The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1874-11-26

Al hCSuLuuuCo WIN NhO hOASSOhhASAa1hOu
oI the Chief Executive Of the Nation and
the Governors Of many Of the States Of
the Union, this day will be very generally
observed uu q Thanksgiving holiday.
There will be religious services In many
Of the churches throughout the land and
IN the great majority Of homes there
will be more or less Of extra good cheer.
Asa strictly religious occasion the day has
lost considerable oi its original signia-
cance. When tho old Puritans instituted
Thanksgiving they meant to set apart q
DAY In which 10 express thc..senSe Of obli.
CATION which, they felt for fAvors con.
terred. Like the ancient Israelites, alter
whom they :patterned their religious
formulas far more than after the
New Testament, they Get apart q
feast Of 1ngaihering at the close
Of their harvests, when the fruits OF
tho autumn and theigolden Indian maize
had been plucked and stored away, at
which to return thanks for what they had
received during the year past and to pro-
pItlate the Divine mercy for tho year to
come. Their creed had In II q large ele.
ment Of the Hebraic idea Of propltiat.
ing the Deity, and hence In times ol cpl.
denies they appointed solemn fsSts and
IN timeP Of prosperity they appointed
teAsts Of gladness and thanksgiving.
1t was not until alter the war COM
menced that.this New England custom Of
returning thanks at the close Of the Au-
tumn took the shape ot National OBJ
servAnce. Mr.. LINCOLN was the frat
President to recommend day Of
general Thanksgiving. The revsrscs
Of the North, aud tho uncertainties Of the
great struggle during four years Of afflic.
ton and discipline, made the custom one
Of easy adoption among the people Of the
Middle and Western States, and hence 1t
now prevails ss universal usage through.
out oil the former FREQ States. At the
South the idea Of Thanksgiving day Is
not in general favor. It smScks too much
OF Ysnkeelam to suit tho "ancIen regime"
OF that section. The whilom slave.
holders associate nasal.twang, pumpkin
pies, Thanksgiving and abolitioniam all to.
gelher, and regard them as q brood Of
isms which conservative people should
religiously ignore rather than honor.
There will therefore only be a limited
amount Of thanksgiving done in the
South to-day. Perhaps more than the usual
amount OF stimulsnts will be consumed,
but, il so, 1t will bO In drinking confusion
to the land Of dough.nuts and wooden
nutmegs. Considering all things, and es.
pecially their carpet bag experience since
tue war, 1t Is not alter oil strange that
there should be good deal Of this feel.
Ing in the South. Let Us hope now that
a "let up" In the business Of despoilment
has come, that this prejudice against q
Thanksgiving holiday will fade out in the
Southern mind. Such day is really one
worthy 10 be observed on Its merits in q
social way, leaving out of sight any other
consideration. It brings relatives and
friends together in hoSpitablc way, and
counteractS that tendency 10 selfish segre.
CATION which 10 too. much characteristic
Of the age in which We live. Political
economists tell US that holidays are good
investments for any people. Their tend.
cney Ia to aneliorate the asperiLies Of
common lie and cultivate the humani!ies
Therefore they arc to be encouraged. A
day wrested every now and then from
unremitting toll, such as is tho lot Of most
people, is not day lost, any moro than
money spent Tor something we cannot
merely eat or wear is not money wasted.
To most people lie and It's duties and
responsibilities are wholly practlcal-even
as 1t was to PETER BELL, TO whom
"The yellow prim rose on the rivers br.m
A yellow prIm rose was TO him,
AND nothing more"
Had we no holidays this tendency tc
hard faced views Of lie would become
even more pronounced than it Is. There
fore let us be thankful for this Thanks
giving holiday, and enjoy 1t as q brie
respite from labor and as one Of our few
opportunities for social recreation.
Mr.. GIadstone's Pamphlet.