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About The Henry County weekly. (McDonough, GA.) 18??-1934 | View Entire Issue (Nov. 30, 1917)
t he Henry County Weekly A Weekly Newspaper Devoted to the Interests of McDonough and Henry County. VOL. XLIU. Thanksgiving Thanksgiving day means much in the larger sense, and it were well for the country if we added to our present happy domestic, and churchly custom of observing it by some distinctly public cere monial that would associate more directly our well being with the thought of the nation’s work and mission. This is the harvest time for thanks. True, there have been trials, calamities in some places, homes destroyed, losses and sor rows, but taking the country over our blessings have been very many and far outnumbered the dark, appalling things of life. In spite of meny evils there has been as much of true sympathy, of gen uine benevolence, of a cordial spirit, of brotherly love-and good fellowship, we can keep our thanksgiving in the spirit of the scriptural admonition, “Be ye also thankful.” “It cannot be that earth is man’s only abiding place. It cannot be that our life is a bubble cast up by the ocean of eternity to float a moment upon its waves and sink into nothingness Else, why is it the high and glorious aspirations * which leap like angels from the temple of our hearts are forever wandering unsatisfied ? Why is it the rainbow and cloud come over us with a beauty that pas*- off and leave us to muse of their loveliness? Why is it that the stars which hold their festival around the midnight throne are set above the grasp of our limited faculties, forever mocking us with their unapproachable glory? And finally, why is it that the bright forms of human beauty are pre sented to our view and taken from us, leaving the thousand streams of our affections to flow back in an Alpine torrent upon our hearts? We are born for higher destiny than that of -earth. Inhere is a realm, where the rainbow never fades, where the stars will be spread out before us like the is lands that slumber on the ocean and where the beautiful beings which pass before us like shadows will stay forever in our presence.” In these beautiful thoughts we can all find much to be thankful for, even if a vacant chair is in our home and the dark side of life seems turned toward us. Th°y will place a silver lining back of any cloud. As a matter of fact, we all have much to be thankful for. The pious, hard-driven, w’orn out, but thankful Puritans who sat down at their tables one No vember, a few centuries ago and made the first Thanksgiving Day, never knew to what length they were to drive the ingenuity of their poor descendants. But it wasn’t tneir fault after all, that the preparer of the Thanksgiving feast today has to attend just as much to the turkey surroundings as to the turkey itself. It was good enough for them to have a well stocked larder from which could come the turkey, the celery, the pumpkin pie, the cranberries and all the other goodies which history puts down to their credit. Even the comparatively recent New Englanders were content COTTON OVERTHE TOP! The Staple Reached 30 CENTS This Week, and is Now Selling for about the Half in McDonough. with all these as long as they looked tempting and tasted good. But today, even the more impor tant fowl itself is hardly more im portant than the ribbons, the can dies, the flavors, the adornments of all kinds, which must appear on the Thanksgiving table. ' The first recorded instance of anything in the nature of thanks giving in the history of our coun try is the following entry in an old bible belonging to one of the first Pilgrims: “Sonne born to Susanna White, December 19, 1620, at six o’clock, morning. Next day we meet for prayer and thanksgiving.” This, however, is not generally accepted as the first observer of that nature, since it hardly partook of the character of a general thanksgiving. But fif teen months after the Pilgrims sailed from Holland they held a harvest festival which lasted a week. This is generally spoken of as the first Thanksgiving in New England, but it was not a day set apart by the governor, nor was it attended by any religious observance. The First Thanksgiving. The first fixed and official day of Thanksgiving was held in the year 1665. In the old public records of the court of Connect) cut w r e find the following order which the court issued on October 12, 1665, appointing a day of gen eral thanksgiving. “This court doth appoint a solemn day of Thanksgiving to be kept thruout this colony on the last Wednesday of November, to return praise to God for His great mercy to us in the continuation o' our liberties and privileges both civil and ecclesiatic, and for our peace and preventing those trou bles that we feared by foreign enemies and for the blessings in the fruits of the earth and tin general health of the plantations.” It will be noted that the ap pointed day was Wednesday in stead of Thursday, as we now celebrate. The spelling is odd in many cases. Cotton Demand Enormous Recent investigations in the use of cotton in war show : A 12-inch gun disposes of a half bale oi cotton with every shot fired; a machine gun in operation w'ill use up a bale in three minutes; in a naval battle like the one off Jutland over 5,000 pounds a min ute are consumed by each active warship; more than 20,000 bales a year are needed to provide ab sorbant cotton for the wounds of the injured; one change of apparel for all the troops now engaged in the war represents more than a million bales. Good two horse farm for rent for 4 bales cotton, two miles from McDonough. See Dr. Tye. McDonough, georgsa. Friday. November 30, 1917 Announceme.it Delayed. On account of difficult and te dious checking, it has been impos sible to announce the prize win ners for the fair again this week. Just as soon as the list can be furnished The Weekly will gladly publish it complete. Red C ross. On last Sund evening the Presbyterian, Metaodist, and Bap tist congregations held a joint ser vice at the Baptist church in the interest of Red Cross, and with a view of getting more complete in formation regarding the detailed working of the organization. Prof, and Mrs Merrill, of the State Normal School at Athens, were the speakers of th» evening, and outlined very clearly the pur poses, the necessity and the his tory of the Red Cross. They also set forth the duties of all off cers and committees that there need be no lapping of duties, and that nothing be left undone because of misunderstanding of prerogatives. It was a matter of much gratifi cation to the local organization to know that the Henry County Chapter accords thoroughly with the national plan. This knowl edge will necessarily expedite matters in the future, and high hopes are now entertained for the accomplishment of great things in war work. A canvass for membership is now on, and will continue until the close of the third week in De cember. During the last week a concentrated drive will be made all over the United States. The Henry County Chapter tn-mber ship committee hopes during this period to visit every home in tin* county not already allied with a Red Cross Chapter. Every man, woman and child will he invited to become a member. Where there are as many as a lozen people in a community wili ng to give some time to the rnak ng of bandages, hospital gar nents, or to knitting, auxiliaries v'ill be formed by the Extension .•ommittee. This committee begs hat requests of such a desire be sent to Prof. Marvin Smith, and •ach case will then be properly looked after. From the work room a number of Christmas packages have been sent to France, and several dozen garments are ready for shipment All members are urged to give of their time and skill to this all im portant department of Red Cross activity. Visitors to McDonough are invited to come to the work room every afternoon except Sat urday, where one member of the sewing committee will always be found in charge. Mrs. R. H. Hankinson, Publicity Chairman. Hole-Fix, the one best inner tube repair—all Dealers carry it [in stock. 75c per. Henry County Farmer Gets Big Prominence. In the Philadelphia Ledger of Thursday, November 15, appeared the following: “A Henry county, Georgia, farmer bought a farm, of 173 acres nine months ago. He borrowed $3,6(X)00 to make p lyment on his $4,000 00 farm. Up to date the entire loan has been paid, plus 6% on the whole amount, and the farm now belongs to this farmer. In other words, a $4,000.00 farm has paid for itself in one season.” Mr. C. C. Cash, who bought the Bradberry place at pul lie sale last spring, at S9O per acre, is the gen tleman above referred to. He is an intelligent, enterpising hustler, who thus clearly wins the title of being one of Henry county’s lead ing and best farmers —post office, Elienwood. There are many other instances of remarkable results of money made in the county by farmers this year, of which muen more might be said. So good for high priced cotton, good farms, good farmers, and — Hurrah for old Henry anyhow ! Army Y. M. C. A. Fund Reaches Over $825 GO. In the drive that has been on to raise $35,000,000 *in the United States for the Army Y. M. C. A., McDonough h is contributed her share, raising something over $825 00 during the past week. The p ople, realizing the seri ousness of this war and thv temp lations that surround the boys in training and on the battle fields, and seeing the work that the Y. M. C. A. is doing, contributed to the worthy cause readily. Rev. J. M. Gilmore acted as Chairman in the drive, and was ablv assisted by some of our best business men, and also by a com mittee of ladies —the ladies work ing among the ladies and raising over S2OO 00, a very creditable showing. This money will be used for building and equiping halls and furnishing amusements and recre ation for men while off duty, be sides being a moral uplift *for the young men, and doubtless many of our own boys will derive pleas ure and help from the money con tributed here. Church Notic e. The Methodist church was not comfortable last Sunday on ac count of a lack of coal. Some coal has been obtained now, so no one need hesitate about com ing next Sunday. Subject for Sunday morning, “The Superior Demand.” Subject for Sunday evening, “The Three Judges.” Please pay your subscription. < : OBSERVER ; > We heard “Billy,” Sunday. We saw about 600 “hit the trail” and we had the strangest and most wonderful and puzzling impres sions made upon our mind we ever had. We heard the great choir sing, and we heard Homer Rodeheaver blow his trombone and saw him lead the singing, with the largest choir ever assembled in the South. We saw the taberna cle that will seat between 10,000 and 15,0CX) piled to everflowing, and saw the ushers close the doors to the hundreds who were turned away. It was last Sunday night we heard “Billy” Sunday preach from the subject, “What will the ending be,” and he preached in plain language of an eternal hell and the awful place of hell fire, and on the other hand of the joys of heaven. A crowd of betweeu 12,000 and 15,000 listened to him, and it was the most thrilling scene we ever witnessed. The great choir sang “Roll On,” at the sug gestion of a soldier from Camp from Camp Gordon, and then the great throng sang “I have a dear Savior who’s waiting in Glory,” and folks, I was strangely impress ed during the singing of that song that the end of time is near at hand. There is one thing remark able about Billy Sunday coming to Atlanta His great tabernacle is built on the spot that has been used for circus shows, etc., for a num ber of years. Where thousands formerly sat and watched worldly ihings they now sit and listen at Hie solemn things of almighty God. The tabernacle is also built in the edge of the burned section of the greatest fire Atlanta has ever had, and as you look northward from the tabernacle, as far as you can see is nothing but devastation wrought by the great fire, and it’s a thrilling scene. Whatever you may think of Billy Sunday, either for or against him, is a matter of your own opinion; hut folks, you can think as you please, but in these present modern times it’s money, money, money, and all the nations of the world are using ev ery means to raise more money. Die religious world" is calling for more money than ever before. Ev ery organization of every name and order is calling for money. It’s a call for money on every hand, and ids money, money, mon ey, and we as a people are inclin ed to want to oppose all these things, bit Je-ms Christ told the rich young i uler io go sell ail he had, and it may be that God’s hand is in this thing, and it may be that He is going to take the wealth of the world and bring all the nations of the earth to repent ance. Who knows? The Chris tian world lias allowed so much idolatry and formality to seizj hold of them that it may be that God is all .wing all of this war and confusion to bring the world to repentance. Who knows? A coal famine seems to almost be here, a sugar famine is in sight, and there is a probability that foodstuffs and the necessities of high life is going to all get scarce within the next few months. The Y. M. C. A. work and the Red Cross work and the Food Conser vation movement may all be God's plan, and we had better rally to it and not oppose it, for it may be that God is preparing for the aw ful things that may be coming. Who knows? We believe “Billy” Sunday is one of the agencies God is using to warn the people and help to prepare them for the peril ous times that seem to be near. Agent Oglesby’s latest report shows 16,502 bales of cotton ginned in Henry county up to Nov. 14, against 14,945 to same date last year, a gain of 1.553. bales. $1.50 A YEAR
