The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1888-04-18


CANT drawing-room, but the street and the
clubhouse ring with their profanities
They have no regard for God, although
they have great respect for the ladies! My
young brother, there is no manliness in
that. The most ungentlemanly thing a
man can do is to swear.
Fathers foster this great crime. There
are parents who are very cautious not to
swear in the presence OF their children; in
/ moment of sudden anger they look
around to see if the children are present
when they indulge in this habit Do you
not know, o father, that your child is
aware of the fact that you swear? He
/ overheard YOU in the next room or some
one has informed him OF your habit. He
/ Is practicing now. In ten years he will
swear as we'll as you do. Do not, O father,
be under the delusion that you may swear
and your son not know it. II is an awful
thing to start the habit in a family-the
father TO be profane, and then TO have the
| echo OF his example TO come back from
/ other generations, so that generations
after generations curse the Lord.
The crime is also fostered by master me-
/ chanics, boss carpenteIs, those who are at
/ the head OF men in hat factories, and in
/ dock yards, and at the head of great BUSH
I ness establishments. When you go down
/ 10 look at the work OF the scallolding, and
/ you find it is not done right, what do you
say2 II is not praying, is II? The em-
/ ployer swcars: his employe is tempted TO
/ swear. The man says:
! Il don't know why my employer, worth
/ $4,000 or 100000, should have any lux
ury should be denied, simply because |
am poor. Because j am poor and depend
| ent upon a days wages haven't as much
right 10 swear as he has, with his large i'm
| GOMEZ"
Employers swear, and that makes so
many employees swear.
The habit also comes from the infrmity
OF temper There are good many peo-
pie who, when they are at pease have
righteousness of speech, but when an
gered they blaze with imprecaiion. Per
haps all the rest OF the year they talk in
the right language, but now they pour
out the fury OF q whole year In one red
hot paragraph OF five minutes ] knew
OF a man who excused himself for the
habit, saying: II only swear once in a
great while. must do that TO clear my
self out"
The habit comes also from tho profuse
use OF hy-words. The transition from
hy-word which may be perfectly harm.
less 10 imprccatiou and profanity, IL not
very large TRANSITION. II Is my stars!
and "mcrcy on meW and good grac.
ious" and "by George" and "by Jovc"
/ and YOU so on with that n little
while, and then YOU swear. These
words, perfectly harmless In them
selves are next door 90 imprccation and
blasphemy 4 proiuse use OF by.worls
always ends In profanity. The habit is
creeping up into the highest styles OF soci-
| ETY.. Women have no patience with Hat
and unvarnished profanity They will
order man ont col the parlor indulging In
blasphemy, and yet you will sometimes find
them with fairy fan 10 the lip and under
chandeliers which bring no blush TO their
checks, taking on their lips the holicst OF
names In utter triyiality
Why. my friends, the English language
Is comprehensive and capable of express
ing all shapes Il feeling and every degree
OF energy. Are you happy, Noah Webster
viii give you 10000 words with which 10
express your cXhiaration Are YOU right.
cOusly indignant, there arc whole armies
in the vocabulary, righteous vocabulary
whole armies OF pronunciation and scOrn,
and sarcasm, and irony, and caricature,
and wrath. You express yourself against
some mcanness or hypocrisy, In all the
oathsthat ever smoked up from the pit aud
! will come right on after YOU and give a
thousand fold more emphasis OF de-
nunciation 90 the same meanncss and the
same hypocrisy in words across which no
slime has ever trailcd and into which the
fires OF hell have never shot their forkcd
tongues the pure the innocent, God-hon-
ercd Anglo-SaXon in which Milton sang,
and John Bunyan dreamed and Shaks-
pcare dramatizcd.
There II no excuse for profanity when
We have such n magnificent language
such "a flow of good words, potent words,
mighty words, words just 20 euit every
crisis and every ease. Whatever bo the
cause OF il, profanity is on the increase,
and il You do not know IL, II Is because
your ears have been hardened by the din
of imprccations 80 that YOU arc not stirred
and moved rs you ought 10 be by profani-
ties in these cities which are enough 10
bring hurricane OF fire like that which
consumed Sodom.
Do YOU know that this trivial use of
Gods name results in perjury? DO you
know that people who take the name of
God on their lips In recklessncss and
thoughtlessness are fostering the crime OF
perjury? Make the name oil God n foot
ball in the community, and IL has no
power when i'm courtroom and legislative
assembly. IL l. employed in solemn adj
juratiOn! See the way sometimes they
administer the oath: "Shelp me God
kiss tho book! Smuggling. which is al
ways q violation OF the oath, becomes in
some circles a grand joke. You say TO
man:
"How is il possible for YOU TO sell those
goods so very cheap? / can't under
stand IL"
"Ah!" he replies, with twinkle OF the
eve, "ihc custom house tariff ON these
goods isn't as much as il might be-" An
oath docs not mean as much as IL would
were tho name Of God used in reverence
and in solemnity. Why is IL that so often
jurors render unaccountable verdicts and
judges give unaccountablc charges, and
useless railroad schemes pass in our state
capitols, and there are most unjust changes
made in tariiIs-taritls lifted from one
thing and put upon another?
What is an oath2 Anything solemn?
Anything that calls upon the Almighty?
Anything that marks an event in mans
history? Oh, mol II II kissing the book
There is no habit, tell YOU plainly-and
/ talk 90 hundreds and thousands OF men
to-day who Will thank me for my utter
ance-I tell you, my BROTHER talk TO
you not professionally, but just as one
brother talks 10 another on some very i'm
portant theme tell you there is no habit
that so dcpletes a mans nature as the
habit OF profanity. You might as well
try 10 raise vineyards and orchards
on the sides of belching Stromboll as