The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1890-01-04
LIQUOR AND POVERTY.
Archdeaeon Farrar Talks About the Close
Relations Existing RetWeen Them


heiations Existing Between Them.
Archdeacon Farrar has these timely
words in the Contemporary Review
touching the relation of the liquor curse
to poverty: ''The misery and degrade
ton OF The lower classes will hardly be
touchedtill it has been recognized how
silly, AM often how meanly selfish, is
the opposition to the efforts of Temper
ance rehrmers. Until the Nation sees
that it isits i'm perative duty to dimin-
ish.J't to end, by strong and deter
r. -Sisiaton, the intolerable and
fntermAnane curse Of drink, to control
the liquor tr>ffic by the most stringent
conditions, to punish drunkenness as a
crime, and to nut down the need
lessly multiplied temptations to this
worst, most fatal and most continuous
cause of ruin and brutality, nothing will
be achieved. If tie English people is
not serious enough, or righteous
enough, or self-denying enough to
defeat the tyranny of the drink inter-
est, it may fold its hands and await the
certain and final cata1tropne. If, on the
other hand, we summon up sufficient
courage to sweep aside the base sophis-
tries, and to save myriads from destruc-
ton by graphing with this naster-fiend
of drink, all other Legislative remedies
would very soon become effect,al. Rock
cries would be rebuilt; slums would be
swept away; virtue would be encouraged;
the interests of vice would be hSassed; it
would become much easier to do good,
and much more difficult to do evil.
'And socially there must lie far
greater awakenment to the snse of
duty. At present the few are nagnifi-
Gently liberal, the many are shanefully
uncharitable. Let every rich man reso-
lutely set down how much he spends on
himself-on his plate, his horses, car
riages, servants, yachts, moors, tavels,
pictures, bric-a-brac, dinners and luxu-
ries; how much he spends on the d.esses
and diamonds of his wife and daughters;
and then how much he gives of his i1come
to the cause of sick and suffering hunani-
ty. 1t has become necessity of the day
that the rich should more and more feel
the guilt of a purely selfish luxury UNI
accompanied by either public munifi-
cence or private generosity. If
they be Christians, let them ask
whether they attach any meaning at all
to what is said on this subject by
st. james and other apostles; to the
meaning which Christ intended to con-
-vey " E3NFraBles of the rich fool and
of Dives ard Lazarus. Let them-and
let us all-ook we'll to it that we have
no share in the interests of crime, no in
vestment in gains derived from the
causes of human misery. Let us all
very solennly put to ourselves the
question whether we have not some
thing to do toward the solution Of
neutrality-suspicious.. Religion, unless it
take the most active part in the struggle
to secure smelioration for the lot of the
miserable, becomes a mere despicable
and effeminate religionism. Christ was
no Pharisee, forever Illuminating minute
theological definitions, fussing about
trivial points of ceremony, and Haunting
in phylacieries; the summary of His
work, given by the greatest of His
apostles, IS that He went about doing
good"