The Watertown weekly leader. [volume] (Watertown, Jefferson County, Wis.) 1912-1917, 1912-11-22
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GUS celebration of the gathering of the
years harvest, a day or week OF feast
ing, song, dance and revel, is found
in all ages and among all peoples.
Thanksgiving days are also common
to all religions, past aud present, but
they were not regular or periodical
events-occurring generally after
some victory of war. 'The Puritans
and the Pilgrims brought with them
from England both the Harvest festi-
val and the Thanksgiving days, the
latter being observed whenever the
deeply religious mind of the Puritan
saw In their prosperity or good for
tune the direct Intervention of Provi-
dence. The Puritan also stripped the
ancient Harvest festival of much of its
rude license that had grown up around
the celebration in England, and grad
ually through the two centuries fol-
lowing the settlement of New England,
there grew up the practice of combin-
ing the two events and making the
Thanksgiving annual. The religious
element has been greatly subordinated
as the years passed until at the pres
cans only an incident that by many is
observed only in the breach
To the stern old Puritan of almost
three centuries ago, the Thanksgiving
day of 1912 would seem little less than
sacrilege so far as the thanksgiving
feature of it is concerned. But he
would understand and appreciate the
days feasting and revel as a part of
the celebration of the Harvest festi-
val The difference is apparent in the
records of the early settlement of
America. The first thanksgiving serv-
ice held in North America was OBJ
served with religious ceremonies con-
Quoted by an English minister in the
year 1878 on the shores of Newfound-
land. This clergyman, accompanied
the expedition under Frobisher. who
settled the first English colony in
America. The records of this signifi-
quaint rules and regulations of the ex-
petition as follows:
In primus: To Danish swearing,
dice and card playing, and filthy com
mun1cation, and to serve God twice
day with the ordinary service of the
Church of England. On Monday morn
ing, May q, 1878, aboard the Ayde,
We received all, the communication bv
the minister of Gravesend. prepared
as good Christians toward God. and
resolute men for all fortunes;
and Master Wolfall made unto us
goodbye sermon, exhorting all espe-
claliy to be thankful to God for His
strange and marvellous deliverance in
those dangerous places"
The second record of a THANKSGIVING
service in America Is that of the Pom
nam colony which settled at Sagada-
noe on the Maine coast in 1907 It
consisted of prayer and sermon as in
the first instance. These were thanks
giving days pure and simple. and after
the settlement of Plymouth MANY 9th
ers of similarly solemn religions ma
ture occurred
The first Harvest festival held in
America was upon December IS. 1921
It has been called wrongly, the first
autumnal thanksgiving held in Amer
lea, but it was In reality the obsery.
ance of the Harvest festival. with
which the settlers had been acouaint-
ed in England. It was not day set
apart for religious worship and it is
not likely that any religious service
was held; on the contrary, it was the
beginning Of q whole week of festiv-
ity in celebration of the successful
garnerlng of their first harvest in