Virginian-pilot. (Norfolk, Va.) 1898-1911, 1900-01-16


the morning service, and at night Rev.
a. Coke Smith. D. D., preached. Both
made appropriate references to the
great work the Union Mission is doing
in the city. and eloqucntly appealed to
their hearers to aid 1t in every possible
way.
AT THE ACADEMY.
The service at the Academy of Music
was held under the auspices of the Y.
M. c. A. Mr.. II. ~. NIeacham. the gen
eral secretary. presided. There were
more than one Thousand people pres
ent. The invocation was made by Rev.
Charles WI Petit, ex-Mayor of the city
An excellent musical programme. par
ticiTated in by Mrs. Fulford. Mr. ]. r.
Fentress, Professor Womersley and Mr..
Lumley. The devotional exercises last
cd an hour and were deeply spiritual.
Secretary Mcacham and Rev. Harry
Walton, superintendent of the Mission,
took up collection for the latter. real
izing quite 4 handsome sum.
The feature of the occasion was an
address by Mr.. John Philip Quinn, the
rescued gambler. who was introduced
to the large audience by Rev. H. IL.
johnson, D. D., pastor of Queen Street
NJ. e. Church.
Mr.. Quinn's reputa ton had preceded
him to Norfolk. AS q rescued gambler,
who is devoting his time and talents to
n crusade against gaming. under the
auspices of the Anti Gambling Assocl-
ation of the United States, he is we'll
known, and his large audience was not
disappointed in expecting Il word
painting of the gamblers life He had
hahi ind ftea
was talking about and illustrating his
remarks with frequent exhibitions of
gambling paraphernalia. He demon
Stra ted that he was an expert in
handling gaming devices. and how COM
n'etely ut the mercy Of the operator
was the opera tive. whom he not incor-
rectly termed the sucker"
Mr.. Quinn's remarks at times were
Thrilling, and he held his auditors. many
of them gamblers and patrons of the
game. sDellbound. He charged that
gamblers were responsible for the
downfall of the majority of young
women, who abandon home and WRIT
for dens of iniquity and life of shame
He related the visit in New York OF
party of Christian women to a house
of bad repute, and their prayers and
talks with the inmates. and how. as the
visitors were taking their departure. the
woman who kept the place said:
Ladies. now that you have been here
and done what you could for these
girls. let me give you n word OF advice.
1t is this:
Go home and pray with your faith
ers, husbands, brothers and sons to do
their duty. and fewer girls will find
their way to such places as this"
A VOTE.
DR.. Johnson, In his Introductory re-
marks having referred to the police
department. Mr.. Quinn here referred
to the law furnishing gambling. and
took n vote to see how many in his
audience would sign a petition to the
Legislature, now in session. to make
gambling n punishable, offence, re-
gardless of the amount of money lost
at n sitting. Nearly the entire audi
ence rose when the question was put
Mr.. Quinn then invited his hearers to
call at divers old stand. No. 249 Main
street, where he has gambling para
phernalia on exhibition, and sign the
petition, saying that the vice could
easily he suppressed here If the people
willed 1t and the authorities would do
their duty.
AN OBJECT LESSON.
An impressive object lesson of the
meeting was the exhibition by Mr..
Quinn of the suit of convict's striped
clothing worn by him in prison. Tie
related that while he was n gambler
he was arrested seventeen times while
he persued gambling; that notwith-
standing that he was guilty of the
charge sixteen times he was acquitted
whereas he should have been con-
victed and sent to prison, but that the
seventeenth time he was innocent. but
was convicted and given n term OF
three yeors' Imprisonment. Then it wac
that he had recourse to prayer that
his innocence might be made clear
His prayer was answered. After serv-
| ing a year in prison he, with others,