South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1916-11-28
Why Alcohol WasNOt
UnmaSked Sooner
DR.. Hutchinson Attributes Dis
covery of Deception Large
ly TO ID c m an d for
Keener Minds and I'm
provement in Meth
DDS of Work.

The question why we have made
the discovery of the uselessness OF
alcohol for working purposes so re-
Gently. and why under heavens we
didn't make il centuries before, il
a puzzle. For one thing, of course,
we had absolutely 10 raw material
upon which TO base a comparison be-
tween the drinker and the nom
drinker, or even between the light
drinker and the heavy one.
VI 10 about SO years ago, there
warn't no such anemile" anywhere
in western Europe as non-con-
temperance movement first began
most Of the teetotalers and the total
abstainers and the prohibitonists
took alcohol. and in generous doses,
whenever they were sick or imagined
themselves 10 be sO-and they had
gifted imaginations! For the first
% years Of temperance reform
very considerable share Of the re-
formers were individuals who. foy
various reasons, mental or physical
couldn't in the language of the day.
carry their liquor quietly and de-
Gently" in other words, conceal its
injurious effects as successfully as
the rest Of the community could.
Abstainers Live Longer.
There was a sufficient amount Of
truth in this popular belief TO actual
ty make the records, both for lon
gevity and for liability to disease,
distinctly worse among total abb
stainers and temperance people than
in the average of the community
Thirty-five years ago, for instance,
the records of the life insurance
companies who issued policies only
TO total abstainers, such as the
Sons of Rechab and others, show
ed that the average life duration
OF their members was distinctly be-
low. and their tendency of disease
distinctly above. that of the average
Of the same ages and classes.
But of late years, since men have
begun 10 stop or strictly limit drink
/ ing for business and efficiency rea-
sons. the life insurance records are
| pointing in exactly the opposite di-
l
! " as the beautiful Sunday school
literature issued by the leading COM
panies would lead US 10 believe.
Up TO so years ago alcohol was
consumed as regularly and as much
matter Of course as milk was. and
great deal more heavily and fire.
uuently Everybody drank IN mod
Grafton, and almost everybody 10 OK
cess. whenever they could set the
/ liquor. There w2S, therefore, 10
= alcohol free individual, or class.
whose efficiency or inefficiency
could be cOntrasted and compared
with that of the permanently two
/ percent saturated" rest of the COM
munity.
Keen Minds Needed Today.
Another most potent and prob
ably chief reason for the sudden dis
y covery and its long delay is that
! both business and work IL the sense
Of craftsmanship have in the last
I half century suddenly become so
much more interesting and intelli-
gent The old style OF business. for
instance. and OF the practise Of the
4 professions was So slow and hide
Y bound and tradition ridden that il
\ didn't call for much intelligence.
and a trihing discount Of ten or even
/ % percent in keenness of wit would
never be noticed. especially as all
your competitors were running on
the same brain-sparing schedule To
an even greater degree the vast ma
jority Of forms OF manual. labor OF
DAYS work OF all sorts. were 50
grinding and monotonous. so poor
Ia paid and so health-wrecking that
they not only scarcely called for any
intelligence. bat didn't permit OF
the possession OF much by those who
were condemned 20 them as a
means OF livelihood
Labor was BFuitifying.
No better scheme for stupefyinc
and 6rutifying a race could possibly
have been devised shan the average
hours and wages and conditions OF
day labor an over the so-called