Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1919-02-03
MINISTER ASKS
CLOSED SUNDAY
. ON ADJUSTMENTS
Or. Calhoun Would Invoke
Law Against Pool Halls,
Movies and Dance Halls
of Omaha.

Sunday closing of Omaha pool
rooms. dance halls and moving pic
ture shows was advocated last night
BY Rev. Paul Calhoun in a discourse
TO his congregation at the Central
United Presbyterian church, TWEEN
ty-fourth and Dodge streets.
Rev. Mr.. Calhoun declared he
prepared the sermon pursuant to
visit two weeks ago to all of the
principal places of amusement in
the city. He said the conditions
which confronted him on his Sun
day night rounds, unhearlded and
unreeognized, had led him to the
opinion that legal steps should be
taken as a remedy for a situation
which was demoralizing to the COM
muHity .s
Il have no word Of condemnation
for city officials. dance hall or
theater managers" he said. Il do
not blame the persons who conduct
the pool halls. My heart was actually
sick when / returned from my visit
20 these places where the Sabbath
was beng violated. | felt like Jesus
did when he beheld the wickedness
OF the Holy City. The Bible says
Jesus wept."
Must Have a Substitute.
The minister declared that before
fhe places Of amusement were taken
away from the great throngs which
visited them every Sunday, some
thing should be given them by the
church people to take their place. :,
Let us hold up Christ to them,
he said. Let us make our religion
SO attractive that they will become
one of us. We should show COM
passion for these persons whose
ewes have not yet been opened. Let
us use the basement of tn IS church to
make it attractive to the crowds
which fill the theaters, dance halls
and pool rooms. We should SUR
round them with hospitality more
attractive than the things when
allure them now. Do not curse
them. do not condemn them. Let
us weep over them like Jesus did.
God Finds the Good.
The minister paid a tribute to
Omaha's rapid strides in populaa-
ton. prosperity, energy and moral
Nv He said the eyes of God sought
sGvavs to find the good that exists,
Goods eyes are on Omaha to-
night" he asserted. HE sees
stirring city of energy, gFowing pop
! ulation and increasing prosperity.
He sees a city rising in selt-respeet
after throwing off the yoke OF rum
rule and submitting to the voice oil
the majority"
Mr.. Calhoun declared he, had not
seen a drunken man on the streets
Of Omaha since his arrival here last
June, and asserted the city was as
clean as far as intoxication was con-
cerned, as any other city in the
country. ,,,,
The speaker Landed Gus Miller
Tor the work he has done in guild
ing and helping the boys of Omaha.
He also said Miss Alta Berger was
deserving credit for her work i'll
the Women's Detention home.
Monuments To The City.
"The Juvenile court and the De-
tention home are monuments to the
city's rapid stride in the path OF
morality" he said.
"Omaha is failing to measure up
to her privileges" continued Mr..
Calhoun. Jesus was with us two
weeks ago when we visited the pool
rooms, dance halls and moving pic
ture shows. We saw every pool
hall filed to Overlooking with play
ers. while the walls were lined with
spectators. The sadest feature OF
all was that most of these persons
we're boys, mere boys, throwing
away their time and opportunities.
The rooms were filled with smoke,
heavy and foul. so foul that when we
stepped on the outside again we
thanked God for his pure, fresh air.
Pictures Not Objectionable,
"The moving picture rooms were
filled also. cannot say that the
pictures were Objectionable. They
were not educational, however I
will not say that they were sugges-
tive or wrong. They were just or
binary. The pictures had nothing
in them to stir the soul to reach
out for higher things, to lift life
to higher plane. They were sim
ply designed to pass away the time.
The minister declared that he did
not see anything particularly wrong
take place in the dance halls. The
music was shameful, however, he
said.
Il went home weary and sick at
heart which thought of the thou
sands of young people who were
throwing away time, declared the
speaker. IF Jesus had appeared
among these crowds he would have