Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1892-01-13
REvIvING BLUE LAWS.
Strict Enforcement Can Only Result in
Annoyance ami Hindrance.

Strict Enforcement Can Only Result in
Apnoyance ami Hindrance.
| Scranton Republican,
The act of 1874 relating to the observance
of Sunday, styled the blue law, has long
| been bone OF contention between various
| law and order societies throughout the COM
! monwealth and alleged offenders. The
| efforts of the most of these societies to sup
! press violations of this law have been Tor
the most part sporadic and spasmodic. Now
| we see a crusade against apple stands ana
| soda fountains and against milk wagons,
cigar stores and barber shops, but these at
| tackS have been made with little system anu
carried on with less perseverance. The
Jealous members soon tire out and relax
their efforts when the stalls and shops re-
open and continue in full blast with none to
molest or make them afraid until their
prosecutors are seized with another spasm
of virtue. This desultory action has thus
far served no other purpose than to annoy
a class OF shopkeepers who cut little figure
in the aggregate of work carried on upon
Sunday. Street cars, railway trains, teie-
graph service, iron furnaces, electric light
ing, the postal service, etc, are seldom, IT
ever. molested By the officers and agents of
the law and order organizations. 1t is only
the little fish that are caught. In Pittsburg
the Law and Order Society has of late years
been unusually active, but operations have
been conducted, as in other cities, without
any comprehensive plan and much at ran
dom. But it is now proposed TO 90 at the
business in earnest and in direction not
hitherto attempted.
Fhe initiatory steps have already been
taken in an attempt to stop the publication OF
Sunday newspapers in the Iron City and in
formations have been filed before one of the
oil nn, or,-in, nd
others who assist i'll making and issuing
papers distributed on the first day of the
week. The proprietors and publishers have
not yet been embraced in the list of prose
cuted offenders, but if the Law and Order
Society carry their determination to stop
the issuance Of Sunday papers to its legiti-
mate conclusion they will be reached in
time. The matter will be brought into the
courts, and if pressed decision will be rem
dered which will n the status of these pub
lications. General Grant once said that the
best way to secure the repeal of an odious
law was to compel its strict enforcement. In
this view it is eminently proper that these
suits should be brought against the Sunday
newspapers. The press today is the
and as the PIrrsBURG DISPATCH, against
whose employees there informations have
been made, says, "Of all the several forms of
work which have become necessary on Sun
day none is encouraged, patronized and 6e-
manded to a greater degree by the public
than that in which the press is concerned"
Ihe newspapers are also powerful co create
public opinion and have within Themselves
the means of defense. These suits are there
fore of great general interest, as they will
serve to bring the features of the law gov
erning Sunday work to public Intention and
analysis and ultimately bring about its mod
ifcation and repeal. As it stands on the
statute book to-day it is obsolete and its
strict enforcement can only result in him
drarce and annoyance to work that IS re-
garded by the great mass OF people as abso-
lutely essential to the we'll being of society.
Nevertheless the Sunday newspaper has no
fears for the future.