New-York tribune., 1871-05-04
AJcOHOLIC INDULGENCE.

The Times undertakes to re5tate our position
on the Liquor question, and mistakenly asserts
that we hold that "all sale or partaklng OF this
" poison [Alcohol] is a wrong and a SIN" AS
wa had expressly stated that we favored the
sale of Alcohol (as of other poisons) under
nroper restrictions against abuse, we see not
how this error could have been made. HAD
The Times quoted our position as fully az we
quoted its own, this correction would not nave
been needed.
The Times proceeds to say that
"Op tho question OF Alcohol being poison the Dese
physiological authorities are against The IRibusf' su'
the experience OF mankind shows that II IL sa po9"n'
H. ia very slow one: millions OF men having reacheu
the most advanced age, in the highest condtioh oi u
and body had hsbituay paraken OF IT, Id iao'' tue
number who never take Alcohol into the system IL an ex
ceedingy small fraction OF mankind and NANNY W DO
found in aud the Middle states and 80 iIf
ss we heard s in way from te rest
OF humanity either by longer lives or greater physical
power or superior nteeCts On the contrary our strong
impres,on il that "a class, the Total Abstinence party
of this country UOr whom morally we have the highest
respoo are solely distinguished from the rest OF man
kind in ply steal yiew by greater proneness to dys-
pepsia and nervousness.
even il Alcohol were proved to be in itself poison,
it might entirely lose this character when combined with
the fruity elements OF wine, or the large diuon Of
water in iager-beer'
Comments By The Tribune.
"Might entirely lose this character p Ger
tainiy hut does it' Where is the even second
best physiological authority" for saying that
Alcohol il diyested Of its nOxious qualities by
being mingled with water in Lager Beer or
with fruity elements" in Wine DO favor us
with a view of the animal
As to Alcohol being.a very slow poison
it Oan hardly be slower than Opium, which
says it's thousands daily-some of them in
early life-yet Capt Lahrbush. now over
century old, all but lives on it. If the fact
that certain persons long withstand its balefui
influences be proof that Alcohol is no poison.
then we may demonstrate that fighting Il
pitched battle once or twice year is promo
tive of longevity for we have old men still
living who fought in the armies of The great
Napoleon.
The Westminster Reriem in 1855, AZ we re-
collect, had very able article against Total
Abstinence, taking tho ground that Alco-
h0l was food and not poison. and asserting
that the latest deductions of the great French
chemists sustained this position; but, few
years later, it did itself great honor by re-
tracing this averment. confessing that it had
been mistaken We hardly hope for an imita
ton of this candor by The Times.
For the fact that Alcohol is essentially a
poison, we refer to Dr. Carpenter on lntoxicat-
ing Liquors, DR.. BeaumOnt5 experiments and
observations in the case of Alexis st. Martin,
Dr. Muzzy's writings, and many others. We
lay especial stress on DR.. BeaumOnts testi-
m0ny, because it was given with no reference
to the Liquor question, but profered broadly in
the interest of Medical Science
The assertion that "the number who never
4" take Alcohol las stimulantl is an exceed
" ingly small fraction of mankind" is reck-
lessly made. Considering the Mohammedans,
the Brahmins, the Buddhists, whose faith
either discOurages or absolutely forbids Alco-
holic indulgence, we doubt that half the hui
man beings over ten years old living now or
in any former age ever more than barely tasted
any Alcoholic beverage.
But we are not arguing that our view is
necessarily the right one. We merely insist
that it is honestly held by a large portion of
the Republican party, who are not inferior to
the residue in intelligence or moral worth;
and that these have rights that other Repub-
lcans are bound to respect. We ask for them
no more than Equal Rights, and these they
must have We would not have the Repub-
lican resolve itself into a cOld-water party;
neither would we have it take position
which will drive cOld-water men out of 1t. We
ask bat Liberty.
The Times seems to have some half-devel-
opcd project for legal discrimination in
favor of Light Wines and mild Beer
against downright Whisky. We are quite
willing that whoever has faith in the utility
and justice of such discrimination shall make
the most of it; but we, lacking such faith,
must beg to be excused from any action
based upon IT.