Rutland weekly herald. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1859-1877, 1873-12-25
temperance Meeting.
ADDRESS BY REV. JOHN RUSSELL, OF
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The temperance meeting at the Town
Hall last night was not so largely attend
ed as some of the previous meetings.
There was fair audience present, how
ever, but it was diminished. somewhat
at the conclusion of the address by fire.
quent departures during its delivery,
which was not SO much the fault of the
speaker as the length of the address.
The lecture was very interesting. and
forcibly delivered, but two hours is a
longer time than a common audience can
bear to remain quiet, even if thesubjeGt
be one of the most interesting.
After prayer by Rev. Richard Grogan,
Mr.. Haven introduced Mr. Russell, who
spoke substantially as follows
The speaker was aware that he lacked
many essential qualities of a powerful
temperance lecturer. lie could make no
personal appeals to the feelings as be
knew nothing personally of sorrow and
woe, but he did know "that the intern.
perate use of liquor is shame and a
crime, causing more social discard than
any single evil. He considered the tenn
perance reform the most important re-
form of social life 1t is a complex
question. 1t is moral question resting
on scientific and religious basis Science
teaches us that the. use of liquors pro-
notes a diseased condition of the sys-
tenn. The use of liquor depreciates char
acter, citizenship, in short, manhood.
The true doctrine of temperance is the
voluntary abstaining from alcoholic
liquors. The theory that alcoholic liquors
in small quantities. are an. advantage,
and a healthy stimulant is wrong. Ex-
perience proves that the kind of temper
ance which allows drinking in moderate
quantities, is not and cannot be main
tanned, as moderate drinkers almost in
variably become drunkards. All who
suppose that they can drink moderately
in safety, should remember that mighty
ones have fallen on that ground.
The duty of the temperance people is
to educate and fortify public sentiment
on this question. Physicians should en-.
tighten the public mind on the subject
by the medical and scientific view of it;
ministers should give the Bible view of
it Christians should teach it to others
by precept and example, Temperance
organizations mast be maintained and
must have the broadcast platform of OPP
position toit, The speaker said he had
no plea for any particular organization,
but would have each choose his own,
and fight, for we are in the same army.
For his part, he preferred the Templars
to any organization in existence as it is
the best and largest that ever has exist
ed, numbering at present about six hun
.dred thousand members. IS
The speaker thought that the temper
ance people should employ the press;
and educate the people through its me-
dunn. he could give no reason for the
non success of purely temperance pa
pers, uniess it were the fact that the so
ciety is q sort of nondescript, with no
particular place assigned to it. After
the political, church, farmers and me-
chanies' papers, there appears to be no
room for the temperance advocate.
After considering the moral, the speak
er reviewed the legal aspects of the
question. He considered the traffic a le-
gal and political evil, a commercial
wrong to be abated by government.
The law that allowed the saleiof liquors
opposes our moral education. The pub
lie judgment is against the traffic, but
Legislation is far below the standard of
public sentiment. The traffic being sus-
tanned by law, must be prohibited by
law. The license law fails to accom-
plish its original intention. If any are
licensed, 1t might as well be manyas few,
but We insist that none shall be licensed.
It's of no use for US to preach against