Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1904-10-03

1
ing through the Railways and ascend
ing the stair of the immoral theaters.
and another crowd is staggering slowly
on with flushed cheeks, hurrying to-
ward the bar behind which liquor is
! sold, which In the end will prove as
| fatal as the poisonous hemlock Quaffed
! by Greek philosopher, see still an
other multitude of death seekers
| These pass me not In rags or with slow
and leaden steps. They are dressed
| for the bathrooms and the low dance
balls. They move in regular step, not
with the tramp, tramp, tramp Of many
soldiers, but with the sliding and
graceful step of the waltz, the two
step, the polka and dances which we
should not and will not mention.
Are All Dances Badf
"Are- all dances bad?" asks some
young girl. us every one dance of
death? Are all our young people en-
emies of Christ and bad who ever
/ visit dance halls" This is a question
which is often honestly and anxiously
put to me by my young people. Well,
my young friend, you have asked me
a blunt question, and l will answer
you in just the same way First, will
say, and emphatically say, that | do
not believe all young people who go
| to our dance halls are Intentionally
bad. 1 believe, yes, l know, some of
them go there without one impure
thought. They go for the pleasure Of
meeting other young people and of
passing an evening in each others
company. In the next place l will en-
| phaticaIly state that believe one of
! the most perniciOus, one Of the most
awful causes of spiritual death in our
| cities today is the dance hall. And in
! support of my second statement l will
say that in all the United States you
cannot find one minister or layman
noted for spiritual or evangelistic pow
| er who is not an enemy of the dance
hall, through and through, out and out.
They all, without an exception, believe
that sat dance hall is the depleter Of
spi' Atual Ia: consequently they are,
ar always WI be, out and out,
t rough and throu,h. enemies Of this
destroyer. this tnsidlo s foe Of spir-
teual life
IS I spoke in II 4rence to regular
the -ay goers, / w speak in refer
ence t. ~ha regule. dance hall devotee.
You never NV i ali your life a per-
son who was & nspicuous for her love
for the dance hall who was at the
same time conspicuous for her devo-
ton to the service Of Jesus. The two
loves do not exist in the same heart.
They are altogether incongTuous. In
the spring Of 1904 / attended one of
the meetings of the amusement conf
mittee'' Of the Methodist general con-
ference. In that committee were a
few who were trying to uphold the
dance. One man, leading lay mem
Der, rose and said, "a prominent pas
tor in the east told me that the very
best and truest and most consecrated
members of his church were those
who were attendants Of the theater
and the dance hail. What was the
reply to that speaker? An argument?
A testimony? No. All the audience
did, both in gallery and on main floor.
was to raise big guffaw Of rtdicule.
The statement Of that lay member
was absurd on the face Of It. Every
one knew that what he said was con-
trary to the testimony OF experience.
You never in your life saw deep spir-
itual conservation for Christ and love
for the dance hall exist together in the
same human heart. The modern dance
is a foe to all spiritual development
| nd no n in tho Chris
tan life.
On the Downward Path.
"Why Is 1t that the Catholic church,
which is SO liberal upon many matters
is so strict against dancing?" was the
question put by a Protestant minister
to a Catholic priest some time ago.
Because" was the answer, Gin the
trace the source of almost every sin.
We have found out by the admission Of
ruined men and women that most Of
the immoralities of a great city or a
country town can be traced directly
TO the dance hail." The dance hall Is
Inc beginning, not the end, Of the down
ward path. Some good people-aye,
many good and respectable people
dance. But it is the place where MANY
: eood people are spiritually destroyed
or spiritually depleted. 1t is the Mace
where we have the spiritual ''slaugh-
ter Of the innocents" Therefore to-
night as Christian Waterman It is
my duty to warn you of the danger Of
entering 1t. Some there are who es-
cape as by fire, but to all the ordeal
is fierce and perilous 1t is the place
in which the enemy Of souls finds his
most numerous victims and exercises
his most insidious power. You who
pray, Lead US not into temptation,
but deliver rs from evil" beware of
entering the dance hall. Beau Brum-
mel was the uncrowned king Of the
English dance hall. He was the Ward
McAllister of his day. But that is all
the history most people know about
Beau Brummel I will tell you his
end. Beau Brummel died in the insane