Peninsula enterprise. [volume] (Accomac, Va.) 1881-1965, 1904-09-17
might ask Of him, even to the ha'i oi
his kingdom.

Dance Cost Lie Oh oa''
John the Baptist lost his life on ac-
count of that dance. But many man.
not like John, in prison, but IN orcnes-
fra chair. has lost his head, both morai-
lv and spiritually, as the result OF an
Immoral show on the theater Doarus. (,
There may be good theaters. kno"
that some people whom | respect at
topd the tbeater But know there
are also vile theaters. also kho"
some of these vile theaters are at'ehu.
ad regularly by some so called goou
people. And also know that tness
vile shows are the haunts OF spirituai
and physical death.
When I wrote this sermon there ray
unon my study desk a powerful eui,
toriol upon stage Abominations.
lately appeared in one Of the grea.es'
secular newspapers Of the present oay'
This editorial was not written by
minister but by layman who per
bons never enters q church. III salu'
at does not seem possible that Tue
nuhljc will much longer tolerate the
ing inflicted upon 1t from Dehihu 'ne
footlights Of the theaters OF the pres
ent day. Surely the vulgarities anu
indecencies of actors and actresses oi
the present day who substitute ni'n
ond vi,e insinuations for wit and hu'
NOR are not so licensed tnat tney can
he allowed to go on forever without re-
huke The nasty and offensive jokes
tho immoral action and the Language
of the slums and the vile resort are NJ
too frequently forced upon the ear ano
seen in the streets and public places
Of the town without being naunted ~
our faces when we pay good money LOT
: q seat in the theater. II the stage mas
;, become 80 impoverished that 1t must
" resort TO dirtiness and suggestive Vics
t to maintain itself II were better 70
e abolish it entirely as an institution'
8 Then this editorial goes more INTO us'
0 raj, 70 denounce the trend OF the moo,
+ ern theater which blasts the lives OK
t its audiences by what they see as wen
n as hear. Does any man In the race oi
: such a powerful philippe declare that
o thousands and tens Of thousands Oh
J. mon and women every year are not
e morally contaminated by the hitny
$. streams OF conversation which play
s wriehts and actors and actresses roii
II over them in the theaters In the long
p winter nights? The streams OF boiling
It lava and the showers Of burning asnes
It which fell on Pompeii and Hercu-
g ,aneum on that terrible night In ~
y A D.. overwhelming the pleasure seek
l. ing people. were not SO much 10 De
J. dreaded as this torrent OF moral nitn
which is descending almost every
D. night on the audiences in the theatera
l. of our great cities and is bringing then
E. to spiritual destruction.
T. what the watchman Sees.
ell put as n watchman l must not eli
I, , low my eyes to follow only one cias'
>, of people. While the theater auai
~ ences are moving through the sfreeu
- to witness these distorted and offei
.Hc H impossible plays, through the cpE'
"a doors OF the saloons can see tn
= stages on which are being enacted
- scores and hundreds and thousands o.
:, tragedies In real life. Each one
these tragedies is as pathetic as tina
~ of n Hamlet, an Othello, a Merchah
:, =, Of Venice. Each one has more OF pa
:, thos within it than could ever be foun
ne in the misery and woe OF Dickens
"Tale of Two Cities' or Setol
Thompson's Autobiography OF Gril
zlv Bear" In these tragedies or res
- life enacted upon the stage OF I'd
-. saloon we do not always ma ID
", voung men and women led as lambs I
90 the slaughter. But we sometimes M
:, them as wild tigers fighting for the
II Iives when their fore feet have bee
,,r caught in the street traps, or as stag
.lv at bay, for little while holding o
20. the hounds. yet, like mad dogs AT ID
90. sight Of water, they become absoiutel
or helpless ut the sight and smell OF run
ho oh. the tragedies Of the saloons! A
81 watchman on Gods watchtower WI
no can ever refrain from sympathizin
100 with them and shedding tears OF dee
ho est sorrow for them? "Oh, no. e.
rd claims some cynical man, Il nave I
re. sympathy for the drunkard. Ii ma
~ wants to stop drinking he can sto
200 The only reason why the drunkards
tho not stop is because they do not wal
to. to stop" All, my cynical frlenu' "
Tho are wrong. | have no sympathy II
that egotistic and self inflated your
,ot man who to be smart loafs about
o, loon and deliberately cultivates tas
noe for drink. But there are thousands
oo mon who do not want to drink. Int
600 do not know how to stop drinkin
IN They have never yet heard OF L
,no grace OF God which will save them
i'm they would only let him save them. A!
In 90 further than that. | believe the
49, arc thousands of drunkards tonlg
,,h+ who would be willing to take an
I'd and with it cut off their right hands
-oh' they could only be freed from the cur
hot Of drink. They are fighting drink
hat ery day Of their lives, but in their o'
ovo strength they cannot stop. Ana SO
:, ~ night as a watchman on Gods towel
'on see thousands of the finest Drained IN
'hot and women going to destructi
tho through the rapids which head towa
, 70 the awful Niagara Of delirium treme
ho I hear them shouting and cursing a
,,no see them tumbling and fighting and
hrt sisting and yet yielding and goi
I'm, down and down and down. Throu
.orr the lights coming from the open do'
NA' "a A. coIoone 7 GEO these victims he:
ON OF tne saioohe -
srve ing to"aru e'e' ""'
ime "But, watchman," some one as
his "are these all the sights and sounds
,;m death that you see and hearT A
fton alas. no! For while one crowd is p'
hon ing through the Railways and asce