The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1912-04-27


often an object OF irony and derision.
They we're drawn up by Puritan pion-
eers-a race of stern and infexible
men who in the excess of their reli.
gious zeal and enthusiasm adopted
such sanctimonious names as Stand
Fast-on-Hign Stringer, KillSin Smith.
More Fruit Fowler, Fight-the-Good
Fight Fowler
It may be we'll to say here that
each of these names cited was actually
given to and borne by man, and
names of the same sort are to be
found in the records of New England,
says Humans in his Blue Laws Of
Connecticut"
These men went straight to the old
Mosaic law of Holy Writ for their
code. In fact each section of the capt.
tai laws has it's Bible text appended
gruesome combination of sermon
and death warrant
The original blue laws were those
written of New Haven, Connecticut
colony, at the first more or less un-
written, or at least imprinted, but sys.
tematized and printed by Governor
Eaton in 1856 They were enveloped
| in blue colored paper, whence the
popular and subsequently unpopular
name. The Plymouth and Massachu-
sets colonies also had their blue
| laws calculated to send a chill through
every human vein. Even New York
! Maryland, Virginia and South Caro-
! lina-in fact all the English Colonial
settlements in seventeenth century
! America had laws, orders and resolu-
lions of more or less pronounced in
digo tint But the true blue laws or
code was that which terrorized early
Connecticut These known as capital
laws and purporting to punish, accord
ing to the penalties prescribed in the
Old Testament, those offences forbid
den therein, were enacted in April
1912 The texts of Scripture on which
they are based were added to each
law, as dicta probantia, showing the
divine authority by which they were
defending, and are singular specimens
of jurisprudence.
For instance, witChcraft is one OF
the first offences taken up. 1t is enact
ed that "if man or woman be a
witch, or hath consulted with fami
liar spirit, they shall be put to death
And "if any man steal a man or man
kind, or selleth him, or he be found
in his hand, he shall be put to death,
Yet the good colonists made slaves
of the Pequot Indians, as the regula
ton punishment for breaking these
same blue laws.
The Puritan legislators, having dis
posed of the ordinary, everyday
crimes, went on in due course tC
enact the more minute laws, covering
every conceivable misdeameanor, from
sneezing in church to crossing
stream otherwise than by a licensed
ferry.
Itreminds one of De Quincey's ironi
cal observations to the effect tina
the habit of murder, if persisted il
may lead insensibly to procrastinatiol
and Sabbath breaking.
The following examples. transcribe'
literally from the best authorities Of
American Colonial history, relat
mostly to the heinous crime of Sab
bath breaking:
mo one shall run on the Sabbatl
day, or walk in his garden or else
where, except reverently to and IRON
meeting.
mo one shall travel, cook vituals
make beds, sweep house, cut hair, o
shave on the Sabbath day.
mo woman shall kiss her child oil
the Sabbath or fasting day.
. THE Sabbath shall begin at sunse
on Saturday.
"If any man shall kiss his wife o
wife kiss her husband on the Lord
Day the party at fault shall be pun
ished at the discretion of the Court o
Magistrates"
(Tradition says a gentleman of New
Haven, after an absence of som
months, reached home on the Sabbath
and, meeting his wife at his door, kiss