, 1880-12-05
1NTEmpERAFoE AMONG THE IRISH.

afternoon at the Church Of the Sacred Heart
! to listen to addresses upon the evils of in
| temperance, delivered by Bishops ireland, OF
| st. Paul, and Spaltling, of Peoria The
| audience was very large one, and was very
deeply interested, and the only regret con-
| nccted with the occasion is that the auditors
! Of the reverend gentlemen belonged to the
| non-driuking class Of Irish, whereas those
| who really needed their admonitions were
absent. Bishop Ireland spoke in very
| pointed manner. and addressed himself to his
own nationality, boldly declaring that the
| evil of strong drink had done more to injure
the Irish people ''than any other agent OF
| Satan," and that it had broken up more
| homes III Ireland and sent more men into ex-
| lie even than the curse Of English landlord
ism. As illustrating the plainnness of
Bishop Ireland in dealing with the evil Of
whisky-lrinking and its disastrous effects
|, upon tho Irish people, We quote fro m our re-
port Of his address:
Too many freshmen wore in the asylums, re-
and Of america and
God, that he believed this state OF affairs was
due greatly TO intempcrance: He could not OK
plain why it bad taken such a hold upon his
conntryEnen, but hc supposed it was because
their temptations were so greut The Devil had
tried to conquer the reason Of tho lrshmeu, and
immonse number Il irish,nen in our larse cities
kept saloons, and this they would not do unless
it paid.. Drink had always been prominent at a1l
TIE social happenings III the life Of in 1rishman.
There was drink ut his christening, drink ut
marriage. und drink to distribute among the
1nourners at bis funeral: Whenever I'M Irish
mans name appeared in the newspaper Police
Court reports drink wns at the bottom Of it nno
times ont OF ten. Nothing humiluted him SO
much rs to see an lrishnluu's name in the court
reports. What WAS to be- done to suppress this
great evl2 It WIS all In their own hands. God
was With them always The way to do it was to
declare war against tho enemy, with the War-cry,
"Deuth to Whisky"
This strong language from the good Bishop
un questionably goes to the very root OF the
evil, and his picture Of the disastrous influ-
ences upon the Irish people of the sale and
consumption of whisky is not oyerdraw11, but
his remedy is not as specific as it might be.
There was an opportunity for him to have
delivered lesson to the Catholic clergy Of
Chicago which lie failed to improve, and
lesson of the greatest and most practical inl-
portance, since the remedy for the evil lies
largely in their hands. If they would use
their powerful influence in the direction of
temperance as energeticaI1y and imperativeIy
as they use it in other directions, there Is no
question that they could stop nine-tenths Of the
whisky-tlrinking and whisky-sel1ing among
their laity III this city. Bishop Ireland has
banishcd and extirpated whisky-selling and
whiskydrinking from the large Irish land
colony i'll Minnesota, to the great pecuniary
and moral benefit of the colonists; and what
he can tlo there can be accomplished by other
Catholic clergy1nen elsewhere.
The control Of the Protestant clergy over
their laity is infntly less than that OF the
Catholic clergy over theirs, since the Prot
estant Church is based on the right Of in
dividl1al judgment, and is composed of
membership who think each for themselves
and act upon their own will and Judgment,
and TO hot accept crecds or dog1nas that are
not III consonallce with their own reason and
investigation. And yet the Protestant clergy
have sufficient influence, and the rules and
that they will not tolerate tho running of
gin-1nills and whisky-doegerics by members,
nor allow them to sell Intoxicating liquors to
the other members.
If fmembers Of Protestant churches engage
i'll the misunderstanding business, out they
60. They can't run rum-mili and retain
their membership. We call the attention Of
the Catholic clergy to this important fact
as one worthy OF their consideration. The
Methodist Church is a very large denomina-
ton, and contains in its membership perhaps
larger representation Of the middle and
working classes than any other of the
Protestant churches. Flow many Method
lists are engaged III wnlsky-sel!ing? How
many Alethotiists of Chicago or of Illinois
are patronizing whisky-saloons kept by the
iaity OF their Church? How much money
is squandered in whjsky-shops by the Meth
odist brethren: The Presbyterian Church
also is large and strong denomi-
nation. How many Of its members are Ell
gagged in retailing Intoxicating liquors? How
many of them are found quarreling, fight
ing, cursing, drinking, and loating in rot-gut
saloons run by Presbyterians? The Baptists
and Episcopalians also reckon large aud in
huential memberships. How many of them
are engaged either III drinking or in selling
whisky? If the clergy OF these churches.
which comprise the bulk Of the orthodox
membership In every community and State
ofthe Union, can keep their entire lafty out
Of saloons'and prevent their members from
peddllng liquid damnaion to each other;