Bristol news. [volume] (Bristol, Va. & Tenn.) 1867-189?, 1878-10-29
IN THE HAUNTs OF VICE.
Description of t II Elephant
From the TaImage Point
OF View.
New York Worlds Report

New York Worlds Report
It was ten o'clock of a calm, clear.
starlit night when the carriage rolled
out of the bright part Of the city,
down into the places where gambling
aud crime and death hold dreadful
carnival. As the horses halted and ,
escorted by the officers of the law,
we went in, | entered world as far
removed from that which | had al
ways inhabited as is Mercury. There
were no sounds of mirth or outlaws
of laughter. As l moved through
this place / said it is Dante's Inferno.
Not many signs of death, but the
dead were there. Moral corpses
were on the stairways, corpses in the
garden. Lepers met lepers. and no
bandage mouth kept back their
breath. I felt as though sitting on
some island coast against which a
euroclydon had driven a thousand
dismantled hulks; and on each car
cass that strewed the beach had
alighted vulture-the vulture of de-
spair. There we're no larks, no rob-
bins, no linnets, but dreadful, shark
beaked yultures. But l must control
myself. | am here to report. And
first | have to report that the tales Of
Arabian glories, of splendid, sump>
tuous scenes where sin holds sway
are false. l had heard that the fur>
niture in these gilded palaces of vice
were rich unto the richness of the
throne>room in the Tuileries,' that
masterpieces of painting hung upon
carven wallis that ravishing music
assaulted the ear. It's a lie. There
wasn't a painting worth SIS, they
we're mere daubS, choice between a
chrome and a splash of poor paint -
The upholstery? l. had two charac>
teristics, redness and cheapness.-
Music? A few painted creatures
squawking discOrd with cracked
voices to tunelesS pianos. Yes, there
were tinsel and gewgaws; but rich
ness? are beauties? No. However
great the pretence. Sin is always
poor. She cannot keep mirrors, di-
vans, Chickering grands. A mort
gage is on Eer wealth 1t is going
going gone! Young man, you are
a stark fool if you 60 to places of sin
to see pictures or to hear music. -
Listen to Thomas or DOdwOrth, and
you will hear more music in five min
utes than you will find in the DEVILS
hands in year, Come to my house
and | will give you letters of intro
duction TO hundreds of families in
New York and Brooklyn where you
can see pictures and feast your cars
to music. Are men crazy? [ Grid to
myself But [ noticed that music,
even cracked music of these places,
had an influence upon them. 1t has
an effect upon mankind. Let us take
of it, in the name of the
Lord We have had enough minor
strains; give us the minor key. Give
us the double-quick. We want to
drive men into the kingdom of God
with the musical staff and shut out
the devil with the musical bar. Let
US send Philip Phillips, the sweet
singer. and Arbuckle and Morgan |
around the world to teach men that !
music does not belong to the devil.
But have to report that | saw
some things that amazed me more
than l can tell. | do not want to
tell it, for it will pain hearts far way,
but l must. l saw young men with |
with the ruddy health of country life |
stamped upon their cheeks. They |
had gathered in their harvest grain !
beneath Gods blue sky, with the
honest strong hands God had given
them. What were they doing there? |
They had heard how gaily a boat
dances on the edge of a malstOrm
and they were venturing. l saw that
young man when he first consulted |
evil. | saw that it was his first night. |
A look of defiance was in his face,
saying. al am more powerful than
SIM" Then | saw the shade of a
painful reflection passing across his
face. 1 think a soft voice came out
Of that tawdry, gaudy furniture,
to him above the discor-
iant music. But sin triumphed and
ne turned to the temper. [ don't
feel so keenly sorrowful for young
men brought up in the city and ac-
;ustomed to city life when see them
.hus; but pity the young man from
he country. Oh! young man from
he far hills. what have your parents
lone that you should treat them SO?
When you were gathering the harvest
apples down there in the corner Of
he lot where the little brook MUIR
nurs by, did you think you would
,ome to this? Do you prefer this
,razen, painted, grinniug thing to
ha. old wrinkled face which smiles
II sympathy with every one of your
miles. and WOODS when you are un>