, 1879-06-16

ment moro infectious than the plagnc." Tho
tafno historian tells III TINT when Aiheatrn nae
nelng built under direction 81 Tue censor', scipIo
snnkc nRafust It IN The honse % lsaelcts mud
dchat1chfnE experiment, ani got an order for
pulling It down.
VnArtus Maxttnna aays: "Tho theatres Of
the Stats frat buahed and then fled for thctu
Seneca tays: "Sotlling IA 70 pcrnfciosis to
gnol uosats as 10 l,c prcscDt at these .puctaclcy
lnn pleasura''lc e'nolons which tey cxrtc:
From s,ie'l scenes depart moro ambitious airt
luxurious than betorc.r And ngstn b. CHARGES
the tI'catfc o. having produced the cxtrava-
Ranre md lebauchery 1T the nRe.
What did ,l's early ChrIstlau rsiers think Of
The theatrct Clement, OF Aicx.'.irla, snya:
"T'he c!rcHs atd The theatre may not iinpr0ner
y be called the chair Of pettllencc. Away,
which arc but i!nportinonces at THO best" IT..
Augustine calls thc1trcs cagcs Of uncleauncss
and public schools Of tcbauchrry..
Modern Christian writer's rive the sasle tcstl-
"1hc Devils Chanel, a nursery Of I!eentiou..
ncss md yicc,-a recreation which ought not 10
BE- allowed among civilized much less Chris
john Wesley in 1901 wrote to tho Mayor aud
corporation Of Bristol aRalnst tho erection OF q
theatre In The town. flo wrote a. follows:
1.-THE present stage entertainments not only
sap the foundations Of all religtont but tend 10
uElQkll1k HuA ASphHEueI5 VI EfetJ hIuu "k1Cu
arc constant stteudauts upon these entertain
mcuts.
William rrytno published In 1893 0tnrso
volume Of mora thau thousand pagcs closely
printed, entitled THE pIayers' scourec." The
the hook: s.I. contains catalogue Of authors
ties against tho stage, which comprises erery
name Of emipence ID tho htathen nut
Christian world. 1t comp'ehcnds The united
Testimony Of tho Jewish nnd Christian Churches,
the deliberate act Of fty.four AMBIENT mud mod.
crn councils md hynot1s, the condernnatory st-
lencc OF scventY-one ancient fathers mud 15l
modern Roman md protestant authora.'
But sumo toll US tint Vodern tlleatrcs are an
rend about Tie plays called "fho Frensh @ spy," vi
mud "Mszeppn." and +" Hack Crook,n and ak
nessins tein. HsK saeh ones abons s ths charas e
ter Of these pfnYs have menttoncd, md they
will teyou of The grosse5t ElolatIons Of 1ecency,
ind those who support such plays pav pre-
MUM to abandoned females for tlo!r indecent
performances.
"But there arc thcatrcs Of higher grndcl''
30 thcFe arc. | admit all that. An Intelligent
gentleman told me not long since TINT ho had
attended on several occasions what IS claimed to
be the highest grade Of theatre in Now York.
"For several evenings" sail he, ~ was pleased,
not an impous word Was uttered, AMI the mural
was fine. ! attended the sano theatre another
evening, and WAS d!sEuetcd." and that In q the
est toned Of any IN the city,. The tfcatrc makes
q wreck Of religion, md schools it's attendants
iu profanity. In tho days Of Addison he H.
nentcd tl,At curses nnd tmprccatlons woul1
Ecuptne beauty And Yrtuo drooDed dead from
Tho actors' llps. 1t is 80 to-day. Whoever
looks at the text OF The popular comedies will
find them ovcreEowdcd NTH profane utteranc-
ca, and many of the actors nrc not satisfied With
the number. OF oatts put In the text. They OK
tenporiza them.
!. is statsd, on good authority. that tho loca-
tlon Of theatre II any part ot laEee ctty Is
sure to change the character of the tlcighbor-
hood. DrlnkinE-saloons arc multiD!frt+ The
faTo-bank takes tho paco Of the merCllantfa
countcr; tbs private house Is ttirned fnto
baEnio: and thu n hole neighborhood is infect
cd, and good peopie fec with their families MS
from plague. auch arc tho facts IN regard TO
the theatre, and yet men still talk about re-
forming Il. 80.
How often Il has been tried. Mr. Brady, OF
but gave II up Id despatr. shc.idan Knowles
was celebrated dramatsat from Belfast. lie
had tsicd for years to reform tive draHss, and,
failing, abandoned tho staGa and became a
Bantlst preacher.
Such failures remind us Of Pol1ok's words:
The theatre was from The very HrBt
The fnvorite hnunt Of Sin. though honest mc',-.
so%S s,'y ysry h99nest, e t., wlse' I. and worthy nen
And sot perhaps It might. but neyer was.
As have never bad my pcrscnal acqunint-
anco NTH an actor, l will not give any uplnlon
| OF mT oTn on 50 delfcato d question, hut will
sst that as class. Will, few e1ccptso,.s, actors
n5c disreputable. Livy Baye that ennul0n play
ers werc expelled from the tribe and nc. allowed
| to bear nslnB. The Lacetcmontans wtutd mot
stances. III the Thcodocian Code p!asers arc
called Persons mhlEned mud blcMi&lcd tn rcptl-
| tntion," Ono Of the leading secular journals OF
Now York Clty hometlme since contained ihis
dramatic profession tp ttts country to-day re
| persons who arc very pruperly dobarEcd from
respectable society" Tho late Dr.. TAYLOR
Lewis, Of unton College, says: "Actors
regarded as q reputable class in socioty.", Even
! the infIiel Rosseau gaFo tic same testimony {:
u ! observe 10 general tlat the situation OF the
motor is stasu Of Righteousness mud bud NOR
nr,d that the women lead scandalo.s llycs.'
"rnttlng together In ono Glass;" Says MI en-
inent divine, vail gamblers. clrcus.rldcrs, net
ors, and raclng jockeys, pronounce the.n to be
men who 1.-Two oil soelety without returning aly
| equivalent tor thclr support. 1t 10 within the
| knowledge OF all that men who cater for public
nicaaure are excluded from respectable aocicty.
| In the support Of such persons a Christian an.l
industrious pcopc are guilty Of supporting nero
mscheinakcrs, men WAosa Vary hearts are dis
cascd altt whose surcs exbale contagon to all
around them. We paY moral Rssassfns to stab
tho purity OF our chlllftn. We warn them Of
]
bsistlo With sp!kea md thorns OF tho worst
temptation"
This Is tho testimony OF great man, and the
question conlronts lis, low Christian with
nuy slow OF consistency support the theatre by
even the sanction Of Ills occasional presence
and we may nj we'll meet this question uow.
We will answer 1t In tho words Of Or. Cuylcr,
Of i,roo!slYp. .....l
lie says: II hayo legal right to do many
! things which as Christian cannot do. | have
legal right 10 take arsenic Or swallow ssrycil
! I[na, but have no moral right to commit self
destrucuon. / havs legal right to attogl ttle
I lhe4trc,-ao policeman stands Ut thu door tC
| exclude Mc,-bu. have no neral right to gc
There, because 1 may see and hear u,uch tint
may soil tny memory for days ami months, aut
bccause that whuto EarnisAed atd Eltttcrtug
establishment with ils sensuous attractions Is tt
many = youug man thu yawn!Hg Ilaolstronl o
perltt!on. The dollar which g1ye ut tho box
office is my contribution toward sustaining nr
establishment whose dark foundations rest o,
tue murdered solt.s OF thousands OF NY fellow
men. Their blood stains It's walls, and fror
that plt they have gonr down to smother ol
where no sounds ot nirth eycr come. Now
ask what right have I to euscr pfact
whera the tragedies that arc ptayet
before me BY pniatad women and dts
Aoluto men 0ro as nothing to ths
tragedies Of lost souls That are enacted In son''
parts Of that ho,1se every night! What right
| tuvA 7 fu txfu y fT,nH . FFH tT