Warren sheaf. [volume] (Warren, Marshall County, Minn.) 1880-current, 1920-11-24

ability until normal conditions are
brought about. We will all be better
off by so doing.
The First Thanksgiving in America.
7, At this joyous Thanksgiving time let
us pause a moment and let our minds /
run back to the first festival Of Thanks
giving in America in the autumn of
1923 by the Pilgrim Fathers at
Plymouth. 1t is meet and proper that
we remind ourselves of this original Of
a now historic and national ceremony
in as much as this year is the 3OOth
anniversary of the landing of the Pill
grims. After stormy voyage of 63
days the little ship, the "Mayfower'
with 1O1 people on board, cast anchor
off Cape Cod, Massachusetts, on Deem
Der 7th..- It was bleak, snow covered
and windswept coast at, that time of
the year and after spending about two,i
weeks trying to: find a suitable place to
land, they finally disembarked on, the
fat, boulder known as Plymouth Rock
and then, set to, work TO- make their
home IN the wilderness. 8. The hardships
and priyations which they suffered dur
ing the first two Or three years were
greater than those Of any other colony
planted IN. the country During the first
winter more than forty Of their mum din
Der died. Famine pressed hard upon
them and the Indians and wild beasts
that roamed about often filed their:
hearts with fear But they never
wavered. Liberty to: think and to wor4
ship God according to the dictates Of
their own consciences- was more
precious to them than everything else,
and in order to enjoy this privilege they
gladly endured all physical discomforts
Their implicit confidence in the good
ness of God was never shaken. By in
dustry and thrift the little colony soon
prospered. They builded their homes
and churches, titled the soil, felled the
forest and spun and Wove their own
clothes. The Indians had taught them
to plant corn and to fertilize same by
putting fish Or the bones of fish in each
hill to make*it grow. Soon the settlers
produced an abundance of food sfor
themselves and We're even able to sup
ply corn to the Indians in exchange for
SKINS of wild animals Being thus
blessed with plenty and remembering
their early privations, it is easy to
understand that the hearts of these
pious people would turn in gratitude to
God, the givers Of every good and per-
feet gift. 4 William Bradford, their
governor, regarded their fortunate CON
dition now as an especial reason for
proclaiming season Of Thanksgiving. !
The exact date Of the first Thanks
giving is not known, but as it was an
open air feast it is believed to have
occurred after the crops had been all
harvested, during the days of balmy
air and soft sunshine, called the Indian
summer, between the latter, week of
October and the latter week Of Novem-
Der. The historian Jackman gives the
year as 1923. The feast lasted for
several days. The governor sent four
Of; the best hunters in quest. of wild
game and they killed in one day ''as
many fowl as, with a little beside,
served the company almost a week"
These fowls were probably wild tur-
keys, partffdges, wood pigeons and
other game. An interesting incident Of
this first Thanksgiving, was that the
great Indian chief, Massasoit, and
about ninety Of his men came to the set
Element and were entertained and feast
ed for three days. The Indians went out
and killed five deer which they brought
to the plantation as their contribution
to the feast. The Indians, no doubt,
knew the haunts Of the deer better
than the pilgrim hunters. The. white
man and the red man fraternized at
the feast and engaged in games of skill,
strength and endurance. And we can
just imagine how the dusky savages
Would relish the delicious eatables pre-
pared by the Puritan housewives.
But amidst the feasting and rejoicing,
the stern Pnritans gave special atten-
ton to. the religious exercises that ac-4
companied every day Of that first
Thanksgiving season. The earnest
prayers, impassio ned sermons and the
solemn music OF the stern Pilgrim
songs must have created quite an I'M
preston on the untutored minds Of the
Indian guests.
RS
The friendship and good will that
this first Thanksgiving brought about
between the; settlers of Plymouth and
the Indians lasted many years.
And what noble, inspiring picture
OF piety, Of human brotherhood, ct
trust IN God and acknow Judgment Of
his power and goodness, IS the whole
scene ofathe first nksgiying.