Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1877-11-28
Thanksgiving.

ear AFTER year ana generation alter gen
Grafton this favorite festival of the Pilgrims
has been kept in New England. And as
New England ideas and people have ex-
tended and penetrated the land one state
after another has adopted the custom, until
it has come to be distinctive national
feast The general government has taken
up the state prerogative and issues its proc
lamation, and the governors, like faithful
lieutenants, repeat the word along the whole
line. In some states, to he sure, they hardly
know what to do with it yet, but the needed
information will come to them in due time.
1t is easy to become accustomed TO agree
able duties and pleasant occasions.
There are some people who are not quite
sure whether the feasting and gaiety Incl
dent to this day are altogether Christian and
proper. They look upon the preparations
for festive cheer with secret discomfort. If
this feeling is entertained by any of our
readers, we advise them to give up Thanks
giving altogether. But we can imagine no
more legitimate sources of recreation and
happiness than a pleasant dinner, cheerful
conversation, and the games and music of
children. We should like more days for the
merry heart. The man who thoroughly en-
joys Thanksgiving, and enters into its festiv-
tiles with cheerful spirit and light heart,
is almost uniformly good companion,
al fr;n,I anI 1,,a 80,
ries. We like bright, cheerful, generous
men who enter heartily into all pure festivi-
ties and add to the enjoyment of others.
Our government, both national and state,
have the highest presidents for appointing
both annual and special seasons of thanks
giving and praise. Surely in our eminent
history and pre-eminent experience the
causes and occasions for thoughtfulness,
gratitude and thanksgiving are not wanting.
These causes are not special only but gen
eral, and to be found in our daily life as a
state and a nation and individuals. First
and always after our creation in the image
and likeness of God" is the gift of Gods
dear Son, our Lord. This is to be remem.
bered at all times and spoken of every day
and everywhere, with ever increasing graf
itude and Astounding joy.
And under the impulse of this mighty
feeling should we all call up and count over
our national blessings. We have them emf
nent and attracting the gaze of the world.
We have peace, while mighty states and ma.
tons are plunged into war-the direst curse
of all times, and in whose wake death and
hell follow now as of old, ard more terrible.
We have plenty, abundance and overflow
ing, while broad portions of the earth
are famine-stricken and plague. stricken.
Scarcely within the memory of the now liv-
ing has famine swept away so many millions
and desolated such wide territories. More.
we have been saved from strife internal,
deadly strife between different sections of
the nation and brothers of the same family.
The judicial settlement of the Presidential
question so long hanging over us as a cloud
charged with storms and holding the thun-
der and lightning longing to leap out. is
felt by all Christian statesmen and good cit
liens to be divine providence, and cause
of devout national thanksgiving.
Further, the rapid restoration of good
feeling and fellowship through the spread of
intelligence and information of each other
consequent upon the commingling of the
masses before held apart-the hand-shak
ing and looking each other in the face once
more occasioned by the recurrence and con
tinuance of the centennial celebrations-this
binding together by the cords of mutual re-
spect and affection-this in no mean sense
rounds out the cause and condition of ma
tional gratitude and Thanksgiving as we
gather in assemblies or meet around our
festive family boards. All these things
peace. plenty, fellowship, freedom of inter
course with each other aud the nations
abroad, have enlarged our resources at home,
quickened our commerce abroad, and brought
us into that state in which we are more than
ever givers rather than receivers, and the pro-
curers of life to the nations Through the
loving care of the Heavenly Father that has
been over us we have been taken away from
want and dependence aud brought up to
that condition of richest experience, and
made to know, as few if any before us, how
" 1t is more.blessed to give than to receive"
II we contract our vision and bring it
down from our nation to our state we shall
find equally specific and real cause for
Thanksgiving and Astounding JOY We can
but little more than generally say that this
year 1877 will be hereafter counted his
toric year in the annals of Vermont Be
sides the frIitfulness and freedom from
famine and disease that we with the nation
have enjoyed, we have had here plenty and
peace, quietness aud contentlnent in higher
degree. Our hushandry, our manufactures,
our trade and intercourse and increase have all
flowed on without the interruption that has
checked them all in some of our sister states.
The HURON DIsAsTER.-Since the sink-
ing of the Oneida in the Indian Ocean, some
eight or nine years ago, no such disaster has
ever befallen our navy as that of Saturday
III VIZ Wi'NhillB WI lilt on
the North Carolina coast, with the loss OF
one hundred lives and the total destruction
of the vessel. The Huron was one OF the
smaller vessels, and the result seems to show
that she was not capable of withstanding an
ordinary storm at sea. She left Fortress
Monroe Friday morning, disregarding the
danger signals of the weather bureau, and
in twelve hours was driven ashore and torn
to pieces. And there are many naval
officers who believe that a large proportion
of our little fleet would, under similar cir.
cumstances, share the same fate. In this
case there was no such pressing need of the
ship in the West Indies as to Justify her
running out in a storm.
CHEAP HELp.-Russian newspapers are
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