The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1856-1888, 1877-12-29
The Dancers.

In reply to the Dance of Death we have now
" The Dance of Life" whose author is Mrs. DR.. J
Milton Bowers, of San Francisco. This lady in
her preface speaks of /" a strong impulse to vindi-
cate my sex from its slanderers," as her motive
for replying to the book which attacks the dan
GERS. The persual of the Dance of Life cannot
fail to amuse those who were previously enter
tanned by The Dance of Death" 1t seems a
case where people argue a question for the enjoy
ment of an audience who look upon the disputants
as being both right and both wrong, at the same
time. Most sensible people understand that the
dance is quite innocent and harmless under GER
tain circumstances, and is most wicked and i'm
moral under others ; that, in short, the wickedness
or innocency of the dance must depend almost
wholly on the sentiments of those who take part
in it. Honi soft qui NAL q penSe." Some dances
are evidently indecent; others are not at all so.
Two girls may enjoy the very same dance with
very different feelings; the one. like an angel
upon earth the other, like a fallen angel.'n
This takes place almost every night, IN big cities
like London, Paris and New York, where inno-
cent and virtuous girls amuse themselves by dane
ing in their own homes the very same dances in
which the street bawds engage in some low haunt
of debauchery round the corner. Here. the lover
of good morals may fairly ask Mrs. Bowers a
question Inasmuch as prostitution prevails so
terribly among the female sex in all large cities and
towns. and that dancing VIGOROUSLY forms one of
the grand enjoyments of "soiled doves" would
not chaste matrons and maids, instead of dancing
all night in brilliant bathrooms find a much more
christian occupation, by going out on the streets
and trying to save some of their fallen sisters
Surely chaste ladies ought to do something to
restrain the dreadful impudicity of their own sex,
which forms a hideous feature of all great cities
at night especially when they reflect that it is
the lewd women Of the streets who corrupt the
Young men. The ball costumes of ladies and the
late hour of balls are fair subjects for criticism.
If Mrs. Bowers wants young ladies to dance harm
lessly. why does she not advise them to dance
only in the day time, at seasonable honrs or in
the early evening hour, for a moderate time, and
always with men whose character for honor and
principle is beyond all question. and who are
their own intimate friends. or those of their par
ents? Taking Paris, for instance, we are told
that there was very little. apparent difference,
after midnight, in the aspect of a ballroom in the
Tuileries under the late empire, and the Bal
Nabile. The rakes" of the male gender often
went from the Palace Ball to the ~grisette's ball
later on in the same night. Now suppose some
foolish moralist were to present himself in the
Bal NabiLle at midnight, and say my fallen
sisters, desist, like Magdalen, from your life of
lewdness,' what would those griSettes in all like
lihood reply? Well, We can suppose them dane
ing round the poor man of morality, with baccha-
nalian bursts of laughter, and saying to him
- Why not go rather TO our chaste angelic sisters
who are even now enjoying these same dances
in yonder palace, in the arms of men, princes,
dukes and mobiles, many of whom are our parti-
cular friends ?" We don't mean to hurt Mrs. Bowers
by saying, like the author of The Dance of
Death, - that all the girls who waltz are necessari-
ly lewd girls but we really think that women, who
Mrs. Bowers become the champions of their
sex in this open question, ought also to exert
themselves to stem the torrent of lewdness and
of the fallen women who unhappily
swarm in the streets of the great centres of popu-
lation. Surely, it is time for the chaste matrons
and maids to make some sacrifice even of amuse-
ments, in themselves sinless, in view Of the abuses
Of these same sinless amusements.