J% my^sf ^OQC^K SAAm volume id led/iectAu/Au /izedentea, Au a AzAend oA SAemtieiance, to wit A, tne zeauedt tuat ne w/AA, J&r me fiuAAi'c aooa, intezedt AumdeAfm tAe univezdaAcizcu/a= tto?i oA me wain, ana ed/ieciaiAy mat ne wiAf, Au a// duitaAie meand, extena, a*j Acvr- ad fi/zac= ticao/e, a Aznotoieciae oA me tiuncifiied ana Aactd w-AicA tAte vo Annie contains} tAzouaAout me communitu. SAAim m aone w^itAtne nohe ana expectation, tAat emoztd Aor tAehiomotion od\Je??i/ieiance wiAitend/lowezAuAi/f, to zenaer mucA m&ze diicceuiAiiiate wide O/ndiuaicioiid meodiized Aor tAie fizo??wtion oA tAe inteiiectaaA elevation, tne mozai /mziAu, tAe dociat tiaA= tuneCj, and tA.e etemaiaooaojAmen.^ /_ PERMANENT TEMPERANCE DOCUMENTS OP THE I AMERICAN TEMPERANCE SOCIETY. VOL. I. *ft ■ ■ , ^BOSTON: SETH BLISS, 5 CORNHILL; AND PERKINS, MARVIN, AND CO. 114 WASHINGTON STREET. KEW YORK: J. P. HAVEN, 148 NASSAU STREET; AND LEAVITT, LORD AKD CO., CORNER OF BROADWAY AND JOHN STREET. PHILADELPHIA: HENRY PERKINS, 159 CHESTNUT STREET. BALTIMORE: JOHN W. TIL- YARD, SOUTH CALVERT STREET. WASHINGTON, D. C.: JOHN KENNEDY, PENN. AVENUE. CINCINNATI: TRUMAN AND SMITH, MAIN STREET. SOLD ALSO BY MANY OTHER BOOKSELLERS AND OTHERS, THROUGHOUT THE UNITED STATES. 18 35. TABLE. o c o 1 o 9 .2" © an CD i s B ■o a •a I C B >, B ■o « c 2 8.1 >> B ■O M V o. c a ■o M &9 to .a £ m" tu o « 3 P.2" td •a u P a V -Is O- to si -• »§ » a-? *. >h2 1 2-S £ u 5 >S IE M 5«2 B O » c O > 3 C 0. e O . tu- 3a c > — It w c >. o to Gal. Gal. Gal. Gal.l D.C. D.C. D.C. D.C. D.C. D.C. D.C. D.C, 1 11 46 57 911 10 95 21 90 32 85 43 80 54 75 65 70 76 65 91 25 2 22 92 114 182 21 90 43 80 65 70 87 60 109 50 131 40 153 30 182 Sff. 3 33 138 171 273 32 85 65 70 98 55 131 40 164 25 197 10 229 95 273 75 4 44 184 228 364 43 80 67 60 131 40 175 20 219 00 262 80 306 60 365 001 5 55 230 285 455 54 75 109 50 164 25 219 00 273 75 328 50 383 25 456 25| 6 66 276 342 546 65 70 131 40 197 10 262 80 328 50 394 20 459 90 547 5ffl 1 7 77 322 399 637 76 65 153 30 229 95 306 60 383 25 459 90 536 55 638 73 8 88 368 456 728 87 60 175 20 262 80 350 40 438 0U 525 60 613 20 730 OW 9 99 4)4 513 819! 98 55 197 10 295 65 394 20 492 75 591 30 689 85 821 23 10 110 460 570 910 109 50 219 00 328 50 438 00 547 50 657 00 766 50 912 501 11 121 506 627 1001 120 45 240 90 361 35 481 80 602 25 722 70 843 15 1.003 7S 12 132 552 684 1092 131 40 262 80 394 20 525 60 657 00 788 40 919 80 1.095 00! 13 143 598 741 1183 142 35 284 70 427 05 569 40 711 75 854 10 996 45 1.186 25| 14 154 644 798 1274 153 30 206 60 459 90 613 20 766 50 920 80 1.073 10 1.277 50 15 165 690 855 1365 164 25 228 50 492*5 657 00 82J 25 985 50 1.149 75 1.368 75 16 176 736 912 1450 175 20 250 40 525 60 700 80 876 00 1.051 20 1.226 40 1.460 00 17 187 782 969 15471186 15 272 30 558 45 744 60 930 75 1.116 90 1.303 05 1.551 25| 18 198 828 1026 16381197 10 294 20 591 30 788 40 985 50 1.182 60 1.379 70 1.642 50 19 209 874 1083 1729 208 05 316 10 624 15 832 20 1.040 25 1.248 30 1.456 35 1.733 75 20 220 920 1140 1820 219 00 338 0C 657 00 876 00 1.095 00 1.314 00 1.533 00 1.825 00 •21 231 966 1197 19U229 95 359 90 689 85 919 80 1.149 75 1.379 70 1.609 65 1.916 25 22 242 1012 1257 2002 240 80 381 80 722 70 963 60 1.204 50 1.445 40 1.686 39 2.007 50 23 253 1058 1311 2093 251 75 403 70 755 55 1.007 40 1.259 25 1.511 10 1.762 95 2.098 75 24 264 1104 1368 2184 262 70 425 70 788 40 1.051 20 1.314 0(1 1.576 80 1.839 60 2.190 00 25 275 1150 1425 2275 273 65 447 50 821 25 1.095 00 1.368 75 1.642 50 1.916 25 2.281 25 26 286 1196 1482 2366 284 60 469 40 854 10 1.138 80 1.423 50 1.708 20 1.992 90 2.372 50 27 297 1242 1539 2457 295 55 491 30 886 95 1.182 60 1.478 25 1.773 9U 2.069 55 2.463 75 28 308 1288 1596 2548 306 40 513 20 919 80 1.226 40 1.533 00 1.839 60 2.146 20 2.555 00 29 319 1334 1653 2639,317 45 535 10 952 65 1.270 20 1.587 75 1.905 30 2.222 85 2.646 25 |30 330 1380 1710 2730!338 40 557 00|985 50 1.314 00 1.642 50 1.971 00 2.299 50 2.737 50 This table is designed as a help to all classes of spirit drinkers, from the man who uses his gill per day, to the man who uses his pint, and the one who uses his quart, and closes the day in a state of intoxication. Each of these classes may, by inspection of this table, see the quantity they will drink ir one, two, or five years, and so on to thirty. We have also calculated the expense of drinking, from one to thirty years at different sums per day, from three to twenty-five cents. Few persons who spend three, six, or twelve cents per day, are aware how fast the amount increases, or of how many comforts they deprive them- selves, by their habit of small expenditures. One thing, however, must be noticed in the expense part of this table; no interest is added to the principal, and no calculation is made for loss of time, &c. These would greatly increase the respective sum total. — Temp Rec. ffcf* All communications, relative to the general concerns of the Amer- ican Temperance Society, may be addressed to the Rev. Justin Edwards, Corresponding Secretary, Andover, Mass. iXf* Donations and the payment of subscriptions, and all communica- tions with regard to money, may be sent to Hon. George Odiornb, Treasurer of the Society, 97 Milk Street, Boston. CONTENTS. PART I. Connection between Error in Principle and Immorality in Practice, 1; Consequences fatal, 1, Testimony of Physicians, Jurists and Divines, 3; State previous to the Temperance Reform, 4; Great Change, 5; Origin of the American Temperance Society, 6; Testimony to the Ben- efits of Abstinence, 7; "The Well-conducted Farm," 8; Formation of the American Temper- ance Society, 115 Address of the Executive Committee, 12; The Infallible Antidote, 14; Na- tional Philanthropist, 15; Temperance Association in Andover, 15; Agents, 15; Temperance Publications, 16; Resolutions of the Massachusetts Society for Suppression of Intemperance, 17; Testimony of Kittredge and Beecher, 18; Testimony of Medical Societies, 21; State of Things at the close of 1827, 22; Operations and Success in 1828,23; Kittredge's Address at the Annual Meeting, 24 ; Stale of Things at the close of 1829, 27; Decrease of Mortality, 28; Increased Success of the Gospel, 28 ; Commencement of the Temperance Reformation in Europe, 29; Operations and Success in 1830,30; Testimony of Members of Congress, 32; Testimony of the President of the United States, 32; Testimony of the Secretary of War, 32; Desertions from the Army, 33; Reform in the Army, 33 ; Reform in the Navy, 34; Reform in Merchant Vessels, 35; Effects of Ardent Spirit on Seamen, 36; State of the Reformation at the close of 1830, 38 ; Effects of one Man's using a Little daily, 39; Effects of another Man's using None, 39; Drunkards reclaimed, 40; Great Benefits from small Expenditures, 41; Tes- timony of Physicians, 42; Persons prevented from becoming Drunkards, 44; Expense of per- suading Men to abstain from the Use of Ardent Spirit compared with the Expense of taking Cnre of those who use it, 45 ; The Good which may be effected by $10,000, 45; Reasons why more Drunkards are not reformed, 46; Established Principle of Law, 47; Testimony of Mer- chants, 47 ; Principle of the Divine Government, 48; The great Hinderance to the Temperance Reformation, 49; Belief of the Churches, 50; Success of the Cause, 50; Publications on the Immorality of the Traffic, 51; Progress of Reform in Foreign Countries, 52; Prospects of Extending through the World, 52; Things to be avoided, 53; Dealers in Ardent Spirit in four Cities, 53 ; Benefits of Temperance Societies, 55; Character of those who continue in the Traffic, 56; Testimony of the New York State Committee, 57; Objections stated and answer- ed, 58. Appendix.—Nature and Origin of the Use of Ardent Spirits, 63; Lunatics in Dublin and Liverpool, 64; Statements in "The Well-conducted Farm," 66 ; Origin of the Massachusetts Society for Suppression of Iulemperance, 68; Error corrected, 69; Judge Parker's Letter, 70; Judge Hallock's Decision, 70 ; Desertions from the Army, 71 ; General Jones's Statement, 71; General Gaines's Statement, 71; Lieut. Gallagher's Statement, 72; Dr. Sewall's Letter, 72; Dr. Warren's Remarks, 74; Letter from a Gentleman of the Army, 75; Judge Cranch's State- ment, 76; Connection between Temperance and Religion, 81; The Iniquities of the Fathers visited upon the Children, 85; Testimony of Dr. Sewall, 86 ; Testimony of Forty Physicians, 39; Dr. Hosack's Statements, 91 ; Dr. Hale's Essay, 91 ; Dr. Alden's Address, 95; Testimony of Physicians in Scotland and Ireland, 97 ; Dr. Cleland's Tables, 97 ; Deaths by Ardent Spirits, 98; Judge Cranch's Statement, 98; Barbour's Statement, 99; Resolutions of Ecclesiastical Bodies, 99 ; London Temperance Society, 100; Virginia Association to abstain from Tea, 103. PART II. Truths established by the Fourth Report, 111; Opinion of a Member of Congress, 111; Cir- culation of the Fourth Report, 112; Testimony of old Men, 113; Report re-published in Great Britain, 116; Lord Chancellor's Declaration, 116; Formation of the British and Foreign Tem- perance Soeiety,117; Effect of Strong Drink in producing the Cholera, 118; Guilt of those wh« sell Ardent Spirit, 119; Comparison with the Slave Trade, 120; Connection with Burking, 120 j Chsncellor Walworth's Opinion, 121; Meeting at Washington, 122; Wirt's Testimony, 123j CONTENTS. Resolutions and Address of American Temperance Society, 125; National Circular, 127; Cor responding Secretary, 128 ; Professor Ware's Testimony, 129; President Wayland's Inquiries, 129; President Fiske's Address to Church Members, 132; Dickinson's Advice, 133; Beecher's Address to the Young Men of Boston, 134; Judge Daggett's Declaration, 135; Opinion of Judge Cranch, 135; Injustice of the Traffic in Ardent Spirit, 136; The Rum-selling Chureh Member, 137; Venders of Ardent Spirit in the City of Washington, 138 ; Confession of a Re- tailer, 138 ; Wives murdered by their husbands, 139; Children murdered by their Fathers, 141; Loss of the Rothsay Castle, 142; Commodore Biddle's Letter, 143; Letter from an Officer in the Army, 144; Massachusetts Lunatic Asylum, 145; Demoralizing Effect of the Traffic in Ardent Spirit, 146; Circular concerning Churches, 147; Connection between Temperance and Religion, 149; Influence of Church Members who traffic in Ardent Spirit, 150; Testimony of the British and Foreign Temperance Society, 151; The Great Obstruction to the Temperance Reformation, 153; Churches in which are no Members in the Traffic, 155; Family Temperance Societies, 155; Facts in the State of New York, 156 ; Tavern Keepers ruined, 150; Temper- ance Taverns, and Groceries, 160; Progress of the Cause and its Results, 161; The Sabbath the proper Time to speak upon it, 162; Duty of Ministers and Churches, 163; Temperance Societies in Africa and the Sandwich Islands, 164; Couclusion, 165. Appendix.—Edgar's Speech, 173; Wealthy Drunkards, 174; Higgin's Letter, 175; Jersey Temperance Society, 176; Licenses in Glasgow, 177; British and Foreign Temperance Society, 178; Maryland State Temperance Society, 180; Address of the Bishop of London, 181; Na- tional Circular, 186; The Immorality of the Traffic, 198; Letter, 221; Resolutions of Ministers of the Gospel, 222; Extract from the Minutes of the General Assembly, 222; The danger of selling Ardent Spirit, 223; Temperance Efforts in China, 224; Important Decision in Chan- cery, 224; Tax on the Sale of Ardent Spirit, 225; The sale of Ardent Spirit a Nuisance, 225; Benefits of Abstinence from the use of Intoxicating Liquor, 226. PART III. Truths established in the last two Reports, 227; Number of copies printed in this country, 228; Testimony of distinguished men concerning them, 228; Object of those Reports, and of the present, 229; Additional Agents, 230; Circular for Simultaneous Meetings, 231; Order from the War Department, 235; Testimony of a distinguished Jurist, 235; Testimony of a Mail Contractor, 236; Testimony of Thomas Jefferson, 237; Testimony of the Secretary of the Navy, 238; Testimony of Naval Officers, 239; Bribery of Electors by Candidates for office, 240 ; General Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church, 241; General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church, 242; General Association of New Hampshire, 243; General Asso- ciations of Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Maine, 244; American Quarterly Temperance Magazine, 244: Cook's Speech at the Capitol in Washington, 246; Testimony of a European writer, 248 ; Conduct of a Millwright, and of a Miller, 249; Doings of Legislatures, 250; Sale of Ardent Spirit treated as immoral, 251; Churches free from traffickers in ardent spirit, 252; A great Mistake, 253; Testimony of a gambler, and a vender of lottery tickers, 254; Temper- ance efforts in the City of New York, 255; Circular for a United States Convention, 256; Meeting at the Capitol in Washington, 257; Formation of the American Congressional Tem- perance Society, 259; Simultaneous Meetings in Great Britain, 260; Address of John Wilks, Esq. M. P., 260; Address of the Bishop of Chester, 261; Address of P. Crampton, Sol. Gen. for Ireland, 262; English Temperance Magazine, 263; Insurance of Temperance ships, 264; Drunkards ceasing to use intoxicating drinks, 265; The way to render reformation permanent, 269; The great hindrance to the Temperance Reformation, 270; License laws morally and politically wrong, 271; License laws promote intemperance, 271; License laws injurious to the wealth of a nation, 272; Testimony of a country merchant, 274; Testimony of a city merchant, 275; Amount lost by the traffic in ardent spirit, 276; Beneficial uses to which it might be applied, 277 ; The traffic in spirit injurious to the public health, 278; The traffic in spirit productive of Cholera, 281; The traffic in spirit injurious to intellect and to morals, 282; Reasons why it produces such effects, 283; Obstacles to the Temperance Reformation, 286; License laws vicious, 287; License laws without foundation, 288; License laws highly expen- sive, 289; License laws detrimental to Agriculture, 291; Judge Piatt's Opinion, 293; Toe Turning Point, 294. CONTENTS. Appendix—Extracts from Gerrit Smith's Address, 300; Extracts from Judge Piatt's Ad dress, 305; Extracts from President Fisk's Address, 306; Laws of Massachusetts against Lot- teries, and leaden pipes, 316 ; United States Temperance Convention, 317; Reasons for com- plying with the Resolutions of the Convention, 325; Extracts of a letter from a gentleman at Washington, 328 ; Constitution of the Am. Congressional Temp. Society, 329; Reduction of Taxes, 330; Letter from a merchant in Alabama, 331; Letter from the Sandwich Islands, 332; Facts with regard to Catskill, 333; New York State Report, 338; General Association of Massachusetts, 338; Laws which license the traffic in ardent spirit morally torong, 338. PART IV. Auspicious indications of the present time, 339; Object of forming the American Temper- ance Society, 341; State of Temperance in 1833, 342; Meeting of the United States' Temper- ance Convention, 342; Convention in Massachusetts, 343; Convention in New York, 344; Conventions in Ohio, Mississippi, and Kentucky, 345; Conventions in Vermont, Maine, and New Jersey, 346; Congressional Temperance Meeting, 346; Conventions in Pennsylvania, Missouri, and Delaware, 350; Present state of the Temperance cause, 352; Insurance on Temperance vessels, 353; Drunkards reformed, 355; Temperance Tales, 357; The price of blood, 360; Conscience and the spirit vender, 362; Temperance in England, 371 Temperance in Sweden, 372; Temperance in Russia, 373; Temperance in India and Africa, 374; Temper- ance in New Holland, 375; Reports of the American Temperance Society, 376; Opinions of Jurists and Statesmen, 380; Remarks in a London Magazine, 392 ; Traffic in ardent spirit for- bidden by the Bible, 394; Principles involved, 396; Effects on crimes, 397; Effects on life, 403; Traffic dishonest, 406; Traffic destroys the soul, 409; Letters from England, 412; Resolutions of American Temperance Society, 416; Resolutions of Ecclesiastical Bodies, 418; Testimony of Editors, 419; Objections, 422; Address to Moderate Drinkers, 425; Address to Venders, 426; Address to Ministers of the Gospel, 429; Address to Members of Churches, 432. Appendix.—American Congressional Resolutions, 440; Extracts from the Address of Hon. B. F. Butler, 441; Extracts from the Address of Hon. H. L. Pinckney, 442; Extracts from Gerrit Smith's letter, 443; Extracts from Chipman's Report, 449; Summary of Results of the New York State Temperance Society, 450; American Temperance Union, 450. PART V. Alcohol, the product of vinous fermentation, 455 ; The process of extracting it, 456; Opin- ions of its Medical virtues, 457; Distilled liquor introduced as a drink, 458; Reasons why men continue to drink it, 459; Reasons why they continue to increase the quantity, 461; The way in which Alcohol causes death, 463; Its effects on infant children, 464; The testimony of God, with regard to it, 465; Violation of principle, and its results, 467; Effects of Alcohol on the soul, 469; Its production of pauperism and crime, 470; Its effects in counteracting the efficacy of the Gospel, 472; Its polluting and hardening influence upon the heart, 473; State of the Temperance Reformation in the U. S., 474; Do. in Great Britain, 475; Effects of absti- nence from all intoxicating drinks, 476; J. S. Buckingham's statement, 484; Address to the Drunkards of Great Britain, 485; Progress of Temperance in Sweden, 486; Do. in Russia, Finland, and India, 487; Do. in Burmah and Sumatra, 488; Do. in Egypt, 489; Plan of future operations, 491, Dr. Mussey's Prize Essay, 494; Experiments in the Auburn State Prison, 494; Other experiments, 495; The best protection against diseases, 496; Effects of Alcohol on the Cholera, 496; Testimony of Physicians to water, as the proper drink for man, 497; Testimony of sea-faring men, 500; Substitutes for Alcohol as a medicine, 501; Restoratives from sickness, 604 • Extracts from Dr. Lindsly's Prize Essay, 507; Effects of Alcohol on children and on men, 507; Substitutes for ardent spirit, as a medicine, 509; In Dyspepsy and in low Typhoid states of the system, &c. 511; Opinion of Drs. Sewall, and Warren, 513; Resolutions of the New York State Temperance Society, 514. INTRODUCTION. The great increase of drunkenness, within the last half century, among the people of the United States, led a number of philanthropic individuals, in the year 1825 to consult together, upon the duty of making more united, systematic, and extended efforts for the prevention of this evil. Its cause was at once seen to be, the use of intoxicat- ing liquor; and its appropriate remedy, abstinence. It was also known, that the use of such liquor, as a beverage, is not only needless, but injurious to the health, the virtue, and the happiness of men. It was believed, that the facts which had been, and which might be collected, would prove this, to the satisfaction of every disinterested and candid mind ; and that if the knowledge of them were universally disseminated it would, with the divine blessing, do much toward changing the habits of the nation. It was thought therefore to be proper to make the experiment. For this purpose, was formed V on the 13th of February, 1826, The American Temperance Society. Its object is, by the diffusion of information, the exertion of kind moral influence, and the power of united, and consistent example, to effect such a change of sentiment and practise, that drunkenness and all its evils will cease; and temperance, with its atten- dant benefits to the bodies and souls of men, will universally prevail. This object the Society has now punued for ten years; and the results of its efforts, are presented to the consideration of the community, in the subsequent volume. It is earnestly desired that a copy of this volume may be put into the hands of every Preacher, Lawyer, Phy- sician, Magistrate, Officer of Government, Secretary of a Temperance Society, Teach- er of youth, and educated young man, throughout the United States, and throughout the world. The principles, facts, and reasonings contained in this volume, have special reference to Alcohol, in the form of distilled liquor; but they will apply to it, in every other fjrin, in proportion to its quantity, the frequency with which it is used, and its power to produce intoxication; or derangement of the regular and healthy action of the Human System. The volume is divided into five parts, called Reports. These, however, are not so much Reports of the operations of the friends of Temperance and their results, as Reports of Principles in the Government of God, as illustrated by facts, with regard to men, which show, that for them to continue to use ardent spirit as a beverage, is a violation of his laws; and will prove, by its consequences, that, " the way of trans- gressors is hard." The first part shows that it is immoral to drink such liquor; and the second that it is immoral to manufacture, vend, or furnish it, to be drunk by others. The third part shows that the making, or cor.inuing of laws which license men to sell ardent spirits to be used as a beverage, and thus teaching to the community that the drinking of it is right, and throwing over it the shield of legislative sanction and support, is also immoral. The fourth part, exhibits those principles of Divine Revelation, which the above men- tioned practices violate; and the fifth part, shows the manner in which Alcohol, when used as a beverage, causes death to the bodies and souls of men. Hundreds of thousands of persons of all ages, conditions and employments, in view of its evils, have ceased to use it; and so far as they or others can discover, have been greatly benefited by the change. Let all do the same, and drunkenness will universally and for ever cease. Pauperism, crime, sickness, insanity, wretchedness, and premature death, will, to a great extent, be prevented. Health, virtue and happiness will be in- creased ; human life be prolonged; the gospel, through grace, be more widely extended, and generally embraced; God be more highly honored, and souls in greater numbers be illuminated, purified, and saved. Each individual, therefore, into whose hand this volume may come, is most respect- fully and earnestly entieated attentively to peruse it; and if he has not already done it, seriously to inquire whether it is not his duty to renounce for ever the use of intoxicating drink. He is also requested to communicate as extensively as possible the knowledge of the facts which the volume contains; and to labor, in all suitable ways, to induce all persons to exemplify its principles, by a united and consistent example. "■'"">«W«"' «.-••*».- .»«»,.. FOURTH ANNUAL REPORT. The Executive Committee of the American Temperance So- ciety, having been permitted, through the kiedness-ofthG-Lord, to continue their labors in his service, would, as •& testimony to his goodness, present their Fourth Report. In the evils which this Society aims to remove, the connection between error in principle, and immorality in practice, is strikingly exhibited. Less then three hundred years ago,*- the error began to prevail in Great Britain, that ardent spirit, as an article of luxury or diet, or as an aid to labor, is useful. The cause of this error was, the deceptive feelings of those who used it. Being,, in ..its nature, a mocker, it deceived them. By disturbing healthy action ancLinducing disease,-it created an unnatural thirst; the gratification of which, like the gratification, of the desire of. sinning in the man who sins, causes it to increase ; and the end is death. The consequence has been, as stated by a writer in Scotland,. and as illustrated by facts, " There is reason to believe, that intem- perance has cost that country more lives, deinorahze.a\jno.re persons, broken more hearts, beggared-more, families, and sent more souls- p;..m in their nature ann1 operation, and rnost like arsenic, ip_lhfiir_,~ deleterious and poisonous effects." X Mosely had said, from his own observation, having resided in the West* Indies, " That persons who drink nothing but cold water, or make it their principal drink, are but little affected by tropical cli- <^J u mates ; that they undergo the greatest fatigue without inconvenience, and are not so subject as others to dangerous diseases;"—and Bell, " That rum, when used even moderately, always diminishes the strength, renders men more susceptible of disease, and unfits them for any service in which vigor and activity are required ; and that * we might as well throw oil into a house, the roof of which was on fire, in order to prevent the flamesfrom extending to thejnside, as to pour ardent spirits into the stomacn7"tb les'sen "{lie effect of a » hot sun upon the skin." Munro had declared, "That a man had no more need of ardent j. spirit than a cow, or a horse ;"—and Kirk, " That fifteen out of L twenty cases of liver complaint were, or,r;icionf>d.iXVaii^-Hse of it; jfrffTtrjat mpn ivlin had arw^vThftpn mnsiHereH tonnpnte had, . bv using it. shortened life more than twenty years." He had also. given it as his opinion, that thejggyiar and rpfipprtahlp use of this. poison kills more men than drunkenness itself. Barkhausen had l testified, "TV he had known persons offpripH gyen with delirium . fpm^n^ who had never been intoxicated in their whole lives. ; "^*Tlush had maintained, " That men in all kinds of business would . be better without the use of spirituous liquors ; and that there are but one or two cases in which they can be used without essential injury ;»_and Chapman, " That the evils of using them are so great, that the emptying of Pandora's box was but the type of what has been experienced by the diffusion of these liquors among the human species!" Others had given a similar testimony, and denounced the use ot them altogether, except in case of necessity. But, with many who professed to adopt this rule, the difficulty was, the necessity, in their estimation, came every day. The consequence was, if they and their children did not become drunkards, they raised no 4 AMERICAN TEMPERANCE SOCIETY. barrier to that tide of drunkenness which was sweeping through the land. Judge Hale, after twenty years' observation and experience,'had declared, "That if all the murders, and manslaughters, and burglaries, and robberies, and riots,.and tumults, the adulteries, forni- "cations, rapes, and other great enormities, which had been commit- ted within that time, were dividedJniaJhie. parts, four of than would be found to have been the result of intemperance." The Sheriff of London and Middlesex had said, "That the evil which lies at the^Qot of. another evils, is that, especially, of drink- * ing ardeqj. spirit; that he had long been in the habit of hearing ' 7 criminals refer all their misery to this, so that he had ceased to ask the cause of their ruin, so universally was it effected by spirituous liquors." And Mr. Poinder, in an examination before the Commif- tee of the House of Commons, had testified, "That from facts, that had fallen under his own observation, he was persuaded that, in all trials for murder, with very few, if any exceptions, it would ap- pear, on investigation, that the criminal had, in the first instance, de- livered up his mind to the brutalizing effects of spirituous liquors.' And similar was the testimony from others. John Wesley had declared, and published to the world, " That the men who traffic in ardent spirit, and sell to all who will buy, are' poisoners- general: that they murder his majesty's subjects by wholesale; neither ooestnelreye pity or spare. And what," said he, " is their gain ? Is it not the blood of these men ? Who would envy their large estates, and sumptuous palaces ? A curse is in the midst of them. The curse of God is on their gardens, their walks, their groves; a fire that burns to the nethermost hell. Blood, blood, is there; the foundation, the floor, the walls, the roof, are stained with blood; _And canst thou hope, O man of blood, though thou art clothed in scarlet, and fine linen, and farest sumptuously every day, canst thou hope to deliver down the fields of blood to the third generation ? « Not so—there is a God in heaven ; therefore thy name shall be rooted out. Like as those whom thou hast destroyed, both body and soul, thy memorial shall perish widi thee." The Friends had prohibited their members from engaging in thfi traffic in ardent spirit, and discountenanced the use of it as an immorality. Yet such was the power of ardent spirit to blind the understand- ing, sear the conscience, and harden the heart, that, notwithstanding these, and other similar testimonies from physicians, jurists and divines, many were engaged in the traffic ; some who professed to be Christians, who had covenanted to do good, and good only, as they had opportunity, to all, were making, and, for the sake of gain, were furnishing to all who would purchase, that which tended to ruin them, and their children after them, for both worlds. And so de- ~f^-] FOURTH REPORT..--1831. 5 ceived were the community, that it was generally thought to be proper. It was licensed by the government, and sanctioned by Christian churches. Some who were officers in these churches, and who profess to be ministers of the gospel, were actively en- gaged in furnishing that which tende^, with its whole influence, to prevent the progress of the gospel, and to perpetuate spiritual death to* all future generations. But a great change has been commenced; and one which, in the rapidity and extent of its progress, has no parallel in the history of man. Already is it spoken of, by the wise and the good in this and other countries, as one of the wonders of the world. " The great discovery," says a European writer, " has at length come forth like the light of a new day, that the temperate members of ^oeiety are the chief agents in promoting and perpetuating drunkenness. On whose mind this great truth first rose, is not known. Whoever he was, whether humble or great, peace to his memory. He has done more for the world than he who enriched it with the knowledge of a new continent; and posterity, to the re- motest generation, shall walk in the light which he has thrown around them. Had it not been for him, Americans and Europeans might have continued to countenance the moderate ordinary use of a substance, whose most moderate ordinary use is temptation and danger; and, amidst a flood of prejudice and temptation, urged on- ward by themselves, they would have made rules against drunken- ness, like ropes of sand, to be burst and buried by the coming wave. Temperance Societies," he says, " have not only made America truly the new world, but in a few months they have produced an un- paralleled change in many districts of the United Kingdom." And says another writer, " Temperance Societies have arisen on our darkness like the cheering star of hope. They now flash across our Eastern hemisphere with the bright and beauteous radiance of the bow of promise." And says another writer, " It would be an act of ingratitude towards our American friends, were we in any degree to throw into the shade the obligations under which we lie to them for having originated this noble cause. If the names of Washington and others are deservedly dear to them for their struggles in the cause of freedom, there are other names which will descend to the latest posterity, as the deliverers of their country from a thraldom more dreadful by far than that of any foreign yoke." " The American Temperance Society," says a writer of our own countrv, " has accomplished more good than any other ever formed, in the' same space of time. The precipice over which we were fallin0- has been described, the alarm has been sounded, and we are not lost. Heaven has decreed that we shall not be lost. God) has said to America, as he did of old to ancient Sodom,' I will save 1* 6 AMERICAN TEMPERANCE SOCIETY. you, if ten righteous, sober men can be found.' They have been found, and we are redeemed." And says another, " The greatest improvement of modern times consists in the discovery that almrjo]. as a, beverage, is |poison for the mind, as-well as,jhp -ftofor- nnH tnft greatest invention ofour day is, that of constructing those moral machines, called Tempe- rance Societies. They as far exceed steam-engines, railways, cotton-spinning machines, See. as the mind is superior to matter; and the bodies and souls of mankind, are of more consequence than money, and merchandise. We hope, therefore, that the time will soon arrive, when all the inhabitants of the United States will com- pose a Temperance Society ; of which every man, woman and phild, who has arrived at years of discretion, will be a member." .Multitudes now believe, that they cannot, continue., even tooise ardent spirit, without the commission of known and aggravated^; or furnish it for others, without being accessory to the ruin, temporal and eternal, of their fellow men. Hundreds of ministers of the gos- pel, thousands and tens of thousands of professed Christians, and hundreds of thousands of distinguished and philanthropic men, have become convinced, that the traffic in ardent spirit, as an article of luxury or diet, is inconsistent with the Christian religion, and ought to be abandoned throughout the world. When great changes take place in the natural or moral world, many are anxious to know the cause; and the means by which those changes were effected. This is now the case with regard to the Temperance Reformation. Numerous inquiries have been made, during the past year, in this and other countries, with regard to the origin of the American Temperance Society; and the rea- sons which led its friends to adopt abstinence from the use of ardent spirit, as the first grand principle of their operations. These inquiries the Committee are disposed to answer; both as a testimony to the divine goodness, and an encouragement to all who are disposed, in dependence on divine aid, and in the use of suitable means, to attempt to do all for the benefit of man which needs to be done. About seventeen years ago, a communication was made by a member of this Committee, on the evils of using intoxicating liquors at funerals; and reasons were presented, why this practice, which had become common in some parts of the country, should be done away. One reason was, the tendency of this practice to prevent the benefit that might otherwise be derived from providences, and the religious exercises of funeral occasions. The effect showed that such labors are not in vain in the Lord. The practice de- clined, and was soon, in a great measure, done away. Not long after, he made another communication on the evils of furnishing ardent spirit as an article of entertainment, especially te FOURTH REPORT.--1S31. 1 ministers of the gospel; a practice which was also common, and was thought by many to be a suitable expression of respect and kind- ness toward the ministerial office. The effect of this also was strongly marked ; and some persons from that time adopted the plan of not using ardent spirit on any occasion. The benefits of abstinence were striking; facts were collected, and arrangements made for a more extended exhibition of this subject. Men were found who had been led by their own reflections, in view of the evil which it occasions, to renounce the use of this poison; and others who had never used it. Yet, as a body, they enjoyed better health than those who continued to use it, were more uniform and consist- ent in their deportin* nt, and more ready for eve/y good word and work. In 1822, a teamster, partially intoxicated, by using what some persons, for less, probably, than twenty-five cents, had given him, fell under the wheels of his wagon, and was crushed to death. Anoth- er man, tending a coal-pit, became partially intoxicated, fell asleep on some straw, and was burnt to death. These events occasioned the delivery of two discourses, viz. one on the wretchedness of in- temperate men, and another on the duty of preventing sober men from becoming intemperate; that, when the present race of drunk- ards should be removed, the whole land might be free. The means of doing this, the sure means, and the only means, were shown to be, abstinence from the use of intoxicating liquors. This was shown, by facts, to be both practicable and expedient, and was urged as the indispensable duty of all men ; a duty which they owed to God, to themselves, their children, their country, and the world. This doctrine appeared to many to be strange; excited great at- tention, occasioned much conversation, and, through the blessing of the Lord, produced great results. It was again and again enforced. A conviction of the duty of abstinence was fastened on many con- sciences ; and it became evident from facts, that this doctrine is adapted to commend itself to every man's conscience in the sight of God. A man, for instance, distinguished for sobriety and influence, said, " When I first heard the doctrine of abstinence, I did not believe it. I was sorry to hear it. I thought it was going so much too far, that it would only do hurt. I was opposed to intemperance as much as any one, but I thought that the temperate use of ardent spirit was, for men who labor, in hot weather, necessary. I did not believe that men could work without. My father used it: though I recollect, when I was about fourteen years old, two gallons would carry him and his workmen through all the business of the season; and when 1 left him at twenty-one, h took twelve or fifteen gallons to dp true same work. However, I began in the same way, and continued. 8 AMERICAN TEMPERANCE SOCIETY. till I heard that sermon. And I then thought, that the man who could say, that all men, in all kinds of business, would be better with- out the use of ardent spirit, did not understand the subject. How- ever, I thought of it as I went home—I thought of it the next day— it kept in my mind; and, seeing its awful effects among the poor, I said to myself; If it is true that men can live without, and would be better without, it would be a great improvement, and would save property, character, life and soul, to a great amount. So I resolved to know whether it is true or not. I resolved, that I would not use any myself for three months. I said nothing, however, to others, lest they should think I was becoming wild; but before the close of three months, I began to suspect that it is true. I certainly felt better than before; and I resolved to try it three months more. At the end of six months, I was as perfectly satisfied as I ever was of any thing, that the idea which I had, and which most men have, that the use of spirit does good, is a delusion. O," said he, " it is one of the greatest delusions under which sober men ever were. I after- wards mentioned it to my workmen, and we agreed that we would not use any for a year. And now, for almost two years, we have not used a drop; and we are all persuaded, that we are vastly bet- ter without it. Others tried it, and came to the same result. All who made the experiment were satisfied that men in all kinds of business are bet- ter without it. And the question arose, Who knows, should the subject be pre- sented kindly and plainly throughout the United States—be illus- trated by facts, and pressed on the conscience—but that it may, through the divine blessing, change the habits of the nation ? Who knows, but that our children, and children's children, may be raised up free from this abomination, to be instrumental in perpetuating the blessings of free institutions—to be themselves made free by the Son of God—and to spread the light and glory of that freedom round the globe ? In 1825, the present Corresponding Secretary wrote the Tract No. 176 of the American Tract Society's series, entitled "The well-conducted'Farm," exhibiting the result of an experiment made by an original member of this Committee, upon an extensive farming establishment, in the county of Worcester, Mass. This tract was the same year printed, and circulated extensively through the country. The following are some of the advantages of abstinence, which were shown to have resulted to the workmen, viz. They had a better appetite for food, and were more nourished by it, than be- fore. They had greater vigor of body and mind; they performed more labor, with greater ease, and were free from many of the diseases to which they were before accustomed. They accumu- FOURTH REPORT.--1831. 9 lated more property, were more happy, and were more useful to themselves and others. The following were some of the advantages of abstinence which were shown to have resulted to their employer:—The men did more work, and in a better manner. It was easier to have a place for every thing, and to have every thing in its place. The walls and fences were kept in good repair without direction from the owner. The cattle did not, as before, break in and destroy the crops. The farm was more productive, and the fruits were gath- ered in better season. The tools were kept in better order; the barns exhibited greater neatness; the cattle and horses were more kind—and showed, in various ways, the benefits of abstinence from strong drink. The men were more respectful and uniform in their deportment; were more contented with their living; more desirous of being present at morning and evening family devotion ; were more attentive at public worship on the Sabbath, and were more interest- ed in the welfare of all around them. It was then shown that, should all the people of the United States adopt the plan of abstinence from the use of ardent spirits, the following would be some of the beneficial results, viz. They would enjoy better health, be able to accomplish more business, and live to a greater age. None of them would ever be- come intemperate; and as soon as the present drunkards should be dead, intemperance would be done away.* They would save a vast amount of property; remove one of the principal causes of pauper- ism and crime, disease, insanity and death; one of the greatest dangers to our free institutions, and one of the mightiest obstructions to the efficacy of the gospel, and all the means of grace; and would greatly increase the prospect of their happiness and use- fulness, and that of their children, for both worlds.f The same year, the following sentiments were delivered by John Ware, M. D., before the Massachusetts Society for the Suppression of Intemperance.! " It is an impression almost universal among the laboring classes, that ardenXjpirits^Jf not absolutely necessary, are, at least, of great' use and importance, as a support during laBor; and that, moderately used, they are a salutary, or, at least, an innocent stimulus. But no impression can be more unfounded, no opinion more fatally false, than that which attributes to spirituous liquors any power of promot- ing bodily strength, or supporting the system under labor or fatigue. Experience has in all quarters most abundantly proved the contrary. None labor so constantly, so cheerfully and with so little exhaust don, as tliose who entirely abstain; none endure so well hardships and exposure, the inclemency of weather, and the vicissitude of season." * This, and all similar statements are made on the supposition that they do not substitute or use alcohol in any other form. t Al'PIHDIZ, C. t appindix, D. 10 AMERICAN TEMPERANCE SOCIETY. Similar testimonies began to multiply. The evils of using, and the benefits of abstaining from ardent spirit, became more and more conspicuous; and also the necessity, as well as the encouragement, to make more systematic, general and persevering efforts on the subject. Individuals not only abstained, but, in some cases, agreed together, that they would not use or furnish to others that destruc- tive po:son. But there was no system, no plan of operation, to cause such a union to become universal; and it was evident that, unless something more universal, efficacious and persevering should be done, our country would be ruined ; the gospel would never have its legitimate influence over the human mind, and the reign of dark- ness and sin would be perpetuated to the end of time. Past efforts, though they had on some spots, and in some cases, done good, had not struck at the root of the evil. Their object was. to regu- late the use of ardent spirits, not to abolish it. Those who made them admitted, and most of them practised, the fundamental error, that men in health might, without injury, and, of course, without sin, use the poison, if they did not use too much. This was the case with members of Societies for the Suppression of Intem- perance. Thus, while they only retarded the growth, or clipped off a few of the top twigs of this poisonous tree, the roots were con- stantly nourished, and daily struck deeper and deeper. While the friends of temperance were reforming one old drunkard, their own habits, if followed, would make a hundred new ones. They were, indeed, sounding the alarm, but were treading in the footsteps of the lost; denouncing intemperance, and encouraging the use of strong drink; bewailing the effect, and perpetuating the cause; warning men not to be drunken, and urging them to drink. Many were enraged, almost to madness, at those who represented the use of ardent spirit to be a sin; and, though they had followed a promising son to the drunkard's grave, and were expecting soon to follow another, and another, they would denounce as enthusiasts, and treat as enemies, those who urged them not to drink. The husband, who had lost his wife by intemperance, would, for the sake of money, furnish that which killed her to all who would purchase, and even give it, as a token of kindness, to his nearest friends. The wife, who had seen her husband die by this poison, would use it herself, and give it daily to her only son. And it was perfectly evident that, unless a new movement could be started, on a new plan, and one which should be commensurate, in place and time, with the evil,—one which should strike it at the root, and exterminate it,—drunkenness could never be done away. The people would never become " all righteous," nor the day of millennial glory ever break on the world. A meeting of a few individuals was therefore called, to consider the following question, viz. FOURTH REPORT.--1831. 11 " IMiat shall be done to banish intemperance from the United States?" After prayer for divine guidance, and consultation on the sub- ject, the result was, a determination to attempt the formation of an American Temperance Society, whose grand principle should be, abstinence from strong drink; and its object, by light and love, to change the habits of the nation, with regard to the use of intoxicating liquors. Some of the reasons of this determination were, 1. Ardent spirit, which is one of the principal means of drunk- enness, is not needful, and the use of it is, to men in health, always injurious. 2. It is adapted to form intemperate appetjfes; and while it is continued, the evils of intemperance can never be done away. A 3. The use of this liquor is causjng a general deterioration oflCj body an(Tmind • whir.h1 if the cause is continued, will continue to / A increase. * 4. To remove the evils, we must remove the cause; and to remove the cause, efforts must be commensurate with the evil, and be continued till it is eradicated. 5. We never know what we can do by wise, united, and perse- vering efforts, in a good cause, till we try. 6. If we do not try to remove the evils of intemperance, we cannot free ourselves from the guilt of its effects. A correspondence was therefore opened, and a meeting of men, of various Christian denominations, holden in Boston, January 10, 1826. Hon". George Odiorne was called to the chair, and Rev. William Jenks, D. D., chosen clerk. The meeting was opened with prayer by the Rev. Timothy Merritt, of the Methodist Episcopal church; and after consulta- tion, the following resolutions were introduced by Jeremiah Evarts, Esq., Corresponding Secretary of the American Board of Commis- sioners for Foreign Missions, and adopted, viz. " 1. Resolved, That it is expedient that more systematic and more vigorous efforts be made by the Christian public to restrain and prevent the intemperate use of intoxicating liquors. " 2. That an individual of acknowledged talents, piety, industry and sound judgment, should be selected and employed as a perma- nent agent, to spend his time, and use his best exertions for the suppression and prevention of the intemperate use of intoxicating liquors." A committee was then appointed to prepare a constitution, and the meeting was adjourned to February 13th, 1826. At the adjourned meeting, a Constitution was presented and adopted, and the following persons were chosen by the members of the meeting, at the commencement, to compose the Society, viz. 12 AMERICAN TEMPERANCE SOCIEITf. Rev. Leonard Woods, D. D.; Rev. William Jenks, D'. D.; Rev. Justin Edwards; Rev. Warren Fay; Rev. Benjamin B. Wisner; Rev. Francis Wayland; Rev. Timothy Merritt; Hon. Marcus Mor- ton ; Hon. Samuel Hubbard; Hon. William Reed ; Hon. George Odiorne; John Tappan, Esq.; William Ropes, Esq.; James P. Chaplin, M. D.; S. V. S. Wilder, Esq.; and Enoch Hale, M. D. The Hon. Heman Lincoln, of the Baptist church, then offered the following resolution, which was unanimously adopted, viz. « Resolved, That the gentlemen composing this meeting pledge themselves to the American Society for the Promotion of Temper- ance, that they will use all their exertions in carrying into effect the benevolent plans of the Society." The Society then held its first meeting, and chose the following officers, viz. Hon. Marcus Morton, President; Hon. Samuel Hubbard, Vice- President; William Ropes, Esq., Treasurer; John Tappan, Esq., Auditor. Executive Committee—Rev. Leonard Woods, D. D.; Rev. Jus- tin Edwards ; John Tappan, Esq.; Hon. George Odiorne, and S. V. S. Wilder, Esq. On the 12th of March succeeding, the Society met, and chose eighty-four men, from the Northern, and Middle States, as addi- tional members of the Society. The Executive Committee then presented, through the press, the following address to the public:— "In view of the transactions above mentioned, and in accordance with the Constitution of The American Society for the Promo- tion of Temperance, the Executive Committee solicit the atten- tion of the Christian community to a few remarks relative to the important subject here presented before them. " The evils resulting from an improper use of intoxicating liquors bave become so extensive and desolating, as to call for the im- mediate, vigorous and persevering efforts of every philanthropist, patriot, and Christian. The number of lives annually destroyed by this vice, in our own country, is thought to be more than thirty thousand; and the number of persons who are diseased, distressed and impoverished by it, to be more than two hundred thousand. Many of them are not only useless, but a burden and a nuisance to society. " These liquors, it is calculated, cost the inhabitants of this country annually more than forty millions of dollars; and the pauperism occasioned by the improper use of them, (taking the common- wealth of Massachusetts as an example,) costs them upwards of twelve millions; making an annual expense of more than fifty millions of dollars. "Out often hundred and sixty-one cases of criminal prosecutions fourth report.—1831. 13 in the year 1820, before the Court of Sessions in the city of New York, more than eight hundred are stated to have been connected with intemperance. And so it is in all our principal cities. More than three quarters of the crimes committed in the country are probably occasioned by this hateful vice. And if we add to these the loss of time which it occasions, the loss of business, the loss of improvement, the loss of character, and the loss of happiness for time and for eternity, the evil swells to an over- whelming magnitude. The guilt and wretchedness resulting from it surpass all finite conception. Scarcely any thing has a more powerful and fatal efficacy to weaken, pollute, and debase the human mind. It palsies every effort for improvement, hinders the success of the gospel, and prevents the progress of the kingdom of Christ. It destroys, by hundreds and thousands, both the bodies and souls of men ; cutting them off from the possibility of enjoy- ment, and plunging them into endless darkness and wo. " No sooner is a person brought under the power of intoxicating liquors, than he seems to be proof against the influence of all the means of reformation. If, at any time, the truth gains access to his mind, and impresses his heart, by a few draughts of this fatal poison, the impression is almost sure to be effaced. Hence the notorious and alarming fact, that a person addicted to this vice is seldom renewed in the temper of his mind, or even reformed as to his outward character. If a single instance of the kind occurs, it is so uncommon, that it quickly becomes the subject of remark through a neighborhood, and often over a large extent of country, and for years is mentioned as an extraordinary event. Most persons given to intemperance, proceed from one degree of wickedness to another, till, having been often reproved, and hardened their necks, they bring sudden and remediless destruction upon themselves. And they destroy not only themselves, but a multitude of others. The jntemt^rnnrp K ^ fqthpF fv-ls pvtPndp.ri to three, four five, and ey^n to, «"""»" "f his phildren. The in- temperance of a lamily lias extended its contagion through a neighborhood, and its baleful effects have been felt by numerous individuals and families. Many persons, in all classes of society, have been destroyed by this vice; and no one is free from dan- ger. \ tytli.-r his nn security thnt hio. rhilrlirn will nnt die ■drunkard: and n ) seCir^thnt. the finl nnll not he evtenHeH through tV'in, '" fii'hv generations. And with the continuance 0f the prsent feelings aa:l hahits'of the community, there is no prospect that the evil will be lessened, and no possibility that it will be done away. All persons, especially the young, must continue to be exposed. Dingers meet them in the street; overtake them in business ; follow them to their dwellings; attend them in the private interview, and in the social c'uci:, and assail them wherever 14 AMERICAN TEMPERANCE SOCIETY. they go; and without a change in the sentiments and practices of "the community, the evil must continue to increase, till the animating prospects of this great and mighty republic are darkened, its precious institutions ruined, and thousands and millions of its population borne on a current of liquid fire to a world of wo. " The American Society for the Promotion of Temper- ance have, therefore, after deliberate and devout attention to the subject, resolved, in the strength of the Lord, and with a view to the account which they must render to him for the influence they exert in the world, to make a vigorous, united, and persevering effort to produce a change of public sentiment and practice with regard to the use of intoxicating liquors. " For this purpose, they deem it of primary importance that they should obtain an adequate fund for the support of a man of suitable qualifications, in the office of Secretary, who shaft devote himself to the service of the Society, and, in the various ways pointed out in the Constitution, labor to promote its object. " In attempting to procure this fund, the Committee cheerfully make their appeal to men of known and expansive benevolence, who are blessed with property, and are friends to Him, who was rich, yet, for our sakes, became poor, that we, through his poverty, might be rich,—and request them, from love to Him and to their fellow men, to take into serious consideration the magnitude of the evil which this Society aims to prevent, and the immeasurable good which it aims to secure, and to furnish the necessary means. If a man of the right character may be wholly and permanently devoted to this object, with the aid which he may receive from good men, throughout the country, the Committee are confident that, with the divine blessing, a system of general and powerful cooperation may be formed, and that a change may in a short time be effected, which will save an incalculable amount of property, and vast multi- tudes of valuable lives—a change which will be connected with the highest prosperity of our country, and with the eternal salvation of millions of our fellow men. " And may God Almighty crown with glorious success this and every other effort to do good, so that Christian morality, and piety, and happiness, may universally prevail. " Boston, March, 1826." L. WOODS. J.EDWARDS, G. ODIORNE, ' Committee.' S. V. S. WILDER, fe / Com LDER, ) On the 16th of January, Rev. Calvin Chapin, D. D., of Wethersfield, Conn., commenced the publication of a series of thirty-three num- bers, in the Connecticut Observer, entitled " The Infallible An- tidote." His motto was," Entire abstinence from ardent spirits is fourth report.—1831. 15 the only certain pi'eventive of intemperance." This was strikingly illustrated in the various numbers, and strongly urged upon all as an indispensable duty. He had himself, as had a number of others, practised it for many years, and urged it as the duty of all men. In April, 1826, the National Philanthropist, a weekly paper, de- voted to the cause of temperance, was established, in Boston, by the Rev. William Collier. Its motto was, " Temperate drinking is the doivnhill road to intemperance." This paper has been con- tinued, and, with some modifications, is now published by Messrs. Goodell and Crandall, in New York. It is an able and efficient pa- per, and, under its successive editors, has been a valuable auxiliary to the cause. In September of the same year, an association of more than fifty heads of families, and more than one hundred and fifty young men, was formed in Andover, Mass., on the plan of abstinence, with the following constitution, viz. " Believing that the use of intoxicating liquors is, for persons in health, not only unnecessary, but hurtful; that it is the cause of forming intemperate appetites and habits ; and that, while it is con- tinued, the evils of intemperance can never he prevented,— " Therefore, we, the subscribers, for the purpose of promoting our uvwi wctf.uti, and thai Of ltl»; community, ugict; lliat wc Will atlStaln from the use of distilled spirits, except as a medicine in case of bod- ily infirmity; that we will not allow the use of them in our fami- lies, nor provide them for the entertainment of our friends, or for persons in our employment; and that, in all suitable ways, we will discountenance the use of them in the community. Andover, Mass., Sept., 1826." In January, 1827, the present Corresponding Secretary visited Bos- ton, and commenced an effort to obtain means for the support of a per- manent agent. At the first meeting, although the evening was ex- ceedingly stormy, the amount subscribed was more than $3500. At the second meeting, the amount subscribed was more than $1200; and at the third meeting, more than $700. In Salem, Newburyport, Andover, and Northampton, were obtained upwards of $2000 more. As the pastoral duties of the Secretary did not permit of his con- tinuing his agency, the Committee appointed the Rev. Nathaniel Hewit, of Fairfield, Conn., who was known to have preached and acted successfully on this subject, who spent twenty weeks in the service of the Society. He visited various places in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, and Pennsylvania; preach- ed on the subject, addressed public bodies, and in various ways promoted successfully die great and good cause. 16 AMERICAN TEMPERANCE SOCIETY. In September of the same year, the present Secretary was again appointed to an agencv of three months, and visited various places in Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and Connecticut. The prospect continued to brighten, and the evidence to increase that the work was of God. Numbers were found who had been led, within a few years, from their own reflections, without concert, in view of what they saw, to the conclusion, that they could not con- tinue to use ardent spirit, or to furnish it for the use of others, with- out the commission of sin. These were evidences which God had prepared, when the duty of abstinence was preached, to rise up and say, " We have felt it;" and when the utility of abstinence was exhibited, to say, " It is true; we have tried it, and found it so." This was said by men in various kinds of business, and in ali conditions of life, and it gave a powerful impulse to the cause. " 1 wish," said an old man, as he rose at the close of a temperance meeting, " to say to the people, before they go away, that all which they have heard with regard to the utility of abstinence from ardent spirit is true. I know it is true. I have tried it. More than a hundred tons of hay I have gathered this summer off my own farm, and not a man in my employment has used a drop. I never got through the business of a season before without having some of my men sick. In the hot days of haying and harvesting, one was taken oft" a day, another a week, and so on. But this summer, not a man lias lust cl moal of viotualo tlm-iiwic the scaoon. Tlioy liavo not broken the tools, as they used to; they have not quarrelled among themselves, as they used to: and I finished the business of the sea- son much sooner than my neighbors who kept on in the old way, and much better than ever before. Oh! it is a great improvement." In the course of the year, were published Kittredge's First Address, Dr. Mussey's Address before the Medical_Convention of New Hampshire, Mr. Palfrey's Sermons, and Dr. Beeche?s Sermons on the Nature, Signs, Evils, and Remedy of Intemperance; and they were all powerful auxiliaries to the cause.* To show the state of the public mind at this period, we present a few extracts from the publications of that year. The Massachusetts Society for the Suppression of Intemperance, in their Annual Report, Nov., 1827, say, " It is becoming unfashion- able to drink ardent spirits in decent company; and it is no longer considered a necessary mark of hospitality to offer them. People are beginning to yield to the conviction that thev are injurious to health, even when used in moderation. It is presumed that the ira- rru* **■• Beecher's Sermons were preached the year before, at Litchfield, Conn. This fact, however, was not known to those who formed the American Temper. ance Society thus showing that different minds, in distant places, without con- cert, were taking substantially the same views of this great subject. I t Appemdix, E. FOURTH REPORT.--1831. 17 provement which has begun will go on, and they will be at length universally banished. It seems now to be generally admitted by those who have had an opportunity for observation, or have made themselves acquainted with the various facts, which have been col- lected with regard to intemperance, that yve are to attribute much of the prevalence of immoderate drinking to erroneous opinions and prac- tices of society, with regard to moderate drinking. No man probably ever became at once a drunkard. Drunkards have all once been| moderate drinkers, and hnvp nnlv ffxiK-lnally nnd insensibly heroine" immoderate drinkers. It would seem, then, that there must be some- thing wrong in this habit of moderate drinking, since it leads, in so large a proportion of cases, to so deplorable a result." They also passed the following resolutions, viz:— " 1. Resolved, That, in the opinion of this meeting, there is suf- ficient evidence that ardent spirits are not necessary as a refresh- ment or a support to the strength during labor, but, on the contrary, are absolutely injurious to the health ; that to the general moderate use of diem is to be chiefly attributed the prevalent habit of in- temperance ; and that entire abstinence from their use, except when prescribed as medicines, be recommended to all classes of society. "2. Resolved, That it be recommended to ship-owners, masters of vessels, farmers, mechanics, proprietors and superintendents of manufacturing establishments, and all others having, the care of young persons when first entering upon laborious occupations, to endeavor to induce those under their charge to form the habit of labor without any use of ardent spirits. "3. Resolved, That it be recommended to all having the charao of the education of the young, to endeavor to produce upon their minds a strong impression of the dangerous tendency of even a moderate use of ardent spirits." The conviction had now become extensive, that the use of ardent spirit is wrong. Many had come to the conclusion, that no man in health, who understands its nature and effects, can continue to use it as an article of luxury or diet, or to traffic in it, without guilt. Kittredge,in his Address, said," Ardent spirits are said to be useful and necessary. It is false. It is nothing but the apology that the love of them renders for their use. There are only two cases in which, Dr. Rush says, they can be administered without injury; and those are cases of persons likely to perish, and where substi- tutes may be applied of equal effect. What rational man would use them for the sake of these two possible cases ? As well might he introduce rattlesnakes among his children, because their oil is good in diseases with which they may possibly be afflicted. What! drink none ? Yes—I say, Drink none. One gallon for this town is 18 AMERICAN TEMPERANCE SOCIETY. iust four quarts too much. In addition to the miseries of debt and poverty, which they entail upon a community, they are the parent of one half the disejses_lbaL,prevail, and one half thf t;rimeg*hat are "committed. lUsZflglfinr^^Obnt, fill QULj^ofchouses and our jails; our poni^ntia.-ie^ mad-houses, and state jarjsons. It is ar- a^nTspT?n!rthat furnish victims tor the gallows. lhey are the greatest curse that God ever inflicted on the world, and may well be called the seven vials of his wrath. They are more destructive in tlieir consequences than war, plague, pestilence or famine, yea, than all combined. They are slow in their march, but sure m their grasp. They seize not only on the natural, but the moral man. They con- sign the body to the tomb, and the soul to hell. But have not ar- dent spirits one good quality, one redeeming virtue ? None, I say, none. There is nothing, not even the shadow of a virtue, to se- cure them from universal and everlasting execration. The parent should instil into his children a hatred of ardent spirits as much as he does of falsehood and theft. He should no more suffer his chil- dren to drink a little, than he does to lie a little, and to steal a little. No longer use that which is the source of infinite mischief, without one redeeming benefit; which has entailed upon you, upon your children, and upon society, woes unnumbered and unutterable. Banish it from your houses. It can be done. You have only to will, and it is effected. Use it not at home. Let it never be found to pollute your dwellings. Give it not to your friends or your workmen. * Touch it not yourselves, and suffer not your children to touch it. And let it be a part of your morning and evening prayer, that you and your children may be saved from intemper- ance, as much as from famine, from sickness ami death." Dr. Beecher, in his Sermons, said, " The traffic in ardent spirits is wrong, and should be abandoned as a great national evil. The amount of suffering and mortality, inseparable from the commerce in ardent spirits, renders them an unlawful article of trade. The commerce in ardent spirits, which produces no good, and produces a certain and an immense amount of evil, must be regarded as an unlawful commerce, and ought, upon every principle of humanity, patriotism, conscience, and religion, to be abandoned and pro- scribed. It seems to be a manifest violation of the command, ' Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself,' and of various other evan- gelical precepts. " No man can act in the spirit of impartial love to his neighbor, who, for his own personal emolument, inflicts on him great and ir- reparable evil; for love worketh no ill to his neighbor. Love will not burn a neighbor's house, or poison his food, or blast his reputa- tion, or destroy his soul. But the commerce in ardent spirits does all this inevitably and often. Property, reputation, health, life and salvation fall before it. FOURTH REPORT.--1831. 19 " The direct infliction of what is done indirectly, would subject a man to the ignominy of a public execution." * * * * " It is scarcely a palliation of this evil, that no man is destroyed maliciously, or with any direct intent to kill; for the certainty of evil is as great as if waters were poisoned which some persons would surely drink, or as if a man should fire in the dark upon masses of human beings, where it must be certain that death would be the consequence to some." * * * * " Can it be denied that the commerce in ardent spirits makes a fearful havoc of property, morals and life ? Does it not shed blood as really as the sword, and more blood than is shed by war ? In this point, uone are better witnesses than physicians, and, according to their testimony, intemperance is one of the greatest destroyers of virtue, health and life." * * * * " The consideration, that those, to whose injury we are accessory by the sale of ardent spirits, are destroyed also by the perversion of their own free agency—and that the evil is silent, and slow-paced in its march—doubtless subtracts, in no small degree, from the keen sense of accountability and crime, which would attend the adminis- tration of arsenic, or the taking of life by the pistol, or the dagger— as does also the consideration that although we may withhold the cup, yet, from some other source, the deleterious potion will be obtained. , " But all this alters not the case. He who deliberately assists his neighbor to destroy his life, is not guiltless because his neighbor is a free agent and is also guilty; and he is accessory to the crime, though twenty other persons might have been ready to commit the same sin if he had not done it. WJio would sell arsenic to hisjHphhor, to destroy himself, because he could obtain it elsewhere? Who would sell a dagger lor the known purpose ofi^.snssination, because, if it were refused,Tt could be purchased in another place? We are accountable for our own wrong-doing, and liable to punishment at the hand_of God, as really as if it had been certain that no one would have done the deed, if we did not. " The ungodliness in time, and the everlasting ruin in eternity, in- separable from the commerce in ardent spirit, proscribe it as an unlawful article of traffic. " Who can estimate the hatred of God, of his word and worship, and of his people, which it occasions? or number the oaths and blasphemies it causes to be uttered ? or the violations of the Sabbath? the impurities and indecencies, violence and wrong-doing, which it originates ? How many thousands does it detain every Sabbath- day from the house of God—cutting them off from the means of grace, and hardening them against their efficacy! How broad is the road which intemperance alone opens to hell, and how thronged with travelers!" * * * * • 20 AMERICAN TEMPERANCE SOCIETY. "Here is an article of commerce spread over the land, whose effect is evil only, and that continually, and which increases an hundred-fold the energies of human depravity, and the hopeless victims of future punishment. "Drunkenness is a sin which excludes from heaven. The com- merce in ardent spirits, therefore, productive only of evil in time, fits for destruction, and turns into hell, multitudes which no man can number. " I am aware that, in the din of business, and the eager thirst for gain, the consequences of our conduct upon our views, and the future destiny of our fellow men, are not apt to be realized, or to modify our course. " But has not God connected with all lawful avocations the welfare of the life that now is, and of that which is to come ? And can we lawfully amass property by a course of trade which fills the land with beggars, and widows, and orphans, and crimes; which peoples the grave-yard with premature mortality, and the world of wo with the victims of despair ? Could all the forms of evil produced in the land by intemperance come upon us in one horrid array, it would appall the nation, and put an end to the traffic in ardent spirit?. If in every dwelling built by blood, the stone from the wall should utter all the cries which the bloody traffic extorts, and the beam out of the timber should echo them back, who would build such a house?—and who would dwell in it? What i£ in every part of the dwelling, from the cellar upward, through all the halls and chambers, babblings, and contentions, and voices, and groans, and shrieks, and wailings, were heard, day and night? What if the cold blood oozed out, and stood in drops upon the walls, and, by preter- rnatural art, all the ghastly skulls and bones of the victims destroyed by intemperance, should stand upon the walls, in horrid sculpture | within and without the building—who would rear such a building ? What if, at eventide, and at midnight, the airy forms of men destroy- I ed by intemperance, were dimly seen haunting the distilleries and stores, where they received their bane—following the track of the [_ ship engaged in the commerce—walking upon the waves—flitting athwart the deck—sitting upon the rigging—and sending up from the hold within, and from the waves without, groans, and loud laments, and wailings! Who would attend such stores ? V/ho would labor in such distilleries? Who would navigate such ships ? " Oh ! were the sky over our heads one great whispering gallery, bringing down about us all the lamentation and wo which intemperance creates, and the firm earth one sonorous medium of sound, bringing up around us, from beneath, the wailings of the damned, whom the commerce in ardent spirits had sent thither;—these tremendous realities, assailing our sense, would invigorate our conscience, and FOURTH REPORT.--1831. 21 g'rve decision to our purpose of reformation. But these evils are as real as if the stone did cry out of the wall, and the beam answered it; as real as if, day and night, wailings were heard in every part oi the dwelling, and blood and skeletons were seen upon every wall; as real as if the ghostly forms of departed victims flitted about the ship as she passed over the billows, and showed them- selves nightly about stores and distilleries, and, with unearthly voices, screamed in our ears their loud lament. They are as real as it the sky over our heads collected and brought down about us all the notes of sorrow in the land ; and the firm earth should open a passage for the wailings of despair to come up from beneath." The Massachusetts Medical Society passed resolutions in favor of abstinence, and gave it as their opinion, that the best drink for man is water. The Medical Society of the Western District of New Hampshire declared, that spirituous drinks have no tendency to protect the system from diseases, but expose it the more. The New Hamp- shire Medical Society did the same, and gave it as their opinion, that distilled spirits are not essentially necessary in a single disease. They resolved that they would abstain from the use of them them- selves, and discourage the use of them by others. The President of the Society, in his address delivered June, 1827, said, "Does a healthy laboring man need alcohol? No more than he needs arsenic, corrosive sublimate, or opium. It has been proved a thousand times, that more labor can be accomplished in a month, or a year, under the influence of simple nourishing food, and un- stimulating drink, than through the aid of alcohol." * * * " From a commercial friend in Massachusetts I have lately re- ceived the following information. ' I visited,' says he, ' four or five years since, in New Jersey, an iron foundery belonging to Mr. Wood, of Philadelphia. I think there were thirty or forty men em- ployed in the establishment, and all they drank was pure spring water. I saw them often while lading out the hot metal, and sweating at every pore, take a mug, run to the spring, and drink very freely of the water. I inquired if they did not feel any ill effects from drinking so much cold water. They answered, No. The furnace went into blast in April, and continued till October. All those employed had the best of health during the whole season, and re- turned to their friends in the autumn with better health and fuller purses than they ever had before. " ' A vessel belonging to my neighbor went from this place to South America, and from thence to India. No spirit was allowed to the crew during the whole voyage. They all arrived home in good health. One of my own captains kept grog from his men the whole of an India voyage; they all came home in fine health. For 22 AMERICAN TEMPERANCE SOCIETY. my crews in hot climates, I direct spruce beer, made with the oil or essence of spruce, and molasses and water. I shipped two crews lasi week for long voyages in hot climates, and named to the men that we should not allow them grog. There was not a single objection made to signing the shipping papers. It is in the power of "every ship owner to prevent the use of ardent spirit on board his vessels, by sending out a few barrels of molasses, and a few dozen bottles of the essence of spruce, for beer.' " To the foregoing suggestion it may be proper to add, that, for laboring men in hot weather, sweetened water, sometimes with the addition of ginger, is a most salutary drink; so also is a mixture of milk and water. " The principle of life is afforded to every individual in such quan- tity, or in such manner, as to admit of the living actions being car- i vied on under the most favorable circumstances only for a limited ] period ; and as no human power or skill can increase this principle lone jot or tittle, so neither can the actions of life be urged beyond | the standard of sound health (leaving casualties out of the question) | without necessarily shortening it. And this shortening of life will ?be for minutes, or months, or years, according to the .degree and continuance of the excitement beyond the natural and uniform rate of healthy action. " This vital principle has been likened, not altogether inaptly, to oil in a lamp, which is capable of sustaining flame onlyr for a certain ' length of time. If the wick be raised higher than necessary to I produce a full and clear light, a part of the oil goes off in smoke, [ and the whole is sooner consumed." f Many of the ecclesiastical bodies in the Northern and Middle States passed resolutions in favor of abstinence; and recommended to all the churches and congregations under their care, to cooperate with the friends of the American Temperance Society in extending its principles and operations throughout the land. The members of several churches resolved entirely to abstain from the use of ar- dent spirit themselves, being persuaded that the gospel required it, and to use their influence to lead all others to do the same. The youth in various colleges, and the citizens in numerous towns, united in Temperance Societies, on the plan of abstinence from the use of this poison ; and the impression was rapidly extending, that no man could continue, as an article of luxury or diet, to use it, or be accessory to the use of it by others, without the commission of sin^ and, in proportion to the light which he might have on the subject, the accumulation of tremendous and ever-growing guilt. The facts which had been developed showed that the use of this article is not needful, not salutary, but is uniformly hurtful; that it caused more than three fourths of the pauperism, crimes, and wretchedness of the community; greatly increased the number, FOURTH REPORT--1831. 23 frequency, and violence of diseases ; destroyed the reason of mul- titudes ; and brought down greater, and still greater multitudes to an untimely grave. They showed, conclusively, that it tended, with a mighty influence, to obstruct the progress of the gospel, to hinder the efficacy of all the means which God has provided for the moral and spiritual illumination and purification of men, and thus to ruin them forever. And the prospect was, that, should suitable means be used, and the whole community be made acquainted with the facts, the conviction of this truth, unless prevented by avarice or appetite, would, with the divine blessing, become universal. In November, 1827, the Committee reappointed Rev. Na- thaniel Hewit to an agency for three years. And, having been dismissed from his pastoral care for that purpose, he accepted the appointment, and entered upon its duties January 1, 1828. In May of the same year, they appointed Rev. Joshua Leavitt to an agency for four months. A commission was also given to Mr. Daniel C. Axtell, to labor as an agent in the western parts of the state of New York. His salary and traveling expenses were paid by a benevolent individual in that part of the state. Rev. Dr. Woodbridge, of Hadley, Mass., at the request of the Hampshire County Temperance Society, performed an agency through most of the towns in that county. Other individuals per- formed voluntary agencies in their own towns and districts. At the close of the year 1828, there were formed and reported 13 Temperance Societies in Maine, 23 in New Hampshire, 7 in Ver- mont, 39 in Massachusetts, 2 in Rhode Island, 33 in Connecticut, 78 in New York, 6 in New Jersey, 7 in Pennsylvania, 1 in Del- i aware, 1 in Maryland, 5 in Virginia, 2 in North Carolina, 1 in South Carolina, 1 in Kentucky, 1 in Ohio, and 2 in Indiana. Oth- ers had been formed in different parts of the country, which had not been reported. State Societies had been formed in New Hampshire, Vermont, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and Illinois. A So- ciety had also been formed in Lower Canada; and it is supposed that there were not less than thirty thousand persons who had acreed not to use ardent spirits. In Belchertown, Mass., the quantity used in 1825 was only about one fourth as much as in 1824. In Plymouth, New Hamp- shire, the cost of ardent spirits was not one sixteenth part as much as in 1826. Similar changes had been effected in other places. Resolutions of abstinence had been passed by more than 20 military companies, by the officers of 4 regiments, by 10 med- ical societies, and a great portion of all the ecclesiastical bodies in the country. The lawyers of 3 counties had voted to abstain from ardent spirits,* and the members of the House of Rep- * Appendix, F. 24 AMERICAN TEMPERANCE SOCIETY. resentatives of New Hampshire, not to use them during the ses- sion of the Legislature. A number of distilleries had been stopped, and more than a hundred merchants had renounced the traffic; vessels were sent to foreign ports without carrying the poison; and the impression continued to extend, that no "person, acquainted with the subject, could continue to use or to traffic in ardent spirit without the guilt of blood. The language used at the annual meetings, to which thousands of the wisest and best hearts in the land responded, was, " There is no longer any doubt of the part which the Christian should act. He is imperiously called upon, by the principles of his religion, to abandon all connection, of whatever kind, with the in- toxicating cup. Every glass he drinks is a warrant for his neighbor to do the like; and intemperance is sure to follow the use of ardent spirits. There is nothing on earth that can prevent it; and as long as human nature remains the same, this will continue to be the case. No man can therefore encourage that use ; no man can ad- minister the poison, without being responsible for the consequences. The in der knows that every barrel he purchases will spread sorrow and grief wherever it is carried. There is a moral certainty, that every gallon that is carried into the country, will help to keep alive that baneful disease, which rages with a furyr that knows no re- straint, and with a force that cannot be resisted. Every man, therefore, who carries it into the country, is directly concerned in producing that mass of pauperism, disease, and crime, which results from intemperance. He supplies the fuel that keeps alive the flame, and he is the incendiary who spreads that liquid fire which involves the peace and happiness of the domestic circle, the promise of youth, and the hopes of old ago, in one general ruin. " The vending of ardent spirits cannot be carried on without guilt. Every grog-shop exhibits scenes that religion cannot witness without horror. Here every evil passion is fed ! Here every bass propensity is nourished! Here is kept the food of drunkenness, and hither resort all those miserable victims of the disease who would rather die of it than be cured ! Here is found the poison that vitiates the taste of the temperate, and prepares them to supply the places of those who die of this plague ! Here the temperate drink, and here the temperate learn to be drunkards. All the drunk- ards in the country are brought up at these stores. They are the schools of intemperance, and as long as they continue the traffic in ardent spirits, they will continue to be the poison of the land. As long as they furnish the supply of ardent spirits called for, they will continue to send forth through the towns in which they are found. a pestilence, laying waste every noble and manly feeling of the human heart, and every lovely trait in the human character. Is FOURTH REPORT.--1831. 25 not this so ? Where were the drunkards of our village formed, but at those places where ardent spirits are sold ? Where is the origin of all that poverty and crime which are traced to intemperance, but at these Aceldamas of human blood ? Where can the wife and the mother find the cause of that fountain of tears which they are con- strained to shed, but at these fountains of ardent spirits? And can the Christian carry on this traffic ? Can he supply the lava which scorches the land, and be innocent ? Does he find nothing in that benign religion which he professes, to forbid it ? Can he be the agent of intemperance, the commissaiy of the drunkard, and feel no remorse? I know the vender tells you he is not an- swerable for the consequences ; that he frowns on intemperance, and withholds the cup from the drunkard. But this is not so. Does not the vender know the effects of ardent spirits ? Does he not know the consequences which they will assuredly produce ? Does he not know that of those who drink, many will be drunken ? And can he supply the cause, and detach himself from the effect ? Can he hurl firebrands through your city, and witness the confla- gration, and claim exemption from blame ? Can he spread the contagion among your families, and, when he hears the dyring groan and sees the funeral, tell you that he is innocent ? Yet the vender of ardent spirits does all thiii .He spren^^jh^jntqxirR^"^ ^n^- he sees the drnnkep pffer«ry_k° "k^n™- tKc ^vnni.nn ^., . 1. ... '.. nesses the drunken revel : h,fi n c"--"""^^^ "r'f1^ ;< | ^" ■'■■ [■"^"^■-■^ itj>nd yet tells ynn that he is innr^pnt » WrmrWfiil fitm't^ I .PmI he knows the responsibility is so great that he shrinks from acknowledging it. He sees the guilt and the wo, and shudders at the thought of being its cause. And well he may : but he cannot escape. As l^nr.TT hi? fumirhm thr___mrinr nf nVnnkpnnc™ to others, he is a partaker ot tfte crime. And he should be so held in public opinion. He should be held directly responsible for the consequences of his acts, and the same odium which attaches to the principal should attach to all accessories. But he tells you he frowns on intemperance. So, perhaps, he does. After produ- cing it, he frowns on the wretch that he has made drunken, and abhors his own offspring. But every retailer should remember that thp fjpirilfar^^ with iirhm hn in rmrrn under] tit bin own rhildrrn ariuapprenticps. and that they afford a living exhibition of the char- acter of his own deeds. When he looks upon them, ragged, filthy and debased—when he hears the noon-day curse and the midnight broil, he should say, 'Here is my work; this is what I have done. It is my trade to make such men. 1 have spent my life in it.' And if he is a Christian, and duly appreciates his guilt, he will raise his hands to Heaven, and before God declare that he will make no more such. "But the vender tells you again that he withholds the cup 26 AMERICAN TEMPERANCE SOCIETY. from the drunkard. So, perhaps, he may. He will furnish the cup till the wretch is made drunken, and then refuse him till he is sober again. But this is too late ; this refusal comes when it can do little or no good. The crime is already perpetrated. The guilt is already incurred, and in vain does the vender attempt to escape. But it is not true, that he withholds the cup from the drunkard. Every retailer does sell to the drunkard, and, however well mean- ing he may be, he cannot carry on this trade without contributing to the support of intemperance. And this traffic should be abandoned by the Christian public. Conscience should be allowed a triumph over interest and custom, and the merchandise of spirits should be classed with the merchandise of blood. No Christian should contaminate his hands and his soul with this most destructive and demoralizing commerce. And I am happy to say, that many merchants have lately viewed this as they ought, and forsaken the trade, as being a curse revolting to the feelings of patriotism and Christianity. They have given a noble example of the triumph of principle, and one that deserves the universal approbation of the Christian public. " But the retailer is not alone. He is but a subaltern in that mighty army of the agents of intemperance which is scattered through the land. He is the immediate instrument of the ruin which spirituous-liquors occasion, but the wholesale dealer, although one grade above him, is equally a partaker of the guilt. He sup- ' plies the numerous streams which issue "through the land, laying waste every thing in their course. Could the vender learn the history of a single hogshead of this liquid ; could every drop return to him, and give a faithful account of the effects it had produced,— he would shudder at the narration. Could he collect before him, and be enabled to see, the crime, the disease and death, the poverty and distress, to count the tears and hear the groans, which every cask of spirits occasions, he would revolt with horror from the trade. But he may conceive it. Let him learn the history of intem- perance, and then let him reflect that he is constantly engaged in spreading its horrors ; that he is supplying from day to day the liquid fire that is scattered by an army of retailers through the land. scorching and destroying every tiling within its reach, and he will be constrained to pronounce it an unchristian occupation. And let the distiller remember, that he stands at the head of the stream, and lets loose the flood-gates to deluge and destroy; that his occupation is to poison the land, and that the more he does, the more wretched is the world; and he will not find one single consolation to cheer and support him." * * * "Does the Christian pray for the spread of his religion, and is he at the same time engaged in the spread of intemperance' Does he pray for the reformation of the world, and, while liis pravers are FOURTH REPORT.--1831. 27 ascending to heaven, is he spreading the plague, that poisons the heart, and renders mankind incapable of reformation ? Is he sup- porting the rpi^inn-riry in foreign lands from funds which he has collected -as the wages of dninVpnn"^—Arfd does he believe the God of heaven will smile on the labors of him who is supported by food taken from the mouths of the children of the intemperate, for the drink jtliat destroys them ? While he is attempting to teach the heathen the way to neaven, is he binding his own countrymen in chains strong as the bands of death, and leading them in the road to hell? Is he training them to practices and habits which will as surely bar them from the realms of bliss as though no redemption had been provided for them ? \ " I venerate the Christian's character, and whenever I find him! acting in consistency with the principles of the gospel, I do indeed regard him as the salt of the earth. But I fear on this subject there is an awful inconsistency in the conduct of some. I believe all connection with spirituous liquors, in the present state of society, to be sinful. Since the way, and the only way, to banish intemper- ance from the earth, has been pointed out, it is the Christian's duty to adopt that course, whatever may be the sacrifice, and to disclaim all connection between rum and religion. " They cannot agree. Every feeling that the former inspires is hostile to' the latter; and if there be any thing on earth that can eradicate piety from the heart, it is the use of ardent spirits. Its inspiration is unholy and impure ; and I call upon the Christian to abstain, not only for his own sake, but for the sake of the world, for the sake of the example, as the means, and the only means, of effecting a reformation of mankind from intemperance. I believe the time is coming when not only the drunkard but the drinker will be excluded from the church of our God—when the gambler, the slave dealer, and the rum dealer, will be classed together. And 1 care not how soon that time arrives. I would pray for it as devout- ly as for the millennium. And when it comes, as come it will, it should be celebrated by the united band of philanthropists, patriots, and Christians throughout the world, as a great and most glorious jubilee." In several cases, the efforts for the promotion of temperance were followed by remarkable success of the gospel, and numbers were led hopefully to embrace the Savior; and the connection began strikingly to appear between these efforts and the salvation of men. In 1829, the Committee established a weekly paper, called The Journal of Humanity, to be the organ of their communica- tion with the public, and appointed Rev. Edward W. Hooker, editor and associate general agent. The present Correspond- ing Secretary was also reappointed as general agent, and the 28 AMERICAN TEMPERANCE SOCIETY. following persons as local agents, viz. Rev. Asa Mead for Maine, Rev. Andrew Rankin for New Hampshire, Rev. Daniel O. Morton for Vermont, and Rev. Talcott Bates for Connecti- cut. Rev. Messrs. Ccggin, Barbour, Mann, Shepherd, Clark, Bond, and Woodbury, were also appointed, each as an agent for a county in Massachusetts. Other agents were employed by- State Societies; and benevolent individuals performed voluntary agencies in various parts of the country. At the close of the year 1829, there had been formed, on the plan of abstinence, and reported, more than 1000 Societies, em- bracing more than 100,000 members. Eleven of them were State Societies. Of those known to the Committee, 62 were in Maine, 46 in New Hampshire, 56 in Vermont, 169 in Massachu- setts, 3 in Rhode Island, 133 in Connecticut, 300 in New York, 21 in New Jersey, 53 in Pennsylvania, 1 in Delaware, 6 in Mary- land, 52 in Virginia, 15 in North Carolina, 10 in South Carolina, 14 in Georgia, 8 in Alabama, 30 in Ohio, 9 in Kentucky, 5 in Tennessee, 4 in Mississippi, 13 in Indiana, I in Illinois, 3 in Michigan, and I in Missouri. Societies were also formed in Upper and Lower Canada, in Nova Scotia, and in New Brunswick. More than 50 distilleries had been stopped, more than 400 merchants had renounced the traffic, and more than 1200 drunk- ards had ceased to use the drunkard's drink. Persons, who, a (ew years before, were vagabonds about the street, were now sober, respectable men, providing comfortably, by their labor, for their wives and their children. In a number of towns, ardent spirit was not sold, and, in sev- eral cases, not even kept at the public houses. And in some places, no person who was acquainted with the subject, and yet continued to use distilled liquor, as an article of luxury or diet, or to traffic in it, was viewed as a proper person for admission to a Christian church. The business was viewed as an immorality, in which no person could continue, and yet give credible evidence of being a good man. The guilt of aiding and abetting in this work of death, became more and more obvious; and the number rapidly increased, who saw that the effect of enlightened Christian principle would be, to banish this awful immorality from the globe. And the ben- efits which would result, from such a change, to the property, character, health, reason, lives and souls of men, became more and more apparent. In one town in Vermont, individuals, by abstaining from ardent spirit, saved, in one year, more than $8000. In the state of New Hampshire, they saved, in the same way, more than $100,000. In Lyme, New Hampshire, in which had been sold annually about 6000 gallons, the quantity sold that year was only FOURTH REPORT.--1831. 25 600 gallons. The bill of mortality, which had, for six years, upon an average, been annually 24,} was reduced, for two years, to 17 iJ In 1826, the year before the formation of the Temperance So- ciety, the number of deaths under 40 years of age was 15; in 1828, only 9. Had every town in the United States pursued a similar course, that is, used but one tenth part the usual quantity of ardent spirits, and had it been followed by a similar result, the number of deaths, that year, would have been lessened more than 70,000.* In a number of towns, the Holy Spirit followed, with his life-giv- ing power, the efforts for the promotion of temperance, and hundreds, under his gracious influence, hopefully embraced the gospel. In one town in Massachusetts, a temperance discourse was delivered near the close of 1827. Numbers renounced the use of ardent spirit, and conducted all their business without it. Many were anxious to form a Temperance Society; but some, among the aged and influential, thought that they could not do without a little, and no society was formed, till the young men, impatient at the delay of their fathers, called a meeting, and formed a Society among themselves. They resolved to have stated meetings, collect information, and spread it through the town. At the first meeting, many were solemn, and at the second, anxious for their salvation ; a prayer was offered, and the Holy Spirit descended upon them : the anxiety increased, became general, and extended through the town ; and more than 200, it is believed, have passed from death unto life. Ten of those young men are now preparing for the gospel ministry; and, should their lives be spared, and their talents consecrated to the Redeemer, they may be instrumental in preparing many for an exceed- ing and eternal weight of glory. And, could we trace the influ- ence of that single Temperance Society, in all its various con- nections, bearings, and consequences, upon the temporal and eter- nal interests of men, the vision would be transporting. And when the Committee saw these Societies rising, and extending their benign influences not merely over one, but over a thousand towns, and promising to extend them through the whole land, and to all future ages, they could not but thank God, and take courage. This year was also rendered memorable, and will be marked as an era in the history of Europe, from its having been the commencement of the Temperance Reformation in the old world. 30 AMERICAN TEMPERANCE SOCIETY. A meeting was holden, in July, at Belfast, in Ireland, to devise ways and means for preventing the profanation of the Sabbath; and, in order to this, for preventing, on that day, the sale and use of spirituous liquors. It was found, as it ever will be, impossible to prevent the one, without first preventing the other. The use of ardent spirit will, in all countries, and all ages, cause the profanation of the Sabbath, and all its abominations. To remove the effect, therefore, they undertook to remove the cause. And this they attempted to do in the old way, by the force of civil law. But a certain individual (Rev. John Edgar, professor of divin- ity in the college at Belfast) expressed his dissent from thai mode of attempting to accomplish the object, and his desire to employ moral means only, in attempting to effect moral refor- mation. He was therefore appointed to prepare an appeal to the public on this subject. While engaged in this preparation, he learned, for the first time, by a friend from America (Rev. Mr. Penny, of Rochester, New York), the nature, means and success of the Temperance Reformation in the United States. Eagerly seizing on its grand principles, and the grand principle of all moral refor- mation, viz. Voluntary abstinence from doing evil, as an essential pre-requisite to doing well; and voluntary associations, exhibiting this principle in practice, as the grand means of effecting it; he embodied his thoughts, and published them in the Belfast papers, on the 14th of August, 1829. This was the first appeal on this subject to the Christians of Europe ; and was followed by results similar to those which had been witnessed in the United States. The first Temperance Society in the old world, on the plan of abstinence, was formed by Rev. George Carre, of New Ross, in Ireland. Special pains were taken to furnish them with the Journal of Humanity and other temperance publications from this country, and before the close of the year, they had numerous Temperance Societies in Ireland and Scotland, em- bracing more than 14,000 members. The subject had been taken up in England, and bid fair to extend through the king- dom. More than 65,000 temperance publications had issued from the press, and were in a course of rapid and extensive circulation. Persons were employed to go from house to house, and distribute them, and make known to the people the benefits that would result to them and their children, for both worlds, from the Temperance Reformation. Thus had the subject, at this period, taken deep root on two con- tinents ; and the prospect was increasing, that, should Providence continue to smile, and temperate men to do their duty, it would hold on its way, till there should not be-a drunkard on the globe. In the early part of 1830, Rev. Mr. He wit visited the Middle FOURTH REPORT.--1831. 31 and Southern States. He was received with kindness, heard with attention, and was instrumental in awakening new interest in that part of the country. In March, he returned, and continued his labors in New England, till within three months of the close of his engagement. Having been invited to take charge of a church in Bridgeport, Connecticut, and believing it to be his duty to ac- cept the invitation, he resigned his laborious and successful agen- cy, Sept. 30th, 1S30. And while the Committee would grate- fully acknowledge the kindness of the Lord in his preservation and success, they would affectionately sympathize with him in his recent domestic affliction,* and express their earnest hope that both mercies and trials may be overruled for his greater useful- * ness on earth, and his more distinguished glory in heaven. Rev. Edward W. Hooker, associate general agent, and editoT of the Journal of Humanity, after the judicious and able dis- charge of its duties till the paper was established, and had taken strong hold on the interests of the community, resigned his connec- tion with the Society ; and Mr. E. C. Tracy was appointed editcr in his stead. This paper still continues to be a powerful auxil- iary in the great and good cause. It is read with deep interest, by intelligent and philanthropic men, in this and other countries ; and should its circulation be extended so as to render its publication permanent, it would accomplish unspeakable good to our country and to die world. And the Committee would earnestly request the friends of the object, as extensively as practicable, to promote its circulation. Other papers, and periodical publications, have exerted a power- ful influence, and rendered valuable aid to the cause; and it is de- sirable that such publications should be circulated extensively throughout the country. Rev. Wm. Kinner, a Baptist clergyman in Illinois, has been appointed to labor for one year, as agent, in that state; and the American Tract Society has made a donation of temperance tracts, to be distributed by our agents, in that extended and interesting part of our country. The Corresponding Secretary, since his reappointment, August 27th, 1829, has continued uninterruptedly his labors in the service of the Society. He has visited various parts of the British province of Mew Brunswick, and the states of Maine, New Hamp- shire, Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Penn- sylvania, Delaware, Maryland, and the District of Columbia. He has traveled more than 6,400 miles, and preached and addressed public bodies three hundred and eighty-six times. He has assisted in the formation, and attended the anniversaries, of numerous Teitt- • Mrs. Rebetca Hewit, wife of Rev. Nathaniel Hewit, died at Bridgeport, Conn., deeply lamented, Jan. 2d, 1831. 32 AMERICAN TEMPERANCE SOCIETY. perance Societies; written a number of articles for publication; con- ducted the correspondence; and superintended the general concerns of the Society. At the request of a number of gentlemen, he, in January, 1831, visited the District of Columbia, and addressed the citizens of Washington, Georgetown, and Alexandria. Three Temperance Societies had been formed, and ten others were formed, during his visit, embracing more than one thousand members. At the request of individuals of both houses of Congress, he addressed the members of that body, in the capitol, on the subject. The at- tendants were numerous, and the interest manifested was highly auspicious. From all parts of the country, members of Congress testified that a great change had been effected, and one in the highest degree salutary to all the social, civil, and religious inter- ests of the community. A member from one of the Southern States, and from a district in which it had been customary for candidates for office to bribe the electors with spirituous liquors, declared, " that so great had been the change of public sentiment, that, should any man now pur- sue a similar course, that, of itself, would defeat his election."* Another member from one of the Western States, declared, " that the change in his part of the country had been wonderful; and that he considered the object of the Temperance Society as one of the most important, and its operations as among the most useful, of any in the world. The children—the children," said he, " to all future generations, will experience the benefit. Any publi- cations on this subject, which you may wish to send into my dis- trict, I will cheerfully forward.'' Similar was the testimony of others, and their readiness to cir- culate information on the subject. There is no object, said they, of more importance than this, to the welfare of the country. From a number of the principal boarding-houses in the city of Washington, ardent spirit was excluded; and many of the mem- bers of Congress used none during the session. The President of the United States gave it as his opinion, that, through an extensive region of country where he had traveled, the quantity used had been diminished more than half. The Secretary of War stated, that, of more than one thousand desertions from the army, during the last year, nearly all were oc- casioned by drinking. From January 1st, 1823, to December 31st, 1829, die number of desertions was 5,669 ; upon an average, more than eight hun- dred ; nearly one seventh part of the whole army (which consists * Appendix, G. FOURTH REPORT.--1831. 33 of about six thousand) every year. The loss to the country by desertions in these seven years, exclusive of the expenses of con- vening courts-martial, and several odier items, was $471,263; or about $70 to a man; and during six years, ending December 31st, 1828, the number of soldiers tried by courts-martial, was 7,058. In five years, ending December 31st, 1827, there were 5,582; be- ing nearly one to each individual in the army, during one term of enlisnnent. And a great majority of the whole resulted from the use of ardent spirit. And if to this we add the cost of the liquor, the expenses of a great increase of sickness, and numerous premature deaths, the loss, from the use of this poison, in the army, the whole tendency of which is to injure the soldier, and unfit him for the de- fence of his country, must have been very great.* A distinguished officer of the army declared," Nearly all the trouble we have with the men arises from drinking." And in a letter which our Secretary lately received from him, he says, " Since 1 last wrote you, I have visited a military post; and, on looking over the sjck list, with the acting surgeon and hospital steward at my.e)- now, to "tell We Hie caUstfUf eacn m^'s girkne<^t f was assured that, oul ot Ibrtv-six cases, the diseases ,nf morn thnn fiiiij l'llUt "Their origin in lntempP"0""" Prr.hn) 1^ ......_■ iIuj.. fi^ civ^Kc 0f all military offences tried before our courts-martial, result from in- temperance." The same officer gave it as his opinion, that, since his acquaintance with the army, which has been for many years, more thaq three fourths pf tha faith? imonfc the soldiers were oc- casioned by ardent spirits. And he says, " The Secretary of War has, in my opinion, done incalculable good to the army, by with- holding the whiskey part of the rations. We want now a few tem- perance preachers to visit from post to post, and bring the subject of temperance before the troops ; form Societies ; furnish them with addresses, essays, and periodicals ; and I doubt not that a happy reformation would be witnessed in the army." And his anticipations seem to be justified by facts. In a num- ber of cases, Temperance Societies have been formed at various military posts, and with the most cheering results. From one of them, a correspondent writes, " Ardent spirit had been, as was customary, dealt out to the soldiers. The con- sequence was, the majority were in a state of degradation, and were going the broad road to ruin, as fast as the wheels of time, and the ruinous consequences of irregular living, would carry them. About one fourth, nr* ^n v^m^'wii1 niinlirTHfTfln duty on ac- count of drunkenness; which caused sickness, punishments, and desertions, not a few. In consequence of the visits and efforts of individuals, a change has taken place, so great, that the officers * ArrzNDix, H. 34 AMERICAN TEMPERANCE SOCIETY. cheerfully acknowledge, that the Lord hath done it. One hundred and sixty-nine, out of two hundred and ten soldiers, signed a petition to have no ardent spirit brought to the garrison. The petition was granted. With their grog-money, they have purchased a library of more than five hundred volumes; and it is now a shame for any man to drink or be drunken. The Sabbath is spent in reading; and attending public worship. The Sabbath school is taught by the officers and others, and conducted in an orderly and a useful manner." The regulation above referred to, adopted by the war depart- ment, together with the remarks upon it of a gentleman connected with the army, and of distinguished medical gentlemen, will be found in the Appendix ;* and should sutlers and all others be pro- hibited from furnishing ardent spirits, and the troops from pur- chasing them, the result to the army and to the country would be in the highest degree salutary. It wrould prevent a great portion of all the desertions and courts-martial; of sickness and premature deaths; and would save annually more than half a million of dollars. The use of ardent spirit has done more than every thing else to deteriorate the character of the soldier, and unfit him for the de- fence of his country. And so long as the cause is continued, whether it is kept in operation by the government or by individu- als, the effect can never be done away. The Secretary of the Navy also expressed his conviction, that the use which is made of ardent spirit is one of the greatest curses; and declared his intention to recommend a change with regard to the navy. A distinguished officer gave it as his opinion, that nine tenths of all the difficulties which the officers have with the men an'gn frnm ai-dfiVlt fip"''t<; ] ""d PyprPSSpd his Strong COllviction, from what he had witnessed on board bis own ship, and others, which had made the experiment, of the practicability and great utili- ty of entire abstinence throughout the navy. He said, " If Con- gress would pass a law, prohibiting the use of ardent spirit in the navy, and giving to the men the value of it in money, there would be no difficulty; and it would be one of the greatest blessings that could be conferred upon them." There is now a provision that all who will voluntarily relinquish it, shall be allowed six cents per ration, as a substitute. But what is needed is, that the government should cease to furnish it for any. On board the United States sloop of war Falmouth, in her late cruise, seventy of the men abstained entirely from the use of ardent spirit; and between forty and fifty on board the Brandy wine; and they were among the most healthy, cheerful and orderly in the Appendix, I. FOURTH REPORT.--1831. 35 ship. « During the cruise," said the chaplain, " I never knew a complaint against one of them; and the total disuse of spirit is in- creasing in the navy generally. The inquiry,' Can seamen advan- lageously and comfortably dispense with spirituous liquors, while at sea ?' is satisfactorily answered, by a cloud of witnesses. Both in our navy and in our merchant ship, the question is at rest." A later communication, from the Mediterranean squadron, states, " That, out of the whole ship's company of the frigate Brandywine, amounting to four hundred and eighty-six souls, only one hundred and sixty men drew their grog." Since January 1st, 1830, more than one hundred and fifty ves- sels have sailed from the port of Boston, which do not carry ardent spirit; and it is believed, that there are now afloat on the ocean, more than four hundred of this description. The longest and most difficult voyages are made without it; and greatly to the health, comfort and safety of the men. Of seven hundred sailors, who have called for a supply of books, at one office, more than two hundred abstain from the use of spirituous liquors ; and should this course be adopted by all seafaring men, it would prevent, accord- ing to the opinion of experienced navigators, more than half of all the shipwrecks on the ocean. A captain, who had just arrived from Europe, said to our Secre- tary, " I took seven men from a wreck just before my arrival, in a state of almost utter starvation. When wrecked, they took a keg of whiskey, but never thought of victuals; and had it not been for a timely discovery, they must all have perished. And this habit of drinking is the cause of a great portion of all the shipwrecks. The moment sailors become frightened, they begin to drink, soon despair, give up all for lost, and drink till they are lost. Had they held on, and not touched the poison, they had out-rode the storm, and been safe." So say the facts. A vessel, lately coming from Virginia to New York, with a number of passengers on board, was overtaken with a storm, which raged with great violence, and continued a long time. All the sailors on board who drank ardent spirit, from intemperance, fatigue, or despair, gave up, and ceased to labor. But one man on board drank no ardent spirit; and although he, with the rest, had buffeted the storm, he took the helm, and stood for hours after the others had ceased to make exertion ; and the whole crew were saved. Had it not been for him, long before the storm abated, they had all probably been at the bottom of the ocean. Said a distinguished navigator, " The great day of account will bear terrible witness, when the sea shall give up the dead that are in it, of the vast and unsuspected extent of the sacrifice of life among seamen, from shipwrecks, and other catastrophes occasioned by drunkenness. One distressful instance, among the numbers that 36 AMERICAN TEMPERANCE SOCIETY. will hereafter be brought to light, occurred within my own observa- tion. A collier brig was stranded on the York coast; and I had occasion to assist in the interesting, but distressing service of rescu- ing a part of the crew by drawing them up a vertical cliff, two or three hundred feet in altitude, by means of a deep-sea lead-line, the only rope that could be procured. The first two men who caught hold of this slender line, were hauled safely up the frightful cliff; but the next, after being drawn to a considerable height, slipped his hold, and he fell; and with the fourth and last, who ventured upon tins only chance of life, the rope gave way, and he also was plunged into foaming breakers beneath. Immediately afterwards, the vessel broke up, and the remnant of the ill-fated crew, with the except.on of two, who were washed into a cavern in the cliff, perished before our eyes. But what was the cause of this heart-rending event? Was it stress of weather, or bewildering fog, or unavoidable acci- dent ? No;—it arose entirely from the want of sobriety; every sailor, to a man, being in a state of intoxication. The vessel, but a few hours before, had sailed from Sunderland ; the men being drunk, a boy, unacquainted with the coast, was intrusted with the helm. He ran the brig upon Whitby Rock, and one half of the miserable, dissi- pated crew awoke to consciousness in eternity ! To this solitary instance I might add many; but this must suffice, both as to illus- tration and proof of the terrible consequences of intemperance at sea." Numerous other cases, and from all parts of the world, might be mentioned, illustrative of the same truth; and, should the use of spirit- uous liquors be done away, the risk of property on the ocean and the rate of insurance might be lessened probably more than half. And it is hoped that the time is not distant, when no .merchant will suffer this grand cause of immorality, disease, and death, temporal and eternal, to be found on board his vessel; and when it shall not be used, as an article of luxury or diet, or sold by any sober man, especially by any Christian, in our land. Nor will the prevention of the loss of property, in that case, be confined to the ocean. The Hon. William Cranch, chief judge of the District of Columbia, who is extensively known as a candid and accurate reporter of principles and facts, in an Address which he delivered before the Washington and Alexandria Temperance Societies, estimates the loss annually in the United States, from the use of ardent spirits, at not less than $94,425,000.* In this esti- mate, he has taken no account of what is lost by shipwrecks, sick- ness, and in various other ways. But even this sum would, in thirty years, amount to more than the value of all the houses, lands and slaves in the United States. These were estimated, in 1815, at Appendix, J. FOURTH REPORT.--1831. 37 $1,771,312,908. And if the value of them has since increased in proportion to the increase of population, it would now be $2,519,009,222. And the loss to the consumers of ardent spirits, and to the community, in thirty years, would, according to the fore- going estimate, be $2,832,750,000, which is $313,740,778 more than the value of all the houses and land in the United States ; thus exhibiting to the world the awful spectacle of a people losing, by the use of strong drink, in thirty years, $313,740,"? 78 more than the value of their whole country. And all for what ? To gratify an artificial and destructive appetite, which men do not need, and which they had better be without; which God does not give them, but which they, by their own voluntary and wicked conduct, form. And if the crimes, which are prosecuted annually in the United States, are only one fifth as many, in proportion to the population, as in the city of New Yoik, and should they not increase with the increase of population, they would, in thirty years, amount to 1,800,000 ; more than 1,000,000 of which must, according to the testimony of judges and jurists, be attributed to the use of ardent spirits. And of the 7,200 murders which will, should the present number not increase, in that time be committed, more than 5000 of them must be attributed to the same cause. And of all the deaths which will in that time take place, in the United States, more than 900,000 must be con^jdereH, irrnrdinr luiln n ui.......; of the most distinguished physicians, as occasioned by strong drink. Or, if we take the number nhn nr [fill il llj il in I'lnl nli Ipl'ii i, as stated by a comjiuiIIuo of the Culli'ge of Physicians, as the average proportion, being in that city seven hundred in a year, it would make more than 1,500,000. In one place, of only 6000 inhab- itants, the chief magistrate, being himself an eminent physician, in- formed our Secretary, that twenty-eight in that place were killed by strong drink in one year. This would make, in thirty years, eight hundred and forty. And if eight hundred and forty would be killed in a population of 6000, how many would be killed, in that time, among 12,000,000? The proportion would be 1,680,000: while the use of this poison, without affording die least benefit, would greatly increase the diseases, lessen the reason, and diminish the happiness of all who used it; and, upon an average, would shorten their lives probably at least five years. And if drunkards, upon an average, shorten life only ten years, and ^™pQyt" drinkers five, and there" are only four sober drinkers to one drunkard, it would cause a loss in the United States, in thirty years, of 32,400,000 years of human probation and of active usefulness ; in a world, too, in which eveiy noble and benevolent deed might model the charac- ter, and tell on the destinies of men, for eternity. Amazing loss! And when we consider the effect of this poison, in deteriorating the character, blinding the understanding, searing the conscienr 4 38 AMERICAN TEMPERANCE SOCIETY. hardening the heart; when we see it tend to hinder the success of the gospel, and prevent the efficacy of all the means of grace; and to perpetuate and accumulate its deleterious influence over all future generations of men,—the evils become overwhelming. And yet, by abstaining from their cause, these evils may be doue away ; without injury to any, and greatly to the benefit of all. And as more than a^thnnsand ^mon°_the most, intelligent physicians on the globe, have certified, Ihajjaaea-in hoakh do not need ardent spirit, and cannot, vvithouHnjnry; use it; and as the correctness of this opinion is proved abundantly by facts, in the experience of hundreds of thousands of all ages and conditions, and in all kinds of business,—the conviction is extend "uig and deepening, and tend- ing to become universal, that no person can continue to use it, or be accessory to the use of it by others, without, if acquainted with the subject, the accumulation of awful and overwhelming guilt. This conviction is manifested by the increasing numbers who are voluntarily withdrawing from all connection with this abomina- tion, and pledging themselves to use all suitable means to persuade all others to do the same. Fifteen Temperance Societies, on the plan of abstinence, were, the past year, formed in the city of Baltimore, embracing more than 2000 members. A State Society was also formed in Mary- land, in Delaware, and in seven other states. Eleven had been formed before, making, in all, at the present time, eighteen State Societies. There is one in each state, except Maine, Rhode Island,* Alabama, Louisiana, Illinois, and Missouri. And it is hoped, that a State Society will soon be formed in every state in the Union. And should each State Society, as is earnesdy desired by this Society, employ an agent, and take the direction of this cause within their own limits, and temperate men do their duty, a Temperance Society may soon be formed in every county, town and village in the country. On the first of May, 1831, there were reported 140 Societies in Maine, 96 in New Hampshire, 132 in Vermont, 209 in Massa- chusetts, 21 in Rhode Island, 202 in Connecticut, 727 in New- York, 61 in New Jersey, 124 in Pennsylvania, 5 in Delaware, 38 in Maryland, 10 in the District of Columbia, 113 in Virginia, 31 in North Carolina, 16 in South Carolina, 60 in Georgia, 1 in Florida, 10 in Alabama, 19 in Mississippi, 3 in Louisiana, 15 in Tennessee, 23 in Kentucky, 104 m Ohio, 25 in Indiana, 12 in Illinois, 4 in Missouri, and 13 in Michigan Territory ; making, in all, more than 2200, and embracing more than 170,000 members. These members have been constantly increasing, and have, in many cases, been • A State Society has since been formed in Rhode Island, makine at theprei ent time, 19 State Societies. " r TOURTH REPORT.--1831. 39 more than doubled since they were reported. There are also numerous Societies which have been formed, and some of them embracing large districts of country, not contained in the above list, and from which no returns have been received. The number be- longing to Societies which are not reported, in the state of New- York, are supposed, by the Committee of the State Society, to amount to more than 30,000. In other states from which the returns have been less general and complete, the number, in pro- portion, is still greater. In Kentucky, in which but 23 have been reported to us, containing only about 1600 members, a correspond- ent writes, that they have, in his opinion, nearly 100 Societies, and not much short of 15,000 members. So it may be in other states, and from the best information which has been obtained, the Com- mittee conclude that there are now formed, in the United States, on the plan of abstinence from the use of ardent spirit, more tiian 3000 Temperance Societies, containing more than 300,000 mem- bers. From the influence of these Societies, and other causes, 300,000 more may have adopted the plan of not using it, or furnishing it for the use of others. .Connected with these 600,000, of children and persons in their employment, and under their, control, may be as many more. And thus 1,200,000 may already have been brought under the influence, and may now be experiencing the benefit, of the Temperance Reformation. Among these, should they continue to refrain from intoxicating drink, there will never be a drunkard: whereas, had they continued in habits which prevailed five years ago, 50,000 of them might have come to the drunkard's grave. So diat, should this reform now be merely stationary, and make no further progress, it may have saved 50,000 from the drunkard's doom; and how many it would save of their children, and children's children, none but God can determine. In one case, as our Secretary was informed, a father adopted iue plan nfiislijg a lirriV "-'W spirit f.vnr)T Hn.'r Hn JTinr npvpr intoxu2au3cfpand neverthonght f" lift '" thn ]mrt ™*"3afpratp He only'took a iStfl*,a wry little Kq ]~ '' l■ ■ ■ ■■!■ ■ i '■ J.'ri him good. For the same reason, h^ ^j]d,pn tnn1' n ^'"^ daily; and sffrlid their children. Aryl nn^nnnJrF *Hn 40 j\Lhis de- scendants arojrimnlmi'dj, ui in tliu Utunkard's grave. Another man adopted a different plan ; he would not use ardent spirit; he would not purchase it; nor would he suffer it to enter his house. He taught his children to treat it as a. pghrTi Q -WCrtQl poison j and rney, taught their chuaren. jinrlnnw. there is not a drunkard among thein | 1161' lias one of his descendants""ever come to the drunkard's grave. Long, long may it be, before any one ever shall. And when the long lines of descendants of these 40 AMERICAN TEMPERANCE SOCIETY. two men, through all future ages, shall rise up before them, and before the universe, in the blazing light of eternity, who can es- timate the difference of results, of the different courses adopted and pursued by their progenitors ? None but He, who seeth the end from the beginning, and to whom they have both now gone to render their account. If such may be the difference of result from a single individual adopting the plan of abstinence, from what it might have been, had he adopted the plan of moderate drinking, and in two generations, who can estimate the difference, from the plan of abstinence having been adopted by 1,200,000,—50,000 of whom might have been drunkards, and 1,150,000 habitual drinkers,—down through all future generations to the end of the world—and onward to eternity? And here let it not be forgotten, that more than 3000 of those who now abstain, actually were drunkards; who, should they continue their present course, will have been saved with a great salva- tion. And this might have been the case with more than 6000 others, who are drunkards still. They ceased to use strong drink for a time, and were sober men. Such they might have been now; and not only sober men, but respectable men, a comfort and a blessing to ail around them; had not some sober drinker, or some retailer,—whose name, were it to number the evils which he has oc- casioned, would be Legion, for they are many,—enticed them to go back, and perish. To a respectable stranger, in a province of a neighboring kingdom, our Secretary handed a temperance tract, and said, " Sir, the man who wrote that tract was once a drunkard." " And so," said the stranger, with tearful emotion, " was die man who now holds it." But he is not a drunkard now. No; he adopted the plan of absti- nence ; has since, it is believed, chosen that good part which shall not be taken from him; and is shedding on a wide circle of ac- quaintance the lifegiving and purifying influence of a consistent Christian example. He is a warm advocate, and active promoter of the temperance cause; and through his influence, and that of others, there is reason to hope that it will spread dirough the province. A respectable merchant, in one of our principal cities, said, " I shall have.reason to.remember the Temperance Cause as long as I live. Had it not been for that, I, before now, should have been a drunkard." On relating this fact to a merchant, in another city " And so," said he, " should I. I was on the brink of ruin ; but it saved.me." And the grace of God came in, and he, it is believed, was. doubly saved. " Yes," said he, with grateful emphasis, as he looked on his wife and children," and-Hvill give a hundred dollars a year, to spread the Temperance Reformation through the country. ° FOURTH REPORT.—1831. 41 And who, that has a hundred dollars of the Lord's property, and can, consistently with duty, will not give it, to spread the Temper- ance Reform throughout our country, and throughout the world ? In what possible way can diat amount, annually, from one hundred men, to whom the Lord has committed property, with the inscrip- tion " Occupy till I come," do more good to the temporal and eter- nal interests of men ? Suppose the American Temperance Society has, within the last five years, expended $10,000, and other Societies and individuals have expended, in this cause, as much more ; in what way did $20,000 ever do more good ? In what way was $20,000 ever more productive in the accumulation of property ? or, what is bettei, in the saving of property, character, health, reason, lives and souls of men ? In the county of Baltimore, in Maryland, out of 1134 paupers, admitted to the alms-house from May, 1829, to May, 1830, 1059 were brought there by intemperance ; viz. of temperate adults, 24 ; of adults whose habits were not known, 24 ; children of temperate parents, 13 ; children of parents whose habits were not known, 14 ; children of intemperate parents, 115 ; and intemperate adults, 944 : total of temperate adults, and persons whose habits were not known, and their children, 75 ; and of intemperate adults and their children, 1059. In the county of Cumberland, Pennsylvania, of 50 paupers, 48 were made such by intemperance. And in the county of Oneida, New York, out of 253, 246 were made paupers in the same way. " According to a Report of the superintendents of the Wash- ington county (N. Y.) poor-house, out of 322 persons received into that house since its establishment, 290 were sent there in conse- quence of their own intemperance, or that of others. " According to a statement made by Col. Hoffman, nineteen twentieths of the inmates of the Montgomery county (N. Y.) poor- house, owe their situation to intemperance." And the superintendent of the Albany alms-house states, that, were it not for the use of strong drink, that establishment would be tenantless. And substantially so it would be throughout this coun- try ; and in proportion as the Temperance Reform has prevailed, alms-houses have become tenantless, and crimes been done away. The solicitor general, at the sitting of the Supreme Court, in die county of Hampden, Massachusetts, remarked, that he found but one indictment for crime in the county of Worcester ; but one in the countv of Hampshire ; and but three in the county of Hamp- den ; and that, in all parts of the state, die indictments for crimes had surprisingly diminished within two years. And he could ascribe this change in favor of virtue and good order, to no other cause dian the influence of Temperance Societies, and the great 4* 42 AMERICAN TEMPERANCE SOCIETY. change, which they had been the means of effecting with regard to the use of strong drink. "The keeper of the Ogdensburg (N. Y.) jail states, that seven eighths of the criminals, and three fourths of the debtors, imprisoned tiiere, are intemperate persons. . " Of the first 690 children sent to the New York house of refuge after its establishment, 401 were known to be children of intemperate parents. " In two districts in Upper Canada, 38 out of 44 inquests held by the coroners, were, in cases of death, caused by intemperance. " The keeper of the Ohio penitentiary, in his Report to the Leg- islature of that state, Dec. 1829, says, that, of the 134 prisoners under his care, 36 only claimed to be temperate men. " The sheriff of Washington county, Pa., stated, last year, that, out of 24 committals, 21 were caused by intemperance. " In Litchfield county, Ct., the proportion of criminals who are intemperate, is 35 out of 39." " My belief is," says the chairman of the Committee of the New York State Society, " that this state has saved, during the last year, in the lessened use of ardent spirits, $6,250,000. And it is entirely past all calculation to estimate the great increase of wealth to the state in labor, more usefully, and more vigorously applied to every department of industry. And since rum has been dismissed, and the mind has recovered its healthful tone, the Spirit of the Lord has a power, and has been at work, in various parts of this state, in a wonderful manner; and all appear to agree, now, that the too common use of ardent spirits has been one great cause of apathy on religious subjects." The Committee of the New York State Society estimate the saving, in the cost of spirits alone, at $2,000,000 the last year. " But," they say, " our greatest gains from the Temperance Refor- mation are not to be estimated in dollars. They are manifest in our improved morals, and in the fresh vigor which is infused into every branch of industry. They are manifest in die unexampled prosperity which pervades our state, and which all candid observers agree in ascribing so largely to the arrest of the desolating tide of intemperance. They are manifest, the Christian is sure, in the unprecedented attention to religion in all parts of the state ; for our greatest enemy to the work'of the Holy Spirit on the minds of men, is more than half conquered."* Equally conspicuous and salutary is the effect on the health of die community. Said a distinguished physician in Massachusetts, " Since our people have given up the use of ardent spirits, the amount of sickness has been diminished about half. And 1 have APFEKDIX, K. FOURTH REPORT.--1831. 43 no doubt, should the people of the United States renounce the use of spirituous liquors, nearly half the diseases of the country would be prevented." And said another eminent physician, after forty years' extensive practice and observation, " I have nn dmiht^b^dialf the men, every- e? / ar, who die of fevers, might recover^ iTSH^i^mfT^PrHor the use V ^ hut a physician knows how power- ol spirituousTiqiinrs. jVfn, »"« h..f, a ph^irian knows how power fully all inflammatory diseases are increased. eve,p hy what is called temperate drjnking : nr hmv fatajjv the bfrst, rfimpdipq in thp wnrlH are counteracted by the same cause. I have seen men who were never intoxicated, down twenty days with a fever, who, had it not been for die use of ardent spirit, pr'namy would not have been confined to the house a day. And I have often seen men stretched on a bed of fever, who, to all human appearance, might be raised up •|g "Tn1l n" nntj mrrrfi 't nnt far th,at state nf the system, which daily temperate drinking produces ; who now, in spite of all that can be done, sinK aown and die.JJ And the decrease in the bills of mor- tality, among those who have renounced the use of strong drink, exhibits evidence, that, should this course be adopted by all, the number of deaths annually in the country, would be lessened more than 50,000. And facts, so far as they have been developed, as well as the nature of the case, give reason to believe, that die same amount of moral means, employed for human benefit, would more than double their influence and their benefits over the minds and hearts of men. The special attention which is now manifested to the great interests of the soul, and of eternity, under the influence of the Divine Spirit, in fourteen colleges, and more than five hundred towns, in which the effects of the Temperance Reformation have been most con- spicuous, speaks with a voice that will be heard, and heeded by the friends of God throughout the earth. Men who have given up the waters of death, have, in great num- bers, under the means which God has appointed and blessed for that purpose, passed from death unto life.* Many more have been saved from becoming drunkards, and from the drunkard's grave. From a town of about 2000 inhabitants, a correspondent writes, " We have not a drunkard in the place, except those that were such when our Temperance Society was formed, four years ago. Not a new drunkard has since been made." Yet, had the people of that town continued in the habits which prevailed five years ago, and furnished new drunkards, in proportion to their population, they had made, in four years, not less than 24 new drunkards. And if 24 have been saved from becoming drunkards, among 2000 • ArruDix, L. . 44 AMERICAN TEMPERANCE SOCIETY. inhabitants, how many may have been saved among 12,000,000? The proportion would be 144,000. But it may be said, that the Temperance Reformation has not prevailed through the country, as it has through that town. This is true. Let us, therefore, take ^^thetprpportiojji^^i^at-town.arenot over 7^ members of the Temperance-Society; and if 24~haiie^eeH- saved from becojjuag drunkards, by- 700 membere-of the T?rape4-are»-£tteietu, and awh as act with them,- how- manyJiaK&>keaa.-sa«e