Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1891-03-29
The Sunday Paner-sunday.

that State protesting against the prepara-
t!on. printing. publishing. sale, and de-
livery of newspapers on Sunday, on the
ground that there Is no just or sufficient
reason why the publshing and sale of news
papers should receive discrimination from
the State over any other form OF business
or labor on the Lords day.
Happy is the country where the Sabbath
day is observed Alright. The rest day is a
boon TO the workingman. The rich man
can rest when he will. The poor man must
rest when he can. But the difficulties sur
rounding the subject in free country like
this, where there is no established Church,
are not few.
WHY begin the war in favor OF rigid OBJ
servance Of Sunday upon the newspapersI
There are newspapers and newspapers
Sunday papers and Sunday papers-dailies
and weeklies. Many Sunday papers ought
not to be published on any day of the week.
They are not fit 10 read. But if we close the
newspaper Offices. we must close the post
Offices of the whole land, the telegraph
Offices, the telephone Offices. Why not
shut up all hotels on Sunday? Certainly
nobody who would ask that the street
cars should cease to run on Sunday would
willingly allow private carriages to be used
on that day. Bread-wagons and ice
wagons would also hayeto shut mp shop"
ON Sunday. Drugstores might possibly be
kept open, but their owners would not be
permitted to sell, as now, cigars, tobacco.
cigarettes, cheroots, saltwater. &C., DC.
Ice-cream would 60 out of fashion for Sun
day dinners; for the ice-cream wagon
would not be allowed on the streets.
Let us say here that there are thousands
of persons now suffering from nervous
prostitution and mental exhaustion who
would have been well to-day had they
never read book or newspaper on Sun
day, We agree with the most rigid Saba
tarians in the belief that q Sabbath law has
the Divine sanction. In a word, that it is
natures law. Rest must follow or accom-
pany work.
What is the law of the Sabbath We
quote 1t Us follows:
"Remcmber the sabbath day TO keep II holy.
fGx days shall thou labor and do all thy work.
But the seventh day Is the sabbath for rest-dayl
of the Lord thy God; IN q thou shalt not do any
work. thou. nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy
manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cat
tie, nor thy stranger that Is within thy gates |;
for In elk days the Lord made Heaven and earth,
the sea, and all that In them Is, and rested the
seventh day; wherefore the Lord blessed the
sabbath day and haiiowed It,"
This Is the sabbath-law of the Jews as
well as the Christians. Pious Jews still
observe it rigidly. and as the mode of OBJ
seryance has come down from the days of
MosEs TO the Jews Of to-day, it might rea-
sonably be inferred that their method of OBJ
serving it is the ancient method. Chris
tians have substituted Sunday for Satur-
dsy. They observe the day upon which
Jesus Christ rose from the dead. The rea-
SON stated in the commandment for OBJ
serving the seventh day is that the seventh
IL [not wasl the Sabbath-day (rest-dayl of
God.
The commandment Is just as emphatic
and mandatory when it says: six days
shalt thou labor and do oil thy work." as
when II directs US to rest on the Sabbath
day. How many men pay even the least
attention to that portion of the command
ment? Does JOSEPH Cook? The law he
advocates would stop the publication Of
papers on Monday a. well as Sunday, see
ing that the matter for Mondays issue IS
written necessarily on Sunday, whether
the matter be editorials, local items, tele-
grams, phonograms, or what not. There
IL little labor on Sunday involved in get
ting out Sunday paper. But the whole
day Is not too long for the preparation.
printing, and sale of Monday paper. Is
the world TO stand still on Sunday and
Monday2 Is there to be no news read on
either Of those days? We fear that MIR.
Cook reads the Boston Herald OF both Sun
day and Monday; but IL he reads the Sun
day or the Monday paper on any day Of
the week he is partaker of the sin OF the
editors and owners. No man holding his
opinions ought to read Sunday paper or
Monday paper on any day of the week.
But we did not set out so much rs to
argue the questions raised by Mr.. Cooks
proposition as to reproduce the law as it is
found In the Old Testament and the New
Testament. A good many people are wise
above what is written when they under
tako to discuss the policy of Sunday laws.
They have not learned that there are two
eides even to this question. Not few
thoughtful men justify our Sunday laws
only on the ground that they may be
elAned with police laws. or laws passed
for the benefit Of tho community without
reference 20 the fact that such laws have
ths Divine sanction. We think We could
name Doctor of Divinity in city north
OF this who holds this opinion. Let US see
what the New Testament contains bearing
upon the question under consideration.
We quote as follows:
AZ that season Jesus went on the sabbath day
Through tho corn-nelds, end His disciples were
IN hunsered and began 10 pluck ears OF
oprn and 10 cat But the Pharisees, whom they
saw Il, said unto Him, Behold. Thy disciples do
that which II II not lawful 70 do upon the sab
bath But He said unto them. Have 20 not read
what David did when he was an hungered and
they that werc with himf how he entered into
che house Of God and did eat tho shew-bread.
which Il was not lawful for him 10 eat, neither
sor them that were with him. but only for the
priestsf Or have &c not read In the law, how
temple prosane tho Sabbath, and are guilt
lesss But say unto you, that one greater
than the temple rs hero. But II ye had known
what this mcaneth, desire mercy, and not sac
rt6cs, ye would not have condemned the guilt
IesA For the Son Of man. Is lord Of the sabbath.
And lie departed thence and went into their
synagogue: and behold, man having With
cred hand. And they asked Him, saying, Is II
lawful 70 heal on the sabbath day? thst they
might accuse him. And Ee said unto them.
what man shall there be OF you, that shall have
one sheep, and II this fall into pit on the sab
bsth dag. win he not lay hold on II and lift Il out
ucv much, then, Il msn OF moro value than Q
eheeps Wherefore IL Is lawful 10 DO good on the
sabbath asy.--Rssssed I'srsios, Matthias All. 10
-
Here follows significant quotation. II
= worthy Of particular notice because Of
~ commandments which are moi named.
- veil - because Of new commandment
uhioh b substituted;
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~ vss1 eno1 shins shall ] do fhss may have
eonnn1a MT And ~ said unto him, Why sskeet
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