Correspondence of the Salem Gazette.
BOSTON, Aug. 5.
About 1804 your Selectmen ordered that after a given date no barber"s shop should be kept open on Sunday morning. There was no appeal from their mandate. The fatal last Sunday arrived; the customers of the esteemed Benj. Blanchard, whose shop was at the upper part of Ess.e.x street, opposite the Endicott and Cabot mansions, came as usual to have their hair tied; it was the epoch of queues, and it was necessary to their aspect in church that their back hair should be artistically bound with ribbon and their heads nicely pomatumed, even though, like Bonaparte, they shaved their own beards. This last Sunday it was observable that each gentleman, in his turn, after being barbered, instead of hurrying off as usual, resumed his seat. As the second bell began to ring, the last customer was accomplished, and the whole company rose from their chairs, filed out into Ess.e.x street, formed a line in front of Mr. Blanchard"s shop, and gave three rousing cheers; then, like Burns"s "Twa Dogs, each took off his several way," some to Dr. Barnard"s North Church, some to Dr.
Hopkins"s, Dr. Bolles"s, or Dr. Prince"s First Church.
_Salem Gazette_, August, 1885.
The Middles.e.x Sabbath a.s.sociation meet in November, 1815, but find nothing to do. No Sabbath-breakers reported, probably.
SABBATH a.s.sOCIATION.
WHEREAS the a.s.sociation in the county of Middles.e.x, for aiding in carrying into effect the Laws of this Commonwealth against the violation of the Sabbath, met at Concord in November last,--and finding nothing which required further proceedings at that time, thought fit to adjourn. This is to give notice, that the meeting of said a.s.sociation stands adjourned, to meet at Concord, at the former place of meeting, in Hamilton"s Hotel, on the first WEDNESDAY in February next, at ten o"clock A.M.
A general attendance is requested.
CHARLES STEARNS, _Per Order_.
_Lincoln, January_ 11, 1816.
_Columbian Centinel_.
The following notice from the "Columbian Centinel" shows that rapid driving on the Lord"s Day was forbidden in Boston as lately as 1817:--
POLICE OFFICE.
_Boston, July_ 12, 1817.
COMPLAINTS having been made at this office of dangers and disturbances arising from the rapidity with which carriages are driven on the Lord"s Day, special persons have been selected to take notice of this indecorous conduct, that the law on the subject may be rigidly enforced. It is forbidden to drive, during Divine Service, or while the inhabitants are going to or returning from their several houses of public worship, any carriage at a greater rate than a walk or moderate foot pace; and masters and mistresses are responsible, if the servants are unable to pay the penalty incurred by them in this offence.
NEH. FREEMAN, _Superintendent._
Making hay on Sunday is here condemned in some very choice lines.
--> There is much more PIETY than POETRY in the following stanzas:--And though the employment condemned, cannot occur for a season at least, the MORAL inculcated we trust, will have a tendency to prevent other breaches of Holy Time.
_THE PIOUS FARMER._
SHOULD it rain all the week and the Sundays prove fine, Though others make hay, yet I"ll not work at mine; For, I don"t think, for my part, such sun-shine was given, Us mortals to lure from the path-way to heaven.
Some to work on the Sabbath will make a pretence, That taxes are high, and they can"t pay their rents; But my rents and my taxes I"ll still hope to pay, Though on sun-shiny Sundays I do not make hay.
For this shall my heart never call me a sinner, While I still hope in G.o.d I shall ne"er want my dinner; To lay up a store, I"d try every fair way, But on Sundays, though sun shines, I will not make hay.
Some plead in excuse, that, not waiting for Monday, Great battles are won, though they"re fought on a Sunday!
At famed Waterloo too,--there"s none greater than it, But then, "tis well known, the lost Tyrant began it.
"Tis a custom with me to spend G.o.dly that day; But while French go to war, and the English make hay, Though the season proves wet, and hay gets in but slowly, Yet I would not do other than keep the day holy.
Far, far be from me, to ape those saving Elves, Who rob G.o.d of his due, to grow richer themselves; But be mine the pursuit, which all good men approve, To strive to be rich in the Regions above.
If it rain all the Week, then on G.o.d I"ll recline, And not work on Sunday, although the sun shine: In this Faith deeply rooted, no ills I forbode, That a man"s seldom poorer for serving his G.o.d.
_Columbian Centinel_, Nov. 27, 1816.
From the "Ess.e.x Register," Salem, May 18, 1822, we learn that there had been trouble caused by ill-bred young men congregating at the public corners on Sunday evening, and also that some females had behaved badly at that time.
One of those ill bred and riotous fellows, who have become notorious for their bad conduct of late, at the corners of our streets, was arrested by one of our most vigilant constables, at the corner of North and Ess.e.x streets, on Sunday evening last, carried before a magistrate, committed to prison, and bound over for his future good conduct. Our munic.i.p.al authorities, and all others concerned in bringing this person to punishment, deserve the thanks of their fellow-citizens. The town of Salem, once so distinguished for the purity of its manners and the good order of its society, has been disgraced of late, by outrages upon the peace and quiet of the community, committed by noisy a.s.semblages of young men at the public corners--and even _females_ have been seen to exhibit a demeanor in the streets disreputable to the town, and disgraceful in the highest degree to themselves. This conduct should receive not only the discountenance, but the decided reprehension of the respectable part of the community.
Every citizen is interested, and is moreover bound to manifest his interest by his acts, in bringing every offender to prompt and condign punishment. The stake which every one has in the good order of the community, is great--it behoves, then, every one to exert himself to re-establish and preserve it.
In 1819 in New York there were loud complaints of the violation of the Sabbath, as we see by an account taken from the "Salem Gazette."
NEW-YORK, JULY 14.
_VIOLATION OF THE SABBATH._
A few weeks since, a meeting of the citizens was called, to devise some efficient means to suppress the violation of the Sabbath. A committee was appointed to report a plan for that purpose. I wish to inquire what that committee have done, and when another meeting is to be called to receive their report.--The evil still remains, and is certainly acc.u.mulating under the most aggravated forms.--Our churches are nearly deserted on the Sabbath, while every place of amus.e.m.e.nt and pleasurable retreat is thronged. Good authority states the numbers that frequent Brooklyn every Sabbath, at from ten to twenty thousand, and a proportionable number may be computed to visit every other island and place of resort in the vicinity. We have forty-five churches, and a population of one hundred and twenty thousand; admitting one thousand to attend each church, it follows that seventy-five thousand violate that command of the Apostle which requires Christians "not to forsake the a.s.sembling of themselves together." Let the citizens organize societies to suppress the violation of the Sabbath and all other vice and immorality.
"Sabbath-breakers" had multiplied to such an extent in 1815 that conventions were held in many of the counties in Ma.s.sachusetts to see what could be done in reference to the evil. We have a report of the Ess.e.x convention at Topsfield, Oct. 4, 1815. The Committee say, among other things,--
Although most men, even if they have no regard for the Divine Being or the welfare of society, when they know that Sabbath-breaking is offensive to the great body of the community, will, from regard to themselves, refrain from it, yet there are some abandoned individuals, who are so lost to all proper regard even for themselves, as well as their Maker, and their fellow-men, that in violation of laws, human and Divine, and in direct opposition to the wishes of the community, they still continue to travel and labour upon the Sabbath.
Such persons ought _surely_ to be prosecuted, and made to feel that they cannot violate the laws of the Commonwealth, and profane the Sabbath with impunity.
If their conduct is suffered to continue, others will be emboldened to follow their example; the evil will again increase, and eventually become as great as before.
But if they find that they cannot profane the Sabbath without being subjected to the trouble, shame and expense of a penal prosecution, this enormous evil, which has so long been undermining the best interests of the community, and drawing down upon us Divine judgments, will be prevented. For past experience has fully demonstrated, that wherever the laws are prudently, and at the same time promptly and faithfully executed, the evil will cease.
And among the Resolves pa.s.sed by the Convention we find these,--
III. Resolved, that we earnestly recommend to Tythingmen, Civil Officers and the friends of the Sabbath in every town, to prosecute, or cause to be prosecuted, without distinction and without delay, all, who are travelling without sufficient reason, or in any way wilfully violating the laws respecting the Lord"s Day.
V. Resolved, that we recommend to all the friends of order, to circulate as extensively as possible, such tracts and pamphlets as are calculated to promote the due observance of the Lord"s Day.
Voted, that the Clerk be requested to send a copy of the doings of the Convention, to the Editors of the public papers in Boston, Salem, Newburyport and Haverhill, and that they be requested to publish the same in their respective papers.