The people's journal. (Pickens, S.C.) 1891-1903, 1899-11-30

rally from Its sue
ccSsors In that 1t
was proclaimed as Il fast and not as Il
feast, 1t terminated in Il fCStivity. Sup
plies had run short, the ships expected
from England were delayed, and OK
tinction threatened the governor and
company Of Massachusetts Bay IN New
England" Winthrop and his council
decided to hold IL day OF prayer and nb-
stinencc $50 that yc Ilorde be pro-
pitiuted and locke upon his servants
with favor In that they have humblcd
themselves before him." Accordingly
Il cricr was sent about the primitive
settlement ut CharleStown, and the
colonists were each and all Invited to
take part in the fast. Their sacrifice
met with speedy reward.
Scarcely had the noon hour Of the al
lottcd day arrived when the long hop
cd for ship made It's welcome appear
nncc in Massachusetts bay, the cargo
was landed, and the fast was succeed
ed by banquet Of Il sort which must
have seemed Sumptuous indeed to the
cXilcs SO recently plunged In hunger
and hardship. On the threshold Of
dreaded winter Winthrop and his fol-
lowers found what had been Il pros
pcct Of fear and peril changed into one
Of happiness and hope. Such was
Americas first Thanksgiving rs cclc-
bratod 2GO years ago. Thereafter each
succeeding November was marked In
the annals Of the colony by n similar
festival Of gratitude.
But Thanksgiving In the early days
Of our history was not confined to the
New England pioneers alone. Just Is
years after Winthrop's proclamation
|. G., in 1G45-Govcrnor Kieft of the
Dutch colony, then known rs Nieuw
Amsterdam but now rs New York, or
dcrcd the observance Of Il day Of TO-
joicing and thanks "for the rest and
peace which God had been pleased to
bcStow upon his servants"
The next notable Thanksgiving day
in history fell in 1863. On that date
the British and colonial army, com
and captured from the French, after
IL iercc struggle, Fort DuQucsne, at
the junction Of the Allcghany and Mo-
nongahcln rivers. The name Of tho
place was changed to Fort Pitt and
was the nucleus Of the city Of Pitts
burg. Thus in q special sense the his
tory or the great capital Of the coal and
iron industries Is connected with the
celebration Of Thanksgiving day.
But meanwhile In New England what
had been begun as an occasional day Of
pious rejoicing had assumed the pro-
portions Of q fixed national holiday.
In Massachusetts and New Hampshire
ii was especially popular. There was
at first great latitude IN regard to the
day selected for the feast. Governors
proclaimed the chosen date arbitrarily,
and no effort was made to keep the an
niVcrsary Of Winthrop's proclamation.
Sometimes Thanksgiving ocurrced in
July. sometimes in midwinter. At
length, through the efforts Of tho presi-
dent and professors Of Harvard col
lcge, it was practically fixed upon tho
last Thursday In November.
IN the south Thanksgiving as an an-
nual festival remained practically un-
known until In 1855 the curious Viz
ginin controversy Oh tho subject was
precipitatcd. This controversy, which
Is not generally known, deserves brief
notice. The governor Of Virginia at tho
time was one Johns, a patriotic and
broad minded gentleman. who had al
ways entertained reverence for the
Puritan anniversary which was by no
means common below Mason and Dix
on's line. Governor Johns, in a letter
to the state legislature. urgently rec
commended the recognition Of Thanks
giving IN Virginia and offered, in case
tt ,lx,At ktrqo
tory to Ht once issue q proclamation.
But the Legislature Of Washington's
state did not look upon the New Eng
land holiday with favor. Governor
Johns was advised not to make tho
Thanksgiving proclamation, and. as he
did not do so, the matter was allowed
temporarily to drop. But public inter-
est had been awakened, and before
long fierce debate was raging In Vir-
ginla between the opponents ind sup
portcrs Of the proposed southern
Thanksgiving. AT last, In 1857, Govern
or Wise, Johns successor, took tho
mctaphorical bull by the horns and is
sued proclamation setting apart q
day for the feast. His action caused
much angry criticism. and several
southern newspapers declared that
thanksgiving was simply "a relic Of
Purltanlc bigotry." In spite Of this, tho
innovation was warmly welcomed. Tho
hospitablc southcrncrs greeted gladly
another holiday, and the northern feast
soon ranked among them rs second In
Importance only to the glorious Fourth
Itself. In 1853, the year after Wise's
proclamation, no fewer than eight gov
ernors Of southern states proclaimed
Thanksgiving In their sections. Tho
war, however, coming shortly after
ward, practically extinguished tho
popularity Of tho holiday in Dixie
Washington Star.