Demos atc.
Bellefonte, Pa., December 17, 1915.
Christmas Prayer
»
OME Thou, dear Prince, Oh,
come to us this holy Christmas
time! Come to the busy marts
- of earth, the quiet houses, the noisy
streets, the humble lanes Come tw
us all, and with Thy love touch every
human heart, that we may kriow rhat
love. and its blessed peace. bear
charity to all mankind
.—-Eugene Field.
CHRISTMAS FOR THE BIRDS
Scandinavian Custom of Providing
Feast of Barley for Feathered
Creatures.
Among the other delightful traits of
the Scandinavian people is their cus-
tom in their Yule festivities of think-
ing not only of the happiness of their
little ones, but of teaching these chil-
dren to bear in mind the happiness of
others and in particular of the animals
about them.
At the Yuletide season, we are told,
the market place of Christmas pre-’
sents a very gay aspect, filled in as it
is with spruce trees of all sizes for
the children’s festival. But there is a
feature in the Norse Christmas that 1
i calende.”
FRENCH CHRISTMAS OMENS
Ancient and Curious Beliefs Regarding
the Holiday—Miraculous Cures
for Various Ailments.
In France, particularly, superstition :
dies hard, and there is probably no
other country where the people still !
retain so many ancient and quaint be- !
liefs in connection with Christmas :
relate to :
miraculous cures of all the ills which |
day. Several of these
flesh is heir to. For instance, the
chilly proceeding of bathing on Christ-
mas day is supposed to insure one
against both fever and toothache dur-
ing the coming year, another preven-
tive of fever being the abstention from
all meat on December 25th, a great
sacrifice for the average man; while
a remedy for ulcers could be obtained
py those who refrained from eating
prunes on that day.
A cure for everything, however, can
be found in the large loaf chiefly made
in Provence, and called “Le pain de
It is very l!arge and very
i white, and from it is cut a small piece,
| marked with a knife with three or
four crosses. This is carefully pre-
served as a remedy, and used when
required, the remainder of the loaf
being divided among the family on the
Feast of Epiphany.
With regard to bread, it is believed
that loaves baked on Christmas eve
remain fresh for ten years, and during
the whole of the holidays a portion of
bread was left out on the table night
and day because the. Madonna might
come in to share it. But unless she
wishes to bring misfortune on the en-
|
have not heard of in any other country
in that in this market place there 1s |
for each Christmas tree a Juleneg, or
little sheaf of barley; each person who
buys a tree also buys a sheaf. Then,
when the tree is set up in the main
room of the house at Yuletide for the
bairn (born, as they are called in Nor-
way) the sheaf of grain is fastened on
the end of a pole and put out in the
yard for a Christmas feast for the
birds!
2 {
am
the Chile
drens’ Christe
mas tree
arrayed with
toys and filigree,
and brilliant gew-
gaws deftly hung,
that catch the eye of
old and young. With
fairies bright and tinted
biras | cali forth glad
enraptured words; and
merry eyes will greet the
sight when | am viewed by
candle- light. Beneath'my
boughs there iies a scene of
house and yard and village green,
with mimic railway running through
as railroads oft are wont todo | am
alas, a Christmas tree! And this will be
the death for me; for when the Yuletide
season's past, upon the ash-heap I'll be
cast. However, while I m standing here
a host of children 1 wii! cheer, and cause their
outhful cheeks to glow, because of One Cnild iong
ago who came this waiting world to bless and fil
our hearts with happiness. And so, you see
I'm giad to be
the
Jt
tis
chii-
dren's
Chnist-
mas
tree
By Rev. H. C. Michaei, B.D.
cE
tire family, it behooves the French
housewife not to bake any bread be-
tween December 25th and the Festival
of Circumcision.
Cattle can be kept in good health
by giving them something to drink
Immediately after midnight mass on
Christmas eve before entering the
house. And a good harvest could be
insured if the corn about to be sown
is carried to its destination in the
cloth used for the Christmas dinner.
If you visit a fountain or a well on
New Year’s day and place in it either
an apple or a nosegay, the water will
, be rendered wholesome throughout the
year. No Frenchman, however, will
lend anything to anyone on January
1, for it is believed that by so doing '
he would bring ill luck upon himself
for the ensuing year.
HOW HE DOES IT
% COMES right down the chim-
ney
When the Chrismas bells are
rung,
When little folks are fast
asleep
And stockings all are hung;
All loaded down with pretty things,
With guns and dolls and drums;
So be sure to hang your stockings
Where he’ll see ’em when he comes.
! YOU might hear him swiftly coming,
Riding on the wintry blast;
His reindeer team a-jingling,
And their hoof beats falling fast.
| His furs are black with chimney soot,
His beard is white as snow,
! His sleigh is full of pretty toys,
You ought to hear him go!
HE lights upon the sleety roof
i
And doesn’t step a minute;
! He jumps upon the chimney top,
The Cakes Were Baked.
The great Dutch feast of St. Nicho-
1as the first week in December last
year was celebrated in Holland with
difficulty. For one thing, the war cut
. off the supply of almonds, for cen-
turies a constituent of the famous
figures, or “speculaas,’ baked out of
Bt. Nicholas cake, as well as of the
seasonable confection known as “‘ban-
ket.” At the last moment, however,
a single shipload of almonds arrived
trom Spain and partly saved the situ-
ation There still remained the short-
age of white flour due to government
restriction, and of cooks owing to the
mobilization of the troops. But the
government removed its embargo for
the festival, and the bakers called up
to arms were granted a week's leave
at their ovens, and so the feast of St.
Nicholas held its traditional sway.
A Christmas Carol.
Twiddle—de—dum,
Twiddle—dum~de,
Playing the game of Expectancy,
Under the glare of the Christmas tree,
Blending of craft and philanthropy,
Marvelous game of humanity,
Twiddle—de—dum,
Twiddle—dum—dee.
I'widdle—de—dum,
Twiddle—dum—dee,
The rules are as simple—just listen and
see;
The gift you receive should be worth
about three
Of the one you bestow upon—possibly me,
Annually tempting the powers that be;
Twiddle—de—dum,
Twiddle—dum—dee. —~Life.
Christmas Rites.
" One of the charms of Christmas is
its perpetuation of ancient rites and.
customs. The Christmas tree, the mis-
tletoe .and the holly, the chants and
anthems, Santa Claus and the rein-
deers—all hark back to earlier centu-
ries when life was simpler and man-
kind sought its joys on a less intensive
plan. In a sense, there is mo such
thing as a modern Christmas, though
we may give it a modernist touch here
and there. - ’
One Drawback.
At the same time, the man who does
his Christmas shopping early, will find
it all the harder to hide his purchases
trom the prying eyes of the kids.
Foresighted,
Happy is the woman who nas saved
out some money for the after Christ.
mas bargains.
|
And down he plumps within it;
He pauses on the hearthstone,
And he takes a little peep
| To see if all the curly heads
|
|
Are safe in bed asleep.
HE goes about on tiptoe,
Nor makes a bit of noise,
He fills up all the stockings
With sugar plums and toys;
| And -then he gives a little laugh,
Pops up the chimney quick,
And off he jingles on the wind,
The jolly old St. Nick.
Beever irri
Find out something to make
you a smiling, sunny personality
around the home. Christmas is
a great day for shining.
§50% o* ake shorokok akan aA atahakangkanatarate terete
CHRISTMAS JOYS.
“I suppose you will have a merry
Christmas at your house?”
“Oh, yes,” replied the sophisticated
small boy. “We younger people will
endeavor to make it so. You know,
so much depends on the tactfulness |
of children. I always endeavor tc
make the holidays pleasant by show- |
ing an enthusiastic interest in the |
mechanical toys that afford grown
people so much amusement.”
What He Gave Brother.
Little six-year-old Harry was asked !
by his Sunday scheol teacher:
“And Harry, what are you going to
give your darling little brother for
Christmas this year?”
“I dunno,” said Harry.
the measles last year.”
Real Luck.
“Tommy,” said his mother, at din-
ner on Christmas day, “do stop eat-
ing.
much?”
“Don’t know,” said Tommy be-
tween bites; “I guess it’s just good
luck.”
“I gave him
How can you possibly eat so
Christmas is coming floho' Hohe!
=> With holly and firbrees
as and ice and snow,
rd i
-. 4 With Santa Claus too
and Christmas trees
Who say “Thank you,
and Please”
WHAT CANDLES SYMBOLIZE
. Higher Meaning of Little Burning
Tapers That Ornament the
Christmas Tree.
It is little wonder we cling to the
old custom of lighting the little pink
and blue and green and yellow can-
dles. For we apprehend, I am sure,
not altogether dimly, as we go about
touching them into flame, the shining
potency of those things they do but
symbolize—of goodness, of love, of
spirituality, and the far-reaching pow-
er of these to lighten the world.
cannot be but the Tinsel Star was
right. The gifts and ornaments of
| Christmas, fair and fitting though they
are, might all be done away with and
andpresents for boys |
‘mas dinner.
BIRDS’ HOLIDAY DAINTIES
Yellow-Leg Snipe Travels Some 9,000
Miles for Christmas Dinner—
Robins Like Holly Berries.
The yellow-leg snipe travels a mat-
ter of 9,000 miles to get his Christ-
It is pretty nearly the
longest journey made annually by any
living creature, and the object of it
. seems to be to procure certain dain-
ties in the way of aquatic insects and
' crustaceans appropriate for holiday
nt
fare.
One might say, however, that the
most appropriate of Christmas din-
| ners is eaten by the robins which at
! this holiday season feed largely upon
the berries of the holly—particularly
' upon the berries of a kind of holly
called the black alder, which are as
bitter as quinine.
Another bird which has an interest-
ing Christmas is the mocking bird.
He is a planter of the mistletoe ber-
ries and mistletoe berries contribute
largely to his Christmas dinner. Be-
ing particularly fond of them he inci-
dentally, though without intention,
carries the seeds to tree branches
where they promptly fasten them-
selves and sprout. In this way the
parasitic plant is widely propagated
in Texas, which is the principal win-
ter resort of the mockers.
The canvasback duck breeds in the
far North, from Minnesota to the
Arctic circle, in the interior. But the
call of Christmas turns it southward,
. and it spends the holidays along the
we should still have a very good
Christmas indeed, if but the Christmas
candles shed their light.
Yet I do not forget that the Para-
dise Bird scorned the little bits of
blackened candles that lay in the
Christmas box. We are very human
after all, and the candles of our kind-
ness seem but little things sometimes
and soon burned out. Fail they may,
but there shall be, and with all: the
more reason, others to take their
places.
Over again and once a year the hu- |
man spirit makes for itself a festival,
and under the light of the abiding
heavens which do not fail—God’s glow-
ing heavens of stars that are forever
lighted, forever sure—it lifts up the
tapers of its own lighting, tapers
which, though they burn out humanly, |
yet with a touching devotion of faith
\ ghall be replaced, relighted, rekindled
| each year, as the blessed season comes
. around.
Types they are, these Christmas
candles, of our lives, so apt to fail and
, of our purposes, 80 easily wasted, but
| types also of our glowing longings, our
| luminous, unconquerable hopes; nor
. can it be said that we have failed so
long as we relight them, year after
! year, a pledge of our own faith in bet-
ter things, and to do homor to that
| Little Lord, whom, with touching de-
! yetion to the old shining symbol of “a
| light that shineth in darkness,” shed-
ding blessing across our way, we still
. lovingly and how appropriately call
. “The Light of the World.”—Woman's
: Home Companion.
THE CHRISTMAS GOODNESS
' By Rev. George Hodges, Dean of the
Episcopal Theological School,
Cambridge, Mass.
And on earth peace, good will toward
y men.
For a few weeks at least of every
year we take the Christmas lesson of
! fraternity into our lives. Men and
! women and little children have been
. going about thinking what they could
| do for others. The streets and shops
' have been full of people whose arms
: have been full of bundles. There have
| been sweet domesfic conspiracies in
| every household. The idea has pos-
sessed the community that the right
thing to do is to make other people
happy. For a little while, as the year
* draws near its close, and we look
across into a new time, it seems as if
the old manner of living were being
put away, with all its narrowness and
pettiness and jealousy, with its self:
seeking and its vicious self-content,
| and as if the dawn of the blessed
. millenium were already shining upon
the summits of the mountains. ~
For a few weeks the Christmas
. spirit animates the churches. The
. kingdom of heaven comes.
| want is to have this fraternal time
' continued. What we need is Christ.
| mas every day. If that blessed king:
| dom is ever to be established here; if
the will of God is ever to be done by
| the employer and the workman, by
| the landlord and the tenant; if the
| present discontent is ever to met and
; ministered to, it must be by the cul-
| tivation in us of the Christmas good-
| ness. We must learn the lessons of
simplicity and fraternity. We must
| follow more closely the blessed foot-
| steps of his life who on this day for
|
i
our salvation was born at Bethlehem,
and cradled in a manger.
| hRRERE * *
«
: The holly—or holy—tree is §
| * called Christ's thorn in Ger- &
| # many, and the early Christians
» referred to it as “the righteous 2
- # branch.” 2
2 »
i hk *® hkkkkRhRE
| Day for Little Ones.
Do you think enough of the chil-
: dren? After all, Christmas is a day for
. the baby and the little ones.
: Be Thankful for This.
One of the other nice things about
Christmas is that it marks the time
when the days begin to grow longer.
Believe in Santa.
No sound, healthy, wholesome child
is a disbeliever ir Santa Claus.
‘What we
southern Atlantic coast, from the
Chesapeake to Cuba. It feeds on vari-
ous aquatic plants, but the piece de
resistance of its Christmas dinners is
wild celery—a succulent, water veg-
etable which gives to its flesh a flavor
highly appreciated by the epicure.
The wild Canada goose goes all the
way to Mexico in winter, spending
Christmas among the lakes in that
far southern latitude, where nutritious
grasses and water plants are plentiful.
[xg gAgighatototongagtorargioioisioiargiotaiaieieieis
The chances are that at least
the hinting for Christmas pres-
ents will be done early.
Ae lly
ir
We spend too much time wonder-
ing what the new year will bring us.
it is better to ask ourselves what
we are going to make of it. Life
does not come in sealed packages,
ready for use when opened. Time
is only its raw material, and from
it we can make very much what we
choose. Instead of waiting for soma
prize to drop into our hands, let us
seize the days as they pass and
mold them into forms of usefulness
and beauty
p
EE &
LN PND NINS IN OSSINING ISPS SSSI
N EXPENSIVE INSTITUTION
But Cost of Christmas Pays Big Re. wars of the Reformation, both on the
turns in Joy and Happiness of
: Children.
Christmas is a very costly institu-
tion. It makes de p holes in millions
ot ‘well-filled pockets. Father's hand
reaches into his pocket more often
in the few weeks before Christmas
than during any other period of equal
extent in the whole year. And lots of
money goes for presents that, in the
hands of happy children, last a very
short time. Nightfall of Christmas
day sees many toys in mangled heaps
that bright and shining and new greet-
ed the little folks as they hopped out
' of bed Christmas morning. And mil-
lions and millions of things are bought
that never would be, if it were not for
, Christmas. But does all this mean that
. Christmas is not worth the money it
costs, that it would be better if the
world did not observe the anniversary
of Christ’s birth in the way it does?
Nobody in the whole wide Christian
part of the world will say that Christ-
mas does not pay for itself, that it is
not worth all it costs, and that it is
not a bargain at any price. Where can
be found a father and mother who
feel that they have been cheated by
Christmas, after they hear the gur-
| gling laughter of their children, in
acstasy among their new toys, even if
' there had to be skimping and saving of
pennies to buy the little presents?— |
Savannah News.
A Christmas Carol.
Scrooge was better than his word.
He did it all and infinitely more.
He became as good a friend,
as good a master, and as good a man
as the good old city knew, or any oth-
sr good old city, town, or borough, in
the good old world. Some people
laughed to see the alteration in him,
but he let them laugh, and little heed-
ed them; for he was wise enough to
know that nothing ever happened on
this globe, fer good, at which some
people did not have their fill of laugh-
ter in the outset; and knowing that
such as these would be blind anyway,
' he thought it quite as well that they |
should wrinkle up their eyes in grins,
as have the malady in less attractive
forms. His own heart laughed; and
that was quite enough for him.
| knew how to keep Christmas well, if |
any man alive possessed that knowl-
edge.
May that be truly said of us, and all
of us! And so, as Tiny Tim observed,
God bless us every one!
MISTLETOE.
We two stood near
The chandelier
‘With mistletoe upon it.
A lovely girl,
My head awhirl,
Her wrap—TI'll help her don it.
A button caught;
I surely ought
To help, when she’d begun it.
A pause, a hush,
A kiss, a blush,
And now, by Jove, I've done it!
—Lehigh Burr.
Great Process.
“I am glad to see you home, John-
ny,” said the father to his small son
who had been away at school, but !
who was now home on his Christmas
vacation. “How are you getting on
at school ?”
“Fine,” said Johnny. “I have learned
to say ‘Thank you’ and ‘If you please’
in French.”
“Good!” said the father. “That's
more than you ever learned to say
in English.” -
ma
Gi thasisnof fhecandle
*on Christmas:
sole
Christmas Evening.
To make the table pretty for the
evening meal, leave the shades off the
candles. Use white candles in glass
sticks. Wipe with a moist cloth and
dip the candles in diamond dust.
Tough.
“My dear, did you make this Christ-
mas pudding out of the cookery
| book?”
“Yes, love.”
“Well, T thought I tasted one of the
covers.”
That's Why.
“Why should they tell us there is a
Santa Claus if there isn’t?”
“Mothesr and father want someone
to lay the blame on if we don’t get
the presents we want.”
A SANTA TRAP,
SS He Q
INC Ci
QD \Z a
Nee
RR
A
N |
LN
SS
>
First Boy—We’ve put the bureau
in front of the fireplace?
Second Boy—Yes.
First Boy—You tied the string to
+ + + | the handle of the door?
And it was always said of him that he
|
ep | WHAT NEW ENGLAND MISSED
Not Until Late in the ’60s Was Ob-
servance of Christmas Fes-
tival General.
General as are today both the re-
| ligious and secular observance of the
Cnristmas festival, it is barely half a
century since Christmas was tabooed
! in large sections of the United States
as well as in other countries where
the old Puritan element predominated,
gays an exchange. Even as late as
the ’60s all through New England
Christmas as a hcliday was ousted
by New Year's, except in Catholic or
| Episcopal families.
The old hatreds growing out of the
| continent and in Great Britain, for
| centuries practically abrogated this
annual festival wherever the Puritan
element or its posterity was the dom-
inating factdr in the community. The
following from Edward Eggleston's
“ransit of Civilization,” will give
something of an idea of the eclipse
which darkened the joyous holiday
history of the United States:
“In 1670 the Massachusetts legisla.
| ture ordained that the mere abstain:
! ing from labor on December 25 should
I
Second Boy—Yes, and I tied the oth- |
er end of the string to the water
pitcher.
First Boy—Then we ought to find
out the real facts about Santa Claus.
Cheap Christmas Cake.
Dissolve a level teaspoonful of soda
in two teaspoonfuls of warm water,
add half a pint of very thick cream,
stir for a moment, then add half a
cupful of New Orleans molasses, mix
thoroughly, add half a pint of brown
sugar, three and a half cupfuls of sift-
ed flour, through which has been
mixed a tablespoonful each of cinna-
mon and a tablespoonful each of
cloves, spice and nutmeg; add a ta-
blespoonful of grape juice; stir into
this a pound of sultana raisins cut
into haives and floured, and half a
pound of citron. Bake one and a half
hours in a moderate oven.
x Cake Candles.
If you wish to place red or green
candles around your cake, take a piece
of pasteboard somewhat larger than
the cake, cover with fine white paper,
get the cake in the center; melt paraf-
fin slightly, dip candles in and set
around the cake. This keeps the cake |
icing whole, and there is no danger
of the candles falling over. Little
sprigs of holly may be placed between
the candles.
At Christmas Time. :
If the mother of the family is a very
busy person, and if the trimming of
the Christmas tree seems one thing
too much, try giving the kiddies the
fun of trimming it themselves. This,
of course, applies only to the children
who have grown out of the baby stage.
‘To Hang in Guest Room.
Sleep sweet within this quiet room,
O thou, whoe’er thou art, *
And let no sad, dull yesterday
. Disturb thy quiet heart.
Forget thyself and all the world,
Put out each flickering light.
His star is shining overhead,
Bright Christmas, dear—good night.
Arr dred rr Ar Arr rrr ee rire dene
The mistletoe could tell some
funny tales had it the gift of
speech.
Be rr rr Ar Ar rr rr rr Ir etn
Shortest Reference to Christmas.
“December 25th—Rained all day.”
This is the shortust reference to
Christmas in any book. It is the only
entry under that date in the diary of
our old friend Robinson Crusoe.
More Blessed to Give.
Because you give a five-dollar bill
is no reason why you should expect
the same.
|
be a penal offense. The observance
of Christmas was held objectionable
not only because it ‘afforded opportun-
ity for the playing of games and pro
| fanity,” but because Christmas observ:
ance was iniquitous on its own ac
count, for all honoring of days, times
or seasons other than the Sabbath
seemed to the fine spun Puritan mind
a masked idolatry. The strict Puritan
Sabbath, first rigidly enforced in Eng:
land and Scotland, was early trans«
planted in New England, where its
observance was, under similar penald
ties, made as strictly compulsory as
was the nonobservance of Christmas.”
One of the old as well as the mod-«
ern features of the Christmas service
was its magnificent music. But dur-
ing the Puritan eclipse not only
Christmas music, but practically all
church music worthy the name, dis
appeared.
As the religious prejudices an
hatreds, born in persecutions, soften
with time, the Christmas festival grew!
fn favor even throughout the hostile
communities of both Great Britain andi
America. :
A CHRISTMAS VISION
On Christmas eve ‘mid all the joyous
That in my plenteousness surrounded m
[ happened by some chance to turn min
eye
Dut through a window-wreath that hung
near by.
And as 1 glanced through it into the
night
[ seemed to see, lit by some holy light,
A childish face with wistful, smiling lips
That thrilled me to my very finger-tips.
Two eager hands stretched forth called,
as in stress, ;
To me to carry help to Helplessness,
And in the sad eyes of that child I saw
In all its loveliness the Christmas Law—
Not a command, no everlasting Must
Upon Reluctance for its teaching thrust,
But just a pleading hint to him who ru
That all who suffer are God’s Little Ones!
And then the picture in the wreath was
gone,
And in its place the Eastern Star-beams
shone—
The same that nineteen centuries ago
Led on the Wise Men with their heavenly
glow; ;
And e’en as they I wandered through the
drifts
And into lowly places carried gifts
To cheer, and give release, and pay my
due
Unto my Lord through them that suffer
rue.
—John Kendrick Bangs, in Scribner's.
Imprisonment is too good for
the thief who steals a Christmas
purse.
AETLST FERRER
wk
EARLY ROMAN CHRISTMASES
No Special Ceremonies for Christ Fig-
ured More as a Historic Being
Than World Savior.
The early Roman Christmas, says J.
A Symonds, probably kept Christmas
with no special ceremonies. Christ
was as yet too close to them. He had
not become the glorious creature of
their fancy, but was partly a historic
being, partly confused in their imagi-
nation with reminiscences of pagan
deities. As the Good Shepherd, and ag
Orpheus, we find him painted in the
Catacombs; and those who thought of
him as God loved to dwell upon his
risen greatness more than on the idyl
of his birth. To them his entry upon
earth seemed less a subject of rejoic-
ing than his opening of the heavens.
They suffered and looked forward to a
future happiness. They would not
seem to make this world permanent by
sharing its gladness with the heathen.
Theirs, in truth, was a retigion of hope
and patience, not of triumphant recol-
lection or of present ee]
Love Essential. “Ted
Because this old world is hungry,
for love, “the simple art of being
kind” is needed to carry Christmas,
through the year. We may get along,
comfortably without any further
wisdom or guile or sophistication;
but, ah, sorely do we need the gentle
offices of love as we meet one anoth-
er by the way. /
&
Kiss for Every Berry.
in olden times a berry was pn'ed
for every kiss under the misticine,
and when they were all gone, no ber-
ry, no kiss!
The Worst Kicker. '
It is the man who kicks the most
about his Christmas cigars who gives
tae tewest of them to the janitor.