Belding banner. (Belding, Mich.) 1889-1918, 1900-04-26
w. CT. u. COLUMN.

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tom OF Treating" a friend TO glass OF
Intoxicating liquor is one of the most
prolific causes of intemperance. IL
often engenders the habit OF drinking;
1t often confirms the awful propensity;
and sometimes, as ia the case OF that
gentleman mentioned In the beginning
OF this article, it sends a reformed IN
ebriate back into the mire. The dan
ger of this custom Is that it wears the
guiselof friendship and appeals to the
weak side OF human nature. Come
and take drink with me, says the pol
itician who hopes TO win vote. ''Won't
you take social glass with me-"
is the subtle invitation OF afalse friend
ship that is too often yielded to. 1t is
not every one that has the nerve OF a
Brooklyn neighbor OF mine who, hav-
ing once been an inebriate, used to
say To any one who invited him to take
a drink, IF you ask me 10 do that
again, I'll knock you down."
This perllous custom OF treating has
spread very widely. When custo-
mer has made a good purchase he is
often invited by the merchant to go off
to Il restaurant or Il bar-room for a
bottle OF wine to ''close up the bar
gain" The drummers for commercial
houses seek very often to win custo-
mers by polite invitations TO drink
ing resort, or TO a theater, or some
J times TO haunts too vile TO be mem
toned. | know OF very affable sales
man in a wholesale dry goods establish
ment who became dissipated man
from having TO invite customers to
lunch with him over bottle of wine.
His employers set that bright young
man to tempt other people, and he did
it at the cost of his own character.
The various athletic contests and inter-
collegiage ball games are attended
with an enormous amount Of hard
drinking; much OF it takes the form of
treating" by those who have won
their games or their bets. IL is not too
much to say that vast amount of in
temperance, with its terrible results 10
purse, character and immortal souls
can be traced directly to that cunning
DEVICE of the devil which puts poison
into mans brain under the pretense
of putting kindness into his heart.
In these days very large amount
of moral artillery is very properly
aimed at the traffic in intoxicants.
Righteous denunciations are hurled at
the saloons. But the destructive drink
traffic really is fed by and depends up
on drink custom. Intemperance is
bred in the CLUB, in the home and in
the social circle as we'll as in the bar
room. The purchaser Of liquor is a
partner with the liquor seller. Every
one who buys an intoxicant, or offers
an intoxicant TO another, does his or
her part toward maintaining the drink
customs which underlie the waste and
the woe and wretchedness of intemper-
ance. The question of wages and OF
justice to the laboring man absorbs
wide attention; but>who will dispute
that if all the money that is spent by
the working classes in treating each
other to alcoholic beverages were
saved there would be thousands Of bet
ter furnished homes, better clad wives
and better fed children?
There is another very weighty
Thought to be faced by every mans
conscience. II is this. The person
who offers an Intoxicating glass to an
other-from whatever motive--is re-
sponsible for the results OF that glass!
The false friend who in obedience to
foolish and abominable custom treat
ed the reformed inebriate OF whom
spoke TO treacherous drink OF liquor,
was responsible, to certain extent, for
that mans relapse and ruin. Certain
iy, II he had not asked and urged that
gentleman to drink with him, be
would not have touched the fatal drop
'"Woe unto him that giveth his neigh
Dor drink" He is accountable for what
comes out OF that neighbor's lips-yes,
and for what that brain may do under
the influence Of the intlaming draught.
Whenever you, my reader, from false
Kindness, are guilty of treating" an
other to a glass of Intoxicating bever
age, | wish that you might see these
solemn words cut. in. with "A diamond
on that glass:
within this glass destruction ride,
And in its depths does ruin swim;
Around its foam prediction gides,
And death is dancing on the brim!'.
----------- The Messenger.