184 TOBACCO. 



saps all the foundations of manliness and virtue. 

 It paves the way to every vice, and tends directly 

 and powerfully to habits of the grossest immoral- 

 ity." 



CLERICAL TOBACCO. 



" But good men smoke and chew ! " 



The more 's the pity. There 's no use in blink- 

 ing the fact that many Christians, ministers among 

 them, are not guiltless in this matter. The very 

 utmost that can be made of the plea, however, is 

 that some good men are not free from the dominion 

 of very bad habits. This, unfortunately is no new 

 thing. 



Years ago the use of intoxicating liquors was 

 practised and approved by the majority of clergy- 

 men, one or more of them being now and then 

 taken home drunk from some association or con- 

 vention dinner, where wines abounded ; but pre- 

 cisely because drinking was in such good repute 

 was there the more pressing need of bold leaders 

 to raise the banner of reform. 



Let us not use the goodness of a man as a gar- 

 ment to cover his sins, little or great. This very 

 goodness brings upon him a tenfold responsibility. 



A rich man, in acknowledging the receipt of one 

 of George Trask's tobacco books, sensibly re- 

 marks, — 



M The best proofs of its utility should be its 

 effects upon the clergy. \Ve can hardly expect 

 youth to refrain from tobacco when their moral 

 teachers set them so bad an example ; when you 



