The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1881-10-26
Dancing a. a sinful Amusement.

A trial that has excited a great deal Of
ieeling has Just been ConCludeda at Erie, Pr II
involved the question Of dancing alta private
party by a member Of the Presbyterian
Church. The facts rs reported in a dis
patch from Erie are us follows:
The trial OF Heber Donaldson, expelled
from the Presbyterian Church at Emlenton
for dancing, is now before the Presbyterian
Synod in session here, and Is attracting
general attention, the church being crowd.
I'd to sutEocation during the progress Of the
case, Donaldson was expelled by the SEES
ing to walk through the figures OF a quad.
rifle at q private residence. He appealed
to the Clarion PreSbytery for reversal Of
the decree, but they refused to grant his
appeal, and he has brought II
up 10 the Synod. His plea oc.
Cupied four hours in the delivery,
but twas listened to with the closest at.
tention throughout. lie claimed that
dancing in itself was not a sin, either by
the lawso God or man; that only its abuse
made ii q sin, and 1t was not charged that
lie had carried II to excess; that the Clair.
on Presbytery erred in sustaining the de.
cision Of the session, in that their decision
was not sustained by the evidence, was
cruel and unjust, involving the making Of
new conditions oil communion and church
fellowship, which are conditions OF saliva.
ton, and In thatthey proceeded immediate
~ by judicial process without having first
resorted to other milder remedies as pro.
ViIp1 in mir hook nf1iaCinlinn
Dancing, he claimed, was sanctioned BY
passages well nigh innumerable in the
Bible, where 1t was frequently used as a
means OF worship. The Case OF Elder +. E.
Black, Of Atlanta, Ga, who was suspended
by the session for permitting dancing at his
home, was cited. The action OF the session
was sustained by the presbytery, but the
Synod reversed 1t and reinstatcd Mr..
Black.
Mr. Donaldson's peroration was one OF
the most eloquent pleas probably ever
made before such tribunal. TWAS con.
else summary Of his position, and a demand
Tor Justice, not mercy
David lawson, lawyer, and Rev. Leason
made eloquent pleas against sustaining the
appeal and maintaining the action both OF
the Presbytery and the session in claiming
dancing to be not only sin but means
oil influencing others to sin. Rev. Carna-
han, OF South Oil City, presented an able
defense Of Donaldson's case In speech OF
about two hours Then the members Of
the Clarion Pfesbytery were allowed to give
their reasons for their former vote against
sustaining, after which they re.
tired and the other members Of the Synod
expressed their views on the case. Nearly
all considered dancing n sin, but some
were in favor OF sustaining the appeal on
account OF the sentence OF the session being
too severe. The vote stood seyenty.three
against the appellant, twenty for and three
sustaining partially. The result was an.
ilounced amid intense excitement, and
Donaldson jumped to his feet at once Civ.
ing notice Nlat he would carry Ills case to
the General Assembly, which meets at
Springfield, Illinois, next May. Nearly
every minister and elder Of the session took
part In the discussion and the church was
always crowded to suiIoCation.
II will thus be seen that the action
Of the session and the Presbytery has been
sustained by the Synod But what now 4?
VIII the discipline visited upon the I'm.
fortunate Donaldson take any wider range
than his individual casef II we are not In
error this matter has been discussed on It's
general merits by several ecclesiastical
bodies in this country without arriving at
a settled policy. II Is little like the to.
bacCo question In some OF the Methodist
conferences: Sometimes II Is settled and
sometimes not In some localities Il Is re-
garied as sinful 10 dance, and In some
Others the matter is ignored. In the cities
We do not hear Of any attempts at discip.
line on account Of dancing, and
il seems as II Il ought to be a. harmful
in the cities as in towns and villages
OF in the country. Indeed we think
that dancing az oftentimes carried
Oh in the cities Is in every way less
feputable and more huftful than in the
country. II Il is an innocent amusement
anywhere II Is so as rule in the homes Of
Tie villages and country places where the
people all know each other and understand
Zach other, and where the dancing INDUCED
ID Il Of the old fashioned sort known AZ
'quare dances. The very fact that cases
u discipline arise in the country, when
hey atise at all, shows that II is there that
Do public sense ofptoptiety is most easily
pliehded. II Is there that conscientious