The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1897-05-08


, cities has differed widely, and in rela-
tion to which an animated controversy
is ut present waging in Toronto. The
| Globe of that city, in a recent issue
devoted three columns to an editorial
| discussion of the subject, and we find
several points in its article which inn
press us as worthy of consideration.
supporters of a Sunday car service in
Toronto have crystallized the affirm
ative contention in five main PROPOSE
| tions. The first Is that such service
VIII be great public convenience, es-
| pecially in view of the changed con-
! ditions of modern life, which have in
creased the population of cities and
spread them over large areas" The
| second is the argument in favor of
| equality; people with bicycles and
| carriages can travel on Sunday, why
not others? The third is an argument
| in favor of personal liberty; If a does
| not like Sunday cars that Is no reason
why he should forbid them to Il, who,
| as a fellow citizen, has an equal inter-
est in the car service. The fourth is a
| contention that Sunday cars will in
crease the efficiency of Sunday Schools
and churches. And the fifth is that the
agreement under which the Toronto
| company operates thoroughly protects
| the interests of the workingmen; in
other words, that there is no danger Of
the employees Of the road being compell-
ed to work seven days in the week.
u
To the first point the Globe replies:
"Unquestionably it would be convep-
| lent for citizens to be able to reach the
| parks. the woods, the churches, the
cemeteries, the homes of their relatives
| and friends on the day which affords
| them the greatest leisure for those
purposes. There are also emergencies,
such as the necessity for calling q
physician suddenly, in which it would
| be extremely convenient to be able to
| jump aboard a street car instead of
| trudging about on foot or paying the
expense of cab. There is no use
minimizing or concealing these things;
| no use in telling a man that he and his
| family can enjoy themselves as well
| by sitting in backyard or a small en-
| closure which is little better than a
| public square, as in rambling about the
parks and woods and shores that are
| to be found at the termini of the street
car lines. Nor is there any use in de-
| nying that there is a public demand
| for the means of reaching these places.
The crowds of bicycles wheeling along
the streets and the large and growing
| business of hiring wheels on Sunday
are partial indications Of that demand.
And there can be little doubt that a
| Sunday service once established would
be extensively used"
Continuing, the Globe says: "As to
| the second point, the argument in favor
| of equality has been affected in the
| last four years by the extensive use of
the bicycle. The persons who, under
| the old state of things could afford to
maintain or hire a carriage on Sunday
We're a privileged class but a small
| class, and consequently their privilege
was not constantly obtruded on the no.
tice of the pedestrian. Now it can
| fairly be said that during six or seven
| months in the year the only persons
| who are debarred from getting about
| freely on Sunday are the very old,
the very young, and generally those
| who are too poor or too feeble to own,
hire or use a bicycle. The case is
sometimes stated as if the users Of
| carriages and bicycles were selfishly
| depriving their less fortunate fellow
| ling on Sunday. We do not think this
| is fair. We fancy that If the vote to
| be taken a fortnight hence could be
analysed, a large majority of wheel
men and horsemen would be found
voting for Sunday cars; and the oppo-
sition would come largely from those
| who, if Sunday cars were not estab-
| lished, would have no other means of
AZ.
| be those of the older people, the quiet
| er people, the people who have relig-
| ious objections to a Sunday service
| and those who fear that such a service
would be the thin end of a wedge that
| would destroy the workingman's day
| of rest. Consequently, while we ad-
nit the force OF the argument in favor
| of equality. we believe it is true that
| what may be called the privileged class
| is in the main perfectly willing that
| there shou.l be a service that will meet
| the needs of ALL and that those who
oppose the introduction of the service
| will be denying themselves as well as
others the power of travelling rapidly
and freely on Sunday.
"As to personal liberty, we do not
| THINK that one Cltlzen VINO, on religious
grounds, objects to any but necessary
| travel on Sunday has the right to try
| to enforce his own views on another.
| We would, most of us, admit that it
would be outrageous to forbid ram
BILE on foot or on horseback or on the
wheel, or the reading of a novel, or
visits made for pleasure, or conversa-
| tion of a secular kind on that day. In
general we agree to compromise on
the matter. We agree not to shock
| one another by the outward evidences
| of desecration; but we know that we
cannot make Sunday what many
Christians would desire it to be, not
| only a day of rest but a day of devo-
tion, of worship, of spiritual growth
We can forbid young man to fish, to
shoot or to play ball on Sunday, but
we cannot prevent his reading novels,