INTRODUCTION.
In preparing this, his latest volume, the author found
himself
embarrassed from the beginning, because of the large
amount of material
which came into his hands, and the consequent difficulty
of selection
and condensation. There is not a chapter which
might not have been
extended to twice its present length, nor a fact stated,
or argument
used, which might not have been supplemented by many
equally pertinent
and conclusive. The extent to which alcohol curses
the whole people
cannot be shown in a few pages: the sad and terrible
history would fill
hundreds of volumes. And the same may be said
of the curse which this
poisonous substance lays upon the souls and bodies
of men. Fearful as is
the record which will be found in the chapters devoted
to the curse of
drink, let the reader bear in mind that a thousandth
part has not been
told.
In treating of the means of reformation, prevention
and cure, our effort
has been to give to each agency the largest possible
credit for what it
is doing. There is no movement, organization
or work, however broad or
limited in its sphere, which has for its object the
cure of drunkenness
in the individual, or the suppression of the liquor
traffic in the
State, that is not contributing its measure of service
to the great
cause every true temperance advocate has at heart;
and what we largely
need is, toleration for those who do not see with
us, nor act with us in
our special methods. Let us never forget the
Divine admonition—“Forbid
him not: for he that is not against us is for
us.”
Patience, toleration and self-repression are of vital
importance in any
good cause. If we cannot see with another, let
us be careful that, by
opposition, we do not cripple him in his work.
If we can assist him by
friendly counsel to clearer seeing, or, by a careful
study of his
methods, gain a large efficiency for our own, far
more good will be done
than by hard antagonism, which rarely helps, and too
surely blinds and
hinders.
Our book treats of the curse and cure of drunkenness.
How much better
not to come under the terrible curse! How much
better to run no risks
where the malady is so disastrous, and the cure so
difficult!
To young men who are drifting easily into the dangerous
drinking habits
of society, we earnestly commend the chapters in which
will be found the
medical testimony against alcohol, and also the one
on “The Growth and
Power of Appetite.” They will see that
it is impossible for a man to use
alcoholic drinks regularly without laying the foundation
for both
physical and mental diseases, and, at the same time,
lessening his power
to make the best of himself in his life-work; while
beyond this lies the
awful risk of acquiring an appetite which may enslave,
degrade and ruin
him, body and soul, as it is degrading and ruining
its tens of thousands
yearly.
It is sincerely hoped that many may be led by the
facts here presented,
to grapple with the monster and to thus promote his
final overthrow.
