Delaware gazette and state journal., 1896-07-30
nouR NArIosaL sIn.,
Powerful Address by Col. Balm, OF Ken
tucky IN Grace church.

Powerful Address by Col. Balm OF Ken
tucky IN Grace church.
A large audience assembled in Grace
Church, Sunday evening to hear Col.
George w. Balm of Lexington. KY,
ypeak on "Our National Sin.5''' Col.
Balm is man of fine presence, and
one Of the most gifted orators of the
country. In introducing the speaker
DIR. Hulburd said that 12 years ago
when John b. Cough laid down his
work, he wondered who would take
it up. but in tho years that followed
the question was answered in Col.
Balm. Tho colonel spoke under the
auspices of the Women's Christian
Temperance Union. He said in part:
Some people think there is nothing
that can be said that Is now In the
temperance question and great many
folk don't know anything at all about
it. A man may know all about the
circulation of the heavenly planets and
not know anything about the circula-
tion of the blood in his body. A great
many intelligent people know very
little about the temperance question.
About IL years ago l addressed large
audience of about 9, 600 people at Ocean
Grove. On the platform sat Roscoe
L
speaking before such distinguished
person and after speaking fer two or
three minutes turned to see il Conkling
was interested. found him gazing at
the large audience aud the audience
looking at Mr.. Conkling. But / de
termined to do my best and after a
little while noticed Mr.. Conkling be-
coming interested and at the close OF
the address he was the first one to
grasp my hand and thank me for the
talk. Roscoe Conkling had learned
something about the temperance ques-
tion he had never known before.
Again near Chicago addressed an
audience and the next day at the rail
way station was accosted by learned
man, who had heard me, and told me
that l was wrong in my premises on
the temperance question; that liquor as
beverage was good for the health and
strength. All, indeed. said /, then God
has made a mistake. If alcohol is
good for the strength why did not God
make it. He made oceans of water.
You go down into the earth and you
will find oil and water, but no alcohol.
If it is good for strength why not feed
it to the OK and mule. am sure no
ono would want to get behind drunken
mule.
Down at the bottomgof the labor
trouble and suffering lies the liquor
traffic. What is the cause of unrest in
. the business worIia Want Of money,
you say the money is not in circulation,
because the banks are holding it. But
the banks do not earn money by hold
ing it. The money is only tho tool of
the bank. Go to town where there
is not sign of life. Where the car
penters tools are locked up in his chest,
do you blame the stagnation on the
tools that are locked up? The trouble
is in the liquor saloons of this country.
Some one says il yous< close up the
breweries, &C., you will throw thou
sands of men out of work. But the
capital that will employ five men in
the liquor business would employ %
men in any other. A manufacturing
establishment in England with capl-
tai of 81, 500, 600 employs 5000 men I;
the same amount in liquor business
would employ 150. In Chicago recently
1S, 600 men paraded the streets with
banners inscribed 1--WE Want Bread for
our Children" and went to park and
drank 1900 kegs of beer The money
spent in GO days for liquor in this coun-
try would buy the whole Pullman
establishment at Chicago.
All the gold and silver in the coun-
try would not pay the drink bill of IS
months. In 1884 there was spent for
bread, &C., $500. 600, 600; for liquor and
tobacco. 81. 600, 600, 600 The cost Of
the armies of Great Britain, Germany,
France, Russia and Spain does not
equal the cost of or drink bill in a
year. You will never destroy our ma
tion by too little gold. Two hundred
feet of wall could not save Babylon in
her drunken revelry. We have in this
country an army of drunkards greater
than the Union army during the civil
war. As a nation we are sinner in
the sight of God. The destiny of this
nation is in the hand of God. The
sale of the black slave to the white
man. cruel as it was, is not as cruel as
tho sale of the white man to the de-
mands of high license. The indiffer
ence of so many church people is ro-
sponsible for the condition Of things.
In Lexington, Ky, wholesale liquor
dealer was elected mayor of the city
and his election was aided by the
church people, even Col. Bain's own
brother, superintendent of the Sunday
school, voting for him. Mr.. Balm told
many pathetic incidents and at times
his audience was moved to tears. After
Col. Bain's address the Rev. Merritt
Hulburd, S. I. D., the pastor of the
church, spoke of the need of all energy
and power and wit and wisdom to have
influence on the coming Constitutional
Convention, and on coming legislative
bodies, so that the State may be saved
for God and the gospel.
Sheriff's Sales.
Sheriff Gillis sold a plumber of prop
nrti ina l,Ia S.ltiIrIlaar rul1 "a