THE LIQUOR TRAFFIC QUESTION.

Tuapeka Times, Volume I, Issue 22, 11 July 1868, Page 5

THE LIQUOR TRAFFIC QUESTION.

A home paper in anwser to a correspondent has the following: — " A Son. of E.bor comes to. us with a case of conscie»r4e,and begs us- to de^ termine for him ht&Vhire career in, life. Here it isi " The Son ofO. J E." has been, unsuccessful in a reputable trade, and. he be*, lieves he might now succeed as a tavern keeper* having good address, cheerfulness' &c., &c. < But his conscience is against this. He has ofiea brought up at a sober fireside, and still small voice whispers, "The liquor traffic is bad, and you know itj, he has therefore a religious an* tagonism, to the calling Then, by all means,, let him ease his conscience, and throw back what he feels to be a temptation. For us* what he says is mere nonsense. The liquortraffic is not bad> never was bad, and never will be bad; and it has taken nineteen years o£ silly fanaticism to- develop thia kind of un*^ Christian folly. If it be bad* then all winft merchants, hm-ieepers, sellers o£ bottles, ccffkv malt, tub 3, growers, f barley,, vineß* and grapes, extractors of spisit and yeast* most be bad;, then God's own simile- of his vinqyard* and Christ the vine, must be- weak and bacL "Clear your mind ," as Fox said to Napoleon* "of that nonsense." If conscience reaUy says,, so to you ; but if you thin Et hut stumbling block ism our way, you are mistaken; and yet we are working fou the Permissive Bill, because, work* ing nien, will spend their money in publichouses, and they are source of misery;, bat th©« miserable homes, bad wiyes, dirty, children,, aud fever-stricken courts, are at the bottom of the public house ; nay, the cleanliness, cheer,, li^ht, and merriment of the public-house often, save miserable creatures from, madness ; and. the religious injunctions, " Be ye temperateand sober," "Be ye not drunken with wine,, wherein is excess," absolutely infer and command the right use of. wine; therefore a. Ctiristian man may couscienciouly. be a tavern, keeper. Did not the symbolical Good Samaritan lodge the wounded man at an inn?.Was he not the Lord ?> Did not St. Paul lodge at inns ?/ Did he not recommend wine ?- All that you. have to do — and. we have to do ife as well — is to-do y.our duty, and to rememberthat you areev,er in your Great Taskmaster's. eve. In fact the importation of some thousands of religious men, into the public-house trade would.be rare blessing toallof us (2.)^ Dpn't. let trouble or anxiety loosen your religious convictions. Join a Church, and make youiself known to your brother members.. Your isolation has probably baen the cause of failure. Open adherence to any sect is not hypocrisy.. "Forsake not the assembling of yourselves together, as the manner of some is"' Uead.over the Epistles, and markhow the dear,, good, perturbed Apostles,, presbyters, and bishops of the early Chrch had to expostulate

with, their flocks. Well, many bishops like^

themselves to shepherds, and have a crook to, c-xtch their skipping sheep by the leg.. "He

who desires to be a bishop," says Paul, "de--sires a good thiug." ICes, for bis flojjji ;,but. if he be a good man, a very hard one for himrself.