The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1860-09-30
The Sabbath Committee on sunday Lager
Bier.

the puritanical junta denounce lager bier a. an
Intoxicating drink, producing delirium ire
mens," and in another of their documents"
they call the sale Of 1t on Sunday "a crime"
In the olden time in Massac husetts It would
have been capital felony, without benefit Of
clergy. Besides 26,0 900 unprosec ated complaints
made by the police for violation Of the Sunday
laws by the sale Of liquors, the committee dole
fully lament that there are 1909 unlicensed
venders who may be arrested under the statute
of 1867, and yet are allowed to GO Scot free.
What does all this prove' Surely the vast
majority of the community dc not agree with
the Sabbatarians that to sell, or buy, or drink
lager bier on Sunday is any violation of a
moral law, or Of Divine commandment or a
crime il any sense of the word. Else the fauati
cal laws passed by the black republican Legis-
la.ure, under the influence Of the Sabbath Com
mittee, would be carried out at least a. well
as other enactments That they are to
great extent dead letter and
only serve as source of annoyance and perse
cBtiop, without accomplishing the objects for
which they were enacted, is the plainest con-
demnaticn that can be pronounced against
them. In the words Of the Sabbath Committee,
Every Sunday sale Of liquor is a violation Of
at least four laws-those against all traffic ION
Sunday that against unlicensed liquor selling,
the Metropolitan Police act OF 1857, and the
city ordinances of1s55. Yet, with the republi-
can police under their control, the sabbath.
rians cannot carry out the Sunday laws Why
90? Because they are unconstitutional and at
variance with the spirit of our free Institutions,
aud because infractions of such laws do not in
volve any moral turpitude, or lessen in the
public estimation those who drink glass or
ply them with the innocent and refreshing beve-
rage.
Az for lager bier being al Intoxicating drink
and producing frequent delirium tremens, as the
veracious Sabbath Committee assert, there is
abundant evidence to prove the contrary In
suit short time since German deposed that be
could drink gallon Of it without being in the
slightest degree intoxicated. The truth is that
men cannot drink so much OF 1t rs will i1toxi-
cate them. Hence the Germans who drink it
60 generally are seldom or never arrested for
intoxication, and in Germany where lager bier
Is the universal beverage, drunkenness Is un.
known.
The sanctimonious Sabbatarians are therefore
refated by stubborn facts and the experience
Of mankind.
All nations have some stimulating
beverage perhaps lager bier is the
most harmless Of these drinks. The
tendency Of the sale Of lager bier is thus to
lessen the sale of the stronger drinks brandy
whiskey, gin rum and the rot gut Of the low
groggeriea and consequently to lessen intoxica-
ton. Yet the efforts OF the Sabbath Committee
chiefly directed against lager bier. II il a
remarkable fact that an Tue uit5y uIuvu ass--r4-
Of the fanatics against drunkenness have only
increaeed It, Had they left the legitimate tenn
perance movement to its natural course. to ap-
peal to Incorporate men by argument to re-
form their lives, instead Of coercing them by
law, there would not have been half as many
cases OF intoxicaton as there are at this day.
By carrying matters to extremes, and running
the movement into the ground by mixing II up
with the rotten systems Of party politics, and
passing prohibitory laws, the fanatics have pro-
duced reaction, and not only totally destroyed
all the good effected by the moral suasion of
temperance advocates but increased the vice
which they attempted to eradicate by violent
means.
It WA the same In the time Of Charles II.
Maesuley, the historian, says Of this period
@Those passions and tastes which had been
sternly depressed (by the Sabbatarians) broke
forth with ungovernable violence a. soon as
the check was withdrawn. Men few to frivo-
lous amusements and to criminal plea
sures with the greediness which long and en-
forced abstinence naturally produces, Little
restraint was imposed by public orinion; for
the nation, nauseated by cant, suspicious Of all
pretensions to sancdty, and still snarting from
the recent tyranny Of rulers austere II LIE and
powerful In prayer, looked for q time with com.
placency OF the softer and gayer vices And
Mr. Disraeli, In bis "Curosihes Of Literature
writes to the same efect:-"The asc etic penancss
(of the Puritans) were afterwards succeeded Ia
the nation by an era Of hypocritcal saact;ty,
and we may trace this last stage o. insanity
and Of immortality, closing with impiety.-
To such q denouement are the Sabbataxians
and puritanical republicans now leading this
nation. II they should be successful, thsn his
tory Is written for Us In vaia, and Ia or case |,
Il not philosophy teaching By example" Let
public opinion be heard and felt on the subject
Let great meeting be called 10 Ne~ York to
vindica,e the equal rights Of all AEsrican citi.
zens-the civil and religious liberty bequeathed
to u. By tie fathers Of the ReTolation. We
want no other revelation than tl&t. 1. planted
human freedom CT tie right bssis. TIE object
OF the black republican party Is 70 disturb 1t,
and 70 sap aud undermine tie foundations OF
the constitution. That party must be pus
down or they will put tAe people down arr
trample under foot all tie rights o. man.
nbc pxscee m a.. prssrses