The Washington herald., 1908-03-23

The Duty of the Church.
Ministers OF the gospel in the Nations
Capital gave their congregations much
food for thought concerning the Bennlng
race track and the busy gamblers who
hock there
Rev Frederick D. Power, pastor CT the
+ Vermont Avenue Christian Church, per
haPs led all the others in the art of
portrayins the evil Of the Benning meet.
The large congregation that heard his
denuRciation Of the race-track gamblers
had no trouble in understanding the sit
uation as il exists at Benning.
Dr. Wilbur F. Crafts, OF the Intsrna-
tional Reform Bureau. spoke for ten
minutes at each Of half dozen churches
on the Benning situation, the Metropoli-
tan Methodist Church and the First Pres
byterian in the morning, the First Con
gregatiOnal in the evening, and in the
afternoon at meetings OF the Y. II. c.
A and the W c. T. L.
BenniDE Il Described.
Rev. Dr. Power first described Ra,n,ne
as little suburb across the Eastern
branch. He added.
Benning il today center Of attraction 70 the
most VICIOUS and aEiess eisss IN Amersea Beuninr
IS our nearby entrance 70 the bctrouleSS Sft ,<.
ning resolves today. New York papers sef Us hun
dreds OF bookmake-s and bIacklegs Ehc have be,
driven out Of the Empire State sy Gov. Hurbes .n5
who vii set up IN fun siSbt Of the big I'd tH
where they belong. the betting rlng ard rrOeeed 70
neece the public
some q Us WlA remember when this heilish tus
ness vas carried al seEeuth street and F7o-,da
avenue, and then il driven 10 the soush end ~
the Long Bridge. NoT II is intrenchsd Al Rspnsnr
me business Al Bennins IS sznbins-plzin. vulzar.
ai'Hfiisaea eoulnoHpiaoe. ciIninsl gzDalins In
p7o'ins the breed Of horses Is TIE eupheuizn for
dEartng and canning the breed Of men. Round
and round the horses 60. ard out Of the houper a.
rha sWifr machine earae tie b,utsd - -. -.
dissolute life the defantsr tse thief TIE srsesae
ne u1aIaersT. ruined men. sgssrsd Eonez. wretced
lftis children
Recalls story of Dante.
Of Dante the hoys and giris would say win awe
as they saw him walking The street Of F1orenre.
There IS the nan who Ees seen heIr'' hsre seen
men who were in he'll. One visited ne AZ the las-
spring meeting AZ Bennins- He had cone al the
way hon Brooklyn 70 play the noes be had stolen
money frum his mother. PIT aside for sacred pur-
Iose, and had left his wife and children without
bread. that he might share IN -mrrcving the sreea
q horses" He had been Heecsd and skinned. He
tod me his story. and saufsed and wept. and de-
eiaTed he loved his mother and wife and children.
He'd On I said. you mistake. You uiSunds--
stand yourself You lie 70 yourself. as you did 70
hg Tor mother wife OF children. You czrs
more for the Improvement Of ho-seaesh than yrs do
for your oEn flesh and blood
He was in he'll. that man; and again the DIT Is
oDen for those who choose 10 ssu into II
The speaker told OF the story OF
Tranby Croft and its great gambling
scandal seventeen years ago. when Sir
Willam Gordon Cumming was charged
with Tipping one Of the counters Of the
first gentleman OF England with his finger.
10 add 10 his gains; the trial, and how
the charge was proven. and the multitude
cheered the victim and he Immediately
welded one Of the fairest daughters OF
America, with $1,000 year!
Al one time the gambler was mere blackiez.
sVindler. sharper. a l0E-oroFed criminal uu.Snov7
To virtue OF shame creature SINK 80 low in the
I
gtnce become more cunning. wholly given over 70
dishonesty, trickery and lying with no rzr-pose but
u irap he unwary and rob and piIiage as a common
pirate or highUAyrnan To-day, princes indnlSs IN
this sin; merchants with earnest faces and cr1-4sr
ways and pews in leading churches; fair Eonen al
legged ChristAn women The rsces or in thar rar-
lors: even churches. b rafinz devices votes ard
lottery schemes viii cultrste the black Az a. the
oiAoSles Yet, from the craps players IN Washing
ton aey 70 Trsnhy Croft. from the church OF c1nfF
far 70 Monte Carlo from BsuninE 70 Baden Baden
Il Is the sane 81
AssOetatfons OF Vice.
! DIT. Power discussed the inevitable as
sociations Of this vioe-drunkenness. IL
centiousness. blasphemy. lying. conten-
tions, murder, despair, suicide.
Walking ore sunday Afternoon IN the outsSir4, q
Kansas town. with a friend he cslled nv s.ts--
tion TO a cemetery. That Is Boot Hin he aid
What Do you mean BY Boot Kill Wei" sid
my f1enc. IN the early times this Was & Ersat
gathering place for cowboys They disposed Of Their
cattle and then gamhled away their money IN a
looms QuaTrelsd and fought. and 1t was not uncoza
mon for two OF three men 70 Be csrried oct every
night anG buried ever there, with their boots on
So % cal that Boot Hill - CbarErS q dis
honesty and fraud swearing aad rrc7fni-ation
malice and hatred then the knife OF sun-a
gamblers grave ard a gamblers hell
In ten years II is said 2e0o persons have con-
, mitted self-murder through losses az the gaming
tables Of Monte Carlo And II the suicide IS not
hy violence IN a moment, drink Is sought 70 drown
the memory and bury the record Manhood and
woaanhood wrecked boys and Young men made
thieves and defsulters; honcrabie men having lost
character and seirespect. 60 down 70 dishororabie
graves and become the gain oi the arch gNmesser.
Satan.
Young men do not rave to shoot their mothers 10
heczJne their muriersrs. husbands do not have 10
stab their wives 20 death slay then; fathers DO
not have 20 beat cut the brains Of Their little ones
with the 6indgeon % destroy them Many mother
death By murder more cruel and dastardly. shame
sorroW, ruin come 10 palace and cot alike through
this baicful infunity.
The Duty Of Society.
What IS the duty Of society to blisht Ike that q
Beuaingi Let law. the strong Of the law, tA-os-
tie t. Let the be laid at the root Of the t7oe
WHAT is the purpose Of law For what does govern
meut exstg Is Il not the duty Of government 70
make II easy FOR nan 70 do righs and hard fo-
him 70 do vroEs2 Speaking Of the saloon the sr-
pFeme Court declares; Legislators cannot bargain
away the health and morals q the pe0ple. The
people themselves cannot do H. sin less their serr-
ants Government Is established Tor their preserrs-
ton"
The police of the District of Columbia. TIE Cen
( missiOaers II the District Of Columbia. the Con
gress which is the common council 0f the nations
Capital the President himself EA0 is a ciiizeu of
Washington and the Chief Magistrate Of = mighty
nation which Is threa.ened With dishonor-al should
protect this city from the abcnnafiou and desoia-
ton which IS a. ifs Eatrs.
Then the church should set her face Ike aint
against this crime. and the school and the hrns
Continued On Page 3, COlunn &