The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1876-02-17
The sabbath q Purely Jewish In.
RiilufI0n

nhNuAAohs
From Communication in the Chicago Tribune.l
There is yet one argument against the
idea that the Sabbath Of the Jews ha.
descended to Us as religious Obligation,
which when properly considered sh0y'
its absurdity more clearly than Scripture
quotations and analysis can, Its are
ductio ad absurdum of the whole doc
trine Of a sacred day. Imcan the BUSH
ness or compercinl argument. At pres
ent l can do little more than suggest It or
give II in very general outline, or rather
/ can but give the data, but every man Of
ordinary sense and judgment can draw the
conclusions for himself. The devotee Of
the Sabbath will probably not deny that
the Sabbath law made no. distinction In
favor Of classes or occupations. 1t was
equally binding on all; and the Jew,
wherever he might be, or in whatever en-
gagged, was bound to observe the Sabbath
as rigorous day Of rest. He could not
engage in anything that would in
yolve in its conduct the viola
ton OF the. day. If the same law
Is obligatory now, he same SaTeaHeSs az
taches 70 hs day, and its claims on Us are jGst
as erG.ting as they ,rre on he Jeu.i There
has been no modification OF the law, Of
which we have any information, 50 that
II we have the Sabbath now we have the
original article, not any spurious imita-
ton Of the genuine. Assuming that the
law is still binding, Just apply It to inter
national trade and commerce, 10 our
fisheries and most OF our coast trade, our
Arctic and scientific expeditions. No
vessel dare undertake to cross the Ocean
because it cannot be done in six days.
The Sabbath law buildSup an impossible
moral barrier between the two hemis-
pheres, cuts off all interchange Of thought
and productions between them, and
brings the worlds progress to a dead
stand; il would sweep out Of existence
the entire commerce Of the world. In
language better than l can frame, it
would "force the oak back into the
acorn, the man into theswadlipg clothes
Of the infant d.. y y % ta.sa ~
1t is passing strange that men can not
see that IT was law given too particu.
lar people for a specific purpose peo-
pie destitute Of any ideas Of progress, in
a state Of standardization, living ir q
small inland territory, placed there by
God Himself for purposes Of trial and
demonstration; with no commerce worth
the naming, foreign or domestic; peo-
pie almost wholly engaged in agricultural
or pastoral pursuits; a people who had
but two controlling notwithstanding and
propagation. It's passing strange, Isay,
that any man Of even common sense can
for moment believe that law given. to
such people under such circumstances
can have been intended by God to be ap-
plicable to the investigating, scientific,
progressive world Of to-day. No! II Is
not so, and cannot be-; God never i'm
posed such an iron.clad law on the world
at large. Had this law always been
recognized and observed, as its friends
claim, this entire Continent would be to-
day the hunting-ground Of savages. Co.
lumbus would never have started out on
that voyage from which such grand re-
suits, both religious and political, have
sprung. The truth is, the whole Sabbath
doctrine, rs applicable to US, or any but
the Jews, is sheer absurdity. Let me say
in conclusion that it is against sacred time
l contend, not against q uniform day Of
rest and religious observance; but want
to see it placed, on the true, basis, social
not on q dogma Of sacred
time. Iwant that lion taken out OF the
path Of human progress, and l want the
world to sec the real fact, that It is but
the skin OF a Jewish lion stuffed with
theological chat. N