PALMERSTON NORTH SCIENTIFIC TEMPERANCE COMPETITIONS, 1916.

White Ribbon, Volume 22, Issue 261, 19 March 1917, Page 4

PALMERSTON NORTH SCIENTIFIC TEMPERANCE COMPETITIONS, 1916.

PRIZE ESSAY. HIGH SCHOOL.—FORM VI. (Written by Miss Elsie Gawith.) There should be temperance in all things, in our amusements and athletic games, in eating and drinking, and in every species of tile work we do in our daily l.fe. Hut the prevailing habit of intemperance is that of drinking, and thi> habit is made worse by the fact that a dangerous substance, known as alcohol, is present in that drink. Drinks such as wine, b er, and spirits are not nour.shing foods such as milk is. Instead of building up the tissues of the body, they wear thv m away; instead of giving bodily strength, they weaken u\ and deprive us of great bodily warmth. This is due to the presence of alcohol, and this dangerous substance is more harmful than any other subsume in the world. Alcohol hinders every organ of digestion. It causes an excess vc flow of gastric juice 1 1 the tomach, and in the absence of food this i> wasted. The liver do ( s its work badly too, for alcohol will at first cause it to swell, then it w 11 shrivel up and become hard. The kidneys allow valuable produc ts to escape, and retain the worth! ss ones. Th s waste matter bet times imuiious; it sets up sickness and rlieun a. ism, and finally may cause incur.tb'e Hright’s disease. The lungs, oig ms which should be carefully looked Her. b ■- come weakened, and are h ss ible to resist disease. Alcohol also wr tkt ns the pumping power of th • hea .. It becomes swollen with fat, and flabby. Is it any wonder that so many drunkards die of heart failure? The brain will not receive its messages or control bodily movements so quickly, so gradually insanity and paralysis set in. We wonder why people still persist in taking alcohol when they become such physical wrecks. If we were to ask a drutikard why lie took his first drink of alcohol, he would probably say that he was thirsty, and had seen others drinking. The first step taken, there is always the danger for the desire for drink, and thus the (raving

which (a use’s so much pain and misery is set up. Every ariest for drunkenness and the crimes committed under its baneful influence is the cause of unhappiness. Prisons, workhouses, and asylums are set up. This is only what we see. What is not seen is far more terrible. Each of these arrests is the cause of misery and shame for innocent people. If the father of a family is the drunkard, what becomes of his wife and little children? Their life is misery to them, and at last, to keep them from utter starvation, they find their way to the workhouse. This is a burden to the nation. If it were not for alcohol, there would be not nearly so many prisons, workhouses, and asylums. The State must pay for these, and for the policemen and warders who look after them. Not one-tenth of the misery, shame, and unhappiness caused by alcoholic drink is presented to the public eye. We know that alcohol is dangerous in every way, and we see that we keep upright ourselves. Hut that is not enough. We are indeed “our “brother’s keepers,” and we should try to help others who are not so strong to resist temptation as we are. If each helped the other, and made it his duty to see that his friend was Influenced against alcohol, would not the world he a pleasanter place to live in ? Alcohol is the cause of much unnecessary suffering. Loss of position, loss of happiness, loss of friends, even loss of life itself, are due to this dreadful poison. Why do 1 say loss of life? Many insurance compart es are known to offer more to a p. rson whom they kno.v has “signed the pledge” than to another who is known as a habitual drinker. Those who take alcohol live much shorter lives than those who abstain front it. Why does Lord Brougham say “Drink is the mother of want and the nurse of crime”? The money spent on alcoholic drinks is the cause of much distress in the home 1 fe. Every penny spent on them would buy some necessary article. It also means misery inflicted on the family. If one member of the family is a drunkard, can the others feel proud of their name and family? Each night, a tired, harassed wife will stay up until very late at night, waiting for, yet dreading the return of her husband. At last she hears his tottering step.

and waits to see if he is worse than on the previous night. She ministers to his wants with gentle hands, and for her kind actions will perhaps receive scornful words, and even blows. No man in his proper senses would strike a helpless woman, so well may we say that drink causes madness. The little childreu cannot learn to look up to and to respect their father; instead of that, they learn to dread and fear him. They, like their mother, dread his homecoming. Drink causes crime. When under baneful influence of alcohol, men, ana even women, will commit crimes, never done when in possession of their right senses. Not only are crimes done, hut accidents will often happen. A drunkard will stagger across the street, never thinking to look out for traffic. Within a few minutes he may be knocked down, and perhaps killed. This will mean more suffering for those depending upon that man for their daily bread. In his crav.ng for alcohol, no man realises the extent of the misery ana shame he brings upon his relations. People who abstain from liquor are much more able to stand hardship than others. They are stronger in body, clearer in mind, happier in soul. W hen the State wants some great work done, a man who has taken alcohol would never be chosen. Captain VYt bb, who swam across the English Channel, had never touched it; nor had any other person who has performed such feats of strength. Why do explorers to the Pole forbid their men to take alcohol? Simply because they could never endure the cold if they once took it. If then we arc aware that alcohol causes so much suffering, and that two-thirds of the prisons and asylums would be closed if alcohol were abolished, why do we not look after those who are nearest and dearest to us? Let us be “our b’oth r*« keepers”; let us look after our iclatvns; let us give friendly advice, ami then we’ll know that: » “Happy is the State whose people learn in youth, To conquer evil with the Sword of Truth.”