Fayetteville observer. [volume] (Fayetteville, Tenn.) 1850-1966, 1879-06-26

Va NV UiOtbCA ANiltN a. lttiDl Nul4O
To this earnest, 20 this Solemn Band
Slaves TO wretehedness forever and forever,
Unless Right doth use It's mighty lever,
And lit manhood from its shrine,
From lis sluggishness and crime.
DO you hear the cry of the Women
OF the women whose true hearts are
thrilling
With Christ like love for sinners,
And who. like The Gods, are willing
To go wherever there are faliering sOuls
With not faith enough to make them whole I?
O, my brothers! listen 10 The cry,
And be not ashamed Of fearful eve,
For the world hath need that women pray
For the daWning of better day.
Mrs. C.. 4. Soule.
TREATING.
There is a custom, peculiar |
think to the United States, that
is the cause Of more drunken
ness than almost anything else
that we could mention. 1t is
called treating. | wish l could
call the attention Of our people
TO the magnitude Of this sin.
For 10 other one thing has such
a tendency to keep the habitual
drunkard from breaking the
strong chains Of appetite as this;
and many persons thus form a
habit Of drinking, who other
wise might ever have remained
sober men. Two men meet on
the streets of some town, city or
village after short separation
and almost the first thing said
after few commonplaces is,
"Let's have something to drink"
They repair to the nearest sa-
loon and with the sole intent of
doing a kindness or rather COM
plying with the usual custom of
the country each may receive an
impetus downward hard to over
come. How often is the answer
returned, 81 rarely touch drop,
but for the sake Of old times
will drink with you" Then
both must drink again at his ex-
pense, and it were well if it
would stop here, but too often,
alas! one glass follows another
until both stagger home intoxi-
Gated, and all because the coun-
try requires or sanctions the
baleful practice Of treating.
But worse even than this is the
case Of the poor drunkard striv-
ing with all the power remaining
to him to break off old habits
and make a man Of himself; any
drunkard striving to reform finds
the hardest thing to resist is an
old cGmrade pleading to take
just one glass with him, Gone
glass can't do any harm, you
know" One Of the most pitt
full sights | ever beheld was at
the house of one of the first cit
liens in our county. A finer
man never lived. Upright, hon
est, sober, straightforward, al
most all that could be said Of
one Of natures nOblemen. And
yet he kept wines and liquors in
the closet, and though not ha-
bitual drinker himself, when his
friends came to see him he took
it ont to treat them. On one
occasion there was visiting at
his house a man who had been
almost to the lowest depths of
drunkenness, though he had re-
formed some months before. His
wife was there with him; and, oh,
it was pitiful to see her anxiety
as her host placed before her
husband a glass Of brandy with
sugar. And he poor man know
ing his weakness but daring not
plead it as an excuse to refrain
from drinking, took the glass
and slipped the fatal liquid that
fired his appetite and again made
him a drlinkard. That host
would have cut off his right
hand rather than knowingly have
made his friend drunkard again
or done him an injury of any
kind. But thoughtlessly follow
ing the custom of treating so
common TO our country with no
thought of harm he gave him a
push downward that he has not
overcome. IL our people could
only bring themselves to think
how much evil we might rid our
selves of in this world. STreat-
ing!" The useless, senseless Gus
toni five must treat our friends
to something why not give him
a box of paper collars, a ginger
cake, half a dozen apples, or even.
a dime to put in his pocket. But
for goodness sakei don't tempt
him to drink God knows there
is enough sin and misery and
crime in this world and there are
enough causes for drunkenness
without this, the greatest of all.
Ii sober, sensible people could
be brought to see this in its
proper light / think il would