The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1891-03-06
HARSH ON DANCING.
I'd Dancers, Too. Receive Little Mercy
rom a Western clergyman.

From the Kansas citV Times.
The Rev. Frank D. Altman. Of the Lu-
.,ersn church, preached recently upon "The
Modern Dance" He chose his text from
Tcclesiastes, iii, A: sand time to Dance.
Ha said: "In the early ages the dance was
5.yont. appearing in the garb Of religion as
,5s minister of God. The Hebrews were &C
a,stoned to express their religious Joy and
eorction In its rhythmic movements. As a
.lIJgious ceremony the dance is recognized
:; ne scriptures, but as a social amusement
&c noghere approved. So completely has
he dance changed from its ancient religious
shsracter that the church now recognizes 1t
as one Of Its most dangerous foes. ALI who
Tisb to maintain cody life are warned
og.iust its insidious charm.
's..The Roman Catholic church has been
driven by the observed evil influences of the
dance 10 forbid it In many of it's popular
forms The Presbyterian, Methodist, Bap-
,;st and indeed all evangelical churches,
1--WE their testimony TO the perils to vital
sodliness lurking in the surroundings of the
ssociaI dance. Ali dances are not equally
dangerous to good morals. The dance in
tSa home under the eye of parents and
friends, select company, may be considered
less injurious than the public hall. And
vet the dance is condemned without excep-
ION. If it shall ever appear that the dance
leads as many people toward godly life as
Il now leads from it, the church will no
doubt withdraw its protest, but while the
drift is all away from God toward the
world and sin, that protest must stand.
1.-THE dance is unfavorable to intellectual
and social development. The love and prac-
tice of this fascinating amusement supplants
and destroys the love of solid study, good
reading. intelligent conversation, and the
bigher and better forms of social inter
oonrse. Studies in school are neglected,
solid reading is abandoned, the growth and
development of the nobler powers are
STONED. aud life becomes succession Of
frothy. unsubstantial sensations and excite
ments. There Is neither time nor disposi-
tion left for the best work of life. Bring
together company of people accustomed
to spend their time in dancing and attempt
to engage them in intelligent con-
ysrsation and the mental va
cancy will be apparent. An in
telligent lady said to minister on this sub
iect: But what can / do with my companyl
The people of fashionable society do not
read thew are not capable of sustaining an
interesting conversation, and there is no
way of entertaining them but by letting
them dance. This difficulty no doubt ex-
ISIS People usually fad their highest joy
in the exercise of their strongest faculty,
dancing, idle, goddess company is b. ought
together they would doubtless be pleased
with an invitation to use their heels rather
than their heads.
s'The dance requires wasteful expendi-
ture of money. The dance has a large place
IN history, in the work of individual, family
and national degeneracy and bankruptcy.
1t is in close alliance with the goddess Of
fashion, and worships at her shrine. It
emil
apartments, and Hastings on an elaborate
and expensive SCALE The grocer must hold
his bill q little longer, the landlord must
wait for his rent or look in vain for the bird
that has flown, the tailor may collect
his accounts as best he can while
society wrings its demands from its victims.
Take the reports Of one of our fashion
able balls, as they may be found in the
daily papers, and study the question of ex-
pense 1t d,Scredits straightforward living.
1t stimulates the thirst for fashionable life,
for display, luxury. and fast living, which
wrecks mere families morally and finan-
cially than anything.
1.-THE associations of the dance are evil.
1t was nursed in the lap of the wine god,
Bacchus; has kept company with the thea
ter since they were children together, 600
years ago. You may almost always find it
in the lettering Ices of the novel reading,
tllC HAt-O anu OSSI u th0 VI % anu
licentious classes, but rarely may it be seen
10 the assemblies of earnest students, great
thinkers or deYout christians If we judge
it by the company it keeps, you will hardly
feel like introducing your sons and daughters
TO its acquaintance. The best people in So
cety do not dance, aud for the reason that
they think it unworthy of them. In the
lowest and West grades of society the danes
is most popular ana most common; as you
4 rise in the grade Of Intelligence and moral
excellence its popularity and use decline, till
you reach point where it disappears alto
q gether.
1T is unfavorable to the right relation OF
4 the sexes. 1t requires neither brains MOI
q good morals to be a good dancer In
ancient times the sexes danced separately
& Alcohol is the spirit of beverages. So sex
is the spirit of the dance. Take it away
s and let the sexes dance separately and dane
ing will soon go out of fashion. ParloI
dancing is dangerous. Tipping leads t.
drunkenness and parlor dancing leads tc
ungadly balls
"The dance is destructive to christian
life. Many excellent pc pile who are exam
pies of the common virtues may dance, but
the prayerful christian soon finds that h,
must choose between the dance and his re-
llg1ous life; he cannot maintain both
Eighteen hundred years of christian his
tory have worked over and over agar
many of these perpIexing problems, witt
but one result.