Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1900-03-28

necessarily connected with this Institution
or with that, 1 want to show you how the
| dramatic element in our natures may be
harnessed to the chariot Of civilization and
Christianity.
Fifty essays about the sorrows Of tbs
poor could not affect me as q little drama
Of accident and suffering I saw one slip
| perry morning in the streets OF Philadel.
| phia. Just ahead OF me was a lad. wretch.
| cd In apparel. his limb amputated at the
knee; from the pallor OF the boys cheek
| the amputation not long before. He had
package OF broken food under his arm
food he had begged, I suppose, at the
doors. AS he passed on over the slippery
pavement. cautiously and carefully.
steadied him until his crutch slipped and
he fell. l helped him up as we'll as could
gathered up the fragments OF the package
as we'll as could, put them under one
arm and the crutch under the other arm,
but when / saw the blood run down his
pale cheek burst into tears. Fifty essays
about the sufferings Of the poor could not
teach one like that little drama Of accident
and sufferinS'---
Oh, we want in all our different depart.
ments of usefulness more OF the dramatic
element and less OF the didactic. The
tendency in this day Is to drone religion,
to whine religion, to cant religion, to moan
religion, to croak religion, to sepulcharize
religion, when we ought to present 1t in
What we want. ministers and laymen. is
to get our sermons and our exhortations
and our prayers out OF the Old rut. The old
hackneyed religious phrases that come
snoring down through the centuries will
never arrest the masses. What we want
to-day. you In your sphere, and l In my
sphere, Is to freshen up. People do not
want in their sermons the sham flowers
bought at the millinery shop, but the
japonicas wet with the morning dew, not
the heavy bones of extinct me atheriu;n
Of past ages. but the living reindeer caught
last August at the edge OF Schroon Lake.
We want to drive out the drowsy and the
prosaic and the tedious and the humdrum
and Introduce the brightness and the
vivacity and the holy sarcasm and the sane
titled wit and the epigrammatic power and
the blood red earnestness and the IRE OF re-
ligiOus zeal, and 1 do not know OF any way
OF doing it rs well "a through the dramatic.
But now let us turn to the drama Us an
amusement and entertainment.
Rev. DR.. Bellows OF New York, many
years ago in a very brilliant but much criti-
cised sermon took the position that the
iliary to the church. MANY Christian peo-
pie are of the same opinion. l do not
agree with them. l have no idea that sue
cess is in that direction. What have said
heretofore on this subject, as far as | can
remember, is my sentiment now. But to-
theory. Christianity is going to take full
possession of this world and control its
Inaxims, its laws, its literature. its science
and its amusements. Shut out from the
realm of Christianity anything and you
give 1t up to sin and death.
Ii Christianity Is mighty enough to
manage everything but the amusements Of
the world. then it is II very defective Chris
tianty. Is 1t capable of keeping account
Of the tears of the world and incompetent
20 make record of its smiles? Is 1t good to
follow the funeral, but dumb at the worlds
play? Can it control all the other elements
of our nature but the dramatic element?
My idea Of Christianity Is thut 1t eau aud
will Conquer everything.
Now, what we want Is to hasten that
time. How will 1t be done? BY the churc h
going over to the tteater? 1t will not go.
By the theater coming to the church? 1t
will not coma. What We want is a reformed
town of the United States. Once an
nounced and explained and illustr ted
the Christian and philanthropic capitalist
will come forward to establish it, aud there
will be public spirited men everywhere who
will do this work for the dranati, element
of our natures. We need II new institu-
tion to meet and recognize and develop
and defend the dramatic element of our
nature. 1t needs to be distinct from ev-
erything that is or has been.
l would have this reformed amusement
association having I'm charge this new in-
stitution OF the spectacular take possession
OF some hall or academy. 1t might take II
smaller building at the start, but IL WOW
soon need the largest hall, aud even that
would not hold the people, for he who
opens before the dramatic element In
human nature an opportunity of grati1ca-
tion without compromise and without
danger does the mightiest thing OF this
century, and the tides OF such an in-titu-
ton would rise rs the Atlantic rises at
Liverpool docks.
There are tens Of thousands OF Christian
homes where the sons and daughters are
held back from dramatic entertainment for
reasons which some of you would say are
good reasons aud others would say are
poor reasons. but still held back. Bat on
the establishment of such an Institution
they would feel the arrest OF their anyietles
and would say on the establishment of this
new institution, which I have called the
spectacular. THANK. God. this is what we
have all been waiting for
Now, as / believe that make suggestion
Of an institution which wiser men will
develop, want to give some characteris-
ties Of this new institution. this spectacu-
lar, II 1t Is to be grand social and moral
success. In the first place, its entertain
ments must be compressed within IN hour
and three-quarters. What kills sermons,
prayers and lectures and entertainments
of all sorts is prolixity. At a reasonable
hour every night every curtain of public
entertainment ought to drop, every church
service ought to cease, the instruments oi
orchestras ous 1t to be unstrung.
On the platform of this new institution
there will be drama which before render
ing has been read, expurgated, abbreviated
and passed upon by Il board OF trustees
connected with this reformed amusement
association. If there be in n drama "a SEN
tencs suggesting evil, 1t will be stricken
ous. II there be in a Shakespearean play a
word with two meanings-a good meaning
and n bad neutrality-suspicious. word will be
substituted, an honest word looking only
way. The caterers to public taste will have
to learn that Shakespearean DastIness is nc
better than Congrevean nastiness. You
say, "Who will dare to change by expurga-
tiOn or abbreviation Shakespearean
piay2" I dare. The board of trustees oi
this reformed amusement association will
dare. 1t is no depreciation of drama.
the abbreviation of 1t. | would like to hear
thirty or forty pages OF Millions Paradise
Lost" read at one time. but l should be
very sorry te hear the whole book read nj
one sitting. Abbreviation Is not deprecIn-
ton.
On the platform OF this new institution
this spectacular, under the care OF the very
best men and women in the community,
there shall be nothing witnessed that
would be unfit for a parlor. ANY attitud-,
any look, any word that would offend you
seated at your own flreside, in your family
circle, will be prohibited from that plat
form. BY what law of common sense or OF
morality does that which is not fit to be
seen or heard by five people become Mt &c
be seen or heard by 1900 people? On the
platform OF that spectacular all the scenes
Of the drama will bs as chaste as was ever
lecture by Edward Everett or sermon
by F. W. Robertson. On that platform
there shall be no carouser, no inebriate, no
cyprian, no foe Of good morals, masculine
or feminine.
-AlthOugn q great patron of the tur