S*i f\ St HEN Christmas bells are
wE® r ' n Sing merrily on Christ
mas eve it is pleasant to
think that the whole world
I s celebrating, and that as
* ™ long as the human lamily
has been on earth It has made
merry at a midwinter feast. The lit
tle children in .vour house or mine,
fcud the little children across the
Street, are just i.'ke other little chil
dren in Russia, in Norway, Id France
find in Ua:y, or the German Father
land who have made ready for their
Cfci-latmas trees when the winter's sun
has set and the Christina- stars are
6hinlng over head.
At th~ time that the Holy Babe lay
In the maimer in Bethlehem to be the
Christmas Babe for the Christian
t.orld the Romans were celebrating
their Saturnalia and trimming willow
wands, as we trim Christmas trees, of
course with a difference. But just the
same they were celebrating the mid
winter festival. They danced and
sang, gave gifts, and hung wreatha
while across the Alps to the north the
Wild Huntsman was chasing through
the woods to be the terror of uil
uaughty children.
The Christmas tree honored be
cause it was evergreen gained fresh
honors when adorned with tapers.
The evergreen was eternal, and the
lights shed glory around. How jolly
is the raising of the Christmas tree!
How the children love to talk about
It before hand and to trim it, or to get
the gifts from its overladen boughs.
In Germany the whole household
goes to church. In many villages the
church is left in darkness, and the
worshipers carry lighted candles, com
ing in one by one, u itil it is a bril
liant sight. When the season is over
the old hymns are sung. "Es ist der
Tag des Herrn," and Christmas greet
ings are heard on every side.
The Julafred, or of Christmas,
is publicly proclaimed in Sweden and
Norway. The churches are decorated,
and the children are the first to enter
in the gray of the early morning No
cr.e is forgotten. The poor are re
membered with food and clothing, and
best of all the little brothers of the
sir, the birds, have a tree hung with
a sheaf of wheat for Christmas cheer.
In Holland feasting prevails as It
4oes everywhere. But the children
#et out their wooden shoe 3 for gifts,
tnd not one Is forgotten The prac
tice of feeding pets and birds is gen
eral.
In Servla and In Bulgaria no one
crosses a strange threshold if It can
"And thou Bethlehem, in the land of Juda, art not least among the
prince* of Juda."—Matthew 11, 6.
"O, ltttlo town of Bethlehem, how still we
see thee lie"—
The song brings bach the silent peace of
Christmases gone byi
Brings bacK the olden mystery, and sets
the heart a-thrill
With fancies of the snow-draped firs that
nodded on the hill.
With memories of ruddy lights that night
would find aglow
Which from the cottage windows flung their
banners on the snow.
"Above thy deep and dreamless sleep the
silent stars go by"—
The stars above the little town were very
far and high t
They marched triumphantly from lands
whfraof fx boy might dream
To otlier lands thut bechoned him wtth
dawn's enchanting gleam
but unc.'or all the silent stars that marched
from oast to west
• The little town the little town contanted.
was ut rest.
' Yet in ;hy darK str<■>«*.» shineth the ever
lasti-ig light"
The ntuilow bias® of memory still leaps
s«i et tely
And Ihrovi) i» its wjndreui n« romance
th-> barn trees it illumes
A I piiiH <«. d wnitu are radiant with Miowy
apple blooms
Who- e p >taii,, when the winter wind* the
lir'inchon sway and lift,
rioat dre .mily uway, away, to pile in drift
on drift
"The hop. % <»r»d fwri at all the years are
rii«l In th«Q tonight"—
Ar » n.i t In every little town seen In th«
Christm »s light,
f 1 >*r r»oi ,e t.l us 1 ut muses now, when this
el J »'»ng Is sung,
Of it | the blotting* that wer** his when
head dii l heaii were young.
An i, mi >er liKe, h*' counts his sto-u of
li :>«tsure«. f«;r of Iheltt
Me I lull'is nn«w at Christmas time his
"U)'"n of Hethlehem "
UJI «.>.'. >, .IW. W U KM
be avoided. Friends rejoice together,
the little children dance and sing and
gifts are exchanged. An ancient cere
mony has to be performed by the
head ot every household. Before a
mouthful of food is eaten early in the
morning, corn is placed in a stocking
and the chief of the family sprinkles
a little before the householder, saying
"Christ is born;" to which one of the
family replies: "He is born indeed."
Then the house-father has to "wish"
and, advancing to the burning logs on
the hearth, he strikes them until the
sparks ily upward, with r, good wish
for the horses, another for the cat
ties, the calves, and the goats, and so,
on through the entire band of stock
on the farm, concluding with a special
prayer and an extra blow upon the
embers of the logs for a plentiful har
vest. In this manner the gods of na
ture are appeased. Then the ashes
containing "the wish" are collected
and buried secretly. As for the Yule
logs, they are not permitted to burn
entirely away, but the lire, being ex
tinguished the burnt ends are placed
in the clefts of fruit trees so as to
ensure a bountiful crop.
In out of the way corners of the
world, the traveler has met proces
sions going about on Christmas eve
giving gifts to the earth, to the stream,
to fruit trees, and the priest with a
censor of incense invoking blessings
on the harvests which are to come
when the winter is over.
The receiving of gifts seems to bo
the passing of a later day. At Lyona
in France the Foundlings Home hat)
a beautiful custom. A handsome era
die is placed at the door and the for
saken infant laid therein is afterwards
treated with great consideration as
the gift of the Christ child at the
blessed season
The more playful customs of put
ting hats about for presents as French
children do, of baskets which Italian
children make, of girt boxes and the
tour of St. Nick prevail everywhere.
Even in the tropics Christmas is ob
served, as if the cold snow lay round
about. Mexico has many beautiful
customs, and Catholic countries nev
er forget the feast of the Babe in the
Manger in church.
L. M. McCAULEY.
THE SOCIETY KID.
With tears In her eyes little Polly
Hut under a big wreath of holly.
When they asked why she cried,
"Sunty brought,' she replied,
"Not a bow-wow. but only si dolly."
CAMERON COUNTY PRESS. THURSDAY, DECEMBER 15, 1910.
Y * A Ai & 4
dfyristmas <£t>c
Christmas eve! And a blustery
night—
Snow-flurries almost blinding the
sight;
Eddying winds shift to and fro
And toss from the chimneys smoke-'
clouds low.
On the street Is heard a noisy throng
Of pleasure-bent shoppers, hurrying
along,
Laden with bundles and baskets and
toys
To gladden the hearts of girls and
boys.
Let the wintry winds moan on, and
sigh
Through the forests, and sing their
lullaby; ,
'Neath holly-wreathed brar> and
mistletoe
I rest and sleep while * tempests
blow.
Christmas eve! And the sound of bell,
Yuletide harmonies, break and swell.
And sing of a Babe in Bethlehem,
Born in a manger—Saviour of men!
—E. A. Fergerson.
,v ,
| Christmas in |
1 Odd Corners I
Yuletide Recollections of a Traveler
pj 1/
'WF T has been ray lot to spend
many of my Christmases in
V (flffi) [/ foreign lands. I recall one
dismal holiday spent in a
filthy post-house on the
Great Post Road at Nijni
Udinsk, now, in these days of the
trans-Siberian railway, a place of
some importance.
1 was alone, on my way from Peters
burg to Irkutsk. On the previous day
1 had overtaken a convoy of prison
ers in chains, and as on the morning
of the Russian Christmas day 1 was
sitting by the high brick stove, I saw
tho Cossacks and their despairing
charges arrive.
I remember walking and talking
with several of them in that wilder
ness of newly fallen snow. Most of
them were, or said they were, victims
of the unscrupulous agents provoca
teurs of the government, and all
seemed bitter against the czar and
his advisers —as Indeed they well
might be.
Another Christmas of the Greek
calendar I spent in Servia —in Bel
grade, the capital of that gallant lit
tle state, the powder-magazine of the
Balkans. It was a cold, bright, sunny
day, and an air of festivity was every
where. The service i i the cathedral,
attended by the king and his cabinet,
was a brilliant affair, and after a
stroll in the delightful Kaleineg'ian
garden, overlooking the Danube, I
lunched with my friend the minister
of justice and Ills charming American
wife. The streets were hung with
llags, exchanges of presents and flow
ers were universal, and many were
the quaint Serb customs.
The twenty-fifth of December three
years ago I spent wearily in the stuffy
restaurant car of the Nord express be
tween Paris and Petersburg. Again,
1 was alone and I remember, as we
steamed out of Vilna station to the
great plain towards Dunaburg, the
chef of that celebrated express pro
duced his triumph—an English pud
ding, with a small piece of holly stuck
In the top. My fellow passengers, be
ing all foreigners, failed to appreciate
it. But I did.
Another memorable holiday was that
I passed in the reindeer-skin hut of a
1-aplander half way between A lex an
drovik and Kandalaksha. I was trav
eling by fc*.ed. 1 hud left Klrkenaes,
on au arm of the Arctic ocean, a
month before and was now working
my way south toward Archangel.
I produced a bottle of much shakeu
port wine. In honor of the occasion,
and poured out a glass for my host,
lie was very suspicious of It, uud
compelled me to swallow mlue first.
Then he sipped his, and pulled a wry
tare. Ills wife tasted It, and sniffed
suspiciously, and afterward the ser
vants, but all declared it was some
horrid Kngllslt decoction some medi
cine. It must be, they said They bud
never bclore tasted wine. They had
never seen a bunch of grapes, never
a rose, and never even a tree
One Yuli-tlde dinner I ate at Clro's,
at Monte Carlo, where the fooling Mas
fust uud furious, and with in) (rieud*
I watched "the tables" afterward,
SMpplll .11 lllv llol.'l ||. I'.tlU,
and receiving a present from the
nionsti r true WDllitm l.e Queux
.......... ....................
J t'HK'STMAS I'KOVUHHS *
• . ... •>»<• ............. .4
A prudent quotation on tin hill of
fare: "They are slcji that surfeit with
tun Hiucli, us they that starve with
notnlng'
• • •
"Th» gaddtag vine" must he of the
Christmas variety, fur that splendid
t. mlril Is i lueplng through the whole
earth
The mirror of all s<»trt< sjr" should
be polished on Christ uius day
• • •
"A royal train, believe uts," la the
.'•tudeer equipage of good old Ht Nick
j How December 25 Was J
Chosen
. ,i, .
How many people know why Christ
mas came to fall on December 25?
Everybody knows that It is the day
celebrated alike by the Catholic. Prot
estant and Greek churches as the na
tivity of Christ, yet nobody knows If
it is the actual date.
The uncertainty is due to the preju
dice of early Christians against th®
celebrations of birthdays. They re
garded such a custom as heathenish,
and made no exception, even to the
Savior's birthday.
It was not until Christianity had
triumphed, three centuries later, that
the prejudice against the observance
of birthdays died out, and an investi
gation as to the date of Christ's birth
day was begun.
Julius, pope or bishop of Rome,
asked St. Cyril in 38C to ascertain the
real anniversary of the nativity. St.
Cyril reported the date to be Decem
ber 25, to the best of his knowledge,
after extensive research, and the date
was accepted by Julius and promul
gated as the anniversary of Christ's
birth. Before the end of the fifth cen
tury the date was accepted by all
Christendom.
January G, April 20, March 20 and
March 29 are some of the dates that
were serious contenders for the dis
tinction before December 25 received
the seal of Julius' approval.
Even after the date was generally
accepted by all Christian nations the
holiday had its struggles. The Eng
lish roundhead parliament of- 1643
abolished Christmas and for 12 years
it was not observed in England. Roy
alty gained the ascendency, however,
and Christmas was re-established as
a national holiday.
Governor Bradford of Plymouth, In
IG2I, history says, had occasion to re
buke some young men who had come
over in the ship Fortune, following In
the trail of the' Mayflower, because
their consciences would not allow
them to work on Christmas, with their
sterner Puritan brothers.
In 1G59 the general court of Massa
chusetts passed a law fixing a fine of
five shillings against anyone who
should by abstinence from labor, feast
ing or any other method, obseVve
Christmas.
CHRISTMAS JIBES
All Paid For.
"Your wife was telling my wife that
you've got all your Christmas presents
paid for," remarked the man In the
corner of the city train to the lean in
dividual sitting by his side.
"Yes; paid for the last of them yes
terday,"was the reply.
"Lucky dog! I haven't even begun
to think of the presents I've got to
buy."
"Oh, neither have we for this year.
My wife was speaking of last year's
presents."
* • •
Santa Is Easy.
Bobby (on Christmas morning)
"Where does Santa Claus get all his
things, mamma?"
Mamma —"Oh, he buys them."
Bobby—"Well, he must be a Jay to
let anyone palm off a tin watch on
him!"
• • •
Seasonable Thoughts.
At this scasou thoughts uf bo.> s
lightly run to Sauta Claus.
• • •
Where They Come From.
Guest (dlulng at merry Christmas
party)—" Tommy, where do turkeys
cwme from?"
'touimy (pointing to that ou 'lie ta
ble) "Dunno; but ma got this one
from a tramp for a shilling 'cause he
said he stole It. Didn't he, ma?"
£
HOLLY SUPEKSTITIONS
It 13-1 unloi ky to bring holly or Ivy
Into II • bo me before Christinas eve
ant unlucky tu tub# It out bt fore
Candlemas, or to put any Christmas
decorations Into the lire derrick,
however, say s that they nhould be
burnt, but not until Candleuias eve,
awd the Christmas brainl should he
que itched and laid by till next year.
This KSIIO' b.and Devonshire lolk of
ti>day prefer lo burn out. In spite of
llerrlek. but Instead of an oak log It
Is an ashen faggot a sheuf of ash
iwig* hound round with live or tep
■trauds of straw As e;»rli strand
hunts through the guests who sit
around the health must call for cider
and dilttk a 'Merry Christmas and
many to follow
uDr.Fvrdncyii
112, Christmas I
K
lb ell e Maniatej^^
OCTOR Fordney came out of
■J/fm tlle department store,
BI SB deposited an armful of
packages In bis runabout,
and then started to pay the
last visit on his dally round.
It was the afternoon before Christ
mas, but the young physician's heart
was not filled with the proverbial hol
iday cheer. Good will he had toward
all men—but not toward all women.
One little spot of resentment lurked
in fats thoughts of June Leigh.
She had accepted his tender devo
tion with downcast eyes and an en
trancing air of demureness and timid
ity combined. Then, suddenly, she
had been transformed into the most
bewildering of coquettes, openly flirt
ing with a man the doctor detested.
At speed-limit rate, lie drove his
machine into the poorest of the poor
precincts of the city and stopped be
fore a forlorn-looking little house. He
knocked and then opened the door. A
pale, anxious-eyed woman came for
ward. He held up a cautioning finger
and smiled as he deposited his load
of toys in a corner.
"I see you have the wherewith for
a Christmas dinner tomorrow," he
said, glancing at a chicken on the
table.
"A young lady brought us a basket
of good things from the Aid society,"
she replied, smiling happily as she
preceded him into the adjoining room.
A delicate little face with wan eyes
looked up from the pillow.
"You are better, little Lou," he as
serted, taking the tiny hand in his.
"It's the thought of Christmas?"
"Yes, and a lovely young lady
brought us a Christmas dinner, and
there's jelly and pie. She is coming
again tomorrow to see if Santa Claus
came. I don't think he will, though."
"You must have faith in him and
believe that he will come," assured
the doctor. "You see he makes a
mistake once in a while, but he
wouldn't miss you twice. 1 feel sure
that he will 'one."
"On, do you? If I could only see
him? Do you think he would care if
I remained awake?" asked the quaint
little lnv»lid.
"WeK, you know he generally cornea
when everyone is asleep, but maybe,
since you are sick and because he
lorgot you iast year, he may come
here first, early in the evening, and
let you see him."
"Oh!" cried the child ecstatically.
"Maybe he'll have a Christmas tree
here for you," said the doctor, his im
agination taking lofty flights.
The child's eyea gleamed.
"No," she sighad. "That would be
too beautiful."
The doctor asked a few questions,
left some more medicine, and then
beckoned the mother to follow him
Into the outer room.
"I will send a little tree and all the
trappings as soon as I get back to the
city. You have it all trimmed up and
lighted at six o'clock. Then I'll come
In and be *3anta Claus."
"Oh. you musn't do so much." she
protested, looking at the many par
cels.
"1 have no one In the world to do
anything for,"he said earnestly, "so
you will be giving me all the Christ
mas cheer I shall get by letting me
do this. And, more than that, it will
do little Lou more good than a load
of medicine."
He returned to the city for another
Bhopping expedition and promptly at
nix o'clock he was back at the little
home. On the door-step he slipped In-
BETWEEN TWO FIRES
Jl 1
jfi». ■» , . * 1
{ to a trig fur coat, adjusted a beard
and the usual Santa Claua make-up.
Then he softly opened the door and
slipped in. He gave an approving
glance at the gaily-decorated, brilliant
ly-lighted little tree to which Mrs. El
lis was putting the last touches.
"That is fine!" he exclaimed.
"The young lady came back with a
doll for Lou, and when I told her what
you had done, she stayed and fixed it
for me. She was here all the after
noon, stringing cranberries and pop
corn, and making candy bags."
"I'll slip behind the tree, now, and
you bring the little girl out. She won't
be afraid of me, will she?"
"Oh, no; she loves Santa Claus!"
The doctor was more than repaid
for his efforts by the cry of delight
! that issued from Lou when her mother
brought her from the bed-room and
| propped her up in pillows in an old
| rocking chair.
"I couldn't find you last year," said
| Santa Claus in a gruf* but tender
| voice, "but I have brought you
| enough this year to make up."
The tree was nearly stripped before
! Doctor Fordney discovered a tiny blue
1 envelope addressed ie Santa Claus in
j a handwriting that made his heart
j beats quicken. He opened It and by
j the light of a tiny candle read that
I which made his Christmas eve an eve
J of beauty.
"And this Is the last, little Lou," he
said, carrying her a picture-book.
"Santa Claus, you won't forget Miss
Leigh, the young lady who brought us
the Christmas dinner?" she pleaded.
"Little Lou, I am going there right
"I Couldn't Find You Last Year," Said
Santa Claus.
frotn here. She shall have everything
she wants."
"And you won't forgtC Doctor Ford
j ney?"
! "No; I'll give him the best Christ
j nias he ever had."
"But, Santa Claus, won't some one
give you a present?"
"A beautiful lady Is going to give
I me the loveliest gift in the whol»
world tonight," he said.
"Oh, lam so glad! I wish I could
do something for you for all the
j things you have brought me."
"You can, little Lou. In half an
hour will you goto bed and shut your
eyes tight and try not to think of
your presents, or the tree or of mo
until morning?"
He stooped to rpcelve the Imprint
of baby lips and to feel the lingering
pressure of soft arms about bis neck.
(Copyright. 1910.)
The kingdom ot Co/1 ban already
come in nature, in the worlds beyond,
in everything save the hearts of men.
—Rev. I). H. Ogden, Presbyterian, At
lanta, Ga.