The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1867-11-01

sr Greeley ON Temperance
The contribution of Horace Greeley
to the last number of the Ledger advo-
Gated temperance in all things-espe-
cially in drinking and eating. In re-
gard 10 the latter, he favors the "Gra-
hamite" theory of bran bread and veg
etable food, but admits that he some
times eats good meat, and drinks tea if
black and well made. His remarks on
| the use of liquor illustrates the early
habits OF New England society, from
which we make the following extract:
| Whisky was the universal luXury-I
| might say the poor mans only luxury
| lin Vermont, as rum had been in New
Hampshire. The apple tree tlourished
luxurianLly, and bore abundantly on
the virgin soils wherein il was gener-
| ally planted; and while each settlers
| "clearing" was shutiu by the grand,
| old woods, which sottened the harsher
winds and obstructed the dissemiua-
ton of fruit destroying insects. Good
peaches were grown in southern New
Hampshire ifty years ago; whereas
they can be no longer be produced,
| save rarely and scantily, in southern
New York. Cider was, next to water,
the most abundant and the cheapest
fluid to be had in New Hampshire,
while lived there-often selling for a
hOAAhA tBGA Al u Va oAA
and eight persons, a barrel tapped on
Saturday barely lasted a full week.
Whoever dropped in OF an evening eX-
pected to be treated 10 cider mug,
once emptied, was quickly retilledj and
SO on, TIN every one was about as full
as he could hold. The transition from
cider 10 warmer and more po-
tent stimulants was easy and natural;
so that whole families died drunkardS
and vagabond paupers from the impe-
tus first given by cider swilling in their
rural homes.
my grandfather Woodburn's house in
Londonderry was, one winter day,
tlled with relatives, gathered, in good
part, from Deering, Windham, and
from Vermont towns originally settled
from the old hive; who, after dinner,
departed in their sleighs to visit some
other relative, taking our old folks
with them, and leaving but three or
four little boys to keep house till their
return. A number of hnlf-smOked
cigars were lett on the mantel, and
some evil genius suggested TO us tow
headed urchins that II would be smart
and clever to indulge in a general
smoke. Like older fools, We went in;
and l was soon the sickest mortal on
the face of this planet. 1 cannot say
as to my comrades in this folly; but
that half-inch of cigar stump will last
me all my life, though its years should
| ouLnumber Methuselah's. For n de-
| cade thereafter, it was often my tilial
duty to nj Land light my mothers pipe,
when she had laid down for her after
dinner nap; and she, having taken il,
| would hold it and talk till the fire had
gone out, SO thHt 1t must again be
| lighted and drawn till ths tobacco was
well ignIted; so 1 know that, if had
| not been proof against narcotic seduc-
| Iinn ahnnld have learned TO like the
| soothing weed; but L never used nor
wished 10 use ii as sedative or II luGu-
ry after my one juvenile and thorough
| ly conclusive experiment. From that
hour to this, the chewing, smoking, or
snuthng of tobacco has seemed to me,
ifuot the most pernicious, certainly
the vilest, most detestHble abuse of his
corrupted sensual appetiteS whereof
depraved man is capable.
! In my childhood there was no mer-
ry- making, there was no entertSin-
ment of relatives or friends, there was
scarcely casual gathering of two or
three neighbOrs for an evenings
| social chat, without strong drink. Ci-
der always, while it remained drinka-
BILE without severe cOntortiOns of
| visage; rum ut all seasons aud on all
occasions, were required and provided.
No house or barn was raised without
bountiful supply OF the latter, and gem
orally of both. A wedding without a
"Ioidy, +" "tiip," 'sling," or "punch,"
with rum undisguised in abundance,
would have been deemed poor,
mean affair, even among the penniless;
| while the more fortunate and thrifty OF
course dispensed wine, brandy, and gin
in profusion. Dancing-almost the
only paStime in which the sexes joint
| ly yparticipated-wHsa always enlivened
and stimulated by liquor. Militia
trainings-then rigidly enforced at
/ II
with drinking frolic at the village
tavern. Election days were drinking
days, as they still TOO commonly arei
and even funerals were regarded as in
adequately celebrated without the dis
pensing OF spirituous cOnsolation; o
that distinctly recollect the neighbor-
hood talk after the funeral OF u poor
mans child, that II he had mot been
mean AS well as poor, he would have
cheered the hearts of his sympathiZing
friends by treating them to at least one
gallon of rum. / have heard my
father say that he had moved through
the haying season OF thirty successive
years, and never day without liquor;
and the account of an ILishman who
moved and pitched throughout one
MISUNDERSTANDING only butLermilk,
while his associates drank rum, yet
accomplished more and with less IA
tigue than any of them-was received
though it had been certified that he
lived wholly on air. Nay; We had an
ordination in Amherst nearly fifty
years ago, settling au able and popular
young clergyman named Lord, (I be-
lieVe he is now the venerable ex-Presi-
dent of Dartmouth College to the sig
nal satisfaction of the great body of our
people; and, according to my recollec-
tion, strong drink was more generally
and bountiIully dispensed than on any
previous ocoasion; bottles and glasses
being set on tables in front of many
farmers houses AS an invitation to
those who passed on their way 10 or
from the installation to stop ana drink
freely. We have worse liquor now
than we had then, and delIrium tre-
mems, uPoplexy, palsy Sc.J come
sooner and OfIener TO those who use IL;
but our consumers of strong drink are
class; whereas, they were then the
whole people. The pious probably
drank more discreetly than the ungod-
ly; but they all drank to their own sat
isfaction, and I judge) more than WAS
consistent with their own good.
MY resolve not to drink WIS only
mentioned by me at our own fresidei
but it somehow became known in the
neiRhborhood, where IL excited some
curiosity, and even stronger feeling.
at the annual sheep washing in June
following, It was brought forward,
when was required to take glass of
liquor, and, on my declining, was held
by two or three youngsters older and
stronger than /, while the liquor WAS
turned into my mouth, and some OF IL
forced down my throat. This was un-
derstood to be the end OF my foolish at
tempt at singularity.
II was not, however. 1 kept quiet,
but my resolution was unchanged; and,
rnO1nVa1 PulEnRv /