The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1866-10-30
Modern Morality in This Metropolis.

Nothing in any other Christian country or in
modern times has approached the indecent and
demoralizing exhibition at Whsatlsy's theatre
In this city. The model artists are moro re-
spectacle and less disgusting, because they are
surrounded with sort of mystery-sOmething
like veil of secrecy-which women do not
look behind and which men slipin stealthily to
see. But the almost nude females at Wheat
ley's are brought out boldly before the public
gaze. Mixed crowds of men and women con-
gregate nightly to witness this indecent specta-
Gle, exhibited In the most public manner
Fortunately for the credit Of the city there are
many more men than women, and, Of course,
no respectable female, unless she be entrapped
to 20 without knowing what she is going to
see. We venture to say that If the same
grossly immoral exhibition had been made in
Greene street or any other such locality the
police would have felt it their duty to have
arrested all the parties and to have broken it
up at once But because it is on Broadway
and in one of the established theatres they
suffer it to 60 on. The place, however, does
not change the character of the representation.
AS matter of course Wheatley is making
money. 1t is just such spectacle as will make
an excitement and draw those crowds Of loose
characters and people with morbid, prurient
tastes which may be found in all large cities.
Then there are . great many people who
come in from the surrounding country to
get glimpse of this new thing. We must
not, therefore, give credit to our citizens
for being the only supporters Of the shocking
performance. It gets great deal Of support
from the countrymen who come to town
expressly to see the elephant" ANY man who
is base enough to introduce an indecent spec-
tacle in any large city-the police allow
ing him to do so-can certainly make money,
as Wheatley does, because there is always in
the lower and immoral strata of society q suf.
6cient number who want to. SEQ it. 1t is re-
markable to witness crowds going to see the
highest order of art, as shown by Ristori, and
at the same time crowds going to see the most
disgusting scenes. Such is the mixed society
of q great city.
Nothing, as we said, has been witnessed id .
theatre in modern times so indecent as this
spectacle. We can imagine that there might
have been in Sodom and Gomorrah such
another place and scene, such theatre and
spectacle, on the Broadway Of those doomed
cities just before fire and birthstone rained
down upon them and they were buried in
ruins There were, too, we believe, similar
places and scenes in PompeiL just as that city
was buried beneath the eruption Of vesuvius.
We may be saved, perhaps, from like fate on
account Of the many good people there are in
New York; on account of our benevolent insti-
buttons, numerous churches, extensive charities
and enlightenment in other respects; but that
does not do away with the guilt Of tolerating
or permitting such an exhibition to exist as
that at Wheatley's. Our respectable citizens
should cry it down and the police should
arrest all engaged in such violation of public
decency and morality.