Exposure of a Pretence for the Sunday Law.
It is constantly claimed that if the so-called Sunday Law of the State is not sustained the working-men will have no rest day, but their greedy employers will compel them to work seven days of the week. This is not true. Every Sunday is made a legal holiday by the “Civil Code.” In the “Preliminary Provisions” are found the following:— “§ 7. Holidays, within the meaning of this Code, are: every Sunday; the first day of January; the twenty-second day of February; the thirtieth day of May; the fourth day of July; the twenty-fifth day of December; every day on which an election is held throughout the State, and every day appointed by the President of the United States or by the Governor of this State for a public fast, thanksgiving, or holiday. If the first day of January, the twenty-second day of February, the thirtieth day of May, the fourth of July, or the twenty-fifth day of December, fall upon a Sunday, the Monday following is a holiday.” “§ 9. All other days than those mentioned in the last two sections are to be deemed business days for all purposes.” It is well known that there can be no demand for labor on a holiday; it is every man’s privilege to refuse to work on each and every one of these days. To insure this right, further provision is thus made:— “§ 11. Whenever any act of secular nature, other than a work of necessity or mercy, is appointed by law or contract to be performed upon a particular day, which day falls upon a holiday, it may be performed upon the next business day with the same effect as if it had been performed upon the day appointed.” Thus, as far as the right to rest is concerned, the Sunday is sufficiently guarded without the Sunday Law. This being so, what is the especial necessity of the Sunday Law? It is found in the heading of the Law, wherein labor on that day is defined to be a “crime against religion.” Now they may talk all they please about a “police regulation;” it is only in its religious aspect that the “Sunday Law” deals with it. And this is the sole animus of the present agitation. Now seeing that the Sunday is made a legal holiday, a dies non so far as labor or business is concerned without the Sunday Law, and that law further protects it solely in its religious aspect, we repeat the question proposed by Judge McFarland of Sacramento: “Against whose religion is it a crime?” It is no crime against our religion to work on the first day of the week. And there are many conscientious Christian citizens of California, who believe in keeping the commandment in the Decalogue just as God gave it, who are truly religious, and against whose religion it is no crime to work on Sunday. But the Constitution of California declares that there shall be no discrimination made for or against any religion. We do not care how many Justices, who are subject to the same bias as other men, declare that the Sunday Law is constitutional, we do not believe it. It discriminates in favor of somebody’s religion as against somebody else’s religion. And, what makes it worse, the religion against which it discriminates is sustained by the plain reading of the ten commandments, which have in all time been regarded as truly “the moral law” of the Scriptures—the foundation of all true religion. While the “religion” in favor of which the Sunday Law discriminates, cannot be sustained by the plain reading of any part of Divine Revelation. We can bring any amount of testimony from the ablest Sunday advocates in which they confess that there is no Scripture proof of the institution of the Sunday—the so-called “Christian Sabbath.” And this is the true reason why the ministers who are manipulating the present agitation, so greedily take up the cry of “a police regulation.” To them the Sunday Law of California is a precious boon. They well know it is the only law which they can produce to uphold the Sunday! And such is the basis of the “religion” in favor of which our “Penal Code” discriminates, in direct violation of the Constitution of California.