The Hartford herald. [volume] (Hartford, Ky.) 1875-1926, 1880-02-25
Temperance.

to listen tO temperance lectures and "a
read temperance essays; although tenn
perance lecturers aud writers are stig-
matiZed by some people as belonging
to "eant circles :" with what propriety
| am not able to see. They are also
charged by the same people with being
sentimentalists; the reason for which
charge, am equally at a loss to diScov-
er. IL such aspersions of temperance
men had their origin in tap-roOms or
dOggeries il would not he 81 difficult to
account for them but when they are
hurled from editorial desks and by pro-
fessed friends of the temperance cause,
il is a mystery and anomaly Oh which
| will not turn aside from my subject
to comment. If to denouuce intemper-
ance and those persons by whose in
strumentality the curse is brought upon
the people condemns a man to IA place
in "cant circles" | am willing to con-
TESS Judgment and take my legitimate
place. And if to love temperance and
to hate intemperance makes a man IA
senIimentalist, glory in being a senti-
mentalist, and hope that ! may live
one and die one.
1t is the practice of liquor dealers
and their friends to denounce temper
ance reformers as fanatics, to make
light of their efforts and deny them
credit for the good they actually ac-
complish. They talk of the evan
escence of temperance societies and i'm
agine when some particular or local or
ganiZatiOn is Dissolved that il is the total
overthrow of the whole cause. But
Temperance can and does live without
-s.S.,
with morality, with decency. Temper
ance societies accelerates its progress /;
but without them it would advance
with education, with refinement, with
enlightenment. The great utility of
temperance societies consists In their
making Il speciality of one vice and
hurting against that their united force,
thereby insuring greater success than if
they combated it in connection with
other vices. Temperance societies, like
all others, suffer from the conduct of
unworthy members; and have heard
of temperance orators going forth on
their mission with the badge of their
order on their arm and bottle of whis-
ky in their pocket. But the faults of
these faithless members will never at
tach to those who remain faithful to
the cause and those temperance lead
ers who have distinguished themselves
for fidelity to the cause and for their
instrumentality in rescuing their fell
low-being from drunkard's grave,
will he looked upon us the greatest BEN
ehctOrs of the age.
Intemperance is the crying evil of
the time. 1t is horrid vice in itself
and the prolific mother of vices. Let
Il man give himself up to the influ-
ence of strong drink and there is no
telling where he will stop in his career
of vice and crime. If he takes but one
drink il is mere accident if he does
not, under its influence, commit the
worst act known in the calendar of
crime. The drunkard's course is
marked by the derbis of his character.
AS he advances in his course, he loses
one trait after another of his original
character, until all is lost. At one
place lie loses his veracity, at another
his chastity, at another his honesty,
and so on till he is perfectly bankrupt
III every principle that distinguishes
man from beast. The drunkard's life
is a tragedy of many parts-the actors
being himself, wife, children and
friends. The whole, marked with pro-
fusion of signs and groans and tears
and blood, and generally closing with
catastrophe sufficiently terrible to salts
fy the expectations of the most san
guine lover of the tragic muse. 1t was
once the custom to extend a great deal
of leniency to the drunkard and to
this fact, perhaps, may be attributed
much of the drunkenness that has
heretofore existed. When man was
seen drunk his friends and acquaint-
ances generally set about finding
cause or an excuse that would justify or
cover up the act. Sometimes an oc-
casion of festivity furnished a sufficient
apology. Sometimes the act was ex-
planned away on the hypothesis of some
great loss, disappointment or grief
the drunkard was excused
on account of possessing an eXtraordi-
nary genius or sensibility that was as
sumed to predispose him, more than
others, TO the temptations Of the inc
briating bowl. To this false charity
and leniency perhaps, may, in part, be
attributed the death of such men as
Robert Burns, Edgar y. Poe, Thomas
+. Marshall, and Others too numerous
to mention. People nowadays take a
different and more sensible view of the
matter, and attribute a mans drunk
enness directly to his meanness or
weakness. This meanness, however,
may be modified in favor of the drunk
ard by considering the examples and
to which he has been sub
ject and this weakness may also be
modified in his favor by surprising him
to possess some latent moral power, yet
of his life may spring into action and
assert its supremacy over his whole
making his future life rs hon
orable rs his past has been degrading.
There Is one thing calculated to great
Nv encourage the drunkard i'm his efforts
to. reform his life; and that is the chari-
ty and love entertained for him by the
societies. The rum-sellers,
well knowing the efiectIial character of
the work they have done for him are
apt TO he very incredulOus with regard
to the drunkard's reformation, and gen
orally predict his speedy return to the
gutter. And the people of the world
who are generally pleased to see their
fall by the way, dislike to
see the drunkard re-assert his manhood
and to rise from the gutter to jostle
them again on the road to honor. But
this has occurred and will occur again.
And such men as Cough, Murphy
and others, once as degraded rs rum
could make them; but now great lights
in the heavens of temperance, are
splendid examples of the fact. But the
members of temperance societies are
the true friends of the drunkard, and
To them l. myself owe NV restoration
to a sober life. Well do recollect see
ing, in the early days of Murphyism,
the extraordinary interest manifested
by temperance people for the most
abandoned inebriates. have seen
people of all classes of society vieing
with one another IN their efforts to re-
claim the drunkard. | have seen, i'm
those immense Murphy meetings in
the Northern cities, the wives and
daughters of millionaires, iron-kings
...I -. Al