PAUPERISM AND STRONG thropist and reflect upon the shattered minds and humiliated feelings of The Philan- these pauperized millions, as they have given one longdespairing look upon the society of the free and the independent, and cast their first furtive glance at that of their future companions-the children of poverty-the inmates of The Patriot. the bastile! Let the Patriot reflect upon the fact, that no other country upon earth is chargeable with anything like the stigma, that for every nine free men there is one pauper -a being fed, clothed, and lodged by legal charity—a being who has not one farthing's worth of property in the world, and whose condition as a pauper excludes him by law from the possibility of acquiring the least amount of property-a being, indeed, whose freedom, whose very person, is sold to the State in exchange for its cold charity—a being who cannot move at his will beyond prescribed limits—who, at work or in leisure, is surrounded by walls, bolts, and bars The Englisha being who, though English-born, and in the nineteenth century living upon "English soil," is in very deed—a slave! Let the Christian, then, reflect upon this, consult his Christian, gospel, and act from its dictates. Let the Philanthropist The Philan- think upon this, and give full play to his purest sympathies. Let the Patriot think upon this, until his regard for his countrymen and the reputation of his country, prompts him to abandon his share in upholding these pauperising habits. Surely reform must be desirable; to obtain it is obviously practicable; and certainly the change would fully compensate for its cost. Its cost, did we say? Did we say its cost? Cost of Social Why reader, consider.-It would just require you to give up your one glass occasionally filled; and each one else just to do likewise; and this happy change-this elevation of our social condition-comes as certainly as the morrow. What think you now of the cost? Slave. Duties of the thropist and Patriot. Reform. LIFE AND SAFETY v. DRINKING CUSTOMS. SECTION IV. LIFE AND PERSONAL SAFETY versus THE DRINKING CUSTOMS. The loss of life, as well as property, by accidents resulting from intemperance, both on sea and land, is immense, and affords a sad subject for contemplation. We all remember how Accidents on accidents were constantly occurring on the turnpike roads, by the upsetting of stage coaches, and collisions between Stage Coaches. LIFE AND CUSTOMS. roads. them and other vehicles. So numerous indeed were these cases, that, notwithstanding the more formidable character of the steam engine, far less accidents happen by railway Less on Railtravelling than from the old-fashioned mode of conveyance. This may be accounted for, chiefly, from the fact, that while coachmen were proverbially "given to liquor," strict sobriety is one of the most important qualifications for an engineer. So much is this qualification desiderated, that on several lines intoxicating liquors are prohibited to be used at all by The reason. the engineer, when going upon duty; and upon one in Ireland, none but a teetotaler can be engaged. Of the accidents which do occur on railways, the greatest portion are the result of carelessness on the part of the persons themselves who are injured; while of the few that result from the conduct of the companies' servants, some of them are the effects of intemperance. We recollect an engineer being some time ago brought before the magistrates of Manchester, charged with being drunk on duty, and so endangering the lives of the passengers. He had been, only a short time before, the occasion of an accident, which was ascribed to his drunkenness. Very recently an engineer was reported to have boasted over his cups, how he would make his engine bounce along the line to London! Not long ago, a policeman on the North Midland line had been drinking at a beer-shop, and being excited, rashly crossed the line as the engine was advancing, and was killed. Drunken Engineers. Drunken people killed It often happens that a drunken individual is found cut in pieces by the wheels of the locomotive. Such a case happened not long since on the Croyden atmospheric line. A on the line. drunken man having left the public-house, strayed on to the railway, where he was knocked down and killed by a train. He had been paid thirty shillings the previous night (Saturday), and when the accident occurred (one o'clock on Sunday morning) all was gone, save seven shillings and twopence. Other individuals have been found, in a state of intoxication, lying right across the line.* * The following extract from an American paper, for July, 1846, will show that the same consequences occur everywhere :— "DEATH ON THE TRACK! In Worcester, a few days ago, a man, by name R. Flagg, was upon the railroad track, intoxicated, when the cars were passing. The whole train passed over him! He left a wife and four children. The bottle was found in his pocket. What a multitude of these NOTE. Railway accident. Objects for charity. The cause. LIFE AND SAFETY V. DRINKING CUSTOMS. London Cabmen. Wanted-a law. Declaration of a Cab Owner. Confidence in Teetotal drivers. Declaration of a Mail Contractor. Treating the The cabmen of London are notorious for habits of intemperance, although the lives of so many thousands are daily entrusted to them; and it is a matter of astonishment, that of the innumerable provisions of the law, some stringent measure is not in force, calculated to keep omnibus driving in the hands of sober men, and thus give to the passengers some guarantee that their lives should not be wantonly sacrificed. In the conversations which the temperance missionaries have had with these men, it has been freely admitted, that nearly all the accidents which occur, and the fines that are imposed for furious driving, have their origin in strong drink. A cab proprietor very recently made the following declaration :-" Drink has been a source of great uneasiness to me, for my man has frequently got into trouble; and as far as I can recollect, all the accidents which have happened, have occurred through drink, and I have had to pay the fines which have been imposed, in order that I might redeem my property; but now he is a teetotaler, I can let my cabs go out, and have no fear but they will return safe.' One of the most extensive mail contractors in the United States has made a similar statement. He says: "We seldom have an accident worthy of notice that we cannot trace to a glass of spirits, taken perhaps to oblige a friend, or a passenger, who has urged the driver to take a little; thus putting his own life and the lives of his companions in danger, to say nothing of the loss of character and property to us."t The practice of passengers "treating" coachmen must have been observed by all who have travelled by the stage, as well as of the coachman's "standing treat" for some passenger, whose custom he desires to secure, on which occasions Jarvey never forgets to treat himself. When it is considered Its frequency. how short are the stages, and how frequent the treats, and Steadiness of the great steadiness required in holding the reins, it is frightful to think of the possible consequences of this dram hand required in driving. cases are occurring every day? Every paper which comes to us, brings an account of some horrible accident or death, occasioned by intemperance. In heaven's name, why is it that these facts do not arouse the community?"-Taunton Dew Drop. * National Temperance Chronicle and Recorder, No. 2, p. 41. ↑ Sixth Report of the American Temperance Society. LIFE AND CUSTOMS. Coach Accident. The cause of it. drinking on the part of the driver. "We were going," once said a gentleman, "from Baltimore to Philadelphia in the stage. The day was cold, and the travelling exceedingly History of a rough, but we had a careful driver, and fine horses, and we got on very well, till the driver stopped at a tavern and took something to drink. Almost immediately after we had started, the horses became fractious-what was the matter? The driver did not now hold the reins as he held them before. The liquor, which for a pittance the tavern-keeper gave him, and he drank, began to affect his brain, his arms, and his hands; its influence ran along the reins to the horses, and the generous animals, which had labored so hard and so well for the public good, reined and goaded by a halfdrunken driver, became vexed even to madness. In descending a hill, the stage was overturned, and the passengers, with broken bones, and in imminent danger of death, experi- Broken bones, enced what hundreds of others have, namely, that the necks, &c. vexation and mischief of having drinking drivers, and poisonselling innkeepers, are not confined to the horses. Hundreds of lives are sacrificed to these abominable practices."* cause of many Of the multitude of human bones which strew the bottom Shipwrecks. of the ocean, and the incalculable riches which there lay buried beneath a waste of waters, and for ever lost to man— what portion may be placed to the account of strong drink? That day, when the sea shall give up its dead, can alone fully declare! We know, however, that many, very many of the accidents and wrecks at sea are brought about directly by the drunkenness of the sailors or officers of the ship; and Drinking the that many others might be averted by the exertions that would be made, were not their physical powers deadened, and their perceptions blunted, by alcoholic stimulation. Commanders, generally, if they observe a storm coming on, will whet their courage, and, as they think, render themselves more water-proof, by a draught of grog, the real effect of Preparing to which is to deprive them of the most essential requisites in peril—calmness of mind and prudence. Instead of being cool and collected, they are excited and rash; and at some critical moment, when an opportunity of escape, or an occasion of increased danger presents itself, their perverted per- The judgment ceptions or disturbed judgment prevent them from embracing the one or avoiding the other. M Sixth Report of the American Temperance Society. meet the storm. blunted in peril. LIFE AND SAFETY V. DRINKING CUSTOMS. Every one drunk in a lost ship. A drunken Commander. His end. Maloes. An old marine, who served during the late war in the Indian Ocean, informs us that almost every individual was drunk on board a vessel which went down, and on which he himself served, and escaped by throwing himself into the boat. Captain Brenton, of the royal navy, mentions a number of cases which had came under his own knowledge. One is that of a lieutenant, commanding a schooner on the American coast during the late war, who was a drunkard. The admiral, when speaking of his habit to the captain, asked the question: "What shall I do with him?" To which Captain Brenton made answer: 66 'Sir, send him home; make an invalid of him, and send him home." "Then he will lose his bread," said the admiral. "Sir," rejoined the captain, "he had better lose his bread than lose his ship, and the lives of all his people." The admiral, however, did not send him home, nor deprive him of his command; but he was allowed to sail from Halifax harbor, in Nova Scotia, with forty men on board. "It was known that himself and crew were drunk when they sailed, and that is the last they knew of them. They ran on shore on the Sister Rocks, and every soul perished. The mast head of the vessel was seen above water the next morning."* A mer A similar instance is given by the same witness. Wreck off St. chant ship was driven on shore off St. Maloes, which, when boarded, was found to have all her sails set, even top-gallant Crew drunk. sails at the mast head; and all the men drunk. The only sober person on board was a little boy, whom they had placed at the helm, though he was quite incapable of taking charge of it; and hence the accident. The captain had died at sea, which was no sooner known by the crew, than a cask of wine, or spirits, was hoisted up from the hold, from which they drank till they were drunk. The Rev. W. Scoresby, Vicar of Bradford, narrates a melancholy catastrophe that he witnessed on the Yorkshire coast, in which four out of eight of the crew were drowned. Another crew All the men on board had got drunk, and left the helm in Shipwrecked. charge of a boy, who ran the vessel upon Whitby Rock. all drunk The case of a packet-ship is on record, which having been overtaken by stormy weather, and its destruction deemed inevitable by the crew, they left off working at the pumps, * Parliamentary Report, p. 330. |