Litchfield enquirer., 1881-10-13
Total Abstinence.

Temperance lecturers ususally divide man. kind into two classes, teetotalers and drunk ards. We have never considered this classifi- cation, quite fair to the party of the second part. It is painfully evident that the majori- ty of our fellow citizens are not teetotalers,
 and yet they are certainly not drunkards.
 Still there is certain approach to truth in l the temperance lecturers classification. We l should prefer, however. to base our own class iRcation on faith rather than on practice. Half a century ago there were no unbelievers iu alcohol. Now, more than half New Eng land and the States settled from New Eng land are unbelievers in alcohol, and in other parts of the United States and tn Old Eng land there is manifest growth of unbelief. This want of faith takes it's full effect in the practice of total abstinence. The American
 who, observing the evil effects of alcoholic indulgence. the insidious nature of it's attack, and the practical impossibility of shaking of the appetite when once fastened on men, has given up it's use either wholly or almost
 wholly, is the citizen whose opinions find
 fitting expression in pledges of total abstin- ence, and in votes for prohibition. Half a century ago, alcohol had sure position in every New England house either as servant or as master. It's treachery as the servant of
 mans pleasures and supposed necessities has been notorious from the very first, Mahomet
 felt this so stongly that he forbade his fol-
 lowers the use of wine; but it is only till
 within the present century that it has occurred to any large number of Christians that the Paynim example was an excellent one to fol- low. Now, alcohol retains it's old place in few New England families. and the live question of to day is whether this most treacherous of servants, this hardest of masters, shall be put under the ban of the law as a criminal;
 whether, in short, society is prepared to treat indulgence in the use of alcoholic beverages as criminal indulgence, or whether it is only
 to be regarded as an evil, to be checked by impostions and restrictions, not crushed by
 positive, strenuously executed statute.
 Certainly our recent elections have not
 been favorable to the severer measure. No
 village of over 800 inhabitants, has in this county, at least, voted ''No License" When- ever in such villages prohibition has really
 begun to prohibit, it has been voted down. | Nor can we wonder when we see that our
 women-the most earnest and consistent of our
 citizens in their hatred of alcohol-are not al- lowed to vote at all. Yet who can doubt that l Alcohol has enemies enough, if they were
 consistent earnest, and thoroughly united, to
 beat him at the polls? ..... Y There is the difficulty. The voters who ] really hate alcohol, who fear and seldom use
 it themselves, and who regret it's useby others, l are not consistent in their own practice. First
 of all they should profess the faith they really
 hold. Total Abstinence would cost them little, yet they hesitate to take that last step which would render their practice thoroughly
 consistent For, if alcohol is safe servant,
 why do they not introduce it into their fami- l lies as their fathers did 8 century ago? Why | do they shudder when they see, or hear, of the | occasional indulgence of their sons? They are neither consistent believers nor consistent
 unbeievers. Thus they lose the influence consistent conduct only gives. The man who | indulges himself. yet votes to cut off the in- I dulgence of others, can never explain his
 position to his weaker brethren. They can
 never see why they are in any greater danger | than he. If he can drink, why cant they :? | Any attempt of his to restrain their indulgence
 is something worse in their eyes than the we'll
 meaning impertinence of the fanatic; it is the
 arrogance of one who assumes that they are
 weak while he is strong I; Such may be the
 exact truth. Yet they will never know it till
 too late, precisely because the attack of the adversary is so subtle that they are never aware of it's force till it has become irresst- | able. - a.t #rt.. e..5 ....-. 1 The total abstainer, on the other hand, | occupies easily defensible ground. He asks | no man to do what he is not willing to do himself. lie claims no strength above other
 not merely because think it is safe for others, l but because it is safe for myself. see others l who are as strong as 1, fall under the tempAa- l tion of constant indulgence, and I conclude
 that no man can know beforehand whether or
 not such indulgence will make him drunk
 ard. Abstinence therefore is the only safe
 rule of conduct, and it may as we'll be per-
 feet as imperfect, total as partial. P
 What we would impress on the friends of
 Temperance, therefore, is the necessity of
 taking firmer stand. Let them give up the
 infrequent glass of wine, the occasional mug
 of beer, the keg of cider in the cellar, for the
 consistent position of the total abstinent Were all those whose usual habit is that of
 abstinence, whose indulgence is only occa-
 sional, to advance to the firm ground trifle
 higher up, how little it would cost them, and
 how much it would benefit society That
 would of itself render Prohibition possible,
 and would give it a moral strength it has
 never yet had among us.