VOL. LXV
INDIANAPOLIS, NOV. 19, 1910.
NO. 47
THANKSGIVING.
Editors Indiana Farmer:
How many of us have explained to
the children the real meaning of thia
subject, "Thanksgiving?" Some of us
look forward for a feast to which we
expect all of the immediate relationship and not one word ia mentioned of
the real meaning of the day; thus we
go   on  with  ani>ther  day  ill  spent and
they could have a good dinner too like
us." This may lie true, but how many
of the self-sacrificing and money blessed people ever lend a sentence of advice
or help to them to plan their Income?
The Bible says we always have the
poor with us; so let us resolve to make
this Thanksgiving day an eventful one
of our lives. Let us help some one.
There is the "hobo" as he is often called
go, but as we had no more work for extra men he started out we knew not
where. This was two years ago and
one day this summer I was surprised to
see this familiar face come to our door
and, for a Joke, ask for a glass of milk,
which I gladly gave him. And we were
given compllmentarles to "Buffalo
Bill's" show, enough for the whole family if we desired to go.     He then was
state; for the Missouri Is the legal
boundayr line between Nebraska ani
Iowa, and a portion of that between
Kansas  and  Missouri..
Immediately across the street from
the Union Station at Kansas City, Mo.,
the eye rests on a continuous row of saloons. I counted eight, standing side
by side, and two or three of these had
second     and     third     stories.      When   I
,.'5   .p.
*L-a-   *-.*>rr
s.r
-,'""-*':-.-;.. - __.r_J^j=Jlgt£r.-.-s'C^...- .'r\_. "*: "_       A'. ''"'   "'       ^^*2^?^S^"*^  At
♦^^lfclj.9   t^'Kt4rv»vlrrt4^4tx(, '	
Six horse team of Clydesdale Geldings winners   at   the   leading   shows   of   Europe and America.       Owned  by Morris  &•  f'n..  Chicago
nwaken the following day with a dull
brain and a bad taste.
This day should be a public celebration or acknowledgement of Divine
goodness; a day especially set apart for
religious services as an acknowledgement of the goodness of God, as shown
either in any remarkable deliverance
from calamity, or in the ordinary dispensation of His bounties.
Thanksgiving Day was first established in the United States by the Pilgrims
at Plymouth in 1621. It became a
recognized holiday in New England, replacing Christmas as the great family
festival, and has been gradually adopted in other parts of the country. Congress recommended dnys of thanksgiving annually during the Revolution,
and Washington, in 1789, after the
adoption of the Constitution. Other
days of national thanksgiving have been
proclaimed, and since 1863 the last
Thursday in November has been annually proclaimed by the Presidents as
a national Thanksgiving Day.
Whenever I attend a bounteous
dinner given on this eventful day I
think how selfish we, as a family, are
to see how many delicacies are prepared, when many a poor family may
not even enjoy the necessaries of that
substantial food to retain strength.
Some one I hear saying "well those
families would not appreciate it if you
would do anything for them." Another
whispers. "They spend all they get their
hands on and never make sacrifices, or
and more times than is due him, for
he may have been reared in better
homes than the ones he now goes to
for aid, but the awful curse of liquor
has ruined him, and he thinks his life
is not worth lifting. Some have remarked to us: "I would be afraid to
take in those 'hobos' like you do." Oftentimes we are in need of help and as
we have resolved never to (eed the beggar without he gives work in advance
we have never wanted for hay-harvesters, corn huskers or for any other extra work.
Many of these men have proven to be
of a benefit in conversation as well as in
farm help, for nearly all of them have
been around the world and- although
they haven't ridden in palace cars and
eaten their meals in the dining car and
tipped the waiters and porters, they
have possibly shoveled coal on the boat
for transportation and, sorry to say,
may have stolen a ride on the freight
train, but is this worse than the bribery of the porters on pullman cars?
The porters ought to be paid a salary
sufficient to keep them comfortably
without making tips necessary.
Back to an experience with a "hobo"
from Mt. Vernon, N. Y., who helped us
in corn gathering, and as he was still
with us on Thanksgiving day I must not
forget to relate he had at one time been
chef tn a fine eastern hotel, thus he
served the dinner and did it tastefully.
We really could see so many good qualities in him we were sorry to see him
hired by that company for five years.
He left, thanking us again for the kindness shown him when he was down, and
out of work and not a relative nor
friend near him. Think of it, the man
once had a wife and children but having lost all was left in this cold world
to shift alone.
We as Christian people I fear do not
do our duty through the week, but go
to church and sometimes sleep during
the Sunday sermon and expect to get
to heaven. Now let us lend a helping
hand to some one on this day and I
know we will feel better at heart and receive a reward ln heaven.
G. E. E.
■ m .
Written for the Indiana Fanner:
SOME NOTES  ON  A KANSAS VISIT.
By Walter S. Smith.
We crossed the alluvial state, Missouri, by daylight. The Missouri river
is in sight near half the distance, and
no elevations are visible, except the
bluffs at a considerable distance, on the
south side. We skirted the swampy
looking border, called bank. For a
number of rods back from the river the
surface is undrainable, because it is so
nearly level with the water. The stream
is muddy, from the fact that It is very
swift and skirted by ever washing
banks. It is no unusual thing for it to
rut across a horse shoe bend and alter
its channel. Towns have thus been
left several miles inland and in another
stepped back, to a wider perspective,
I saiw mure .saloons; and I do not know
how far they extended. But I do know
it was the one worst array of lawlessness that I ever beheld.
Once over the river into Kansas City,
Kansas, the contrast is so vivid as to
be interesting indeed. Kansas is legally free from liquor; and if Missouri and
Nebraska were as fortunate she would
be actually free. There are violations,
of course, from these sources, just as
there are violations of other criminal
laws. But Governor Stubbs stated before our great Topeka convention, 5,000
or more in number, that the liquor laws
are as easily administered as any others
in the code. He challenged us to find
a violation in Topeka. Indeed if any
one, there, or elsewhere in the state,
knew of a blind tiger, or could give him
evidence of an illegal sale, if he did not
stop it in two days he would resign his
office.
Well, Kansas is a mighty state. I
was there in 1884; the great year of
railroad building. At that time there
were thousands of far-Mies moving in,
on account of the prohibition law. They
deemed it a safe venture, for boys and
girls; and, as a result, the state has a
superior citizenship, that will never
again submit to the reign of the brewer
and the distiller. I was in Topeka five
days before I saw a policeman. There is
no need for them, except to prevent
children, women and old people from
being run down toy street cars.