, 1874-04-12

tA1Ia Il A1lAHo4SAa oo4HDA
school-room, for the young and susceptible |
mind. But this borders too nearly on tho meer-
Iy-sentimenta1 ever to be fayorite or potent |
weapon of Mrs. Grundy's warfare. I well re-
member, however, the appeal Of it to my own
early imagination, in those long years ago when
New-England rum was the foe We were fighting |
By our "cold-watcr aEnies," and our teototAi
picnlcs, and our tenperance"tracts. That proud
day
CAN EVER FORGET IT?-
when We girls, arrayed in white muslin gowns
and blue sashes, our heads aching unde. broad
brimrued white I. foundation hats trimmed With
oakea sna ogF pe enne n stTnes
down the legs, and atraining every muscle to
hold high in air, and keep from topping down
on the line OF heads, the pink, and blue, and
gold banners,-marched under brol!ing sun,
over a dusty road, some miles to the Temper
ance Grove, where We made ourselves sick drink
ing lemonade and eating cream-cakes and sand
wichca How cool and refreshing the
crystal fountains depicted With 80 - much 4naa
hot summers day! How wo blessed cold water,
and pictured in Imagination the spring In tho
wood, and felt ourselves already slipping up it's
bright drops from loaf~cup3 ana Ntoadstoosoot st
whom we got in sight OF the big, clean washtubs
Of mnn's device, With their honeyed sweets and
yellow lemon rinds floating on tho surface:
NY satin badge Of membership, which, in vlr-
tue Of that day'e duty, was gwen INTO ny ' de :.
grew yellow and faded IN the ebony work-box Of
the spare chamber! The inscription on the
badge seemed SO poetical! used to wonder If
the words wero those OF shakespeare or Homer,
from whom my learned collogo-cousn used to
quote 80 many fine passages, as ho called them
was afraid to ask, for fear OF betraylnY my ig-
uorance. have never yet seen the original OF
the couplot:
,Tis here wo pledge perpetual hato
To Ill that can 1nto1icate!
The bard thereof is immortal in one heart,--
inseparable from that picture on Memory's wall
Of the dim old forest, and its cool arches and
sweet odors Of pine and hemlock, and the grand
chorus of Old Hundred that rolled its mighty
reyerberations oyer the:heads Of us youngsters,
when our elders had got tired Of our smaller
artillery Of tutored melodies, and "1olned IN
singing to the praise of God " the final doxolo-
e. tino Il was Inc" ID" @DN A'''N ~ 49,
"o1D DOCTOR (1ysAN) BEEcHER."
He looked venerable even then to my childish
eyes, as he stood under lcafy canopy, behind
rustic pulpit,-his head thrown back, his long
rian voice laundering forth anathernas against
tho powers Of darkness. Being used to the
persuasive pleadings OF milder faiths apostle,
reverend grand-uncle, iuheritor Of the gentle P1-
grim Aldens irresistible speech, my youth1u1 ear
| was shocked by the stern puritan's frequent and
| vehement illusions to His Satanic Majesty aud
| tho realms Of his dominion and also BY the
forco with which the good mana fist came down
upon the sacred volume, as it "all the devils IN
| he'll of whom he discoursed had taken refuge
| hetyeer, the leaves, and be would beat out the
| "foul fionds' life breath with those ponderous
| strokes.
It was very huriliating that my mother would
not, at that time, permit mo to cnIon my nspo nc,
| high among tho Daughters OF Temperance by
signing the pledge with the hosts OF juvenile tee.
totalefs Indeed, it was almost convincing proof
| OF the truth Of what heard some OF our KIND
neighbors Of the orthodox fath whispering to each
other at tile picnic that people Of the other creed
| "couldnt know anything about experimental re-
Icion," It was surely something quite dreadful,
such ignorance and this refusing to lot me put
mr. namo to tho pledge seemed to imply lack Of
heathenism" Some years afterwards I made =
| discovery that illustrates my point again: 1t
WAS
| ny MOTHERS PLEDGE
Living in our poighborhood, country town,
aancent aud honorable" was woman whom
! We school-children we're taught to fear and
| dread: d1unl1ard. To point many moral aud
adorn many q tale Of lecture and exhortatlon,
this vomans name and miserable fame we're
used I remember We girls were afraid to pass
the house singly, but would look on while tho
| more daring bows in squads threw stones over
the fence to tempt the terma5ant,s tongue Or
her ready broomstick, and, at her first onslaught,
woman thoroughly depraved, as the phrase
goes. I never SAW any respectable person go
into her house. What was my g1rlish horror,
therefore, to find, among come bundles OF pa'
which adtsr nsoT abbee h ts
| woman's name affixed in trembling, lfregma1
scraw1. At first had no doubt it was some
threat OF vengeance upon my mother t ,Ge 19r nf'
he. and I wondered at never having beer
fspr1manded. But my naothern nauae va
written above tho woman's, and exam exam
subscribed, read 4 mutual pledge Of purity: o'
abstinence from intoxicating liquors, of striving
for better life. The saintlineBs that needed nc
safeguard had gone out after and bound ltsen
up with tho sin-dehiemont which, TO human nope
pledges. do not know whether the WomaI
kent her pledge. It would not be surprising Il
eho did not. But she WIS the better for making
it, as I should have been the worse II had beer
allowed to mako mine, 80 much coSeted.
| '.rHERE Is NO EXCUSE
for the inebriates breaking his pledge. He can
keep it If he has mind to. Nobody compelt
him to turn into the saloon; Nobody pnts tne
owl own 7 fault" said to mo Jealous adyocat*
Of the women's crusade in all I'll
phases. ''Do not waste any pity
On drunkarda: Keep it for their dissEaeed and nn3
wasted by giving; and, from that bestowed o. on
the unhappy families, a drop may overflow, With
out loes, to the w1etched cause Of the misorE-
Speculate as we may about the might rave
bcon of the inebriates pledges, tbosad and in
disputable fact Of its frequent impotence re-
muins. have an instance in point. In an East
eru city, often used to see, walking in the gar:
den. and busying himself with tho shrubbery oi
tho beautiful pleasure-grounds around III
homo, a somewhat feeble-looking gentleman 0!
20 years OF age. He was man OF wealth mt
social position, but was told, the y1etm q q u
upgoYernable thirst for strong drink and O.
periodical attacks OF delirium tromens. III
had wne-a sweet, patient " womansM A.,
boy came home one evening little earlier thai
he sometimes idfo5 he was fond Of Tnd con-
With the family and o visitor Who Tas present,
who told me the tale; took glees OF water ana q
o'clock tie visitor was summoned to stand by his
deathbed He had MIXED poisonous nst dag sggd5 II
from is effects. He left letter to his mother
gi7ng the reason Of this act, which was debar ,G:
ste, ho having previously given an order TO tne
undertaken (Which the latter regarded as q hoax.
. to come to the house" On o certain day, wheE
his services " would be wanted" II have fol
] A.. t1,;-.1 t1En1rA to quit QTlnE