Bluefield evening leader. [volume] (Bluefield, W. Va.) 1906-1911, 1906-11-06

DELIVERS THE LAST OF HIS sE.
RIEs OF LECTUREs.


last OF his series OF lectures on Sci
entific Temperance ut the Presbyte-
rian church on Sunday night To n
crowded house. He handled his
theme Gods Message In Science to
Thinking Men," In his usual happy
and forceful style. He quoted Es-
ther LIS. "And the drinking was ac-
cording to the law" and propounded
the question, SHOULD the drink
Ing be according to law. or is II
right to regulate by law the sale of
alcoholic drinks for beverage pur-
poses?" He began the answer to
this question by saying that twenty
Ave or fifty years ago. It was thought
that alcohol was food and stimu-
liant and though the abuse OF It was
attended by evil results. yet the wise
and moderate use OF Il might be
good and therefore it was well. ac-
cording to the light we then had. to
regulate the sale OF Il by law. In
the light OF present day research,
however. IL was proven beyond n
doubt that alcohol is neither n food
nor n stimulant. but n narcotic-irri-
tant poison and Is hurtful when ta-
ken as a beverage I'm either large or
small quantities. 1t has it's uses, but
not as a beverage for we'll men and
women to drink, Morphia has its
uses and so have Cocaine and Strych-
MIA, but not for beverage purposes.
Different poisons have their afini-
ties for different parts of the body,
one attacking the stomach, another
the spinal chord, and another the
heart. while alcohol has n peculiar
affinity for the brain. 1t attacks the
brain cells and In the end will
change their character. and there
fore the thought and volition OF the
moderate drinker 'as well as of the
habitual drunkard will undergo
marked changes toward detcriora-
ton. Investigation has shown that
alcohol excites the lower faculties.
as the desires and appetites, and
depresses the higher powers, as the
judgment, the reason and the will
so that animalism gains the suprem-
acy. The faculties which should be
dominant are thus made the servants
OF those that should be dominated,
and the man acts and speaks as he
would not dream OF doing under other
circumstances. IL was further shown
that the spiritual faculties are
blunted so that the drinker can not
grasp the truths OF God and hence
the impossibility OF n drunkard en-
tering the kingdom of heaven.
The nature OF alcohol is to drag
down and destroy, not to build up
and save Is It right TO legalize what
is wrong In itself, and hurtful to
man? No! Can we as Christians vote
for that which destroys the minds
OF men and damns their souls? No!
The argument that prohibition
makes men desire the thing prohibit
ed and that we therefore ought to
regulate the sale OF intoxicants by
law is fallacy on the very face of
It. Does the prohibition OF murder
or theft create the desire TO kill and
steal, and do we therefore license
men to murder and rob their fellows
In order to prevent lawlessness7 The
voters OF this country have the net
ter In their own hands and particu-
larry in the South is the door OF op-
portunity open to abolish the sale OF
alcohol as a beverage Our manhood
and our womanhood, the welfare of
our homes, families and churches
all demand It. In the light of mod
ern investigation is It right that the
drinking should be by law7 No
Dr. Taylor, throughout his lee
lures, used no extravagant or abus-
i've language. He was uniformly
kind and courteous in his bearing.
His language vas polished and force
frl. He made his points storing and
clear. He entertained and instruct
cd the children and gave mature
minds something new and invigorat-
ing to ponder.