534 THE RING DOVE OR CUSHAT. 



White of Selborne gives an instance of its graminivorous 

 feeding — " A neighbour shot a ring dove going to roost. His 

 wife found its crop stuffed with tender tops of turnips. These 

 she washed and boiled, and they had a nice plate of greens got 

 in this singular manner." It would please the Sir Wilfrid type 

 of faddists if the ring dove ate up every shoot of barley to 

 abolish whisky, and stamp out that grand test of freedom — to 

 take or want — as implied by Burns in saying — 

 V Freedom and whisky gang thegither." 



Or the still grander test of the " I am that I am," who (or 

 which) in the inner room of the Temple is represented to have 

 set goblets full of wine before the teetotal faddists of the 

 day as a test of their sincerity, and as a rebuke to the 

 Israelites. Also see the Divine example of turning water into 

 wine at the marriage feast ! Solomon too, the wisest man, 

 declares the spirit of wine is good for man — to ztse, but not 

 abuse it, saying, " Eat, drink, and enjoy the fruit of your 

 labour, for it is the gift of God," with freedom to take, but the 

 greater freedom not to take if it proves an enemy; for, as 

 cashiered Cassio says in " Othello" — " that men should put 

 an enemy into their mouths to steal away their brains ! 

 strange ! Every inordinate cup is unblessed, and the ingredient 

 is a devil." " I drunk !" To which Iago replies — " Come, 

 come, good wine is a good, familiar creature if it be well used ; 

 exclaim no more against it." " You or any man living may be 

 drunk at some time, man" — without saying anything about the 

 Bible story of Lot and his daughters. But now since the 

 doctors and science have taken good John Barleycorn by the 

 hand (while eating and drinking lasts), the shoots and spirits of 

 barley, like the hardy ring dove, will hold their own in the 

 world, while sobriety and temperance in all things will grow and 

 flourish (as Bailie Mcol Jarvie said of Glasgow) in spite of 

 beastly drunkenness and narrow-minded faddists, who care less 

 for the principles of God, Christ, or Solomon than their own 

 selfish wills — who would steal the freedom of others, but keep 

 their own to nurse their one-eyed fads. Such nibblers at 

 freedom — under the guise of friends to man — reminds me of 

 what King Henry V. says to his pious traitors convicted of 

 treason and intent to murder him — 



" Treason and murder ever kept together, 

 As two yoke-devils sworn to either's purpose ; 

 But whatsoever cunning fiend it was 

 That wrought upon thee so preposterously, 



