New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1920-04-26
Hirshfeld Hiding
Facts About Vice,
Says DIR. Straton
Declares He Will Explain
Norfolk Crusade at Proper
Time; Assails Churches
for Lax Fight Upon Evil

The Rev. DR.. John Roach Straton
took occasion again last night to preface
his sermon on vice conditions with
bitter fling at Commissioner Of Accounts
Hirshfeld, before whom the clergyman
has refused to appear as witness in
the vice investigation the Commissioner
is making at the request Of Mayor Hy-
Ian.
"If Commissioner Hirshfield and the
present city administration think the
attention Of New York can be diverted
from the main issue by their pitiful eff
fort to dig up something on me from
Norfolk, Va, they are sadly mistaken.
These things only tend to confirm the
impression that Commissioner Hirshfleld
and his fellows are more intent on COW
ering up the facts than turning on the
light" said DR.. Straton.
The Norfolk incident, details of which
were made public by Mr.. Hirshfeld, was
one in which DR.. Straton retracted GER
tain statements he had made about the
District Attorney of that city in the
! course of some vice exposures he made
while pastor of the First Baptist Church
of Norfolk.
Speaking last night from the pulpit
Of Calvary Baptist Church, in West
Fifty-seventh Street, DR.. Straton de-
clared Mr.. Hirshfield was engaged in a
desperate effort to "get something on
me-"
"Mr. Hirshfield has even gone so far
as to say that my recent activities here
are born Of desire to increase the sale
of my books. 1 may say, for his infor
nation, that had nothing to do with
the advertisement of my new book on
The Menace of immortality in Church
and State which appeared in the news
papers recently. They were inserted by
my publisher" the minister declared.
when the time is right for it l pur-
pose giving the real facts in regard to
the Norfolk matter and Mr. Hirshtied's
connection with it.
In his sermon, entitled "The Rclg
ious Responsibility for the Deplorable
Vice Conditions in New York." DR..
Straton said his recent tour of dance
halls and resorts in the White Light
district had impressed him with the
fact that these places existed because
the church was not on it's job.
Il saw in those dance halls more
young men ana women, locked IN eacn
others arms, dancing and drinking I'M
til after daybreak, than were in ali the
Protestant churches on Manhattan ISL
and on Sunday morning. THIS is be-
cause we are sitting at ease in Zion.
Even now, facing the wonderful oppor-
tunities for church work that summer
time affords in New York, the Protes-
.tant churches are letting down.
"Multitudes of their members are
packing up to be gone all summer.
Many of the churches will close their
doors entirely, abandoning all lines of
ministry. We will never accomplish
anything, in New York so long as we
over-emphasize the vacation idea
II wonder what proportion of the
modern church members would stay in
New York if plague struck the city.
The poor people have to stay and suf-
fer and die in the stuffy tenements,
while we imagine that we must go
away and fan ourselves in the noun
tains and at the seashore, loll on hotel
porches, play golf and teach our
daughters to dance the tango"