The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1888-03-23
8 GREAT RISK.

"Come ana take glass OF beer with
me. We used to drink our beer to-
gether, and though you are better
dressed than l am, don't believe you
have forgotten old times
"Not bit of it. John; have not
forgotten old times or old friends, but
we can never drink beer together
again"
"Why not, Joe?"
because l swore off from beer three
years ago, and not drop have l tasted
since then. -
''No beer for three years! Why,
you used to say you could not work
without it,
81 know I did, but found out my
mistake. lost so much time I could
hardly meet my family expenses l
had saved nothing, and things began
| to look blue"
Il supposed you had something laid
by. AS for me, I never could do any
more than make the ends meet |
think, every year, will insure my life
for the benefit of my wife and chill
| dren, but I never can get money
enough ahead to do it. -
Il have insured my life, and it was
in trying to do that I learned lesson
| about beer"
"HowP Idon't understand. -
81 will explain. I had worked three
months without losing a day, when [
made application for an insurance on
my life at the office of a large Western
company The first question asked me
was: DO you drink beer?' OF course,
told him the truth, and answered
that did. Then we can not insure
you,' said the agent. why notP' l
asked, in establishment. 1t is rule
recently adopted, he replied. I'VE
can not afford to insure beer-drinkers.
1t is taking too great risk
"That was enough for me. [ went
out of that Office lively, and when got
home | thought the matter over. l
mad heard good deal said against
beer, and knew the out-and-out Tenn
! perance people count it almost as bad
as whisky, but believed that beer was
good.
Il studied on it, and at last | tried
going without for a month. 1t was a
Tough job. but went through with it,
and after the first week nay appetite
improved | had less ache in my head
and more change in my pocket /
| triad II onofbor month nd
tied the question for me. In six
months | insured my life in the same
company that had refused me before"
"Seems to me / would have gone to
some other company. Iwouldn't have
given them q chance to refuse me
second time"
II was pretty sure of not being re-
fused the second time, and they had
done me so good turn I wanted to
patronze them. They didn't refuse
me the first time without good reason.
They are doing business or business
principles, and they have come to the
conclusion that beer-drinkers are not
desirable patrons. A b"er-drinker is
likely to die too soon to make it profit
able to insure his life. -
"But beer is healthy drink. If
not, why do physicians prescribe it?
The first glass l ever drank was pre-
scribed by a physician.
"He did not prescribe it for your
life time"
"No; but you know how it is
When you get in the habit of using it,
there don't seem to be any thing else
to take its place. Anyway, it has
been so with me, and I shouldn't know
how to get through days work with
out it.
lit costs you more than you can af-
ford to pay"
- know it costs something, but it
is my only extravaganza"
Your only extravaganza is an ex-
pensive one. Go without beer for
month, and give your wife the money
you are in the habit of paying for
your drains, and see how much COM
fort she will get out of it. | used to
think she was good manager. "
"She is 0o'adertu5 manager. If
she wasn't, we never could make the
ends meet :"
Does she drink beer?"
Mot drop. She hates it, and
thinks it is thoroughly osd. She says
she can always tell when have drank
more than usual. !"
tsGf oO,1,co che COW. l-,o,., I'll
about that. Your head aches; you
don't want to hear word from your
children, and you don't feel like say
ing any thing pleasant to your wife"
THAT is about the way of it."
g And, John. ii, the truth was told
in plain words, you are so cross and
surly your children are glad to keep
4 away from yo,l and your wife is likely
to think of the time when she was
girl in her fathers house. I don't
wonder she hates beer. The only won
der to me is that she don't hate the
beer-drinker, She deserves the best
you can give her.
THAT is true, and it is time I
thought more about it. If it is beer
that keeps me poor and cross, the beer
must go. | have thought myself
pretty good fellow because | never
drank any thing stronger
g That is the way with great many,
but beer is evil, and that continually.
1t is sapping the Nations strength,
and taking bread from the mouths of
starving women and children.
That sounds bad, Joe, though |
know of men who drink SO much they
can not have great deal of money to
spend for their families. I wonder if
the worst that is said about beer-drink-
ing is really true"
q don't believe any thing so bad as
the truth can be said. The more 1
think and study about it, the more
ready / am to denounce beer as the