New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1871-05-21
Communicated.
Selling Liquor for the Benefit of the
Church.

In your article of last Sunday heade
Whisky versus Wine you spoke of the i
effect of the leniency of public opinion i
this city on the subject of treating at pul
lie drinking shops, as tending to make tiE
pling, to moderate degree Of intoxicatior
rather respectable" but you omitted t
state that the public drinking of spirituou
liquor is indirectly encouraged by the highes
moral authority in the land-the churches
not from the pulpit, of course, but in tn
various Ladies' Fairs, "Fete Champetres,
ana other entertainments, given especially
Tor the benefit of the church Or of tn,
| poor" At most of these entertainments
| If not at all of them, there are tables at
tended by young, beautiful and attract
| I've ladies, where men and women are sup
| piled with muddled and muddling mix
ture called char- pagne punch, and the me1
sometimes (the fact is nOtorious), witt
something stronger" Now, is it not proba
bic, nay almost certain that many young
man is thus enticed to take his first glass OF
intoxicating liquor! On what principle can
such conduct be defended! Surely not Oh
that of doing evil that good may result there
from. No one nowadays pretends to defend
that principle. Or is it that, as men will drink
at any rate, good cause may as we'll be the
gamer thereby! But such a rule of conduct
would justify the setting up of faro bank
in connection with Ladies' Fair" for
Christian purposes, not to mention the es-
tablishment of other immoral sources of rev
enue such as lotteries, ETC., to which Young
men would cheerfully contribute. For young
men will gamble and do other naughty
things; and on the lquor-selling principle
why should not the church or the poor
profit thereby! Is it much worse to supply
sinners with the means of wicked indulg-
effect of spirituous liquors in inflaming
angry passions and sensual desires, if un-
known to the young ladies who preside
over public punch bowls and private
whisky bottles, is perfectly familiar to the
gentlemen who inaugurate fairs, and en-
courage therein the sale of Intoxicating
drinks. Think of young man going
directly from ladies' fair into a scene of
gross debauchery, perhaps of strife and
blOodshed, under the exciting Influence of
glass of liquor received from the hands of
ayoung lady, 'tor the benefit of tie church :"
There is an Eastern fable of a man, who,
on being told that within an hour he was
fated to commit one of three sins, viz:
either murder, adultery or drunkenness,
but that he might take his choice, took the
last as the most venial; but before the hour
was over committed in addition the other
two.
Moreover, if the sale of liquor is to be
practiced at fairs because it is profitable.
would it not be still more so to have regular
drinking saloons connected with our
churches! Being established "for the benefit
of the church, the counters would doubtless
be attended by young and beautiful girls, or
attractive widows of the first families. The
proceeds of this traffic would, without
doubt, greatly swell the income of the
church. Fancy, for instance, the following
notice preceding the sermon: 1T having
been proven by experience at fairs and other
entertainments that the sale of liquor is a
more profitable source of income than any
other which has ever been adopted, it has
been decided by the trustees and elders of
this church to furnish sideboard in the
vestrv Tor lecture ROOM as the case may be-,
where all sorts of wines, liquors and fancy
drinks may be obtained at all times, and at
the same rates as in the public saloons. We
propose to call ours St. Timothy's sideboard
and it is to be attended by the best looking
ladies' in the congregation. The collection
next Sunday will be appropriated to pay
the necessary expenses of starting this
enterprise, and liberal con-
is expected"
By what is here said l do not wish to
any more than you do, the use of
wines, or even, at suitable times, of spiritu- !
ous liquors. They are, like everything else
hat is ever useful to man, the gift of God,
md, as such, to be used, not abused. A
good rule for religious persons in such mat
ers is to perform no act upon which they |
an not cOnscientiOusly ask the blessing of |
Ied. This may be done even before the |
thinking Of liquor For instance, we can
imagine st. Paul, when wrecked on the
sland Of Miletus, receiving. from the
hospitality of its inhabitants, brandy
or the relief of his half-dead com
anions, and blessing God for the same be-
ore distributing it among them. But we
an not imagine the Apostle of the Gentiles
lducing the most beautiful among his fe-
lale Grecian converts to raise money for
he relief of the Christian poor at Jerusa-
I'm by enticing young men to drink intoxi-
ating beverages. No, nor even permitting
/, if in their newborn zeal these young
ersons had offered to do so. He would
robably have thought it better for the poor
Jerusalem to remain poor than to obtain
ecuniary aid at such cost. May not the
lme be said of the churches of New Or
ans2 PLUME DOR.