The Middlebury register. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1850-1882, 1881-07-08
Abstinence, or Moderation

not Intend 1t, though in the line of his
intention he did 1t no good whatever.
His lecture, which he singularly styled
a calm view of the temperance ques-
ton, has called forth reviews and coun-
ter lectures which have made valua-
Bile addition to temperance literature.
We will only notice one or two
points and give few facts and quota
lions, which will overthrow what the
devil wants. The prince of darkness
likes to see the world rushing to de-
struction, and yet see those who pro-
fess to love God and Christianity, take
a calm view of 1t. Take calm view
of the millions of drunkards' graves;
don't shed tear over the tens Of
thousands of widows and orphans; be
calm when YOU hear the groans of the
destitute aud suffering, made such by
King Alchohol! Be calm over the
hundreds of millions of dollars which
are spent to support the accursed liquor
traffic!
DIR. Crosby goes so far as to say that
our Saviour used intoxicating wine.
He takes the position that wine that is
not Intoxicating, should not be called
wine; in short, that wine is wine; and
accuses the radicals of using O Solomo-
MAN sword, and dividing it,, when the
Bible does not. Probably DR.. u.
thinks the "good" wine spoken of in
the marriage feast of Cana of Galilce,
had an extra fermentation. This must
have been similar to that of which Solo.
man speaks, when he says: "Look not
upon the wine when it is REQ, when 1t CIV
eth color in the cup, when it moveth itself
Alright. At last it biteth like serpent,
and stengith like an adder" Does DR..
Crosby look upon Solomon as radical
in his advice, and upon our Saviour as
taking q calm view of the question in
using little? If no other wine was
used in the world but such as was
made of water by our Lord, no harm
would be done. We might make a
comparison of the good and bad wines
of the Bible, but a word to the wise is
sufficient.
DIR. Crosby says: GA second reason
why believe the plan of total absti-
nence will not be adopted by the peo-
pie is its unmanliness."
'sTell it not in Gath, publish it not in
Gath, publish 1t not in the streets OF
Askelon," lest the friends of the rum
seller rejoice; lest the army of temper
ate drinkers triumph. The Bible says,
"Abstain (not indulge a little) from
fleshly lusts which war against the
. SOUL" 1t is just as unnecessary to try
10 demonstrate to reasonable being
that the habitual use of ardent spirits
(the desire for which constantly in
creases) is not fleshly lust, as it is to
attempt to prove that twice two does
not make four. The boot seems TO be
OIL the wrong foot this time, as the
''unmanliness" is on DIR. Crosby's side
of the question. That which humans a
man, makes him unmanly. Take the
man who is so enslaved to appetite that
he thinks he cannot reform. lie is de-
cidedly unmanly, especially when he
falls into the gutter, and animals
walk independently over him. OF
course this ID. d. is not in favor of CIV
ing the drunkard an over dose; lie
would not do anything to kill him who
is already dead Gin trespasses and
sins;) but he ought to know that if the
temperate drinker keeps on tipping,
lie, like the drunkard, will finally tip
over; and that is quite as unmanly os
the unmanliness of total abstinence.
Again he says: "The selling and
drinking of wine" (perhaps he likes
little himselO is certainly not a crime;
but prohibition-the cardinal doctrine
of the total abstinence people-at once
brands wine drinking with theft, and
violence" If a man in drunken fit
kills his wife, robs his neighbor, or
burns q house, the law deals with him
as murderer, thief, etc. Yet accor-
ding to the DOCTORS theology, the
liquor selling, and the "wiuc drink
ing" are all right; whereas, the selling
and drinking are the causes, and the
murder, theft, etc., are but the effects.
Who cannot see this? If it is right to
make laws totally prohibiting murder,
theft, and other kindred evils, why is
1t not right to make laws prohibiting
the sale of that which is the cause OF
four-ffths, or of nine-tenths, of the
evils which are cursing the world?
The Christian Herald of January 20,
1881, says: "a startling fact, disclosed
by recently published statistics, sug-
gests well grounded apprehensions as
to the permanence Of our national
prosperity. 1t appears that since 1870,
the quantity of fermented liquors man.
ufactured and consumed in this coun-
try has more than doubled. Last
year, the amount was nearly 14,000,-
900 millions, or more than o quarter of
barrel for every man, woman and
child. The daily reports of our police
courts show the dire evil this liquor is
working ON the people,"
The New York Evening Post says,
"that in the year 1879 there was paid
out for intoxicating drinks, by the peo-
pie of Germany, the sum of $3.50 ,0O0,. |
900; and by those OF France, $3.50, OOO,- |
600; of Great Britain, $3.50, 900 600
and ofthe United States, $720,0OO, OCO
making the grand total of the worlds
bill for intoxicating liquors, 81, 200, OO0-
900.
The following will demonstrate the
unsafety of DIR. Crosby's position: "a
late number of the Princeton Review
contains a lengthy article on fhe
liquor traffic, presenting the subject
solely from the standpoint of public
polity, and as it contains the gist of the
arguments used in Kansas during the
discussion on the constitutional amend
ment, and which are being made use of
In this state, its conclusions are of con-
siderable interest to the public. The
author bases the right of the state to
enact the prohibitory laws on its police
power, three branches of which he con.
siders: Police for the prevention of Of
lenses, police of the public health, and
police of charity. Under the first head
he produces statistics to show that the
of intoxicating liquors
produces crime. In 1887 and 1888 there
were over 1900 crimes of a certain
character committed in Ireland, while
in 1889 there were only 1907, and in
l64O, 172. The cause of this remarka-
bic decrease was the temperance move
ment instituted by Father Matthew.
The consumption of spirits fell from
Il, 000, 900 gallons TO 5000, 900, and the
revenue derived from lis sale decreased
aOma a 600 600 The nnmhar of nris