Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1899-05-05
PLAGUE OF ALCOHOL.
REV. Or. TALMAGE DISCUSSES THE
LIQUOR TRAFFIC.

In I'm Eloquent Sermon He Depicts
the Drunknrd's Woe - The Rum
Fiend's Mission Is to Destroy All
Good-A Call to Chrfstinns-
Copyright. Louis Klopsch, 1891
WASHINGTON, April 3O.-At this
time, when the evils Of the drink traffic
are being widely discussed and the
movement for the abolition Of the de-
grading and brutalizing canteen in our
military camps is gaining many sup
porters, this sermon by DR.. Talmage,
dealing with the broader aspects of the
plague Of intemperance, should cheer
and inspire the friends Of temperance
everywhere His text is Exodus xi, 8,
And there shall be a great cry
throughout all the land of Egypt" "
This was the worst Of the ten plaques.
Tie destroying angel at midnight flap
ped his wing over the land, and there
was one dead in each house. Lamenta
tion and mourning and woe through all
Egypt, That destroying angel has fled
the earth. but far worse has come.
he sweeps through these cities. 1t is
the destroying angel Of strong drink.
Far worse devastation wrought by this
second than by the first The calamity
in America worse than the calamity in
Egpvt. Thousands Of the slain. millions
Of the slain. No arithmetic can calcu-
late their number.
Once upon time four fiends met in
the lost world. They resolved that the
people Of our earth were too happy,
and these four Intervals came forth to
our earth on embassy Of mischief. The
one fiend said. "I'll take charge of the
vineyards. Another said, "I'll take
charge Of the grainfeds. " Another
said, "Ill take charge Of the dairy.
Another said, "I'll take charge Of the
music. The four fiends met in the
great Sahara desert, with skeleton fin
gers clutched each other in handshake
Of fidelity. kissed each other goodby
with lip Of blue flame and parted on
their mission
The fend Of the vineyard came in one
bright morning amid the grapes and sat
down on root Of twisted grapevine in
sheer Encouragement. The fend knew
not how to damage the vineyard, or.
through it. how to damage the world.
The grapes were so ripe ard beautiful
and luscious They bewitched the air
with their sweetness. There seemed to
be so much health in every bunch, and
while the fiend sat there in utter indig-
nation and disappointment he elutched
a cluster and squeezed it in perfect
spite. and. lOl his hand was red with the
blood Of the vineyard, and the hend
said: THAT reminds me Of the blood Of
broken hearts. I'll strip the vineyard
and III squeeze ont all the juice of the
grapes. and I'll allow the juices Of the
grapes to stand until they rot, and I'll
call the process fermentation. And
there was a great vat prepared, and
people came with their cups and their
pitchers, and they dipped mp the blood
of the grapes, and they drank and drank
and went away drinking, and they drank
until they fell in long lines Of death, so
that when the fiond Of the vineyard
wanted to return to his bolne in the pit
he stepped from carcass to carcass and
walked down amid a great csuseway
Of the dead.
Laughter of the Ftend.
Then the second fiend came into the
grainfeld. He waded chin deep amid
the barley and herye He heard all the
grain talking about bread and prosper
GUS husbandry and thrifty homes. He
thrust his long arms into the grain6eld.
and be pulled ur the grain and threw it
into the water. and he made beneath it
great fres-fres lighted with a spark
from his own heart-and there were a
grinding aud a mashing and stencil,
and the people came with their bottles,
and they dipped mp the fiery liquid, and
they drank, and they blasphemed. and
they staggered, and they fought, and
they rioted, and they murdered, and
the fiend of the pit, the fend Of the
grainfeld, was so pleased with their be-
havior that he changed his residence
from the pit to whisky barrel, and
there he sat by the door Of the bunghole
laughing in high merriment at the
thought that out of anything so harm
less as the grain Of the field he might
turn this world into a seeming pande-
monium.
The fiend Of the dairy saw the cows
coming hcme from the pasture field,
full uddered. and as the maid milked
he said. on soon spoil all that mess
I'll add to it brandy, sugar and nut
meg. and I'll stir it into milk punch,
and children will drink it and some oi
the temperance people will drink It, and
if | can do them no more harm Ill give
them headache. and then I'll hand
them over to the more vigorous hend'
of tho satanic delegation" " And then
the fend of the dairy leaped upon the
shelf and danced until the long row OF
shining milkpans almost quaked.
The fend Of the music entered
grogshop, and there were but few Gus
toners Finding few customers, ht
swept the circuit of the city. and he
gathered up the musical instrument'
and after nightfall he marahaled
band, and the trombones blew and th'
cymbals clapped and the drums bea'
and the bugles called and the people
crowded in. and they swung around IL
merry dance, each one with a wineglas'
In his hand, and the dance became
wilder and stronger and rougher. unit
the room shook and the glasses cracked
and the floor broke and the crowd drop
ped into hell.
. Then the four fends- the fiend of th'
vineyard and of the grainfeld and o
the dairy and of the music hall-wen
back to their home. and they held higl