Mower County transcript., 1889-10-30

THE lecture .tOur Legacy to the
Future" given by Mrs. Clara C. Hoffman
of Missouri last Wednesday eve ming, at
the Opera House was in the opinion OF
many Of the audience the best Temper
ance lecture ever listened DIN the city.
Personally Mrs. Hoffman possesses great
attractive powers and with her more than
ordinary command of language she held
her audience admirably. She spoke with
out hesitation and in style peculiarly
adapted to her subject. It is to be deeply
regretted that more of our people were
not present to. enjoy such rare treat.
The points were these: Nations, like
individuals leave legacies to those who
follow them. Like begets like in all
nature why should a nation addicted to
the habits of intemperance in so many
directions hope to produce future genera
tions morally better than the present one.
Environments and associations in every
village and city are dragging down COM
ing generations to a lower level. The
and how hard it is to destroy them are
facts understood by all. yet we allow
them to take root and grow until evil
has wrought sure destrution IN many a
home. The Bible plainly says ''The in
iQuities of the father shall be visited upon
the children unto the third and fourth
generation. Better had it said the in
iquities of the parents shall! effect the
children of the coming generations. AS
is sown so is the harvest, nothing else is
expected. We build our monuments to
mentally great men but morally small
ones The time will come when the
| white and shining marble will pay honor
| to the moral men. The children of Web
ster and Clay did not achieve reatness
mentally or morally which proves that
we give to our children not the best
legacy but the weeds. Henry Clay drank
moderately; his sons were more intem-
perate and his grand son was shot in q
saloon. Scars never disappear although
the particles of the body change several
times, during life. AS they remain in
tn flesh so do they in the brain. man
| little thinks he lessons the will power Of
his child when putting away at his
| favorite cigar. DR.. Hurd after thirty
! five years of study says "The greater
| number of cases of insanity can be traced
to drunkness and licentionsness as direct
causes No sin is so damnable as the one
which transmits evil tendencies to in
nocent childhood. Personal liberty car
only be enjoyed when entirely alone,
Lawmakers will leglslate to protect and
control injuries done the brute creation
but will attempt to compromise greater
| evil against Gods best creation man. As
in the cases of saloon keeper being
| fined $25 for selling boy whiskey, and
a man who was obliged to give fol
damages to the owner of giraffe $500
for daring to feed the animal tobacco
In southern New York lived Margare,
the mother of criminals whose descen
dants in less than 100 years numbered
623 Out of this number 23O have beer
| in the penitenliaries and most of the
others figure in evil ways of many des
criptions. At Saltwater 200 of the con.
| yicts come there as the result of intemper.
ance and this High License state too
The lecture closed with quotation from
Mrs Browning addressed to the parents
on the responsibility of right pure liyine
that our children may receive legacy OF
goodness and purity. Whittier's Conduc
tors story ably illustrated the signals OF
danger which we of the 10th. century
should hold up against the destruction
of the coming trains in succeeding ages