TEMPERANCE COLUMN.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 20770, 16 July 1929, Page 3

TEMPERANCE COLUMN.

Published by arrangement with the united Temperance Reform Council. The world hath no such flower in any land And no such pearl in any. gulf the sea As any babe on any mother's knee." —Swinburne. - GIRTS. By Daisy E. Platts-Mills, M. 8., Ch.B. (New Zealand). Only a tiny cell, so small that a powerful microscope is needed to detect it, yet what a deep mystery lies within its delicate tissue! It is the germ of Life; the precious casket which contains all the gifts that are handed on by fathers and mothers to their children. Nature does not wait until they are needed. She begins collecting them long before. From parents and grandparents and even from remote ancestors they come —health, intellect, character, family likenesses. Nature stores them all in that sacred treasure house, the germ cell, and there they remain until called to the work of creating a new life. The other cell after union with the father cell, beings to grow ami form other cells within itself. These take shape forming bone, blood, muscle, nerve, and brain until the child is complete. Leaving the shelter of its mother’s body it comes into the world, that miracle of miracles, a living breathing creature —a human baby. How close the tie between mother and child! The father helps to create, but the mother gives the life. Her blood bathes it as it lies warm and sheltered beneath her heart. The air she breathes, the food she eats, the exercise she takes, her very thoughts, all these are shared with her child. Even after he is born his food is formed within her body—the precious milk which is to continue the growth-her life’s blood has begun. WOMAN’S GIFT. This is woman’s greatest gift—the power and the spirit of motherhood. Around it centre the richest jewels with which she is. endowed—all the beauties of body, mind, and soul. Because of it comes another great gift, her attraction for man and his for her. It is a natural and right attraction, but carries with it great responsibility. If she appeals to what is best in man, lie will,_ as a rule, try to live up to her estimation of him, he will try to please her. This is - the right use of her power—to develop the best in others m well as in herself. “ Old fashioned ” did you say? Yes, but the real things of life are all oldfashioned. Truth and honour, the love of a man for a woman, marriage, and the birth of babies —all • these are oldfashioned. Civilisations have come and gone. Great empires have arisen afid way; other great empires now stand in their places. - The procession of the world marches on, constantly changing, yet ever changeless in the real things o£ life. They are laws of Nature. NATURE’S LAWS. Another thing that is old fashioned,, yet ever new, is the way Nature demands that if we are to be healthy and happy we must obey her laws. Nature’s ideal for us is health of body and of mind. To help us .she lias given us wonderful powers of resistance. _ By them the body is enabled to resist disease, and the mind is strengthened against temptations to wrong-doing. It is of the utmost importance that these powers should be kept at their , best. Air and sunshine, food and esercise J fun, laughter, and sleep are all necessary to help us to build them up- The resisting powers of the mind uwell in the most delicate nerve cells of the brain, the cells which give selfcontrol and power of judgment. WE FAY. •.. Looking round upon the world we see how far we fall short of the ideal. The beautiful soul inay dwell in a sickly body; the robust body may shelter a feeble mind. Many a mother devotes her life to an ailing baby, not knowing the cause of its weakness. It is as though a wicked spirit had stolen away the treasures or health and happiness and left in their places disease, and weakness—evil gifts that fill our hearts with fear and anguish. Some of these, not content with the harm they do to - individuals, have the power of penetrating to the casket of gifte, and through it passing on to another generation. They may remain there, 1 hidden or “ latent" for a generation, to appear later on. • They are Nature s punishment for disobedience to laws of health. We or our children—even perhaps their children after them—must bear tub consequence of wrongdoing.Nature does not care whether the wrongdoing is due to foolishness or ignorance—we pay just the’ same. THE LIFE STREAM. The blood is the life—upon its puiity depends the welfare and happiness of each one of us, and through us, of the whole human race. How wo must guard that .stream! Enemies are ever working to defiiie it. They work in various wavs, but their one object is to poison the blood, stream. Some of thorn affect the “ racial organs whose function it is to transmit life. By injuring them, or b” implanting their evil gifts in the genu coll, to ho passed'on to future generations, they do their cruel work of destroying the health and happiness of the race. They poison the iite stream at its source. One of the worst of these is alcohol, because it is the most widespread, and associated in our minds with occasions of rejoicing and Hospitality, genial companions, ft iendehips, an end to worries and, for the , a cheerful outlook on life, all these attend the customary use of wine and spirit as a beverage. If that were all! Hut there is another side to the picture. WOMEN KNOW. To throw a glamour over sordid surroundings, even though they appear more sordid when the glamour is gone; to destroy the will power, and deaden the warning voice of .conscience—thesq things alcohol docs, lo bring unhappiness and misery into innocent lives, to cause degradation and poverty and crime—these alcohol does too. Women know—they 'iTlv t 0 P ny T; t,1 7. ‘Wd their cliiklron. They pay tor the drinking habits of men; pay in secret anxieties, in humiliation-.?, in feelings of disgust, pay in loss o. S” 688 ’ 1,1 I>ovcrty ’ sickness and disHnm the price if? heavier still Ulan this. Being more sensitive than men they arc more easily affected; they lose must s ,fffo f r PGet and th ** and SHADOW OR SUBSTANCE. fear . i « lest you mistake the shadow for the substance. In the too-eager pursuit of pleasure the chance of true lianpiness may be thrown away. Nothing will f‘ 01c , Sllre iy 3 cnd to that than indulgence in alcohol No enemy is more cunning. It attacks the resisting power of the mind by paralysing the delicate nerve cells. By creating a liking for itself, it soon establishes itself aa a habit—a drinking habit. Bite is difficult for young people. There a distinct loosening of social restraints, loung men and women enjoy each others’ society in a comradeship that should de- \ elop the best in both. Too often its pleasure is spoilt by the influence of alcohol. The flask and the bottle do their degrading work, and the occasion becomes one of hurtful memories. To a young girl one. glass of wine is enough to cloud the judgment and confuse the ideas of right and wrong; enough to make her tolci'ate behaviour which would otherwise seem embarrassing and objectionable. THE CHOICE. Youth is the time ; for building up character and health in preparation for a busy, successful, and useful life. Choose whether yon will use its opportunities or let them slip away while you seek for pleasure. Once lost they never return. But this you must remember, that as a responsible human being you stand or fall by your own actions; you pay the price of your mistakes. The tissue of the life lo be Wo weave with colours all our own. And in the field of destiny Wo reap as wc have sown.