The free press., 1894-07-12
and now I say that any man who attemps to

of the Sabbath because 1t is n foreign war.
Now, If you heard at this moment the boom
ing of gun in the harbor, or If a shell from
some foreign frigate should drop into your
| street. would you keep your seats in church.
You would want to face the foe. and every
gun that could be managed would be brought
into use, and every ship that could be
brought out of the navy yard would swing
from her anchorage, and the question would
be decided You do not want a foreign war,
and yet have to tell you that this invasion
of Gods holy day is foreign war.
As among our own native born population
there are two casses-the good and the bad,
SO it is with the people who come from other
| shores-there are the law abiding and the
| lawess The former are welcome here. The
more of them the better we like it. But let
not the lawless come from other shores ex-
pecting to break down our Sabbath and in
stitute in the place of it a foreign Sabbath
How do you feel, ye who have been
brought up amid the hills of New England
about giving up the American Sabbath? Ye
who spent your childhood under the shadow
of the Adirondacks or the Catskills, ye who
were born on the banks of the Savannah or
Ohio or Oregon. how do you feel about Civ
ing up the American Sabbath2 You say
ave shall not give it up. We mean to de-
fend it as long as there is left anv strength
in our arm or blood in our heart Do not
bring your Spanish Sabbath here. Do not
bring your Italian Sabbath here. Do not
bring your French Sabbath here. Do not
bring your foreign Sabbath here. 1t shall be
for us and for our children forever
pure, consecrateu, Onrist''h' A"nerican DAD
bath"
1 will make comparison between the
American Sabbath. as some of you have
known it. and the Partisan Sabbath. Ispeak
from observation On Sabbath morning |
was aroused in Paris by a great sound in the
street. I said, "What is thisW "Oh," they
said. "this is Sunday" An unusual rattle
of vehicles of all sorts. The voices seemed
more boisterous than on other days. People
running to and fro. with baskets or bundles.
to get to the rail trains or gardens. 1t seemed
as il al, the vehicles in Paris. of whatever
sort, had turned out for the holiday. The
Champs Elysees one great mob of pleasure
seeking people. Balloons flying. Parrots
chattering. Footballs rolling. Pedders
hawking their knickknacks through the
streets. Punch and Judy shows in a score of
places, each one with a shouting audience.
Hand organs, eymbals and every kind of
racket. musical and unmuscal. When the
evening came down, all the theaters were in
full blaze of music and full blaze OF light.
The wine stores and saloons were fhronSed
with an unusual number OF customers. At
evantide stood and watched the excursion
lists coming home, tagged out men, women
and children, a gulf stream OF fatigue, irrita-
bility and wretchedness, for l should think
il would take three or four days to get over
that miserable way of Sundaying. 1t seemed
more like an American Fourth OF july than
a Christian Sabbath
Now in contrast | present one OF the Sab
baths in one OF our best American cities.
HOLY silence coming down with the day
dawn Business men more deliberately look
ing into the faces OF their children and talk
ing to them about their present and future
welfare. Men sit longer at the table in the
because the stores are not to be
opened and the mechanical tools are not to
be taken up. A hymn is sung. There Nare
congratulations and good cheer an throuGh
the house The street silent until 10 O'Clock,
when there is regular, orderly tramp
Houses OF God. vocal with
for mercies received, with
PRAYER for comfort, with charities for the
poor. Rest for the holy. Rest for the soul.
The nerves queted, the temples cooled, the
mind cleared the soul strengthened, and
our entire population turned out on Monday
morning ten years younger. better prepared
for the duties OF the life, better prepared for
the life that is to come.
Which do you like best-the American
Sabbath or the Partisan Sabbath! DO you
know in what boat the Sabbath came across
the seas and landed on our shores2 1t was
in the Mayfower. Do you know in what
boat the SaDDatn Will lcdNo u, IL IL oNoi
goes 1t will he in the ark that noats over a
deluge of national destruction.
Still further protest against the invasion
of the Lords day because it wrongs vast
multitude OF employees OF their rest. The
play actors and actresses can have their rest
between their engagements. but how about
the scene shifters, the ballet dancers, the
callboys, the innumerable attendants and
of the American theatre?
w Uhar is, ai Cu frOmI They
are paid small salaries at the best. Alas.
for them They appear on the stage in tinsel
and tasse with halber s. or in gauze whrl-
ing in toe tortures. and they might be mis-
taken for fairies or queens. but after o clock
at night you may see them trudging through
the streets in faded dresses, shivering and
tired, IA bundle under their arms seeking
their homes in the garrets and cellars of the
city. Now. you propose to take from thou
sands of these employees throughout this
country not only all opportunity OF moral
culture. but all opportunity of physical rest.
For heavens sake, let the crushing jugger-
naut stop at least one day in seven.
Again. 1 oppose this modern invasion OF
the Christian Sabbath because it is war on
the spiritual welfare of the people. You
have a body? Yes. You have mind? Yes.
You have a soul? Yes. Which OF the secular
halls on the Sabbath day will give that soul
any culture? Now, admitting that man
has spiritual and immortal nature, which
one OF the places Of amusement will culture
it? Which one OF the Sabbath performances
will remind men Of the fact that unless they
are born again they cannot see the kingdom
of God?
viii the music OF the "Grand Duchess"
help people at last to sing the song OF the
one hundred and forty and four thousand?
Besides. il you gentlemen OF the secular en-
tertainment have six days in the week in
which to exercise your alleged beneficial in
fluence, ought you not to allow Christian in
stitutions to have twenty-four hoursi Is it
unreasonable to demand that II you have six
days for the body and intellect we should
have one day at least for our immortal soul?
Or, to put it in another shape, do you really
think our imperishable soul is worth at
least one-seventh rs much as our perishable
body?
An artist has three gems-a cornelian, an
amethyst and diamond. He has to cut
them and to set them. Which one Is he
most particular about? Now, the cornelian
is the body, the amethyst is the intellect, the
diamond is the soul. For the two former
you propose six days of opportunity, while
you offer no opportunity at all for the last.
which is in value as compared with the
others like 800, 900, ,0O0, ,0O0 to one farthing.
/ II.