The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1901-02-20
HAS ANCIENT LINEAGE
SUNDAY CLOSING AGITATION NO
PARVENU GROWTH.
PART OF THE CITYS HISTORY,
MANY BITTER FIGHTS WAGED
OVER THE QUESTION.

victory Has Inclined at One r<ne
Another First to One Side and
Then to the Other-Intcrest Now Is
MS TO Which VIII BE the Victor.
Municipal Records Are Full of the
Time-HOnOred Question of Sunday
Observancc-In slavery Days, Ne
grOes offered Potent Arguments to
Both Sides.
The present is by no means the first
agitation that has been raised against
open shops on Sunday. Such asitations
have been a portion of the municipal his
tory of Savannah, and for long periods
there was continued airing of opinions
for and against Sunday closing.
A search of the municipal records shows
many references to the fights made at
one time and another for the opening of
markets and shops on Sunday mornings,
and, the point being carried, for their
closing. Strong and bitter denunciation
of the practice, when il was allowed was
made, and equally strong and bitter in
vective against what was termed big
otry and narrowness of mind was thrown
out by advocates of Sunday opening when
those opposing them had carried the day
and shut up the shops
First with one side and then with the
other on top, much like the Yorks. and
Lancastrians in their War of the Roses,
the battle between Sunday closing and
Sunday opening has been waged. Just
now the Sunday opening party is in the
ascendant, but it remains to be seen if
the opposing crowd does not make good
its threats and shut up shops on Sun
days tighter than wax.
Early in the last century the fight be-
gan. The green grocers of that day
wanted the privilege of remaining open
until O'Clock on Sunday, and they adj
vanced much the same reasons that they
give nowadays to show that it should be
accorded them. They were successful in
their efforts before Council, and an or
dinance was passed, allowing them to
keep open until the hour specified.
Then came the other side, comprised of
citizens who openly petitioned Council
for the revocation of the ordinance. They
did not adopt the tactics that have been
introduced into the present fight, but sub
mitted their petition, and the result was
its ultimate grant.
When the petition was presented Coun-
Gil to rescind the ordinance and have the
shops closed up on Sundays, a commit
tee, comprised of Levi S. d. Lyon, r. r.
Cuyler and f. H. Welman, was APP
pointed 20 consider the petition, and the
report of the committee was very COM
prehensive, giving many reasons for and
against Sunday closing, but recommend
ing that the petition be granted and the
ordinance repealed.
Principal among all the points raised in
favor of the shops being open on Sun
days, was the benefit derived from the
practice by the slaves upon the planta-
tons surrounding the city. 1t was urged
that the slaves could get off only on
Sunday for trips to the city to market
such truck and wares as they might
have. The produce of the small tracts of
land allowed them for their own private
use and cultivation by their masters
could be disposed of to the shopkeepers
of SaVapnah only on Sundays and the
plea for the negroes benefit was heard
on all sides among the advocates of the
shops being open on Sunday mornings.
On the other hand, it was urged that
Sunday should and must be observed as
day of rest and peace, never to be des-
ecrated by traffic and business. Just the
arguments that are advanced now were
heard then, and the committee refuted
the claim that it was for the benefit of
the slaves that the shops remained open
by the counter claim that the system
wrought to their injury, for the reason
that they spent, as a rule, the proceeds
of their sales for liquor, upon which they
proceeded to get drunk and mar the holy
nature of the day. 1t was declared that
more cases were docketed on the infor-
nation book against drunken negroes on
Sunday than on al 1.-The other days of the
week combined.
Just about the time the petition was
presented a board of aldermen was re-
firing. The aldermen received the report
of the committee at a-meeting on July 9
1929, but the ydid not care to wrestle with
the question, so they laid the report on
the table and allowed their successors to
take it up. After several months spent
in reaching decision upon the momen-
tous question, Sunday closing carried the
day.
The victory of the Sunday closing ele-
ment, however, was not long-Iived The
other party grew very busy and after a
time the shops were, the beneficiaries Of
another ordinance that allowed them to
again keep open until 9 O'Clock. Then fol-
lowed numbers of petitions for the repeal
of the ordinance, and finally it was re-
pealed. Again the advocates of Sunday
opening got in the field, and the ordin-
ance was passed that now allows the
green grocers to remain open on Sunday
mornings