The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1900-12-17
lMPuRlTY IN THE DRAMA
s.rmon OF REV. DR.. Jenkins xs-ssr-
day.


mon yesterday forenoon on some OF the
sources OF impurity In life In which he
referred TO the immortality OF the modern
drama. He took for his text Mathew
b-8; BLESSED are the pure in heart for
they shall see God" He said in part;
.sThsre IS nscious affinity between
mankind and dirt. There are only few
usople on the earth who are clean and
who like TO te This Is true as respects
uersonal eleanness and also with respect
to the houses men live In, for the most
part they are not clean, Ii has not heen
found easy to make the minds of men
pure" He went on TO show that mod
ern sciences Is teaching men much regard
ing personal leaniinsss so much so that
there is almost a mania for cleanliness
and OF kind our ancestors never
dreamed of. Urging that the psrsonal
cleanliness about the home secured the
we'll being Of the outward man, be passed
on TO consider the we'll being of the inner
mnn. saying: "a stain on buriap Is
not so bad as a stain on silk, the hnsr
the material the more dishgurins ana
hurtful the spot. A body Infected and
infested Is not 30 bad as heart infected
with impurities. for the hsart Is liner
than flesh.' lie considered the heart
under two aspects, first, as source,
fountain out OF which character and
oonduct comes, and secondly, as the
reiening power in man. He passed on to
notice some sources from which impurity
is introduced into the heart, Parents
Int ha
hearts of their children from the impure
l,ps of others. Microbes lind way and
Judgement in the innermosr parts and
there breed moral disease and moral
death. Impure printed matter on door
steps and halls are receptacies OF putrid
matter for the most part not fit to be ad-
mittsd, 1T only to be burned. Is Is dill
cult to f1nd q newspaper which can safely
be allowed in ones home. II all elfe oan
be endured advertisements are sure to
be intolerable, an incentive to bad
thoughts and bad deeds. Many recent
popular books are of a most question
able character. The moral exposure OF
children Is terrible. They are many
times mora in danger OF moral than OF
physical Infection and often there Is very
small protection afforded them. Some
care should be taken in the selection OF
books for public libraries. More care
should be exercised with the books al
lowed in home. Let Us realize the
frightful exposure of the youth from the
press.
Infection comes from amussments, 1t
is possible that amusement amid the
sanctitiss OF q home may be hurtful.
The Likelihood is such as to dsmand eter-
mai vigilance on the part of parents. Pub
Ito amussments have always been chief
sourc, of impure infection, This is the
verdict of impartial history Impartial
history further declares that among pub
tic amusemeuts the theatre has done
more than its share of harm to public
and personal purity.
DIR. Jenkins said he was not about to
inTeigh against dramatic art aud can
denim all as GLASS Good man and good
women cross the ccsan and extract
much comfort in seeing the Passion Play,
the effect OF which was salutary and
ennobling. Other plays than 1T do the
ike. AT its best 3he drama is almost an
unsurpassed means OF impression and
capable of pure and strong infections.
He went on to speak of the attractions
the theatre has for youth and said that
the Importance of protecting them from
the bad courtesan is TOP potent TO need
mention. Here for the sake OF purity
In youth is opportunity for parents and
guardians to do their utmost by the
way OF example. He went on 10 say that
1t was difficult matter to decide when
IL was best to speak and when to keep
silent, and never more ditti cult than
In the presence OF moral evils for to
speak, is to call attentions to them and
this Just now is more hazardous be-
cause of attention already given in the
better circles OF society. There is an
eager interest In much that pure souls
have revolted from. Even the Durity of
women, 1t is said by those who claim to
know, Ia dimmsd and darkened by un-
wholesome Willingness to run too nigh
to noxious fires.
Directly referring to "Zaza," which
was recently produced here he said;
Certainly IL Ii q melancholy fact, fact
20 be soberly considered, when play pro-
nounosd by foremost dramatic critic
strikingly immoral in its influence and
OF a kind that a mother who was spec
tator with her boys could say she would
not have staid If alone, when such play
gathers for Its audience our best citi-
zens, certainly there is something one
will not say rotten in our Denmark, but
something alArmingIy prophetic as to
the probable impurity OF our youth. The
things that hurt what are they? Not
higher criticlsm, bub an inverted moral
ssnse peryading a country"