The Albany register. [volume] (Albany, Or.) 1868-18??, 1871-10-14

Ing drinks Tor Uncr paJfenJS, all
swerable for much of the drunken
ness which is now the great curse
of our land? If so, instead OF send
ing your patient to his own wine
cellar OF the public house, would it
not be safer and better to prescribe
alcohol in the regular form of medi-
cine, as the Pharmacop9ia con-
tains many formula for the admins
tration of wine and alcohol? ? With
regard to the prescription of alco-
holic beverages, | will relate cir
-cumstance which occurred to me
some years ago, the results ofwhich
made deep impression upon my
mind. Twas not then ateetotaler-
would that l had been but con-
scientiously, though enormously, be-
lieved in the health~restoring prop
critics of stout. A hard-working,
industrious, God fearing man, tee
'totaler of some years standing, suf-
ferine from an absess in his hand,
which had reduced him very much,
applied to me for advice. | told
him the only medicine he required
was rest and to remedy the waste
going on i'll his system, and to re-
pair the damage done to his hand,
he was to support himself with a
bottle of stout daily. He replied,
Il cannot take it, for l have been
some years a teetotaler.' tWell,'I
said, IF you know better than the
doctor, it is no use applying to me-
Believing as / did then that the
drink would really be of service to
him, urged him to take the stout
as n medicine, which would not in
terfere with his pledge. He looked
anxiously in my face, evidently
weighing the matter over in his
mind, and sorrowfully replied !:
Doctor, | was drunken man once :;
/ should not like to be one again
Gle was, much against his will,
prevailed on to take the stout, and,
in time, recovered from his sickness.
AVhen he got well, / of course
praised up the virtues Of stout as the
means of saving his life, for which
he ought ever to be thankful, and
rather lectured him on his foolish
ness for being such a fanatic (that's
the word) as to refuse taking bot
tie of stout daily to restore him to
to his former health. | lost sight
of my patient for some months, but
l am sorry to say that one fine sum-
mer's day, when driving through
one of our public thoroughfares, l
saw q poor, miserable, ragged look
Ing man leaning against the door of
a common public house, drunk, and
incapable of keeping an erect posi-
ton. Even in his poverty, druken-
ness, and misery, discovered it was
my teetotal patient, whom I had,
not long ago, persuaded to break his
pledge. | could not be mistaken. |
had reason to know him well, tor he
had been a member of the Metho-
dist church, an indefatigable Sun
day School teacher, prayer leader,
whose earnest appeals for the saliva
ton of others | had often listened
to with pleasure and edification.
/ Immediately went to the man and
was astonished to find the change
which drink, in so short time had
worked in his appearance. With
manifest surprise, and looking earn,
estly at the poor wretch, | said
s.? is this you? p With a stag
gering reel, and clipping his words
he answered, Yes, it's me. Look
at me again. Don't you know me :?
sYes, | know you,' I said, 'and
am grieved to see you in this drunk
en- condition. ] thought you were
a teetotaler p With a peculiar grin
upon his countenance, he answered
Il WAS before | took your medicine.
/ am sorry to see you disgracins
yourself by such conduct. / an
ashamed Of you,' Rousing himsel
as drunken people will at times, tt
extraordinary effort, he chaffingly
replied. Didn't you send me here
for my medicine?' and with a delir
ious kind of chuckle he hic-cuppel
out words / can never forget
doctor! your medicine cured m,
body, but it has damned my soul
ssTwo or three of his companion
hearing our conversation, took hin
under their protection, and | lef
him. AS Idroye away my hear
was full of bitter reflections that
had been the cause of running TIN
mans prospects, not only for thi
world, but for that which is to come
X on may rest assured | did no
sleep much that night, The drunk
EN- aspect of that man haunted me
and I found myself weeping owe
the injury I had done him. / ros
up early next morning and went t
his cottage with his little garden i
4,,.,,+ ~, tho r,1Yfc1i,.fS Of. fha fpwl