The Wairarapa Daily. FRIDAY, APRIL 1, 1887. DEATH BY DRINK.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume IX, Issue 2562, 1 April 1887, Page 2

The Wairarapa Daily. FRIDAY, APRIL 1, 1887. DEATH BY DRINK.

To-morrow an inquest is to be held on the body of poor CJrotty,; a hard working man, who was lifted dead' out of a public vehicle' yesterday afternoon.' The result of the inquest will 110 doubt record the degeneration of the particular organ of the body of the, deceased, which was the more inline-' diate cause of his dissolution, but few /will doubt that tho real agency in this terrible instance, as in many others, was a diseased craving % drink.; Another victim to drink has passed away with a suddenness that sends a thrill through the community, and if only those who are following his footsteps will take some warning by his fearful example, his untimely end may serve to arrestt)sjr mad career. Poor Crotty was, as we are i«fasd, a man who worked hard up country, and who, when he drew a cheque for* ten or twenty pounds, came into town ■ and spent ovevy sixpence of it in drink,

His last spree commenced but a few days ago. Twice last week lie was locked up by the police for drunkenness, arid then his money being gone, . and lig shaky and feeble, a good, natured constable sent him back to his comrades in the bush to get round again. Poor Orotty had been, however, to the well once too often, and !■ this time it "wasfound".that he was really ill, and that the change to the country did not restore him. His mates'decided therefore-to send-, him; down to the hospital, and' it was on his journey down to -Masterton that : the fatal end came., In a colony -like this, hundreds of good men, men who really, work,hard to earn'good wages and pay .their debts, are very much in the position of poor Crotty. The story of their lives is much the same, and it is only when some special publicity lifts the curtain that the feelings of the community are harrowed by the contemplation of a death from drink. Our temperance societies, numerous though they be, seem practically helpless to deal with such cases. Any day they could make up a list of a dozen men like poor Crotty. if they had the will or the power to save them, but they appear to draw the line at the very cases which should really be. the test of their courage and conviction a.B Templars or whatever high sounding name they call themselves by. There is an incongruity in' airing temperance beatitudes on a public platform and letting men like Crotty go over the precipice to their death without stretching out their hand to save them, and we cannot help thinking that those who pride themselves , on being temperance missionaries should go after mon like these—they ' are easily to be found any day of the week—and make some direct effort to save them. It is only fair to say that the Salvation Army dees adopt direct methods liko this for saving men from death by drink, and if. some of our ' more wealthy and pretentious temperance organisations wero to follow their lead fewer hard-working industrious , men would remain victims to a diseased craving for drink.