The Londonderry sifter. (South Londonderry, Vt.) 1883-19??, 1895-11-22
THANKSGIVING.

Thanksgiving Is day which fllls us
all with thanks and roast turkey, and as
such day it is dear to the hearts Of all
Americans. Thanksgiving doesn' Z make
as much noise as does the Fourth of Ju-
ly, with Its firecrackers, or as Christmas,
with its BELLS The country Ia the only
place in which Thanksgiving may be en-
joyed to Its fullest extent, although there
are people who claim that 1t Is not
without its own peculiar charm In the
smallest kind Of fat. At first 1t may
seem absurd to the student Of human
affairs that 10 pound turkey should be
able to perform with Its maximum grace
In a $la fiat. But this fact ia not mys.
terry when we come to look 1t squarely
in the face and meet II with the mental
dissecting knife. 1t is because these fat
jewellers enjoy many Thanksgfvings in
the turkey Of the present ~
After the head Of the family has gone
to tho table alone to do the carving, be-
cause he would not have sufficient elbow
room il the family were congregated
about him, they sit down and dream of
the turkey, Of the past when they were
ont on the farm looking across dreamy
vistas Of nesting landscape, punotuated
by the scarecrow shivering in his straw
hat and linen duster, to let the world
know that summer was thing Of the
past. And still they fancy they see this
old scarecrow standing among the corn
stacks, with the wind blowing through
his whiskers. They see him right over
there ON the fire escape Of the neighbor-
ing fat, for all the f1atscape to them is
large area Of farm land nesting with
red leafed trees and mortgages that can
not be raised by hand and are not self
raising like the -four raised upon 1t.
1t has brought with it pleasant MEM
cries which cover a period Of 30 years.
II only goes back to last March in tho
flesh. Int 1t carries the man back to tho
time when he slept like top on corn
husk mattress and arose in the early
morn to gather the steaming pancake on
the fly, long before he dreamed that he
would ever have to gather the matutinal
horse car on the fly. It takes him back
to the old game Of shinney, and brings
back to him faces that had long since
faded from his memory. Out in the crisp
chilly air he shouts, "Shinney on your
own side!" as Of old, and hears the
yelping Of the hound, shining like pat
emit leather with enthusiasm, and Is
stirred once more by the ripping whiz of
the flushed partridge. and the reverber-
ating bang Of the sportsman gun. that
sounds 80 sweet in the aisles Of the 81
lent forest He will not wake from this
pleasant dream Of past happiness until
the morrow, for then the turkey will be
cold, and the logs Of fancy's Preside
will have been reduced to white ashes
to stir fitfully in the vagrant gust Of
wind. Even when the turkeys shining
carcass has been chopped up to be util-
lied as the base Of an economic soup, tho
reminiscent charm will have vanished
gracefully, like a $40 bill at seaside
resort, for the turkey. like love. is never
itself again when once it's cold. Its feet
are on the ash heap and will strut
about no more. Its head, with its great
Dundreary whiskers of flaming red. will
no more MARBLE in the rosy kiss OF
dawn and fill the beholder with rosy
anticipation of the jocund feast. Its
work is done, and its days are past, and
now the family, SO we'll begrimed with
gravy to the very eyes, sit and regard
ono another in silent Joy. The smaller
members will have to take bath to got
the turkey off them. But the victory Is
theirs, as they sit in the city fat Allied
with visions Of ecstasy and break the
magic wishbone and wish that every one
from the highest to the lowest has had
just so merry and glad Thanksgiving ~
has fallen to their happy lot.
R. K. MUNKrTTRICK.