The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1899-11-30
The First Written by The Father Of
Ills Country.
War Time Utterances by
President Lincoln.
Why Mckinley Is Thankful in
This Year Of Grace.
"L.t US give thanksi"

"L,t US give thantsf"
The Pilgrims of that day, standing
upon plymouth Rock, little thought that
those same words would bound through
the generations and be echoed In the o,n-
turtles to come.
They little thought, those devout ana
IN worldly Pilgrims, that o:her nations
besides the English would Ind their way
to the newly discovered shores and. glad
for blessings, say LET Us give thanks
with your
"Let us give thanks" Ia the wn.ca-
word OF the Thanksgiving Of today. Er m
a feeling Of sentiment, It has become n
national institution.
The little handful has grown 20 q peo-
pie Of greatness and strength, who give
thanks today not only for liberty but for
national glory second to that of no other
nation.
. 1t was not until 1889. when the colonies
had developed int, 1ou rishing little re.
public, with George Washington ss its
head. that Thanksgiving was officially
fasting and prayer.
TIE FIRST PROCLAMATION.
On October 8, 1884, washinton Issued
o proclamation that, on the 25th OF the
following November, all places Of bust
mesa should be closed, and that the whols
nation should unite In "ren dering to
that great and glorious Feing our sincare
and humble thanks, for His kind oare
and protection Of the people OF this ooun-
for the signal and manifold msroies and
the favorable interI o sition OF HIS provi-
dsnce In the course and conclusion Of the
late war; for the great degree OF tran
guilty, union and plenty which we have
since eSj3ysd; for the psaoeable and ra-
tIonal manner In which we havs been
enabled 70 establish constitutious Of gov
eminent, for our safety and happiness,
and in general. for all the great favors
which he has been pies ID to confer upon
ua"
President John Adams thought that
the safety ami prosperity Of nations ultl.
matsly and essentially depend upon
the protection and blessing of Almighty
God and the national nowlsdgm ent. of
this truth.
During bis fret term as President there
was o great deal Of trouble among the ma
tions across the water, and his nrst
Than sgiving proclamation showed tha
" hat he was most thankful for was that
the "calamjtIts which afflicted foreign
nations visited not the United States.
and, further, that Its people were exempt
from wars, enjoying great de-
gree CT Internal tranquility"
A short while bsfore there had bsen
formed in certain counties In Pennsyl-
vania com binations to defeat the exeou-
tion Of the laws laying duties upon spir-
its distilled within the United States,
and these wsrs the source OF much an
noysnce to the govern ent.
All these DOM h nsticns were scattered
and In the close If his proclamation rec
ommenjing that the 9th day Cf May,
l7y5. te observed AS Thanksgiving, Presi-
dent Adams requested the people to be
especially grateful "for the continuation
of internal tranquility by the suppres-
Go1 OF recent insurreotion which so
wantoniy threatened the happy course OF
our public affairs"
President Madison felt that the bles-
sings for which tho American people
should be thankful were many and
varied, but he was particularly grateful
because God had blessed the United
States with q political constitution
founded on the viii and authority OF the
whole people, which guaranteed to each
citizen unobunded SECURITY, not only to
his person and property. hut to thoss sa-
cred rights Of conscience so essential to
bis present happiness and SO dsar to his
future success.