The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1899-05-20
Thu AMERICAN SABBATH
Presbyterian Assembly Declares
That It Is Endangered
AND AMERICAN LIBERTY INpIR1L

Pastors, Congregations, Legislators
and Congress Urged to Realize the
Importance of sabbath Observance.
sympathy with sunday Workers.
Minneapolis, May 20.-sunday OBJ
servance was the question which took
the major part of the Presbyterian as
sembly's time yesterday. Most of the
long afternoon session was devoted to
an earnest and often excited discussion
of the report Of the special committee
on Sabbath observance. In the end the
committees eight resolutions were
adopted with slight amendments, ana
two more were added. In thediscussion
the Sunday street car, the SUNDAY
train and railroad excursion, the Sum
day newspaper, the Sunday working
Presbyterian and every form Of &C.
tivity which is not in harmony with
the literal meaning of the fourth COM
mandment was condemned. Indignant
comments we're made when another
special committee reported that it had
not been able to keep congress and the
president from granting the Roman
Catholics permission to erect chapel
on the West Point Military academy
reservation.
In the debate on the Sabbath reso-
buttons almost every speaker gave evil
dence of being imbued with the feeling
expressed in the words of the COM
mittee, "the American Christian Sab
bath is in imminent peril; in fact, in
many of our large cities and in other
parts of the land, it is already nearly
lost. This means that American lib
erty and American institutions are in
peril, for of these the American Sab
bath has been both the foundation and
the protection"
DR.. Hathaway, secretary of the
American Sabbath Union, led in the
discussion and Alexander Dixon, of
Scranton, Pa, Elder John Gilchrist
of Boston, Dr. E. B. Wright of Austin
Tex, and many others spoke in favor
of literal observance of the fourth
commandment. D. W. Glass, of Bal
timore, deplored Sabbath violation by
Presbyterians and remarked that
President Cowen, of tie Baltimore and
Ohio railroad, which discriminates il
favor of Sunday travel, Is a Presby-
terrain. On the other hand it was
pointed out that the many down town
churches would have to be closed if
church members never rode to church.
An attempt to get the phrase Chris
tian Sabbath" substituted for the
phrase American Sabbath" in the
resolutions was defeated.
AS adopted the amendments depre-
cate the secularizing Of the Sabbath,
urge members and young people of the
church to realize the importance of
Sabbath observance, and legislatures
and congress are urged to protect the
American Sabbath. Every pastor is
recommended to preach on Sabbath
observance on some Sabbath Of next
October and take collection for the
Sabbath Union; the board of publica-
ton is requested to prepare and Sab
bath school superintendent to use a
| specific Sabbath observance leaflet
| Sympathy is expressed with 5000 00C
| Americans who. because of Sabbath
Dissertation, are compelled to do secu-
lar work on the Sabbath. President
McKinley's attention is respectfully
called to the fact that employees Of the
! postoftces and many other depart
ments of the government are COMPEL
ed to work on Sunday.
| The McGiffert case contrary to ex
pectations, was not reached yesterday
| 1t Is likely to come up through the
reading of DR.. McGiffert's letter today
| Last night the commissioners at
tended a great public Sabbath observ
ance meeting in Westminster church.
St. Louis, Cincinnati. Topeka, Kan
San Antonio, Tex, and Wlnona Lake
Ind, are the places that are DESTROYS
of having the neXta assembly, but 1
is understood that st. Louis will with
draw because it wishes to have thu
convention in 1903, wnen the Louisi
ana purchase centennial is to be cele
brated.