Lexington weekly intelligencer. (Lexington, Mo.) 1871-1887, 1879-06-28

effects it has upon the communities which
patronize 1t. as we shall conclusively
show before we are done. The public
reception and welcome gwen to the as
sociation, and its treatment by the press
of the city, show that the sentiments
expressed by the mayor are the prevail
ing sentiments OF the city, and that the
chief magistrate but spoke the sentl-
ments OF his constituents. However
true this may be, it Is certain that there
is very respectable minority OF the
constituents of our honorable mayor who
do not share his sentiments. and this
minority constitutes very large per-
ceEtage of the intelligence and moral
worth of the CITY, 1t also represents no
inconslderable portion of its wea H..
We do not claim to night 10 present the
sentiments OF this minority in all things !;
we simply give our own individual
views and the reasons for them. Yet.
we venture to say that. radical as our
views may be considered by some, they
are the views to which all right thinking
men who have the interests of humanity
at heart, must ultimately come, because
they are founded on facts that
CANNOT BE IGNORED.
The feature of the discussion OF the
beer question which struck me most
forcibly was the fact that the mayor, the
president of the ASSOCIATION and all the
speakers, as lar as l have noticed, pre-
dicated their defense of the manufacture
and sale of beer upon the ground or
grounds OF its beneficial effects. physi-
cally, morally and socially. The whole
object of these devotees of Gambrinus
seemed to be to prove that he is indeed
hero. working, not for paltry gold or
worldly honor. but for the physical,
moral and social elevation of the human
race that the vast capital of $500, ,OOO,-
600 is invested in a grand missionary
cause, and that those who are engaged
in the manufacture and sale of lager
beer are the most perfect specimens of
dislnterested benevolence the world has
ever seen; working only tor the improve
ment and elevation of the race; while
these who, without the hope of gain or
reward, are laboring to save mankind
from the terrible curse OF intemperance
by the only true method-that of total
abstinence. are set of craven hypo-
views only for '.tilthy lucre," or tor the
qualification of the more satanic impulse,
or desire, to injure mankind. Now,
ladies and gentlemen, from what we
know of human nature and its tempta-
tions to hypocrisy, which do you think
is most likely to be hypocrItical. those
who are making millions out of their
traffic and who are, therefoee, most in-
tensely interested In finding justlfica-
ton for 1t, or those wno are making
nothing but who are laying out thou
sands of monev and the best labor of
their lives and suffering all the indigni-
ties that can be heaped upon them by
this gigantic money power, and who are
laboring only to save men from the
power OF this terrible destroyer that
SPARES NEITHER AGE NOR SEX?
But sad ls the exhibition of shameless
hypocrisy, which would attempt to just.
ify the manufacture and sale OF beer on
the grounds that 1t is beneficial physical
ly, morally and socially to its consum-
ers. 1t is a most hopeful sign, as 1t re-
cognizes the fact that even the men who
are engaged IN the very work of de-
stroying their fellows are compelled to
seek justification OF their neiarious
business on moral and humanitarian
grounds. This is an indication of a
healthful state of public sentiment which
gives hope in this contest against the
gigantic power for evil.
Let US examine the points of defense
set up by the president of the associa-
tion in his address:
First, he claims that beer is health
giving, that it is a physical blessing to
those who use it. He says: Taken
altogether beer, as beverage, cannot
be excelled. as it possesses number OF
qualities which Jointly have a most
salutary effect upon the human organ
ISM" Now, we ask. what are the
Qualities possessed by beer, witch thus
act beneticially upon the system, and
how do they act? An analysis of five
different samples OF lager beer manu-
tactured by different brewers, by Prof.
Chandler, OF the School of Mines, OF
Columbia college. recently revealed that
these samples contained from 81 SO to
81 16 parts of water, from 4 SO to Is
parts of alcohol, and from 90 to 5 40
parts OF extractive matter OF malt and
hops. The average was water, 80 80 {;
alcohol, 8 Sc; extract matter of malt
and hops, 80. Here we have lager
beer composed of water nearly 80 per
cent, of alcohol nearly per cent. and
of extractive matter of malt and hops
not quite Al per cent.
Now. | ask in which of these compo-
nent parts of larger beer do we find the
qualities which Jointly have
A MOST sALUTARY EFFECT
upon the human organism ?' l do not
think the advocates of lager beer will
tell us that these "qualities" SO "benefi-
cial' to 1.-THE human organism" a1e to
be found in the 80 per cent. of water
which the beer contains, tor they do not
seem to be very partial to water-they
want to get along with as little of it as
possible. Yet the only "beneficial pro-
perties'' beer contains are in the 80 per
cent. of water the beer drinker is COM
PEELED, much against his will, to drink
in order to get his per cent. of alcohol
and his 3 per cent. OF matt and hop ex.
tract.
The alcohol contains nothing that can
build up the system or benefit it, That
there is no nutritive principle in alcohol
IS now demonstrated fact of science.
and our advocates OF beer admit that the
less they have of 1t in their beer, the
healthier their beer is. Now, you see.
they are compelled to find all the bene-
ticlal principles of beer in the per cent.
OF malt and hop extracts which it con-
tains. OF this 3. per cent of extractive
matter. twO-thirds OF it is an Indieestible
gum which does not undergo any change
in passing through the body, and the
other one per Cent. is composed OF sugar,
vinegar. cr,puiinc {thc bitter principle
of hops) and carbonic acid gas. Now
here We have in lager beer, by the most
perfect system OF analysis, made by a
most competent chemist and made at
the request OF DR.. Elisha Harris, of the
board of health of New York City, for
the purpose OF ascertaining the intoxi-
eating properties and hygienic qualities
OF lager beer, ninety per cent. of water
six per cent. OF alcohol. two per cent.
OF lndigesuble gum and one per cent.
OF other ingredients, among which the
very small amount of sugar is the only
valuable element. l suppose the testl-
mony OF
BARON LIEBIG,
the great German chemist, will have
weight with our beer drinking friends.
as he was no temperance fanatic, but
simply scientific inquirer, and the first
chemist OF Continental Europe, of his
hold