The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-05-27
Twells Brex in the London Mail.

1wells BreX in the London Mail.
N0ME of the jealous souls of the Ma
tional Liberal club are trying to get
~ an embargo on the practice of
members standing each other drinks in
rotation.
So many crank movements are begot-
ten in the smoking room of this partIcu-
lar club that this latest development is
of course suspect. One is probe to smell
in it that old afflatus which so often in-
spires men of strong creeds and weak
stomachs: Il cannot enjoy good things
myself-so I'll be bowed If Jones shall!'
But in this case does Jones enjoy it?
l am inclined to helieve that this attack
upon "'Have another is the first liberal
proposal for many years that really prom
ises to enlarge the liberty of the subject.
1t may have been inspired by bigotry,
but when it comes to bigotry there is even
more bigotry among drinkers than among
total abstainers. l have rigid abstaned
friends who will permit me my pint of
Burgundy; who will even send out to
their grocer for it. unconscious cruelty.
when I dine at their homes. Only last
week in Wales a nonconformist temper
ance friend laid in dozen of Bass for
me, risking thereby a sort of local exco-
munca tion.
But I have seldom met a drinker VINO
will show me anything but contemptuous
liberation when my system cries within
me "Enough!" and the code of our ridicu-
lous etiquette of the glass cries "An-
otheri" If 1t happens that have paid
for the first drink and both of us have
enjoyed it (as any normal man should en-
ioy temperate carnal indulgence) 1t Is
imperative for my guest to order an
other.
| may not want another, he may not
want another. both of us may very much
rather not have another. No matter; he
must take his turn to prove himself a
man, and he is so conscious of this sacred
duty that he gulps down the first drink
in a mortal hurry to get to his obligation.
Until he can cry quits with me some
great panjandrum of the law of rotation
of liouirs is sitting in insivisbls judgment
on him.
So, too, IL my friend has betrayed the
first drink l must play my part. 1 may
have had drinks already that have laden
me to that very Plimsoll mark above
which every man takes in cargo at peril
to his digestion, liver or mental equi-
librium. 1 may loathe the prospect of an
other drink as a man who has just en-
joyed a big dinner would loathe to have
to commence again. No matter. / must
say Have another" and swallow my
moral courage as / swallow my potion
or perhaps (wasting good money and
good drink l can distract my friend s
attention and tip my tumblerful into the
earth of one of those hardy djpsomania
palms that are provided on the counters
of all humane publicans.
When read of this proposed internal
legislation of the National Liberal club
| approached a friend who is a fellow
member of one of my own clubs-as tenn
perate fellow as lives, who would ne
more think of taking a drink when alone
than of taking morphia.
Well approached this man and called
his attention to this one drink only edict
asking him If he did not agree that 1t Is
an excellent stand against ridiculous
fetish. He looked at me with horror. Had
come to him with some anarchial plot 4
destroy all the bonds of human society hs
could not have been more genuinely
pained. How on EARTH" he demanded