The Russellville Democrat., 1881-02-17
------------ ------------- THE SOCIAL CURSE.

Col. R. G. Ingersoll. Tn speaking to jury in cass which involved the manufacture of alcohol, used the following eloquent language:
 am aware that there is a preju- dice against any man engaging in the manufacture of alcohol. l be- lieve that from the time 1t issues from the coiled and poisoned worm in the distillery, until it empties into the he'll of death, dishonor aud crime, that it demoralizes everybody that touches it, from it's source to where It ends. 1 do not believe any body can contemplate the subject without becoming prejudiced against that liquor crime. All we have to do, gentlemen, is to think of all the wrecks on either bank of the stream of death; of the suicides, of the in sanity, of the poverty, of the igno- rance, of the destitution; of the little children tugging at the faded and weary breasts of weeping and de- spairing wives, asking for bread 1; of the talented men of genius that 1t has wrecked, the men struggling with imaginary serpents, produced by thls devilish thing; and when you think of the jails, of the aims houses, of the asylums, of the prs ons, of the scaffolds upon either bank. do not wonder that every thoughtful man is prejudiced against this damned stuff that is called alec hol. Intemperance cuts down youth in It's vigor, manhood in it's strength, and age in it's weakness. It breaks the fathers heart, bsreaves the dot ing mother, extinguishcs natural affections, erases eonjugal love. blots out filial attachments, blights parent al hope and brings down mourning age in sorrow to the grave. It pro duces weakness, not strength; sick ness, not health; death, not life. It makes wives widows; children or plans; fathers fiends, and all of them paupsrs and beggars, It feeds rheumatism, nurses gout, welcomes epidemlcs, invites cholera, imports pestiience and embraces consump- tion. It covers the land with idle ness, misery and crime. It fills your jails, supplies your almshouses and demands your asylums. It en- genders controversies, fosters guar rels and eherishes riots. It crowds your penitentiaries and furnishes victims to your scsffolds. It is the lfsblood of the gamb bier, the element of the burglar, the prop of the high wayman and the support of the mid night incendiary. It countsnances the liar, respects the thief, esteems the blasphemer. It violates obliga tions, reverences fraud and honors iufamy. It defames benovolence, hates love, scorns virtue and slan ders innocence. It incites the father to butcher his helpless offspring, helps the husband to massacre his wife and the child to grind the para cidal ax. It burns up men, con sumes women, detests life, curses God, and despises heaven. It sub orns witnesses, nurses perjury, de- files the jury box, and stains the judicial ermins. It dcgrades the citizen, debases the legislator, dis honors statesmen, and dissrms the patriot. It brings shame, not honor: terror, hot safety; despair, not hope; misery, not happiness; and with the malovolence of fiend, it calmly sur veys It's frightful desolation, and, unsatisfed with its havoc, it poisens felicity, kills peace, ruins morals, blights confidence, slays reputation, and wipes out national honors, then curses the world and langhs at it's rum. IL does all that and more-it murders the soul. It is the son of yillalnies, the father of all crimes, the mother of abominations, the devils best friend and Gods worst enemy.