Rutland weekly herald. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1859-1877, 1873-05-22

wears. We have relied upon law and
officers to do that which could only be
done by the whole moral element of the
community. Human laws and especial
ly punitory laws will not execute them
selves. They must be upheld and en-
forced by the public sense of the peo-
pie, and when law is felt to be tyrani
cal and oppressive it is worse than dead
letter, for it will be inopperative for
good, and be constantly lowering the
public morals by lessening the respect
for law among the people.
We have carried also in our columns a
large number of men who profess tenn
perance but are unwilling to work and
continue at their toll forever, and their
spasmodic and feeble action in behalf of
the noble cause has been an injury in
stead of help, and they have encour-
aged the enemy by their general indif-
ference where labor could do any good
and sown dissension in the ranks by
their complainings, when harmony was
needed. We have been governed too
much, and taught too little. Temperance
men must take up the weapons of moral
warfare and fight with sleepless vigil
ance and tireless activity. They can
no more lay down their armor than
| Christians can lay down the cross. Pub
| lie sentiment must be toned up to the
maximum standard, so that men will see
the evil and the danger, and then the
removal of it is sure.
| am not one of the class that believes
that the best temperance work lies in
| long-winded speeches or in exclusive
work. A people that are generally i'm
moral will inevitably be Incorporate,
and people that are moral, religious
and hold in their hearts and exhibit in
their characters the bright light of the
Christian graces will always be temper
ate and sober, so that cultivation of
virtue and pure morality is the only sure
way of reaching the highest success in
temperance work. | am heartily sick
of the hypocritical cry in favor of tenn
perance that ignores its kindred and con-
comitant virtues. believe In organiZa-
ton in this work and all other good
works, but let it be on broad platform,
that nowhere subordinates any depart
ment of human virtue let the creed of
the temperance work be as broad and
deep as the Christian church, and take
in its ample folds as protection and a
weapon every attribute of morality and
progress | believe in making temper
duCt TciiSlOus, polltICdI anu d
social duty, and by that | do
not mean to make it all there is of re-
ligion or politics. The man who votes
for a candidate because he is temper
ance man, without regard to his other
qualifications, or his character in other
respects, is not fit to vote at all, and he
who ignores the social virtues of man,
and bases his respect upon the sole vir-
tue of temperance, is running on too
narrow a guage to ever come out any
where.
The whole field of human progress
and improvement is the proper field for
temperance work Let us, then, put
our shoulders to the wheel, and lift, as
best we can, to make the world better
and happier, and all times be careful
that we are not in the way of a CO.
laborer, and that our travelling and eX-
ample are always in the right direction,
and in that way we shall make our in
fluenCe felt in the right manner, and in
the end find that we have made better
progress than the erratic enthusiast,
who has had spasms of noise and tu-
multi, with intervals of indifference and
fault-finding that the law is not exc
cuted.
Castleton was selected as the place for
holding the next meeting, the constitu-
ton fixing the time at three months from
this meeting