The West Shoiie.
VOL.
-No. 2.
( I. S.nuii.'l niihlldlior,
I li : M i M.
Portland, Orogon, Fobnmry, 1879.
THE SHADOW OF THE GALLOWS.
HY J. A. CKUZAN.
Portland sits awe-stricken with the
black shadow of the gallows resting
upon her. True, the hand of the Gov
ernor has beep laid upon the hand of
the carpenter, and the noise of the saw
and the hammer has ceased for the
present. But still the black shadow
rests upon us. Two young men, hard
ened, desperate criminals, before thirty
years have passed over their heads, sit
heavily ironed in their grated cells,
counting the few days which are left
them of time, and then Eternity !
To me, tho lesson of this dark hour
touches not these two men so much, as
scores of others. It puts itself in the
torn 01 a question, which, every man
and woman in Portland should give
earnest thought :
WHAT CAN HK HONK FOR 111 K YOU NO U
in emits?"
Nay, what can be done for the young
men of Portland ? I mean, those who
arc not criminals now, but are in dan
ger of becoming such.
Young men from the country are
Hocking into the cities. They arecom
ing to Portland in shoals. Reader, put
yourself in the place of one of theae
young men. lie leaves his country
borne witli a father's blessing, and his
mother's kiss, and the tears of a sister
upon him. This young man weeps,
also, as he hows under his father's
trembling hands; that mother's prayer
for (iod's guidance anil protection to
be with him as be goes out among
strangers to carve out his fortune, sinks
deep in his memory.
The city ii reached Men fortunate
than nineteen out oI'imiv twenty such
young men, be finds work. The days
wear away in unwonted, wearying toil.
Each evening he drags himself to bis
cheerless boarding house, or cheap bo
tel. Now, tell me, can that young man
he expected to be strong enough to
sit through the evening in hit colli,
chcerlcM, unadorned room in that
lioarding house, when there is a stm t
full of light and life surging below 1
It is impossible !
He has purchased by the toil of the
day the right to some recreation and
society at night. Where can a pure
young man find that which is suitable
in Portland ? Let me tell where this
young man, whom we are following in
imagination, does find it: He goes
into the street, and looks into the tea
of strange faces, and as he looks he
feels ten times more alone than when
shut up in his cheerless room, for this
truth cuts him to the heart : M0f all
these multitudes hurrying past not one,
not one, cares anything for me !" And
he turns away from selfish humanity
and hunts up and down the shop win
dows hour after hour, and finds there
something to interest him. This be
does for a little time. Hut soon he has
seen all the show-windows, has become
familiar with many faces that haunt
our streets, but has found no friend
nosocicty. His heart bums and bleeds
for that. He must find it somewhere.
He looks about him.
All the homes arc shut !
All the hells arc open !
He has never been within one of
those "dives." He stands on the
threshold looking in. There are mu
sic, gayety and life. There are those
who are social. The pious world has
closed its doors. Hut here comes up
something to meet the demands of his
social nature. He tremble I moment
on the threshold. The beam iioises
and balances on the pivot of his des
tiny. A father's counsels, n mother!
prayers, a sister's tears hold him back.
From the light, and the music, and the
laughter within, hands beckon him to
enter. The beam slowly turns. The
hands of sin so near, grasping the
wants of bis soii.d MtllfC, aie stronger
than those loved Hindi far away in the
country home. He goes in - he is
lost !
Hell has its hand on him now t
In a few years he washes up to the
surface of society a bloated wreck, or
dangles a felon ! Who munlcred him ?
When is the guilt ? Not all upon his
own head. Pari of it upon the re
spectable, moral, Christian men and
women of Portland ! Tell me, man of
homes, was he not as good as your son
ISir Amuim. t1Nfl i.
MO. tu
or your daughter ? Came he not from
a father's prayers and a mothers (earn
Yes. Hut you shut him out, and the
Devil got him !
(iod pity us in our exclusiveness !
Two thoughts :
Part of our work should be to reach
these young men ami feed them so
eiallv. We have not done all our duly
when we furnish a dingy Y. M. C. A.
hall, and hold a prayer meetlnS Thurs-
lay night down under-ground in a
lamp basement. The Devil has his re
cruiting sergeants on every street-
corner, watching every steamer and
hotel-register, that he may enlist these
young men in his service. The saloons,
gambling dens, and lirothels oiler them
on every hand, bright, cheery, well
furnished rooms, music mid sociability.
"The children of this world are wiser
in their generation than the children mf
light." If there were more homes
open for these young men; if there
were more warm hands reached out to
them; if there were less starch and
dignity, and more of the winning ap
proachahillly which Christ had, in us,
there would be less work for courts and
jailois; there would be fewei young
men wounded and dying on our
"Jericho-roads," and the "Shadow of
the Gallows" would not test so heavily
ill Us.
young men in count?)) homes, ill
contented, restless, yearning for the
cxcitcuicnls of the cit lor (Jod's sake
stay where you me ! The city is over
run. Mm Willing to work, but unable
to And It) have walked these streets for
Weeks. There are st ores of Mich men
in Portland Men who an ptunlleet.
Men who dn not get one mewl a day.
Pot everj place there are umo of up
plu ants, Let a men haul in Portland
advertise in Thi Wgft Bmom for a
clerk, and before night there vsuuld lc
a hundred applicants for tin- place.
"Hungei has no law." Starvation
beggary or tiime stands before some
young men already in the city. Don't
add to the number of possible criminals,
young man.
Stay where you are t
I'osiiJksn, 1 1. 1 . .. Kill. 6, isv