They denied
the existence of such a law as I had mentioned, and
I promptly read it aloud to them. The leaders went
off into a corner and consulted. By this time not
one man in my parish was left in the hall. As a
result of the consultation in the corner, a committee
of the would-be dancers came to me and suggested
a compromise.
``Will you agree to arrest the men only?'' they
wanted to know.
``No,'' I declared. ``On the contrary, I shall have
the women arrested first! For the women ought to
be standing with me now in the support of law and
order, instead of siding with the hoodlum element
you represent.''
That settled it. No girl or woman dared to go
on the dancing-floor, and no man cared to revolve
merrily by himself. A whisper went round, how-
ever, that the dance would begin when I had left.
When the clock struck twelve, at which hour, ac-
cording to the town rule, the hall had to be closed,
I was the last person to leave it. Then I locked the
door myself, and carried the key away with me.
There had been no Free Religious dance that night.
On the following Sunday morning the attendance
at my church broke all previous records. Every
seat was occupied and every aisle was filled. Men
and women came from surrounding towns, and
strange horses were tied to all the fences in East
Dennis. Every person in that church was looking
for excitement, and this time my congregation got
what it expected.
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