The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1905-11-29

Church. The fact that the Church,
through it's varied religious and
philanthropic activities, was chief
factor in training its women for
the work of the Temperance Cru
SADIE and for that of the organlz-
alton into which that movement
crystallized Church history itself
discloses. When thirty years
ago the evil of intemperance had
reached such proportions as to
alarm the Christian public. when
moral su uasi ion m eth DDS had
proved inadequate and theChurch
found itself powerless to resist
the encroachments Of the drink
traffic, the wives and mothers
rose to the emergency, and from
the very affairs of the Church
went forth to the rescue.
A new page in the history of
Temperance was turned. The sa-
loon itself, not merely the victim
of the saloon. became the subject
and object Of prayer, Of appeal,
and of penalty. Moral suasion
for the drunkard began to be re-
inforced by legal suasion for the
drunkard maker. Out of that
experience was born the W. c.. T.
y. Christian women Of all de-
nominations banded themselves
together in offensive and defen-
sive alliance against the common
enemy.
At first the Church looked
askance at this remarkable and
precoclous woman child, this new
and vigorous type to which it had
given birth but as the child
grew and waxed strong, es It's
character and purpose 'Tere more
clearly apprehenued, the Church
saw in it it's own legitimate and
withal most flial offspring. The
w. G. T. U. stands before the
Church and the world to-day
triumph of Christianity, living
Gospel commentary.
Second, this nineteenth century
daughter of the Church is the
mothers strong right hand, Like
every individual man and woman
the Church must minister to it's
own day and generation, 1t full
fls it's calling by serving the
PRESENT age. It's duties change
and enlarge with enlarging occa
sions. "The greatest enemy the
Church of Christ confronts to-
day." says a leading Church or
gan, s:is notmaterialism, nor rit-
ualism, nor deism, nor atheism
it is alcoholism. The demoraliz-
ing, dehumanizing effects of
strong drink go further toward
vitiating and annulling Christian
effort than anything else. If the
manufacture and sale Of alcoholic
liquors were absolutely prohib-
tied the Church would make more
rapid progress toward the COM
plete evangelization Of the world
than it has ever done in all the
history Of the past"
Do we net see, therefore, how
indispensable to the Church is
the W, C. T. u? AS one of our
own evangelists has put it, this
right hand OF the Church is
thrust out with the instinct of
self preservation to save her
own-her own because the whole
world of the unsaved is the in
heritanoe Of the Church because
the money which should take the
Gospel to all people is in the
grasp Of the liquor traffic; be-
cause so many victims of vice
come from Christian homes and
from the Sunday schools Of the
Church.
It is said that for one person
converted to Christianity in for
eign fields liquor at home makes
one thousand drunkards. Drink
ing ha bits among so-called
"Chrlstian" people visiting mis-
sionary coasts are an increasingly
serious obstacle to Gospel work.
Among Mohammedons if one Of
their number is seen drunk the
common remark is that he has
become Christian. 'Christ
brings fre-water," says the Mo
hawk chief-and thus does drink
everywhere bring reproach upon
the name of our Saviour. For
Church missionary work to be
effective and its results perma-
nent Christian temperance must
60 hand in hand with the Gospel
in every corner of the earth:
This is the duty Of the hour, Of
the new occasion, and what is so
valuable an instrument in it's ac-
complishment as the world wide
white.ribbon organization with
it's skillfully- and per-
tly-adjusted machinery?
Third, the W. G. T. u, crowned
with thirty years of heroic
achievement, may well be char
acterized as the advance guard Of
the evangelistic host. Lifting
high the Gospel standard it fear
lessly goes forward at a point
where the Church hesitates-hes-
itates because in the din and
E.