The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-11-17
TEETOTAL ALCOHOL.
A British Total Abstainer's Subtle
Logic.
London Mail.

From the high moral point of view of a
Daily Mail correspondent it seemed terri
bic thing that the judges in the mineral
water section of the brewers exhibition
should have been compelled to reject sew
e-al exhibits of Misunderstanding beverages
on account of the excess of alcohol In their
composition. For comfort or explanation he
consulted a well-known temperance advo-
cate, who is also a member of the Metro
politan police force.
"Wen,' said the officer calmly, when the
facts had been stated to him. What Of it?"
What of it, indeed! Aren't you indig-
"indignannt; what have got to be indig-
"Only this For years and years you've
been processing to be teetotaller, and all
the time you've been nothing of the kind.
You've been begging and advising your sub
0riinates to take the pledge and drink
nothing but innocuous temperance drinks,
and now you find that you've been Turing
them on to alcohol in it's most insdious and
dangerous form You ought to be indignant,
If only on account of having been induced
20 drink nasty. drinks by false pretenses."
The officer smiled complacent, good-na-
tured smile My dear young friend, he
said, you don't understand the question at
all. You fall into the common error OF sup
posing that temperance is mere matter of
percentage of alcohol, whereas 1t is nothing
of the kind"
INTEL sctual elevation. What do you think it
matters to me how much alcohol consume
so long as ] know all the time that am a
long as a drink is temperance beverage
don't care if it is raw spirit It's quite suf-
hcient for me that preserve the conscious
ness of being a. total abstainer.
But If you consume alcohol you can't be
a total abstainer?' "You don't see the
point. If I feel that am a total abstainer
that is all that really matters. The mere
fact that there is a certain percentage OF al
cohol in my nonalcoholic beverages doesnt
alter my feeling; and therefore doesn't mat
ter at all. IT doesn't prevent my keeping
out of public houses, 1t doesn't hinder me
frorl advising my friends and the constables
under me to turn teetotal, 1t doesn't alter
my self-respect"
ut seems to me then, that so long as you
you drink whisky or not "Of course it
doesn't Why should it? So long as it is
temperance whisky and you don't get in
toxicated upon 1t. Why, that COLO night last
suggests that it would be as well II l were
to take a little something OF warming
nature I've got little drop of temperance
whisky she says. Well, you don't think
I'm going to stop to make chemical
ANALYSIS of it, do you? It's quite sufficient
for me that there's a little label on the bot
in nv wifes own handwriting What bet
ter guarantee do l want or does any man
want? OF course know there's alcohol IN
everything to a certain extent and Tor all
I know there may have been certain pro-
portion in that. But / can't trouble about
that. It's quite good enough for me to
know that I'm a teetotaler and that l don't
get drunk. All this fuss about alcohol In
drinking water doesn't touch the question
of temperance at all. Total abstinence as
I tell you, is a glorious principle, not mere
matter Of chemical analysis, and so long as
/ know that I'm an abstalner WhateYer
drink is a temperance drink 1t will be
time for you to talk about alcohol In nom
alcoholic drinks when you see me getting
drunk on them or when you see me wasting
my time and my money drinking them in
public houses"