Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1906-05-30
A Memorial Sunday.


While nothing may come OF !, III
year or two yet. an infiuehtlai
in the Grand Army of the hepuo
seriously considering the "isuo,'i
bringing before the next natloh"i
campment which is to be nelu a' ~
neapolis in August, the propo'i'
long discussed in veteran clrclee'
abandon the Goth of May as the 50,
diers' holiday and constitute tiie l"'
Sunday of that month Memorial 10y
The reason for the proposition Is TIC
same that has occaSioncd the i'pd'iuo
ment of Fast Day in certain ne" Eiie
land States-the apparent llnpoSo,''
~ OF preserving the spirit vi ''ie nun
day on secular day. Whch 'iie mass
rs OF the people are Tree rum '
ordinary everyday tasks IL Is halui al
that they should seek recreation anu 1t
follows as Il matter of course that SUCH
recreation will take the various IoihiS
permissible under the law. tertalii
games and sports not being prohipl'cu
on secular days, are bound 10 ne III
dulSed In by great many people, ~
| matter what the character OF the
weekday holiday.
| largely is. be given over to an obscrv-
ancc Incompatible with the basic idea
and purpose of its establishment-thc
placing of flowers on the graves of the
nations soldier dead Indulgence in
games and sports, however innocent i'll
themselves. that are wholly foreign to
the holidays proper observance should
| not be tolerated, and as laws for the
| correction of this abuse, even If they
| could be enacted, would be practically
| impossible of enforcement, the only
| course open would appear to be the
| change suggested. Despite all that is
| said to the contrary, there still re-
| mains among the great body of our
| people wholesome respect for the
| Sabbath. To be sure, ii has come to
pass that many pleasures are now
| sought on the first day of the week to
the scandalizing of the puritanical; but
from this it need not be assumed that
the world, or that part of it which we
inhabit, is growing worse. In Il way
the masses of the people in this gener-
alton are called upon TO work harder
| than those who have gone before, and
it is not surprising that they play
| harder. In any case it were idle to
| complain of that which is not likely
| to be changed, no matter what the
volume of fault-finding.
| The solution of the difficulty i'm con-
nection with Memorial Day plainly is
| the substitution of Sunday. Doubt
less there will be opposition of a Wig
orous kind to the proposal. Much of
| this will be reflective of the popular
| hi liz, u
| secular holiday. This. of course. could
be gotten over by fixing upon another
day of respite from labor in the late
spring or early summer, when there is
| in man "a well-nigh universal longing
to be out of doors for at least one day
| and to rejoice in the rapidly increaS-
ing assurance that summer is at hand
| The desire for the free and intimate
| contact with nature in the freshness of
its annually recurring youth and
beauty is to be encouraged, but it
should not be allowed to interfere with
the fitting celebration of a holiday that
has come to be crowded with sacred
| memories.
BY all means let the spring holiday
with all its possibilities of rational en-
jOyment. be retained, but do not con-
tinue to permit Memorial Day to be
appropriated by pleasures seekers who
give little. if any. thought to it's true
significance. Memorial Day should be
reserved to the solemn purpose which
| first gave it inspiration. 1t is WELL al
so, to remember that the beautiful
practice of strewing flowers over the
dust of those who noBy served the
has led to the better care of cemeteries
and has brought into being the custom
now widely observed of Frightening
with spring blossoms the grave.
mounds of other loved oncs.-Provi-
dcncc Tribune.