368 STUDIES, SCIENTIFIC AND SOCIAL chap. 



done by various classes of hired servants who, are em- 

 ployed on similar work for six days every week, and who 

 also have not much less to do on the seventh day. To keep 

 the Sabbath, both in the letter and the spirit, these work- 

 ers must be allowed full and complete rest ; they must do 

 none of their special work on that day. All that portion 

 of their weekly duties which is necessary for the well-being 

 of their employers, and for the rational enjoyment of their 

 lives, must be done by those other members of the house- 

 hold who have spent the week largely in idleness or in 

 pleasure, or if in work, in work of a quite different 

 character from that of their servants. In doing this work ; 

 in helping each other ; in sharing among themselves the 

 various household occupations which during all the week 

 have been undertaken by others ; and in doing all this in 

 order that those others may enjoy the full and unbroken 

 rest which their six days' continuous labour requires and 

 deserves, each member of the family will be doing deeds of 

 self-sacrifice and of charity (in however small a degree), 

 and such deeds do not constitute the " work " which is so 

 strictly forbidden on the Sabbath day. 



In the ordinary middle-class household, where there are 

 six or eight in family and two or three servants, all that 

 is necessary may be easily done, and allow every member 

 of the family to go to church or chapel once or oftener. In 

 other cases there will, no doubt, be difficulties, but none 

 which may not be overcome by a little arrangement and 

 mutual helpfulness. Where a household consists only of 

 aged or elderly people to whom the needful operations of 

 housework would be painful or even impossible, there are 

 always younger relatives or friends, or even acquaintances, 

 who could, either regularly or occasionally, spend the 

 Sunday with such old people ; and there is probably not a 

 single difficulty of this kind which could not be overcome 

 by two or more households combining for the Sunday in 

 such a way as to divide the work and thus render it as 

 little irksome as possible. If it were once really felt that 

 the thing must be done, that on no account must the com- 

 mandment be broken by servants doing any of their usual 

 work on Sunday, and that the truest and most divine 



