as well as to encourage in all others a due and seasonable Preparation for the religious Duties of the Lord’s Day:  Be it further enacted, That no Person shall keep open any Shop, Ware-House or Work-House or hawk or sell any Provisions or Wares in Streets or Lanes of any Town or District, or be present at any Concert of Musick, Dancing or other Publick Diversion on the Evening next preceding the Lord’s-Day, on Pain of forfeiting ten Shillings for each Offence, &c.”

Wardens were to be appointed in all the towns and districts to see that these laws were duly enforced.  All existing laws on the Sabbath were at that time repealed, but some of the laws then passed are still in force.

The following is from Felt’s “Annals of Salem:”—­

1676.

April 20th.  “Ordered by ye Selectmen yt the three Constables doe attend att ye three great doores of ye meeting house every Lord’s day att ye end of sermon, boath forenoone and afternoone and to keep ye doors fast and suffer none to goe out before ye whole exercise bee ended, unless itt be such as they conceive have necessary occasion and to take notice of any such as shall presume to goe forth as above said and present their names as ye law directs.  Ordered that all ye boys of ye towne are and shall bee appointed to sitt upon ye three paire of staires in ye meeting house on the Lord’s day and Wm. Lord is appointed to look to the boyes yt sitt upon ye pulpit staires and for ye other staires Reuben Guppy is to look to and order soe many of ye boyes as may be convenient and if any are unruly to present their names as ye law directs.”

On Sundays, P.M. when sermon is ended, the people in the galleries come down and march two abreast up one ile and down another until they come before the desk, for pulpit they have none.  Before the desk is a long pue where the Elders and Deacons sit, one of them with a money box in his hand, into which the people as they pass, put their offerings, some 1s., some 2s. or a half crown, or 5s., according to their ability and good will, after this they conclude with a psalm.

While in 1814 in some parts of Massachusetts and New Hampshire the tithingmen felt obliged to issue an address of warning to the public, in Boston in 1815 Sunday seems to have been well observed.  We copy two notices from the “Salem Gazette.”

To the Public.

AS the profanation of the Lord’s Day is inconsistent with the welfare of society and a gross violation of the laws of the State; therefore we the undersigned, being appointed Tithingmen, give notice to the public, that we are under oath, and it has become our indispensable duty to prosecute all, who wilfully violate the laws with respect to the Lord’s Day.

And we hereby request all persons, to abstain on the Lord’s Day from travelling, from worldly business and amusement, and thus relieve us from the painful necessity of prosecuting for a violation of the laws of the State.

     [Signed by the Tithingmen of Concord, N.H.  Salem, N.H.  Bradford,
     Ms. Andover, Reading, Tewksbury, Beverly, Manchester, Hamilton,
     Ipswich, and Wilmington.]