Mexico weekly ledger., 1881-05-19
REV. DIR. oROsBY's LECTURE.

Howard Crosby's temperancelecture,
for and against which so much has
been said by the press, from the pull
pit and in the lecture room. " hatev-
er criticisms have been passed upon
it, DR. Crosby's arraignment of the
was felt to be columbiad
of the heaviest callbre. Fired at Bos-
ton, in fremont Temple, it for time
and dazed their batteries !;
but Wendell Phillips finally came to
their rescue, and after constructing a
straw Doctor Crosby, tore it to tat
ters after his peculiar fashion. No
body thought it strange that that no.
torious and singular individual as
serted that DR.. Crosby had maintained
that moderate drinking was a chris.
tian duty, but that any have been
fool-hardy enough to repeat that foul
calumny is truly wonderful.
The temperance crusade has now
been waged for over half century,
and during the whole of that time
there has been progress from failure
to failure, until it is proclaimed by
advanced sensationalists that moth
ing short of annihilation of fermenta-
ton will be of any reformatory avail.
DR.. Crosby has pointed out, at great
length, the impractical, unsuitable,
tyranical, unscriptural and even i'm
moral character of such sweeping
demand, and we leave our readers to
judge how conclusively this has been
done. What we have to say is, God
help the drunkards if the reformers
are right. We have heard of the ar
rogant king who said to the ocean !:
''Here, let thou proud waves be
stayed" AS we'll may enthusiastic
extremists seek to arrest nature as
prevent fermentation. That is the
edict of One that is greater than man
against all that Is finite and mortal.
The next step in this unceasing pro-
gress, in all probability, will be an
attempt to exterminate vegetation,
since as long as there shall
be fruits and crerials, starch and gu.
gar, it will be in the power Of drunk
ards to administer to their depravet
and diseased appetites.
But to be serious, all must acknowl
edge that every effort to lessen intem
perance, judiciously put forth, il
worthy of commendation, as we'll by
those that do not imbibe, as BY
moderate and excessive drinkers
Nearly all the affliction of familiet
and societies are connected with th,
folly and crime of drunkenness. /
fills our almshouses, asylums ant
prisons, and even entails misery up
on generations yet unborn. How t.
arrest it is most important problem
worthy of universal discussion. Pro
hibition of distillation was to hav
been the successful panacea but tina
with all the pledges it has been posi-
BILE to formulate, is now declared t
he inadequate. Notwithstanding a
that has been done, incorporates con
tinue their intemperance. Instead Q
strengthening, defeated prohibitio
and broken pledges weaken, and th
violence and fanaticism Of many TEN
perance orators disgust and drive O
many that would otherwise assis
them. All the friends of temperanc
do not and cannot believe that it is
sin to take glass of either beer {
| wine, and many of them suspect til
| sincerity of those that assert that it il
But, surely there are modes of discus
sing this important subject which a
reasonable men will listen to, and,
we mistake not, the proper plan {
procedure would be serious an
conscientious statement by scientist
| of where temperance ends and inten
perance begins, with truthful exh
bition of the evils, moral and phys
cal, that invariably attend the latte
With reference to diseased and il
ljured constitutions, physicians mig
differ; but none would say that il
4 temperance can be unaccompanie
with disastrous results. What
, most needed, in our opinion, is
common ground that all sensible ar
moderate men can occupy. If thel
Z were an united moral sentiment
regard to beverages and stimulan
: fit to be used, it might solidify u
RI friends of temperance and result
n much needed Improvement; b
: that there is no known specific again
N intempersnce should never be lc
" sight of. Intemperanee is the me
terry Of what is sensual in man ov
k. what is moral. Temperance is t
- restraint Of the sensual by the spir
q ual. There is no possible reme'
u for intemperance except retornati
of the entire man. This is nccessar
a slow process. Law can be ma
that will quickly engage the tige
70 but christianity alone can take Il
L tiger out of man. A genuine revi'
Z of religion is, therefore, the best te
- perance movement; genuine chr
tan church the best temperance
ciety, and genuine christian prea'
er, who puts temperance as Paul
md it, in connection with righteousn
!. and a Judgment to come, is the b
- of all temperance agitators.