The Marietta journal. [volume] (Marietta, Ga.) 1866-1909, 1875-06-25
Hear yE THIS.


tanned in Millions Paradise Lost
The Archangel Michael leads Adam,
after his fall, to the summit of high
hill, and brings before him series
of pictures, pOrtraying the future
destinies of the world and among
the rest the following,-the dark AID
fearful painting of which is worthy
of the pencil that had successfully
depicted the torrents of the fallen
angels:
"1mmediately place
Before his ewes appeared, sad, noisome, dark,
A Iazar. House il seemed wherein were laid
Numbers Of all diseased. all maladies
OF ghastly spasms, or racking torture, qualms
OF hesrt-fick agony all teverous kinds,
Convulsions, epilep-ies, fierce csisrrhs,
Intestine stone and ulcer. collie panSs,
Demoniac frenzy, moping melancholy,
And moon-struck madness, pluing alrophy,
Marasmus, and wide wasting resiience,
Dropsies. aud ashmas, and joint ackiQg
rle ans.
Dire was ihe tossing, deep the groaus: Despair
Tended the sick, busted from couch 10 couch
Aud over them triumphant death his dart
Shook but delayed to strike, though oft in
vokcd
With VOWS, as tl,er chief good, and final hope,
Sight SO deformed what heart OF rock could
Dry eyed benold2 Adam could not, but wept
Though not OF woman born, compassion quelled
His best OF man and gave him to ttaisf
Michael tells Adam, in substance,
that these many varieties of loath
some sickness we're the punishment
of intemperance, and in the follow
ing lines gives the whole doctrine of
temperance:
In what thou eal'st and drink'st seeking from
thence
Due nou;ishment, not gluuonous delight.
Til many years over thy head return:
So may st thou live, till like ripe fruit thou
drop
Into thy mothers lap, OF be with ease
Gathered, not harshly pucked, for death ma
ture
1t is the duty of the Christian,
and especially of the Christian min
lister, following the example of the
Master, to all in their power to bet
ter the condition of mankind. The
use Of Intoxicating drinks is the I'M
doubted source Of nine tenths Of the
misery of this otherwise happy land.
The total>abstinencc pledge has been
found to be the most effective agent
for the promotion of temperance
We ask you to consider prayerfulIy
this question. 1t will not do TO say
the church is the only temperance
society needed We can reach men
with our pledge whom the church
cannot reach and when we have
pledged them and cast out the de-
mon drink they are ready to hear of
a Savior and hearing are often ready
TO take a higher and holier pledge
to forsake the world and follow Him
who went about doing good.
The church does not enforce total
abstinence and a church member
who drinks in moderation is no safer
than any other man. God he ps
those who help themselves, but if we
put ourselves in the way of temptas
ton and stand on what the expert
ence of the world has always shown
to be dangerous ground we cannot
expect to be saved from falling
though we pray always LEAD us not
into temptation" In other words
the grace of God will save no man
who does not do his part The
prayer Lead us not into tcmpta-
ton will not save a man from fall
ing when he daily courts drunken
ness by taking the temptation into
his mouth. Give man, trimming
over with the grace of God, aud a
man who does not believe in the
grace of God, prussic acid, and they
will go down together. The grace
of God will not prevent the growth
of that fearful appetite for whiskey
if you take the poison into your
stomach-nor will it prevent the
deadening Of the moral sensibilities,
the dethronement of reason and the
loss Of all power over the will which |
almost always follows the habitual
use Of alcoholic drinks. We need |
not 90 out of our own town for
proof Of this fact. Not a church in
Marietta but has lost members who |
had risen to high positions as vestry-
man, deacon or steward. We have
known ministers of the gospel to fall
from this same cause, and who would |
say they had no grace in the heart
The total-absiinence pledge would |
have saved them by preventing |
moderate indulgence. We do not
wish to be misunderstood on this
question. If Good Templarism
teaches anything it teaches that our
only help is in God. Our ritual is
full Of it and one cannot well be
genuine Good Templar without be-
coming christian.