The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1899-05-10

EOr[UGe. SA>. rs ) VIA4 -o Z e-S-'-e1 40 : wa
only capitsi DC not bring upon it sus-
picion by soiDg in and out Of liquor
establishments or by an odor, Of your
breath or by any glare Of your eye or
by any unnatural flush on your checks.
You lose your reputation and you lose
your capital.
The iaebriate suffers also in the fact
that he loses his self respect, and when
you destroy mans self respect there
is rot much left of him. Then man
will DO things he would not do other
wise, he will say things would not say
otherwise. The fact is that man can
not stop, or he would stop now: He IS
bound hand and foot by the Pnilistines,
and they have shorn his locks and put
his eyes out and made him grind N the
mill Of a great horror. After he is
three-fourths gone in this slavery, the
first thing he will be anxious to impress
you with is that be can stop atany tine
he wants TO. His family become alarmed
in regard to him, ard they say: Now
DO stop this. After awhile it will get the
mastery of you. ''Oh no, be says, II
can stop at any time. | can stop now,
| can stop tomorrow. His most CONT
Dental friends say: Why, I'm afraid
YOU are losing your balance with that
habit. You are going little further
than YOU can afford to go. You had
better stop. ,.Oh, no, he says, i
car stop at any time. can stop now. ="
He goes on further and further. He
cannot stop. Twill proveit, He loves
himself, and he knows nevertheless
that strong drink is depicting him in
body, mind and soul. lie knows he is
going down, that he has less self con-
troll, less tQnipoi>e Of temper than he
used to. Why does he not stop? Be
cause ne cannot stop. will prove 1t
by g ing still further, He loves his
wife and children. He sees that his
habits are bringing disgrace upon his
home. The probabilities are they will
ruin his wife and disgrace his children.
He sees all this, and he loves them.
Why Goes he not stop? He cannot stop.
I had a very dear friend, generous to
8 fault. He had give thousands and
tens of thousands of dollars to Bible
societies, tract societies, missionary
societies, asylums for the poor, the halt,
the lame, the blind, the imbeclle. l
do not believe for 20 years anybody
asked him for$ or $50 or 500 for charl-
ty but he gave it. l never heard Of
anybody asking him for help but he
gave it. But he was under the power
Of strong drink, and he went on down,
down, down His family implored him
saying, "You are going too far IN that
habit; you had better stop" He re-
piled: I can stop any time: | am
my own master. | can stop. He went
on down, down. His friends advised
and cautioned him. He said: Don t
be afraid of me. lam my own master;
I can stop now; know what | am do
ing" He went on down until be had
the delirium tremens. On down until
he had the delirium tremens twice.
After the second time the doctor said:
"Ifyou ever have an attack like this
again, you will die. You had better
stop" He said, Il can stop any time;
I can stop now. He went on down.
He is dead. What slew him? Rum,
rum! Among the last things he said
was that he could stop any time. he
could not stop.
Oh. my young friends, | want to tell
you that there is a point in inebriation
beyond which if a man go he cannot
stop. But sometimes man will be
more frank than that. 4 victim OF
strong drink said to reformer: 1T is
impossible for me to stop. l realize it.
But, if you should tell me I couldn't
have drink until tomorrow night unless
had all my fingers cut of, would say,
Bring the hatchet and cut them of.
I had very dear friendin Philadelphia
whose nephew came to him and was
talking about his trouble and confessed
it. He confessed he could not stop.
Ny friend said, "You must stop" He
said: Il can't stop. If there stood a
cannon, and it was loaded, and there
was glass Of wine on the mouth OF
the cannon, and knew you would fire
It of if I approached, I would start to
get that glass of wine. l must have it.
I can't get rid of this habit. can't
get away from 1t.
Ag.in, the man suffers from the loss
of usefulness. Do you know some Of
the meD who have fallen into the ditch
were once in the front rank in churches
aud in the front rank in reformatory
institutions? Do you know they once
knelt at the family altar and once car
ried the chalics Of the holy communion
on sac amental days? Dc you know
they once stood in the pulpit and
preached the gospel Of the Son cfGod?
We will not forget the scene witnessed
some years ago in my Brooklyn church
when a man rose in the midst Of the
audience, stepped into the aisle and
walked up and down. Everybody saw
that ne was intoxicated. The ushers
led him out, and his poor wife took his
hat and overcoat and followed him TO
the door. Who was he? He had once
been mighty ministe. of the gospel Of
Jesus Christ in sister denomination,
had often preached in this very city.
What slew hun? Strong drink! Oh,
what must be the feeling of man who
has destroyed his capacity for useful
ness? Do not be angry with that man.
Do not lose your patience with him.
Do not wonder If he says strange things
AID gets irrisated easily in the family.
,Ie has the Pyrenees and the Andes
and the Alps on him. Do not try to
persuade him that there is no future
punishment. Do not go into any argu-
ment to prove to him that there is no
hell. He knows there is He is there
row
But be suffers also in the loss Of ply
steal health. The older people in this
audience can remember DR.. Sewell