784 THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



ly beneficial. The workingmen who prefer spending their Sundays 

 at home would not be injured by their brothers visiting museums and 

 art-galleries ; while, in so far as the religious sentiment is concerned, 

 it ought to be a matter of gratification to all who entertain it that 

 those workingmen who do not prefer spending their Sundays at home 

 would, by the opening of such institutions, have an inducement sup- 

 plied to turn their backs upon the beer-shops, and to bring their fami- 

 lies to see the things of interest in nature, or the things of beauty in 

 art. It is not that the opening of the institutions in question would 

 act as a counter-inducement to that which is held out by the churches. 

 Workingmen who are in the habit of going to church will, in any case, 

 continue going to church, even though some of them may also spend 

 their Sunday afternoons in the museums and galleries. And, so far as 

 recreation is concerned, I am inclined to think it is not desirable that 

 there should be any antagonism offered to the inducement which is 

 held out by the churches. For I am inclined to think that the class 

 of .emotions which public worship arouses in a religious mind are of a 

 high recreative value ; and so, as a mere matter of sanitary interest, I 

 should be sorry to see the churches interfered with by other institu- 

 tions of a less recreative kind. But, in the present instance, the antag- 

 onism should not be museums and galleries versus chapels and churches, 

 but museums and galleries versus public-houses and all places of loiter- 

 ing idleness ; and any " religious sentiment " that seeks to oppose the 

 introduction of such an antagonism can only be pronounced immoral. 



Two other arguments against the reform were adduced in the 

 debate, neither of which posaesses the smallest validity. The Arch- 

 bishop of Canterbury argued : " What were their lordships called upon 

 to do to-night ? It was before the eyes of the people of this kingdom, 

 to pronounce a deliberate opinion that the policy with regard to the 

 observance of the Sunday hitherto pursued in this country had been a 

 mistake. ... If any change were made, there was great danger of the 

 day of rest being lost," as it would be the thin edge of the wedge to 

 the introduction of other changes of a more advanced kind. Now, this 

 is an argument which may always be adduced against any proposed 

 reform, however obvious the need. We must not make the change 

 because by so doing we should condemn the policy of the past and lead 

 the way to further changes in the future. But, if a change is seen in 

 itself to be desirable, such hypertrophied conservatism as this ought 

 not to be allowed to obstruct progress. Moreover, in the present 

 instance I am persuaded that the fears for the future are groundless. 

 There is no necessary, or even remote, connection between art-galleries 

 and music-halls ; and, so long as " the religious sentiments " in this 

 country remain what they are, neither religion nor reason will be able 

 to trace a similarity or a precedent that does not exist. 



The other argument to which I have alluded is, that the opening of 

 museums and galleries on Sundays would entail a certain amount of 



