The home journal. (Winchester, Tenn.) 1858-188?, 1883-01-03
About Dancing.

We have always tried to be honest
and Independent in what we wrote for
the Home Journal. We have tried to
avoid Puritanism in all its phases. For
instance, if VIC should take hook and
line and go angling some dull Sunday
evening, and should catch few fish, to
us 1t would be no sin, no more than il
We were to take buggy ride, or walk
for pleasure. And surely the catching
of the fish would be'no more worse than
the killing Of 4 chicken for "big Sun
day dinner" Our angling would be
nothing like as wicked as to sit all day
idle, telling vulgar "yarns," or tatlling
about the affairs Of our neghbor.
Nothing like us wicked as to worry our
brain about some hard bargain We
would drive with some fellow the next
day. Nor do we think it any more sin
to 60 to circus, or minstrel show, than
to any other place Of amusement. But
we have always opposed what are called
"round dances" Some one will now
cry out: " Honi soft qui nal y pensc."
Well. cry it out. But We want to ex-
tract little from story we read the
Their day. A sensible young man did
not want bis afianced to dance round
dance. She said it WAS graceful excr-
else.
81" Dancing is not graceful" he said.
" 1t looks silly to see grown men and
women, who sbonld carry themselves
with dignity, to get up before the gaze
Of a crowded ballroom, aud comfort and
twist their bodies in every turn of the
dance. You could expect such things
from monkeys or frolicsomc children,
but it looks ridiculous in grown people. |
fla person is not graceful the dance
will never make him so. AS for the ex-
srcise, | admit it is beautiful. But why
not practice it at home ?"
Everybody dances. The Bible tells
# somebOdy-David, wasn't it-dan-
ling for joy, Or something" she asked,
vaguely, not quite certain that she had
gotten the right name,
"Therc are frequent illusions to dan
ling made in the Bible" he admitted.
{ But if you will take the trouble to
ook them up, there is no mention made
If the sexes nlngliug in the dance"
Well, a girl is nowhere if she
Doesn't dance"
"She had better be nowhere than to
&c handed as q piece Of common proper.
y from the arms ofone man to another.
f you could but hear the comments of
ONE Of the men who dance, you would
willingly and quickly give itup forever"
On, they will comment anyhow"
" That is good reason why you
hould give them as Little cause for do.
ng so as possible. A woman who is a
thoroughly modest, refined woman,
you'd not permit, in public, the famil.
lrties from man that she would
brink from in disgust we're he to at.
empt them in private, You see we'll
red, wcll-raiscd young ladies in dane
ng allow their partners to encircle their
'aists with impunity, but were they to
tempt such Il thing at home in their
Nrlors, they would be invited from the
ouse."
"Of course, and very properly. You
ee custom makes it necessary in the
anco. 1t is ridiculous to cry out upon
timc-honored institution that society
pproves."
II do not think custom or society
hould be tolerated that causes woman,
he embodiment of all our purcst and
ighest associations, the ideal that
hould raise men, to descend from her
hrone Of modosty and chastity to the
ommon mingling with the brAinlcss
ops of a ballroom"