Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-11-26
TIME FOR GLADNESS
Giving of Thanks Throughout
the Capital City.
REASONS FOR GRATITUDE
Peace and Plenty Compared With
Conditions Abroad.
DEvOUT PRAY IN CHURCHES
Annual Feasts and Reunions Fol-
low, Then Outdoor Sports That
Always Mark the Day.
DEvOUT PRAY IN CHURCHES

\ pity II is that the temper or the day
suits not the time and the occasion. There
should be frost bite and crispness in
the air. sun of warming rays and genial
smiles. Instead. the day began with
murk and fog and gloom. and In tho
depressing warmth of the unseason-
able hour a curtain of healthless mist,
dank and gray. unrolled no higher
thar the housetops But. after all. the
day is what tbs made. The sun still
shires, though hidden for the moment.
and only a little while away the north
wind rests in icy bonds and puffs It's
cheeks to blow.
But today, whether of cloud and mist
or sun and frost, by right of proclama-
ton and grace of long-established custom.
is set aside as the thanksgiving time OF
the American people. Feast day and
day of prayer it is, time of silent retro
spect, of whispered thanks and gratitude.
The vast machinery of the government
rests motionless. the fires are banked. the
workshops all deserted And in the world
famed centers of business life silence
dwells strange and unaccustomed. the
clamor of but yesterday hushed and
breathless till the coming of the morrow.
All Over the Land.
Over all this fair. broad land it is the
same-north and south. east and west, in
city and town. in hamlet and village, the
doors of church and chapel are thrown
wide and people of all creeds pay tribute
to the bounty of the past And one, who,
for some reason close to him, would
scorn both day and sentiment. observe
the feast and lightly pass the prayer
should find his argument and answer
both near and far from home.
Recuperating and reviving from the ca
tastrophical influence of panic that
rocked the financial foundations Of the
country from coast to coast and from gulf
to border, the nation wakes great in
strength and vital power. in influences
far-reaching and for good. in ways that
make for progress and the best interests
of the civilized world. Heavy are the
harvests, rich and bountiful as never be-
fore. won by prosperous people from the
fruitful earth. Enormous are the products
Of bench and loom, and again, after
cear-aired months that told of idleness
and poverty, the smoke of countless mills
and factories once more obscures the sky.
Deep and wide is the minted golden
stream that flows to our shores from the
hearts of other lands.
Foreign Contrast.
Compare-and the answer is already
written. In another Anglo-Saxon coun-
try across the seas the people continue
their cries for bread, the sullen unem-
ployed march the streets in mobs. the
forces of the government are shaken by
dissension. Over the European continent
the war cloud hangs; conditions are
chaotic, the spirit of national unrest
stalks abroad. And on their gilded thrones
sovereigns fret and tremble and pray that
the flaming match of discomfort may fall
from the peoples palsied hand and fade
into harmless ash ere it ignites the dread
full contents of the oldwOrld magazine.
And so it is to circle the globe-the rec
ord is not fair. Prosperity and peace,
scourged and scorned from post to pillar
driven, seem to have deserted the remain
der of the world to hover, smiling and
content. over these United States.
And SO, after the thanks have been said
today. there is ample reason for the feast
to follow. the feast alike of the very rich
and of the very poor, the charity of the
one, providing the days happiness Of the
other. Today, too, the eagle, insolent and
mighty, droops his proud head, detected
and forgotten, and the great American
turkey, unfortunate victim of an annual
sacrifice. becomes for these few hours q
crowned and regal monarch.
Observance in Washington.
In Washington and elsewhere on this
national holiday good cheer and good
fellowship prevail, reunited families gath
er for the feast, friendship and affection
wait, soft footed about the laden board.
Downtown today the quiet of the Sab
bath has prevailed, the shops closed and
deserted, the beehves of the government
without their usual weekday hum. Up
town, the early morning streets were
thronged and the churches filled with
those among the city's population who
observe the day for what it really is, Q
true thanksgiving time. And after
church a stroll. despite the threatening
mist and hidden sun: visits here. and
there, little journeys about the city for
pleasure and for profit, too that appe-
tite may not fail before supply.
AS is usual on this annual feast day,
the poor of the nations capital are well
provided for The various charitable or
ganizations of the city, the clubs and So
cieties of religious and benevolent trend,
all contribute to- the feast of the poor and
of those as well TO whom poverty is not
only a condition. but a blasting curse.
Baskets Of viands. complete in all save
the cooking, were sent 10 thousands Of
homes Thanksgiving eve, and for those
to whom home is but a name and
dream and listed with the unattainable
everything save appetite has been pro-
vided.
Afternoon Given to Pleasure.
There is an interval most significant
around the hours of 1 and 2-for the mid
day Thanksgiving meal has come to be
almost an institution among lust folks
in this town of ours. and the streets this
afternoon again were populous. More
journeyings of pleasure. more visits. more
walks and strolls, with thousands at the
theaters. the foot ball games and else
where pleasure-bent, and In the even
ing the churches will again embrace their
quota of the thankful and devout.
Thanksgiving comes but once year. boe