno 6 SO, 56.) to
wine rom. l4:2l.) 1t means simply to drink of
any cup. luke 13: 26,) JESSE, you have here
seized on the SANDER Of our Lord to underprop
your drinking wine, whiskey, &c., at your COM
mon meals.
But, dear JESSE, you do claim it moral even
by the Bible, to drink wine, whisky, &c., at your
pleasure, short of drunkenness. .~
Ans.-NoH, my dear sir, be pleased here, dis
tinctly, to define your true position, in order that
may know what you mean BY the word "drunk-
enness." What is drunkenness ?" Drunkenness
has been defined by some men to mean "drammi-
ness-one, Two, three sheets in the wind-tipsi-
s-fuddled-top phearness-into1-
ication-disorder of the faculties with fermented
liouors-habitual inebrity-excess in drinking
wine or strong drink. Some say drunkenness"
consists in every degree Of influence in the drink
er by wine, whisky, Sc. Others say it consists in
staggering, falling, or inability to help ones
self when under the influence of wine, &c. Some
saw drunkenness" consists in the habitual or da
ly drinking of wine, whisky, &C., from the love of
the taste of it, or Of its effects upon the system.
Men seem to have no standard by which to mea-
sure and decide on "drunkenness;" therefore,
know not what you dear JESSE, mean by "drunk-
enness."
The definition Of drunkenness" as given in the
Bible, is the only standard do acknowledge. and
I do trust you will abide by it, viz: An erring
through the influence Of wine or strong drink
q seeking of mixed wine-a tarrying long at the
Wne-a habtual seeking of wine, or strong drink
a being smitten with wine when not sick-a be-
ing beaten without sensation Of it, through the in
huence of wine, or strong drink. Thus IN the oid
Testament.
In the New Testament, "drunkenness'' is inc
briation with wine, or strong drink-a heing fill
ed with wine, &C., las opposed to emptiness)-a
being fed with wine las opposed to hunger)-e1-
cess in drinking wine, &c., as opposed to sobrety)
"a habitual drinking Of wine, &c.-a slipping or
sliding with wine, &C."
The ground question here to be answered is
this: What is the line of demarka.ion here, where
sohriety ends, and Drunkenness begins? Let US
here attend to the asnwer of the Holy Scriptures
the voice of God. st. Paul Gays, "Be not drunk
with wine, wherein is excess" Eph., 5: l8. Here
we are taught "drunk" is one thing, aud excess in
drinking is another thing, else he has said, "Be
not under the excessive influence Of wine, wherein
is excess, which is tautology.
Drunk" with wine, in Eph. 5: lS, is expressed
by the Greek m methuskesth c, this is from
ethuo TO drink t0ine, whether to intoxication
or not and is significant of two conditions in the
drinking of wine, viz: To drink freely, and to
cheerfulness, though not to drunkenness, or to
drink wine to "cxcess." In this first sense it is
used in John, 2: 10, in allusion to the manage
ment of some other feasts. The Septuagint, or
Greek Bible has this word I'm ct huo) in Gen.
43: a., 'And when theyshad drank, and been
plentifully RECALLED with him, Joseph, &c." Italso
occurs in Song of Solomon 6: l, II have drank my
wine with my milk" And again, in Gen. 9; 81.
Noah "drank of the wine and was regaled. -
Here in all these cases we have m eth 10 usedin
good, or Indifferent sense, viz: to drink soins,
and not as meaning an 'srcess" or inebriasion.-
There is drinking of wine, &c., therefore, not