AT THE CORNER.

Thames Star, Volume XV, Issue 4727, 1 March 1884, Page 2

AT THE CORNER.

[by nemo.]

Somo turn, humani nihil a me alienum puto.

The recent licensing elections cannot be a i source of much selhcongratulation to the Good Templar body, the members of which, I fear, have attempted to travel beyond their domain. Doubtless their ideas, as to the wicdom.of checking the. liquor trade, are right, and I will give them every credit of being earnest and sincere in their desire to lessen the evils of intemperance ; they may even carry on their crusade against intemperance as long as they so list; but they should not attempt to—as a bodyinterfere with the liberty of the subject. If they want to exercise the privileges accorded to the people generally, let them accept those privileges as given to the people, hf them not attempt t.o obtrude their prejudiced views on persons who are quite capable of judging for themselves and attending to their own affairs. What right has any Good Templar or any other body, or even any person resident in South Thames, who has no interest in North Thames, to interfere with the selection of representatives of the latter district in any local elective body ? The attempt by the clerical party to interfere in matters which can have no connection with their office has met a result which requires no comment.

A disagreeable story has obtained circulation anent the sudden disappearance of a member of a warlike body of religionists which has been holding forth at the Thames recently. The story accuses the departed one of an action which should, if true, warrant police interference.

Our Thames marksmen are evidently among a warm crowd at Ellerslie. Up to this time their names are too low down on the score list. Hurry up Weir, Downie, Gill, McLean, and the rest of you ! Gordon, why are you not there ?

No doubt my readers have by this time had pretty well enough of licensing matters, but there is one phase of the recent elections which is worthy of notice, and which I have not seen mentioned in either of the papers. The Thames -has always been noted as a religious community, and during the past few weeks especially, what with the Salvationists and the American Evangelists, the town should be " good." We have also a large number of temperance and total abstinence societies flourishing in our midst, and yet, notwithstanding all this religious fervour, and vaunted zeal for the suppression of" that spirit of woe " —strong drink, —we in the past week hava had three elections for licensing commit* tees in each of which the Good Templar candidates were at the bottom of the list, and in an election yesterday two ministers only received five and four votes respectively, out of a possible 36 polled. "How is this thus? Where have the numerous professed Christians been ? Surely they connot have been awake, civ else they have considered the matter unworthy of. consideration. Without going into the question of whether it is equitable or not, I consider the Christians of the Thames should be thoroughly ashamed of themselves for their laxity in not attempt ing to carry out what they professed to do, viz.: doing their best to stamp out a trade which they constantly denounce as the curse of the earth.

What a pity it it is that the work of spiritual healers is not so rapidly made evident as is that of the body healers. When the bodily quack enters a district, face-aches, tooth-aches, neuralgia, and paralysis proclaim the result of his work, but the spiritual quack pursues his questionable* profession, and nothing but the outbreak of violent insanity announces the evil he is working. Every degree of mischief below this passes unobserved.

The Key. gentleman in temporary charge of St. George's Church has be come very popular amongst the members of his congregation, and deservedly so, for his genial manners as well as his ability as a preacher; his departure will be very much regretted.

The benediction invoked upon the heads of the local pressmen the other evening by a peripatetic preacher has had its due effect in the angelic expression since apparent on the countenances of the recipients. To be thus prayed for must be the height of a reporter's ambition, but the manner in which it was done on this occasion was remarkably like a bait to catch the paragraphic advertisements which were not previously forthcoming. Apropos of this subject, a brother scribe suggests that a similar consideration for the press on the part of the debaters in public bodies, who so frequently make interminable orations for the* benefit of their recipients, would be appreciated.

In strolling through a local cemetery the other day, my attention was directed to the epitaph upon one of the head-stones erected'over the tomb of the deceased spouse of a former estimable citizen. It consisted of the well-known quotation, " The Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away, blessed be the name of the Lord." The point of the story lies in the fact that the c.c. received substantial monetary benefit from his lady's death, from which it may be assumed that he would repeat the words of the epitaph with due sincerity.

The question is at last settled as to a successor of Mr Calder at St. George's, and Mr Evans of Northeote will take charge of the incumbency next month. It is to be hoped that all the church mem> bers high, broad, and low, will unite in giving the Bey. gentleman a cordial N)«

ception In such a liberal communion as the Church of England, there is no excuse for dogmatic opposition on the part of any member.