The Lexington dispatch. [volume] (Lexington, South Carolina) 1870-1917, 1894-07-04

found one man and he s8;d 10 him "Wn,
you serve nee OF the Sabbath ''N0.'
s'Why po:?'' "WeU," replied the ole
sailor, "a man who will rob God A.
mighty Of his Sabbath would rob me O
ny wages if he got 8 chance"
SUpposa you were poor, and Yot
came TO dry goods merchant anc
asked hjol tor some clotn For garments
and be shculJ say, "pI give you six
yarde," ard while lie was Of from tbs
conrter binding up TIE Blk yards ycr
should 60 behind the ctun!er ard stea
one additional yard That is what
every man toes when &c breaks The
Lor6's Sabbath. God gives US SIX days
cut Of seven, rsserylUg Oae for himself,
aud if YOU will not let him have it /. is
mean beyond ali computation.
Again, l an opposed to this desecra,
tion OF the Sabbath b7 secular entertain
ments because it IS gar on tbe statutes
| of most Of tie s>aies. The laT N New
York state says:
SIT shall notbe lawful to exhibit on
the frst day Of the week, commo1l,
called Sunday, 10 The public, in aay
building, garden gr0unEs, concert room
or other roam or place within the city
and county OF New York, any interl1de,
tragedy, comedy, opera, ballet, play,
farce, negro mir strelaY, negro Or other
dancing, or aLy other entertainment OF
the stage, or any part Or parts thcrelD, OF
anv equestrian, circus or d:emat!c per
fornance, or any performance of jug
glers, acvcba;S or rope dancing"
Was there ever palmer enactment
than that? Who made the law:
You who at the ballot boxes de
cided who should goto Albany aud SIT
n the legislature; you who in any region
exercise the right Cf suffrage. They
made tbe law for you and tor your taml
hes, and now l say that any man who
attempts to override the law insults you
and me and every man who has the
righ: Of suffrage.
Still further, l protest against tha in-
vasion Of the Sabbath because 1t IS g
foreign war. Nov, if you heard st this
moment the booming Of sun in the
hsrbor, or if shell from some foreign
trieate should drop into Your street.
would you keep your seats 10 church?
You would want 10 face the toe, and
every gun that could be managed would
be breu. BIT into use, and every ship that
could beSbrousht out Of the navy yard
would swing from her anchorage, and
the Qnestion would be decided. You do
not want foreign war, and yet have
to tell you that this invasion OF Coos
holy day is 8 foreign war.
As among cur own pative bor2 popu.
latioD there are two classes-tke good
and the bad-so it is with the people
who come from other shores--there are
the law abiding and the iawless. The
for ner are welcome here. The more OF
them the better we like it. But let not
the lawless come from other shores ez-
pecting to break down our Sabbath and
institute in the place Of it q foreign
Sabbath.
How do. you feel, Ye who have been
brought up amid the hills Of New Eng
land, about giving up the American
Sabbath; ye who spent your childhood
under the shadow Of the Adtrondacks or
the Catskllls; ye who were born on the
banks of the. Savannah or Ohio or
Oregon, how DO you feel about giving up
the American sabbath? You say: "We
shall not give up. We mean to de-
fend it as long as there is left any
strength in our arm Or blood IN our
heart! Do not bring your Spanish Sab
bath hare. Do not bring your Italian
Sabbath here. DO not bring your
FreRch Sabbath here. Do not bring
YOUR foreign Sabbath here. It shall be
for US and our children forever pure,
consecrated, Christian, American Sab
bath"
will make comparison between the
American Sabbath, as some Of you have
known it, aud the Partisan Sabbath. l
speak from observation. Ga Sabbath
morning I was aroused in Paris by a
great sound IN the street. I said,
SWhat is that?n "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 if all the vehicles
IN Paris, of whatever SOFT had turned
ont for tho holiday. The Champs Ely
sees one great mob of pleasure seeking
people. Balloons flying. Parrots chatter
ing, Footballs rolling. Peddlsrs hawk
ing their knickknacks through the streets
Punch and JUDY shows in acore o
places, each one with shouting audi
ence. Hand organs, cymbals and every
kind Of racket, musical and uDmuslcal.
When the evening came down, all the
theaters were in full blaze ofmusic and
foil blazs Of light. The wine stores and
saloons were thronged with an unusual
number OF customers. At eVentlde |
stood and watched the excursiOnlsts
coming home, tagged out men, women
and children, gulf stream OF tatigued
lrrita abllty and wretchedness, for l
should think it would take three or four
days to get over that miserable way Of
SundayiDg. II seemed more like an
American Fourth Of July than Chris
tian Sabbath.
Now, in contrast, I present one OF the
Sabbaths in one Of our best American
cities. Holy silence coming down with
the day dawn. Business men more
deliberately looking into the faces q
their children and talking 10 them about
their present and future welfare. Men
sit longer at the table in the morning
because the stores are not to be opened,
and The mechanical tools are not to be
taken up. a hymn is sung. There are
congratulations and good cheer al
through the house. The street silent
until 10 o'clock, when there IS regular,
orderly tramp churchward. Houses Of
God, vocal with thanksgiving for mer-
cIes received with prayers for comfort,
with charities for the poor. Rest for
tEe soui. The nerves Quleted, the
temples cooled, the mind cleared, the
soul STRENGTHENED and our entire popula-
ton turned out on Monday morning 10
yeare younger, better prepared for the
duties Of this lie, better prepared for
the life shat is to come.
Which do you like best--the Ameri-
IL. &