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Show THE BULLETIN First Presidential Thanksgiving Proclamation Started a More Bitter Dispute Than Change in 1939 Date By ELMO SCOTT WATSON Ptelnwd by Wiatarn Ntwipapcr UnlooJ : 4 ARE you going to cele-- ! AA brate Thanksgiving day xon November 30, the traditional "last Thursday" (in the month, or on Novem-be- r 23, the new date announced by President Roosevelt? I One hundred and fifty years ago Americans didn't have 'any such choice, for George Washington named Thursday, November 26, as the 'day for them to celebrate. He did it in the first Presidential Thanksgiving proclamation ever issued, which was, incidentally, the first proclamation of any kind to come from the hands of a Chief Executive of the United States. In view of the discussion that was started when President Roosevelt changed the date of .Thanksgiving day this year, it is interesting to recall the controversy that raged around the first "official Thanksgiving day." The story back of that historic event is not one in which we can take much pride, any more than we can be especially proud of the kind of celebration that resulted. For politics played a part in it and it did so because of the jealousy and rivalry of two great Americans Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton. Hamilton Started It The idea of a Thanksgiving day celebration apparently originated with Hamilton who broached the subject at a meeting of Washington's cabinet in New York city, then the nation's capital, in August, 1789. A prime mover in securing the adoption of the Constitution, Hamilton had but recently succeeded in getting his own state of New York to ratify H. Despite the fact that two states had not yet ratified, this made enough acceptances of the Constitution to assure the per-minoici iu uic new ivycnjuwiui So Hamilton evidently felt that the nation, as wen as he, personally, had cause for thanksgiving. It is quite likely that the secretary of the treasury, instead ofpressing the matter in the cabi- GEORGE WASHINGTON net. where it would be ooDosed by Thomas Jefferson, the secre tary of state and Hamilton's political enemv. eneineered it so that the movement for a national Thanksgiving day would come frnm ranrrM. At anv rate, on September 25, 1789, Elias Boudi not, a memDer ox congress irom Vm Jmtr. offered a resolution calling upon the President to is sue a Thanksgiving aay proclamation. In moving that the resolution be adopted, Boudinot said that he "could not think of letting the session pass over without offering an opportunity to all the citizens of the United States of Joining, with one voice, in returning to Almighty God their sincere thanks for the many blessings He had poured down upon them." Boudinot's resolution was not unexpected and Jefferson's supporters in congress, principally opimmediately Southerners, Aedamus idea. the Rep. posed Burke of South Carolina declared that he "did not like this mimicking of European customs, where they made a mere mockery of out thanksgiving." He pointed frethat "two parties at war quently sang Te Oeum for the same event, though for one it was devictory and to the other a feat" Rep. Thomas Tudor Tucker of Carolina "thought the House had no business to interfere in a matter which did not concern them." He suggested that the people might not South 'e fy&r C XOmm. mOyXXm. fm-Jfy- f U --mf, The example set by George Washington of setting aside a day of national thanksgiving was followed by his successor, John Adams, who proclaimed two Thanksgiving days during his administration one on Wednes day. May 9, 1798, and the other on Thursday, April 25, 1799. This custom, however, was allowed to lapse during the two terms of Thomas Jefferson, but it was revived by James Madison who issued four such proclamations during his administration. The first three were more for a day of "public humiliation and prayer" because of the nation's tribulations in the form of the second war with England, but the fourth was a day of real thanksgiving that peace had come at last All of these proc lamations were issued in response to a Joint resolution from the senate and house of representatives. The first set aside the third Thursday in August of 812. the second named the sec ond Thursday in September, 1813, as the day: the third designated Thursday, January 12, 1814, and the fourth, issued soon alter tne treaty of peace with England was called upon tne proclaimed, American people to set aside the second Thursday in April, as a day for praising "the Great Disposer of Events and of the Destiny of Nations" for their many obligations "and more especially for the blessing of the ADVENTURERS' CLUB HEADLINES FROM THE LIVES OF PEOPLE LIKE YOUtSELFI "Death Trap at El Chivo" HELLO asked for a real life adventure," says Morris 1' E. Lowder of Chicago, "so here goes." That s the way I like to hear you boys and girls talk. I ask for it, and you dish it up. And just between you and me, the boys and girls in Chicago and its neighboring towns and for that matter, all over northern Illinois are dish- -' ing them up faster than any bunch of folks I've struck yet. The Adventurers' club has installed chapters in a num- -j ber of cities. I've been swamped with mail in every dog-gone one of them. But never have I been swamped the way -- Chicago has swamped me. I'm mighty grateful to you for; j your hearty response. I ve had a flock of good yarns from you, but it s going to take a little time. And speaking of being swamped well Morrie Lowder' knows something about that. too. As if we didn't have enough floods right here in this country what with floods of! lo, 0--9 liWlil - ' letters and flooding rivers Morrie had to go to Cuba and get himself; s flood down there. Morrie was assistant manager for; into a an American drug concern and in the latter part of May, 1924, he started out from Havana on a business trip into the Oriente province. first-clas- restoration of peace." The Month Varied Thus it will be seen that al T gt Presidential proclamation in the main tucked upon Thursday as the day of the week for such an ob the month varied servance, greatly and there was no connecntt-..-dt- The First Presidential Thanksgiving Proclamation. inclined to return thanks for a Constitution until they have experienced that it promotes their safety and happiness." He said further that if a Thanksgiving day must be held the states could institute it He said that "it is a religious matter, and, as such, is proscribed to us." Jefferson's Spokesmen. Through the words of these spokesmen we can hear the voice of Jefferson, protesting against a monarchist trend in the new . government against encroachment upon the boundary line It was by days Thanksgiving though tary of the treasury reviewed It from in front of Frauncea tav ern. After the parade Hamilton was host at a great feast in the tavern and K is this first official Thanksgiving dinner to which we can look back, but not with any great pride, for it degenerated into a disgraceful brawl. Hamilton could not be present for the entire affair. He was to have remained long .enough to respond to a toast and then leave for the President s mansion. But Hamilton was late In ar riving at his own party and his guests, impatient to be at their feasting, sat down without him and began to eat Almost lm mediately a disagreement arose among the diners. A certain Lieutenant St Clair, who had toasted the festive day not wisely but too well, felt called upon to assert, upon his honor as a gen tleman, that he was "perfec ly sober." Whereupon Alderman Tisdal of the city council, who had probably also been toasting the festive day extensively disputed the statement and called upon St Clair to prove that he was sober. The result was a fight from which the lieutenant emerged with a broken nose. Order was finally restored, so Hamilton made his speech and left Unfortunately for him, however, news of the disorder at the tavern had preceded him. Aa Angry President When Hamilton arrived the President questioned him about what had taken place. When he learned that a young soldier of the United States army had been injured in a disgraceful brawl, especially at a gathering pre sumably for the purpose of giving thanks to God for the blessings of "good government peace and concord," his anger was aroused and he demonstrated again that he knew how to use strong lan guage when the occasion called for it "It is disgraceful, by - . sir! spoke George Washington, and were was nothing left for Alex ander Hamilton to do but meekly agree and discreetly withdraw from the presence of his chief without further comment Thus did the political rivalry of two of his cabinet members have a part in detractinc from the solemn character which our first President had wished the first Thanksgiving day to have Although this mav have had nothing directly to do with the fact is that not for five it years thereafter did Washington again proclaim another official Thanksgiving. That was during his second administration and it is interesting to note that this Th.nV.. giving day was celebrated, not in novemoer ai au but in Feb which had been fixed between church and state and against any invasion of "states' rights." In answer to these protests Boudinot "quoted further precedents from the practice of the late congress" and Rep. Roger Sherman of Connecticut rallied to his support, declaring that the practice of thanksgiving was "warranted by a number of precedents in Holy Writ: for instance, the solemn thanksgivings and rejoicings which took place in the time .of Solomon, after the building of the temple, was a case in point" The resolution was carried and Representatives Boudinot Sherman and Peter Silvester of New York were appointed by the house committee to wait upon the President The senate, on the following day, adopted the resolution, William Senators appointing Samuel Johnson of Connecticut and Ralph Izard of South Carolina to be the senate members of the committee. Accordingly this committee waited on the President and on October 3 Washington issued the proclamation in which he recommended that Thursday, No vember 28, be observed by the people of the United States as a day of thanksgiving. Hamilton had won the first skirmish but there were still stormy days ahead. For now arose the question of how the celebration , should be carried out and. of course, the two statesmen were at odds on that Hamilton proposed a monster parade of military officials and governmental dignitaries, headed by President Washington. Jefferson, opposed as he was to all displays of pomp and circumstance, protested against such a celebration. He apparently won his point, for it was determined that the day was a domestic holiday and should be observed in the privacy of the home after the New England tradition. Martha Plans a Levee. Accordingly Mrs. Washington began making plans for a levee in the true colonial style at the Executive Mansion in Franklin square to which everyone of consequence in New York was invited. It promised to be a great ruary i On January 1. 1795. in mi.. social occasion so it wss eagerly looked forward to by the beaus delphia, which was then the nation's capital, Washington called and belles of the city. But even though Jefferson had upon his fellow Americans to "set outmaneuvered him in this re- apart and observe, Thursday, the spect, Hamilton was not yet ready nineteenth day of February next to admit defeat. He began or- as a day of public thanksgiving ganizing all kinds of public fes- and prayer, and on that day to tivities to upset the plans of those meet together and render their who wished to celebrate quietly. sincere and hearty thanks to the The festivities opened with a pa- Great Kuier or tne Nations for" a rade in the morning as Hamil- long list of blessings which the ton had planned and the secre country was then enjoying. -- EVERYBODY: tion between these Thanksgiving days and the annual observance established by the Pilgrims, no other Presidents after Madison seemed to have had occasion for proclaiming a Thanksgiving day and it remained for Abraham Lincoln to resume the custom and to link up the proclaimed Thanks giving day with the Pilgrim custom by establishing the last Thursday in November as a na tional day for giving thanks. The first Lincoln proclamation appointing a day for divine sup plication was dated August iz, 1861. It designated the last Thursday in September as "a day of humiliation, prayer and lasting The regular Thanksgiving in November, 1881, was a rather subdued occasion. There had been no presidential proclamation. In 1862 there was no proc lamation, either. The momentous year of 1883 brought however, three procla mations. The first was oated March 3 and designated April 30 as a day of fasting and prayer. July 15 another was issued, set ting August B as a aay to give thanks at the prospect of peace, The third came October 3, when President Lincoln issued a proc lamation that said "And so . . . the last Thursday in November is hereby set apart as a day of thanksgiving and praise." As a Trains Filled With Inauguration Throngs. the day after the inauguration of Gerardo Machado as presi dent and the trains were filled to overflowing with people who had come to view the proceedings. The train Morrie was on was one of 18 cars. every one of them packed with people. It had been raining far three days before hia inaof arauen, and it waa atlll raining. The afreets were full ef water when Morrie left Havana bat he waa to aee a lot mere water before his Journey waa ever. By the time they reached the town of Colon in Matansas province. the water in the streets was a foot deep. Beds and chairs were floating , The paaseafers were helpless an a bridge that might be washed i t away at any minute. about and people were making for the upper floors of the few tall buildings In town. Morrie thought the train would stop there and make no attempt to go on until the water had gone down, but to bis surprise it . moved on toward Macagua. Morrie knew that the country up ahead was low and flat What was more,' they had to cross a river called El Chive a stream that be came a howling torrent when It was swollen by the rains. The train puffed along, part ef the time through water that came to the hubs of Its wheels. At last It came to the trestte spanning the El Chive. It waa about seven a'elsck, and pitch dark, when they started aero that viaduct. "Sharp flashes of lightning," says Morrie, "were the only things we could see by. The two engines up ahead were puffing and roaring, and. we could feel the trestle shiver under the weight of the train and the' pressure ef some 12 feet of. water that went tearing under it, carrying! trees and animals to destruction. All of a sudden the train came to ai stop with a terrible Jolt . I . . . - - . k M 7 r Resolution by Ellas Boudinot result the first of the presiden-tially-proclaime- Passenger Cars Thought to Be Sinking. d, Thanksgiving days was observed that year. On July 7, 1864, by direction of congress, President Lincoln designated the first Thursday of August aa "a day of national humiliation and prayer." October 20 of the same year saw the issu ance of his second proclamation designating the last Thursday in November as Thanksgiving day, Before that day arrived it waa known that he had been by an overwhelming majority a result which had been ex tremely doubtful during the cam paign. Moreover, by November, 1864, it seemed certain that the Confederacy could not hold out much longer. So with the. as surance that the Union was saved and with the great vote of confidence in his administration given him by the people, Abraham Lincoln had good reason to lead the nation in a Thanksgiving celebration. For the last 75 years succeeding Presidents have not deviated from the custom of proclaiming the last Thursday in November as Thanksgiving day until this year when President Roosevelt of being lived up to his reputation and estaba "tradition-defier- " instead lished the of the last Thursday in the month for this ns tional holiday. next-to-the-Ia- st Morrie Offers Ilelp to Injured. a medical man, Morrie stepped forward and offered to help if aay one waa Injured. Several ef them Morrie among them went forward to the express to aee what had happened. They found out, all right. The viaduct, weakened by the flood, waa breaking a p. Even while they stood In the express car, a whole section of the road bed waa swept from beneath It, leaving the ear hanging fat mid air with only Its couplings holding U apt The train couldn't move now. The two engines were on the other side. of the break the cars the passengers, helpless on a bridge that might. be washed away at any moment They were sure that by this time,! there must be other breaks In that bridge breaks behind them that' would leave mem marooned In the middle of the swollen river. "We uncoupled the pin ef the baggage car," asys Morrie, "and with a rub such as I never want to hear again. It waa swept away. We, began sending up flares la the hope of bringing aid, but they were answered by only a few poor gaajlros, themselves marooned en the thatched roofs of their homes. The conductor hi charge mastered about It of us for aay dnty, and to be truthful about It, we aU thought that this would be the last doty aay ef aa would perform." Aa Morrie had a small medical kit and the doctors aboard made good use of his supplies. Suddenly came the news that the first of the passenger ears was sinking into the river. The men uncoupled that car,' herding its passengers Into others that were already overcrowded. "We had some thirty prostrated people on our hands," Morrie says, "and while we were working over them we could feel the cars Jerk' and sway as slowly they settled toward the water. Gee, but you feel helpless in a spot like that No one could help these people. Moat ef them were praying, and tin my dying day rn never forget the looks on their faces." Bat already help waa on the way. One telegraph line waa still up, and, when the train didat came through, Macagaa wired Colon to send aa engine. A switching engine came dewa from Cobs aBd found that contrary to Morrle's belief, there were no breaks la the western end of the trestle. The crew leaded all the passengers Into sis ears, and Morrie saya they put them la three deep la the aisles. "We went back the next morning," says Morrie, "Just to see what had happened to the engineer and the fireman we had left behind. The engines were sunk In the river until only the roofs showed, but there were the engineers and firemen waving to us from the tops of the cabs." IRolcastd by Western Newspaper Union.) lightweight Helium Has Little Commercial Value Practical commercial utility of the "lightweight" helium discovered In the air by University of California scientists remains extremely doubtful, the scientists have reported. Dr. Luis W. Alvarex, assistant professor of physics, who, with Robert Cornog, graduate student from Denver, detected suhmicroseopic quantities of the lightweight helium in ordinary air, reported the discovery Is considered important to the science of physics, but Its possible use in commercial form, such as In lighter than air craft, Is very much in doubt Reason why the commercial utility of lightweight helium is extremely doubtful is that no method hss yet been devised to extract any type of helium from the air in usable commercial quantities. The scientists made their discovery with the aid of the university's atom smashing cyclotron. The United States has a monopoly on heavy helium which baa a lifting power 92.8 per cent that of hydrogen, the lightest known gas. 225-to- n |