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A National calamity… What is one to do?
April 3, 2015 by GuyHeilenman · Leave a Comment
What does one do when abruptly ushered into one, if not the, most powerful positions on earth by the untimely death of the President of the United States? Today, in honor of the Easter Holiday Weekend, we reach back to 1841 to see how newly elevated President John Tyler responded when placed in this situation. The following proclamation, which begins in part, “When a Christian people feel themselves to be overtaken by a great public calamity, it becomes them to humble themselves under the dispensation of Divine Providence, to recognize His righteous government over the children of men, to acknowledge His goodness in time past, as well as their own unworthiness, and to supplicate His merciful protection for the future…”, was printed in The Globe, Washington, D.C., April 15, 1841:
Happy Easter from the Rare & Early Newspapers Team
A broken heart… 200+ years ago… today?
February 27, 2015 by GuyHeilenman · Leave a Comment
Anguish… deep sorrow… pain and emptiness that engulf and suffocate… As the saying goes: “The more things change, the more they stay the same.” No matter how far we advance as a race over time, the death of a loved one elicits the same paralyzing emotions today as it did 100… 1000… 5,000 years ago, and will continue to do so as long as humanity walks this earth. Such is the case (in spades) with a parent’s crushed spirit upon the loss of a child. While searching through an original printing of The American Magazine, Philadelphia, dated May, 1792 in the hopes of finding historical content, I came across the printing of a letter from a Father who was trying to come to terms with the untimely loss of his child. Language usage and expression aside, this letter written 200+ years ago could easily have been written yesterday. It also made me thankful for a hope beyond the grave – a hope that shouts from a Father’s pen as he attempts to express his heart… his love… his hope:
Before heading out to Your New Year’s Eve Party…
December 31, 2014 by GuyHeilenman · Leave a Comment
While celebrating the onset of the New Year through alcohol-blurred eyes has become an international tradition for many, before heading out to this year’s party, perhaps a gander at Dr. Benjamin Rush’s well known “Moral & Physical Thermometer” from the 18th century is in order (see below). While this work certainly holds a degree of validity, I wasn’t aware God measured morality according to such a scale, and I’ve searched without success to find such a tool within His Word. Might Dr. Rush have been using a different translation – or was this creation garnered from years of observation??? 🙂 Regardless, while no such measuring stick has been bestowed upon humanity by their Creator, taking heed to the inherit dangers of over-consumption and His warnings regarding drunkenness would be both a wise and safe way to begin the new year. The passengers and drivers of vehicles you’ll be passing on your way home thank you in advance. Cheers!
They sure don’t make’em like they used to…
December 12, 2014 by GuyHeilenman · Leave a Comment
How many things can you think of that are simply not made to the same quality standards as they once were? It would be fun to comprise such a list. However, when someone makes the statement, “They sure don’t make’em like they used to”, it is interesting to note the assumption that the object in question is no longer made as well. However, as the following article from a November 21, 1858 National Intelligencer reveals, thankfully, there are a few things which buck this assumption. Please enjoy… and feel free to send on your own list of things that are actually made better than they were in the past. Let’s transform this common phrase from a negative to a positive.
Note: The Hadley Falls Dam disaster (above), in what is currently Holyoke, Connecticut, drew considerable attention in the 19th century. In 1896, a Harper’s Weekly writer reflected, “The engineer took great pride in his work, and when it was finished, and the gates shut down, he is said to have irreverently exclaimed: ‘There! Those gates are shut, and God Almighty himself can not open them!’” Yet another example of man underestimating the power of God… or perhaps overestimating his own. 🙂
For United We Stand…
December 8, 2014 by GuyHeilenman · Leave a Comment
“And if a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand.”
(God, as written by Mark in Mark 3:25)
“United we stand, divided we fall.”
(Aesop)
“A house divided against itself cannot stand.”
(Abraham Lincoln)
“For united we stand; Divided we fall. And if our backs should ever be against the wall. We’ll be together…”
(The Brotherhood of Man)
Bringing people together is no small task. Those who have the ability to rally factions behind a common cause are few and far between. Those who can do so for a noble cause are a true rarity.
While we all acknowledge Abraham Lincoln’s efforts to this end as exemplified in both his “House Divided” speech and yet again in his “Gettysburg Address”, it was another relatively unknown true American patriot who was instrumental in doing the same soon after the close of the American Revolutionary War: Dr. Benjamin Rush. Below please find (and enjoy) the full text of “Address to the People of the United States”, which begins:
“There is nothing more common that to confound the terms of the American revolution with those of the late American war. The American war is over; but this is far from being the case with the American revolution.”,
and concludes:
“PATRIOTS of 1774, 1775, 1778—HEROES of 1778, 1779, 1780! come forward! your country demands your services!—Philosophers and friends to mankind, com forward! your country demands your studies and speculations! Lovers of peace and order, who declined taking part in the late war, come forward! your country forgives your timidity, and demands your influence and advice! Hear her proclaiming, in sighs and groans, in her governments, in her finances, in her trade, in her manufactures, in her morals, and in her manners, ‘THE REVOLUTION IS NOT OVER!’ “, Dr. Benjamin Rush, MD.
What a tremendous rally for all Americans to unite behind a noble cause: the establishment of a nation like none other!
To read the complete text of this amazing speech, go to: American Museum, January, 1787
I’m thankful for… Abraham Lincoln…
November 26, 2014 by GuyHeilenman · Leave a Comment
As Thanksgiving rapidly approaches, one is compelled by the overwhelming blessings so many of us experience on a daily basis to consider things for which we are thankful, but often overlook. One such gratitude-producing individual for me is Abraham Lincoln. Was he a perfect man? No. Have many of his flaws been white-washed from history? Yes (I’m counting on the same treatment). However, this does not negate the truth that in my eyes, he was a man for “such a time” as his was. I’ve always appreciated his writing (whether it be from his own pen or another’s makes no difference to me). One of my favorites is:
“I do the very best I know how – the very best I can; and I mean to keep doing so until the end. If the end brings me out all right, then what is said against me won’t matter. If the end brings me out wrong, then ten Angles swearing I was right would make no difference at all.” Abraham Lincoln
We should all have such strength of conviction in regards to our actions under fire.
A short time ago I came across a letter from him which was printed in a National Intelligencer dated January 27, 1865 that may rival the above. It is his response to a letter received from him from Eliza Gurney, the wife of a recently departed friend. The full text is viewable via the image shown below, with the transcribed text to follow.
Executive Mansion,
Washington, September 4, 1864.
Eliza P. Gurney.
My esteemed friend.
I have not forgotten–probably never shall forget–the very impressive occasion when yourself and friends visited me on a Sabbath forenoon two years ago. Nor has your kind letter, written nearly a year later, ever been forgotten. In all, it has been your purpose to strengthen my reliance on God. I am much indebted to the good Christian people of the country for their constant prayers and consolations; and to no one of them, more than to yourself. The purposes of the Almighty are perfect, and must prevail, though we erring mortals may fail to accurately perceive them in advance. We hoped for a happy termination of this terrible war long before this; but God knows best, and has ruled otherwise. We shall yet acknowledge His wisdom and our own error therein. Meanwhile we must work earnestly in the best light He gives us, trusting that so working still conduces to the great ends He ordains. Surely He intends some great good to follow this mighty convulsion, which no mortal could make, and no mortal could stay.
Your people–the Friends–have had, and are having, a very great trial. On principle, and faith, opposed to both war and oppression, they can only practically oppose oppression by war. In this hard dilemma, some have chosen one horn, and some the other. For those appealing to me on conscientious grounds, I have done, and shall do, the best I could and can, in my own conscience, under my oath to the law. That you believe this I doubt not; and believing it, I shall still receive, for our country and myself, your earnest prayers to our Father in heaven.
Your sincere friend,
A. Lincoln.
So, what are you thankful for?
Thanksgiving – only days away…
November 24, 2014 by GuyHeilenman · Leave a Comment
As Thanksgiving (U.S.) rapidly approaches, we thought we’d bring everyone’s attention to various Thanksgiving-themed posts from the past. Please enjoy:
Civil War era reflections on Thanksgiving…
Reflecting on a Day of Thanksgiving & Prayer from 1776…
Thanksgiving Proclamations… a survey through American History…
The Traveler… Thanksgiving proclamation… schooling that maybe should be revisited…
Lincoln establishes a national Thanksgiving Day…
Thanksgiving… I time for expressing gratitude…
Exploring newspapers, 1900-1949… Any Discoveries?
November 14, 2014 by GuyHeilenman · 3 Comments
A unique pleasure one often experiences from the collecting of Rare & Early Newspapers is the hidden nuggets found within nearly every issue. Whereas collectible newspapers are often purchased due to their historic headlines or perhaps their rarity, the undisclosed content – whether articles or ads – often provides intrigue and a historical perspective that go far beyond the original reason for seeking the issue.
With this in mind, let’s have some fun!
This post will serve as a home for collectors to brag about the non-headliner discoveries they’ve found within newspapers dated from 1900-1949. Share your finds. All we ask is for everyone to refrain from using this post as a means for offering collectible newspapers for sale. It’s intended to purely be a “no-agenda” platform for sharing one of the simple joys of collecting.
If you are new to the hobby (or already are a collector) and would like to join in the hunt, to help you get started we are offering a highly discounted set of 5 issues, one per decade, covering the 1st half of the 20th century. This offering may be viewed at: Five-Issue Set (1900-1949)
You’re Now Free – so get to work and don’t expect help!
November 10, 2014 by GuyHeilenman · Leave a Comment
Major General Granger’s General Order #3, which appeared in the July 25, 1865 issue of Flake’s Daily Bulletin, provides contrasting news for the newly freed slaves. Good News: You are now free! Bad News: Get to work and don’t come crying for help! I wonder how we would handle this same situation if it were to happen today???
Hawaiian Islands… ignorance is often the default position of the uninformed…
October 17, 2014 by GuyHeilenman · Leave a Comment
While many have been rightfully moved by James Michener’s account of the 1800’s Hawaiian Island pandemic, and have been forced to wrestle with and ultimately accept the albeit unintentional but horrible spread of disease and death often associated with well-intended explorers and missionaries entering new lands, an article in the National Intelligencer (December 4, 1849) takes “ignorance” to a whole new level. The image to the right expresses at least one person’s “uninformed” reaction to the wide-spread death that had befallen many of the indigenous people of the Hawaiian Islands (Sandwich Islands). Captain Cook and those who followed (with the intention of bringing Good News) would never have guessed they were also bringing such overwhelming human destruction. Thankfully we now know better – so as to not make such cold-hearted statements as the one made in this mid-19th century newspaper.