One hundred objections to a Maine law : being a sequel to the 'argument' of the United Kingdom Alliance for the Legislative Prohibition of the Liquor Traffic / by Dr Frederic Richard Lees.

  • Lees, Frederic Richard, 1815-1897.
Date:
1857
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: One hundred objections to a Maine law : being a sequel to the 'argument' of the United Kingdom Alliance for the Legislative Prohibition of the Liquor Traffic / by Dr Frederic Richard Lees. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    HOrES OP THE FUTURE. rough work of life itself is ever throwing to the surface new and vigorous minds.” But sometimes even the young have enthusiastic ami prophetic insight prematurely burnt out; sometimes, too, are born without a spark of that Divine fire. A young gentleman said, in some lectures ‘On America,’ whence he had then recently re- turned—lectures, by the way, that had a disgusting ‘ odour •' of the South about them*—that “when listening to the sanguine speeches, and fanciful predictions, of the advocates of the Maine Law, he had often been tempted to reply, in the words of Marcus Andronicus to his kinsman Titus— Oh! brother, speak with possibilities, And do not break into these deep extremes.”* This juvenile statesman—for a golden key has since unlocked to him the doors of Parliament—is unmistakably the mental and moral representative of a certain class—a class that will never be impeached for excess of faith or enthusiasm, either in reference to man or God, earth or heaven. The Parliaments of vested interests—the palpable Parliament of St Stephen’s or Washington— this young gentleman can understand; but as to anything much better in the future than in the past—as to any potency of Truth or Good for eventually realizing The Parliament of Man—the Federation of the World— why, that is a modern myth, or a midsummer madness ! We would not, however, claim too much for Prohibition. It will, of itself, when faithfully enforced, do but a negative work— namely, suppress the evils of the public traffic. The positive work of humanity will remain to be done—the seed to be sown— the harvest to be reaped. The law aims simply at preparing the way, by draining the swamps and destroying the weeds, so that the fertilizing elements of nature, and the agency of light, may effect their Divine mission. That great and glorious possibilities are enclosed within the womb of the Future, is at least our faith—and it has been the faith of prophets since the world began. The greatest of the moral writers of America—Chaining— has well apostrophized these material, mediocre minds. “ When will they learn that the great moral and religious ideas which have now seized on men’s souls are the most efficient, durable forces acting in the world ? When will they learn that the past ancl present are not the future ?—but that the changes already * Th0 Scotch Commonwealth, which itself soverely attacked the Scotch lecturer objects to our English, assault as adobe !—und quotes against us Tennyson's verses anent the falsehood of extremes.' Now, our reply did not concern the word extremes at all, but the italicized word ‘possibilities'—so that the critic is quite at sea m his cock-boat of quotations. t