The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1882-12-10
II Cannot BE Done.

The people who are expecting, under the
new Penal Code, to force the observance Of
Sunday rs veritablc Sabbath in New York
will not succeed in their purpose, but only
help to make the Sunday laws more odious
and to bring them into greater contempt.
All attempts to compel the treatment OF the
first day Of he week as anything more than
q day OF rest will certainly fail OF their OBJ
3ect, and ought to fail.
The majority OF the people will not con-
sent, under Government which depends
upon their will, to adopt the Sabbatarian
notions which the old Puritans, with the
blgotry characteristic OF their day, forced on
New England society. The Puritans set up
In the Massachusetts, colony, for instance,
nothing less than thcocracy, based not
upon Christianity, and savoring little OF it's
spirit, but upon the Old Testament, chang
ing only the day to be observed rs a fast
with Jewish strictness from the seventh to
the first. From shutdown on Saturday night
TO shutdown on Sunday they required, with n
bitter intolerance, general and uniform OBJ
servancc Of the day they held sacred But
even in New England society broke away
from the artificial and wearisome restraints
they imposed; and one OF the consequences
OF their bigotry was the infldelity which
subsequently appeared there. In rebelling
against their theocratical views. men re-
belled against all religion also. Besides
hypocrisy was encouraged. For their bust
ness or social advantage men pretended q
conformity they did not practise, and pro-
fessed belief they rejected in their hearts.
And hypocrisy is the meanest of vices.
OF har l.
York who still think it is possible to compel
4 million and q half Of people to abridgc
their pleasures change the management of
their private affairs, and regulate their
whole conduct on the first day of the week in
accordance with notions which are not COM
mon to civilized nations which are enter
tanned, indeed, by only very small portion
OF Christendom. The great majority of the
inhabitants of New York are not Sabbatari-
quo. .nvy Save Save &c sympathy with those
who would force the Observance OF Sunday
as fast day. They do not believe that the
State has any right to interfere with them on
that day more than any other, provided they
are orderly and peaceable.
1t must be remembered that the majority
OF the population of New York are not
churchgoers. At least, they do not go to
church regularly on Sunday. And of the re-
mainder, those who take the Puritan view OF
Sunday are a very small minority. The vast
body of Roman Catholics have different
ideas regarding Sunday. Then there are the
Jews, who do not feel any religious obliga-
ton whatever to observe the first day Of the
week, and who claim the right to work or
play on Sunday, as they think best. And OF
churchgoing Christians besides the Catho-
lies, there are many thousands who make OF
Sunday day both Of religious observances
and OF pleasure.
Though so small portion Of the commu-
nifty, the Sabbatarians wish to make the
whole population Of New York keep the first
day OF the week to suit their notions, and
they want the law to help them do 1t. il
their theory Is carried out in its complete
ness, every sort OF business except that of
the apothecaries and the undertakers would
have to be stopped on Sunday. We could
have no Sunday papers and no Monday pa
pers, for those must be prepared on Sunday
No public pleasures would be allowed, and the
population would be sunk in gloom, which
would OF course be relieved by an enormous
amount of secret vices.
the clergymen of the city are sensible enough
to see that it is unwse to attempt to force
such Sunday on us, and that the effort will
be rs futile as it is foolish.
The people welcome Sunday as a day OF
rest, and they wish the law to treat it as
that. But how they shall rest, and how
much they shall rest on Sunday, they de-
mand the right to settle for themselves. Nor
will they tolerate the treatment OF Sunday
by the State as a purely and peculiarly sacred
day, for the State has nothing to do with re-
ligion. That is matter for the individual citi-
zen. Legally, Sunday can be only n weekly
holiday, on which special precautions for
preserving order are doubtless necessary,
enforced, however, not because OF the sacred
character Of the day in the eyes of the State,
but because people are more likely to get
into mischief when they are at rest than
when they are busy.
The Big Statue.