The Battle for the Sunday Morning Calm
When Seattle’s businesses first debated the secular 'day of rest,' local editors questioned if the city’s newspapers should be forced to observe the Sabbath.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
It will be observed that the Seattle Market and Stringham’s Bakery have advertised to close their respective places of business on Sundays. We hope if no higher consideration, at least a decent regard for the opinions of others and the usages of well-ordered society will induce others to follow their example. While we deny that the Almighty has delegated to any man or set of men the power to prescribe rules to regulate the consciences of others as to what days they shall keep holy, or what they shall eat, drink, or wear, we believe that religion has sanctified and our physical and moral natures demand that one day in seven be set apart for the recreation of our bodies and the improvement of our morals, free from ordinary worldly vocations and cares. We believe that all good citizens will cheerfully acquiesce in this universal custom of enlightened society, without the pains and penalties of legal enactments, as all have observed that where it is not respected, public and private morals are not in a healthful condition. When we came to this city, we found that both the city newspapers—which should be fair representatives of public sentiment and morals—were published on Sunday, though dated on Monday. As soon as circumstances would permit, we changed the publication of one of them to the middle of the week; the other is still printed and circulated in our streets and in private houses on Sunday, selecting that day of all the seven for that purpose when there is but one issue a week, thus indicating that the popular sentiment of this community is adverse to the observance of the Christian Sabbath.
“We believe that religion has sanctified and our physical and moral natures demand that one day in seven be set apart for the recreation of our bodies and the improvement of our morals.”
This 1872 editorial highlights an early struggle over defining Seattle's civic character and labor norms. Just as modern Seattleites debate the 'always-on' culture of the digital age, these merchants were grappling with whether a growing city required a universal day of rest to remain 'healthful.'
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