Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1915-10-13
I" Amusements" of Society ROundly
Scored by Billy Sunday in Sermon

itself in other WAYS. 1t Is on matter OF
amusement. and that of the trifling kind.
The day is. long past when any number
of serious-minded citizens look to the
thester for Inspiration or instruction. The
legitimate drama can't live. A Shakes
pearean show can't last for q month. The
people will not attend It, but let God
forsaken leg show start across the street
ane it will he packed to the roofs It's
tho spectacular that appeals today. Take
the leg show and the spectacular from
the stage aud the theater would go 10
rot You go to see musical corleoy ana
you will see girls that haven't enough
clothes on t. flag haudcar and then
they try 10 hide behind art That's why
the managers say the public is to blame.
II you want to be dirty and go to these
places it's up to you. But it's because OF
these I'm justified in preaching the ser
men that / am.
Sarah Bernhardt went away from Amer
lea with $274,OOO at the end Of a nine
months tour, but when a preacher makes
little money they call him CRATER.
Cyrus Townsend Brady found only eight
out of twenty-one plays that he would
endcree The only good I can see you do
with the theater is to turn 1t into some
thing else.
! II tie church would refuse to patronize
the theater, the theater would be com
pc lled to sweep its filth from the stage
Booth and Garrick, two Of the greatest
tragedians. would not allow their own
children to 60 TO the theater. Macready,
one of the famous English tragedians,
would not allow his wife or children to
| see a play unless he had first read or
seen it and passed upon IL. as to whether
or not il was fit to see.
Those were men who mad some char
acter to them and left honor and high
STAMP after thcm.
! HOydn said tn 1t only the genius OF
Shakespeare saved the stage from the
contempt of all. An actress said this:
After years on the stage am convinced
that the theatrical business is tho most
corrupt in the world" 1t Is corrupting
educationally, commercially and morally.
Mark of Decadence.
IL is upon tn, charred souls of women
/ that most of the men who are a power in
the theatrical world have climbed to their
height.
| The only way to reform the theater is
20 turn 1t into something else. Israel Fang
/ will rays that the playwright gets up his
production to satisfy the lust of the age,
and not for what good it will do the
world.
Archbishop Glennon said that to 10
night after night to the theater is a
mark of decadeDce. You avoid the pest
house and leper hospital and yet night
after night you'll rush to the theater Ia
enjoy the procession OF moral lepers ex-
posed on the stage for the plaudits OF
the people. The thsater and the church
have nothing in common. The church
gives the people what they need. The
theater gives them what they want
/ We shall reap what we SOW. Sow cards
reap gamblers. Sow the dance and rear
brothcls and outcasts. Sow the saloor
and reap drunkards. just as naturally al
the water runs down hill. / defy anyone
to contradict what cay about the mat
ter. You say; What is the matter with
this preacher, doesn't he believe in amuse
ments?
There Is not a man in Omaha who be
lieves more in amusements than l do
But / believe that they should be recre
alive and harmless and not DESTRUCTIVE
morally intellectually and physically. No
hody believes more in amusements thai
do.