The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1894-09-24
HAD ESCAPED BEING KILLED
An American Sunday and How
1t Should Be Kept.
SALOON-KEEPERS' PRODUCTS.
A Congregation That Enjoyed a Ser
mon in High Wind Under
Straining Canvas.

1t seemed yesterday as if the wind that
should have been playing 10 gentle Zephyrs
all over the Western Addition had gath
cred itself together at the corner OF Bush
and Devladero streets for the purpose Of
making furious onslaughts upon Rev. S.
a. Martins gospel tent. The canvases
strained and rocked as IL they had been
the sails of ship outside the Heads in a
gale, the poles swayed and the lamps
swung 10 and fro in a manner so sugges-
tive of pitching and tossing that those
sensitive members of the congregation
who "wheu the breezes blow generally go
below" chung instinctively to their seats
and wondered whether the steward would
not soon come and gently lead them to the
seclusion that cabin grants.
DR.. Martin. however, who is equal to
every emergency, profited by the pitching
and tossing of his tent. During the SER
vice the assistant pastors gathered the
large flock into serried ranks toward the
middle Of the structure, warning them
that IL they sat at the edges they were
liable TO loss of life or limb. When the
collection plata wentr0und the preacher
smilingly suggested that those to whom
Providence had given abundantly might
put ia So or $40 as thank-otferiug that
they had not been killed.
"The American Sunday" was tho sub
ject of the sermon, the text being 1.-The
sabbath was made for man, and not man
for the Sabbath" There having always
been in the world" began Dr. Martin,
"people who are straining at knats and
swallowing cameIs. Their idea was that
man must keep the Sabbath in a certain
way, and that there were no alleviating
circumstances. The thought that the
Sabbath was made first, and that then
man was made to bit II, just like that tabled
bedstead you have all heard of where the
people who were not long enough we're
stretched out till they filed it, and the
people who were too long were sawed off
to the right size.
"Iam going 10 speak first of Christia n
people. For them Sunday is a day Of reli-
gious activity devoted TO spiritual recrea-
ton. 1t is also day OF rest. Some peo-
pie have no idea of how 10 use a day of
rest. Tomorrow you will find some men
who have so abused this day and them
selves that tnev'd have been better with
out the rest. For Christians Sunday Is
the weekly celebration of the beginning of
their church. Christ rose from the dead
on the first day of the week. The day of
Penteeost was on the first day of the week.
Votaire said: There is no hope OF de-
stroying Christianity so long as Sunday is
Observed Bob Ingersoll says: st is a
pest and must be taken out of the way
Whose wav, Bob? Yours? 1t is not in
any Christians way and never was.
"Looking at the matter from a utiliar-
ian stand point ] cons ider that for a man.
own good the civil authorities have a right
to demand that the day be kept. l would
not have a Sunday law passed from a
Westinghouse standpoint, but on utilitar-
ian grounds. / don't want to impose q
religious Sunday upon a man OF a woman
who is not Christian, but foreigners come
from pOnntripS wharA tnAv dn
keen Sunday. and they protest against the
manner in which we keep it. They are
Fastening to be rich, and the Bible says:
He that hasteneth to be rlcE shall not be
innocent
"'Ab, you are making Us good by law, ,
these people say sneeringly. If a man
wants 20 keep Sunday let him, but don't
force US to- They might just as we'll say,
If a man wants to steal, let him. Some
red-nanded son of Cain might say: 'Why
do you pass law to punish ne? Why do
you not convert ne
Abuses of Sunday were then discussed,
and the preacher reproved those Christians
who abused the day by forcing others 10
observe 1t too strictly.
II have heard people say they just hated
Sunday; that it was the longest, dreariest
day of the week, and they look ed forward
to 1t with horror. We should not compel
any bOdy 10 dc anything religious; It
WOuIu UOb DS dcccptdUlc 10 Gu6 LOTU III we
did.
81 would only impose a civil Sunday
upon unconverted people. The third abuse
OF Sunday is by religious people who OBJ
serve Sunday badly. Ii you are a Chris
tian you should keep il, and many people
are engaged in too much cooking and
mending, and shaving and cleaning. l
don't think you'll go TO he'll if you sew on
button on Sunday, but you should not
make practice of IL
"lf you oppose Sunday law you will
be in the worst company In this coun try
that of gamblers. booksellers and saloon
keepers. Hard times are not due 10 Sun
day keeping. Five hundred millions are
spent alone In this country annually for
dink. That's nearly $4,000, 900 day, and
then they tell US overproduction has
caused the bard times. It's the drink that's
the cause. The saloon-keeper gives his
patrons nothing but want, misery and dis
grace. TIE merchants OF this city like to
show samples of their wares in their win
dows or on the sidewalk. Whenever the
sal0on-kee per puts out one of his samples
the policeman comes up and takes him off,
Why does not he have a few drunkards,
heart broken wives and mothers and rag
ged, ignorant children with cards, These
are samples of our products p"
The conclusion OF the sermon was an ex-
hortation 10 the hearers TO avoid the saloon
and keep Sunday like true Christians.