The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1891-12-24
TEMPERANCE NOTES.
STRONG AGAINST STRONG.

=. A4A l 1l1\f14NOL NOlEO.
STRONG AGAINST STRONG.
\ Very Effective Temperance Aadre.. by
Now York. Newsboy.
made q great mistake the first day
l met Sam, the newsboy. He is q
sawed-oft, chunky chap twelve yeaxs
old, but doesn't look over nine. He is
very dignified and solemn-lookinp
boy, and never yet saw nything ap-
proaching q smile on his face. The
mistake 1 made was in winking at
Sam and playfully poking him in the
ribs as any man has right to do by
any boy. He stepped back a pace,
looked me up and down in the most
cold-blooded manner, and quietly oh.
served:
Sir! If you have any business with
me please state your case!''
l went among the boys and asked
about Sam, and l learned that he
treated everybody that way. He had
no chums. spent no money, and no one
knew anything about him except that
he had to be carefully handled. Then
l went back and made up with him
that is. excused my hilarious conduct,
stood treat to a milk-stake and SO
thawed him out that we now and then
had a talk about the weather, the crops,
and the outlook of matters in general.
l just happened to blunder on to his
living place in Baxter street the other
evening as l was prowliug around. /
saw him down in a basement, and
when had called to him he invited me
down.
1t was two-room habitation and q
most wretched, woebegone home.
Sans father was lying drunk on the
floor and his mother reclined on an old
mattress in a corner and muttered and
mumbled and tried to sing now and
then:
Home. Sweet Home!" quietly OBJ
served Sam. "Take off your overcoat
and have chair. Glad to see you down
this way
And SO this is where you live?'
Eyes. Elegant start on the road to
success, isn't it? Lots of things to en-
courage boy to make man of him
self!'
us that your father and mother?"
''Of course
"Sham! Sham! Whoze that, Sham?"
called the mother.
Nov, you hush!' he replied, as he
pointed at her: II want you to keep
quiet and 60 to sleep!"
"All rize, Sham-all rize!'' she re.
piled, as she fell back on the bed.
Drunk, OF COURSE" said the boy, as
looked from father to mother. ''It's
this way about four nights in the week.
was figuring just before you came in,
and here's how came out Father has
been drinking man for thirty years.
He has paid out an average of 10 cents
per day during that time. That's
$50. so per year or about 81, 100 without
interest Mother has been drinking
for about ten years.
'We'll call that $3.50. Here's about
$1,000 gone from our income. Am |
right?"
Yes
lowing to drink father has lost at
least one day out of week I've known
him to lose a job and not work for
three months. Well call it only fiftv
lays in year. That's 1900 days in
thirty years, and being M ,chanic he
has never had less than S. per dav.
There's $4,000 more lost from our in
come. Am correct?'
You are''
The father now turned over, groaned,
stretched and rose up on his elbow and
thickly inquired:
''Sham, whaz time is it?''
"Never you mind" answered the bow.
"You have gone to bed for the night,
and l want you to stay right there:''
The man muttered and complained,
but fell back and was soon snoring
again, and Sam continues:
"A man who gets drunk generally
gets into trouble with the law. Father
has been arrested at least a hundred
times in the thirty years. He has been
fined at least $500 and mother at least
800. While drunk father broke his leg
once and his arm once, and mother
once broke her arm. Mother also
broke lamp and we lost $500 worth OF
furniture. Loss of furniture, doctor
bills, ETC., about 5000. Is that too
high?''
Il don't think So"
swell. then, let's add up Here we
have total of about S., 500 in cash, to
say nothing of interest, lost from one
mechanics income up to the present
date. It's just as much lost as if flung
into the fire and burned to ashes. II
hasn't done us one iota of good. On
the contrary it has disgraced, degraded
and brutalized u.s.
| Il see."
'Sham: Sham! l want to shing!
called the mother at this juncture.
81 want you TO keep quiet" he stern.
~ replied.
"All rize, Sham-all rize!'
Nov let's see what we could do il
we had this money which has done nc
good" continued the boy. Five thou
sand dollars would buy us snug farm;
it would take us out west, buy house
and lot and estab lish father in a shop
of his own; it would educate me as a
lawyer or doctor twice over; it would
keep father and mother the last ten
years OF their lives without work or
worry. See! Isn't it appalling when
you come to figure it out in black and
white?'
ut certainly is
"A Sunday or two ago." said Sam,
after an interval of silence, you ex-
pressed wonder in your sketch that
rich people did not do more to help the
poor. It would have been wiser in YOU
to wonder why poor folks didn't do
more tO helm themselves
by abstaining from drink?"
Exactly. l know there are plenty
OF cases where industrious sober men
are brought down to hard times, but
eight times out of ten drink is the