New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1857-07-10


community on earth, very large proportion OF our
Boys, and smaller but considerable percentage oil
our Girl, derive little or no benefit therefrom
Here is an alarming evil-who can suggest even
partial remedy
Our Churches, with scarcely an exception, are
glad to welcome to their Sabbath Schools any
clesnly not utterly corrupted child, aud to give to
each measure of instruction in the rudimeuts OF
Divine Truth. Their creeds are very diverse, but
they all come practically to tie same conclusion
of the whole matter" {" Deal justly, love mercy,
/" and walk humbly before Cod" this is the sub
stance Of their teaching, and it cannot fail OF ex-
ertpg wholesome influence on the great mass
Of the recipients; but bow many are they In
our judgment, considerably less than half the
children aud youth Of urCity are receiving any
sort Of ~ stematic religious instruction or culture
whatever. Here is terrible, an appalling fact.
Tie vice, rUfianism and crime so rampant in our
City are but sleDderly recruited either from our
Common Schools or our Sunday Schools, but from
the ranks Of the great army of the ignorant the I'M
guided, the misled.
For, while the mnistrations of good are partial
and 6tfuI, the solicitations to evil are on almost
every corner, and their influence is unintermitte1
"Tle gates Of bell stand open night and day." in
| most literal, practical sense the thousands OF
| ogshops display their varcOlored bottles by
day an their moted lamps by night for the allure
ment Of every passer-by; the pohcyshop, the
| gaming house, bang out their well understood
though equlvocal signs in every thrOnged street,
and the Thousands of brotbes are scarcely draped
| BY even q fg-leaf Of affected decency. 1t is in
! these last that our young mechanics clerks and
laborers finish their horrible miseducatiOn: there
they are taught to scoff at religion, to make sport
Of morality, and to drown conscience, selfrespect
| and reflection in the sparkling bowl. From the
grogs shop to the theater, from the theater to the
| gambling saloon or the brOthel, is the evening
round of many Of our fast youth intent on enjoy
| ment regardless Of cost and on "seeng life"
, The country merchant who is not above such IN
/ dupences is quite commonly dragged through the
| debasinp round by the drummer Of this or that
i iobbing muse anxious to secure him as Gus
toner or to sell BIN la rer and larger bills of goods
But the city "b'hcy"- the youDgster who has
grown up to drink to sport, to frun Win tue
machine"-s almost never innocent O; perfect
knowledge Of all debasing vice., ending N
thorough familiarity with the house Of her whose
steps lead down to the chambers of DEATH
THE TRIBUNE has often been accused Of seeking
"to enforce morality by law'-to "make men
moral by statute" &c in gross ignorance or will
ful misstatement of our often explained position.
What We seek is not the punishment by law of mere
vice or immortality, but the repression Of all tucra-
tire traffic in Other mtns rees. Let the tipper, the
non-proiessional gambler the lecher 60 unwhipt of
justice if you will but let no man or woman make
gain Of an0theI's debasement unrebuked by the
law. There will always be rakes, topers, game
stert; but why should the law permit persons to
pancer for sordid pef TO their vicious appetites
with impunity7 Can it be doubted that the keeper
Of brothel or gaming. house is as realya public
enemy and his ca ling warfare on the community
as il that Of coubterfeiter or receiver of stolen
eoOds7 Why should the one be interdcted ADD not
the other
But here we are confronted by a terrible fact
The great body Of those who make gain of others
vices are active, efficient partisans of that which
vaunts itself the Democratic party. Take any
district in this city which is VIGOROUSLY haunt of
yce-ip which every third house is devoted either
to tipping, gambling or lewdness (and there are
populOus blocks in which nearly every house
Inhabited is haunt of one or more Of these vccs)
and nineteen twenteths Of their votes will be cast
no matter who msy be the candidates or what
may be the question directly at issue-for whatever
they recognize as Democracy Ii tbs Pro-
Slavery slso-as happens now to be the case-they
will support it with hearter enthusiasm, greater
unaDimity; but, even without this extra induce
ueDt, the vote of every court alley, back slum or
tun BILE down row of rOokeries in which Vice holds
its court aid draws revenue from its motley sub
iects, is sure ard strong for Democracy in any
contingency.
Hence the improbability, the moral impossibility,
Of Democratic Municipality ever warning ear
nestly against the dens of profitable or profit seek.
ipg vice. Drive the denizens out of the City, or
immure them in its prisons and you annihilate the
Democratic ascendency. You deprive the party,
in banishng or immurng the tipping keep
ers, policy. sellers, pocketbook suffers, baggage
smashers, blacklegs, pimps, and brothel-keePers,
Of its most efficient canvassers, its most reliable
voters. Whence, then, is there hope Of an extir
patton of the cribs aud dens which are eating out
the moral life of the Boys Of New-iork'
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