SUNDAY IN ARKANSAS by Dan T. Jones

International Tract and Missionary Society · Oakland, California · Feb 24, 1887

SUNDAY IN ARKANSAS.

By Dan T. Jones

[The following letter shows the animus of the movement for the enactment of Sunday laws. Our correspondent was on the ground, and writes from personal knowledge.—Ed.]

Thinking you might be interested in the action taken by the State Bar Association of Arkansas, with reference to the present Sunday laws of that State, I give below a copy of the same:—

“SUNDAY LAWS.

“Our statute as it stands in ‘Mansfield’s Digest’ provides that,

“‘Persons who are members of any religious society who observe as sabbath any other day of the week than the Christian sabbath, or Sunday, shall not be subject to the penalties of this Act (the Sunday law), so that they observe one day in seven, agreeably to the faith and practice of their church or society.’—Mansfield’s Digest, sec. 1886.

“This statute had been in force from the time of the organization of the State government; but it was unfortunately repealed by the Act of March 3, 1885.—Acts 1885, p. 37.

“While the Jews adhere, of course, to the letter of the original command to remember the seventh day of the week, there is also in the State a small, but respectable, body of Christians who consistently believe that the seventh day is the proper day to be kept sacred; and in the case of Scoles vs. State, our Supreme Court was compelled to affirm a judgment against a member of one of these churches for worshiping God according to the dictates of his own conscience, supported, as he supposed, by good theological arguments. It is very evident that the system now in force, savoring as it does very much of religious persecution, is a relic of the Middle Ages, when it was thought that men could be made orthodox by act of parliament. Even in Massachusetts, where Sabbatarian laws have always been enforced with unusual vigor, exceptions are made in favor of persons who religiously observe any other day in place of Sunday. We think that the law as it stood in ‘Mansfield’s Digest’ should be restored with such an amendment as would prevent the sale of spirits on Sunday, as that was probably the object of repealing the above section.”

The above report was made by a committee on Laws and Law Reform, and was unanimously adopted by the State Bar Association, and a printed copy of the same, with other recommendations, was placed upon the desk of each member of the Legislature. There was also placed upon the desk of each member a copy of the Arkansas Methodist, published at Little Rock, containing an article from the editor, Dr. Winfield, from which I take the following extract:—

“We hope our present sabbath and temperance laws will not be interfered with. The former, especially, are about as near perfect as we can expect to get them under the present Constitution.”

Rev. Winfield, D. D., is a man of extensive influence. About one-third of each House of the legislature are members of the Methodist Church. So you see the pressure is brought to bear on both sides of the question. What the result will be remains to be seen.

A bill containing an exemption clause favoring those who observe the seventh day, has been introduced in the Senate and reported favorably by the committee to which it was referred. And it will come up for final action in a few days. We are doing all we can to have the bill passed, and await with much anxiety the final result.

Yours in the work,

DAN T. JONES.