The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1913-03-01
SUNDAY BILLS
UNDER HEAVY
CHURCH FIRE
Ministers and Others
AreAgalnst Proposed
Liberalization
Roman Catholics OppOsedtO the
Measures Chancellor Wants
No Change in PreSentLaW


Hartford, March 1.-One fact was
| well established before the judiciary
committee of the Legislature yester-
| day afternoon, when the Sunday bills
| again came up for hearing, and thai
was that there are some of the
| churches of the city which are op-
posed to a more liberal Sunday and
! which, judging from the remarks OF
their representatives, would not be
averse to seeing the so-ca1led blue
| laws vigorously enforced. At any rate
! the bills were bombarded verbally I'm
| til one might think that the state was
| going to rack and ruin if the present
| law in relation to Sunday was not
held intact. Several of the ministers
seemed to feel that the bills were
framed to turn Sunday into a holiday.
They did not say that a detection in
the ranks of the churchgoers was an
ticipated but such an inference might
be taken from their remarks, if by
chance any of the bills became laws.
The representative of Bishop Milan,
Chancellor J. G. Murray, gave the
strongest grounds for argument
against the bills and they seemed not
to be the result of bias but rather of
careful reasoning.
The arguments of Chancellor Muir
ray briefly were that a more liberal
Sunday would not give what was in
tended,a greater freedom to the work.
ingmen. They, he said, would be
called upon to do more work, as a
result of the increased traffic accom-
m odations required for Instance. He
also thought it would tend to break
up the home, the Sabbath in many in
stances being the only time when fam
lilies could be together.
Lowell Hall of MiddIetown was the
first speaker and he addressed the
committee in support of his bill and
after him came the opposition. In
the course of his statements he re-
marked that 1.-The lobbyists have
damned and ruined the Republican
party
Speaking of the bill he said he was
explaining what he should call the
Lawyers Sunday bi1l'' because num-
Der of lawyers had assisted in drawing
it. Arthur L. Shipman, when coun-
sci for the druggists, approved the bill
and G. w. Gross for the nanufac-
turers while he objected to one
clause, which was afterward changed
to suit him, said he had objec
ton to the measure. Others whom
he mentioned as approving the bill
were: Charles G. Norris, of New Ha-
ven, and the president of Wesleyan
University. He said he hoped the
committee would not consider only
the merit of the bill, but what was
the sentiment for it. There was one
main feature of the bill he said, which
was that it held to necessity and
mercy He said the bill also tried to
make certain what necessity and
mercy were, Under the present law
he said the ignorant man was in
the dark. He said he had consulted
with the chief justice of the state on
the bill.
The other bills he said, have the
difficulty of referring the matter of
Sunday recreation to the local authori-
ties as he thought they did not want
such authority. They had enough to
do as he understood it. He said any
attempt to have the local authorities
enforce the Sunday law was a rope of
sand. The bill of C. E. Gross, he said,
would go out as giving the right to
play ball right away. He said his
bill provided for a central board to is
sue permits which would give the
power into the hands of disinterested
parties.
Mr.. Hall asked whether 1--WE wanted
to destroy the interests which had
built up the state
Senator McDonough asked concern
ing a clause in the bill and whether
the intent was to apply to Sunday
only or to every day.
Mr.. Hall said the intent was that it
should apply to every day.
Rev W. S MacIntyre said it was
impossible to discuss a bill of this
kind and eliminate the religious ele-
ment and secretary of the Lords
Day League, he thought the commit
tee might want to know how the
churches felt.
Chancellor Murray, secretary to
Bishop Milan, said there were three
classes of bills, the first of which were
opposed to any observance of Sunday.
He said the practice of the state
had always been to recognize the ele-
ments of religion. If the committee
was to take into consideration such
proposition as the bills offered it
thing. There is a second class of bills
which call for a more liberal Sunday.
that men shall be permitted to per-
form any action which they take on
any other day of the week. Every
man, however, must recognize his
neighbor's rights He thought all
men recognized that religion was an
bill that hes been a1vocated tea3s to
restrict the men of this state in the
freedom of their practice of religion.
He said his views were entirely differ
ent from those of Professor Fisher.
He said the question was, shall men
labor 365 days of the year or have a
day of rest?' He contended it was i'm
possible for a man to have a day of
rest unless the state recognized day
of rest He thought if any of the
bills passed there would be a greater
number of people forced to labor on
Sunday and this, he said, was unjust
If athletic sports were permitted he
said it created demand for transpor--
tation and the men, who were already
overworked, had to do more. He said
the same principle applied in every in