THE CLAIMS OF TEMPERANCE.

Lake County Press, Issue 976, 22 August 1901, Page 7

THE CLAIMS OF TEMPERANCE.

FROM A NEW STANDPOINT. Mr Murphy has opened his mission for New South Wales (says the ‘ Sydney Daily Telegraph’). He’s an American, on the temperance ticket. Not too much temperance—he doesn't believe in that; but just about as much as you can reasonably hope for. He isn't a “ fine ” speaker, but he’s emphatic—says what he wants to say in language that everyone must understand. In appearance he is imposing. A good strong, handsome face, shaggy, overhanging eyebrows, white moustache, cleanshaven chin, and silver hair. He spoke at the Centenary jj.all the other night, and there were hundreds to hear him. Tho hall was crowded. His address wasn’t connected. • It was a series of bright, welltold stories. “ I’m going to talk in a humble way on a subject dear to us all,” he said. “I’m not gifted with language, but I get there somehow. We want to run this Christian temperance crusade on common-sense lines; we want to be civil and kind; we want every man to learn that he can control himself by the grace of God. Yes, I mean it—the grace of God. There’s no cant about it. We’re most of us a bit ashamed of Jesus Christ—that’s the trouble. I can get plenty of men to take the blue ribbon—yes, and wear it; but when I ask them to pray with me they say : ‘ Don’t ask me, Murphy.’ But they must pray, and they learn to by-and-bye. Now, then, you men who are drinking to excess. I don’t come here to make you angry or to insult you. I’m going to talk straight. And the rest of vou—well, don’t make the mistake of taking the other fellow’s medicine. I don’t want to quarrel with you. You can’t tight a woman on the temperance question, let alone a man. It’s no good trying to fight and keep home too. I’ve tried it. I fought with my wife once, and she hit me where it hurt, and hit me hard; but she bad good reason. I knew I was wrong, and when I asked her to forgive me she opened her arms, looked at me with those eyes as blue and beautiful as the heavens —and we were happy as sweethearts. “ Don’t quarrel with liquor. It’s a fact that it’s here, and it was here before we got here. It was here when I arrived, and I’ve been here quite a while, and don’t you forget it. The men in the liquor business are our brothers. They’ve got wives, and sweethearts, and children that they love with all their hearts. Go to them with words of kindness, and you II see how their great china will shake and their faces quiver all over. Why, Jesus Christ went down among publicans and sinners, and dined with them. It s good enough for you. “ We’re all inoculated with the idea that we are a bad lot. The first thing I was ever told was that I was an awful sinner. I don’t know why. God makes human hearts, and He don’t make bad hearts. Think of that. " Be good to your mothers, you young men; yes, and you young girls, too. Be a little better than you have been. You’re apt to be headstrong. Well, a headstrong man is bad, but when you meet a headstrong girl—look out. “‘What kind of a man is Murphy? you say. I’m here to let you know. This is our introduction. Fathers, a word to you. Mackerel go in schools, and the drinking bovs go in schools, too; and it s because you don’t know your boys. There are whole lots of us strangers to our boys, but we’re very well acquainted with our neighbors. Get home right away' and talk to y T our bovs—ves, and talk to them right. When you* give your boy a sharp word, remember that he’s got your own blood, vour own courage, and your own temper, and vou’ve raised his blood. It’s wrong. If you ask him if he’d had a good evening when he came home late, if you gave him money when he was going out, do you think he’d ever forget it —not much ! I wish you could see the Murphy t family —they’re no slouches, and don’t you forget it. For God’s sake be good to your boys. You don’t know which one is going to be the best. There’s one of them always in trouble, always sitting down in the wrong place. He’s a reckless, rowdy, worrying bov, but he’s all right—give him a chance. I’d' a boy of that kind. If there was a circus anywhere within twenty miles he d be there.* Yes, sir, he never missed. But when I wanted him for a job of work he was always tired, and he yawned wearily as he helped himself out of his chair. If I came to help him he was gone. I was going to dust his clothes. I meant business, and he knew it. He ran to bis mother’s arms (be knew his best friend), and I followed him to get through with the dusting, but a little hand was held out, the blue eyes spoke a tender appeal, and he was forgiven. Yes, a good wife saves you sometimes. God bless my dear little woman, she tried hard to save me, and God helped her. I tried the best I could to quit the drink, and she helped me try. She gave me just so much each day—but when she was out I helped myself. I felt I could never quit. Lost. And I always remember this : not one of my drinking pals ever asked me to stop. There was a chum, who could have saved me. I loved him. Yes, I’m a lover of men, and 1 loved him. I’d seen him face danger and light; I'd seen his splendid courage and his strength: he could drink ten men like me under the table, and he could have saved me. " I got dead broke so often that at last 1 got dead broke to stay. I was on my last five dollars, and I bought a half-pint of whisky and drank it. Lord, I thought I’d swallowed the gaslight. No more money — no more drink. Then I heard a preacher telling of Jesus, and of how He saved souls. And 1 wanted Jesus to come along. I’d a big job waiting for Him. No one else was working against Him for it, and He could get it dead easy. I went to hear the preacher again, and I sat with bowed head. Someone was talking of Francis Murphy. I looked up. It was my wife and children. My eldest girl came along. ‘ Pop, it’s lonesome-like without you,’ she whispered, and I heard my little boy kneeling beside me praying, oh, so hard; praying : ‘God. save father! God, save father!’ “ I've nothing to say against the man who sells liquor. He’s there to do it. It’s his business, God bless him; but I’ll Jet uo mau be better to my boys thau I am-

I love my boys and I kiss them whenever I meet them, no matter where it is. When a man sees a performance of that sort going on he says : ‘ For God's sake, what s that?’ and those who know say: ‘lt’s only Murphy and his boys.’ I'm going to run gospel 'meetings with malice for none and charity for all. No scientific discussions or arguments—just love and kindness. And you men—you’re free men, you have free franchise, you are the men who rule the country, and if you don’t rule it well you are the fellows to be blamed. Put that in your pipe and smoke it. “ The drinking man is the most decent sinner in the world. I never met a drunkard who was mean. The drinking man has a heart ; he needs sympathy, and he needs prayer- You can save him here. 1 was at a prayer meeting here yesterday, and there was goodness enough at it to save a whole city. That’s God’s truth. It was the best prayer meeting 1 was ever at, and I want to get into another like it. “Do away with shouting. It’s an awful custom. Do away with it, and many a man who now' goes home filled up to the necktie will be able to walk home straight. There’s no harm in the man who has his drink and croes home ; it’s the cursed shouting, and that’s the God’s truth to you.”