The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1920-12-21
TOPEKA STATE JOURNAL
Information Bureau
FREDERIC }. HAsKIN. Director.
washington. d. c.
AsuNLEss SUNDAY. !.

planned from the Washington view
point in this column a few days ago,
| is the center of a real emotional dis
turbance here in New York And hare
again the excitement seems to have
obseured the facts.
Neighborhood meetings are being
| called in all parts of the city and sur
rounding suburbs to protest against
the resurrectio., of the blue laws; local
chapters of the American Legion are
| organizing to fight them; the Free
| thinkers Society is threatening oppesi-
| ton to all kinds of reformers, and the
| theater and moving picture industries
are preparing to fight to keep the sub
| ject of the Sabbath out of our ever
growing book of national laws.
OF course, all of us have been more
/ or less prepared for further reforms
! ever since the successful ratification
( of the eighteenth amendment, but it
| is doubtful if anyone expected them to
| come so soon, or so many of them at
| once Occasionally. we heard that an
| attack against tobacco was ominously
| imminent, but that the reformers were
| sharpening their tona hawks for an at
tack on all forms. of Sunday recrea-
| ton, healthful or otherwise was
| scarcely suspected until the Lords Day
Alliance announced its belligerent in
| tentions.
Even now, some people are of the
! opinion that the Alliance cannot be
| sincere in what it says-that there is
| some 'jinx" about the thing some
| where. For instance, the other night
| the following conversation between
! two business men on the subway, fill
tered up to the reporters ears:
| II believe it's all a trumped-up
scheme on the part of the Republican
! party" said the first business man
sagely. They may have given these
old boys a little encouragement, just
| to throwSthem over in the end. For
! q f0ah 10 5raI A5
that the people are not going to sub
nit to any more restrictions on Sun
4 day. It's bad enough to get thru as
| 1T is Well, then. what would make
better impression on the people than
for the Repubs. to squash the blue
law agitation just as soon as they get
into office. What would win the pub
lies confidence qucker?"
! Hmm, that's a pretty theory" said
the second business man, but remem-
Der that everybody thought that pro-
hibition was joke until the Supreme
court declared it wasn't. The first
thing you know we'll all be dragged
out OF bed on Sunday morning by pro-
patton officers employed by the COM
munlty to see that we go to church.
A Blue Law Advocate.
On the whole. New York is inclined
to treat the Sunless Sunday movement
very seriously, and anyone who has
| heard the Rev. Henry L. Bowlby, gem
eral secretary of the Lords Day Ali
ance and leader of the movement,
state his case can be perfectly sure
that the Alliance means what it says.
| Mr. BoWlby is short of stature and has
short, thick, energetic hands His
eyes are small and shrewd, his mouth
a thin, determined line above a stub
born chin. In Altoona, Pa, where he
was formerly minister of the gospel,
| he was known as an excellent field
pastor" rather than an eloquent
preacher. In other words, he is an
extremely efficient executive-the very
type one would expect to find presid-
ing over the crowded, business-like
| offices of the Alliance in the Presby-
terrain Building on Fifth avenue.
When being interviewed, Mr.. Bowl
by is self-eonfident, but cautious. He
is careful not to say anything on his
own authority, but quotes deliberately
from the pamphlets OF the Alliance,
while one of the officials of that or
ganization usually his attorney, sits
watchfully at his elbow.
When asked if the reported aims of
the alliance were true, the other day,
| the reverend executive asserted that
he, personally, had been continually
misquoted by the newspapers, but
would be glad to rehearse the program
and purpose of the organization.
"Our organization is backed by six
teen denominations" he began, sim
Guiding all except the Roman Catho-
lies, Jews, the Seventh Day Adventists
and the Unitarians. We are we'll
financed. Our lobby at Washington
will be a strong and effective one. We
shall work in every congressional dis
trict in every state. We shall advo-
cate and spread propaganda and cause
voters to write increasingly to their
/ representatives in congress until no
congressman who cares to stay in
congress will dare refuse to vote for
| our measures. These were the meth
DDS used by the Anti-Saloon League,
and they were effective.
| I'VE propose to pass no blue laws.
There are no such things as blue laws
and never were, SO far as 1 know. We
don't propose to legislate people into
church. IN other words. we shall try
to close the baseball parks: the golf
links; the motion picture and other
theaters; the concert halls; the an1use-
ment parks; the tennis courts, and the
bathing beaches. We shall fight all
lamusements where an admission fee is
charged. We shall oppose golf, base
ball, tennis, football and other sports
even If purely amateur or devoid OF
| financial cost to those watching or
taking part, because they set bad ex-
amples for children who otherwise
might be content to go to Sunday
To Cut Off the Gas.
I'VE shall seek to restrict the sale
| of gasoline for pleasure automobiles
and urge other measures that will stop
| Sunday automobiling and joy riding.
This will not bring the old-fashioned
horse and buggy back because We be-
lieve that the Lords day should be
day of rest for man and beast,
l Excursion steamer rides on Sum
day will be opposed by US on the
grounds that they are unnecessary to
the moral welfare of America. We
oil M VI IL
braries or art galleries should remain
4 open on Sunday. And Sunday news
papers are certainly unnecessary
when pressed for his opinion of
something that the people could do on
! Sunday besides go to church, Mr..
Bowlby declared that there would be
no obju ton TO them walking in the
I fields or parks or attending the