The citizen. (Honesdale, Pa.) 1908-1914, 1913-05-20
TEMPERANCE COLUMN.

Our topic for May is Relation of
Intemperance to our Social Evils"
Intemperance is the excessive use
of alcohol, tobacco and other things.
In Second Peter, first chapter, 5,
and verses we are exhorted to
add to faith virtue and to virtue
knowledge, to knowledge temper
ance; and to temperance patience, to
patience godliness, to godliness
brotherly kindness and to brotherly
kindness charity. This if obeyed
tends to help to destroy our social
evils, for we are promised if we do
these things we shall never fail.
Mrs. Lillian M. N Stephens says of
our work:
Work on the foundation
Is hidden and slow,
But the firmer you make it
The higher you CO."
Reach for the boys and girls in
the formative period of their lives
and give them moral backbone to
meet the alluring degenerating
temptations of life. We shall reap
as we SOW. Sow the seeds of tenn
perance, truth and white ribbon ac-
tivities, cultivate wisely and loving
ly this implanted truth, and a gen.
Grafton hence these girls and boys
grown to womanhood and manhood
will demand protected homes and
righteous laws
Again we are told that "the dur
alton of the liquor traffic depends
on the energy Christians put into
the work against it." The fact that
Secretary of State Bryan served an
unfermented grape juice banquet to
British Ambassador Bryce is some
thing to be overjoyed at We be-
lieve grape juice gayety and such an
example ought to bring results.
May we with the light of knowl-
edge and of truth dispel the dark
ness of ignorance and of prejudice,
and so hasten the glad day when
every home shall be protected and
when prohibition shall triumph in
all the nation" There is a slack
twisted sophistry spun down the
line of years which runs-"Let rum
alone and it will let you alone"
Will it? There never was a baser,
sadder lie than this. 1t lets no one
alone. Our whole nation is i'm
poverished, peeled made sorrowful
by the trouble it makes. A barten-
der in giving a fact sermon of his
experience says: II had one custom
er who was puzzle to me. He was
a whiskey drinker-a hard one.
Recently he began to call for port
wine. The change made me curl
Gus. He came in one day cold sob
er. jim he said, I'm dead broke.
l want drink. l may never pay
you for it, but can have it?' l look
ed at him in surprise. He was
clean, well dressed, close-shaven
and sober. Sure, what'll it be? 1
inquired. Port wine. If he had
asked for whiskey, brandy, anything
else, l would not have given it a
thought. But I could not conceive
of anyone begging for a five per
cent. alcoholic drink which was
sweet. He took the glass of wine,
slipped little from it, took a small
vial of ether from his pocket, float
ed the ether on the wine, and gulped
it down. In few minutes he was
maudlin, pitifully drunk. He re-
covered in short time and went for
a walk and went for a walk, return
ing inside of an hour to beg for an
other glass of port The fumes of
the ether had cleared away and
took that stuff. The confession he
made amazed me, in spite of my
long association with drunkards.
He loved to get drunk and drank
with the set purpose of becoming
drunk. He loved whiskey, but the
firm that employed him gave him
his choice between quitting whiskey
or their employe. He quit whiskey.
Six days a week he did not drink.
On his day off he wanted to get
drunk as quickly as possible, and,
as he said, enjoy himself so he
had evolved the ether drink He
died about two months later, and
the coroner kindly said heart dis
ease.
What women who become drunk
ards will do for a drink eclipses
even what a man will do. 1 have
had them sign their own names and
beg and promise anything for a
drink. I have seen them give their
jewelry and rings to the walters to
get a drink. l am not offering any
reform or solution. 1 was asked to
state conditions and facts. The
only solution I can think of is to
stop making whiskey. 1 am only a
bartender, but 1 would like to see
the day when I did not have to sell
it,"