The Olneyville times. (Olneyville [Providence, R.I.]) 1887-1917, 1908-06-05
Of mild entertainment and pleasant

friends and have a pleasant word, but
the men have been seeing their
friends all the week, and now they
want simply rest.
Men have many things in their
lives which furnish them with social
life. and with little balm for their
sore consciences. Tens OF thousands
OF men belong 10 clubs and societies
and lodges. Here they spend their
leisure time and spare money, and
many OF them will single out the
charitable features of these orgsniza.
tions. and will say that their lodge Is
their church. inculcating all that IL
good and beautiful. When any mar
allows any human society TO take the
place OF the church of God In his life
that society has become TO him posi-.
tive evil, and he ought at once TO rec
ogniZe it as snare of the devil.
These societies do good I'm their way.
but in comparison with the church OF
God they are as a rush light 10 a star
OF the first magnitude, as a firefiy to
the sun in all his glory and splendor.
blame these societies for keeping
many men out OF the reach of the
Gospel. for they try TO teach men that
morals are as acceptable as religion,
legiance TO these human institutions
and at the same time believing that
they are serving Almighty God. Men
also have politics TO interest them.
and during political contest IL seems
utterly out of the question TO interest
the ordinary man in anything else
than political discussion. Women
have few societies, and. thank
Heaven, they have no part i'm politics.
Men are more enamored OF certain
forms c. o,s.. sin than women, and
the devil, through these forms of sin.
is winning many men away from all
the influences of the church OF Christ.
Gambling and drunkenness are the
sins OF men, and while some women
also fall into these two classes of sin,
they are the exception rather than
the rule. In many of our American
cities we have one legaliZed place Cor
the sale of liquor to every fifty of our
men. and We cannot tell, nor do the
authorities seem TO care, how many
gambling places there are in our fair
city. But all OF these places live
largely upon the patronage of men.
Now, is 1t strange that We have 50
few men comparatively In our
churches? Men are far more in the
clutches OF overt sin than women,
and that fact must be reckoned with
when you count up the men In the
churches. God pity the great host OF
men in our city who have sold them.
selves body and soul to the devil, and
who have no care about Righteousness
here nor felicity hereafter.
Society places a premium upon the
righteousness, II not upon the posi-
tive unrightousness, of men by per.
mitting the double standard of NOR.
ais. Men do with impunity what a
woman could not do at all If she de-
sired 10 remain respectable i'm the es-
timation of her family and friends.
Now, so long as society, composed in
part OF Christian people, permits men
to be libertines ald drunkards. and
does not make them smart for their
sins, these same men will have but
little regard. for religion. Row can
we expect the libertine to have any
respect for religion when he is made
the welcome guest in the house
where, If the people lived up to their
religion. he would be loathe6?
How can we expect sinfIl men 10
come into the church and gave up
their sins, when the men aad women
with whom they associate % not dis
count them in the least because of the
lives that they LEAD? How different
with women. They must be pure TO
be respectable; they must not fall
once ilto the sin in which their hus-
bands ard brothers riot, for IL they
do they will be scCurged out of soci-
ETY.. ] tell YOU men and women OF
Brooklyn, the social order in which
we live outs prem ium upon the vice
of men. We are respor siole 10 the
extent + our inhdence. ! plead with
the fathers and mothers 10 protect
their daughters. BE as willing that
your son sGolld marry fallen woman
as tfat your daughter should marry
2 fallen man. pIead with the Chris
tian men before me ID refuse their in
innate friendship TO IN pure men, and
un0er No circumstances to allow i'm
pure men the privilege Of social equal
ity in your homes. Not undl Chris
tian men take some such stand will
the men OF our generation realize the
enormity OF social siI.