A Weekly Rest Day Demanded
By Editor
THE despatches announced a few days ago that when the new Progressive Party would meet in its first convention in Chicago it would declare itself in favor of a weekly rest day, and so we find among the utterances of the leading spokesmen of that convention this statement: "We hold that the seven-day working week is abnormal, and we hold that one day of rest in seven should be provided by law." This statement commits the new party to this doctrine. For half a century and more the people that this paper represents have been teaching the world that we would yet come to a time when there would be a universal demand, not merely nationwide, but world-wide, for a Sunday law. We have based our prediction upon the prophecy that is found in the last part of the thirteenth chapter of Revelation. We have frequently given expositions of that prophecy through the columns of this paper. We have given it through our books, tracts, and pamphlets, and have circulated the matter as widely as we could all through the world. We firmly believe in the prophecy, and we firmly believe that it will be fulfilled in a short time. A few days ago one of the editors of this paper was asked to meet a number of gentlemen in San Francisco who are working for a Sunday law here in California. The meeting was a very friendly one, and those who are working for the law desired to reach some basis of compromise by which our opposition to Sunday laws in general could be withdrawn; but when we stated to them our convictions, and told them where we stood on this prophecy, they saw at once that we could not withdraw our opposition to such laws and still remain true to the principles upon which we base our convictions. To yield on this point would be equivalent to committing the crime of high treason against the Almighty Himself. We believe that He has uttered the prophecy, and we believe that the agitation which is becoming more and more general for a weekly rest-day law is in direct fulfilment of that prophecy. Now in making this statement, we wish to affirm that we are strongly in favor of a weekly rest day, but we believe that the only one who can properly promulgate a weekly rest day is the Jehovah of the Bible, the mighty Creator of the universe, and He has proclaimed a weekly rest-day law. That law provides that the seventh day, commonly called Saturday, shall be observed in commemoration of His great creative power. We observe that day, we seek to show its binding obligation, proving it clearly from Scripture, but we do not want a civil or human law compelling us or any one else to observe that day. We deny that it is right for any nation to take under its supervision one whole seventh part of the time of its citizens. The Declaration of Independence affirmed, at the laying of the corner-stone of this republic, that we hold it to be self-evident that men are possessed of certain inalienable rights, and among those are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. A man can not possess his life if he is not at liberty to spend his time in any lawful manner that he may choose, and no nation has a right to make a law to compel a man to spend one whole seventh part of his time in idleness. This affirmation of the new political party is ominous and significant. We are perfectly aware of the fact that some people will call us narrow, that some will say that we are bigoted, and that some people will say that we are cranks in affirming such things as this, but we have been affirming it for fifty years. The events of the times are marching rapidly toward the fulfilment of the prophecy. We believe it with all our hearts, and we are desirous of letting the world know that we believe it, and why we believe it. We are desirous of letting the world know the ground upon which we base our opposition to every movement that will exalt the Sunday institution. T.