THE KING’S BUSINESS
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into the drink habit. Mr. Charring ton has never married. In early life he became convinced that his work would be better served if he remained single. He has spent all his life a leader, standing in the forefront of the battle. Mr. Thorne says: “ I sup pose, in common with everyone else, there must have been moments of deep depression in his life. I am equally sure that very few people have been allowed to see* them. He is always merry, though never exuberantly so. His humor is quiet, but very real. There is ndthing of the dry or ‘paw ky’ order about it. It is simply an intense, an almost childlike love of what is humorous. There is nearly always a twinkle in his eye; and the racy stories of his experiences, told in that low, musical voice, of everyday life—which, nevertheless, has rung with such a clarion call in so many great assemblies—would fill a larger book than this.” I have said very little of the story that lies behind the great acceptance. Those who turn to the book will find it, like the rest, of fascinating and ab sorbing interest. Mr. Charrington has never sought for praise or for fame, and is far less known to the general public than many who are not worthy to be named with him. There is thus a freshness and novelty of a very cap tivating kind in this record. It is a book that may well lead to many mo mentous decisions, and it ought to be circulated by the thousand. In Mr. Charrington’s “ Life Story” Guy Thorne says in the last page: “ You who have travelled with me thus far, if it seems good to you and for the sake o f Jesus and this man who has fought for Him so valiantly and so long, help him in his work.”
and practical interest in emigration. But he has never swerved from the conviction that the chief thing to be considered is conversion. In the case of those who gather in the Great As sembly Hall, among whom are hun dreds of the poorest of the poor, con version is of the nature of a vivid' flash of light rending the darkness of the soul. But the total abstinence propaganda has a real place in his life ; and whatever can be done to shut pub lic-houses and to hinder. the sale of drink, he is ready to do. It was owing to his action that no intoxicating liq uors- are allowed on the premises of the People’s Palace. He has formed a great brotherhood of abstinence, who wear a blue ring of total absti nence, made of metal and blue enamel, with the initials B. R. O. T. A., stand ing for Blue Ring of Total Absti nence. After the story of these sacrifices, conflicts, and sufferings, it is pleasant to read the last.chapter, where Mr. Charrington appears as Lord of the Manor of Osea. Osea is a well-wood ed island on the coast of Essex. Mr. Charrington purchased it in order to try the effect of total prohibition under fair conditions. The manufacture, sale, and consumption of alcohol are abso lutely prohibited. Stringent condi tions as to intoxicants are inserted in all leases. ‘ Mr. Charrington found that inebriate homes were often rendered ineffectual by drink being obtainable outside. In Osea, people can roam at large for four miles, but they cannot do more. The principal building in the village is the* Convalescent Home, to which it is intended to bring some of the sick and suffering poor. Mr. Charrington’s own home, the Manor House, is a retreat for those members of the upper classes who have fa’llen
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