Newspaper Page Text
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thaT WASHINGTON! a k.
AUGUSTA, DECEMBER as, 1814. j
editorial committee.
Rev. W. T. Brastcy, Dr. D. Hook,
“ W. J.Hard, Jambs Harper, Esq,
'• C. S, Don, A. W. Noel, Esq.
“ Geo. F. Pierce,
(gy- To Dimart Subscriber*. —Post Masters an; au.
thurized by law to remit money to the publishers of
newspapers and periodicals, in payment of suhscrip.
tions. Subscribers to the H'aihinglunian can therefore
pay for their papers without subjecting themselves or
the publisher to the expense of postage, by handing the
amount to the Post Master, with a request to remit it.
According to announcement, we pro
ceeded to the Hampton Course on Christ
mas day, to witness the Balloon Ascen
sion of Mr. Russell. Wo arrived there
before the process ofinflntion commenced,
and remained very patiently until after
sundown. During the whole time, the
process of inflation, we observed, was
very tardy; and it was not until nearly
sun down when the attempt of Mr. Rus
sell to ascend was made, and failed for
want, we believe, of a sufficient quantity
of gass, such as was made. The Bal
loon was again attached to the gasome
ter and an additional amount of gass
added, when Mr. Murry, who had never
made an ascension, and though night was
coming on, made every preparation for
an serial trip in the upper regions. But
again it was found that there was a small
deficiency of gass, for after the Balloon
had ascended about a hundred yards, it
momentarily poised itself, and slowly des
cended. Thus were the people disap.
pointed, and we believe, Mr. Russell was
no less so. Had the inflation continued
for twenty minutes longer, there could
not have been a failure; but the dark
ness of night ended all further attempts
for that day. We understand that Mr.
JRussell is determined to make an ascen
appointments which are unnecessary to
be mentioned, is chiefly to be attributed
the failure of the attempt. He is not
the first, by far, even with greater expe
rience, who has failed in a similar way.
03“ Wo beg leave to correct a mis
take of the Hamburg Journal, in attribu.
ting the donation of beef as a Christmas
preseat to every widow in the city (family
or no family) to Mr. J. A. Christian of
this city. The “ present” was made by
another gentleman of our city, a bachel
or, whose name we do not feel ourselves
authorised to publish. Mr. C. however,
kindly interested himself in seeing the
tickets distributed, by seeking out those
who were willing to receive them. Oth
ers, to some extent, did the same.
fPljj -S ■ L.- , - *
The New York Morning Express of
Dec 21, received a slip from the office of
the Salem Register which state that a
destructive fire had occurred in that place,
though greatly subdued when the slip
was despatched ; and in which the loss is
estimated as not falling short of 100,-
000 dollars.
=-■ 1 • *
03” The New York papers say that
the trial of Bishop Onderdonk is now go
ing on before an Ecclesiastical Court
held in that city. The examinations of
the witnesses are said to bo iong, curious,
tedious and minute. Some of the wit
nesses are said to be very beautiful and
fascinating women. Some of both sex
havo undergone a searching examina
tion. Wo beliefe that any man who can
pass through such examination into his
life, for years past, and come out justly
acquitted of any spot or blemish, ought,
if any could deserve such honor, to be can
onized.
~ y
Caught at Last. —The notorious John
Smith, we see by a New Orleans paper,
has been found guilty lately of stealing a
chronometer and a trunk of clothes, from
a barque lying at that city. John, losing
all confidence in the quibbles of the law,
confessed his guilt in open court, and
will for at least a season, live in retire-,
ment in the Penitentiary.
We are, as all must l>c who are inter
ested in the Temperance Reform, pain
ed to see any serinusdivisions in the ranks
of its friends. True, all do not see that
the object to be attained can only be pro
duccd by one and the same course of
conduct, nor do all concur in Ihe opinion j
that only one of many means, is the j
only one by which such good can be es- j
fected. There are those who eschew
every other means to aid, or carry out j
the reform, but moral suasion; and if
they cannot slowly but surely effect the
object sought, then is man to be delivered
over to his worst enemy in despair.—
Again ; There are those who believe that
Legislative aid should keep pace with the
public mind upon this subject, and should
be timely invoked, but in no case too far,
if at all, in advance of the public mind.
Oar reflections upon this subject, but
mostly our daily observations have gone
very far of late, to force us to abandon
the moral suasion course alone, as being
the best and the only one to advance
with safety, if not actually to carry out.
the reform. We have thus been con
vinced that it is our duty, as for as our
influence can effect it, to unit# our efforts
to those of tho friends of the cause, who
are for carefully and safely legislating up
to public opinion, but not in advance of
it; and this we believe will alone save
the country from ruin, and ourselves from
the National stigma of being called, as
we have been, a nation of drunkards.—
We cannot, perhaps, persuade men to be
lieve that if there were no grog-shops,
that there would be no drunkards; but
the most inveterate drunkard will readily
admit that these places are fruitful sour
ces from whence spring nearly all the
drunkenness that is daily seen. And
likely enough, too, tvvo-thirds of all the
drunkards in the land will as readily ad
mit that such places alone made them
what they are.
If this be so, and we see no cause to
doubt it, has not the time arrived in ma
tny places, in which the skillful physician
should supercede the empiric and treat the
disease itself instead of the symptoms?
Convince the patient of the dangerous
tvpe of his maladv, and then strike at
> ”•»» »i «r- ito ttyTiu. uv iii^aimcf*'
stood in our remarks. We mean only
that tho decision of the license system
should bo thrown upon the responsibility
of the people themselves, in their prima
ry capacity. Let those communities
who do not want grog-shops among
them, have the privilege of deciding the
question for themselves. As it is, a
grog-shop may bo forced upon a well or
dered community, and being sanctioned
by law, the retailer bids defiance to all
and proceeds to deal out death and de
struction to a hitherto peaceful neighbor
hood. This is not, we assert, that kind
of protection which it should be the ob
ject of every good government to pro
vide for its citizens. This is not the
kind of protection that virtue should
have against the vicious and corrupt. It
is, in fine, no protection *t all.
These remarks have been made in
consequence of reading a Vtter of Judge
O Neall’s, of S. C., to the editor of the
S. C. Temperance Advocate, and to
which a long reply is made in the same
paper, by the editor. With the differ
ences of opinion between these gentle
men wc have nothing no do, our only ob
ject being to give briefly our views upon
the best means of carrying on the
perance Reform. We are against force,
as such. We believe that morgJ suasion
is only one of the many mcars, and not
the only one to be depended on, to
accomplish the great temperance refor
mation. We therefore do not exactly
coincide with the view/of either Judge
O’Ncall or Mr Arthurs to the best means
to be used to effect, the object they, with
ourselves and others, so much desire to
bring about.
We extract for the information of our
readers, a part of Judge O’Neall’s letter
to tho editor, embracing his views upon
the course he thinks ought now to be
adopted in South Carolina; and should
be glad to present those of the editor, if
presented in a form to admit of it.
The only legal action, which I now,
or ever have desired, is that which may,
ih the end, shut up the Grog-shops of the
State. Such a thing, as a law to make
people give up intoxicatmg drinks; or)
■ -J!—lU——!—L UB
drink cold water alone, never entered into
my head. I desire that the sale of in
toxicating drinks, in any quantities, wlren
it is drank at *the place t where sold,
should he prohibited. When it is to be
carried away, I desire that the law should
he so amended, as to allow it to he sold
;in quantities, as low as a quart, hut in
no smaller quantities. These are my
wishes, based upon forty year’s exped
ience. Is there any thing mischevious
in them ? Do you desire the Grog-shops
of your own town, to Continue, and in
j crease in powtr and patronage ? I can
not think you do!
But it is perhaps necessary, that I
should state in a very brief and imper
‘ feet way, one or two reasons, why I wish
i such legislation, as I have indicated.—
1 liefer to the state of things in South
Carolina, with which I presume you are
! familiar, and the reason will be appa-
I rent. At this lime no one save a tavern
! keeper can sell intoxicating drinks, in
j quantities less than a quart. The Com
j missioners of the Roads upon the plain
I words of the law have the power to “ re
fuse or grant licenses to keep a tavern,
or retail.” Yet at least one of the
Judges and many of the people think
that the Commissioners can only fairly
discharge their duty by granting licenses
Ito suitable persons. The Commission
ers in mady Districts have refused to
grant licenses; and the people have
partly sustained them. There , sobriety
and every thing good abound. In other
: districts, the Commissioners have done
the same, and the people {or rather a few
interested persons,) have denied their
powers, and thus excited, have oves
whelmed the Commissioners, and are
now about expelling them through the
Legislature from their positions. In
such districts, llrunkenness has reigned
with paramount influence. If there
were clear, reasonable enactments made,
even to the actual suppression of Grog
shops, and yet permitting the sale of wine
and strong drink, for domestic use, or as
medicine, or oven to be drank at home,
by those who will drink, I have no doubt
the people would sustain them, and good
and virtuous men would not be pursued
like they were murderers, because they
are striving to put down Grog-shops.—
The people love sobriety too well to pur
sue intoxication a moment after excite
ment is removed.
* * * * * * *
To make awple every where sober, is
one great of-Met of the Temperance
movement, vj'hose, who have never
, boon drur ki Jm tnav possibly keep so
oerrTrrrnTT tv .'lt « Txmg-Trtro.joj- t/ut ttr
hold a reformed man in his place, nine
times out of teii it is necessary to keep
him out of the way of temptation.—
Leave the Grog-shops open ail around
him, and he is I’kea poor Washingtonian
who this year (sank into a drunkard’s
grave, ho will sly, as he said, pointing to
a Grog-shop o i the left, “if / escape
that hell, this Jell, (pointing to another
on his right,) yrwns to receive me.”
I deny that t4erc is any thing, in the
Washingtonian principles, which ex
cludes legislation against Grog-shops.—
Go to Massachusetts and ask her YVash
ingtonians, if Hhay have not concurred,
in shutting upjthe Grog-shops through
out that anchnf, liberty-loving State ?
I know tlbt I all our splendid triumphs
have been •pcf angered by the existence
ot our Rotim system. I know they
have not onil' jieen endangered, but that
we have lost thousands, who once were
reformed, and might so remained,
but for the opportunity tfrdrink, which
your town, and many villages in the
State furnish. But it is not only \p this
way, we ha'e sustained injury. The
continual cb r of “wolf,” “wolf,” by
friends,of temperance, against every
man of their own party, who dares to
speak against the Grog-shop system, has
given our enemies strength. They think,
pnd think truly, that we are afraid of
uhem; and hence they say, “down with
every man, who is not in favor of Retail
ing.” And down, by the assistance of
the followers of temperance, have they
borne every man, who has dared honestly
and firmly to assert his opposition to the
baneful badness of keesping a manu
factory of drunkards, a Grog-shop. —
Thiat probably is to be my fate : but if I
fall, it shall be with my flag flying, and
wijh the cheering cry of the gallant, dy
ing Lawrence, “don't give up the ship.”
John Belton O’Neall.
Columbia, De<?. 14, 1844.
- ' t 4 t
We would in\4te the attention of our
readers to the so lowing extract, from a
periodical called The Weekly Volume
which gives an in eresting account of that
great Apostle of ’emperance, in Ireland,
Father Mathew the ceremony of ad
ministering the j edge, with the pledge
itself, is also giv: l and is very interest
ing to the Temp ranee man, as well as I
to the general reifier.
The Reverend father Theobald Math- ,
cw, born at Thonlston in the county of J 1
Tipperary, in October, 1790, is related J
to the noble family of Landaff and the
Earl of Kenmare. He is said to be a
connexion of the Y 7 icompte de Cftajiot,
principal secretary to the French Em
bassy in London. An orphan from his
infancy, adopted by Lady Elizabeth
Mathew, and entrusted to the tutorship;
of the Reverend Dennis O’Donnell, par
ish priest of Tallagh, he commenced his
studies at the College of Kilkenny and
finished them at the seminary of May- j
nooth.* Being ordained a priest in 1814
on Easter Day ha became a member of
the brotherhood of Capuchins or reform
ed Franciscans. Subject to no ecclesi
astical jurisdiction, and holding his title
of apostolical delegate directly from the
Pope, he gave himself up with ardour to
the exercise of his religious duties. He
had amassed, partly from his savings and
partly from his patrimony, a sum amoun
ting to £5000: this he devoted to the
erection of a church. He also founded
at his own expense a superb cemetery,
after the model of Pere la Chaise at Par
is, and this work was hailed by the bless
ings of his countrymen, the Irish at
taching great importance to the splendor
of their funeral ceremonies.
The reputation of the talents and vir
tues of Father Mathew beginning to
spread abroad, a society which, in imi
tation of one in America, had been es
tablished at Cork, for the purpose of en
deavoring to arrest the further progress
of Irish intemperance, called the celebra
ted ecclesiastic to its aid. Mathew ac
ceded to their request, and on the 10th
of April, 1838, he was named President
of the Society. A report was immedi
ately spread abroad that a messenger
sent from Heaven had come to change
the aspect of Ireland. Crowds flocked
to him from all parts, the holy man ha
rangued the people, laid his hands on
them, prayed to God to convert the scep
tic and regenerate the sinner: he an
nounced in the language of religious in
spiration that his glorious end would be
attained, and the whole assembly fell
prostrate at the prophet’s feet. At his
command the drunkard became sober, at
; his voice the impious man became a be
liever. He is not only a Christian ora
tor, he is a miraculous guide: he chan
ges morals and thoughts, customs and
hearts. The popular belief is that in
laying his hands on his followers, he
: curses at once the diseases of the mind
i and the maladies of the body. The
apostle of temperance began his career
■ with a few hundred disciples: he could
. soon count them by hundreds of thou
buu si inis rnomeiii can reckon
them by millions. The number of those
, who have received the pledge in Ireland
. is estimated at five millions at least. He
[ journeys from town to town, and from
district to district, with daily increasing
i success. Enthusiasm precedes and fol
i lows him: the impulse is universal, the
: moral revolution beconwgflttplete and
■ the movement is one
is eager to bo into the holy so
ciety ; every one to renounce
solemnly all drunkemorigies and excess
es. Father Mathew goes from triumph
to triumph. He was in England at the
time when I was travelling through Scot
land, and eighty thousand persons had
demanded the pledge from him. This
number was increasing daily.
The reception of a member into the
society of the temperate brothers resem
bled a second baptism; it was accompa
nied by a display of religious pomp and
consecrated images, and was held in
some open public place. The ceremony
was performed after the following man
ner.
The candidates presented themselves
in groups which were distinguished by
different badges: some wore in their
hats a bunch of shamrock, the national
plant celebrated by the poet Moore.f —
Dressed, previously to their joining the
procession, in their best attire, they car
ried in their hands, instead of a wax-can
dle, a stick enveloped in white flags, and
suspended from their necks instead of a
scarf, an elegant ehoukfer-bcU.
i hey marched to the sound of sacred
music, and on arriving at the appointed
spot, knelt down in a semicircle. Math
ew then advanced bareheaded, and ad
dressed a short discourse to those about
to receive the pledge: afterwards each
repeated the prescribed formula. The
words of the pledge are as follows:
“ I promise, with God’s assistance, as
long as I shall coutinue a member of the
Temperance Society, to abstain from all
intoxicating drinks, except used medi
cinally and by order of a medical man,
and to discountenance the cause and
practice of intemperance in others, as
far as I am able, as well by my advice as
by my own example.”
The pledge being taken, the Reverend
■!! —IB |
* A paper in mv possession mentions that “Fa
ther Mathew has not inherited the large fortune
ot his relative, Lady Elizabeth Mathew, she hav
ing bequeathed it to M. de Chabot. who is a con
nexion of her family”
+ 11 resembles the trefoil, and is worn as a
mark of distinction by the zealous devotees of
the ltoman Catholic laith.
j Father Mathew went the round of the
circle; ho JaiTj his hands on the multi
tude, and making the sign of the cross,
gave them his benediction. During this
, time the names of the new proselytes
were entered in a register, and a medal
was given to each. The medal bore on
one side a cross with an inscription re
peating the words of the pledge, and on
the other, a device representing the Pas
! chal lamb, with these letters I-H-S.
! Underneath this device was the famous
shamrock, the plant of the zealous Ro
man Catholic, together with these words,
j Hoc signo zinces. Each member re
: ccives a cirtificate, on which is a cross
j with the same inscription.
This reverend minister of God is now
fifty-three years old : he does not seen*
more than thirty. His appearance is un
speakably attractive; his manners are
(engaging and endearing; his hair is
still black. An aquiline nose, blue eyes.
| whose gentleness is releived by their vi
| vacity, a well-formed mouth, and a high
forehead, announces in him a firm char
acter and a superior intelligence. Sim
ple. even-tempered, affable, and above all
charitable, he unites in the eyes of his
fervent admirers, the eloquence of Bos
suet and the benignity of Fenelon.
For the Washingtonian.
My Native State
* A Refrain. — by Marcus.
How fondly clings my heart to thee,
Beloved Caroline!
Land of the brave, chivalrous free,
Beloved Caroline!
Unsullied may thy banner wave,
Thy star far brighter shine,
Than any in the nations crest,
Beloved Caroline !
For when the Despot pressed thee,
Beloved Caroline!
And tyranny distressed thee,
Beloved Caroline!
The life-blood flowed as pure and free
From those rich veins of thine,
As did the Spartan victims,
Beloved Caroline!
I never will forsake thee,
Beloved Caroline!
Though many ills betake thee,
Beloved Caroline!
And when the icy chain of death
Around my form doth twine,
O, may 1 in thy bosom rest,
Beloved Caroline!
Mr. Editor, —As your pappr is exclu
sively devoted to the welfare nf mankind,
: and more particularly interested in behalf
'of the cold water principles, it may bo
j well at this leisure moment to mako
; known in your invaluable journal, (for
j the benefit of your readers,) all incidents
tending to the progress of the Temper
ance reformation.
Some time in August last, a few indi
viduals, impressed with thcs, necessity of
j having a sober community, or, in other
words, of organizing a Society at Black
Creek, East Florida, for the purpose of
procuring signers, met on Sunday, the
4th day of August. Surrounded at that
time with innumerable opposers, to that
antidote of intemperance, and the pros
! pects seeming very discouraging after
I passing through all these difficulties, and
encountering the sneers and scorn of
many incorrigible anti-tcetotalers, to
gether w’ith their wilful ignorance—which
they gave vent to—of its inconsistency,
we at last hailed the day—as a harbinger
of brighter dreams. Nor was our joy
diminished when the pledge was handed
around—rather was it increased when
the reality was revealed to those bright
eves, that intently gazed on the victory
they had achieved—that 23 males and
17 females, had boldly stepped forward—
with hearts to forbear the use of indulg
ing in the accursed element—and with
united hands, to reclaim by moral per
suasion and entreaty, the inebriate from
the intoxicating path. An eloquent ad
dress was delivered by— Yale, Esq.,
a young and eminent lawyer at the Bar
of the Eastern District of Florida. After
which, the Society was organized and
officers appointed “to serve one vear.
Up to the present time we number fifty
six males and females. Our prospects
thus far has been very encouraging, and
we flatter ourselves with the hope it is.
continually in ils prosperous condition.
Our meetings are Usually held semi
monthly on the Sabbath, and through
the active co-operation of its members,
addresses are voluntarily delivered, and
every thing goes off with much hilarity
and order. The general topic of con
versation is the Temperance reformation,
among the learned, the old, and the
young—it was a novelty to some, and in
others produced an agreeable sensation—
being thus combined, it infused into their
minds tlyit they owed a solemn duty to
themselves and their common country, to.
become the strict adherents of the Wash
ingtonian principle. We are surrounded
by many emigrants, but living six miles
and upwards from where we usually
hold our meetings, is another great in
convenience have to bear with; and