Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1894-01-22

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Mississippi Of strong drink rolling
through this nation, but as the rivers
from which I take my figure of speech
empty into the Atlantic or the gulf this
mightier flood of sickness and insanity
and domestic ruin and crime and
bankruptcy and woe empties into the
hearts, and the homes, and the churches,
and the time, and the eternity of null
titude beyond all statistics to mum Der
or describe. All nations are mauled
and scarifed with baleful stimulus, or
killing narcotic. The pulque of Mexico,
the cashew of Brazil, the hasheesh of
Persia, the opium of China, the guavo
of Honduras, the wedro of Russia, the
soma of India, the aguardiente of Mo-
rocco, the arak of Arabia, the mastic
Of Syria, the raki of Turkey, the beer
OF Germany, the whisky of Scotland,
the ale Of England, the all drinks of
America, are doing their best to stupefy,
infame, dement,, impoverish, brutalize
and Stay the human race. Human pow
er, unless re-enfsrced from the heavens,
can never extirpate the evils 1 mention.
Much good has been accomplished by
the heroism and fidelity of Christian re-
formers, but the fact remains that there
are more splendid men and magnificent
women this moment going over the Nj
agara abysm of inebriety than at any
time since the first grape was turned
into wine and the first head of rye be-
gan 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 of high tariff and
low tariff. but what about the highest
of all tariffs in this country, the tariff
of $500, 600, 600 which rum put upon
the United States in 1891, for that is
what it cost us? You do not tremble
OF turn pale when | say that. The fact
is we have become hardened by statis-
tics, 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 widow
hood, or into one organ diapason all the
groans that have been uttered by the
suffering victims Of this holocaust, or
into one whirlwind all the signs of CEN
turtles of dissipation, 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 temper ance 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
grogshops all around the world. Down,
thou accused bottle, from the throne!
Into the dust, thou king of the demi-
john! Parched be thy lips, thou wine
cup, with fires that shall never be
quenched
PLENTY OF AMMUNITION.
But | have no time to specify the
manifold evils that challenge Christian
lly anu tUlHh L nave SGeu III SOID6
Christians, and read in some newspa-
pers, and heard from some pulpits a
disheartenment, as though Christianity
were SO worsted that it is hardly worth
while to attempt to win this world for
God, and that all Christian work would
collapse, and that it is no use for you to
teach a Sabbath class, or distribute
tracts, or exhort in prayer meetings, or
preach in pulpit, as satan is gaining
ground. To rebuke til at pessimism, the
gospel of smashup, | preach this ser
mon, showing that you are on the Win
ing side. Go ahead! Fight on! What
| want to make out today is that our
ammunition is not exhausted; that all
which has been accomplished has been
only the skirm1shing before the great
Armageddon; that not more than one
of the thousand fountains of beauty
in the Kings park has begun to
play; that not more than one brigade
of the innumerable hosts to be mar
shaded by the rider on the white horse
has yet taken the field; that what Cod
has done yet has been with arm folded
in flowing robe, but that the time is
coming when he will rise from his
throne, and throw off that robe, and
come out of the palaces of eternity, and
come down the stairs of heaven with
all conquering step, and halt in the
presence of expectant nations. and flash
ing his omniscient eyes across the work
to be done will put back the sleeve Of
his right arm to the shoulder, and roll
it up there and for the world S final
and complete rescue make bare his arm.
Who can doubt the result when accord
ing to my text Jehovah does his best;
when the last reserve force of omnipo-
tence takes the field when the last
sword of eternal might leaps from it's