The Daily bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Hawaii]) 1882-1895, 1886-12-11

LII 1O4U arose ullc WOnucilui
Washingtonian movement, the great
effort of which was the reformation
of drunkards. And now, for the
first time, signing total abstinence
pledge was considered necessity,
some even going so far as to hold
that nothing must be done or said
about the liquor traffic or the men
engaged in it. They said, "If every
one could be persuaded to sign the
pledge of total abstinence, grog
shops could do no harm, and would
soon disappear for want of custom.
This failure to consider the strength
of the traffic and their own weak
ness was their great mistake, and it
is estimated that of the six hundred
thousand drunkards who were at
one time reformed during the Wash
ingtonian excitement, as many as
four hundred and fifty thousand
returned to their old habits. At the
same time their total abstinence
principles carried great conviction.
Following this movement, and as
an effort to gather in its results, the
secret order of the Sons of Tempe
rance was organized, which, in 1850
numbered nearly 100000 members
in the United States. Other SINH
ilar societies followed, all of whose
members were required to take the
total abstinence pledge. From this
time, for some ten years, until the
civil war began, was the best tenn
perance period in the history of the
American nation. ''Total absti-
hence was accepted by a large ma
jority of the people, both in theory
and practice, and the old drinking
usages of the fathers had almost
wholly disappeared from social
life."
Then came the civil war, when
another interest absorbed the ma
ton. Prohibitory laws which had
been enacted in many States fell
into disuse; temperance agitation
almost ceased. After the war came
great tide of foreign immigration,
many of them from the very lowest
classes in Europe. Worse than
these for the temperance cause, a
reaction against total abstinence
arose on the part of some of the
leading scientists and others who
claimed that alcohol is an article of
food and not hurtful when moderate
iy used, and recommended the use
of light wine and beer to meet
need of the physical system.
Though their theories were shown to
be false, and fatal to temperance in
terests, very many were influenced
by them, and fashions ever ready to
take the easy, downward course,
added her endorsement to the re-
verse movement. DR.. Dorchester,
in his most recent valuable book,
1.-The Liquor Problem in all Ages
(from which most of these facts are
drawn), considers "this fallacious
reasoning the main cause of the
great increase of intemperance dur
ing the next ten or fifteen years,
and had devoted much space in his
book to considering the wine and
beer fallacy," the candid perusal of
which l most earnestly recommend
to all who are interested in the sub
ject, and are willing to be convinced.
1t is impossible in paper like this
even to glance over the subject.
can only quote few statements
among many that might be made, to
show that in the wine growing and
beer making countries, such as
France, Germany and California,
Drunkenness is most common and
increasingly so.
In 1872, "The Constitutional" a
paper in Paris, said, ''The French
race is. deteriorating daily. 1t is
especially the drunkenness produced
by alcohol which exercises de-
plorable effect on the public health.
The drunkenness caused by wine
is less dangerous. Unhappiiy the
passage from one to the OTHER is ra,
pid. Men begin soitA oine;; soon
the palate pals and asks to'
stronger excitement. Alcohol d
tah;en." In 1882, Mr.. Clifford, U,
S. Consul at La Rochelle, said, "It
may not once have been SO, but al
present the visible effects of intempe'
rance are not more striking, ever
in the United States, than In this
wine producing country" A Ge
neva correspondent of the London
Times says, "The vice of intempe
rance is growing so fast in Switzer
land as to occasion grave anxiety
among public men of all classes
Even the public fortune is compro
missed by the excessive drinking o
the population. 1t i!
easy to understand in what terri
BILE ruin this drunkenness must end
1t is whirlpool which swallows VI
every year thousands and thousands
of francs"
ITO be cOntinued.)
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