without haste, and discussed at home, or in schools, or in teachers' meetings, in one or two evenings. That these hopes have become realities I cannot flatter myself until my attempt shall have undergone the charitable scrutiny of friends, and until the keen eye and keener dart of hostile criticism shall have done their work upon it. But with respect to the element of brevity I am sure that the purpose avowed has been attained. CONTENTS. PAGE 5 9 12 II. HOW THE THEATER IS REGARDED BY THE ROMAN III. THE THEATER AND THE PROTESTANT CHURCHES... XIV. GROUNDS ON WHICH THESE STATEMENTS ARE MADE.. 67 76 CHRISTIANS AND THE THEATER. CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTORY. HE Theater is an institution which has existed THE for many hundreds of years, traces of it being found a thousand years before Christ. Probably never in its history, in Europe and this country, was it, viewed in all its bearings, more flourishing than it is at the present time. Not that the present is a period distinguished by the production of plays of remarkable excellence, for the contrary is true; or that there are many actors of the first reputation, or more than one or two who compare favorably with the brilliant names of a former generation. But in the number of its patrons, the amount of its financial receipts, and the extent of its hold upon the country at large, the Theatre has never been more successful than it is now. Not only is it thoroughly established in the large cities, where it has always prospered; but in "provincial" places large halls and "opera" houses have been erected, and theatrical companies, made up for the tour, perform throughout the entire country; and even in out-of-theway villages a "superannuated" "star," supported by a dilapidated "cast," may be found delighting the rustics, and impressing them with the belief that they have in him a worthy rival of Garrick, or, at least, of the most distinguished actors of the day. When persons from the country visit any of our larger cities, they not unfrequently, unless restrained by religious considerations, propose to attend the Theater, although at home, where well known, they would conscientiously abstain from such recreation. The number of persons of, in general, strict views, who visit this institution more or less frequently, is larger now than it has been for many years, perhaps than it has ever been in this country. The Theater is largely, though indirectly, connected with general literature; sentences, peculiar |