The evening world., 1919-01-06
New York a Pagan City,
Declares Pastor Who SAN
BrOadWayNeW Year'SEpe.
Tells Of Girls and Men kissing on the Streets
Cites Influenza Epidemic AS
Curse for Our Sins.

just now without the ministers jump
ing on him. and doubtless he only
gave the city what IL wanted in eN-
tending the license for the sale OF
liquor to 2.30 A. VI. New Years Day.
THE real criticism, therefore, is
upon us. upon the people of New
York, that we should want these evil
things. And yet, nay friends, look at
the facts as they were. The Mayor
not only extended the saloon licenses
80 that liquor could be sold until 2.30
A. M--and that really meant all night
in many places--but In announcing
this extension he practically invited
the city to go on drunk.
HE practically gave the official q.
K. to the city's getting drunk. lie
opened the saloons and then gave our
youth carte blanche to go the limit
Have you ever imagined the Wool
worth skyscraper butting headlong
into the Equitable Building through
such an earthquake as that which
laid San Francisco's proud beauty In
the dust? Have you ever imagined
the Metropolitan ToweT crashing !
over on Madison Square Garden some
time when there were tens of thou
sands OF people in there at some
worldly and useless celebration on the
Lords Day?
"Ah. yes; don't worry about Gods
not having the means for judgment,
even In this world! We did not take
very much to heart His warnings
given us through the grat war; and
| here came along a new, mysterious
disease-the infiuenza-that baffied
all the doctors and then swept away
far more OF our people than were lost
In the war! We got off too lightly
for the war here in America, and II
we don't mend our ways some other
| judgment will fall upon US.
What thoughtful eye could look
| upon the scenes that we witnessed
| upon tho streets OF New York during
| the peace celebration, for example
without profound sorrow and grave
| apprehensions for the future? When
/ thousands upon thousands of the
| people in this city took the peace
! celebration simply as an occasion for
! breaking all OF the bonds OF propriety
I IL should have caused the Custodians
OF the moral life of this city to earn.
estly protest: and yet not one word
! did We hear from pulpit or press in
condemnation.
''All up and down our streets VIC saw
! girls stu in short dresscs--Sirls in
| their toons-trooping along with the
! arms OF men around their waists. We
saw men and women, including these
! very young girls, hugging and kissing
each other upon the streets OF our
city. often in posturcs that were dis
graceful.
F"And this was not simply a few
scattered cases OF girls kissing sol
diers and sailors. The night OF the
great peace celebration the streets
were full OF such incidents from block
TO block. Is New York a Christian
/ city or n pagan city, From such
/ things ss these we must conclude tha,
she is the latter.
! And now on the past New Years
4 night the climax in our American
celebration OF victory and peace was
reached. And how was It reached
Not as n godly people should have
reached such a climax with songs
and prayers Of thanksgiving to Coo
for deliverance--but the climax wa;
reached in a wild orgy of eating ana
drinking and evil indulgence. in whicl
millions Of dollars in aggregate wcr,
poured out in riotous living"