One of the most solemn verses in God's Word is found in Habakkuk. It was a subtle piece of satire, created by the taint of the atmosphere and the blow of the storm. The dead fall in the streets, in the houses, even in the churches of the city.
Think of the millions of these black cannons aimed at the houses and manhood of our country. We all know the excuses for having a wine glass at home. Their houses are built from the remains of homes destroyed by their business.
Here is the last hand to put the bottle to the lips of the people. The daughter of the first grew up, and in the prime of a beautiful young woman became a nervous wreck. And if the curse goes to the spirit instead of the body, prepare yourself for the most trying and terrifying experiences in the realm of character.
Look back for a single generation in the history of the family and the whole thing will be. One hundred thousand of this nation break through the crust of the grave and fall each year into eternity in the United States alone. What a cut it is of the bone and muscle and life of the nation.
And yet the Government licenses the sale of the poison which does this ghastly work every year. If the White Hats whip a man in one of the Western states, people are outraged. Good governance must be one of the factors in the redemption of the world.
The tendency to disintegration of every kind in paganism is found in the absence of the home. Entering one of the rooms, he fell on a bed and dozed heavily through the night. A triangular breach in the temple brought the scene of the previous evening back to him like a bolt of lightning.
He started at the age of nineteen, and by the end of the work he was fifty.
HOW TO BREAK THE BOTTLE AND END THE CURSE
The effort and the words flowed in through my window, and as they rose and fell on the night wind, the child's words at the parlor door pleaded for her father to return—"Please father, dear father, come home,"—my mind, heart and soul yielded to the song, and I became a temperate man from that hour. So let us praise the stone of silence and secrecy that covers the iniquity of Rome's traffic; let the light in; let the people see what it is, what it has done, and what it is doing—and I tell you the saloon and distillery crowd will have to run. France under Despotism has never suffered a millionth so much as our people have under the grinding, crushing heel of Rum Traffic and Saloon Power.
Almost every law passed declares this belief and asserts the right to prohibit. A few years ago, on the basis of a proposal, 500 out of 550 arose to say: "No more alcoholic beverages should be sold." After this vote, 450 of them drew a black dot under their names, which meant that whiskey had led them to crime. One of the best proofs of their success is that they always make salongoers nervous.
We all know the power of habit, and especially the power of the alcoholic habit; we know the weakness of human nature, and we also remember that the world's strongest men have fallen under the whiskey appetite. At this point, from another corner of the room, another speaker rose, who moved as a substitute for the motion that just offered "that the tiger be allowed to stay, but only to be. He suggested that since the tiger really killed many people, the owner and keeper of the tiger had to pay a high license for this privilege of tearing the people of the community to pieces.
Men everywhere said that she showed not only the wisdom of a statesman, but also the spirit of a philanthropist. Down with this destroyer of the home, this destroyer of woman's health, this destroyer of the body and curser of the immortal soul. Again and again she was led to hope for the reformation of her husband's part, only to have the hope crushed in bitterness by another fall, through the influence of the Man of Drinks.
And together with the hatchets they went to the place, and to the profound astonishment of the men who stood motionless by and witnessed the action, this woman hacked the heads of the casks with the ax, and let the tide of whiskey pour over the floor and pavement into the gutter beyond. He called out to his terrified and screaming wife, "Oh, love, come to me!" However, she was one of the powerless. Woman to the rescue!” perhaps one of the key words of the day.
Most of the books and documents have been scanned or typed from works that have entered the public domain. Some have been reproduced by special arrangement with the current publisher or copyright holder.
