11 M Parol Ail 1 m nil JM§, I u jnFr HE twenty-fifth of Decem ber, rather the week about t' lll6 . ' las been cele m.jjf brated for many ages with rejoicing. Long before the Christian era the pa gan astronomers decided that these were the shortest days before the sun returned to northern lands to bring another spring and seed time and har vest. The dreary winter was at its worst, and the coming days would have longer hours of light and sun shine and the reawakening of na ture. Therefore sing and be joyful. The Egyptians held a festival in honor of the birth of their god Horus. The Romans called it"the birthday of the invincible sun," and dedicated it to Hacchus, rejoicing with him that the sun was about to return and revivify the vineyards. The Persians he'd a festlcal of uncommon splendor as the birthday of Mithras, the mediator, a spirit of the sun. In the north coun try among the worshipers of Odin it was a nature festival of riotous feast ing, because the fast of winter was approaching its end. It has been a time of universal celebration accord ing to ancient wrlt'en history since the beginning, and obscure tribes in remote nations have legends of their own about what we call Christmas tide the feast of peace and good will. As ( hrlstianity brougnt its blessings to follow the good of past religions, it seems only right that the birth 'of Christ should come at a time of gen eral rejoicing. It made it easier for the papans to turn to the Saviour of Light, at a time when the returning sunshine In the skies was symbolical of the feeling of brotherly kindness which was taught in the love of a lit tle child. And so as early as the sec ond century the church celebrated Christmas day when the heathen were honoring their gods. he ( hristmas celebration, an we know it, is but a reincarnation of the Yuletide of the Anglo Saxon tribes. Singing is a proper way to manifest joy. It delights the singer and gives pleasure to others. The churchly car ols were not enough for the hearty feeling. The pagan feasting remains. And so with that divine old carol, "Adeste Fidelia," are convivial songs Come hither, ye faithful; Triumphantly sing; Come, see the manger. Our Saviour and King! To liethlehem hasten. With joyous accord! Oh, coine ye, como hither. To worship the Lord! The contrast lies In "A Carole Brynging in Ye Bore's Heed " Capri apri defero, Reddt ns luudes domino The llore's h«-ud in hand bring I, With garlands gay and rosemary; And I pray you all sing merely. Qui* estlls In coiivivto. The church of the early days had some of the wisdom of modern social service. It entertained Its parishiou ers in a wordly way as welt us In stilled religious doctrine The uiys tery, miracle plays mid mummeries enacted under the direction of the clergy rehearsed the scene in the stable. These plays gave rise to a number of legendary carols. The "Cherry Tree Carol" was popular In London In the last century. It related the story of the Virgin begging Joseph to pluck kome cberrhs for her. utid when he rufusing. the unborn babe speaks and tell- his mother to reach out her hand and the tree will bow before her. and the carol goi-a onto say: "Then bespake Joseph, I have don<> Mary wrung." ute Another carol .it this tin < I* full or beautiful Imagery "'As Joseph was a walking, lie heard an angel sing The night si all be burn, Our heavenly king, lie neither shall hi- bum In house nor In hall. Nor In the plaee of Paradise, Hut In an ot'e stall." sir Thi. t* in the same n Irit as our fs miliar: WMIi »h. phe#.i watched their flv« ha Th« •■•g*) <>t *».. Lan e do» a And nluiy shone trotted "Fear not," said he (for mighty dread Mad seized their troubled liiln); "Glad tidings of great joy I bring To you and all mankind." And who would forget the swing of melody, and the charity taught in "Good King Weneslaus looked forth On the least of Stephen," He saw the beggar gathering fuel in the snow that lay "round about," and calls to his servants to bring him robes and wine and to fetch the poor man in from the cold. In the rural districts the nature fes tival lived long after the church had taken the feast. There were remains of tree worship and sacrifice to Po mona in Cornwall as last as 150 years ago. The peasants used togo into the orchards on Christmas day with pailfuls of cider and roasted apples. The health of the trees was drunk to song, and libations poured upon the rools. In various sections of north ern Europe it is the custom to deco rate trees out of doors. The fir trees as evergreens, and fruit trees for their promises, were trimmed with long streamers of ribbon or paper. The Christmas tree finds its ances tor in the German ash Ygdrasil, a great tree whoso top reached to Wal halla, the home of the gods, and whose roots were fast in the earth. The Germans have a wealth of car ols, but nearly all are of a religious nature. "Oh, Tannenbaum! Oh, Tannen baum," or the song of the fir tree at Christmas time, has become world wide. Who could count the house holds that gather around the tapers lighted and the tree loaded with gifts to sing this in unison. In the English household the song is: "Gather around the Christmas tree. Ever green has its branches been It is king of all the woodland scene.'' Or it may be: "Carol, brothers, carol, Carol joyfully, Carol for the coming of Christ's na tivity." The good old custom of singing from house to house on Christmas eve has crept across the water from Eng land to America. It was a part of the program of the season to learn these carols and to gather in bands, going from house to house across the snow and singing before the doors. The nelghbprs knew they were coming, preparing cakes and warm drinks, and sometimes gifts of money. Whoever has heard "God rest ye, merry gentle men, let nothing ye dismay," sung heartily in the frosty air has a thrill and an experience that returns to him every Christmas after. And every Christmas morn Is awak ened with the stirring strains of "Shout the glad tldit gs exultlngly sing." Rut we must not think that England or Germany sing all the carol music. France had a quaint literature of Its own. Here is one of Nowell, or Noel, and from north to south there are delightful variations of it: " 'Nowell, nowell, nowell, nowell,' This Is the salutacyon of the ungell Gabryell, Tydlngs true ther be cum neu sent froine the trynyte. He gabryell to nazareth cety of galile A clene maydyn and pure vlrgyn thorow her humylyte. Hath conceybyb the person secund In delte." Pore Noel comes down the chimney and gives gifts Just as Father Christ mas does across the channel, and the little French children sing: "Noel, Noel, Noel, Noel singeth clear, Holpen are all folk on earth Horn Is God's son so dear " 1,. M. McCAUI.EY. +++++++•;•+❖+++++++++++++++ T + I fl Christmas Prayer 112 * ii\ ttoo,oMr + t 11J shining stars of the cold + j; December iky remind us + nam of the patient mothtr and £ J «:>« rock-hewn manger In lowly + + Bethlehem where lay cradled Chy + * Cope for the world. In ihe % $ sh.idows of the silent stall we + v stand beside the Child and praise % Chce for Chy best treat atft to 1 sinful men. Speak to our souls as ♦ | we wan. Eel the sweet, loving. :■ + trusting spirit of the Child steal £ £ into our lives until It calms all t Swcak and anxious fears and + soethts all bitterness and pain. * In willing surrender and holy t Y IvMaing let us take the Christ + Child Into our hearts, that hence- t J forth we may live as he lived, + + leve as he loved, and follow In ? hu footsteps, bringing help 10 ihe t :j; seedy, courage to ihe weak, + comfort to ihe sorrowing, hope to I he downcast, and strength and £ I love to all. tirani thai the spirit t + of I wind kindness May so prevail £ «»*ud, "all's well with the world ' They who receive and tell of God's IIU*|H ■tkahlw gift of Christ as a He d«*tu«T may « »rr> the gladdvsl suit of , Christmas around with th»d. row* hack, )«l is i li'Ututas an Indian sum m«r evining to th« wuvrabu 4 r* Vlting r«'tuiuiacs|K« u f >uuth I THE PRINCE \ \ OF PEACEi i ► < i * *-1 r 1 < I By JAMES RUSSELL LOWELL 3 ► < ► _J L, < ► < ► "What means this glory < round our feet," ► The Magi mused, "more < bright than morn ?" ► And voices chanted clear and < j sweet, ; "Today the Prince of Peace 3 ► is born." < I ► < ! ► < ► "What means that star,' the 3 shepherds said, ► That brightens through the 3 rocky glen"? ► And angels, answering < overhead, 3 Sang, "Peace on earth, 3 good-will to men." 3 : ji ► And they who do their souls 3 no wrong, 3 But keep at eve the faith 3 ! of morn, 3 ► Shall daily hear the angel's 3 | song, 3 "Today the Prince of Peace 3 ► is born!" 3 ' > < ► < (ll>c U\iy "When they saw the star they re i Jolccd with exceeding great Joy." For men in banked cabins in the are tic snows and men In the wind beaten ships on remote seas, for men in tropic Jungles and men In forgotteu wastes, this day Is Christmas. We who spend tbo day in the friendly security of cit ies and draw about us the familiar In timacies of home and dally friendships are apt to forget the wonder of tbls, and the slgntticanco. Hut whether they realize it or not, men draw together during these hours. And this Is to follow the star the wise men saw over Hethlehem. fhruiuias lor most of us Is given to the closest of ties and the spirit of It la only a warmer glow of well used af fections. Ilut the deepest and mighti est things are the nearest, and In the heart of this day la the hope of the race. Two thousand years ago there was one who spoke front a mountain. Ills message was the brotherhood of all men. Another time h« said: "I ant the way, th» truth, and the life." To day men follow th« aay though they do not know, and obey the truth though they do uot see, and live tho Itr.. though th«y are unconscious of Its pulse beat through the world. For the way Is th« way of the race tnarchiin; painfully to Its far goal Th» lllu of •be Individual aud the Uvea of nations are borne upon the bosom of a greet tide WUe men call It by different names, but no tuan Uvea effectually save In Ms full cur rent Whether we stale It In terms of religion, or of |)hll>> "'pltjr, or pol Icy. Its la v Is but (be divine platitude of the brotherhood of n.u HUM ib m pi tverbial wtsh» , thai hi, m offefeferit %<>Vh §NE of f.!i© most famous j cathedrals in Germany! possesses as its most sacred relic the swaddling clothes of the Infant Jesus. J •t is a sweet and beautiful ! possession which many visitors come j from afar to venerate. One Christmas eve the sacristan ; was arranging the treasure confided to < his care, which was to be exposed to i view on the great fete of the morrow. | The sacristan was a little, hump backed man, bandy-legged and red nosed, and it was to this ugly person that the privilege was reserved of af ways caring for the adored relic. We must not be astonished at this, but must reflect that often the most hum ble and unattractive are chosen to be nearer the kingdom of heaven. But. unfortunately, the hump-backed sacris- | tan had no idea that he was one of the elect, and the marvelous character of his task gave him no extraordinary emotion. During the 20 years that he had snuffed the candles of the cathe dral, and been in daily contact with the treasure, he had received no en lightenment; he never made the sign of the cross before touching the sa cred linen, and he treated it with the same mechanical indifference with which he had hammered the soles of the boots in his former occupation of cobbler. This day, on opening the cupboard in which the linen of the Infant Jesus was carefully enclosed, he whistled a little dance tune and thought: "Ugh! It's not nice weather outside." A violent wind was blowing in the town, unhooking the signboards of the shops, and making the chimneys shake on all the pointed roofs. The man, on entering the sacristy, listened to the moaning of the wind, and thought that the fury of nature did not accord well with the fete for which he was preparing; but doubtless there was a striking symbol in the storm, and the unloosed elements might calm themselves suddenly when the words of pardon and pity were said: "On earth peace, good will to ward men." The sacristan went to put his coarse hand carelessly on the Divine relic, when an unheard-of event happened. The window In the sacristy opened suddenly, pushed by a great rush of wind. The storm entered like an In vasion of the Barbarians; It rushed over all in the room, knocking down the sacred objects, and the linen of the Infant Jesus, taken up In the whirling tempest, was blown out of the window. The hump-back remain ed for a moment stuptd and stricken, then recovering himself, ho rushed Into the 'hurch. crying: "Saint Joseph! Saint Martin! Help! Help! They have taken the linen!" At this alarming cry the people ran from all parts. The priests in their suplices, the beadle in his cap, the Swiss with his halberd, the old women who had been praying, ran with pale faces snd terrltled eyes, and everyone cried out: "What are you saying? Holy Moth er! what are you saying?" The little Rump back tore to the \ door; he seemed stricken with mad- | ness "The linen!- what misery!—the lin en! By the window! A puff of wind! Run quickly to catch it again!" Then In the road was sudden tumult! | everyone began to run In pursuit of the stolen relic. The noses turned up to the houses resembled notes of Interrogation. "There! there!" said some one. "No. no!" They discovered It at last It was ly- i tug close to a crest high up on the ' roof of the church. One would have ; said that the fretwork column, chilled j with cold, had taken refuge In the ] sheltering fold*. "There It Is! there It l«!" Every- ■ one cried out together nut how were they to reach It? "It's the sacristan'* duty togo up; i It was he who let It go " The hump back whistled no longer Suddenly a courageous man came forward. 11® crawled up the columns. | he hooked himself to the fretwork, he hung from the projection; after • thousand perils h« srrlved at the place and extended his arm to take th« linen Ilut at this moment, the linen unfurled Itself and was blown to a neighboring roof People rushed to catch It; It waited until the har.ds were quite close then It fl'-w off to the other side of the street Now N*gan an extraordinary race Krom street to street from roof to roof, the Divine swaddling clothes tleW, pursued hy the crowd What a chase! The priests, red with Indignation, ■titling, lifting their arms, crying orders, and gesticulating madly The H»l I followed with his useless halberd The little hump backed sacris tun ran al.ni as fast as his bandy leg* would (» And behlud came the old women, limping pitying themselves, utd Invoking the name of Mary The whole tuwn was rapidly raised liy this great agitation 'to the tn«d dened priests and the old devotees «,I. )oin»d » population running and (Melted Home brought poles, others felon*b< ladders, and some brought I i rtii itt*® ' uP ilti iM) of bu% . uUltt fi/t* tfe* til***. Hill fe> till* 1 tit* (Hittitm IUOI skfflvll|, It ifAl ing the disorder of the strident noise with their horns and the galloping of their horses. But the swaddling-clothes seemed to mock the priests and their exorcisms, the devout with their crucifixes, the firemen with their ladders. Sometimes the linen placed itself at the edge of a cornice and rolled itself round a chimney. From up there an end of the stuff floated ironically near the crowd, seeming to scoff at it. And when, with difficulty, some one gained the roof, hoping to have caught it — good-by! it would go further yet, with out any respect of person. After an hour of this game. It sud denly went away, and all the crowd could see was a point of white disap pearing on the horizon. In a distant road, aright at the end of the town, in a sordid attic, a wo man was holding a new-born child on her knees. She was contemplating il with a somber tenderness. She cov ered it with kisses, havtng no her garment to give it than her sad lips. By the gaping window, with cracked framework and broken panes, the cold and the wind came to usher in a Christmas of misery. The newly-born was rigid and white, like a waxen Jesus. My God! my God! had he to die thus, the innocent —had he lived only to sufTer for an hour? The mother got up and moved about the room, si lently, fiercely. Nothing—she could find nothing to protect the little body in ail its purity. She sat down again; she did not weep; tears are a luxury—even her eyes were parched. Near her thero was nothing but wind and cold; they entered, making a clamor like many wooden shoes. They pressed close, with their lugubrious and cold faces—bad magicians come to bring to the newly-born their gifts of agony. Christinas! Christmas! Ah! that I Other that one commiserates, that Child of Bethlehem. He at least had straw In his cradle, and the beasts around warmed him with their breath! ' The mother, who could not cry, | clenched her fist to curse Chrlßtmas. But her hand fell in the presence of the adorable miracle. At the gaping window something white floated. It arrived from nothing | ness. It was like a bird which had ; come to ask for refuse. Then softly, the white thing came ! Into the attic. The mother stared, i The swaddling clothes! And the little naked newly-born was wrapped in the linen of the little In fant Jesus. the "Star" to Someone J# J* He for whom Christmas Is named brought the gift of himself to a world which had nothing except fulth and love to give htm In return, and which for the most part lias not so far been disposed to give him even that. Never theless, he gave It.and there Is no genuinely vital Christmas giving which Is not In the name spirit. Wo would not for the world discourage the Inter change of gl't* which come to be cus tomary at this time In families and be tween friend*, where such Interchange Is prompted by the heart In spite of the sham and the hypocrisy which have come lo ovsrlay much of such giving, the custom tend* to the devel opment of the higher qualities Hut this Is a reminder that the pleasure of the getting ready for Christmas al ways great where sincere Impulse Is made the guide among the shops, can be Immensely heightened by a getting ready to make happy oorne dependent soul which now look* forward to no bright ties. In the dav Ic> .All tbf people I# 10 He il»i' i itol •Uupty »a>, rtiiUt |« burn, but lu you Um Is Iwirrt; neither he I bring tfla4 Ml***, bul 141 )ii « I bring fcl« . Utllcm* uf grvftl «IV Kur Hit I mure. llt IN )U* *A» nut T* r*n i U l" bill II tftttll Ut» lo «4 Mnitli i*tittt«r