Life, 1897-11-25 · page 3 of 20
Life — November 25, 1897 — page 3: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# "The First Thanksgiving" (February 1931) This is a poem satirizing the Pilgrims' desperate hunger during their first winter in New England. Rather than romanticizing the founding narrative, it depicts them starving—eating Bible covers, candles, and their own boots. The accompanying illustration shows Pilgrims in a sparse interior with minimal food. The satire works by contrasting the traditional "First Thanksgiving" holiday narrative (celebrating abundance and gratitude) with historical reality: severe deprivation. Named individuals like John Alden and Priscilla appear, referencing actual colonists, grounding the dark humor in real history. Published in February 1931, during the Great Depression, the satire likely resonated with contemporary readers experiencing their own economic hardship, drawing a parallel between past and present American suffering.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
The First Thanksgiving. FEBRUARY, 1631. WO hundred years and more ago, One February morn, Amid the chill New England snow The Day of Thanks was born. The Pilgrims faced starvation’s jaws, And dreadful were the scenes In classic Boston town, because There was a dearth of beans. The Pilgrim ma’s and Pilgrim pa's Were in a plight distressing: A prayer or two their breakfast was For lunch they had a blessing. cannot live by bread alone, Zen though he may be willing: And blessings, also, soon ‘twas known Were far from being filling. It made each form with terror quake, It awed each prayerful group; In all the town no beans to bake, And not a bean for soup! His Bible cover torn, each half Gave Winthrop stern a meal; And, as the cover was of calf, He dined two days on v Upon his boots John Alden gnawed, Like any starving vandal; And Standish (Miles), the man who awed The redskins, ate a candle. Meantime Priscilla yearned for pies And minced her Bible cover, Bat hungered still, e’en when her eyes Devoured her John, her lover. And as her John, her future mate, Caressed her ringlets sadly, She thought “I'd trade this téte-ad-téte For téte-de-veau so gladly!” The other Pilgrims,day and night, With hunger were agog; Some “took their growing appetite And tried it on the dog. Some sought with prayer to catch a rat, Some sought with trap and noose, And-ev'ry hunted Thomas cat For all his lives had use, And when the poots ana aogs and cats Had disappeared from view, And when the candles, mice and rats, And Bible covers, too, Conductor (whose train ts twenty minutes late): WELL, WHERE ARE YOUR PASSENGERS ? Rural Agent (newly appointed): WAVeN'T GOT A “THEN, WHAT IN—DID YOU STOP THE TRAIN FOR 2” ““PHOUGHT SOMEBODY MIGHT WANT TO GET OFF.” The Pilgrims thronged the ocean's banks, And Boston's dismal scenes Were changed to joyous scenes of thanks, The ship was full of beans! Earle H. Eaton, Were all devoured and hope had died, And stilled each pallid lip, A Pilgrim seaward looked and cried: “A ship! A ship! A ship!”