The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1882-12-06
FoRr SrErEr CHuncH.


observance Of day Of national thanksgiving
strictly an American custom, and as such Is enttle
toour especial countenance; and although It ha
been IN vogue for more than two and half eentu
ries, no other nation has as yet followed the exam
pie. Nor need thismuch be wondered at, for never
since the children of Jacob dWet beside the Jordan
has nation been 50 blessed as the Great Republic
| whose scattered but eYer-deToted children arc a.
sembled here to-day under the tamarind and IN
aim 10 give thanks to the God Of their fathers fo
All that de has done for them in the past, for Al
He Is doing for them now, for all Of His promises
| for the future to give thanks to Him.
Whose mercy lifted in their wasted strength,
| Whose finger guided when their paths were dim; .
| TO give thanks to that
Almighty Father from whose hand
The centuries roll like grains OF sand
The Thanksgiving custom had its origin with the
Puritan Fathers Of New England For many YEAR
after the arrival in the New World their hardship1
crops from year to year scarcely suf1ced 70 carry
them through the long and rigorous winterg Of
their new home. They filled their fields with their
nes strapped to their backs and the hostile errows
that looked them through the thickets were almost
as plentiful as tine thorns. To enable them to bear
their heavy burdens of danger and destitukiou.
their Council yearly set apart day Of solemn fast
ing humiliation and prayer.
Finally, their skies became BRIGHTER and thar
fields broader and more green, and when, one
Autumn, the usual motion was made for a day Of
fasting humiliation and prayer, an old member Of
the Council rose-such man, can conceive. a
was stern old Abraham Davenport, made olorious
by the verse OF Whitter-and moved as q suheti-
tute that day Of THANKSGIVING and praise Be an
pointed, for said he, our streams full Of fishes
our granares full of corn, and peace and abund
ance sleep upon every threshold. The substitute
wes prompt and adopted, and thus was inaugurated
our day OF thanksgiving. The cuBtom was con-
tnued by the executives of the several states but
the day was not always uniform, although general
ly late in Autumn. Itextended from New England
to the Middle, and thence to the Western States
but was seldom observed in the Southern States.
1t was during the rebellion that Abraham Lincoln
the greatest Of all the martyrs to the cause OF
human liberty and Christianity, first made Thanks
giving Day national holiday. He appointed
day Of Thanksgiving and prayer and the executives
OF the several states recognizing Federal control
at once issued procamatons setting apart the same
day. And so since has the custom continued, the
President Of the Republic fixing the day in each
year by proclamation, and the Governors Of the
States and Territories giving it formal and distinct
acceptance And SO may It continue so long as
the Republic lasts which will be to the end Of time
and so long as the providence of God finds recoc-
milton among the peoples Of earth.
HIS Excellency then read President ,Arthur's
proclamation, followed by the choir singing the
anthem g Thou yisiteth the earth,- etc. Pastor |
Cruzan then read scripture lesson. The grand |
and sublime America was then sung by the choir |
and congregation, and the heartfelt manner in |
which it was rendered proved that the thoughts Of
many present we're over 1900 miles away and prob |
IDLY wishing for a little turkey and cranberry /
'auce with the "0ld folks at home" After prayer
ion sang the following hymn, composed and writ |
on expressly Tor the occasion by r. NJ. Daggett:
THANkse1vNe HIM.
41j Gyeerlands ley MoHntaias.-
/.
Thou who Gained the tempest that swept DER aileei
Thou who blessed our fathers bleak Rev England's
o Thee be our thanksgiving, now and forever more.
III.
rom sea to sea Thy praises by freedoms millions sung
ng through the land Thou gavest and now With heart
e catch the swelling anthem and on the western breeze
re borne our voices whit beyond an the AFisess.
III.
eside the palm, see usi Beneath the wu. hear,
nd set sign within to tell us Thou ant near
OF at Thy feet Faher we Law our homes and fe ar,
Thou vert with our fathers. be with through he
years. 70 Bread frut.)
THANKSGIVING SERMON.
J. A. Cruzan then delivered the Thanksgiving !
ermon, which was listened to with extreme atten-
on during its utteranoe The speaker took for his
1t verse from the Psalms and spoke as follows: J
sams ,147: % He hath not dealt so with any nation
Joy-bring;ng, glad, old-fashioned Thanksgiving
Is come again Nothing could stop it. With the
oTning It awoke in New England, its home, hur- ;
ed Southwark across the Potomac, and Westward a
TOSS the Father of Waters. leaped the Storms d
ID hockies, and kissing with Rladness every city, Il
inlet town, and heart on It's way, on, on *
me, out through the Golden Gate, across the / il
lcinc to our Island homes. Down through the II
eeks and months, too, it has come through mid II
y brightness, and midnight darkness; now &
-eathed with orange blossoms, and then strsved h
tn funeral weeds; amid instruments that piped Il
9 quickstep, and others that drummod the fune- Il
march. But ON it came. It stepped in through n
9 golden gates of the morning, bearing its arms
u of blessed memories and FILLING our hearts q,
'.,- praises. Tome IN, and welcome, oh day q
DER the weight of innumerable mercies aud tell n,
our hearts how great Is the goodness Of God. Ia
ms Is an American day. Ispeak TO an audienco Ia
geiy composed of Americans. No matter Where | ar
] temporary home may be, the American counts n
y one land, one nation, one country home. The ne
I'd Of his birth is always home to him-any other 60
q only " an abiding place" And 50, when he ic.
IDS this great national Psalm, the 1I7th from IN
1ch my text is taken, though he knows that the NJ
known author had the Jewish nation in mind :,
! the American finds /" Americal' "America!1 IL,
tten between eyery one Of its majestic lines. nj
me theme TO which l call your attention this IN
rning is Gods dealings with America a m
lee for devout Thanksgiving AZ
God wonderfully prepared and preserved ior
erica TO be the home of great nation. There IN
Divine appointment in the geography Of a Of
at nation. II you will thoughtfully study a
of the world in the light Of history past and la
sent, you will see that between the 30th and M
degrees Of North latitude all the great nations fac
he past, and all the great nations of the pres "a
were and are located. This narrow zone, In he1
We may even contract by ten degrees, and the ths
ark VIII still hold true as regards the home Of her
It political powers There have been nations al
i In luxury and magnifcence, existing to the IN
tn and the South Of this zone but no ons fro
ar with history will claim that those nations inn
9 North or South Of this narrow belt have m,
2 potent in controlling the destinies Of man the
l. In this favored zone, in the past, NineToh, PR
ylon, Israel, Greece and Rome in their turn thir
the sceptef OF power. To-day Russia, Ger A
y, Austria, Italy France, and England arc prel
1
II own Republic. -,
1t only did God give our nation place in this bo-
Of power, but He gave as a territory Of won IN 4
u aqh5s Iva fertility and capacity yoseph
n ii you cut from the 81, 10000 SQUARE ufleS
le Old World and the 100000 Of the New, all
infamous, frozen and and regions, the remnant
seductive soil is ten million square miles in
Old World, and riertH millions in the New
1ese eleven million square miles God has giv- AZ
} the United States the finest and best. Dr. test
says Of the United States: Her aRricultu- was
esources are such that she can give farm to leo
: family on the Globe, and furnish food 70 bore
person" The United States has a shore linz sort
ding the circumference of the earth It has lea
navigation double even this vast Measure. do5e.
holy Land Is less than the small State Of Yer 10
: You can lay the map OF France upon the endr
OF Texas, and have fringe around the edges a sin
lent to make three States as large Massa- or Il
Its. Spanning continent, her shores wash from
, two oceans, our Republic has a domain liFin
er than that Of ancient Rome, When her Eagles and
carried from the Euphrates 10 Britain trolls
TINS vast domain Is not only rich in its pro the
We soil, but in everything needed by a eroat puTg
e. Olbubbles from the center Of the earth 70 N
their houses great beds Of coal arc found still
y side with veins OF iron for Cur factories poop
fountains of the West hold in thar stony party
and hearts all the precious metals. Travel the
70 Italy to sit beneath her sunny akiea, but lna
IA has liner winter. They 20 to 69ffzor- lnsol
. look upon the Alps, and 70 Germany for Eneut
hine scenary- But we have our Rockies and tEog
s, our Alleghanies and White mountains p1bli
our Hudson, the Mississippi and the Coiuni- salag
Fers are unsurpassed for beanty and grand aasul
boa
not only was America wonderfully prepared drift
he home Of great people, Il was w6riIer- mafol
preserved for the coming Of the right peonis the
broad and deep the foundations for a great leaxn
I The rich land was hidden away for can and q
Il vas discovered, undiscovered, and than As le
away again, till Gods time should Be ripe work.
settlement It Is now accepted as a fact We ha
GLARS. that i've centuries before Columbus Tbs 4
Atieai Mortimer visited America, and event. the Pr
made tnelr way al far South as Rhode Island men.
apa turthgf. This discovery by the North On -.
nd their abandonment Of America, IS one Of that 4
'rVels Of history. Then came the Welsh than,
rs and after them Columbus and CLOSELY that b
ING him the Preach and Spanish ndrrnt1f- Z the
hen sun later came the early English al shall
ers-Enen seeking not home, OF to found bride
but fame and fortune. Bat i uas not her f.
thought that that ri1h heritage should Be lzuciiE
,fer by to Roman Pontif, become the God y
unr1ncIple1 ndFunturars These Cafho- better
Of the sword searched fls SoufhErn halfof ..-..
inlrg for treasure, crossed even tie NirgI1 II,
, their eager quest; and from Mexico, after Ifws
quest, pushed North into California. hut NJ
1rt safely concealed the Golden trsarurrr II vs.