North Park union., 1901-08-09
FRIDAY. AUGUST .. 1901.
DISSIPATION.

DISSIPATION.
NOTHING HAPPENS WITHOUT g
cause. The meteor falls to the earth
or explodes in space just us much in
obedience TO law as the tornado
sweeps over the fields bringing death
and destruction in its wake. The
rise and fall Of nations and civiliza.
tions are just as natural productions
of human agencies as wars. or ad-
vancement from savage to the more
civilized state. The course OF man
kind from our savage and brutally
barbarous ancestors through many
thousands Of years OF slow painful
development is one of the natural
things that must come from the eyo-
luton Of the human race. A certain
degree of what we call civilization is
reached, p4ticular nation has ar
rvcd at tke1 pith Of its glory and
grcatncssSand decay sets in, and al
most before its wise mon can SEQ the
danger that nation is beyond hope.
It falls. And all from some cause
that can be well traced to its origin
Romo did not contemplate its danger
rs world power until too late to ar
rest the cause Of national decay. and
lhence Its do4nfall was natural re
suit Of CONDITIONS, and was so com
plete that old Rome is almost entirely
wiped off the face of the earth.
90 foil Carthage, Egypt, and the
long list Of nations now doad forever.
What is the chief evil Of society to
day In the so-called civilized, nations
OF the cnrth? Too much hber,y?-
Oh, no! Possibly an abuse of what
the people do have Liberty that
means license is not liberty. 1t is
vice. IL is self-destruction. 1t is
dissipation. In addition to what we
said last week about the curse OF
wealth, it may be said wealth of it
self causes ense, idleness, luxury, dis
sipation of the individual members Of
society, and after while the body po.
litic ie permcatcd with disease that
the wise politicians and statesmen in
power cannot cure, for the simple
reason they have it themselves.
A man who lives in the country
goes to town on business. He has
one weakness-yes, he may have
dozen, bpt one predominates-he
loves drink. He gets the smell of
liquor, taxes q drink, then another;
gets drunk; stays week-n month.
His family at home suffer, his busi-
ness goes to pieces, ruin soon stares
him in the face. 1t seems to be no.
body's business but his own, and yet
It is. He Injuries society as we'll as
himself. There ought to be some
way Of reaching him In time But il
is not done. A few years Of such q
life, that leads from drinking to gam
bling, and the strong man from the
country dies in mad house, and his
family is left disgraced, and paupers.
Dissipation has done the work.
Sudden wealkh-and that is the
rule these days-is the cause Of more
ruin to boys and girls than an income
that approaches poverty. Think Of
itl Wealth, ease, elegance. luxury,
ilaziness, voluptuousness, dissipation,
sexual excesses, loss Of appetite,
sickness, ruined morals, ruined health,
death Gold; there is no harm in the
glittering yellow metal itself; it's
only the improper use OF 1t the abuse
Of It, tho worship Of it--allowing il
to become onr masters
I. 50 sure - tie sun shines, society
~ tie state are being sndsrmined. |
WIN ~ 90 70 ruin to-dsys No; nor
ss anr next gear;l nor for
- 4 4 n J Ibnnsas y sais, perhaps.