The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1906-11-23
Day OH Which People Get a
Big Feed.
TURKEY AND GOOD THINGS.
Thanksgiving and Its Celebration;
Was Not an Unusual Thing in
European Towns.

Washington, Nov. 81. - President
Roosevelt got ahead of the governors of
the various states when he announced
the date for Thanksgiving day and yet
everyone in the country, who pays any
attention to legal holidays, knew long
ago that Thursday, the 10th day of No
Nember, would certainly be designated
as the day for national Thanksgiving
and prayer. In fact the almanac and
calendar makers "called the turn on
the date more than a year ago.
President Lincoln was the first chief
magistrate to annually name day cor
general Thanksgiving and for about
forty years now the last Thursday in
November has been the day selected
This holiday is peculiarly an Ameri-
can festival, for while all Christian ma
tions. or nations in which the Christian
religion predOminates among the people,
celebrate the natal day of the Savior on
the 25th of December, no other sets
apart annually a day for general feast
ing and thanks for blessings received.
Thanksgiving in the abstract is an
annual religious festival suggested by
the Hebrew feast of tabernacles, or feast
of ingathering at the end of the year.
The occasional observance of day for
Thanksgiving formerly recommended by
the civil authorities was not unusual in
Europe. Such day was observed in
Leyden, Holland, on October g. 1915, the
first anniversary of the deliverance of
that city from siege.
In, l60S the Pilgrim church, exiled
from England, went to Holland, and re-
manned there till 1920, when it set off
the Mayhower colony to New England.
After the first harvest the colonists at
Plymouth in 1921, Governor Bradford
set out four men with fowling pieces
that they might "after more special
manner rejoice together
In July, 1923, day of fasting and
prayer was appointed on account of
drouth. Rain came abundantly while
they were praying, and the governor APP
pointed a day of Thanksgiving, which
was observed with religious services.
The Charlestown records show similar
change of fast day into Thanksgiving in
1871 on account of the arrival of sup
plies from Ireland.
I'm June, 1852, Governor Winthrop. of
Massachusetts Bay colony, recommended
day of Thanksgiving for the action of
the British privy council favorable to
the colonies, and invited the governor Of
Plymouth to unite with him. There is a
record of the official appointment of
days of Thanksgiving in Massachusetts
Bay in 1888 1854, 1887, 1888 and 1859.
Sometimes thanksgiving was held more
than one day in the year. In Plymouth
such DAYS held in 1861, 1868 and 1850.
1t was also held in the years 1859 and
1000. when the form of the recommend
alton indicates that it had become an
annual custom.
Occasional Thanksgiving days were APP
pointed by the Dutch governors of New
Netherland in l644, 1915, 1866 and 1855,
and by the English governors of New
York in 1855 and 1850.
During the revolution Thanksgiving
was a national institution, being an
nually recommended by congress. After
the general Thanksgiving for peace in
1884, there was no national appointment
until 1889, when President Washington,
by request of congress, advised day of
Thanksgiving for the adoption of the
constitution Washington issued a sec
ond Thanksgiving proclamation in l795
on account of the suppression of the
instruction.
President Madison. by request of con-
gress, recommended thanksgiving for
peace in April, 1915. The official recon-
mcndation of Thanksgiving day was
mainly confined to New England, where
regular annual proclamations were is.
sued by the governors of the states. The
day was observed almost generally with
religious services, and was the principal
social and home festival of the year.
The prayer book of the Protestant
Episcopal church, ratified in 1889, rec
ommends for day of Thanksgiving the