The Caucasian. (Clinton, N.C.) 188?-1913, 1893-05-04

race track. OF all the INSTITUTIONS Oh
gambling that curse or modern life. !
am thoroughly convinced that TINS = tfe
mos. terrible. IL Is carried on day N
and ssay out. year in and year out ana
/ what makes il 50 universal in its power
/ o. touch and destroy life Is the fact fnAs
/ there is not q newspaper pahlsned 'o0Ay
+ In our great cities whose columns are NOS
disgraccd By ths reports Of this infernh
institution. The press panders TO fhe
( agine-s of the race managers, their pro
cran.nes, their races. their results, until
/ II Is impossible for an honest young man
To read the happenings Of the world daily
and not lie brought into immediate con-
tact with the possibility Of entering .
gamblers life.
There are race tracks that are called
respectable. There are those that are
denounced by the papers But they are
all renorted, and the results are thrust
under the nose of men and women whose
lives are the furthest removed from such
IN influence. In the name OF God and or
truth and Of right, in the name OF the
thousands and tens of thousands of young
men ruined every year at the race track,
in the name Of broken homes and de-
bauched lives through the contact OF dis
reputable characters elbowing each other
ct these public assemblies, / arraign
those who are thus debauching the lives
of the innocent public.
In the name of God, ask our editors
who profess Christianity, who profess
humanity, how it is possible for them to
denounce the lottery and the policy shop
and make specially of reporting the
races Every race track is a field OF
blood. and no man can deny it and talk
seriously of life. When men, referring
to the race track, say that its purpose Is
to improve the breed of horses, they lie,
and they know they lie. The breed Of
horses has not been improved by the
race track. The breed of horses is not
being improved by the race track. 1t
never has been so: it never will be so.
The horse which is the product Of the
race track is not an improvement on the
normal animal. He is monstrosity; he
is useless except as a senseless extraya-
gance. Not only is the race horse USE
less to the world; he is hideous to look
upon He is neither beautiful nor us,-
full; he is trained and bred to be all bone
and muscle. The laws of beauty are all
bred ont of him; he is simply trans
formed into an aggregation of legs and
strained neck.
b. POOLROOMS OF THE CITY.
The thousands of young men and wom-
en- who attend the races are ruined in in
fuence and character, and assert, with
cut the fear of contradiction, that no
man who attends the race track and pre-
tends to responsibility would keep in his
employ young man whom he should
meet at the same track. He knows that
he could not trust him with his money.
He knows that he could not trust him
with his business. He knows that the
man who attends the race track con-
stantly will come, and come early, to lie,
to cheat, to swindle, to steal. The only
reason why the man Of respectable name
and pretensions in society, and even in
the church, who attends. the race track
is not guilty of these things is simply
because he does not meet the temptation
or does not have the opportunity.
Gathered all around the race track.
and inevitably SO, are the poolrooms of
the city. These are veritable hell holes.
to describe which is a superfuity. No
man has ever dared to stand up before
rational men and women and give one
word in excuse for their existence. They
pander to the lowest and the vilest. The
results upon character are always utter
ly vicious. The power of these fnstitu-
tons to destroy young men is something
appalling, and the preacher of the Cos
pei who comes in contact with young
men as do in this hall has revelation
on this score that is simply heartrending.
There are from 1000 to 5000 young
men who attend these services. am
brought in contact daily with the lives
Of thousands of young men. would not
give copper for the character of any
young man who has attended a race
track or poolroom or a gambling den
for six months. There is nothing left in
him after that experience. There is no
character by which you can take hold
OF him. have seen them go down, again
and again, again and again, until, sick at
heart and almost in despair, have felt
like giving up the work of preaching the
gospel of love and leading crusade with
sword and torch against those who are
destroying e possibility of manhood
and of life.
l received q letter from Scotland some
time ago asking me to look after a young
man in my congregation. I did. in
terested myself in him. I did my best
with him. It was no use. He was a
liar and scoundrel. and he had not at
tanned his twentieth year He did not
know how to tell the truth, because the
very foundations of truth and honor and
integrity had been destroyed in gam
bling. found young man some time
ago in distressing circumstances. about
to fall into the hands of the law because
OF his extravaganza. I lent him Mon
ey, and he promised everything, and he
kept no promises. He took good pains.
however, to keep the money. haze
sought with tears and prayers and sacri-
ices to save scores of young men when
once under the influences Of gamblers
and gambling, and I have never succeed |
cd In saving one to my knowledge. l |
nave advanced money again and again |
TO keep them out Of Jail and from public
aisgrace, and I have in every case lived |
10 regret 1t. | have never advanced one |
II them dollar that has been returned. |
I he reason is they do not know how to |
tell the truth. They do not know the |
value of money. They have lost their
powers of reckoning from the moral |
point of view.
A young man with brilliant mind and |
liberal education came to the CITY sorna /
time ago. His life had been hallowed |
Dy prayer from his cradle. he had the
Dr1gntest prospects before him. He had
Ine highest testimonials in his pockets.
ne nad the best avenues open for sue
cess but ne went to the races one day.
ne went again; he continued to go. he t
dropped from the race track into the