Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1884-10-27
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Temperance.
JOHN SMITH AND THE TIGER.

or menagerle.
The evening before election his
mind kept running on the temperance
question. His wife, who is a tenn
perance worker, and his children, who
are members of the Band of Hope,
had pleaded with him most earnestly
to vote the prohibition ticket. Even
the blue-eyed baby boy asked papa
to vote ''hibition" so when baby was
big he couldn't get whiskey.
John has a Conscience very in
convenient article, as he found while
trying to twist matters in such way
as to make wrong appear right.
"No, no." he said, as he stopped
at the tigers cage to see if every
thing was secure, 81 can't do it, |
must vote with my party. Although
1 have seen things in that party that
don't seem quite square, yet party is
party.
"Of course temperance is good
thing, but here is personal liberty to
be looked after. A man must do as
he pleases or he has no liberty. Per-
sonal liberty Why, the words them
selves carry conviction They have
the true ring, like the Declaration of
Independence and the Proclamation
of Emancipation. How fierce this IT,
ger is The way he snarls and shows
his teeth is enough to make man
nervous. Not a very cheerful place
to pass the night, though for that
matter Eve never thought the place
particularly gloomy before this. Yes,
yes, personal liberty is the thing to
vote for. Women and children can't
reason on such matters; they 90 by
their feelings. 1t isn't their nature to
reason. AS Jim Brown said to-day,
women are sort of natural fanatics.
Sort of tigerish, l think, on this pro-
hibition question. Enough sight bet
ter company, though, than this snarl-
ing BEAST
John went his rounds and then set
tied himself to read, as usual,
"Esop's Fables. This book was
to him most wonderful. Not but that
he could have done better with the
animals than Esop did, by making
their talk more in keeping with their
natures, If he only had the knack of
getting his thoughts on paper; but
the book was, nevertheless, quite
wonderful.
The fables that John hit upon that
night as he opened the book at ran
dom were 4: "The Plague Among the
Beasts" and the "Two Scythes .
"All of them kind of mixed up with
personal liberty and high license" he
muttered in disgust.
His next conscious idea was, thai
somebody had put personal liberty
in practice, by opening all the cages
in the menagerie. The animals al
proceeded to destroy each other at {
fearful rate.
John had hardly taken in the hor
Tor of the situation before he realized
that the tiger was springing upol
him.
ooh! wait an instant" he crie'
in great agony, 81 have word t.
say about
"About personal liberty?" snarle
the tiger, "Oh! 1 believe in that;
can give you forcible illustration O
it."
John thought, "This is horribl
nightmare, for tigers don't talk. Bu
l shall die of fear before l get out G
it. When the tiger springs, Pm
a dead man, dream or no dream. ]
l can only keep the dreadful bea:
talking" So John continued aloud
"There seems to be something wrong
your liberty, in this case, doesn
seem to be quite my liberty"
Tiger: "Of course not; you'l
helpless. Might is right, the stron
devours the weak. That is the Ia
ofnature.
1t occurred to John that this WI
substantially his position in defen'
ing personal liberty and high licens
He must say something, howeve
the tiger was glazing at him. 1T
-ahem! the-ah Z! the Christian la
law tells us to be merciful to Il
helpless"
The tiger tossed his head with
air of superiority. Although out
his cage he took several turns abo
the length of it, and dashed his f
fiercely. Then he cast upon pc
John most whitening glance of l
proach and SAID, "Tigers obey t
laws that are given them. There w
never yet one of them SO mean
not to protect his tigress and young
This appeared to John like taul
so he braced up little although
considered himself literally in t
jaws of death.
John: "Of course it is alwa
mean to opress and destroy the he
less. find that changed positl
alters the view of the subject. N
if | were a lion don't you think y
might change your view of person
liberty?"
At this the beast was indeed aror
ed. He snarled so fearfnlly !,
showed his teeth in such say;
way, that John thought the inst;
for his destruction had come. I
tiger roared forth in what might
called tigers stentorian tones: