Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1915-03-05
BILLY SUNDAYS GREAT
SERMON ON SUBJECT
OF ADJUSTMENTS

No sermon of all those which hay
been 30 blessed of God in the saliva
tiOn of souls through the instrumen
ta''ty "a oily sunday has made
more profound Impression THAI n
vigorous exposition on amusements
Billy Sunday is ball player, a de
voice OF clean sports, but he goes TO
tmusements which he believes have ,
tendency to degrade and to drag dow
in manner that makes people think
The card table, the indecent dance
immoral theatricals get what is com
ing to them in America no man OF
woman need misunderstood.
On this Sunday morning it make
reading we'll worth while. here it is
SUBJECT: ADJUSTMENTS
| Galatians, vi, I: Be not deceived
THAT is. don't let the devil deceive
you), God is not Knocked, for whatso
ever q man soweth. that shall he also
reap
III you SOW saloons you will reap
drunkards. II you SOW cards YOU will
reap gamblers. If you SOW dance
halls you will reap shame. You
| ought to. II you vote for the dirty,
rotten saloon your boy ought to be
be paid in your own coin.
I know of no more suitable text in
the Bible for the topic than have in
hand, and the presence of such a vast
audience and by the expectant look
upon your faces, l am sure that you
won't expect me to utter one word in
defence of the amusement proposition.
And yet If there is no harm in it !
should be the champion of it and not
the bitter enemy against it. Not ali
are bad. l wouldn't say that but
most of them are You know how few
are good and so do I.
SKILL OF THE DEVIL.
But the ener getic skill of the devil
has defied the truth by such m steriy
power that if it is to be defeated there
is but one or two alternatives oepn to
the man who assaults the nell smoked
institutions with grit and courage
One OF two alternatives. He can con-
sumo his energy and time talking
about the minor usages or the po>sib' e
limits one might go. or he car peel
and bark away and show thu thing
full of worm holes and run the risk of
losing his fair reputation.
4 have a message witch burns its
way into your soul and to my heart
My words may be strong; but if they
are. you must remember they are
blOOd-red with conviction. With the
cry of lost souls ringing in my ears,
cannot remain still. If can save one
from going to hell, | consider myself
well paid for all the vituperation and
malediction that you can hurl against
me, because rub it into your pet
skin.
Judged in court of human desire.
| might be condemned by everybody
that wants 10 do it, but judged in the
court CT human conscience and need,
| will receive universal verdict of
approval.
We always associate in our minds
certain Observation-Disclosures, cards
and dances. While some will cham
pion and indorse, some other will
condemn. Some who will play cards
will seek to justify that and condemn
the theater, and those who fall by
their own sinking rottenness. l do not
condemn the theater as an institution,
but do condemn the way it Is run
1t is hellish. And you church mem
bers are responsible for it, If church
members would stop patrOnizing the
theatsrs, they would either clean up
or rot. If every man with his name
on q church roll would vote against
the saloons, we wouldn't have them
1t is up to the church. In my opinion,
the theater is of such doubtful charac-
ter that it has been relegated to the
class of forbidden amusements You
know that the theater had its begin
ming with the handmade of religion
II preceded SO much fuss and trouble
that they were compelled to drop it.
Unless the theater is redeemed, it will
fall by its own vileness
we are flooded with vile drama
that mocks and SCOTS at the sacred
ness of marriage
But the thestel are being displaced
BY the immoral picture shows. There
are 5000, 600 day crowded into
Is, 600 dirty picture show houses in
the land. One hundred million dol
lars have been expended in making
films for you TO watch. Bishop Farley
now cardinal, says he was right when
he delivered sermon in which he
said. The stage Of today is worse
than it was in paganism. There are
shows no man will take decent wo-
man to see. He says the managers
are 70 blame; but if they put on a de-
cent show they would starve to death
The managers say the public wants
these immoral shows Just let the
press say that certain show is i'm
moral and the manager will chuckle
to himself, for he knows it is an ad-
vertisement which will bring the pub
lie focking to tie doors.
THEATER NOT TEACHER.
The theater is not teacher. 1t is
not intended to be educational. but it
| is intended for entertainmant. Efforts
have been made to reform the stage.
but it has always gone dow ward and
like the water, seeks its own ! vel.
There have been spasmodic revivals,
but today the maj ,rity of theaters al,
low any show that will bring money
to be played at the theaters. | would
hang my head in shame, but | have
the backing of all the godly men who
are trying to elevate morals.
we could shut up the thaaters an
you wouldn't miss til I'm in forty -ei Oh,
hours. You wouldn't stand up and
defend a thing because there's lots O.
money in 1t, would you?
The legitimate drama can't live. A
lShakespearean show can't last for q
month. Thepeople will not attend it.
lhu. let God-forsaken leg show star
acro,s the street, and it viii be packed
to the roofs. It's the spectacular tina
appeals today. Take the leg show apt
the spectacular from the. stage ant
the theater would go to rot. You %
to see a musical comedy and YOU will
see girls that haven't enough clothes
on to flag a sandcar, and then the
TRY TO hide behind art That's VIII,
the managers say the public is t.
blame II you want to be dirty ane
low down and 60 to these places IL,
lup to yon But it is because of tbes,
am justified in preaching the sermon
that am.
II Sarah Bernhardt went away from
America with 1914, 200 at tn, end o
. nine-months' tou-. BIT when ,
, preacher makns little money. the,
tcall him a Qfafter,