St. Landry democrat. (Opelousas, La.) 1878-1894, 1880-05-08
Our New Police jury and the
Sunday Law.

In order to test the sense of our ney
Police jury on the Sunday law, frs
adopted i'll this parish in 1879, Mr.
Chachere, who is known as an out
spoken advocate of the law, introduced
a motion to repeal it, at the meeting O
the Police Jury on the Goth ult. Mr.
Haas moved that the motion offered b,
Mr.. Chachcre, be tabled; which wa:
adopted, all the members voting yea
except Mr.. Meche, who admitted. VIZ
understand, that the law was a gool
one, and assigned as a reason for his
vote, that there seemed to be an inlis
position on the part of the officers tC
enforce it, and that he considered il
better that a law should be repealed
than left unenforced on the statute
book, however good might be its pro-
visions.
Thus we have again an unequivoca]
endorsement of the Sunday law, in this
vote of eight to one; but the matter
was not allowed to drop here, as will
be seen by reference to the proceedings:
"0n motion of Mr.. sylvestre, it was
resolved unanimously, that the District
Attorney be instructed to have the
Sunday law rigidly enforced through
out the parish, against all persons, who
directly or indirectly violate the same.''
Our District Attorney is now the legal
adviser OF the Police Jury. He was
present, took cognizance of the resolu-
ton, and we have no doubt will carry
out the expressed will of the Police
Jury literally.
By this enequivocal endorsement of
the Sunday law, the Police Jury have
deserved, and will receive the thanks
of every good man, of every lover of
law, order and morality, and of every
taxpayer in st. Landry.
Nearly four years have elapsed since
the Police Jury adopted a Sunday law
for our parish. The longer it has stood
on the statute book, the more popular
has it become with the people; and in
our opinion to-day, no man could carry
St. Landry in a popular election, who
would openly and publicly proclaim his
opposition to this law.
No man living amongst us, but that
has a vivid recollection of the state of
things existing in our parish previous
to its adoption III 1877. Then, every
town and village was crowded with
drunken men on Sunday, whooping,
shouting, yelling, fighting and render
ing things generally "hideous.u BY
night our jails were filled with viola
tors of municipal ordinances, who the
next morning appeared before the
mayor, and nine times out of ten, being
unable to pay their Jail fees, they had
to be charged to the taxpayers. If such
was the picture presented in the towns,
what was to be seen on our public
thoroughfares in the country? Let any
one answer, who was in the habit of
traversing them Of a Sunday evening.
They were filled with drunken men
running horse races, firing off their
pistols, and whooping and yelling and
to the great annoyance and
danger of the peaceful traveller. Now
we see no more of this. People from
the country and town alike do the
shopping on Saturdays, they formerly
did on Sundays. IT they happen to get
drunk, as night come on they go home,
and by Monday morning the effects of
the debauch is over, and they are able
to go to work. Sunday, instead of being
as formerly the most noisy, tumultuous
and boisterous of all the days of the
week, has become the most quiet and
peaceful.
Places of business are closed, and
Sunday becomes veritable day of rest. |
There is nothing puritanical in this. |
1t does not smack of the blue laws of |
Connecticut, which indicated with the |
most minute precision what should and !
what should not he done on Sunday,
On the contrary our law provides alone
FOR closing of places of business on
Sunday, and then leaves the individual
20 spend the day as he pleases. If of
! pious turn of mind, he may 20 to |
church and spend the day in prayer and
'upplication; if not, he may go fishing
or hunting, or do anything else he
oleases. The day is his own, and there
S no power, save his conscience, inter-
posed to tell him what he shall do, or
low or where he shall spend it. In our
opinion no law On the statute book has
been productive Of more good than this
Sunday ordinance of our Police Jury.
t has elevated the wards OF the parish
t has been one Of the most potent
ldjuncts of the enforcement of law and
,rder in our midst; it has made us
better in spite Of ourselves, and finally
t has saved the tax payers Of the parish
thousands of dollars in lessen
ng the expenses of criminal prosecu-
ions alone.
Hence we say, gentlemen of our police
ury you could not have done better,
! wiser, a moro popular act, at your
irst meeting than you did, when you
81 ba4 4l,o