better type of Christian than the timid teetotaler who does pot dare touch liquor lest he become a hopeless drunkard? Certainly the jolly bather who rushes right in and swims away out and confidently dives and floats is more admired than the other who does not dare try it. Yes, but of the two he that is ashore is the safer; the other may get beyond his depth and weaken and sink in a moment before a helping hand can reach him; or his example may entice out others less strong and less experienced than himself, so that he becomes responsible both for their loss and his own. Remember he that loveth danger shall perish in it. No one claims total abstinence is a great virtue — no, it is an absolute necessity for some, a wise precaution for others, a good work for all. Still it is false to say that it is inferior to temperance, for the temperate man likes a drink and takes it; the total abstainer likes a drink and does not take it, and Christ decides which is the better: " If thou wilt be My disciple, deny thyself.,, Well, but you say, I am a free man and to pledge anything that interferes with my taking a drink destroys my liberty. Friend, never take the pledge against your will, but only freely, either for the good of yourself or neighbor or for the greater glory of God. Yet the law vaccinates men against smallpox, restrains criminals from blowing themselves up, and keeps madmen from jumping off the Brooklyn Bridge; and does it destroy their liberty? Then why not restrain the drunkard who is all at once infected with contagious disease, is a criminal and a madman? The
