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162.-Temperance in the army.
Resolutions adopted at the meeting held in New York, August 4.
1.
Resolved, That, in the present solemn and momentous condition of our country, our army is our glory and defence, and that in this, especially in our noble volunteers, our sons and brothers, habitually obedient to all the moral and physical laws of their being, we have the greatest confidence.
Our prayer is that, amid all the temptations and trials of camp life, they may be kept unharmed and uncorrupted, and that, when their term of service is over, they may return like the army of
Cromwell, to be a blessing and not a curse to their country.
2.
Resolved, That we rejoice in the recent act of Congress, imposing a heavy penalty upon all in the
District who sell to the soldiers intoxicating liquors; also in the prompt and energetic regulations of our youthful commander, to preserve our troops from the snares of the grog-shops.
The nation will approve of the severest action in every military district, toward such as for gain will debauch the army.
3.
Resolved, That the secret transmission of liquors to the soldiers in camp, in packages of home comforts, by misguided friends, is as mischievous and deadly as it is dishonorable and base, and should receive universal reprobation.
4.
Resolved, That in our intense anxiety for friends and brothers, we can never be at ease while they are liable to be led into battle by drunken officers; and we invoke Congress at once to pass a law which shall discharge every officer at the first conviction, whether in battle or on any other occasion.
5.
Resolved, That we most deeply sympathize with our patriotic soldiers in all their hardships and sufferings, and would do all in our power to alleviate them; yet as we know that in war intemperance often slays more than the sword, as science and observation prove that the severest toils are borne better without than with intoxicating drinks, and the severest wounds are easier healed, and as we know that the drunkard, whether dying in battle or coming home a burden to his family, is ruined for time and eternity, we do most earnestly exhort all our patriotic and self-denying troops, officers, and common soldiers, at once to abjure all intoxicating drinks, often composed of the most destructive materials, and by one simultaneous effort banish intemperance forever from the national army; and we do rejoice in the effort now made to supply each regiment with a thousand appropriate tracts, exhorting every soldier to beware of the bottle, to sign the Ellsworth pledge, and become his own master.
This effort we will give not only our good wishes, but our substantial support.
