"That if any Person or Persons shall be recreating, disporting or
unnecessarily walking or loitering, or if any Persons shall
unnecessarily assemble themselves in any of the Streets, Lanes,
Wharves, High-Ways, Commons, Fields, Pastures or Orchards of any
Town or Place within this Province upon the Lord's Day, or any
Part thereof, every Person so offending shall forfeit and pay
the sum of five shillings and upon a second Conviction bound for
good behaviour,... If any Persons being able of Body and not
otherwise necessarily prevented shall for the space of one Month
together absent themselves from the Publick Worship of God on the
Lord's Day, they shall forfeit and pay the sum of ten shillings.
"And whereas many Persons are of opinion that the Sabbath or Time
of religious Rest, begins on Saturday evening, therefore to
prevent all unnecessary Disturbance of Persons of such Opinion,
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that time repealed, but some of the laws then passed are still in force.