The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1893-05-28

German Lutheran church and the Roman
Catholic eauresa. both % :Eese churches
favorias in America the Sunday opening
Of the Worlds fair
The American Sunday by the vast ma
ior.ty Of the American people is keps As >
day Of worship. a day OF recreation. or
both. according TO the will OF the indl-
vitual. and 20 use Sunday for decent
recreation IS not \ violation Of any iax OF
the New Testament. The amended Massa-
ehGsetts Sunday Law, passed by the de-
~scendaats OF those who az the same date
KEEP. the Hebrew Sabbath and hanged
witches, because the Old Testament says
'ye shall not suffer a witch 10 live. y ex-
eInpts from the operations Of the sunday
law the running Of street cars and ferry
boats. the publication Of newspapers. the
hiring Of carriages. the use Of telegraph
AMI telephone. and a number Of other
things tha: have come to be necessities in
our modern complex civilization.
Rev. Dr.. John Hall. in the first rank Of
the Presbyterian preachers OF New York
city. approves of this Law on the ground
that the necessities of the civilization OF
n century are not the fair moral or re-
ligious guide of the necessities OF the next.
The idea Of q day of rest is sound. but the
necessities OF cur modern civilization
make It impossible that every man should
have the same day Of rest. Every great
trunk line Of railway must keep its BUSH
ness going without pause. All the great
railway lines have Sunday travel; the teie-
graph and telephone are in constant service
on Sunday: the ocean steamships do not
halt on sunday the street railroads do not
stop their wheels; the newspapers prepare
their matter for the Monday issue: the
police and fire department is on duty and
the United States mail is done up, sen
forth. transported. distributed and de-
iivered. Modern civilization canno ra-
~tionaliy consent to have its wheels arrested
on Sunday in obedience to q Hebrew ira
dition which Jesus habituaily violated or
q Puritan renaissance of that tradition
which has become utterly obsolete.
The Worlds fair can be opened or sum
day without robbing any empioye Of a day
of rest in seven. just as all other forms of
business transacted on Sundays secure
such rest to their employees as they desire.
The working people never ought to have
been obliged TO plead for admission on
Sunday TO the parks, the buildings, the
lake front Of the Worlds fair. All libra
ries. all museums, ali geological gardens,
all institutions provided for public en-
iightenment, should be open to the work
ing masses on Sunday, which is the day
when they can most freely enjoy them,
and this is now the practice Of all the great
cities of the United States and Europe.
Certainly the Worlds fair. which sur
passes in its capacity for enlightenment
anything before exhibited in America.
ought to be open to those who will profit
most by it.
Fortunately the United States is no
longer ruled absolutely. either in matters
of social or civil or religious government,
by the traditions of the despotic New
England Puritan theocracy. Decent and
reputable citizens take absolutely inno-
cent recreation on Sunday without stop
ping to consider whether it is a sanctified
necessity or only secular enjoyment that
involves no moral transgression. Suppose
the Sunday law was enforced in Seattle SO
that a workingman could not buy a cigar,
or a glass of beer, hire a horse. take o
steamboat or car for a rural excursion
into our suburbs with his family, how
long would it be before there would be a
political rebellion against the party that
framed this sunday legislation.
How n man shall use his Sunday is
nobody's business so long as he does not
abuse it against public peace and order.
1t was Lowell that sang
New occasions teach new duties: time
Makes ancient good uucouth,
and the American Sunday. its use and en-
joyment. must be squared to meet the de-
mands of u very different and far more
complex civilization than that Puritan
theocracy which took the Hebrew Sab
bath. the stone which Christ, the builder
Of our faith. rejected. and tried to make it
the head Of their corner.
Things are improyirv nt tho South