Page:Catholic Encyclopedia, volume 14.djvu/542

 TEMPERANCE

484

TEMPERANCE

the same year (1887) the first lodge was established in Switzerland. It is only within the last ten years that gi'and lodges have been estabhshcd in Holland and Austria.

Organizations of the different social classes and business men have become of great importance in the new movement. The first of these societies was the "British Medical Temperance Association", formed by the English physicians in 1876. Special organizations for clergymen, teachers, raUwa}' men, and workmen have been established, and are striving with increasing success to form international associa- tions. Unfortunately, the Social Democrats have in many instances used the movement as a means for carrying on their own agitation, and in this way have gained the sympathy of many who would other- wise hold aloof from them. This statement, how- ever, has little apijUcation to Germany. Women take an increasingly great part in the work of tem- perance. The "Woman's Christian Temperance Union", established in the United States in 1873, became a world-wide association in 1883, and then affiliated many national a.ssociations (some very small) in Europe. Owing to these energetic labours the number of total abstainers has increased greatly in most countries; in some they form from 5 to 12 per cent of the entire population, as: United Kingdom, about .5,000,000 (including3,200,000 children) ; Sweden, 500,000; Norway, 240,000 (including 6.5,000 children) ; Denmark, 170,000; Germany, over 220,000 (includ- ing 8.5,000 children); Switzerland, 75,00 (including 26,000 children); Finland and HoUand, each 30,000; and Iceland, 5000. The total number in Europe may be safely estimated at over 6,500,000.

C. Present Status of the Temperance Movement. — Under this head will be considered: the inter- national organizations, which, with one exception, are total abstinence societies; the larger associations of the individual countries; the Catholic movement, which is of chief interest here; finally, the most important congresses, in which in a certain manner the associa- tions show their concentrated strength and the suc- cess of the movement.

(1) International Organizations. — The largest or- ganization is still that of the "Independent Order of Good Templars ' ', which has 18 grand lodges in Europe ; of these 6 are in Great Britain, 2 in Germany, 1 each in Ireland, Scotland, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Hol- land, Belgium, Switzerland, Roumania, and Hungary. There are also some district lodges in France and Russia. The total number of lodges on the Continent is 4661 with 257,638 members, and 1855 lodges for the young with 123,634 members. In Great Britain there are 2266 lodges with 92,725 members .and 1380 lodges for the young with 109,220 members. A strong competitor of this order in Switzerland is the "Neutral Independent Order of Good Templars", es- tabhshcd in 1906 by Professor Forel, because he con- sidered the large order laid too much stress on reUgious elements. The Swiss grand lodge of the new order contains 3500 adults and 3200 young members; the German, 2100 members. A large number of the Dutch, Belgian, French, and Hungarian lodges have also joined the Neutral Order. On account of the law in Austria regarding associations a national asso- ciation with ten local branches has been formed under the special title "Nephaha". The organization next in size is the "Blue Cross" (headquarters at Geneva), which contains about 1550 branches and 60,000 mem- bers, including a large number of reformed drunkards (9000 in Germany). Divided as to the different countries the number of societies is as follows: Switzer- land, 468; Germany, 661; Denmark, 364 (the organi- zation is here called "Det blaa Kors"); France, (>5; there are also several scattered societies in Belgium, Russia, and Hungary. Affiliated to the "Blue Cross" is an association for youth called the "Band

of Hope for German Switzerland" {Deutsch-schwei- zerische Hoffnungshxmd) . A society small in member- ship but important on account of the ciiculation of its pubhcations is the "International Anti-Alcohohc Association" (Int. Alkoholgegnerbund) with national organizations in Germany and Switzerland. Affih- ated with this since 1907 is the "International Bureau for Combating Alcohohsm" {Int. Bureau zur Bekdmp- fung ties Alkoliolismus), Lausanne, conducted by Dr. Hercod, which possesses a large bm-eau of information.

Notwithstanding their international organizations, two associations, the "Independent Order of Recha- bites" and the "Blue Ribbon", are essentially English societies. The "Rechabites" form a life insurance so- ciety with 300,000 members, and have a few branches in (jermany and Denmark; the "Blue Ribbon" has about 1,000,000, of whom less than a tenth are in Den- mark, Norway, and Sweden. The international or- ganization of women, the "Woman's Christian Tem- perance Union", is strongest in English-speaking countries. Among its numerous branches on the Continent, those of Germany and Switzerland are prominent for their activity, especially in the estab- lishing of temperance eating-houses. Of all the inter- national associations of different social classes the "International Society of Physicians" is, owing to the view now taken of the alcohol question, the most important. This society includes the German-speak- ing countries, Scandinavia, Russia, and Belgium. The "International Railway Anti-Alcohohc Association" (founded in 1904 by de Terra) has branches in Ger- many, Austria, Switzerland, and Denmark. The "International Association against the Abuse of Spirituous Beverages", founded in 1905, includes about 30 organizations in Germany, England, Hol- land, Belgium, France, and Russia. These are tem- perance societies, and promote equally total abstinence and temperance. The association aims at estabhsh- ing an international bureau against alcohol.

(2) National Associations. — Most important of those in Germany is the "Association Against the Abuse of Spirituous Beverages" {Vcrein gegcn Miss- brauch geisl. Getriinke); this was estabhshed in 1883 and has 37,000 members who take no personal pledge. The society carries on its work by periodicals, pamph- lets (of which over a miUion were circulated in 1908), charts, exhibitions etc. Among the total abstinence societies are: the "German Federation of the Blue Cross Societies of the Evangehcal Church" {Deutsche Bund evangelisch-kirchlichcr Blaukreuzvereine), with 8500 members; several societies that have separated from the "Independent Order of Good Templars"; and abstinence societies for various classes of society, as workmen, school-children, teachers, post-office offi- cials, lawyers, philologists etc. ; thesocieties for lawj'ers and philologists are confined to German territory. In defence of their common interest nearly all the German total abstinence societies have joined the "General German Union for Combating Alcohohsm" (Allgemeiner deutschcr Zentralband zur Bekampfung des Alkoholismus) of Hambm-g, which has a large bureau of information, a section for testing beverages free from alcohol, a bureau for lectures, etc. Ger- many has altogether sixty large anti-alcohohc or- ganizations.

The movement against alcohol is weak in Austria, probably because the Government puts great difficid- ties in the way of international organizations. The large associations, about thirty in number, have nearly all sprung up within the last few years. The temperance societies (Oesl. Vcrein gegcn Trunksucht and similar provincial societies in Vorarlberg, the German Tyrol, and Moravia) have attained consider- able importance. The leading abstinence society is undoubtedly the Polish "Eleuterya", with 5300 members in 20 branches. The "Central Union of Austrian Anti-Alcohohc Societies" (Zcntralverband