The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1881-05-06
The Lime Kiln Club.

"Several letters have come to me
doorin' de pas week AKIN me to define
my posishun on dis queshun of amuse-
ments," said Brudder Gardner, as the
lamps were turned up. "Ebery once
in while dar' am yell fur reform, an
sartin men an women weep an wall
ober de gineral wickedness of de world.
De church pitches into de theater, de
prayer-meetin' whacks away at dancin',
an de Sunday school-teacher tells de
leetle boys dat de circus am mex doah to
perdishun. 1t has bin my opinyun fur
de las fifty Vars dat dis was a wicked
world. 1t was created fur wicked
world. De Lawd wanted it dat way, an
He made it to please Hisself. De Scrip
turs state dat wickedness shall abound
in cherry co'ner of de land; dat men
shall murder an rob an women go
astray dat chil'en shall deny DER par
ents an brudder turn agin brudder. All
SIGH fings am predicted an to be 'spected
an looked fur, an nobody has any
grounds to howl an weep. If dis war
good world we should have no need of
preachers, deacons an Sunday school
teachers. Preachers will tell you dat
man am imperfect, an dat de- Lawd
made him to go astray, an yet dey will
turn aroun' an wonder dat he am not
goodness billed down. {$ s
"Deed, gem'len, but de only better
world dan dis am heaben itself. You
have got to hunt fur wickedness to fin
it. You have got to PREJUDICE de case If
you can make wickedness out of de Jokes
of circus clown or de plot of de ordi-
nary drama. If had to praise God by
fndin' fault wild de world He made an
de people He put we're, Tn afraid it
would be faint praise. De preacher who
can't go to de theater widout feelin'
wicked had better stay away. If he
wasn't on de hunt to fin wickedness he
wouldn't see it any mo- dan de rest of us.
Me an de ole woman kin go out an
dance Virginy reel fur TO hours an cum
home wild clair consciences fur family
prayers. We kin set down to keerds an
not forgit to be honest an charitable an
forgivin'. We kin go to a circus an
come home an flank God dat our lives
have bin spar'd anoder day, an dat we
am still left to comfort de sick an for
give de erin. If gwine to SIGH places
makes preacher feel dat Satan has got
q mortgage on him den he'd better stay
home.
No man airnest in de good cause
wants to fight agin human natur'. Man
am social bein'. He likes to be pleased
an amoosed. Make a tombstone of him.
an he'll soon hate hisself. When see
a man who claims to be too good to
watch circus purceshun pass long the
street l neber work for him widout de
cash in advance. When 1 fin man
who am down on ENDORSEMENTS I doan'
work fur him at all. A var ago, when
mean de ole woman was joggin' ober to de
circus we met q man who said we war
gwine straight to Texas. He said he
would sooner see his son in his coffin
dan in q circus, and he scarf de ole lady
most to death. I kept track of dat
tombstone, an in less dan six months
he left town widout payin' his gas bill,
water tax, butcher or grocer, an he am
no exception in his class Look out for
solum-faced men. Bewar' of de men
who weep ober de wickedness of world
made so by de Lawd fur reasons of His
own. Have no truck wild men who neb-
Der laff. A man widout faults am q
man widout reason. A man widout.
wickedness am man widout argument.
Detroit Free Press. r..