St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1885-04-20
The Moral and Physical Ruin of Thou
sands of Young Men and Women
Wrought.
The Ballroom as the Defler of the
Soul and the Avenue of
Lust.
On With the Dance, the Laughter,
Music, Sp1ced Wines, and
Eot Suppers.
A Short Step From the Dance Hall
to the Graveyard, Which Many
People Take.
Special to the Globe.

|
mage is now preaching at the Brooklyn
tabernacle brief series of Sabbath morn
ing sermons or Recreations, Good and Bad.
| His subject this morning was: Does Dane
| ing Occupy Too Much Place in Modern So
ciety. He eXpounded the third chapter of
| Ecclesiastes, setting forth that there is a
| time to weep and time to laugh, and that
a smile may be as sacred as tear. The
| opening hymn was:
! He leadeth me, Oh. blessed thought!
Words with heavenly comfort fraught'
The text OF the sermon was from Mat
| thew xiv, g: when Herod'S birthday was
! kept, the daughter of Herodias danced be-
| fore them and pleased Herod." Following
is the sermon in full:
1t is the anniversary of Herod's birthday.
The palace is lighted. The highways lead
| ing thereto are ablaZe with the pomp of
invited guests. Lords, captains, merchant
| princes and the mightiest men of the realm
are Oh the way to mingle in the festivities.
| The tables are filled with all the Injuries
that the royal purveyors can gather-spiced
wines and fruits and rare meats. The
| guests, white-robed,
AMOUNTED AND PERFUMED,
I take their places. Music; the jests evoke
roars OF laughter; riddles are propounded;
| repartee indulged, toasts drank, the brain
befogged. Wit gives way to uprOarS and
blasphemy. And yet they are not satisfied.
! Turn on more light. Give us more music;
sound the trumpet. Clear the floor for
the dance. Bring in Salome, the graceful
and accomplished princess. The doors are
opened and in bounds the dancer. Stand
back and give plenty Of room for the gyra-
tlOns. The lords are enchanted; they never
saw such poetry of motion. Their souls
whirl in the reel and bound with the bound
ing feet. HerOd forgets crown and throne
everything but the destinations of Salome.
The magniiicence of his realm is as nothing
| compared with that which now whirls be-
fore him on tiptoe. His heart is in trans
port with Salome as her arms are now
tossed in the air and now placed akimbo.
He sways with every motion of the en-
| chantress. He thrills with the quick pulsa-
tiOns of her feet, and is bewitched with the
posturing and attitudes that he never saw
| before, in a moment exchanged for others
just as amazing. He sits in silence before
the whirling, bounding, leaping, flashing
wonder, and when the dance stops and the
tinlling cymbals pause and the long, loud
plauditS that
SHOOK THE PALACE
with their thunders had abated the en-
tranced monarch SwearS unto the princely
performer, Whatever thou shalt ask of me
[ will give it to thee, to the half of my
kingdom" | am not going at this time to
discuss the old question, Is dancing right or
wrong? but, Does dancing occupy too much
place IN modern society? In my remarks l
hope to carry with me the conviction of all
thoughtful people. Whatever you may
think of the amusement you must admit
that from some circles it has crowded all op-
portunity for intelligent conversation, and
made the condition of those who do not
dance, either because they do not know how
or are not in sufficient health to endure it,
or because they must conscientiously de-
cline, very uncomfortable. You must adj
nit also that with many it has ceased to be
a recreation and becomes a dissipation.
With many it has become such an over
fatigue that you can understand the bewil-
derment of an educated Chinaman who,
standing in brilliant house where for
many hours the dance had been going on,
asked the wealthy proprietor, why do you
not let your servants do that for you?"
Furthermore it will be admitted by all rea-
sonable people that. whatever they may
think of the
OLD-FASHIONED SQUARE DANCE
and many of the professional romps in
which 1 can see no evil, the round dance is
administrative of harm and deserves to be
hurled out of respectable circles.
am by natural temperament and re-
ligious theory utterly opposed to the posi-
ton of those who are Mortified at every
demonstration of mirth and playfulneSs in
social life, and who seem to think that
everything decent and immoral depends
upon the style in which people carry their
feet. On the other hand, can see nothing
but ruin, moral and physical, in the dissi-
pations of the ball room which have
despoiled thousands OF young men and
women of all that gives dignity to character
or usefulness OF life.
Dancing has been styled ''the graceful
movement of the body adjusted by art to
the measures or time of instruments, or of
the voice" All nations have danced. The
ancients thought Pollux and Castor first
taught the practice to the Lacedemonians;
but whatever be its origin, all climes have
adopted it.
In other days there were feStal dances
and funeral dances, and military dances
and bacchanalian dances. Queens and
lords have swayed to and fro in their gar
dens, and the rough men of the backwoods
in this way have reused up the echo of the
forest. There seems TO be something in
lively and coherent sounds to evoke the
movement of hand and foot, whether cul-
tured or uncultured. Men passing the
street unconsciously keep step to the
MUSIC OF THE BAND,
as Christians in church unconsciously find
themselves keeping time with their feet.
while their soul is uplifted by some great
harmony. Not only is this true in cultured
life, but the red men of Oregon have their
scalp dances and green-corn dances and war
dances. would give to all of our youth the
right to romp and play. God meant it OF he
would not have surcharged our natures with
such eXuberance. If a mother Joins hands
with her children. and while the eldest
strikes the keys fill all the house with the
sound of agile feet. 1 see no harm. If
few friends. gathered in happy circle. con-
clude TO cross and recroSs the room to the
sound of the piano Well played l see no
harm. If company OF people, all of
whom are known 10 the host or hostess as
reputable, move round the room TO the
sound of musical instruments. L can see no
harm. for long time tried to see in it a
harm, but never could and probably never
will | would TO God men kept young for
greater length of time. Never since NV
Sehool-bOy days have loved so well as now
the
HILARTTTEs OF LIFE
What if we have felt heavy burdens and
suffered multitude OF hard knocks is II
any reason why we should stand in the
path of those who, unstung By life,s mis-
fortunes. are exhilarated and full of gIee9
God bless the young, They viii have 10
live many day If they want TO hear me
say ore word 10 dampen their arior or clip
their wings. or to throw a cloud upon their
life by telling them that il is hard and dark
and doleful- 1t IS no such thing. You
viii meet with many a trial; but speaking
from my own experience let ne tell you