Sharp County record., 1881-02-03
Foreign Sundays.


One way or another the last few years
l have been abroad a good deal, and in
Italy, France, Holland and Germany,
have felt quite painfully the dreary mo.
notony of foreign Sundays. To-day nv
dislike to them has reached perfect
pitch of bitterness. Owing to an acci-
dent, [ have not been able to 90 to
church the last two or three weeks, and
so have had the full benefit OF Sun
day at home in a foreign land. Letme
give my experiences for the benefit OF
such as think that our English SUNDAYS
may be improved by conforming it to
the pattern of the continent.
AS lie here, hear the piano in
room close by being played on most
vigorously. The same runs, the same
shakes, the same crashing chords, are
being repeated over and over again that
| have had to listen to every day during
the past week. | can also hear the
piano across the road being practiced
on in the same way that have heardit
practiced on every day during the past
week.
In the long stone passage outside my
doorI can hear the servant securing
away, as hard at drudging work as she
was Yesterday. can hear the house
wife with her jingling keys omning
store-cupboards, and giving out stores
in the same dreary round of the same
duties that have occupied her all the i
week; and when | am carried into the
salon this afternoon, no doubt | shall 1
find her, as did last Sunday, with her
kind, tired face bent over her work
basket, putting strings, and buttons i
and fuckers to little garments, Just as !.
she has put them any other day OF the
week. Sweet, unselfsh, tender-heart-
ed German lady; what boon a true
English Sunday would be to her. Talk n
of dullness. indeed! What can be more !,
intensely dull than this horrible same D
ness of an utterly unbrOken routine j
from month to month, from year to .
year, which some English people pro II
fesS to envy?' There is an anecdOte ),
which we all know, and have known e
since our infancy, although DR.. Busch IT
now tacks Bsmarck's name to it, and .
places the scene in the wrong country /
of foreigner who left Scotland in dis
gust because he vas reproyed for II
whistling there on the Sabbath. We
all laugh at the idea, as we rightly
laugh at all exaggerations, but really as $
| listen to that intermnable practicng "
close by. | begin to think that the sup s
posittious Scotch folks were most thor
oughly in the right; also, that they a
were at least as merciful to their indig'
nant visitor as to themselves Ong
think if the poor man had been whist
ling all the six previous days whats
blessing it would be to have a little
change; and as for his neighbors, well :"
certainly no one could justly com De
plain if they wanted the variety OF ST. t
lence one dav in seven. gs
In England amusement for people Oh cb
the Sunday is, of course, the aspect o ID
the matter that is made the grand tea Il
ture of the question. 1t is utterly lOl III
gotten that the moment every-da,
amusements have thoroughly asSerIeu ar
their right to continuance on the oun m
dar, the smallest amount OF common Y.
sense teaches everyday work is sure,tO lei
follow in their wake. Respect Tor lnS w
Sabbath once knocked on the head anu mi
DESTROYED. what master will hesitate nc
keep his man at work seven days OF 'He l
week, instead of six? What mistress 'er
will think she is dealing unfairly II srs a
expects the same cleaning and cOoNlhs Q
on the first day as on the second OF IIe II
seventh? At any rate, this IS no" re-
acts in foreign lands; why shoul1 W. Il
expect it to act differently at home pre-
And then for the amusements ther Il
selves, what are they to be? The Saln' al
museums, the same theaters. the san. zoe
chOruses, the same shows OF all hu%
that the crowd went to on Saturday III tne
all the various yearly festivals, Oh az an
the bank holidays. This may Dc II
very well for foreigners, who, as a rui., ;
seem to like to be fitted into groC'' MI
and kept there; but for free-born' u ieW
dependent spirited Englishmen-WeE,tt ms
confess | prefer to believe thar ~G a u
have minds capable of finding thelrog%r gor sql ~
recreation and refreshment for one u%S fo, il'
in seven. The Sabbath was made ~ ne
= l. l4hath--lI- va ID
a gift from God to man, a true taIns, ieI
gift, one of the kindest and nut 81
thoughtful. And His children have sS ow
tired of it, as stupid, short-sighted cin "a, .e :
dren often do tire of the fairest ~" a'ly
and best privileges. ., .bs = =
For my part, can but say tna' tbe % r - =
more 1 see OF foreign Sundays, oub ~ : f. !"
more earnestly pray that we psVpr drr - -
may keep our glorious specially, V G
holy. happy Sabbath day.-S"''C"'0 .
Home.