Sunday Lawlessness in Chicago
By Editor
The Sabbath Association of Chicago are becoming stirred over Sunday desecration. It appears that the mayor will not enforce Sunday closing of saloons. At a recent mass-meeting in Central Music Hall, according to The Advance, Dr. Barrows said:— "Sunday lawlessness is doing as much to drag our city down as the churches are doing to lift it up, even when aided by such powerful friends of righteousness and reform as the papers of Chicago might be if all were willing to do their duty." What a confession this is of the weakness of the churches. Christ has promised "power" to his servants, but it seems that all that he has vouchsafed is, in the minds of these Chicago reformers, as nothing compared to civil law. As showing the support of the Roman Catholics to the movement, Dr. Barrows said:— "The most eloquent words denouncing the Sunday saloon which I have ever heard in this hall came from Catholic lips, and, after our last meeting here on the eve of the spring election, the strongest indorsement of our movement which I saw anywhere I read in the Catholic journal." And why should not Catholics defend their own? The religio-civil Sunday originated with them. But why do not these people work for saloon closing on all days? Is it proper and righteous six days of the week and only wrong on Sunday? All of these agitations prove just one thing, and that is, that it is not so much the saloon closing that they desire as it is Sunday laws. It is not the workingman but Sunday which is so dear to their heart.