The Sunday Closing War
A grocery store proprietor is the first target in a new legal battle to enforce Sunday closing laws in Tacoma.
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.
The first step in the enforcing of the Sunday closing law was taken yesterday, when Gustav Beutlich swore out a warrant for the arrest of R. H. Armstrong, who conducts a grocery store and fruit stand at the corner of Twenty-first and South G streets. Armstrong appeared before Judge Griffin this morning. The judge was inclined to be lenient as it was the first offense, and was willing that Mr. Armstrong should be released on the payment of the costs. This Armstrong refused to agree to, so a fine of $25 and costs amounting to $3.55 was imposed. A commitment was issued this afternoon and Armstrong will be taken to the county jail unless the fine is paid at once. The Retail Grocers' Protective Association, of which Mr. Beutlich is the representative, has declared war on the stores which keep open on Sunday, and it is said many other arrests will follow.
“The Retail Grocers' Protective association... has declared war on the stores which keep open on Sunday.”
Blue laws regulating commerce on Sundays were common in this era, reflecting the tension between religious observance and the growing commercial demand for 'always-on' service. Today, while most retail restrictions have vanished, debates over labor rights and the right to a weekend off continue to evolve in the gig economy.
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