The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-11-23

| pie celebrating their harvest home their
| last load of corn they crowned with
! flowers, having, besides, an image richly
dressed by which they perhaps signified
Ceres; this they kept moving about while
| the men and women riding through the
street in the carts shout as loud as they
can until they reach the barn " 1t is
really questionable if the English peas
ants know enough about mythology to
| call their image Ceres" From older au-
| thorities we learrr that they call their
image Kern Baby" which, no doubt,
| answered better even than the name sup
piled by the learned Frenchman, and that
is so easily traced to corn baby" made
| from their own products.
First American Thanksgiving
| Edward Winslow in his account of the
| first genuine American Thanksgiving day
says: Our harvest being gotten in our
| governor sent four men out fowling, so
that we might after a special manner re-
| Joice together after we had gathered the
| fruit of our labors. The four in one day
| killed as much fowl as, with little help
| besides, served the company almost a
| week. At which tine among other recre-
ations, we exercised our arms many of
the Indians coming amongst u.s. and
among the rest, their greatest king, Mas
| sasoit."
Separated from their northern brothers,
| both by social and political differences,
| southern cavaliers chose rather the merry,
open, relaxed delights Of Christmas than
| the somber hued New England festival of
Thanksgiving day, and this feeling was
never overcome until but few years be-
| fore the outbreak of the civil war. In
| the pioneer colony of Virginia no day of
!, thanks was ever ordained except when
ordered by royal proclamation, which
exerted as great an influence in Virginia
| as 1t did in Massachusetts.
| Nothing is known of their effect on
the manner of observance in the Caro-
linas or in Georgia, for the records show
no account of thanksgiving days in the
south until 1858, when eight southern gov
ernors issued proclamations much after
the New England model, rather it must
be admitted to the disgust of the more
fanatical opponents of anything that saw
| ored of 'Yankeedom."
Relying upon divine providence to assist
them in their struggle for liberty. the
| Revolutionary Congress annually recon-
mended a day for thanksgiving. After
peace was concluded the observance of
! the day was omitted until 17SS, when
| President Washington, upon suggestion OF
| Congress- appointed Thursday, November
| 26. as a day for national observance, this
| being our first recognized national holi-
| day. Prior to this, however the Gus
| tom had become universal in the New
| England states the governors of the
| commonwealths sending out their procla- |
nations to be read from the pulpits, which
served the purpose of our great daily
| newspapers in giving the news to the peo-
pie in these days. For a time there was
| opposition on the part of ministers to
Thanksgiving days being created by pub |
! lie acts, but gradually that was over
come, and the authority of the civil gov
ernment in these matters was generally
admitted.
First Considered Political Measure
This holiday, revered today, was at |
| first most vehemently objected to as a |
! political measure. 1t was considered as
such when Washington issued his pres- |
Dental proclamation agricultural bless
! ings being of small moment to our poll
| ticians at that time. In New York Gov
ernor John Jay, In 1855, issued a procla-
nation appointing November 12 as a day
of Thanksgiving, which was denounced by
MS opponents, who accused him of trying
to fatter religious prejudices. Then
| again for various causes, some sections
| of the country had instituted their own
| days of observance, SO that the conflict
ing dates, which governors proclamations
established, created no little murmuring
and discomfort. For some reason Gov
ernor Clinton of New York was criti-
cised for his religious measure. Oppos-
ton soon died out, however, and the way
was prepared for the naturalization of
Thanksgiving Day. Every year the Pres
ident of the United States issues a proc
lamation fixing Thanksgiving Day" as
1t has come to be known. Every year
the proclamation of the President is
transmitted to the governors of the states,
and the day named by the President is
set aside as a general holiday. Originally
1T was intended as day of fasting and
prayer. Now it is a day of feasting and
frolic and football games.
Serious Duty for President
The making of the Thanksgiving Day
proclamation is serious duty for the
rndf< f>r
to write 1t with his own hand and to
put into it as much of the spirit of the
day as possible. The first draft of the
proclamation is copied. and the copy is
sent to the state department, where 1t
Is artistically engraved parchment by
one 0f the clerks. The parchment is sent
back to the White House to receive the
presidential signature. Then the great
seal of the state department is affixed
This seal is an ornate one and Is kept in
rosewood case in the bureau of COM
missions and pardons. The President of
the United States could give authority to
a collector to obtain an impression of the
seal, but no President has ever done so
The law of 1850 says that the seal shall
not be affixed to any Instrument, except
a commission, without the special war;
rant of the President, therefor The
President, therefore, when he sends a
thanksgiving proclamation to the state
department sends with a copy of the fol-
lowing printed form, duly filled out and
signed: II hereby authorize and direct
the Secretary of State to cause the seal
of the United States to be affixed to -.
dated this day and signed by me, and
for so doing so, this shall be his warrant"
| When the proclamation has been COM
pleted by the addition of the SEAL clerks
OF tn estate department are set to work
making copies for transmission to the
! governors of the states and territories All
OF the copies of the proclamation are
/ written out on the long sheets of blue
| paper which are used for official corre-
| spondence Each governor who receives
a copy of the Presidents proclamation
| Will make proclamation Of his own but
| In the meantime the proclamation of the
President has been made public and the
| people all over the country know what
| day has been chosen for Thanksgiving.
There is no law providing for general
| thanksgiving. Thanksgiving day. is a
| product of custom. The President could
omit his Thanksgiving proclamation in
| any year, or he could fix any day in any
| month for giving thanks, but it has come
| to be the custom for the President to
| issue proclamation each year, naming
usually the last Thursday in the month
| of November as Thanksgiving day.
The custom dates back only to 1864 though
Thanksgiving day was celebrated at odd
| times as far back the days of the
! colonies. Among the records preserved by
j Congress Is a proclamation by the council
| of Massachusetts,, dated November 49,
lT6, recommending acknowledgements