The New York herald., 1871-12-17
This Days Interaatiossl Funeral Preccs-

Tsis Days InternatieaaI Funeral Prsces-
sIes-Bqual. Rights Even On Sunday.
Should the weather be favorable there will
doubtless be an immense procession Of the
Internationals and their sympathizing friends
to-day (starting from the Cooper Institute at
one o'clock, in respect to the memory Of the
Communists Rossel, Bourgeois, Ferre and
Cremieux, recently executed in France for
treason. The Internationals regard these men
as martyrs to the cause of liberty, and hence
this procession. We have found very little to
admire, but much to deplore and condemn in
the French Communists. The Commune has
appeared to us only as q reproduction Of
the fanatical, senseless and sanguinary Jaco-
bin clubs Of the first French revolution. Its
blind excuses have arrested the march Of
republican ideas in France, and have caused
reaction In the public mind which points to
the restoration of the empire. But all this
has nothing to do with this procession.
We suppose, however, that from the horri-
BILE doings of the Commune in Paris our Police
Commissioners, when they first heard of this
proposed procession, concluded that it was
project Of seditious and disorderly vagabond-
ism that could not properly be tolerated in
this community on Sunday; and hence their
original interdict. But they soon discovered,
as with the interdict against the Orange pro-
cession Of last July, that there were one or
two little principles involved in this business
which would be maintained, even in New
York, If necessary, to the extremity OF an
appeal to gunpowder. These principles OF
American liberty and equality thus affected
were the fright Of the people peaceably to
assemble" and the principle Of "equal
rights" in reference to these Sunday process
sions. Accordingly, when brought by the
public press to reconsideration of their ver-
million edict our amiable Police Commits
sioners wisely revoked it, and so the process
sion will this day take place.
Many of our pious, ohurch-yoing people
will doubtless be much annoyed and scandal
lied by this proclamation of the Christian
Sabbath. But have not our Jewish fellow
citizens the same constitutional rights in
regard to their Sabbath, which is Saturday,
and do they complain that it is not respected
as the Lords Day by Christians? No; they
are content with the liberty which they enjoy
of worshipping God according to their religions
convictions and usages, and they leave other
sects to the same liberty. The Jews do more.
In difference to our Christian laws and usages
they generally respect both their own and the
Christian Sabbath; when, really, according
to the constitution of the United States, they
are not bound to respect our Sabbath. In
another view of the subject we find that the
universal respect established in this city for
Sunday as the Lords Day is due to the
ascendancy here of the Puritan idea of the
Sabbath but how is it in New Orleans? In
that city, settled by French Catholics, we find
he French Catholic observances of Sunday
established, in the devotion of the day, partly
to church services and party to
military parades, horse races, bear-bait-
ings, cock-fghts, and the amusements of the
legitimate drama, the opera, opera boufe and
the nigger minstrels. The observances of the
Sabbath, then, in this country, are determined
by local laws. customs and usages. The usage
in this city has been perfect freedom to funeral
professions of every description on Sunday,
and, according to this usage and this tolera-
tion, it would have been a bad thing to have
made an exception of these Internationals.
But there need be no difficulty upon this sub
ject of the observances here to which Sunday
hereafter shall be limited. Let the Legisla-
ture, in framing new charter for US, provide
two or three different Sunday laws, and leave
it to the people of the city to choose the law
they prefer by popular vote, or leave our
Sunday regulations entirely to our city au-
thorities, and the whole matter can be soon set
| tied. In this view this International process
sion may do much good in calling the public
attention to this subject so actively as to result
in some definite law relating to professions in
this city and other cities, not only on Sunday,
but on the business days Of the week, and par
ticularly In reference to the streets and the
hours which may be occupied by professions.
| English Speculation In Mourning Goods
A HERALD special telegram from London
makes known q curious incident in the
history of trade speculation in England
When the Prince of Wales was considered
beyond the possibility of recovery, or about
that period of his illness, English merchants
despatched orders to their agents in Paris
1 I.-~.t:~- 49,, - c,~obc.o Co. ~ o;~ ,,.o Al