Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1900-01-08
w. c. T. u. COLUMN.
SCIENTIFIC TEMPERANCE
INSTRUCTION.

are putting cause and effect togethe1
on the alcohol question as never
before. In France, Switzerland anG
Belgium the increasing use of alcoho
is recognized as the cause of a physi'
cal decline in stature that is filing
those nations with alarm for their
future. Close investigation is prov
ing to the Kaiser that the beer
drinking soldier has only about
eighty per cent of the endurance OF
the total abstainer, and economists
are calling attention to the bad effects
that increasing drink habits are
having upon German industries. The
young Gear of Russia, alarmed at the
inroads which he sees alcohol making
upon his army and people, is striving
to stem the tide. Thoughtful Eng
lishmen are saying that Britain's
greatest enemy is alcohol. In our
own country it's effects upon our
soldiers, in home camps and on the
field, have been made sadly evident
to the American people. The truth
against alcohol is out. Everything
that it's advocates can say in it's favor
is controverted by the strongest
scientific authorities of the world,
who pronounce it poison-the
genius of degeneracy. Nothing can
hide this truth from the people and
their children whose heritage it is;
the per capita consumption of alcohol
has begun to decline in this country,
although its consumption is increasing
in other nations. The New York
Medical Record puts this decline dur
ing the last ten years at thirty per
cent. Prior to that time there was a
continual increase. During those
years some of our prohibitory laws
have been repealed, others have been
Weakened; less rather than more
temperance platform work has been
done, and more than 100000 people
have come to us from foreign lands,
bringing with them the alcoholic
habits Of the old world. In the face
of all these unfavorable conditions,
why has the per capita consumption
of alcohol ia this country decreased
during this time, while previously it
increased? Our English friends are
doing as much church, society and
Band of Hope work as we, and per-
haps more, yet England's drink bill
for 1897 ran up to SIG, 100000 more
than that of the preceding year. The
only new feature introduced into tenn
perance work in this country during
the past ten years SO generally as to
touch all sections, and the only
method of Importance in which our
temperance work differs from that of
England, is that of temperance edu-
this which is getting the truth to the
people so generally as already to bear
fruit. 1t is this which is laying the
foundation for the intelligent sobriety
of the future American. We would
not for moment question the value
of other temperance efforts which
have helped to secure these results,
but the figures show that such efforts
without temperance education were
inadequate to produce this decline.
"Duty determines Destiny" said
President Mckinley in his Omaha
speech. It is the legal duty of nearly
all the school boards and teachers in
this country to see that all pupils in
all schools are taught the nature and
effects of alcoholic drinks and other
together with other laws of
health. The way in which that duty
is performed during the next fifteen
years will influence nightly the
destiny of this nation. TIE God of
nations is calling us to SO educate our
people that this calamity may be
averted from those for whom we are
newly responsible, as we at the same
time save our own children.
An editor Drnfs manor to riv his natrons tho