The Opelousas courier., 1888-08-25
Effects of Strong Drink.
Most of the misery, want ant

dure to-day may be justly at
tributed to our non-conformity
to the will and design of the
Creator. Mankind is ever too
ready to contract habits that
are evil and vile, habits that are
productive of misery, suffering
and crime. Our useless habits
and foolish fashions draw hum
dreds down to want and beggary
where monopoly and capital do
one and, of all the habits that
ever cursed the human race, the
habit of using strong drink as a
beverage ranks first. That
one has produced more misery,
want, Indebtedness and crime
in the land since the Christian
era than war, pestilence aud
famine combined, and has done
more to corrupt the sorals and
impede the prosperity of our
country than any other cause.
This old King Alcohol is one
of the most cruel and heartless
despots ever known, one who
imposes the heaviest burdens on
his subjects, and, no matter how
loyal and devoted they may be
to him, they never get any act
of kindness Or favor from him
in return for their mental servi-
tude ; and as soon as one enlists
in his service he begins to brand
and torture not only him, but
his whole household, family and
friends, and he soon destroys
everything of value to the poor
man. Above all, he ruins or
destroys that great and priceless
gem, the talent Or intellectual
power of the mind, that enables
him to bring out and utilize all
the blessings given us by the
Creator, the germ that makes
him so superior to the brute.
The continual use of alcohol in
any form soon destroys quail
ties that are pure and noble, and
arouses passions that are vile,
british and dangerous. Au-
thentic statistics show that a
very large percentage of the.
misery, pauperism and crime in
the land. is directly the result of
the use of strong drink as a
beverage.
We can hardly take az paper
in our hands in which, is not
chronicled one or more bloody
and fatal crimes committed by
some poor drunken nend who
has been fitted and prepared for
this cruel and bloody work by
some avaricious landlord or
druggist who sometimes seems
to care little or nothing for the
safety or well-being of the poor
suffering wife and helpless chill
dren at the home of the drunk
ard, as long as the business
brings them in a good profit.
The greatest sufferers from the
evils of intemperance are the
poor and destitute wives and
families of drunkards, who are
at home in some lonely howell
without necessary food, fuel or
clothing, shivering with cold
and hunger, and the little inno-
cent children budding around
their poor heart broken and
grief-stricken mother, begging
and crying in vain for bread or
something to soothe or allay the
pangs of hunger and cold. Per
haps this same mother once
faithful by labored early and late
with her heart buoyant with
hope, looking forward to the
near future when she should sit
III the midst of plenty, where
she and the partner of her life,
surrounded by children, could
enjoy the highest type of early
bliss and happiness !; but ere she
was aware this monster intern
perance laid his ruthless hand
upon her once fonG-bhusband,
and transformed him into a
brute, and new her burden of
poverty, shame and Wretched-
ness becomes 50 great that in
her frenzy and despair she takes
her own life or the lives of her
dear little ones whom she would
gladly have laid down her own
life to protect before this mons
ter incompetence invaded her
once happy home. Oh! have
the mind, talent and energies of
our American people become so
dwarfed that they are unable.
or the avenues to the heart SO
closed, or the heart itself SO cal
loused, or eyes SO blind, that
they cannot be made to feel, see
and realize the fearful response