The Sedalia weekly bazoo. [volume] (Sedalia, Mo.) 187?-1904, 1882-04-18
BIBULOUS NEW WORKERS.
The Peril Which Attends the Pos
session Of q Strong Head
for Liquor.


Men are not prone TO heed lessons, are
they? Ii we were there wouldn't be So
many fellows trying to drink themselves
into eternity. found in the death notices
day before yesterday the names of three
men, each OF whom was dear to me. One
! OF them used to live i'm Boston, then in
Washington, of late in New York. He died
in lunatic asylum.
Why?
Rum,
BY rum mean strong drink We Use
rum as kind of generic term for all
liquors This friend was "A when he dieG.
He was an inventor, a pusher, a driving.
energetic man OF business, and he had two
inventions, each of which would have made
him a very rich man. | went To his hotel
one day about six months ago To look at
one of his schemes won't tell YOU what,
because you'd recognize the man. was in
his room, with two Others, perhaps two
hours. In that time he ordered two small
bottles" five brandy and sodas, one ginger
ale and Vermont cocktail. In addition
he had private bottle of whisky, from
which he now and then took a drink.
We all had an occasional pull,
but the above list was his por-
ton. | remarked il and asked ii he wasn't
afraid il would give him a headache, for
this was early in the day, from III to |.
He laughed and said he never had head
ache in his life Down ut Coney Island
when Others drank beer he had champagne
lie was never drunk, hardly ever fuddled,
but all az sudden, about two months ago,
something gave way, crack, bang, and his
never-aching head was gone. He was crazy
as a loon. With difficulty he was taken tn
an asylum, where he degenerated into
helpless. hopeless idiot, sank quickly and
was buried yesterday.
Exceptional case
Well, YES, IN that he had superb con-
stitution, bright, quick wit, and a head
that never ached. Also, in that he died a
lunatic. But ii Is not exceptional in the
habit of continuous drink. Very few pee
pie stop to think lit. Go into popular
restaurant. Its, Halo, whatll you take ~
all the tiEie. For the fun of the thing, l
stood i'm the Aston house rotunda at noon
to-day and counted the number OF times l
was asked 10 drink in less than half an
hour. Twenty-Five men asked me to drink
Among nv wOuld-be hosts were several
newspaper men, two state senators, first
rate actor, an alderman, two proprietors
and the manager of the house. an insurance
agent, NV brother and couple OF the bows
from the postOffice Did accept? | guess
not. Fortunately, have a head that aches
frequently. Experience has taught me that
violation OF natures law inSures aspeedy
punishment Ache Well, from the back of
nv neck to the crown OF my skull and all
along nv bumps of benevolence | ache
with perfect aching. can stand a mod
crate quantum OF dissipation, but long ago
came to the conclusion that | was or
dained to virtue and temperance No.
didn't accept, but it struck nav thoughtful
bump very hard. i looked at the multi
tude III Young and middle-aged men throng-
ing i'm to lunch. Nearly every one had
drink, many had two and a number had
several. There was no confusion, no rude
ness, no drunkenness, nothing to strike
the eve OF a casual lOeker-on, but / tell
YOU the way the fiery stuff was gurgled
down was caution to the copper-bot-
toned stOmachs which had to tackle and
digest it. Please don't regard me as a
moralist. It's none OF my funeral. Every
fellow has right to do what he pleases
with his own stomach | can't drink be-
cause il makes my head ache. NV friend
could drink because his head never ached.
He died in a lunatic asylum and I'm tell
ing about it. That's where i come in
see? Now, you know these drinkers are
not the fellows who beat their wives or
starve their children. They are the re-
spectacle chaps, the workers of their day
and generation. All right. Go it, go it,
Count on me for an obituary.