Facts in the Case

Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Battle Creek, Mich. · Oct 31, 1871

Facts in the Case.

Reform in habits of life is decidedly an uphill business. Appetite, passion, and fashion, instead of reason and enlightened conscience, rule the masses in many of the common habits of life. And to lift up minds from the low level of custom, and emancipate men from the slavery of morbid appetite, and from wrong habits of life generally, is no small task. The cause of health reform has many obstacles to surmount, and many objections to meet. But these generally are more the result of ignorance of the real facts in the case than anything else.

As an illustration of the above, objectors will sometimes point to a class of feeble persons, who may be advocates of reform in habits of life, as representing the results of changing from common habits. In this they do our cause great injustice, as ninety-nine in one hundred of these persons, in consequence of wrong habits of life, became incurable invalids before they adopted the reform. Had they continued violating the laws of life and health, they would long since have been in their graves. And the reason why there is a considerable number of this class, is, first, because but very few persons feel the necessity of change until they have lost vitality that they never can recover; and, second, because the temperate habits of the reform are so in harmony with natural law that these invalids who adopt them linger upon the mortal shore nearly a lifetime. Hence to point to these as representatives of the health reform is doing the cause we advocate great injustice.

These feeble persons had made themselves hopelessly such, by wrong habits of life, and then, in accordance with popular custom, they submitted themselves to the poisonous processes of drug-taking, and when the last ray of hope of recovery in that direction was gone, and they were ready to drop into the grave, then they were induced to adopt hygienic habits, the beneficial effects of which are prolonging their existence in a condition of comparative freedom from pain, and the enjoyment of a good degree of happiness. In view of the real facts in the case we point to those very persons as manifesting the value of the reform.

But we are happy to state that there are thousands of men and women within our personal knowledge, who, in the vigor of life, adopted the principles of Christian temperance, and are now reaping the beneficial results of health reform. These have abandoned tobacco, tea, coffee, drugs, flesh-meats, and the third meal, and now, without a dissenting voice, report greatly improved health. Most of these are hard-working people, and report that they can do more work, and with far greater ease, than before they made these changes.

“Now, in order to put this matter fairly to the test, we invite the objector to point to a single person who adopted these changes in the strength of manhood or womanhood, and who has run down in strength and health, and become feeble, while pursuing in all respects a temperate and consistent course. Here let the matter be fairly tested. When one such person can be found, then we will examine the matter a little more closely.