Enforcement of the Sunday closing laws on the lower east side, 1882-1903.

On Sunday, December 3 1882 a day described through the New York Times as common "long to be remembered in the history of this City," (1) of the present day York's finest took to the roads and with great zeal arrested 137 someones for various violations of the newly codified "Crimes against the human frame and Against Public Decency and profitable Morals," otherwise known as the Sunday Laws. Among those arrested in the crackdown were at least thirty-five israelites including bootblacks, newspaper vendors, barbers, cigar vendors, ragpickers, fruit vendors, and truck- butcher- and coal-cart drivers. (2) While the police arrested cigar vendors, they allowed

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