The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1852-11-25
bel abuses. Iaci!us noNhsre attsoka thss.

saesla) which does not man plAy .but "a .,..s,,,
ana H. ..sr exhibitions So mu Al for "a aee.,acv
and reableness Of the citation Of apshor,e, i ne
Hartford petition.
The early Christian f' xhsr,. tho scsormers. and
learned ana pi0us aV'r ~ every age Of Christiani
", nave written PiSy 4 sEd patrosised and advoca-
TED thea'rioai repre- Iessations Gregory Nazianzsn
ro'e ssc'ea ui' mas, and had them acted in the
theatres. apo linares, Bishcp of Laodiees, wrote
similar pays 4or the stage, and Theophylact, Arch
Disn0P y. bulgaria, instituted religious plays at
oonsah" Aople. st. Thomas Aquinss, called the
Angenc Doctor, says: Amusement is necessary for
tne fiiage Of human life; bat amongst all things
wn" a useful for the daily conduct of man may
DC reckOned some lawful employments and there
ore the employment Of 90 actor, also, which is
calculated to give solace to mankind, is not
in itself unlswful'' st. Antoninus Arch
bishop Of Florence, Cardinal Bonaventura, Bishop
Of Alva, and Albertus Msgnus, Bishop Of Ratisbon,
defended theasricals, dancing, and other public
amusemepts Martin Luther, the great leader OF
the Reformation, in his CoHoquG MensaIia, defends
the acting of comedies, "whereby," he says, speope
are instructed and admonished every way concern
ing their Offices and avocations" The following
passage from his 1ichgewdehe, Uepsic edition,
1921, pp. 1879 translated by DR.. Pethman, is 80
just ana appropriate and covers the whole sub
ject that quote it at length" In ancient times
The dramatic art has been honored by being made
subservisnt to religion and morality, and in the most
enlightened country of antiquity, in Greece, the
theatre was supported by the State The dramatic
nature OF the Dialogues of Pinto has always been
Justly celebrated and from this we may conceive
The great charm of dramatic poetry. Action is the
rue enjoy mcnt Of life - nay, life itself The
great bulk Of mankind are, either from their
iustion, or their incapacity for uncommon efforts,
onfned within narrow circle of operations. OF
all amusements therefore, the theatre is the most
profitable for there we see important actions when
we cannot act Importantly ourselves, Il affords us
renovated picture Of life, compendium of what
ever is animated and interesting in human ex
istence. The susceptible youth opens his heart to
every elevated feeling the philosopher finds sub
ject for the deepest reflections on the nature and
constitution Of 10 an"
Did our space permit, we might quote a still
longer, and, If possible, still more decided extract
from another reforiner Melancthon in his $ Letter
Reading Tragedy and COMEDY" We might
quote the learned Erasmus, Lord Bacon, Loci
Kames, Edmund Burke, Sir Thomas More, Grotius,
Sir Philip Sidney, Locke, Fenelon, Rapin, Rev. DR..
Beattie, Rsv. DR.. Isaac Watts, DR.. Watson, Bishop
Of LANDAU Rev. DR.. Blair, Rev. DR.. Vicesmus
Knox and Rev. Archibald Alison, author OF 'sThe
Essay on Taste" The following divines either
composed or translated plays, or wrote notes to
plays :-Bishop Frissino, Nunco to Pops Leo X
Cardinal Bibsena, the Abbs Metastasio, Bishop
Still Bishop Christepherson, Dr. Nicholas Brady, the
coa6jutor of Tate in the version Of the Psalms,
Rev. Thomas Broughton, Rev. William Cartwright,
DR., Samuel Coxsll, DR.. Dalton, DR.. Dodd, Bishop
Warburton, Bishop Percy, Rev. Phineas Fletcher,
DR., Philip Francis, Dr. franklin, chaplain to
George III, Rev. DR.. Farmer, DR.. Hackstt, Bishop
of Ltchfeld, DR.. John Hoadly, Rev. John Home,
(author Of "Douglas,'' Rev. w. Mason, Rev Ro-
bert Potter, Dr.. Gloster Ridley, whom Bishop
Louth described a skilful, faithful and unvsa-
ried minister of the divine word" Bishop Welch Dr.
F. WraDgham, Dr. Jas. Plumptre, DR.. Young, author
of the "Night Thoughts Rev. G. Maturin, author
of several popular tragedies, Rev. H. Milman, Rev.
G. Croly, and many others The pious Milton has
written theatrica! pieces, and highly comments
gedy in his preface to Sampson Agonisses. He has
eft behind him one hundred plans of tragedies, and
he vel observes, that 'ithe Apostle Paul himself
thought it not unworthy to insert verse of Earl
pides into the text Of the Holy Scripture"
The silence Of chat apostle and of all the other
apostles, in reference to the theatre which existed
at Jerusalem, Damascus, Ephesus, Antioch, Corinth,
Athens. Tbessalonica, Philippi, Alexandria, Rome,
ard all the principal cities of the Roman empire,
where they preached the gospel, is the strongest
pre.umpve evidence that they did not regard 1t in
the fame light rs the bigots Of Hartford. Every
leading vice and crime is denounced by name in the
New Testament, but net word is said against the
theatre. The inference is obvious
Now, if the drama was unworthy of wholesale
condemnation then, and during the subsequent times
to which We have referred, how much moro q. the
present time when it is purer than it ever was be-
fore, especially in the United States. The Common
Council Of Hartford has, therefore, through ignor.
ance and prejudice acted either upon total misre-
PRESENTATION Of facts, misconception Of the
genius of true religion, and it is to be hoped that
in the wide extent Of the United States, None but
itself can be it, parallel.
CRY RAILRoADs.-The mania Of building rail-
roads through the city Of New York has, at present,