The Lancaster gazette. [volume] (Lancaster, Ohio) 1863-1886, 1867-05-30

But speak ofgood or not ut all.
---sOS-.-
A Christian View of Amuse.
ments.
BY REV. THEo. L. CUYLER.
The amusement question" has
excited an unwonted degree of at.
tention lately, both in the pulpit
and the press. Among those who
discuss it we find no small diver.
sity of opinion. Several readers oi
The Independent have requested an
expression of my views on some OF
these contFoverted points; and they
are certainly welcome to such Of
my impressions on these points as
can be packed into a brief article.
l. 1 believe in u cheerful relig-
ion, and that the person who keeps
Gods commandments has a right
TO be happy. But, as l said in my
late article on Sunshine" cheer
fulness must come from within; and
a guilty conscience, and ungodly
heart have no right to expect hap
piness, even amid scenes of exu.
berant merriment Ifpeople wo'd
feed and enliven their souls with
pure pleasures, they would have
less hankering for the impure
What fills the ballroom, the gam.
ing-house, and the drinking.sa-
loon? The passion for stimulation
the thirst for gross enjoyments
by those who never taste higher
and purer ones. A healthy heart
no moro Graves such indulgence
than a healthy man requires the
stimulation of alcohol.
2. / believe too that recreation
is needful for the body and the
mind. Wise people seek it wisely.
One finds it in books, another iu
music, another in athletic sports
and on horseback, another in boat
ing, others, like Lyman Beecher
and DIR. Bethune, in fishing rod
and a trout hook. A visit TO
ballroom recreates one man, a visit
to gallery recreates anoth.
er. The comprehensive rule that
l have always preached to my con-
gregation is this: whatever makes
the body healthier or the mind
clearer and the heart purer is
good recreation. On the other
hand, whatever stimulates any pas.
sion is o dangerous and hurtful
amusement. l believe that this is
a safe rule for every Christian con.
science, and for parents to observe
in deciding on the proper rccrea-
ton for their children.
Now, let these two. simple rules
be applied to the theater, and the
character of that amusement be
Judged accordingly. | do not re.
fer to the occasional influence of
an exceptional play upon an ac-
ceptlonal attendant on the ex-
citing performances of the stage;
but to the sum,total of the infiu-
ence of the whole theater-both
before and behind the eurtain-on
its habitual patrons. Does the
play house Of America hdbitudlly
elevate and purify the mind, or
merely stimulate the passions p
Is it sought out by its devotees for
pure recreation, or for mere stimu-
lation? Are Christian parents so
hard-pushed for healthful enter
tainment for their children that
they must take their daughters to
witness the "Black Crook" and
their sons TO listen to the ribaldries
of "Aminidab Sleek p Have Chris.
tians q moral right to give their
money to support an institution
which panders habitually to the
grossest appetites ofhuman nature?
Are conscientious young men made
better, or bad mon and women
made worse, by frequent attend
ance at the theater? These arc
fair, honest questions, to which the
advocates ofthe modern playhouse
must return an answer.
3. The theater must be judged
by its aggregate influence on body,
mind, and heart. So must pro.
miscuous dancing. We no more
deny that there is such a thing as
innocent dancing in many q pri-
vate parlor than we deny that
there is innocent jumping of a rope.
But what are the features of this
amusement that both increase its
fascinations and its dangers, and
have awakened the conscientious
opposition of thousands of our wisest
people? Let me name few OF
them. Many of the popular dances
especially those styled "round
dances"-bring the two sexes into
indelicate familiarities with each
other. They stimulate animal ap-
petites. Both the style of dress
and the movements Of the dance
have a tendency to fire the pas
sions. Again, the deyotees of the
ballroom keep late hours, and in
dulge in midnight convivialities Of
Abo tohla mho oraporat tiona for
an evening assembly commonly
consume great deal Of money,
time. and thought; the participa-
ton in the gayeties Of the dancing.
hall leads to frivolity and passion.
ate excitements; the recollections of
the scenes leave no pure satisfac-
tions ia Q healthy mind. The ball
room is no place TO make q young |
person healthier, happier, or purer;