The Portland daily press., 1891-07-02
Sunday Concerts In the Psr.,

~ U6 EutJOT V We ffeSS:
An editorial in your issue of June 3Oth,
criticises the action of two Christian En-
deavor societies for protesting against band
concerts in Deering Park on Sundays. The
objection of these societies and very many of
our Christian people to sacred" concerts of
this kind is that they are not sacred. You
mention the evil OF church ehoirs, and with
most OF your statements in this connection
can heartily agree, but | can't imagine a
church committee who would allow such
tunes sung In our churches for the worship
Oh God as are played by the bands at Sunday
open air concerts. However, conceding that
church choirs In general are all wrong, does
this make band concerts right? Your own
argument against church chOirs Is no defence
but rather a reflection upon band concerts.
Your criticism of Sunday school anniversary
exercises Is, believe, unjust. think, as q
rule, these occasions are decidedly uplifting
morally and spiritually. The Christian peO-
pie OF our city ought to be extremely solicit
GUS regarding our Sabbath. They see very
plainly in these excursions, concerts clam
oakes, &c, managed by non Christians usn-
ally solely for gain and not out of love for
humanity, an encr0achment upon and a
breaking down Of the Lords day OF rest.
You make plea for the laboriDg classes,
who are grinding at toll all the week and
need recreation Of this character on the Sab
bath. believe the best friends of the la
boring classes always have been and always
will be those who are striving to emulate the
example OF Him who Is "a friend that stick
eth closer than a brother"
Sunday band concert on any OF our pub
tic grounds will draw together q noisy hOli-
day seeking crowd, as it does inevitably Ia
all cities. The cause Of Christ and humanI-
" VIII not be advanced but the influence Of
such occasions Will ultimately destroy the
sanelty and quietness Of our Sabbath, and
we shall In time be like many European and
result very much to be deplored by espec-
tally the laboring classes. | have the ut
most respect for the honorable city commit
tee who have this matter in charge. They
certainly are not actuated by self interest,
Dut are acting from sincere motives think,
however, they ought to be made to see that
the aston Is wrong and should be rec0nsid-
ered. don't want to be crank or bIgot
put am In the utmost sympathy with those
VINO protest against concerts of this charac-
ter. V n Foes
lAll that the PRESS has had to say on this
subject has been said upon the assumption
that the musical selections were to be OF
kind generally recognized as suitable for
sunday The PRESS has not asserted that
church choirs are wrong. We have stated
the facts in regard to them, or
some OF them, merely to point out that
the line OF argument that would
condemn band concerts on Sunday per Sc
would also condemn the singing Of church
choirs or of many Of them. Mr. Foss has
misinterpreted our allusion to Sunday school
concerts. We had no intention OF critlcising
them or Of denying that their tendency is
elevating. We intended simply to point out
that the entertainment feature was proml-
nent In them, but we had no idea of con-
demning 1t. We expressly admitted that
band concerts might be the means Of assem-
bling noisy crowd. In which case they
should be abolished, but we by no means ad-
NIT that that Is their inevitable result or has
been their usual result. If the Boston papers
are trustworthy, the people who visit the
Common on Sunday to listen to the band
concerts there behave with perfect propri-
ETY.. Furthermore we have not suggested,
mol ever dreamed of doing so, that opposi-
tlon to Sunday concerts Is proof of blgo-
try or crankiness. We should be quite as
reluctant as Mr.. Foss, to advocate anything
that we believed would tend to continental
lise the Sabbath or make 1t mere holiday.
but 1t has seemed to US that a band concert
on Sunday afternoon, properly guarded,
WOhAA NV hofO tbds bCuuCDCls We IQdY DH
wrong. Mr.. Foss thinks we are. and so do
the authors of the resolutions elsewhere
printed. His and their opinions are entitled
to weight. and the protests Of the latter
ought to have serious consideration from the
city government. We shall try and give
everybody who desires 1t chance to express
his opinions on the subject, with view to
having the matter decided rightly. One
word about the resolutions adopted by the
Met1odists so far as they relate TO the PRESS.
1t Is not quite fair to say that the PRESS Is
championing these band concerts. It has
merely submitted some considerations tend
ing to show that they would not necessarily
be productive Of evil, and that the people
who were inclined to look upon them with
favor were not necessarily careless Of the
sanctity Of the Sabbath. There Is doubtless
growing tendency to secularise Sunday.
which Is to be deplored on economical as
well as religious grounds, and certainly we
shall not wilfully strengthen that tendency,
Ii Sunday concerts are likely to have that
effect that ought to be a conclusive argu-
ment against them. But in every city there
is large class who do not attend church.
and who drift about the streets or 90 on ex-
cdrsions to the islands or neighborlng towns
where the amusements they indulge In are
frequently entirely out Of keeping with the
day. Sunday concerts would, 1t seems to us,
appeal to great many of this class, and fur.
nish them kind Of pleasure which would
be satisfying, and at the same time not out
OF harmony with the day, provided Of
course, the musical selecLions were sneh as
are generally recognized as appropriate to
h Q day.
L AiOhIand q aafIn In q