Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1877-05-11

drunkards, among criminals, and never
found brute among them yet, never.
Dickens has said somewhere in one oil his
works, Mrs Todgers was hard woman,
get her heart, away up great many pairs
OF stairs, in remote corner was door, and
on that door was written Woman" So on
the heart Of the biggest drunkard in Boston,
away up great many pair OF stars, in a
remote corner, easily 7 Sed by, and covered
over with cobwebs, is, ioOr, find that, and
that Is our business, and knock no re-
| spOnse What then? Knock on, perseyere :;
remember Christian men and women, re-
member Him wh0 stood at the door of your
heart till His locks were wet with the dew,
and that this is a brother man, and knock
on, and by and by the quivering lip and the
starting tear will tell that you have been
knocking at the heart of man, not the
heart of brute. l have often found in ex-
perience that Just as quick as a man adopts
the principle of total abstinence it seems to
open the hood-gatcs of feeling that have been
spent for so many years, or turned almost. |
was going to say, from tenderness INTO bit
terness | remember one little fact. a
man said to me the qucerest thing that ever
| happened to me in my life, was when put
my rame on the temperance pledge, was
pretty hard case, ,Imy wife used TO be afraid
of me, my children used to run when ! came
in the house away with fear, it was but
word and blow, and then a kick, and the
minute | put my name on that temperance
pledge the thought came across my mind, |
wonder what my wife will say to this.
| Qneer, wasn't it The first thing should
think of was my wife. But went home
and made up my mind that would tell
her all about it. Then thought if | went
in and told her all of hurry it might make
her faint or something or another of that
kind Queer. wasn't it? Another time |
would have gone home knocked her down
and kicked her up again. Now | vas going
home thinking how | could break it to my
wife and not hurt her So made up my
mind would break it to her easy, and | got
to the door she didn't faint away, | saw
her leaning over the embers of the fire; she
didn't look up, | suppose she expected
blow or curse as usual, and | said Mary.
She didn't turn | said Mary. Well, Dick,
what is it?!I said Mary. Well, what is it?
Cannot you guess, Mary? And she looked
around at me, her face was so white; | say,
Mary. Well? | have been to the meeting
and put my name down on the pledge and
taken my oath | never will take another
drop. She was on her feet in minute she
didn't faint away, poor soul, and as held
her | didn't know but she was dead. and
began to cry, and she was not dead she
opened her eyes and got her arms right
round my neck and pulled me down on my
knees, the first time remember ever going
on my knees since was boy, ard said,
Oh, God bless my poor husband, and l said
amen, and she said help him to keep that
pledge, and | said amen, and she kept on
praying and kept on halloing. and you
never heard Methodist halloa like me, un-
til | could not speak word was so hoarse.
1t was the first time We ever knelt together,
but it was not the last. | could give you
scores of just such cases. spoke once to
an audience of outcasts. 1t is an awful sight
to see. There were two persons came up to
sign the pledge, you never saw such couple,l
could not describe them, indescribable the
woman's dress-dress She had some ragged
ribbons tied around her waist with bit Of
a rope, and above her waist, nothing but an
old shawl that was twisted round like
rope, brough; ,.crcss her shoulder, fastened
like scotch hat at her side, dirty, brazen-
faced, hair all down, her eye as cold as a
piece of gray granite her husband looked as
if the drink had scorched up his intellect,
and he looked more like an idiot than any
thing else, but they signed the pledge, at
least they made their mark, and the Secre-
tary was making out beautiful embossed
cards the man said, Il want to get one of
them certificates She gave him nudge,
There is sixpence to pay for them Il
want one of them certificates to show that | |
belong to the society" There was every eyi- |
dence of family jar going on between them.
a gentleman came in said, good people, are |
you going to sign the temperance pledge
IL have signed it, sir, me and my missus, |
and that is my missus, and We haye signed,
and want to join the society and get certi
fcate." why don't you ?" There is six
pence to pay "Oh, that shall make no
difference and turning to the Secretary |
the gentlement said "Iierc is a shilling,
make out the certificates" The woman
looked as hard as ever, the certificates were
about to be made out and the man was ask
cd his name and gave it and got his cert-
cate, and then they asked the woman her
name she clenched her fists and looked
straight before her Madam, your name,
We are waiting for Won, if you please; We
should like You to have the number next TO
your husbands" Her husband offered to
give her name. mo, no, We want it from
the woman herself Madam We are waiting
for you - and at last she lifted up her
clenched fists, thought it was to strike
somebody but it was to brush away a tear,
and then came another, and another; then
she put her hands to her face and the tears
ran down the back OF her hands, and then
she suddenly looked round and uniastened
that shawl she shook it out and spread it
over her back and held it with both hands
across her bosom. Not one word OF kindness
had stirred the white ashes that covered the
last spark of woman, and she stood crying
like child tell you when man or Il
woman, takes a turn to go right the
very act of turning to go right soitens the
heart and opens it to good impressions
(Applause.)
Now | want to speak more particularly
for few minutes to those vino have suffer-
and if there are any here who are suffering
from the effects Of drink you know as well as
can tell you the power of the appetite, you
know the awful struggle that there is, and
| have heard great many men say, since
Mr.. Moody has been preaching here and in
Chicago and in New York and in Philadel-
pha, that if the drnnkarGs become Christ
ians they can reform from drink. \
great many men have said to nc, Il can re-
form without becoming Christian. | am
not one of those who will say to you
that you cannot quit drink unless you be-
come Christian, but | say this, within my
that nine out of ten who try 1t
fail There are men who abstalned from
drink all their lives who have been after
ward drunkards and have died with no be-
lief in the power of the grace of God. |
will give YOU an illustration of what | mean.
4 gentlemen that know. married into an
excellent family (and he says may tell the
story and give his name at any time) and
got 50 far abasad that he could drink quart
of brandy day, how he stood it no one
knows, a man OF strong constitution, splendid
physique, but he drank his quart day, Il
good business man, and his associates were
very much distressed about him, he had
lovely wife and three boys, and one day he
was IN the house and he said to his wife,
Come, my dear, and sit ON my knee She
came and sat, and then she said, "lf my
husband didn't drink would he the hap
piest woman in Canada" "Well," he said,
''my dear, married You to make YOU hap
by, and ought to do everything | can 10
make you happy, and il that will make you
happy | will never drink another drop
rs long as live. That WIS years ago, and
he has never tasted drop from that day tr
this lie cut it of just as clean as YOU
would cut oil n piece Of cheese. That man
had IL mighty will. but | want to tell suu
else. Waking with HIM up
Young street one day last winter he said,
'lou see that red saloon, have gone two
blocks out oi my way many a time Ia keep
out of the way of that, when come in sight
of it and begin 10 feel queer turn right
down Front street, bat since have gnt the
grace ni God IN my heart can 90 rlsht by
that place and ii | find the slightest inclIna-
ton tocntcr can cl,culatc the prayer Gud
help me and 90 right along. The first WIS
II risk, the second was absolute security and
.,I,,u will nat a. i,,, !