The Potter journal. [volume] (Coudersport, Pa.) 1857-1872, 1859-06-23

many reasons, but more especially because
it is INJURIOUS to the morals OF our county !;
defiant Of the laws of the Commonwealth
and the moral sentiment of large majorl-
ty of our people; degrading the character
both Of the vender and purchaser, mas
much as both are oat-lawed by the act !;
and is inconsistent with every principle
of commercial practice. Hence, as a we'll
wisher of the common veal, we are hound
to regret to hear and record the fact stat
ed
2. We have frequently been told by
BOYS and others that "there's whisky
pedlar in town." but we never see any of
their movements. One Swift, Wells
vile liquor-dealer, not long ago came up
to us in the street and asked us if we
wanted to buy some writing paper. He
said he was a /" hardware" dealer, Che took
us for another chap, and brought little
paper along to sell while he took orders
for his hardware" alias, (" strik;c-ntne"
whisky. But we only had his word for
it, and a whisky-smuggler's word is not
worth anything with us. Else we had
made his visit in this direction a hard
,cay. We know there must be some means
by which drinking men get whisky,-they
couldn't i've without little, say two
quarts day each, and the harder the
ware" the better for them, but we were
not aware that -four barrels and sacks were
used to "pull wool over the eyes" of our
citizens. Here again, we must return to
statement number one, and regret this
fact, because the conduct of the three
cheats week compeis us to suspect that
every load of ostensible provisions going
through our streets is really load of
+" kill at 40 rods" in disguise.
3. We are we'll aware that our friend
is "by no means tee-totaller" but, on
the other hand, is one of the kind Of men
who believe in drinking just when and
where he pleases, although he never, by
immoderate drinking, violates q proper
respect for his manhood or the pleasure of
those with whom he associates. But (ad-
dressing ourselves to all "moderatc drink
ers") are you certain that you can alaoays
control that which is certainly an unnat-
ural appetite? Are you sure that your
example and arguments when in the So
ciety of those younger than you, and who
look upon your conduct as IN some de-
gree worthy of emulation, (though it be
only to palliate their own offences against
their well-marked moral convictions J, does
not directly influence the destruction OF
several moral characters annually? Do
you not, by claiming to control your APP
petite, set up your judgment against an
Omnipotent Will,-that is to say, My
self-control is greater than Gods power
over me, and I will not fear to trust it
against his unknown dispensations !"
Think of this, friend.
f. So does every well-disposcd citizen
of every neighborhood, hate TO see men"
dispensing poison surreptitiously," at
any per cent. but if it is wrong to do it
+" surreptitiously," is it not even more so
to legalize the business. The very best
whisky made, when used indiscriminately,
is poisonous to both the physical and men
tai faculties of man and that which God
has by Natures code outlawed, should al
SO be outlawed by human enactments.
We do not recognize the right of man to
legalize the annual destruction of large
number of his fellow creatures, and We
therefore cannot entertain the suggestion
relative to revenue. We trust that our
friend will never so far depart from rea-
sons laws as to sincerely believe that a
revenue levied upon the proriscuous sale
of intoxicating liquors is not a premium
which sin is paying for the souls of men.
1t makes none "the less matter" as to the
quality OF refined condition of the poison
sold-the influence is just as great in de-
stroying the mental and physical faculties
of man, the difference being only a ques-
tion of time and preferment.
6. The paragraph above answers, in
part, the question of our correspondent
but in addition we will say, that men who
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