Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1880-02-20
The Carnival In America.

religious, political or moral. for its ex.
;stence refuses to die out in AL age OF
nropress. it ought to be stamped out.
Particularly ought it to be stamped out
70 obliteration il it leads to vice, ex
trayagance and the kind of folly that is
demoralizing. The observance of the
so-called Carnival, on the days pre-.
ceding the solemn period of Lent, is
one of these bad customs, which is dy-
ing a natural death in the European
countries where it was first established;
but there are certain communities in
this country Of new customs, new in.
stitutions and high moral aims in edu-
cation, in which there are annual efforts
TO naturalize and nationalize the Carni-
val as an American festival, and these
efforts are annually becoming more
ridiculous. 1t is very hard to establish
in new nation silly and vulgar thing
that has had its day in the old nations.
and the most energetic supporters of
the observance of tue carnival in Ameri
can cities are the rum-sellers, the low
dauce.honse keepers, and the class of
men aud women that make living by
the basest kinds of traffic.
The Carnival, as it has existed in
Europe, is of obscure origin. Its vul-
gar and vicious extravagances have
never had the sanction of the Church in
Rome, where it formerly fourished.
Many people consider it to be season
of orgy and riot handed down from the
days Of pagan Rome they believe also
that protracted period of abstinence
from the eating of meat was enjoined
b1 the political and religious authori-
ID in all the countries OF Southern
u Europe before Christianity, u change
of diet from flesh to fish being a whole
some sanitary measure on the approach
of spring. The days preceding such a
season of compulsory abstinence we're
naturally given up to riotous indul-
gence in meats and drinks, and these
days, which were named Lupercalia,
or Bacchanalia, or Saturnalia, gave to
the population some warrant for con-
tinuing the annual riot even after
Christianity had given much more
solemn significance to the long fast, or
Such was probably the origin of the So
called festival of Carnival, or farewell
to meat-eating, which is its literal
meaning, and there is o certain show of
reason or excuse for such time of
riotous indulgence being sanctioned or
tolerated in the dark ages preceding
Christian enlightenment.
But there is no such snow of reason
or excuse now, and there is no pretence
of it in New Orleans. Memphis and
Mobile, the three American cities in
which they have, on Shrove Tuesday,
ridiculous street show that they call
Carnival. The parade is meant to at
tract visitors from abroad, and it is ex-
tensively, ingeniQusly and cheaply ad-
vertised. Thus we find printed in the
papers supplied with news by the As
sociated Press. q glowing despatch
about the preparations for the carnival
parade of February 10Th in New Or
leans, which is expected to be "the
ma1Nbrilliant and enjoyable ever seen
on this continent" The Memphians
and the Mobilians are, of course, en-
ploying their intensest energies to
make their respective carnivals equally
attractive, in the hope that many peo-
pie from all parts of the Union. and
especially the moneyed people of the
North who may be wintering in the
South, will come to see their tinsel and
brass band parade. They resolve that
it shall surpass not only Barnum
procession, but that mighty remnant
OF the days of chivalry called tourna-
ment, which seedy and impecunlous
Southern watering-place employs to en-
tice foolish Northerners to the spectacle
OF valorous knights fitting at muffin.
rings. 1t is time for these people to
learn that the few thousands Of dollars
spent among them by strangers at
Carnival time are not worth hun
dredth part of what would come to
them by honest and earnest effort to
create for each of their cities O good
reputation for healthfulness. enterprise
in business, obedience to the laws of
the whole country, security and freedom
of suffrage for citizens of all colors,
and detestation OF every form of repudi-
alton of personal, municipal and State
debts. Louisiana, Tennessee and Ala
bama are States where reputation,
yellow fever, bull.dozing voters, muir
dering of negroes and defrauding those
who are not murdered, may be called
established and respected institutions.
Each of such institutions needs to be
abolished, if the chief cities in those
States really aim to secure to them
selves even the moderate business
prosperity that will be worth to them
IN money thousand carnivals. But
before undertaking to abolish these. let
there abolish the absurd thing that they
PreWed to say is like the old-fashioned
European carnival, and which has no
more right to exist in the United States
IMAM the old.fashioned European
thrones, feudal Systems and standing
armies, that will themselves have to be
abolished one of these days, and be
stamped out of existence more COM
pietel y even than the Carnival.-PAn-
adelphia Bulletin.
1oung smokers experience many
misfortunes when they begin the use Of
the weed. They are continually pro-
pounding to themselves the following
queries:
Why can that sickly looking little
Jim Fiddler smoke cigar without be.
ing sick?
Why does the smoke all rush up your
nose when you leave your cigar in