Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1872-11-26
THE HER AID.
THANKSGIVING.


,rhool, SO the children all know it;
tte Governor has proclaimed it, and
,,d every body knows it. Some PEG.
L. have visions Of turkeys "about
hose times" / don't. Some people
hive turkeys; i haven't. But no
matter for that; love Thanksgiv
ing Day for the memories it brings
- th il. Do tell me, if you can, what
i.S become Of those old days, and
,ety they don't make them so now ?
n - "the clerk Of the weather" ios'
rio recipe, or what 10 the name OF
tyythers and fOrElOcks is the matter?
& used to be, that Thanksgiving
wasn't Monday, or Tuesday, or
Wednesday, or any other day of the
ven, but day by itself, put in by
Eecial act" TO make people happy
I'D friendly, and human and all thai;
INT somehow or 9th r, it has chang
80. Almanacs have changed, or re
lave and greatly do We fear it is the
we"
Kind reader ] never saw you, don't
know you, but here's my hand, and
there's chair and now for tete "A
'ete about old times The last time
you were at home Thanksgiving Day
10 you remember When the
h1ys came home from College, or
somewhere, and the married sister,
Arm or Jane, or something else, came
0, as proud Of the little white -han-
81 bundle, icith blue eyes, that made
unclea, aunts. grandfather and grand
mother, with its first glance, proud
rs ever Queen Of her CROWN And
wasn't that baby novelty in the old
homestead? And was it you or me,
that rummaged the garrett for the
old red cradle they lulled us in, hen,
inst 10 the strong moorings of a
mothers love, we rocked on the
hither shore Of time? And who
brought down the high chair" tina,
IN turn, had been the throne for halt
"a dozen Of US, more or less, Tin turn,
~ We grew large enough to WELD
the weapon OF table warfare
And who doesn't remember where
the chair was tucked away in the
2urrot aforesaid ? Over behind the
tile wheel, that used to hum to the
yeet sorg mother sang, years and
years ago. Aud there's the distaff
Nv, 10 the chink OF ratter. D.
you remember the fine morning we
went to the woods after it, and a
bright. black-eyed boy, just turned
of four, too? There he sits now,
IN the opposite side of the table, in
the II place, with whiskers and
beard, and with voice that would
mock nor wester. That song
How we tried to get mother to sing
the old song we loved so we'll
"Boys, | can't sing" says the old
lAdy my singing days are over"
But she was over persuaded as she
''~ayS was-for TO which OF us did
She erer refuse a boon ?--and how
sill IL was when she began Her
voice was like fast failing fountain.
Sac faltered az the old memories
came thronging back upon her. ard
somehow her glasses wero little
dim, and she took them of to wipe
them, and somehow all our eyes were
q little dim. God bless those old
fashioned mothers forever Who Of
vs. didn't say it then2 Who Of us
does not breathe it now?
Well, then came the dinner-the
Thanksgiving Dinner. How the
pantry and the poultry had suffered
furnish forth" that marriage table,
The marriage of the present and the
past. 1t was tho old table with the
lall leaves, that had succeeded the
iiitle predecessor, when there were
only father, mother, and one baby
The old strife "to set the chairs" up.
~ renewed. We are all seated -ev
cry chair filed. Filled2 EUerg
chair2 All but one, or two, or
three. God grant il but one That
one vacant place All see it, oil re>
member. There is pause a
thought and a sigh for the absent,
and the battle begins How old rem
Wiscences are revived and we all
set years nearer the purer calm Of
childhood and Heaven.
The afternoon wears away. Ap,
pies from the trees which were plant
ed when each of us were born. are
brought from the cellar, that afore-
time was the very blue closet" Of
unmingled terrors TO the timid Of US.
And among them is an apple from
FRED's tree,and Fred is. No
body can say il, so everybody is ST.
lent
ono look at the rooms the north
room, and the "south ROOM" and
he "east ROOM" Here are So.and
sl's initials on the window-casing.
Iney took dim, but my be the dim
tess il nearer their eyes after all.
The sleigh bells (there used to be
.gorin Old fashioned Thanksgiving }
chime impatient at the door Such
tpadling, and mutfiug, and goodby.
iog-the old lady urging us, every
one IN turn, to keep warm, and ty>
ing our 'comtorter> that's the word
over again, and all that. Away we
~, one after another, and the old
homestead il quiet again The
branches OF the old oak rustic audibly
over the root, in the Nov, m Der wind.
and family is again scattered over
th0 world.
May be now, some mighty man"
like those Of old, who has "put away
things aud has forgotten
n' was ever born may deem this pu-
Grille Well, well, have no more to
say than this we can all do much
worse than TO DO children again, for
'otsush As asy are, is the Kingdom Of Heaven