The Columbia herald. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1850-1873, 1870-09-16
CASUISTRY.
Henry Ward Beecher ON Three Ques
tiOns of Business and Religion.
From the New York LEDGER

We have received three questions
with the request that we would re-
ply in the Ledger.
l. Is it sinful to make bottles for O
whisky or brandy bother?
9. Is it sinful to sell an Instrument
innocent in itself-to gambler fol
gaming? 4s-
3. If one takes billiard table for
debt, should he sell it for public play
ing? @'s
These questions belong to a very
large company of like questions which
spring up i'm business life, and which
are extremely perplexing to the Chris
tian casuist.
The root of the difficulty is created
by the ethical principle that no man
has right to lend his influence, d.
rectly or indirectly, and still less to
derive his advantage from, the pro-
motion of evil. But while this gen.
eral statement is true, there are many
cases which in the application of it is
impeded. ,ss, t..t- ,-.4
In regard to crimes against life and
public veal, men hardly hesitate
as to duty. No one would sell
a pistol or knife, knowing that it
was to be used for purposes of muir
der. And yet, if one keeps maya
zine for the sale of firearms, and men
come in to buy arms, which more
likely than not will 60 into brawls,
shall the merchant refuse to sell !?
A Temperance man refuses to sell
whisky, but shall he refuse to sell
corn to q corn merchant, knowing
that it will 60 from him to distillery?
Shall q merchant refuse to sell red
flannel because it will be used in dis
tilling, for strainers? And, if yes,
shall he refuse to sell nails. glass and
paint TO be used in repairing a distil-
lery? And if yes, shall he sell tea,
coffee and -four, broadcloth, shoes and
hats to the distiller, knowing that all
these will keep him alive and aid him
in carrying on his business? And if
to this one says yes, then it amounts
to this: that temperance man should
endeavor to prevent distilling and
selling of liquor by commercial nom
intercourse; end this brings to the
surface the real question: Will moral
reform be promoted, on the whole, by
coercion and by social disfelIowship !?
Take another instance. When the
member of Congress FOR New York
the Hon. John Morrisy, wishes to
open a gambling saloon at Saratoga,
and goes to Mr.. A. Z. Stewart fo,.SI
n,r
the ground of its immortality.
But if, instead of q loan, Hon. Mr..
Morrisey selected five thousand dol
lars worth of carpets, curtains, linens
ETC., should Mr.. Stewart refuse to sell
the m ? is man bound to trace out
the ten thousand veins and arteries
by which a bad man is socially con-
nected with his fellows, and refuse a
drop of blood TO any of them, lest he
participate in that mans evil? Would
that mode of action, on the whole
best promote the cause Of virtue? If
it would, then there is 10 doubt as to
the line of duty Every man must
become a judge of his fellow msn's
pursuits, and, ifhc be evil, must sep
arate himself from him in all things.
But such a thing would make socie-
ty impossible. II would do to social
life what the principles of authority
and sectarianism have done for reli-
gion, splitting up the Christian world
into splinters, and consuming the
power of religion in quarrels. The
genius of the Old Testament was TO
separate from evil men, and keep them
aloof. But wheer men had grown |
robust new principle came
in, and good men are to live with bad |
men, to restrain them by their exam
pie and by kindness. God does not |
produce evil. But he lends his sun TO |
the good and to the evil. and sends |
rain on the just and on the unjust.
With such explanations, l would
say, specifically:
l. If you are manufacturing bottles
for the market at large, and distiller
wished q lot, l should treat him like
any other customer, on the ground |
that, Oh the whole, taking one case
with another, commercial non-inter-
course would injure rather than pro-
mote the cause of temperance.
3. If l had fast horse l would not
sell him at all, if could help it--pro-
viding he was very fast; but if l was
going to sell at auction should not
refuse any responsible mans bid. |
would, if could, sell to Mr.. Bonner,
who never bets; but if he would not |
buy, would sell to Mr.. Vanderbilt, |
even though he should be known to |
bet on horses and to be fond of han
tering men who he knows won't bet. |
3. l should certainly sell billiard !
table to a public saloon. Billiard !
playing is not necessarily evil. The
old concomitants of it, drinking and
gambling, should be stripped off from
it by moral influence. The way to
cure a bad saloon in a village is to