Since this is Thanksgiving week you can be sure that once again your children will have the opportunity to hear a teacher take a pot shot at the Pilgrims. Somewhere along the line it became fashionable to teach that the colonists were such dolts they couldn't plant a kernel of corn without help. But contrary to politically correct opinion, the Pilgrims were not stupid. They were amazing. In fact, they were really cool. We would do well to make sure our kids know how cool they were, and of how much they accomplished.

It's hard now to imagine what they had to face: harsh climate, unfamiliar terrain, a scarcity of food brought on by failed crops and the influx of additional settlers. Yet they dealt with all their difficulties with fortitude and faith. They were young, daring, courageous and willing to sacrifice everything, including life itself, for the chance to practice their religion without interference from a tyrannical government. They were also willing to learn from their mistakes.

One of the little-known mistakes they made was to practice socialism. Bet you won't find that in any of your fourth grade lesson plans. What the Pilgrims discovered once they did put socialism into practice was that it didn't work. They had the sense to throw it out the window and turn instead to a capitalist system. Their decision to change was probably one of the most important reasons why America has prospered over the last two-hundred years.

The source of this information about the Pilgrim's early economic systems is the dairy of William Bradford, governor of the Pilgrim Colony. His sketch of Pilgrim life, titled "Of Plimouth Plantation," records in fascinating detail the events of the colonial experiment after the colonists arrived in Massachusetts in 1620.

According to Bradford, the community was initially operated according to a communal system. One of the primary reasons for this was that many of the colonists were concerned that everything be fair. Two big buzz-words of the day were "equality" and "need." Sound familiar? They decided they would all work together, like one big, happy family. Everyone would be on the honor system. They would work as much as they were able and take out of the common pool only what they needed. You can take a guess at how long this Kumbaya system of economics worked.

Before long things had descended into chaos. This socialist system, according to Bradford, "was found to breed much confusion and discontent and retarded much employment that would have been to their benefit and comfort.....young men that were most able and fit for labour did repine that they should spend their time and strength to work for other men's wives and children without any recompense." By 1623, the colonists realized something had to be done.

In an effort to remedy the situation it was arranged for tracts of land to be issued to every family. They would be allowed to keep what they grew from the land and if they produced a surplus they would be allowed to barter or sell it to other residents. There would be no more freebies. Each family would be responsible for feeding itself. At last, the free market system was given its chance.

The change was immediate and startling. The new economic approach met with "very good success," according to Bradford, "for it made all hands very industrious, so as much more corn was planted than otherwise would have been.” The women were just as impressed by the profit system as their mates. They "now went willingly into the field and took their little ones with them to set corn; which before would allege weakness and inability.”

Before long the colonists were producing all manner of crops, implements and livestock. Surpluses became common. More settlers arrived, other colonies were formed and this capitalistic model spread all along the Eastern Seaboard. Before long the colonists were flourishing. Would that Gov. Bradford's book could be required reading for our current governors and congressmen, before they take office. It might have saved us all a lot of grief this past year.

So when we sit down at the dinner table this Thanksgiving we can thank God not only for our families and friends but for the free-market system that has given America prosperity instead of privation. We can also thank Him that the Pilgrims learned their lesson where socialism was concerned. May this generation soon do the same.