Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1876-09-21
-. / ~" I-rr
\ TEMPERANCE MESSAGE.
BY JOHN B. COUGH.

ID JOHN Is. GOUGH.
My DEAR YOUNG FRIENDS: | have
been requested to send a message to
the Sabbath-schools in behalf of the
total abstinence cause. l wish / could
write to you all that is in my heart on
this great question, but my time and
ability are limited, and my message
must be short. i2@
We are sometimes told that total alb
stinence is not temperance. What is
temperance? Let me give you short
reply. Temperance is the lawful graf
ification Of a natural appetite. Is the
appetite for Intoxicating liquors a nat
ural appetite? No. Therefore tenn
perance is total abstinence from intox-
icating liquors as a beverage.
~. This principle is sensible principle.
When you are as old as | am, you will
regret many things you have learned
| in the past; but you will never regret
that you did not learn to use intoxicat-
ing liquor. / have never met a per-
son, nor do | believe that you can find
the person in the world, who would
say, q am fifty years of age, and [
never drank a glass of liquor in my
life, and regret that l did not learn
to drink it when / was young. No.
| When you meet one who has never
drank, he tells you, s. / am glad of it, -
or, g am proud of it, A man once
called on me, and said, ''Mr. Cough,
| 1 want to tell you something. I am
not a reformer. [ care little for re-
| forms, or missions, or Sunday-schoOls.
They are all very well in their way,
but they are not in my line. i have
been an actor since / was eighteen,
and | am now fortythree, and never
drank glass of ale, wine, OF spirits in
my life. What do you think of that ?
I am proud of it.
eDear children, you would be shocked
if you could read some of the letters
| that lie III my desk, that have been
written to me by persons in all grades
| Of sOciety-yOung men, old men, law
yers, physicians, ministers of the Cos
pei, teachers, mechanics, clerks, and
some ladies-who have acquired the
appetite for strong drink. One says:
olives in hell never longed for a drop
| of water as, with all the power there
is in me, I long for drink Anoth-
er says: lis there any hope for me on
this side of the grave?' Another
says: "God knows how near [ have
been to self-destruction through
drink" and SO on. a'3a @
| One poor man, actually holding my
feet, cried out: ''Oh, Mr. Cough!
help me out Of this hell. Drink is my
CURSE Yes, dear children, the cry
comes from the inmates of lunatic asy-
lums, 6 Drink is my CURSE" from the
State prisons, Drink is my CURSE
from innocent victims-wives, moth
ers, children. Drink is my curse; -
from the burning lips of the dying
drunkard comes the despairing cry,
50 Drink is my curse There are
broken hearts, blighted hopes, black
ened characters, crushed intellects, and
| lost souls as the results of strong
drink, and not single individual but
rejoices in his escape from it.
| Is not the total abstinence principle
sensible?a .sBut all who drink do not
/ become drunkards.' / know that;
but if fifty young men begin to drink,
some will assuredly be ruined by it.
| Then, there is a risk. Now we all de-
sire safety and security. Suppose you
tdesired to travel from New York to
Chicago, and there were two lines of
road-one on which there We're acct
dents constantly occurring; on every
train some disaster, passengers killed
and wounded; in short very risky
road; and on the other, never since its
| opening had there been the slightest
accident. Which road would you
take? If you are sensible, and regard
your own welfare, you would take the
safe one Suppose some one should
tempt you to take the risky road, by
telling you how much more beautiful
| the cars were and what a jolly COM
pany you would find on board the
train. You would say, 81 care not
so much for gaudy cars and jolly COM