Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1899-11-30

cessors in that it
was proclaimed as fast and not as
feast, it terminated in festivity. Sup
plies had run short, the ships expected
from England were delayed, and ex-
tinction threatened the governor and
company of Massachusetts Bay in New
England" Winthrop and his council
decided to hold day of prayer and alb
stinence, so that ye Lorde be pro-
pitiated and locke upon his servants
with favor in that they have humbled
themselves before him." Accordingly
crier was sent about the primitive
settlement at 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
lotted day arrived when the long hop
ed for ship made its welcome appear
ance in Massachusetts bay. the cargo
was landed, and the fast was succeed
ed by banquet of a sort which must
have seemed sumptuous indeed to the
exiles SO recently plunged in hunger
anu On llC luIeSuOld Vi
dreaded winter Winthrop and his fol-
lowers found what had been a pros
pect of fear and peril changed into one
of happiness and hope. Such was
Americas first Thanksgiving as cele-
brated 260 years ago. Thereafter each
succeeding November was marked in
the annals of the colony by a 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
i. e., in Governor Kieft of the
Dutch colony. then known as Nieuw
Amsterdam, but now as New York. or
dered the observance of a day of re-
joicing and thanks "for the rest and
peace which God had been pleased to
bestow upon his servants
The next notable Thanksgiving day
in history fell in 175S. On that date
the British and colonial army, com
manded by General Forbes, attacked
and captured from the French, after
fierce struggle. Fort Duquesne. at
the junction of the Allegheny and Mo
nongahela rivers. The name of the
place was changed to Fort Pitt and
was the nucleus of the city of Pitts
burg. Thus in a special sense the his
tory of 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 a fixed national holiday
In Massachusetts and New Hampshire
It 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
niversary of Winthrop's proclamation.
Sometimes Thanksgiving ocurrced in
July, sometimes in midwinter AT
length, through the efforts of the presi-
dent and professors of Harvard col
lege, it was practically fixed upon the
last Thursday in November.
In the south Thanksgiving as an an
nual festival remained practically un-
known until in 1855 the curious Vir-
ginia controversy on the subject was
precipitated. This controversy, which
is not generally known. deserves a brief
notice. The governor of Virginia at the
time was one Johns, patriotic and
broad minded gentleman, who had al
ways entertained a 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.
ommended the recognition of Thanks
giving in Virginia and offered, in case
his recommendation proved satisfac
tory, to at once issue 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 the
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-
ginia between the opponents and sup
porters Of the proposed southern
Thanksgiving. AT last. in 1857, Govern
or Wise, Johns successor, took the
metaphorical bull by the horns and is
sued a proclamation setting apart
day for the feast. His action caused
much angry criticism. and several
southern newspapers declared that
Thanksgiving was simply "a relic of
Puritanie bigotry." Ia spite of this. the
innovation was warmly welcomed The
hospitable southerners greeted gladly
another holiday. and the northern feast
soon ranked among them as second in
Importance only to the glorious Fourth
itself. In 1855. the year after Wise's
proclamation, no fewer than eight gov
ernors of southern states proclaimed
Thanksgiving in their sections. The
war, however, coming shortly after
ward. practically extinguished the
popularity of the holiday in Dixie
Washington Star.