■■ e ARE told that the German
W surrounds his Christmas
with more of an element of
mysticism than does he of
any other nation. It is
probably a survival of the
far back days when his
painted ancestors celebrated
their . mysterious rites, at
Christmas, under their dark
groves of forest oaks. In nearly every district
of the fatherland there still remains the quaint
est. and queerest of Christmas customs, whose
origin is lost in the hoariest antiquity. They
have all in the process of time assumed a
Christian character, more or less burlesqued,
but the folk iorists will tell you that they date
from the days of Wotan and Freya.
The peasants of Silesia, the woodmen of the
Black Forest, and the hillsmen of Bavaria,
happily know nothing of the origin of the queer
pranks they play at Christmas; they only
know that, they have been handed down by
their fathers, and that they in turn will hand
down the immemorial customs to their chil
dren.
In Germany the old custom of mumming is
still kept up. From house to house these
mummers go. The shepherds, especially, are
entertaining. They are the comic men of the
troupe who, in a half grotesque and half seri
ous way, represent the events of the nativity,
ij There was a famous company of Christmas
mummers, a couple of years ago in Bavaria,
iwith a magnificent looking first shepherd, who
,nevnr wearied of poking fun at the minister
of finance.
After these roving villagers have recited
their farago of nonsense, or ii may be their
CAMERON COUNTY PRESS, THURSDAY, DECEMBER 17, 1908.
lines of surpassing beauty, before a person's
house they are generally rewarded for their
pains with gifts of lard, bacon and eggs.
But with all the mysticism and ultra senti
mental ways of regarding Christmas the Ger
man never forgets it is eminently a season of
good cheer. Pork in every form and beer
usually take the place of roast beef, turkey,
and stronger drinks. Then they also have the
boar's head with a lemon impaled between its
grinning tusks. Of course this delicacy dates
back to Wotan's day. Tradition says Wotan
was fond of the boar's head, but it is not easy
to see where the lemon comes in, as the god
was certainly not familiar with this tart fruit.
In Brandenburg and the Uckermark any pig's
head will do (the stock of boar's heads would
not hold out), and round this animal's head
are garnishings of sausage and green cab
bage.
Silesia is a province which has especially
earned a reputation for succulent dishes. Some
of the most renowned of German gastronomi
oal authorities have lent additional luster to
the place by being born there. At Christmas
time the dish most in request among the Sile
sians is a smoked pig's head with baked fruit
packed in it, and also generously spread over
the whole dish. This dainty rejoices in the
name of Himmelsreich (the kingdom of
heaven).
In North Germany the pig's head is not as
prominent as in the south. Here there is more
miscellaneous Christmas eating, hearty enough
but altogether in variance with American
tastes. Cakes of all sizes and shapes are also
baked and eaten, and some of these have a
toughness of gutta-percha and a hardness of
granite. These cakes take the form of Kneclit
Ruprecht, or Nikolaus, angels and other
Christmas novelties. Some of these are
i flavored with honey, some with pepper, but
all are of such consistency that no ordinary
grownup person could enjoy a surfeit of
them and survive the feast. Only children
seem to be able to eat these konigbucken
and live.
Thuringia boasts of another curious
Christmas delicacy which only the initiated
can truly appreciate, this is boiled suet dump
lings and herrings. One cannot be blamed for
asking, why this mixture? Was the herring
also favored by Wotan?
The herring, as a Christmas dainty, is also
favored throughout Saxony, but there takes
the form of a salad, and is eaten with smoked
pork, and a delicate kind of sauerkraut, in
which caraway seeds are prominent. The
Saxony peasant's Christmas table is invariably
decked with these dishes on Christmas eve,
and remains thus spread out during the night.
His idea in doing this is that angels, possibly
weary of nectar and ambrosia, may condescend
to visit his humble abode while he sleeps and
regale themselves with Saxon smoked beef
and herring salad.
It is interesting to watch the transformation
of a' German village at Christmas from its
usually treeless appearance into a town laid
in a forest of firs. Wagon loads of these resin
scented trees are sent from the hills of Thurin
gia, the Hartz and Silesia, and are put up in
even rows in the streets and squares of the
town. There is nothing like it in any other
country. For a fortnight before the great
feast these long avenues of "Tannen" are
crowded with eager purchasers, men, women
and children of all ages, and of every station
in life. The great desire of each is to get a
symmetrical tree, and as few trees are liter
ally perfect in shape, it is the business of the
tree merchant to supply branches and thus
give the tree the desired roundness.
It is the tree that is the attraction of every
German home from the kaiser's palace down to
the humblest peasant's hut, and around it.
the German's best and kindliest thoughts cen
ter. The tree is not for the German simply
a convenient cluster of mere boughs on which
to stick candles and hang presents. It stands
for the most sacred and most dread of all
trees, the one once erected on Mount Calvary,
and lias thus become the sign and seal of his
Christian faith.
A Christmas Decoration.
When the children have tired of even their
new possessions (and how soon the new be
comes old) and it is too early for the sandman
to pay his nightly visit, try this simple amuse
ment: Suspend a wreath of holly or ever
green from a doorway and give to each child
an equal quantity of nuts, paper-wrapped can
dles or favors that will stand handling, then
see who can throw the most articles through
the wreath into a basket placed to catch them.
Give a sisiple reward to add zest to the game.
In the same manner the game of "twos" is
conducted. Take a large napkin or piece of
stout paper. Place a lot of nuts or hard can
dies in the center. Let a child take hold of
each coiner and give three vigorous tosses,
singing:
"Goodies, goodies, dance, my Christmas goodies
Up they go, down they go; dance, my Christ
mas goodies."
Then there will be a lively scrimmage to see
who can recover the most.
These little devices will make a jolly ending
to the happiest day in the year for the chil
dren. Put them to bed with pretty songs ring
ing in tlteir ears. '
"Everywhere, everywhere, Christmas tonight—
Christmas where snow peaks stand solemn and
white,
Christmas where the cornfields lie sunny and
bright,
Everywhere, everywhere, Chrfstmas to-night'
A Christm
Day
Napoleon
■ By D. E. HENRY
APOLEON BO N A -
PARTE, the "Child of
n& r .\ iffi I Destiny," as he called
9lif/ himself, had yet a good
} ( ' ea ' °' s destiny un-
JL completed, when, on
|r • ,'v* A Christmas eve, in the
year 1800, he sent mes
{Lftlp] sengers forth to an
nounce his intention of
M paying a visit to the
!l®'\ xv /P^j P ar ' s opera house that
jR /S \Y He was now first
\\Zyf\C ]) consul, to which posi
''"n ia(l been
I elected in November,
s ] 1799. "My reign began
from the day I was
made consul," he declared years aft
erwards, and in that phrase he accu
rately described his power.
Installed already at the Tuileries
with, his beloved Josephine, he lived
in regal state and exercised little less
than despotic sway. Seven years be
fore he was an unknown artillery of
ficer. Now he was the most promi
nent man in Europe, proclaimed the
savior of his country, and practically
dictator. What events he had crowd
ed into those seven years! The Eng
lish had been driven from Toulon in
1793; he had suppressed the Paris in
surrection of 1795; he had gone
through his first victorious campaign
in Italy, in 1796-7; had made his vig
orous attempt to conquer Egypt, in
1797-9; and now was back again in
France.
It was Christmas eve, however; the
time when pleasures are expected to
be indulged in, and Napoleon liked to
show himself to the people in public
places, for popularity was ever dear
to him. So he would goto th opera
that night.
He sat in an apartment overlooking,
the Tuileries gardens awaiting the
rival of Fouche, the minister of po
lice, who had been sent for to tak®
his instructions. Josephine, to whom
he had been married since 1796, had
Just left him, and he was alone whea
Fouche was annonuced.
"You have nothing further to re
port?" said Napoleon, his keen gaze
fixed on the minister.
"Nothing."
"No new conspiracies?"
"None."
"And the old ones?"
"Well under surveillance. I am
ready to strike at the necessary mt>
ment."
"Ah, M. le Ministre, your waitingi
gives them the opportunity of strik-j
lng the first blow. This is not a sol*
dler's way. You are only clever lftj
watching plots; I want a man who can
crush them at their inception. Fouche,
you must strike now. Every suspect
must goto prison. My death is de
sired by all the fanatical Royalists,
Vendeans and Chouans in Paris, and
Fouche has to stamp these conspira
cies out. If Fouche does not, Napo
leon will."
"First consul, you are safe," was all
that Fouche replied.
"Safe or not," said Napoleon, impa
tiently, "I look to you to guard my
life, and with that life the destinies of
France. I shall visit the opera within
an hour. You know your duty."
"Consider it done," and with that
the famous police functionary de
parted.
Napoleon, who bad boen working
hard all day and was tired, now fell
asleep. When Josephine came in,
dressed for the opera, she had the
greatest difficulty in rousing him from
the sound sleep into which he had
fallen.
"Come, the carriage is waiting," she
said.
"Let it be sent back," he said,
drowsily. "I have changed my mind;
I had rather not goto the opera to
night."
But in the end Josephine prevailed,
and they went 10 the carriage, accom
panied by Lannes and Bessieres.
In the carriage Napoleon fell asleep
again, and, as he afterwards related,
began to dream of the danger he had
run years before in crossing the Tag
liamento during a flood by torch
light.
No attempt was made to awaken
him, but just as they reached the
corner of the Ra« Nicaise a loud ex
plosion was heard, and the first con
sul awoke with a sudden start.
"We are blown up?" he cried.
But death by assassination was not
to be his destiny. An infermal ma
chine of a most destructive character,
prepared by St. Regent, had exploded,
just a second too late to effect its
deadly purpose. Although Napoleon
escaped, 20 persons were killed and
53 wounded.
He ordered the coachman to drive
on, and a few minutes later he and
Josephine entered tho opera and pro
ceeded to their box. The house
cheered again and again, Napoleon
bowing in apparent oalm. But he did
not remain in the theater long. After
an anxious look around at the audience,
ha turned to reassure Josephine, who
was almost fainting with terror, and
they returned to the Tuileries.
Here he was met by Fouche, upon
whom he turned with a fierce and con
temptuous anger.
"I will see to this business myself,"
he cried with bitterness. "France shall
be purged of these ruffians. It is not
a question of my life, but of social
order and public morality."
Within a few weeks all the leading
conspirators were executed, and 133
other persons were seized, and, with
out trial, Iransuoj'ted to French
Guiana.
13