Rutland weekly herald. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1859-1877, 1867-06-20
Local and State Items
Temperance Meeting.


A large audience assembled at he
Town Hall last evening to listen to tie
address of the Rev. D. W. Dayton, pa
tor of the Methodist church. Th
speaker was introduced by the Rev. D.
Seaver.
The speaker announced as the genera
proposition of his address that tn
cause Of suffering humanity should en-
list the sympathy of all good men, ant
that iptemperance was among the fore
most that should attract the sympathie
of men. The ministry should lend all TIT
power of the pulpit, public and socia
influence to its suppression, and min
istry indifferent to the subject presented
the sad spectacle of throwing their in,
fluence in favor of, rather than against
the evil. He had not the power to &c.
tail the misery and crime arising from
intemperance, no more than he cOua
measure the universe of God or fathon
the depths of the ocean, and the Chris
tian ministry owed special fidelity to the
cause of temperance, aud no lecture so
potent as the appeal of the pastor to the
Christian apolo9ist of the traffic and
drinking Of Intoxicating liquors, and
that the greatest obstacles to the pro-
gress of reform in this matter was in
the church therefore it was the duty of
the Waterman upon the tower to sound
the alarm and push on the revolution,
for it was no time for true men to abate
their efforts or hesitate as TO duty. 1t
was no time for compromise, as the days
Of compromise with evil were passed,
and there was great danger in such
waVerlngs of that character, but like
Napoleon at Lodi, to grasp the flag and
command the army to follow into the
strongholds Of the enemy.
He discussed the improperly Of its use
in medicinal and culinary purposes and
the serious effects of the example of such
use of the liquor, and if the community
would make it unpopular to sell it would
soon be rendered unpopular to drink.
The Maine law does not prevent man
drinking by the barrel, but the moment
he gave it away or sold it. then the law
stepped in to protect the community
from his acts, and therefore the people
are as responsible as the liquor seller,
because they did not enforce the law.
He took the position that no vote should
be given to any man for office, who uses
intoxicating drinks, and that party
must be built up on this issue, for
neither of the great political parties
could be trusted, as their leaders would
sell themselves out to gain q few hun
dred drunken votes, and this was the
only way to secure safe enactments on
theisubjeCt, and it was the duty of every
christian man to vote for temperance
men for office, for If you elect any in
temperate man you augment his infiu-
ence in society and thereby cause the
power of evil. The movement was not
mere spasmodic one, but was earnest
and no political party can guage it, and
party that opposed it could not last
long. The concluding portion of the
lecture was devoted to the progress of
radical ideas on the subject, also the duty
Of men to sustain the radical position
that had been taken.
At the conclusion DR.. Seaver read a
paper containing manifesto of the peo-
pie upon the suppression Of liquor selling
in Rutland, and requesting that all the
people of the village would be called upon
to sign the paper before the next meet
ing, and that the hour had come when
the line would be drawn, and the people
must take position on one side or the
other.
Rev. 7. G Potter introduced a resolu-
ton endorsing the action Of Rev. DR..
Seaver, in his recent efforts for the sup
preston of the traffic in Rutland, which
was adopted. DR.. Seaver announced that
the third Of the series of meetings would
be held at the Town Hall on Sunday
evening June 30.