THE ALLIANCE HERALD, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 1922. TWO Obr Mtanrr Hrralb TUESDAY AND FRIDAY BURR PRINTING CO, Owners Entered at tht poatoffiet at Alliance, J?K, for transportation through the aa second class matter. GEORGE L. BURR. Jr. Editor SDW1N M. BURR Business Mgr. Official nnmtaner ot City of Alliance: official newspaper of Box Statt Count. Owned and published by The Burr Printing Company, George L Burr, 9r, Premident; Edwin M. Burr, Vice rraaident. THROUGH JAUNDICED EYES. The Dance of Death," a second at tack on the modern dance by the Rev. Mearl C Smith, was slated aa a sub ject for editorial comment in the Tues day Herald this week, but fortunately r Uierwine, the Sidney Telegram, with it outburst of spleen against the Alliance Elks vaudeville show, seemed to be the leading candidate for correc tion and castigation. Thereupon the discussion of Mr. Smith's latest tlia j Box Butte county and Nebrafka are concerned, there is less of this sort of thing right now than in any year which has gone before. Mr. Smith, with his jaundiced views, may not have investigated this point, Just as he de pended on his "authorities" for othet statements in his indictment. He will, if he makes a personal investigation of conditions in Alliance, admit that this city has never been better mor ally. And so it Is safe to assume that other charges in the indictment will prove to be made of the same thin air as the professional seducer charge, so far as they relate to Alliance. In this city dance i close at a reasonable hour. Business men, members of Mr. Smith's nnd other -churches, working men and clerks, stenographers, housewives and ctudents attend them. Were these people dancing every night in the week until the early hours of the morning, there might be' some justi fication for the charge that health and vigor are disappearing like dew before the morning sun. Does Mr. Smith know how many dances there are in Alliance during the average week? Does he know at what hours these dances close? It is apparent that he knows little or nothing of the dance stack of Bibles a foot high. Good taste and common sense should have suggested to Mr. Smith, in compiling his talk, that this one point should be omitted. But apparently Mr. Smith wanted only the most sensational charces. and cared little aa to the foundation for them. This comment is considerably longer than the importance of the sermon series warrants, but tne Herald be- I tribe was placed on the "time" hook ne condemns. He got this idea from for future consideration, lhe Herald allows itself the luxury of bursting but one bubble in each issue, although human natnre is weak and temptation sometimes overcomes. Temptation, be it remarked, was strong in this In stance. However, the knowledge thai Mr. Smith was making little or m headway in his crusade to re-establish the narrow prejudices of a past gen the books which tell of the terrible conditions in New York and Chicago. They don't fit Alliance any more than the old custom of the suttee. W. H. Coleman, school superintend ent at Crawford, is listed with the au thorities to prove that dancing is harmful mentally. Mr. Coleman's figures may be accurate, but the old saying concerning statistics is just as ration, and that plenty of others were applicable here as it is anywhere. lighting upon his defenseless neck, Figures prove anything and nothing, beak end down, as it were, allowed us f may te that of the 30 per cent to live up to our rule. 0f the students classified as dancers, The second in the Rev. Meail C. 43 per cent failed to pass; and of the Smith's series of three sermons against 70 per cent of non-dancers, there were the dance appears in its proper order. oniy 20 per cent who fell by the way As a rule, the charge that this amuse- side. These figures have an imposing tnent is a wholesale factory for the ROund, but even though they be abso tnanufacture of prostitutes comes I lutcly accurate, there is no proof that sJong in the mhldlo of the books on those who failed did so because of the subject, although a few daring dancjn(r. If dancing made these sinful 'writers reserve it for the final appeal, students fail, what vices brought about Mr. Smith, however, makes it the sec-1 the failure of the non-dancers? ond in his series of sermons, and there- To be frank, this sort of evidence is by not only conforms to the precedent exceedingly unreliable. By the same set by the leading anti-dance reform- process of so-called reasoning, it could ra, but saves himself from a possible De shown, for example, that boys and uunioi ongmaiuy. oome u me v.ci-ipris who eat cabbage regularly are gy, we understand, have a feeling that! either mentally superior or inferior to it is almost unethical to be original, the non-cabbage eaters. It could be r to stray even slightly from thelarfiruedanc proved, if Mr. Smith's beaten path. point is regarded as proved that the The Herald has no quarrel with the boys who wear white starched collars Rev. Mr. Smith. It concedes that he are better or worse students than those is undoubtedly actuated by religious I who wear soft collars; or that silk seal. But the gentleman must not be I hosiery and rolled stockings have a allowed to defame and villify a large! definite effect on the grades. Again number of people in this city without 1 figures from one small town are challenee of obvious misstatement and I not conclusive evidence, nor do distortion of fact. Ithey prove anything. Undoubtedly We have, in a previous article, sug-1 '.he dance appeals to the lighter-mind rested to Mr. Smith that in arguing from books written by others, it were well to see to it that the books are up-to-date. It may be further sug 2d and frothy students more than it does to the bookworm type. But it is the rankest kind of logic to infer that because the frivolous students like gested that books should be selected I dancing immensely, therefore all who which bear some slight relation to the like dancing are immensely frivolous, matter under discussion. Mr. Smith will concede that a book dealing with the sins of the geisha girls, or the degenerate Polynesian dances, would not be pertinent in attacking the dance in Alliance. What he docs not perceive, apparently, is that attacks on the dance as found on the old Bar bary coast in San Francisco, in broth- Reformers make untrustworthy au thorities. One of them will tell us that G5 or 70 per cent of the inmates of brothels came to this plight through '.he dance. Another will say with ?iual positiveness aid apparent sin rerity that CO per cent of the ruined girls say their downfall is due to the unregulated movie. Another will say- els elsewhere, in low dives in Chicago that spooning in the parks ruin3 over and New York not only bear no rela ' tion to the .dance as it is found in Al liance, but that he insults the intelli frence of his hearers when he peddles this filth and seeks to give the im- G0 per cent of the girls who are eter nally wt every year. Joyriding in automobiles ruins another 50 per cent. Love of candy, ice cream, silk clothes and other luxuries must rain at least pression that there are to be found in 161 per cent, not to mention the 57 per Alliance similar evils. May be the rev- cent who are ruined through the erend eentleman reiJly thinks that! Demon Rum. Isn't it reasonable to the statements he has quoted are uni-1 suppose, in the face of all these versal in their application, and if so claims, that there might be a dozen we shall give him due credit for sin-1 contributing causes, not the least of cerity, but there will go down some! which might be unhappy home life, black marks for a regrettable deficien- the struggle for existence, and Per cy in judgment. I haps who knows ? the narrow mind -Mr. Smith should realize, before heled views of preachers and fathers to gets his foot in it too far, that Alliance ward amusements that are really inno- is not Chicago or New York. No one will dispute that there have been in tho.se cities unregulated public dances that have resulted much as his au thorities say. Mr. Smith does not say that efforts have been made to clean up these places, just as red-light dis tricts have been cleaned up, and that this evil is diminishing. Maybe the books neglected to state this. Appar ently he has an idea that all dances are infested with procurers, seeking whom they may ruin Such statements as this: "One thing that makes the dance langerous for young gills is that vile men and pro fessional seducers of girls attend dances for the purpose of procuring men; despite the fact that in the past the band has put in a good many days for which pay was promised and never received, and in the face of the diffi culty of getting and holding players in the trying days when no money is com ing in, John P. Mann has made a good start toward a band. H's got a fine bunch of players together, and there has been regular practice. They are going ahead in the hope that they can ieves that In justice to the dancers of rnake P'ace for themselves after they the city, who include among their num ber representatives of all churches all professions and nearly every class of our citizenship, practically all'of the statements made by Mr. Smith should be challenged and refuted.' We do not hail the dance as the greatest blesrung that mankind possesses, but what few faults this amusement possesses, as it found in this city, cannot be remedied by such distortion, such unwarranted inferences and such illogical conclu sions as distinguish the attacks made on the subject. It has been the en deavor to examine all the charges made by the Alliance pastor, and to leny that he has proved his case against the dance as it is found in his home city and as it i3 participated in by members of his own church. It remains to be proved that any of these accusations are justified by con ditions in Alliance. Testimony as to New York, Chicago, Kamchatka 01 Polynesia is incompetent, irrelevant and does not pertain to the case on trial. If Mr. Smith can attack the lance in Alliance with competent evi lence, now is the time to do it If he doesn't, in all probability he will find himself in the position of the col ored boy who yelled for assistance to et go of a wildcat. "Reptiles are not found in the arctic region," announces the Indianapolis News. And the scarcity of polar bears is one of the idiosyncrasies of the tropics. Presumably, there are not marines nough for each country bank to have one. v If the marine on the mail cars keep on shooting in this wild, free manner, train robbing will lose much of its old time charm. A historian says that women ruled the world 2,500 years before the birth of Christ They also have ruled it 1,921 years since. have demonstrated their worth. The band has done its own financing to date. Two benefit concerts have been staged. The first one wan only an in different success from a financial point , of view, and the last one, on Monday I of this week, was a flat failure, with' an audience of scarcely a hundred. The Herald doesn't think for a min ute that John P. Mann is a second Sousa or that there are a bunch of ! players under him who are qualified to go on a European tour. But these men gave a creditable performance a couple of weeks ago and showed con siderable improvement by last Mon day. If the public will get behind them, John Mann will have a darned good band ready to entertain us with summer concerts. We want one, of course, and the only way to get a band is to support it until it gets on its feet financially. There'll be another benefit concert some of these days, and it's up to all of us to show whether we're really public-spirited, or whether we're just bluffing about it Sometimes the suit for breach of promise is the only promise connected with that attempt to marry. ARE WE PUBLIC SPIRITED? Alliance citizens are prone to tell the world that this is a progressive and public-spirited community. There must be something to it, for we havt heard the statement made often by visiting orators who have had les than an hour to discover this mighty- truth. But now and then something happens which makes us stop and wonder just how much foundation there is for this belief. Is Alliance public-spirited, or are there only a few live wires who accomplish enough work to account for the reputation that has gradually spread all over Nebraska ? The last instance that has caused this doubt to arise is the series of ben efit concerts by the Alliance band. There isn't a business man or an or dinary citizen but will say frankly that a good band is a fine asset for any town. Most of us will admit, if w-e tell the truth, that there is just enough of the achool boy and the circus fever in our constitution to make an out door band concert enjoyable on the warm summer nights. Men who art interested in drawing crowds to the city for the business that will ensue will say frankly that a good brass band is an attraction not to be sniffed at, even when compared with horse race3. In fact, there is not only a general re alization that a band is a good thing, but a desire to have one in Alliance. But and here's the rub there is no organization that is willing to step out and sponsor the financial end of it A day or two of work, and there would be a sufficient fund pledged to enable the Alliance band to get needed music and whiD themselves into shape. It's no soft snap to organize a band with out public support. The expense if pretty high. Even with fair pay for all engagements, it's a losing game for the players. The band players put in much more time" than they draw pay to cover. Despite the fact that there is no assurance of support from the business Until the next war scientists and en gineers will devote themselves to peace. There's unselfishness for you. If poison gas is barred from civil ized warfare something should be done to bar poison propaganda. Explorer Stefansson says the win ters in the arctic are but little worse than those in Montana. How could they be? . In addition to abolishing poison gas in international clashes it might be well to oust it from political campaigns. A perfect day is experienced mostly by those who work nights. Leather is now so cheap that even the cheaper grades of cattle are found in it Washington's Spirit Guides This Bank Washington achieved undying fame and the gratitude of his country by his adherence to those principles of liberty and freedom for which our Constitution stands. The Alliance National Bank is a sincere admirer of his princples and a firm believer in the fact that the welfare of the people is the welfare of the nation; that the interests of the people, are the interests of the nation the city the community. In this spirit we offer our services to the people of Alliance. Alliance NationalSBank Reduction In Price of the Dependable BEATRICE We are pleased to announce a very substantial re duction in the price of this wonderful Cream Separator. No. 43-A guaranteed capacity 550-600 lbs ..$73.00 No. 48-A guaranteed capacity 750-800 lbs. $83.00 The BEATRICE is positively the most economical machine to buy. It will pay for itself several times over during the many years of its satisfactory service. ALLIANCE CREAMERY CO. cent, but in which fanatical eyes see nothing but disgrace, death and eter nal damnation. Because some weak boys and girls, men and women, without proper moral training and lacking in stamina, at tribute their downfall to the dance, is not adequate proof that every other dancer runs the same risk, nor is it acceptable logic to argue that if there were no lance, these weak brothers and sisters would never get started on the primrose path. Isn't it at least possible, Mr. Smith, that the morally weak would still find opportunity to go wrong if dancing were prohibited! The charge that comes from Dad Elliott, the great Y. M. C. A. leader, innocent girls and bringing them to I that the aftermath of every university moral ruin," are absolutely unjustified I dance is a flocking to the vice resorts, by the facts in Alliance, and Mr. Smith I is an outrageous calumny, a nasty in- thould be politely but firmly invited I suit to fully half the students in our to Drove his case so far a3 Alliance is I colleges, evangelist luiiott or our concerned, or else explain that he is I Mr. Smith, would not dare to make it misrepresenting the facts to an Alii anc audience. Shoot Roger, or give up the fowling piece. Aa a matter of fact, there-were hun dred of thousands of prostitutes in before an audience of college men and women. Alliance parents whose boys and girls attend the university know that this statement is absolute tommy rot. Recall the boys from Alliance, the country before the era of modern I and see if you can believe it, even If a Jaw daarcs, aad M far as AillaB I thousand eranseusts took oata to itoa Imperial Theatre 2 DAYS Feb. 28, March 1 Matinee and Night Xt2liiiili"' L.W,-' Mil mm 1 1 'A. TALE OF LOVE AND LOVERS IN A NEW ART FORM COMBINING DRAMA . PAINTING. " POETR5T AND MUSIC. Has ta.k-cn America- Jbf Storn H ProcUimodL in Eighth AtL . . .. FiciuniaiioE emooayins tne stow a trie motis itav 6F the same title with i elected Orchestra of Symphony Placers., co tixosderi&A down the ices bocaoso It is so hujna.rsl II t 1 w r&oStor TrxxiUr., t p 6reitcat' 'Pocticle ever seen on incf'e4 C03-Owing to cost Jenfftli of production incL ironbocuLdL contracts VtyDraEi&Kmw1Ubestara ttfeatiua fostckss theitre prices.' PRJCBSjr Adm. 22 and 50c & W. T. )Nl'N1',,','''i v.