employed aright, will yield us the greatest advan
tages with regard to wisdom, virtue and happiness.
But through our ingratitude and negligence of the
precious gift, we shut up our hearts against its
divine, efficacious influence, its all-gushing spirit,
depriving ourselves of that peace of mind and tran
quil enjoyment, which are the sure results of a stead
fast reliance on the truths of the Christian religion.
The doctrines of that religion have in them a natural
power to direct the conduct of those who embrace
them. They have a constant influence over our
292 MISCELLANEOUS ESSAYS.
hearts, impelling us to act agreeably to tlie per
ception we have gained. Indeed, they stand in the
closest connection with our present and future hap
piness, and it is impossible for us to apply them
home, without feeling that they have an effect upon
our inclinations and conduct. How important then
is it that we use all the means in our power to
arrive at a knowledge of the truth ! "We may rest
assured that the Spirit of God will assist the sin
cere Christian in his researches after truth. The
Scriptures inform us that God frequently operates in
a remarkable manner on the hearts of mankind,
putting their minds in such a frame, that truth can
display itself to them in its full force. We cannot
always, however, understand the operations of our
own minds so as to properly explain them. We
should, therefore, be extremely cautious about taking
all the pleasing ejnotions that arise in us, on the
subject of religion, for special operations of the
Holy Spirit. God is, indeed, " all in all." To hie
influence all creatures are indebted for the continu
ance of their existence. May we not, then, conclude
that God's providence extends by his mighty will, to
the support of our intellectual faculties ? True, he
deals with us as rational beings, requiring us to use
the capacities he has given us. We may, by intem
perance, or by irregularity of conduct and habits,
bring upon ourselves a disordered state of health,
MISCELLANEOUS ESSAYS. 293
the consequences of which always weaken the sen
sibility to pleasure, or disturb and interrupt our
moral and intellectual enjoyments. In the place of
them, a variety of painful and disagreeable sensa
tions arise within us, obscuring the agreeable images
of the mind, and not unfrequently entirely obliter
ating them. Such circumstances cannot fail to con
fine the exertion of our abilities, and our activity in
goodness, to a very limited circle. We may also
become dissatisfied with the works of our own hands
which would have been happily completed had we
been in a right frame of mind. Our acts of benevo
lence, the relief and service we may have afforded
to others, will become utterly insignificant to us.
This ought to teach us the value of health, in regard
to the noblest and most exalted attributes of the
mind ; and if we who now enjoy that benefit, wish
to lead a contented, cheerful, and happy life in the
service of virtue, let us look upon the preservation
of our health as an imperative duty, and be assured
that we can make no sacrifice to moderation, which
will not afterwards be repaid a hundred fold.
The mind is so intimately connected with the
body, that no remarkable alteration can happen to
the one, without a corresponding change in the
other. When our bodies are in health, when we
feel neither pain nor infirmity, the mind is alert in
all its functions, and can operate free- and unmo-
25*
294 MISCELLANEOUS ESSAYS.
lested. Reason, the most perfect attribute of the
mind, then prevails OTer all the inferior powers, and
we can contemplate the truth, not with passion, but
in a calm and unclouded light. Agreeable objects
then come in contact with our senses, whether we
mingle with society, where we can enjoy the delights
of friendship and the agreeable conversation of well-
cultivated minds, or retire to the silence of the shady
forest, where every living being is elate with joy,
and we listen to the voice of God in nature, with all
her magnificence. The heart is affected by t%e
sweet melody of harmonious sounds, our thoughts
flow rapidly and methodically, and if we reflect on
the sublime doctrines of religion, the joy and conso
lation we feel, must of necessity be unusually great,
yea, at times, truly .ecstatic. Let us reverse the
picture. If our physical system be diseased, the
blood creeps sluggishly and heavily through the
veins, the nerves become relaxed and feeble, the
mind will correspond with these contingencies. Our
thoughts will always have a sort of obscurity about
them, and it will be in vain that we endeavor to
form any lively and clear conceptions of the sublime
and important truths of the Gospel. The most ele
gant extracts and descriptions will then make but
little impression upon us, and we can hear or read
them with coldness and indifference. We can easily
resign ourselves to sullenness and melancholy, hold-
MISCELLANEOUS ESSAYS. 295
ing mirth in abhorrence, and looking with contempt
upon all those who engage in it. May we not then
be mistaken in representing these attentions which
so naturally arise and are explained on philosophical
principles, as supernatural dispensations and spiritual
experiences of a peculiar order, when the state of
our bodies, our outward condition and temperaments,
have so great an influence on the agency and opera
tion of the mind ? Therefore, when under such cir
cumstances, we receive any livelier sentiment, or
more joyous emotion, as celestial raptures or imme
diate visitations from on high, we deceive ourselves.
O '
We also vex and torment ourselves in vain when we
consider the insensibility and listlessness, originating
in a disorder of the body, as a judgment of God, or
a token of his wrath and displeasure. If we would
have a rational and just experience of the efficacy
which the doctrines of religion possess, we cannot
consistently base our hopes on things beyond our
control, on outward circumstances, on the fluctuating
state of our bodies, or on accidents. If we walk
willingly and faithfully in all the commandments of
God, here we may safely rest, and avoid the follies
of fanaticism and the extravagances of superstition.
It is a common failing with numbers of Christians,
that they give themselves little or no concern about
cultivating and progressively perfecting the nobler
part of their being, their rational mind. They pre-
296 MISCELLANEOUS ESSAYS.
fer to be employed in executing their sensitive feel
ings, and in obtaining what they often falsely term
spiritual experiences. Their passions must have, at
least, as large a share in their worship as their un
derstanding. They think their private acts of devo
tion connot be of the genuine sort without exciting
sensual and vehement emotions ; their sorrow for
sin must be accompanied with scalding tears ; their
joy in God, and aspirations after eternal felicity,
must be rapturous. They even scorn the sugges
tions of reason, and are extremely cautious of fol
lowing her precepts and her light.
We shall at least be on the " safe side " if we
follow the precepts, and expand our hearts to the
saving efficacy of the religion of Jesus. We can
only testify the integrity of our faith by an unre
mitting industry in all good works. Our experience
will show that it has the power to render its sincere
followers virtuous, holy, tranquil, and happy. Thus
we shall know, as onr Saviour declares, that his doc
trine is of God.
MISCELLANEOUS ESSAYS. 297
ESSAY ON TEMPER ANCE* AND TOBACCO.
Temperance and intemperance have been written
and spoken upon, until it would seem that the whole
range of pertinent remarks on these subjects has
been exhausted, and nought remains but the oft-
repeated tales of woe which have fallen on our ears
from time immemorial ; and yet, at the first glance,
one would suppose that all the efforts that have been
put forth for the stay of this deadly ruin, have been
useless, or nearly so, by the frightful havoc that is
still being made upon the peace of community. In
temperance has well been likened to an ocean that
is constantly being fed by tributaries ; like that, it
has its little rills which merge in the broad rivers,
and at last, through the lakes and bays find their
way to the boundless ocean of untold misery, which
nothing but the revealing light of eternity can ever
fully disclose. It requires a brilliant genius to
sketch the images of the human form upon dull can
vas, and give them the appearance of speaking life ;
but the more requisite genius of an angel would
fail to portray upon paper, with a pen, the ravages
of this mortal curse upon the human organism.
The habits of men, indulging in their depraved
298 MISCELLANEOUS ESSAYS.
and vitiated appetites, have got the better of their
reason, and they have become so blinded and besot
ted, that they have lost the power of throwing off
their galling chains ; hence the duty of those whom
sensualism has not bowed and crushed to the earth,
is imperative in strengthening the hands of the weak,
and, if possible, in scattering light and truth, where
now darkness and error hold absolute sway.
It is an awful sight to see man, fashioned in the
image of his Creator, reduced by the force of circum
stances frequently entailed on him by his parents ;
to a mere breathing, eating, and drinking machine,
and expending his energies for that which debases
him in everything that goes to make up the real
man in the sight of God.
The attempt to dry up this formidable ocean, will
be in vain, as long as the streams by which it is fed
are kept alive and nourished with more care than
the staff of life would be. When men's judgment
is so impaired by temperance and sensuality, as that
they will endure the privation of bread, of decent
clothing, and of a comfortable home, or beg their
sustenance, and expend their hard earnings for the
poisons which are the sole cause of all this degrada
tion aW misery, they are simply insane, and ought to
be treated as such ; and of all the diseases which
afflict poor human nature, those which affect the
mind are the most grievous to be borne. Who has
MISCELLANEOUS ESSAYS. 299
<t
not witnessed the writhings of the mind in cases of
delirium tremens, caused by the use of intoxicating
drinks, and in a somewhat less degree by tobacco !
To suffer the amputation of the limbs, one by one,
and then have the body slowly cut in pieces, though
horribly excruciating, would bear no comparison to
this burden of sorrow, which is the fearful penalty
of transgression. Ordinary pain can be endured ;
but when reason, the noblest attribute of man, is
dethroned, and self-possession lost, imaginary de
mons will torment, and all the passions rise in tumul-
tous uproar, leaving him, who was created in the
likeness of his Maker, no longer himself, but an
object of commiseration over which angels might
weep.
The object of this essay is chiefly an attempt to
portray the evils of tobacco ; one of the dark, muddy,
and filthy rivers which constantly flows into this
Bacchanalian sea. Its evil influence on society, and
its unconscious victims, is second only to that of
old Alcohol himself; and yet there are hundreds who
are loud in their denunciations of intoxicating
drinks, and are dying by inches under the influence
of this poisonous narcotic ; supposing their whole
duty is done in the philanthropic cause of temper
ance. Not a hundred miles from the town of Ma
drid, in St. Lawrence County, nor a hundred years
ago, I remember of attending a temperance mass-
26 /
300 MISCELLANEOUS ESSAYS.
meeting in a beautiful church, which boasted its
Turkey carpet, cushioned seats, and all the little
etceteras that contribute to the comfort and conveni
ence of the church-going portion of community, in
and about the tidy little village. We were not long
waiting in the aisle, before a seat was proffered by a
gentleman who seemed to be " at home." Unfor
tunately, however, for me, I was placed in too close
proximity to one who could not be called a gentle
man, or " temperance man." He had deposited his
card at his feet on the beautiful carpet, in the shape
of a puddle of tobacco spittle about the size of his
hat crown. Looking around for a more comfortable
locality, I observed the deformed and besmeared
lips of several more in the immediate vicinity, and
concluded to keep the seat near my disagreeable
neighbor, for fear of getting a worse one, putting
my dress skirt aside that it might not be made a
mop for this filthy pool. While reflecting on the
right some people take to poison the air for others
to breathe, the speakers were called to the stand,
and suggestions and resolutions were offered to ad
vance the glorious cause, which all went off admir
ably, and the speakers were of the " first order,"
only it occurred to me that some of the temperance
men should have been labelled, so that strangers
would know they were so, otherwise their practices
prevented their being recognized as such, for about
MISCELLANEOUS ESSAYS. 301
two in three of them had to relieve themselves of
large quids of tobacco before delivering their tem
perance (?) messages. O, consistency, thou art
indeed a jewel. " Who can bring a clean thing out
of an unclean ? " Rev. Mr. , a clergyman from
a neighboring parish, was last called upon the
speakers' stand ; he, too, threw his quid into the
spittoon, in presence of the large congregation, with
a shamelessness that was appalling ; and in a speech
of about three quarters of an hour in length, he
gave old Alcohol a severe drubbing, such as he de
served ; prospectively tried, condemned, and execu
ted him, and in the language of Dr. Hume, " When
he is quite dead you may bury him, and if I attend
his funeral, I'll not shed a tear not a single tear.
Or, if I do weep, it will be because he did not die
sooner ; and, should I be the sexton, if it were pos
sible, I would dig his grave at the North Pole ; there
bury him a thousand fathoms deep ; wrap him in a
winding sheet of ice ; let the mighty organ of the
four winds gather his requiem from all nations, and,
in a blast of their wildest whirlings play it loud and
strong upon his grave, as long as time shall last.
Finally, when buried, you may erect his grave
stone, and write his epitaph. I propose that it read
as follows : "
" Beneath this sketch there lies a wretch,
Old Alcohol most bad ;
And when he died, creation cried,
We're glad ! we're glad ! ! we're glad ! ! !
26
302 MISCELLANEOUS ESSAYS.
He filled the earth with his foul breath
Of brandy, ein, and rum;
And when he died, the devil cried,
Come, friend, coine."
Can it be possible, thought I, that these gentle
men are ignorant of the physical effects of tobacco,
and of its affinity for rum, on which they have dealt
their wholesale anathemas ? If they have ever
read the testimony of Dr. Woodward, of the State
Hospital for the insane, at Worcester, Mass ; Drs.
Bell and Condie, editors of the Journal of Health,
Dr. J. C. Warren, of Boston ; Dr. Wm. A. Alcott,
a man of almost unparalleled experience and obser
vation, and scores of others, against the practice of
using tobacco in any form, as prejudicial to health,
morality and cleanliness, it has fallen unheeded on
their ears. Habit has got a powerful hold on them
and in that which will have the same effect on the
mind as upon the poor, degraded rum-drinker. It
has been known in numerous instances to produce
delirium tremens, dyspepsia, blindness, deafness,
cancer, scrofula, and all the long train of diseases
which are the result of impure blood. It will be
admitted by any person in his senses, that the evil
consequences already mentioned are enough to know
against it, and should deter any reasonable person
from its use ; and yet there is a worse effect than
any of these, justly chargeable upon tobacco : name
ly, insanity. The experience of some very renowned
MISCELLANEOUS ESSAYS. 303
physicians, bears ample testimony to the truth of
this statement, and among them was the late Dr.
Brigham, physician of the New York State Lunatic
Asylum, at Utica ; and later still is the testimony of
one whose name has passed from my memory, one
of great experience and influence, who was phy
sician to an insane hospital in London, for the
period of twenty-seven years. He has written,
quite recently, a work, in which he charges upon
tobacco as being the cause (and particularly of
smoking) of a large portion of the insanity of those
who were inmates of that institution for the long
term of his superintendence. The opinions of those
who have interested themselves, and have had an
experience of life-long observation on these subjects
establishes the fact of its destructive qualities, on
life, health, and morality beyond a peradventure ;
and those who reject such evidence would fail to be
convinced, " though one arose from the dead," and
confirmed it. Many who are already convinced that
the " half of the truth has not been told " against
this monster evil, by a fearful experience, have been
lulled to stupidity by its seductive influence, and the
chains of habit have been forged and riveted in the
face and eyes of reason, better judgment, and coun
sel of those who know its effects, until they have
lost the power, like Sinbad the sailor,' of shaking
off this " old man of sin," from their backs. What
304 MISCELLANEOUS ESSAYS.
degradation they have brought upon themselves, and
that, too, voluntarily ! Alas, for the frailty of poor
human nature ! Ye sober and temperate, vigor
ous and healthy, thank God for your deliverance
from the clutches of this tyrant, Habit ; and if you
have a tear of pity, let it fall for these poor slaves.
" Were it possible," says Dr. Rush, for a being
who had resided on our globe, to visit the inhabitants
of a planet where reason governed, and to tell them
that a vile weed was in use among the inhabitants
of the globe he had left, which afforded no nourish
ment ; that this weed was cultivated with immense
c are ; that it was an important article of commerce ;
*hat the want of it produced much real misery ; that
its taste was extremely nauseous ; that it was un
friendly to health and morals, and that the use of it
was attended with a considerable loss of time and
property, the account would be thought incredible."
" In no one view," continues Dr. R., " is it possible
to contemplate the creature, man, in a more absurd
and ridiculous light, than in his attachment to
O 7
tobacco."
If Dr. Rush's imaginary message to another planet
would be thought incredible, in what light would
the humane and benevolent regard our government,
should it be represented as having imposed these
calamities on three-fourths of its young men, as a
penalty for some crime. After having expended
their labor, means, and time, in cultivating the
MISCELLANEOUS ESSAYS. <505
poisonous plant, instead of building prisons and
houses of correction, supply every county in this
commonwealth with it, for the purpose of torture to
the criminal.
Imagine a court of justice convicting a young man
of the crime of murder, (though such crimes are
very seldom committed, except through the agency
of these exhilerating and intoxicating potions), and
the judge pronouncing sentence upon him, as fol
lows. (The prisoner has witnessed its effects upon
others, and he arises, pale and trembling, while the
dreadful sentence falls on his ear.)
" Young man, you have been convicted, in the
presence of this Court, of one of the most atrocious
crimes on record ; notwithstanding the able defence
of your counsel, and the sympathy of the entire com
munity in your behalf, and that of your innocent
friends ; and it now becomes my painful duty to
pass sentence upon you, according to law. The
laws of this State, which are inexorable, have at
tached the penalty of death to the crime of which
you are found guilty by this enlightened jury ; and
if it Avere possible, with my convictions of duty and
justice, in view of the very aggravated circumstances
in your case, I would cause your execution in a
decent and humane manner ; and not by the tortur
ous process which I am compelled to adopt in your
case.
26*
306 MISCELLANEOUS ESSAYS.
"From this time, as long as you are permitted to
live on the earth, you will be required to pay three
cents a day, amounting to about eleven dollars a
year of your hard earnings, for the black, filthy,
and narcotic, vegetable tobacco, done up in masses of
solid plug one inch broad. This sum, expended
daily, if you should be permitted to live at a "poor
dying rate/' to the common age of man, would pur
chase several miles in length. Commencing at one
end of this formidable twist, with your teeth, eat off
the number of inches allotted for one day, which
you can ascertain by an application of mathematical
rules. Commence at first with a very small quan
tity, which will cause a wretched sickness, akin to
death. The quantity allotted for one day, if all taken
within an hour, at first trial would kill you outright.
Nature never willingly yields to such an outrage on
her rights ; hence her pleadings and struggles in
the right path ; and when she seems to have been
conquered, it is only a slackening of her rein for a
more fearful retribution in the future. Your teeth,
which she has formed regular, smooth as glass, and
with the whiteness of ivory, will turn black, and de
cay, falling one by one from your mouth. Hear Dr.
Alcott's testimony on this point : ' The opinion is
greatly prevalent, that, whatever may be the other
effects of tobacco, it certainly preserves the teeth,
especially when chewed. Common, however, and
MISCELLANEOUS ESSAYS. 807
plausible as the opinion is, it is not difficult to show
that it is very far from having its foundation in fact.
The soundness of the teeth will always bear an exact
proportion to the soundness and firmness of the
gums, and of the lining membrane of the mouth, and
of the whole alimentary canal. But, that tobacco
makes the gums loose and spongy, and injures the
lining membrane of the alimentary canal, especially
that part of it called the stomach, is as well attested
as any fact in physiology. The application of
tobacco, therefore, to the inside of the mouth, and to
the gums, instead of preserving the teeth, cannot
otherwise than hasten their decay.'
" Your breath will become foeted and foul, and
yourself an object of loathing and disgust in good
society ; for whenever you are in the parlor, in the
kitchen, in the church, and everywhere else, the
extra quantity of saliva drawn to the mouth by this
powerful stimulant, will cause a constant spitting ;
and settling in a dark line around your cherry lips,
and involuntarily, upon your part, run down upon
your chin. It will surely cause dyspepsia, if the
opinions of the most noted physicians in this country
and Europe are worth any thing. If Eobert Burns
had called dyspepsia ' the hell of all diseases,' in
stead of tooth-ache, he would have got it right.
Besides the diseases mentioned, to which you will
be made liable, there is scarcely one in the whole
808 MISCELLANEOUS ESSAYS.
catalogue of ills human flesh is heir to, but tobacco
will induce ; and hereditary and chronic complaints
are greatly aggravated by it. The price of all these
must be paid with your money, and at the rates
heretofore named. If you should happen to live
under this vile treatment forty or fifty years, as
some have been known to, you will have spent,
along with your health and influence, and good ex
ample, time and a sufficient sum in dollars and cents,
reckoned at compound interest, and its amount, to
purchase the best homestead in this State. From
this sentence there is no reprieve ; for the most sin
gular effect this poison has upon the human system
remains yet to be told. After having experienced
its first sickening effects, an appetite is formed for
it with the poor victim, which is stronger than that
for intoxicating drinks ; and creates a thirst for
strong drinks. This is in accordance with the
opinions of Dr. Mussey, Dr. Rush, and Dr. Brown,
of AVest Randolph, Vt. The last named says : ' The
use of tobacco produces a dryness or huskiness of
the mouth, thus creating a thirst which in many
cases is not satiated with anything short of alcoholic
drinks.' The report of the New York Anti-Tobacco
Society for the year 1835, written, it is believed, by
Dr. Stephenson, is to the same effect: 'Chewing
and smoking tobacco,' the Report say, ' exhausts
the salivary glands of their secretions ; thus pro-