DECEMBER 15. 1951

"CIJLIL1Ttished Christmas Customs Antedate Christian, Times

1.1,

(By Merv Ann 1-" Christmas is here and everyone 1, busy putting up the Christmas tree. hanging the holly and mistle- toe and generally preparing for the festivities which time has made inseparable irom Christmas curiously enough. many custom; we observe on the anniversary of the birth of the Christ child are not oi Christian origin. Most are rt-llcs oi pagan rites and ceremon- ies which in the early date of Chi-istianity church fathers sub- mitted to as inevitable and so al- lowed many of the iestal practices at earlier belief to iilter into the celebration of Christmas.

in our land the Christmas tree, decked with colored lights and or- ntmtcnts and dripping with stal- I:Cllit3S, in the ctntre of decoration in the home.

in Latin lands. centuries ago. the etorgreen was the central figurn m the pagan celebration oi the Roman Saturnalla. which was held dtii-mg the winter solstice, the week before our Christmas.

Actually the Christmas tree came to England and this coun- try from Germany where the w-'naclitsbaum" was held as a syinliol oi the tree 0! deathless life. The custom passed to Eng- land aitcr ill-I0. when Queen Vic- tot-tn had a tree, and came to Am- et-tm at the time of the German iiitinigraiion. ,

Tree Decorations

According to the old German tradition late on the first Christ- mus Eve when the wise men were hurrying to Bethlehem they saw the lights of the village in the distance. In observance of the Jewish least. Chanukali (Feast of Lzglitst, every house had a flame burning in honor oi the day. To the wise men lights appeared as a symbol of the birth of Christ as did the star. and thus they came to I.)i'. used on the tree.

other tree decorations seem to date back to the liith century when an Arabian geographer de- clared that all- trees in the forest blossomed and bore fruit on the night oi the nativiiy.nnd so today

we hang irult and ornaments on the ht-onciics as a symbol.

The custom of decking the halls

with holly also had its origin in the pagan festival oi saturnalia. At that (me. branches of holly. hclit-rett to be an antidote for poison and I rotectlon against linliinlnmlere exchanged as good- will olrcring between barbarous Europe.-iii tribes who had little in common except their allegiance to the Roman Empire.

The word holly derived from the ancient custom of using sprigs to decorate churches at Christmas. thus giving it the name holy trees v.-hirh later changed to holly tree.

Under The Mistletoe

The most popular spot in any itin-loving home during the season is 'nenth the mistletoe bough. In the days oi the Druids. mistletoe was held sacred and at the festival of the winter solstice it was cut with a golden knife, gathered with great ceremony and distributed so that everyone could hang it over the door to peek favor with the mod nymphs who might take shelter from the cold.

The custom of kissing under the mistletoe seems to have originated iront it Scandinavian myth which said that the lad must remove the berries one by one and give their-. to the maid. each time giving her a kiss. When .ll the berries were gonr. the bough lost its spell.

In line with the belief. it was Silld that the maid who received no kisses would not marry that year.

'rhe idea oi giving gifts at Christmas seems once again to turn to the Romans for its origin Duilng their festivals they hung earthen boxes to receive contribu- tions. Later, priests placed elms box:-it aboard ships to be opened at Christmas Moss said for con- tributors. and so it became known is a ”Chrlstmt.s Box". Gifts were also exchanged in remembrance oi the slits oi gold, iranklnccnse and myrrh which the wise men bore to the infant Jesus.

old St. Nick

Actually I mistake was respons- lble tor the custom oi hanging the stockings -at the fire placel on Christmas Eve. The story is told that good old Bishop Nicholas. who lived in Asia Minor. wished to as- rlst ll poor nobleman, who was too jg

WIIIIIIIIIIIII-IIIIIKIII -

x

with our unseen thesis by your peteeee" able

There is an old tale which Christmas time. '

year old:

said:

of the soul. and the soul cannot

world."

Christmas with this story:

stole. and not I'."

An agnostic-n disbeliever in God-made this offer to I nine-

"I will give you an orange if you will tell me where God is."

The youngster was equal to the challenge. "I will give you two oranges,” he said, "if you will tell me where He irnot."

Many great men have always felt the spirituality of Christmas. and some have managed to put it into words. For instance. when Woodrow Wilson was asked to prove the greatness of Christianity, whose iounder was the Christ-child. he said simply, "Try it."

Cardinal Spellman had a Christmas gift for the mind when he

"The joy oi Christmas is a Joy that war cannot kill, for it is I joy joy of Christmas. for it is a joy no earthly wealth can give. Time cannot wither Christmas, lot it belongs to eternity. The world can- not shntter it, for it is a union with Him who has overcome the

The late Franklin D. Roosevelt once illustrated the mint of

becomes apropos ehiclly at the

die. Poverty cannot prevent the

RS

PRI

an '

J A

.-,,

"LLET EVERY

By Vera To rpley

"But they don't believe Christmas, Jim-you know that." hour. Laura wished she hadn't spoken Just as the Adarnses were leav- Qulte 50 loudly; her remark had lng. Bonny came.in from carol- stopped in midatream three rap-'llng. she was flushed with hap- id-running conversatlom. Her-piness .and excitement. Laura guests studied the rug patter-n.It:lutched her in her arms convul- Jlm merely looked at his wife in'slvely. silence. "Did your group make

"1 mean, alter a.li."'she went haul tonight, Bonny?" , on. "it's not their religion . . . so "Did wet" she gasped. "We got I assumed it would be embarrass- more than any other group I bet! fng-to them--to invite them to And Mom, we sang tor that Mi-. our Christmas party." she swal-IBeri at Daddy! oifico and" IOWECI l-mC0m10l'l3b1.V- "Oh but you shouldn't havel”

"And I assumed that this party Laura looked at Jim with alarm.' was Ior all the iellows in our oi- "Why not. Mom?" He asked us: iiee, including Ben." He smiled in sing isilent Nlght.' and guessi then. but didn't soften the accu-Itvhnt? He gave us ten dollarsl and? sation. Everyone in the room knew she invited us in and gave us can-I of the close irlencishlp between cly and cookies. and gee. they're Jim and Ben-they only guessed nice! And I told them hello from

a bigI

at his wiie's resentment oi the5you and Daddy, and you know friendship. what? she cried! isn't that (unny. Mr. Adams, olilce manager. mother?" I

broke the silence next. ”I would- Jim looked at his stricken wife; nf worry about it too much, Jim.Iand wanted to take her in his Alter all. Christmas is . . ." arms, but Mr. and Slrs. Adams' l-le emptied his glass and return-iwere standing there with their ad it to the coffee-table. "And we,mouths open. so he merely grasp- ali ieel'a little cliilerently about ed her hand firmly. Bonny babbl the holidays than they do." It'd on happily. - About nine o'clock carolers "And you know what else? Mr came to the door, singing lustily Ben asked me what the donations and slightly olf-key. "Let every-were for and when l told him be

"A thief broke into the home of I priest and note his purse. I That night the priest wrote in his diary: Let me be thankful. First because I was never robbed before. Second because although he took my purse. he never took my life. Third because although he , took all I had it was not much. And fourth because it was he who I

I

proud to ask for help.

while the nobleman was asleep. st Nicholas dropped a purse of money down the chimney intend- ing it to land on the hearth How- ever. it landed in a stocking which was hung by the tire to dry. Upon discovering it the next day. the nobleman used it as a marriage portion ior his (laughter. Alter- wards. when the nobleman'sdaugh- ters were of niarriageable age, ho hung a stocking by the chimney and the girl was provided for The same St. Nicholas later became known as St. Nikolas which years corrupted into Santa Claus.

While the yule log is not so much a part of our Christmas tra- diiion, it was the centre oi celeb- ration in Medieval England and is still a well-worn custom of Ire- land, Southern Fritnco. northern Italy and Yugoslavia.

There seems .n be some discrep- ancy of opinion about the origin of the custom. Some say that it passed down irom the Scandinav- lan pagan festival Jul. celebrated l'l the winter solstice in honor oi Thor. while others agree that it may have had origin with the Druids when the ancient priest chose ”a log. blessed it with great ceremony and proclaimed that it should be kept burning. Each year a brand was saved to rekindle a new lire. '

In medieval England the yule log symbolized the centre of the family, while the Irish superstit- iously held it bad luck for some- one to leave the house without taking refreshments while the leg was burning.

Traditional Feast

No Christmas Day is complete without turkeys and mince pies. Centuries belore Christianity. roast duck and goose were considered I special delicacy to be served at festivals. Actually in the ancient days of Christianity the peacock,

a. symbol at immortality and a rarity, was served at Christmas. Originally a native of American continent, the turkey was so scarce in Europe even in the liith century that Archbishop Crammer prohib- ited the appearance of more than one dish of turkey cocks at state festivals. It wasn't until a quarter Oi a century later that it became a Christmas dish for the farmer. Mince pie was supposed to com- memorate in its ingredients oi oriental mixture oiierlngs made by the wise men.

Perhaps one of the most recent of our Christmas customs is the exchange of Christmas card greet- ings. The predecessor of the ilrst cards were Christmas pieces writ- ten by school children on gaily decorated paper to show parents that school fees were not being spurt in vain. Another ancestor was the Valentine.

In 1840 designs were made and verses written in a. revival oi Christmas lestlvities once forbid- den by Purltan laws. but it wasn't until 1871 that the habit was ilrm- ly adopted in England.

THE MISTLETOE

Did you know that when enemies meet under the mistletoe bough they are supposed to lay down their arms for at least a 24-hour truce? That is why a hostess tries to hang some mistletoe near the doorway oi her home. thus assur- ing periect harmony while her guests are under her roof. The Druids oi old held the mistletoe bcugh sacred. It was also consid- ered symhollc and an invitation to the spirits of the forest to come in and bring good cheer. The custom or kissing under t e mistletoe dates back to ancient Britain, To bring the best type of luck to the one kissed, it is claimed the bougn must be cut with a golden knife.

C1.

7 I

The bell idol! of all to let your Merry Clurtuneu and Happy Neee Yix . . . no this

'h5

Vere hoping you will alloy 0 neeellla of health, happi- iwu and prosper- uy um Chriunuu

The oldest caroler was scarcelylet and put it in our box, can twelve. He rattled a box full oi.,vou imagine? And then I asked coins. Mr. Adams snatched the him if he had any boys or girls

heart prepare him room . . .”Itook all the money out of his wal-

donatlon box from him, cereman-Ilike us and would they like to go iously deposited nine pennies. and caroling with us and he said noI passed from guest to guest, bow- t

in after each donation. Ever - . - on: put in nickcls and dimeys. - - mTm""(mT'”:m(m"(&"-t Jim put in a live-dollar bill and” I I everyone shouted ”Show-oifi" W W Laura was annoyed but kept still. '

Laura and Jim's little girl, Bon- ny, was out carolin: too, but her group covered a different nelgh-I borhood. I No one noticed much when the telephone rang later in the even- ing and Jim went to answer itt But they noticed Jim's face when I he returned to the living-room-,” it was white and twitched Uri-I pleasantly. Laura walked over to him. ”who was it, dear?" I 'llt was Ben-he called to apolo- gize for not coming tonight." I- 'lHi.s daughters been in Chil- dren's Hospital for the month, you know." I Adams broke in. "Say, that's right-Ben said she was pulling out oi lt- that was last week I' believe. How's she doing, did he: say?" I ”She died this afternoon.” Nobody scented to have thing to say after that. The par-

lt'a our pleunure to with you one of the jollieu Yule- tidee youlee any known. 0'l.I'lAltY CLOTHING AND FOOTWEAR ' I 0'Leary L.A)t)a)uln)a)o)I)t)i

past!

any- .

la3.)'.2.).2?.3-R3-DIt?Vt3;).-3.Rkmlimmyhiiithhillhichiilllhhilhh

1:161

GREETINGS

To you and to all your house . . . happiness, peace, ioy and 0 Very Merry Christmas!

MORRIS BERNARD and CO. LTD.

TIGNISH

WI

nm,.'n.3.v.s.) &1!.'L:)).5

--pg-.

The V”?! merrlesi? JWWLWWI

We such a pleaaure Ior In to be able to with each one of you a joyous Christmas and New Year like you deserve-

1.);

I WEST rnmcr DRY cLEANEilS'

ALBERTON ,,

n.u.n.u

MERRY CHRISTMAS -,

Our uurlumu Greeting to you In sincere do It Is shore . . . Merry Christmas ml

our with lodql Wu”. wm "4," Happy New Year! ”.ttisi..33.2ts::- '"-'-"'-- LIMITED E. w. TURNER WEE” Mum T ' . SALES '& SE in W! Tmish ya 0 Law A I ALBERTIIIIBIICE s I I n 0 II 0 LID AY To wish you e I E mwammu ' Sincerely we wish you andc"adN" ...eneendeIi,every Merry Christmas Yeerl

MYRIGKS ILBERTBI LT-B.

AIZIIISIVNDN -

iaonnotrs antic:

ALBEBION

&313hII &I&hI&&I3IhH

THE GUARDIAN. CHARLOTTETOWN

tnfty broke up within the next half-,

,, A ragiaexzzzaza-airiutrisna-J... m'Is'llYJE?K'EEIIW 3 to 3 s mEiCiE5 mK"3E-ru"iKmKmK

FAGE ELEVEN

BEST GIFT

day's farms.

Reddy Kilowatt. Your Servant of the Con- tury, is a worker with B thousand jobs on to-

I Treat yourself to it Clirlshnas that lasts all

' year. Add some electrical appliances for your home and electrical tools for your work. . . . They are REAL Christmas gifts that let Roddy - work longer hours at his usual low wages.

FOR YOUR FARM

OF ALL

MARITIME ELECTRIC if Company Ltd.

"LET REDDY DO IT''

rfr rtc.','rd'r r v And then she started crying '- tigdln ?and we leit. Wasn't thatI! unny " Mr. Adams cleared his throat.' "By the way. Bonny, Just what I were those donations for any- 3 way? I forgot to notice when they? came around here.' I ,1 "why. "(or the Children”: Hos-I , 5 pital fund-or something like thati ,. I it was all printed on the box." I i zrvaevttlttl h; I I Our celeb la the! I yours is a truly I I Ife u very happy I Ieonderlul Chrinh 5; I holhluy we're M” -ml I ".P" I , wishing you aiuiul I New Your 1 y 0 I r I . m y 5 A ' throughout this I I CALLAGHAN 5'3 "”'”” II - VARIETY and HHJSIDE I ' FAS;1I'l?Nt SHOP RESTAURANT . or on A Alberton 4 59" 01 U004 :TTTTT”T T T”:i:I;ain:.3.s.a.rt2a:.r.:.an A sininirti. niche: Ior 3'08! ---- ---nasty:-':vlzIvsIn'svs-Iv:-In-Isa I W T-V: Merry Christmas ' " 1' and a joyous New I p I i........ . (b any Itrtsirmas : -- . I ALBERTON CO-0PER- I , , I A1-IVE ASSOCIATION : ....- Wrapped up in our greeting, 5 I a I I is all the unspoken appreciation E .a:aIt::mm:.m.aarastaas-Minuteman). I ,0, you, pammuga dwing mo Yeah E saute -v--- , I in Jail ls lie t Store I 49 y P ' 0'LEARY ' TH'C.'EKmm”l&KKKEKC"I!K"K' ”-g' M" at-55”” liliEE'llll.I'5 Merry Cln-lumen lo ell-and to all u New Year a. g eeujul in every '2 way! I I F. J. CARPENTER I ' Jeweller ; Albertoii y - I '4.mtnxintnamnmmxtannaznnenx. 9 rii 0(l!ld!RI('lVlKII3lIIll!' I y S v oun mu, , - S I ALBERTON -I .5 M” I N M I -a-v.- I! i 1 " -'1 5 . 5 i t ' t : I I I T It I II it v . . I V l I Wit. the keenest appreciation of your good will and g re" ...'.p...,,.. your patronage - with a sincerely repeated pledge If 3'c';.':; to serve you well during the year to come -- we send I an ;..”.t..g ..... you our merriest holiday greetings I Year 0 all!" mmgm M K. R. MATTHEWS , Tignish ELMSDALE . I, - 5 m mursamusmmat-nu-m II ; -.- itat-I&t('e-or215:1-e-e-(t'c-etc-e't:!(Q5?ck7evim; A 3 : - I in I