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OUR PILGRIM FOREFATHERS

Thanksgiving Studies

by

LOVEDAY A. NELSON







A. Flanagan Company
Chicago

Copyright 1904 by A. Flanagan Company.

Printed in the United States of America




OUR PILGRIM FOREFATHERS

THANKSGIVING STUDIES


You often hear people talking of the President of our country.
Doubtless most of you know him by name. Some of you may have seen him.

You also know that once in every four years we have an election day,
when papa votes for the man whom he thinks best for President. Then the
one who gets the most votes becomes our President for four years.

If this man makes a good President, he is sometimes chosen again for
another four years, or term, as we call it. But if he has not pleased
the people, they choose some one else, anybody else, next election day.
We never know who will be our next President until he is elected. One
term he is a man from one part of the country; the next term he may be
one from a far distant part. In our country we think that this way is
best.

It is not so in every country. In some countries, instead of a
president there is a king, who expects to be king as long as he lives.
At his death his son becomes the king. If the king happens to be a good
one, it is well for the country and for the people; but if he chances
to be a wicked, cruel one, the poor people have a sorry time as long as
he lives.

       *       *       *       *       *

When Sunday comes, John goes with his mamma and papa to the Methodist
Church. Perhaps Mary goes with her parents to the Baptist. Gretchen
may prefer to go to the Lutheran Church, and Margaret to the Roman
Catholic. In our country we think this quite right. We like to see
people going to the church that helps them most.

As it costs much money to build churches and pay the preachers, people
must give money or there can be no churches. John may want to give his
pennies to the Methodist Church or Sunday-school. Mary would rather
give hers to the Baptist. Gretchen’s money is given to the Lutheran,
and Margaret’s to the Roman Catholic. In our country we think this,
too, quite right. No one forces us to give money to any church. When we
have any to give, we may do with it as we choose.

Neither is this true in all countries. In some lands where there are
kings instead of presidents, the kings have sometimes said that all the
people must go to a certain church, and that they must pay that church
money. Some of the kings have forbidden the people to have any other
churches.

Sometimes there have been people who loved another church which they
were unwilling to give up. Sometimes there have been kings who have put
these people in prison and done other harsh things in trying to force
them to worship God according to the king’s will.

       *       *       *       *       *

We shall learn of some unhappy people who lived in a country ruled at
times by just such hard-hearted kings. When we know of some of the
troubles and great hardships through which they passed in trying to
pray to God and serve him as they thought right, we shall surely love
them and always remember their noble deeds.

These people lived far across the Atlantic Ocean, in a country called
England, where the king and all the people speak the English language.
We learned our English from them.

[Illustration: CHILDREN OF CHARLES I]

Look at the picture (Children of Charles I.) of these three children
with their pet dog. You can tell that the dog is their playfellow and
that he loves them, by the way he has taken his place at their side,
and by the loving, trustful manner in which he looks up into the face
of the boy whose hand rests on his head. The baby