The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1903-11-17
Three Temperance Pledges.

| The first temperance pledge I look was
when | was about fourteen years old. 1t
bound me not to make, buy, self or use
Intoxicating drinks except strictly for nc
| dlclnal purposes. 1t was called The
Washington pledge" Up to thai time I
had never tasted any intoxicating drink.
But soon | was thrown with associates
who drank, and tempted me to drink.
But my pledge fortified me against the
| temptation and | always resisted The
| pledge helped me. 1t caused me co think;
and strengthened me. Though filty~seven
! years I have kept my first temperance
pledge 1t would be well for all people to
take such a pledge, and live strictly up
| to it.
| wish we had Il plain, simple temper
ance badge and that all temperance peo-
| pie would wear it, 1t would do good for
us to show first by our lives what we are.
and then to show it by a badge 1t
would attract attention. and draw other,
to JON our temperance army. | took my
second temperance pledge when about
eighteen years old. A new organization
Sprang up called The Sons of Temper
ance." 1t required an initiation fee TO
JOIN this society. [ was poor boy and
had no money. / wanted to join, but
thought l could not raise the money.
About this time some young men, asso-
crates OF mine who were forming the
! habit of drinking, said to me: IF you
will join The Sons of Temperance, we
will | was already pledged not to drink,
but with a desire to do them good, l told
them l would. But now the question
came, how can l get the money to JON?
But where there is a will there is a way.
After working all day for my father, I
got d job Of work to do at night. |
worked at this by moon shine, and fire
light for several weeks and earned money
enough to JOIN. l did all | could to save
my associates from becoming drunkards.
The Sons of Temperance required a
pledge, one clause of which excludedsthe
use of cider This clause was never en-
treIy satisfactory to me. But after in
vestigation | interpreted 1t to mean that
drink called cider which is highly intoxi-
eating. Thus constituting the pledge 1
have never broken It.
My third pledge was after this fashion.
l had a friend who, up to the age OF fifty,
had been one of the worst drunkards !
ever knew. He had gone down to the
depths of degradation. In a revival meet
ing he professed faith and offered him
| self for church membership. The church
did not want him. They had no conf
dence in him. Two or three voted to re-
ceive him. No one voted against him. At
ter he Joined the church he had deadful
| temptations to drink. But he resisted.
About five years after this he came to me
and said Il want TO enter into a solemn
| pledge with you l asked what pledge?
He said it is this: 4 sacredly pledge my
| self never to take another drink of IL
quor, unless you will go and drink with
me- / said all right, here is my hand;
our pledge shall be for ninety-nine years.
| So then. If either one of US takes drink
we will have TO wait one hundred years
from the time the pledge was made. 1
am willing to wait hundred years before
take MY first drink; and If | can do
without it that long, cam do without
| it longer.
| My friend has never tasted a drop of
| Intoxicating drinks since he joined the
church. He has become a steady, sober,
noble Christian gentleman.
l have kept all three of my pledges
BY Gods help 1 mean TO keep them to
| the end. When l die. l want it to be
said of NE; Here lies a man who never
| tasted drop of intoxicating liquor, not
| even as Il medicine
]. A. STRADLEY.
| Oxford, n. c..