Mississippi leader. (Jackson, Miss.) 1892-1895, 1894-02-20
A Word From DIR. Talmage.

A worn FROM Dr. Iaimage.
In enumerating the "evils that chal-
lenge the progress of Christianity" he
has this to say:
There stands the arch demon of al
coholism. Its throne is white, and made
of bleached human skulls. On one side
of that throne of skulls kneels in obei-
sance and worship Democracy, and on
the other side Republicanism, and the
one that kisses the cancerous and gan
grened foot of this despot the oftenest
gets the most benedictions. There is
Hudson River, an Ohio, Mississippi
of strong drink rolling through this
nation, but as the rivers from which
take my figure of speech empty into
the Atlantic or the Gulf, this mightier
food of sickness, and insanity, and do
nestle ruin, and crime, and bankrupt
cy, and woe, empties into the hearts
and the homes and the churches, and
the time and the eternity of a multi
tude beyond all statistics to number or
uSSCIlDt. All udIIOliS are IlduiSu dhO
scarified with the baleful stimulus, or
killing narcotic. The pulque of MeXi-
co, the cashaw of Brazil, the hasheesh
of Persia, the opium of China, the qua
vo of Honduras, the wedro of Russia.
the soma of India, the aguardiente of
of Morocco, the arak of Arabia, the
mastic of Syria, the raki of Turkey, the
beer of Germany, the whisky of Scot
land, the ale of England, the all-drinks
of America, are doing their best to stu
pefy, inflame, impoverish, brutalize and
slay the human race. Human power
unless reinforced from the heavens can
never extirpate the evils mention.
| Much good has been accomplished by
the heroism and fidelity of Christian
reformers, but the fact remains that
there are more splendid men and mag
nificent women this moment going over
the Niagara abysm of inebriety than at
any time since the first grape was turn
ed into wine and the first head of rye
began to soak in brewery. When peo-
pie touch this subject they are apt to
give statistics as to how many millions
are in drunkards' graves, or with quick
| tread marching ON toward them. The
land is full of talk about high tariff
and low tariff, but what of the highest
of all tariffs in this country, the tariff
of 5900,OO0,OOO which rum put upon the
United States in 1891, for that is what
it cost us. You do not tremble or turn
pale when | say that The fact is we
have become hardened by statistics
and they make little impression. But
if some one could gather into one
mighty lake all the tears that have
been wrung out of orphanage and wild
owhood; or into one organ diapison all
the groans that have been uttered by
the suffering victims of this holocaust;
or into one whirlwind all the signs of
centuries of designations; or from the
wicket of one immense prison have look
upon us the glaring eyes of all those
whom strong drink has endungeoned,
we might perhaps realize the appalling
desolation. But, no, no; the sight
would forever blast our vision-the
sound would forever stun our souls.
Go on with your temperance literature;
go on with your temperance platforms;
go on with your temperance laws. But
we are all hoping for something from
above, and while the bare arm of suf-
fering, and the bare arm of invalidism,
and the bare arm of poverty, and the
bare arm of domestic desolation, from
which rum hath torn the sleeve, are
lifted up in beggary and supplication
and despair, let the bare arm of God
strike the breweries, and the liquor
stores, and the corrupt politics, and
the license laws, and the whole inferno
of grog shops all around the world.
Down, thou accursed bottle, from the
throne. Into the dust, thou king of
the demijohn! Parched be thy lips,
thou wine cup, with fires that shall
never be quenched!