The weekly clarion. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1863-1882, 1874-07-30

to disturb divine worship. 1t therefore
becomes matter of very serious consider
alton for good people, what IS and what
is not divine worship in Massachusetts,,
and in the last volume of the judicial re
ports of the State, just published, we
find an amazing definition oft
1t seems that Madame Fetal, worthy
dame who lived in the city Of Charles
town, under the shadow of Bunker Hill
monument, broke her leg, or was injured
IN some such way, in an accident which
beteI horse-car of the MiddleseX Rail
road Company on the afternoon of Sunday,
| September 6, 1868, in which she was RI
ding as passenger In a suit brought
by her against the railroad corporation,
| to recover damages for her injury as
caused by their negligence, they set up
| IN their defense that she was travelling on
the Lords day; to which she reioined
that the allegation was true, but that
she was travelling lawfully TO attend di-
vine worship. And the parties butted
and rebutted and surrebuted until the
issue was refined to this That Dame
Fetal could recover damages for her leg
if the service which she was travelling to
attend were services for divine worship !;
but otherwise, under the benefcent laws
of Massachusetts, the careless corporation
would go scot-free.
The case was tried on this narrow issue.
Madame Fetal, it appeared, was spir-
itualist, and usually attended public reli-
gious services, conducted by ministers of
her faith in her own neighborhood in
Charlestown But on this particular
Sunday afternoon her Westinghouse was
closed, and, looking around for some
other place to worship, her eye fell upon
the newspaper entitled the Banner of
Light, and fixed itself on an advertise
ment of a camp-meeting to be held in
Maiden, at which "Miss Laura Ellis
would give physical manifestations in
tent, to which an admittance fee of twenty
five cents would be charged" The rail
way of the Middlesex Railroad Company
runs to Maiden, and Madame Fetal was
duly conveyed to the camp-ground in the
cars of that corporation, and then and
there attended the services conducted by
Miss Ellis, the nature of which was testi-
fed to be as follows: "Miss Ellis was put
into a box with her hands tied music
was heard coming from the box and
when it was opened Miss Ellis was found
with her hands united, and ring that
had been on her finger was then on the
end Of her nose. 1t was on her way
home from these services that Madame
Fetal broke her leg The counsel for
the Railroad Company argued that this
was not divine worship, but was an ''idol-
atrous show" and was adapted not to the
edifcation but to the disturbance of
serious people. The jury, however,
found that it was divine worship, and
gave Madame Fetal s., 900 damages for
her leg. The questions Of idolatry and
jugglery were atterward gravely and ex-
haustively argued before six judges Of the
court of last resort by eminent counsel
on both sides, and the court, after solemn
consultation, refused to disturb the YER
dict.
We merely call the attention Of such
of our readers as reside in the good
State of Massachusetts,, or are inter
ested in its affairs, to the fact that if any
body had blown post-horn, or gathered
seaweed, or hoed potatoes in such way
as to disturb Miss Laura Ellis while she
was in the box, whether the ring was on
her finger or her nose ut the time the Of
fender would not only have been liable
to the ordinary penalties for the violation
of the Lords day by unnecessary and I'M
charitable labor, but also to ''imprison-
ment in the jail not exceeding thirty
days, or fine not exceeding fifty dollars,
for disturbing divine worship Let sum
mer visitors to Massachusetts heed and
beware.