Rutland weekly herald. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1859-1877, 1870-04-28
HE RUTLAND HERALD
TUESDAY, APRIL 20, 1870
,rennpcrnnee rLeotlng.

der the auspices Of the Ladies' temper
orce Society, AIS o'clock ex-Gov. Page
called The nesting 20 order He said ne
had been requested to preside at this
meeting by the Ladies' temperance Socie-
tv. and az it was difficult 70 resist On
appeal from the ladies, he accepted the
chair.
Prayer was then offered by Rev. L. w.
Brigham. After which a song was sung
by Glee Club present.
Rev. Mr.. johnson was introduced as
the first speaker. He said:
He did not know that he had any par
icular fitness TO speak on this subject,
only az he should count one in the great
army of temperance. There was time
during the history of our great war when
every man who could handle a musket
counted one. So every one counts in
the opposition to intemperance and
ut the ballot box. He came to
show his enlistment in the great army
against intemperance. He could not
expect to cope with those great orators
who have such eminent faculties and
fitness for presenting this cause, who have
large cities and towns, and who plead the
cause with such peculiar elequence. He
could only present the plea of earnestness
in the work, for what words can picture to
Won the truthfulness of the evils of intern
perance in the community? No elo-
quence or words could present the evils
and effects OF incompetence in their most
fearful light. All our efforts should be
20 J.
iects of the suppression of the traffic in
liquor had been presented to the people
through the press and from the platform,
and appeals made to all to more earnestly
act and live as they feel upon this subject
lie said the old customs of the fathers
was often held up in argument, and from
those times came the great men of the
past, and all that we revere was embraced
ia that period. Any student who has
studied the history of his country knows
that their power was greatly injured and
afterwards paralyze by their habits and
customs. When we look over the states
men of the past, what a sad story is re-
yealed We allow our eyes TO be closed
upon these blots upon their characters
We hear it asserted that the culture of
the vine in our country is fast coming to
e
Wrarr pointed to the wine-drinking of
other countries and are informed by those
lnd4 of the temperate habits of the peo-
Ilr. He said there was not a country in
the world that the vice of intemperance
does not exist in to some degree. The
effects of wiue-driuking, ale.drinking and
other liquors were apparent there, al
though in different degrees. Go to Eng
land and look at the besotted condition of
the common people under the influence of
beer drinking. TIE condition Of the mid
lie classes from the effects of beer-drink-
ing was among the reasons why the vote
was not given to them The drinking of
the strong ale of England and Scotland was
APPARENT ON every hand in the condition
athe people. The same is true through
ether nations. In Germany the same fact
is true. 1t enervates and weakens the pow
or of the people. 1t is for this reason that
Italy sits covering at the feet of an old
man, and she does not strike for freedom
from her enthrallment because it is weak
ened and enervated by this light drinking
Germany should to-day be as strong IA.
the United States, but there is that lach
of persistence among her people thai
comes from a weakness induced by tn,
strong drinks of the country. The spas
modic efforts OF the French people to
throw off the yoke they seek to be released
from were but the drunken struggles of II
weak win produced by these causes.
He said a man was only man when
ne has the full possession Of his own fac.
ultes Therefore this was question
which concerned us as a nation, a state, a
town, community, and in our families.
Let us recognize these facts, and let us
-on that st day is approaching, unless these
evils are cradicated, when we shall be IA
oucrwted and powerless as some of the
I'D world. Let US beware lest we de.
e'ruy the strength that has given us lib.
erty, Let us beware of sinking into a
condition that shall place us in the power
Of some ambitious man who shall arise
and take our nation in hand and wrest it
from Va in our weakness, induced by
these evils that are 50 rapidly growing
upon us. Let us beware and be wise,
while it Is possible to be wise.
Rev. Mr.. Bailey was the next speaker,
He supposed all came to this meeting
because they did not wish to see the
principles of temperance too dormant
He noticed that most of the audience
took seats in the back part of the House,
us if afraid to meet the issne, as on other
orraaion- they took the front seats. They
lad come here tonight feeling very
mHch like the gentleman who had u
horse, and when he was about to start
way he took his horse behind the stable
and beat him, for he said his horse had
spirit enough but he wished to bring it to
The surface. There was power enough
in the people of Rutland if it was only
brought to the surface. This was an old
work but he remembered it in its incipi-
emit stages, and related the .labors OF
Father Green and the effect upon the
community. He started them in the
Temperance cause, and had kept along
through cold and heat through sue
cess and defeat, and he had been led
TO feel that rumselling was the
enemy of mankind. He did not expect
that it could all be driven out, but it was
expected that these meetings would do
something TO restrain it. We are bound
to do what we can to suppress the traffic,
as those who are bound up in the inter
ests Of this community to see that our in
dividual influence was on the side of tenn
perance. Multitudes, corps, divisions of
the great army of intemperance fell
yearly. If we cannot remove this evil,
we wish to stop the temptations set be-
fore men. If we cannot remove it, we
must restrain it as much as we can and
make men drink covertly, if they will
drink. We must look at the peril, whether
presented in the hotel or in the shanty.
1t is our duty to realize these perils and
the facts around us. He referred
70 the increase of foreign population,
and that to-day we stand amid a
people who do not have such acute
perceptions as our people. We are bound
to lay upon that class the restraints of
law. Men must be put in office who
would enforce law. We must put in opez-
alton, the fore of law and the force of
moral suasion together. We had come
here to stir up the people on this subject.
as members of the community, we should
throw all our inertness on this subject
aside and be no longer Gallons to its con-
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