The Republican journal., 1883-01-11
Christmas Day in Mobile.
A SA1ERNALIA. PLAIN TRUTHS FROM THF
MOBILE REGISTER.

A SA1VRNALIA. PLAIN TRUTHS FROM THE
MOBILE REGISTER
The Christian churcnes celebrate the
natal day of Christ as an annual remind
er OF the appearance on earth of their
Saviour. In the Northern States this
celebration is observed quietly and reh-
giously, in the reunion Of families in gifts
to children, in attendance upon church.
and in the quiet joys that attend religious
faith. In the southern States, and nota-
bly, in the cities and villages. the custom
has been to herald the coming OF the day
with displays OF fire works teasts and
the firing ot guns and all manner OF loud
explosives. These exhibitions are not
confined to those who profess and call
themselves Christians. They are partic-
pated in by all classes, rich and poor,
high and low. TCo often they are ac-
companltd with beastly gluttony and
drunkenness. The license given to emo
ton by the usages Of the day is taken adj
vantage OF by the disorderly and deprav-
ed 10 make a mockerY Of religion ana to
degrade an honorable festival into dis
gusting orgy.
We speak of the exhibition upon our
streets Monday, not because it is eXcep-
tional, but to rebuke habits which appear
to be growing upon the people Of al our
cities and towns. The accounts brought
to us hy the telegraph from other cities
show a wretched calendar of crime.
Christmas Day has been distorted to
the yilcst Of purposes and to CRAFTY the
lowest appetites. We say it without tear
Of successful contradiction that no Chris
tian man, woman or child could have
passed along Our streets to church oh
Christmas Day, or could have visited
from home To home for interchange Of
happy greetings without being jostled
by drunken men and boys, or having
their ears assailed by boisterous, bias
phemous and obscene language On any
other Gay these yiolators Of the law, these
offenders against social decency, would
have been arrested and sent to the guard
house All day long, from morning to
night, young men and mere boys might
be seen rCeing along the most public
streets, screaming in drunken delight at
their own inanity. Negroes, female as
well as male, staggered and shouted in
idiOtic drunkenness. The stencil from
the sidewalks, filthy and slippery with
human bcastlness, was not more disgust
ing than the maudlin speech and vacant
features Of these BacchanalianS Lasci-
vous glances and brutal curses were
necessarily followed by open violence.
1t was common thing to see knots Of
men surrounding a drunken companion
who tiourished a knife or pistol. When
night closed in the unearthly yells of
wandering drunkards broke into the
peace and quiet of homes where children
were being taught to reverence the name
of Him who came to bring peace and good
will to man.
We demand in the name of Christian
people that the peace and order Of this
community shall not be violated by such
q pretended observance Of a Christian
festival. If drunkenness, profanity upon
the streets, brawls and violence are
crimes, they are deeper and graver
crimes on Christmas Day than on any
other. If the law is not sufficient to de-
fend this day from lawlessness and such
depravity as interferes with the peace
and comfort of orderly people, we de-
mand that the General Assembly shall
mako If sufficient