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Wassail Bowl For Aull Lang Sync

The-Wassail bowl goes around in Scotland-and elsewhere-at New Year's time.

The origin of the custom is really lost in antiquity: Saxon ancestors probably quaffed their ale from the polished skulls of defeated enemilfl. and the Rowena legend must be classified as "presumably fiction."

Rowena is reported to have of- fered her father's guest-Prince Vortigren-a,bowl of wine with the salutstion "Loni King. wass-hael," literally, "To Your Health." Drain- ing the bowl with one draught, Vor- tigren fell in love with Rowena and they lived happily ever after-

Anyway, in time the bowl itself became an ornament of graceful design-decorated with branches of greenery which formed a canopy over the bowl. The mixture within was warm and included ale, sugar. spices, sweetened wine was added by hosts who could afford it. apples floated on top of the decoction, some- times celled “lambs wool” or the "old man's beard." The poorer classes carried a bowl decorated with ribbons around the neighbor- hood, begging that it be filled, so ' they, too, might enjoy the Wassail.

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The custom of making short calla on, New Year's Day was in full swing throughout America about 1900. Newspapers carried columns of “at home" notices specifying the hours during which visitors would be received. A succession of "open houses" andgunch bowls sometimes minimized the courtesy accorded to hostesses -— receptions were often “crashed" by bibulous strangers; hence. the publicly announced "open house" custom has fallen into decline and, New Year's calls now being exchanged only by intimates, the Wassaii bowl goes ‘round in private.

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Mistletoe, that distinctive Christ- mas green so common in many parts of America, is usually thought of as merely good holiday decoration or as a creator of open season on ladies fair for otherwise bashful swains.

Mistletoe did not always hold this position in our lives. The Druids called it "all-heal," and thought it held many miraculous virtues. The Scandinavians dedicated it to their goddess of love, Friga. Probably this goddess of love is responsible for the custom of kissing under the mistletoe.

The power to

heal. to protect against sickness. to perform magic dE3fiT—€lll these and more nre the quaiitles ascribed to this plant in

legcnds. traditions and even in ancient histories and literature.

Mistletoe .ls a. parasite, which infests branches of various trees of both hardwood and conifers. but mainly on hardwoods. One species is found exclusively, how- ever, on conifers.

Among the Celts and other mis- tletoe which grew from the oak was considered to have peculiar ms-gicnl virtues not possessed by that from any other trees. Some even considered it so rare as to be only cut with a gold knife.

Another old tradition is that the mistletoe supplied the wood {or the holy cross. as previous to that time it was n forest tree but after the crucifixion was condemned t0 exist only as a dwarf Dflrfllie

Mistletoe was taken over into the Christian tradition in due course and dedicated to the Jhrlst Child. An old rhymsaeads:

The mistletoe bough At ouh Christmas ooard

Shall hang to the honor Of Christ our Lord.

sonata VItIANGER. lN UIIKAINE surpass

In the Ukraine an elaborate Christmas Eve supper breaks n 39-day fast during which no meat has been eaten. Twelve courses are served. one for each of the twelve Apostles; buckwheat and mushroom soup. pancakes in 11BX- prunss. fish. bread, and nuts are included in the menu.

An additional course of honey and porridge is also served; called Koutis. the dish represents the holy crib: the porridge represents the straw-as in the manger-and the Holy Infant is symbolized by honey and fruit: the honey is also considered symbolic of the spirit and blood of the Saviour.

Christmas Poem

- The time draws near the birth of Christ. The moon is hid; the night is still; The Christmas bells from bill to hlll “ Answer each other la the mist.

Pour voices of four hamlets round, From far and near, on mead and

moor, Swell out and fall, as if a door Were shut between me and the sound.

Each voice four changes ca the wind, That now dilate, and now decrease, Peace and good-will, good-will and peace, Peace and good-will, to all mankind. -'I'cnnyson.

Ch ristma: Trees,

Cribs and Ceppi

Christmas trees and cribs, with- in respective spheres of influence. provide focal points for observances o! the season.

Various legends claim to tell the story of the first Christmas tree; actually, evergreen decorations were so closely associated with pl- gan celebrations that they were banned by many ecclesiastics of the early church.

According to literature, the first Christmas tree was set up at Stras- bourg, Germany, in 1604; even then, the cry rose against heathen customs and, as late as 185i, the Rev. Henry Schwan was severely criticized for setting up a Christ- mas tree in his church in Cleve- land, Ohio.

St. Francis of Assisi received special permission from the pope to present a tableau of the ilativlty scene. This first crib, set up at Grec- cio, Italy. in 1233. was an imme- diate sensation; the renaissance endowed the cribs with ornate pag- eantry and, modernly, the crib is to southern Europe and Catholic countries what the tree is to Amer- ica and northern lands.

Eighteenth century Italians were fond of a fantastic decoration called the Ceppo. Pyramidical in construction, the Ceppi were made on a framework of lathes with transverse shelves rising to three or four stories, depending on the over-all size of the Ceppo.

The whole thing was covered with colored paper, tufts, tassels, fringes, tiny pine cones, and little flags; a manger scene was repre- sented on the lowest shelf, while the upper ones were covered with small gifts, etc.; wax tapers were placed along the sides and a large gilt cone ornamented the top. Al- though the original designer prob- ably never saw a Christmas tree,

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_, . Children of Provence, France, reverently recite the following pray- er before the Christmas crihs in that vicinity: =' w,” Little Jesus of the Crl Give ua the virtues of those who surround you. Make us as philosophical as the fisherman, Carefree as the drurhmer, Merry for exploring the world as the troubadour, Eager for work as the bugler, Patient as the spinner, Kind as the ass, Strong as the ox which keeps you warm. Give us the sacred leisure of the hunter. Give us also the desire of the Shepherd for earthly things, The pride of the trade of the knife grinder and the weaver, The song of the miller. , Give us the knowledge of the Magi, The cheerfulness of the pigeon, The impulsiveness of the coclc The discretion of the snail, . The meekness of the lambdb Give us the goodness of bread. The tenderness of the wild boar, The salt of the haddock, The good humo of old wine, The ardor of the candle, ' _ The purity of a star. ti? Propriety of a few oi‘ the meta- phors may be disputed, never- theless. nostalgia prompts speculg. lion regarding a world of human- ity endowed with the virtues so ear- nestly and innocently enumerated by the little ones.

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Future Foretold By Drowsy Hens

Divinations were an important part of the Christmas festivities in Czarist Russia.

After a special family Christmas dinner, the girls of the household placed five piles of grain upon the kitchen fioor: each pile was given a name, such as Hope, Ring, Money, Thread and Charcoal. A drowsy hen; was fetched from the henhouse and allowed to walk around the kitchen fioor and choose e pile of grain. Obviously the hen’s choice of Money meant wealth; Ring, foretold a wedding within a year; and Hope. promised the fulfillment of a wish or a long‘ journey. If the sleepy chicken chose the grain desimpted as Thread. a life of toil was pre- dicted for the marrlageable maiden of the household; and Charcoal was considered an omen of death in the family.

Old songs were sung to accom- pany such goings-on, while the girls and women vied to devise complete stories based on the antics of the hen.

Yule Means December The word “Yule" for Christmas comes from the Anglo-Saxon "geol,“ meaning December.

the Ceppo—aided by a little imagi- nation - bridges the gap between, Christmas cribs and trees. '

Star of Bethlehem Phenomenon of Age‘

The Star of Bethlehem has been the subject of extensive research and discussion.

Modern astronomers have consid- ered several natural phenomenon theories without attaching too much weight to any such hypothesis.

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Skeptics regard the whole thing as mere invention, colored with Ori- ental imagery, designed io honor Christ; and faith accepts the star as the supernatural phenomenon which proclaimed the birth of Jesus.

The first chapter of the gos- pel according to St. Matthew be- gins:

“The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son o! David, the son of Abraham . . ."

And confirming Bethlehem as the city of David, the angel of the Lord declared:

"For unto you is born this day, in the city of David, a SAVIOUR which is CHRIST the Lord." St.» Luke 2:11. i, Considering tradition, whicli sc- cepts that King David's shield formed a six-pointed star, the Star of Bethlehem appropriately

“ . . . stood over where the young Child was," St. Matthew 2:9.

Ilse! As Gees La Charm Rings of mistletoe were worn around the neck in Sweden to pre- vent sickness.

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EIOCKHOLM - (C?) - The lwedlsh people seem to be the most film-minded in the world. ac-

by an American movie periodical 1n spite of its small population-

under ‘1,000.000—aweden has 2.461

cording to an investigation made

Christmas may

On Christmas Day we repeat the

year, in some mystic way rings fresh and true-"Merry Christmas." Like such words as "hello" and “good-by," there really isn't any- thing else to say that pulls at our heartstrings as do these old dear words. And so again we say: Merry Chrislmas—to the littlest ones who skip downstairs in the gray dawn to ex- plore their stockings and the wondrous tree and to look at Christmas with the special radiance of youth . . . who lend to the rest of us lit- tle glimmera of the real Christmas glamour. Merry Christmas -to father who'll strain a point any day to give us all the things we want . . . who probably works much too hard and yet keeps younger and more alert because of the responsi- bility of a family and the competi- tion of business . . . whomakes the gesture of tut-tutting all the fuss and feathers yet beams with affection and excitement. Merry Christmas-to mother who really calls the tune for the holidays and does ,the plan- ning and pulling to- gether . . . who flut- ters and bustles ra- dlently for weeks k ahead and undoubt- edly has the best and busiest time of

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Merry Christmas-to the butcher. the ‘baker, the candlestick-maker. not to mention all those who sold us shoes and ships and scaling wax . . . for what would Christmas be without them? For through them we've all been able to share our own little prosperity in the most whole- some way of all-—by spending it.

Merry Christmas-to dear friends far and near who've sent us greet- ings and gifts . . . most especially do we cherish the greetings because even more than gills they express the true spirit oi Christmas.

lllcrry Christmas —to the droppcrs-in who come with holiday cheer and friendship . . . who come to our parties or stop by to leave a glass of extra elegant jelly or an origi- nal privately invented relish. Merry Christmas-to ourself, for that matter. But then we feel pret- ty sure that we'll have one for we've put so much work and excitement and loving getting-ready into it. For of course we all get out of Christ- mas just about what we put in.

To test your Christmas spirit and knowledge, the followingquos- tions are given. You should an- swer half of them in order to pass. -

i. Who wrote "The Night Before

Christ-that“? .

2. What story contains the fol-

lowing: a mlserly old man? .. ..

3. Where is Christmas Island? .. 4. Who wrote "White Christmas?"

5. In what country mas mistle- toe first worn around the neck to prevent sickness’). .

.' 6. What does the Saxon word "hael" or "be in health" mean in connection with a Christ- mas custom? .. .

'1. An old Christmas superstition starts "A warm Christmas means" ." How does it. end?

8. Who is Quetzalcoati? ..

9. What plant, a thorny one. traditionally blooms only at. Christmas time? ._ .

10. Until her death what song did Mme. Schumann-l-felnk always s-‘ng on Christmas Eve?

ll. What is tho literal meaning of "Christmas"? ................... .. .

ll. Where are the remains OI Good St. IUIIII I "Y?! buried? --

ANSWERS

1. Dr. Clement C. Moore.

2. Dickens‘ "A Christmas Carol."

3. In Indian Ocean, southwest of Java.

t. Irving Berlin.

5. Sweden.

d. Wassail bowl.

'7. A cold Easter-

8. The Aztec Indian god. half bird, half snake. who took fill! place of Santa Claus in Mex- ico in 1930.

e. Christmas cactus.

l0. “Silent Night".

ll. Mass of Christ.

l2. The remains were stolen "1 1087 by merchants and re- interred at Bari.

IVls ETIINGTI o ‘IO WIIISTIIR 0?}:

In Holstein it ll believed that it it not only a cure for all Green wounds. but that it Will in!!!" success in the chase and I1" strength to the wrestler. i! mum"

Those who give themselves grow richer.

The kindly word. the spontan- eous smile. the thoughtful dccd— those are outward expressions of the goodness inside the hearts and minds of men.

Those of us in the newspaper business must record the little things that make nous day by day. Often we wish there were less of pettiness in the world and more of the spirit of Christmas scat- tered throughout the year. But the clay that marks the birth of Jesus brings with it a rebirth of faith and hope and a realization that deep down lnslclc each por- son there are Christ-like qualities of unselflslincss. loyalty and de- votion to the highest principles of God and mnn. It is those qunll- ties which make Christuus the most joyous season of all.

Truly, there is "joy to the world" in abundant cvidcncc of self-giving. oi hands, clasped in friendship. of hearty good wishes. How insignificant are the little troublesome things of the world in the light of thc Christmas spir- it that pervades the world!

And so we again join in the gladncss of the season to wish all our friends and subscribers

A MERRY CHRISTMAS

"BE THOU WELL" 0N CHRISTMAS DAY

Among the happy customs of Christmas is that of drinking a wish for health and happiness to the assembled guests-the early name used was “wassail?

The name "wassail" is a con- traction of the middle lihiglish "waes heel." meaning "be thou well."

Wassall was usually prepared in a large wooden bowl. The case of the drink. which was cider. was placed in the bowl and other in- gredients added for seasoning. It was then set on the hearth in front of a log fire and apples were tied above. As the apples began to roast, the juice dripped into the wooden bowl.

Here is a recipe for wassnil to- day:

1 gallon cider. dash of grena- dine, 8 egg whites. separated and whipped. Add allspice. cinnamon. crushed cloves to suit and one

old familiar greeting that, each'

drumhead, swooped down and be- gan to peck at the crumbs. The pecking awakened the boy, who aroused the camp: the lrlsh, driven off and defeated, blamed the wren.

once-honored tradition, say the guilty bird may have been a starting or e sparrow anyway, and now welcome the wren to their farrns and homes .

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T71: Holy 17mm Of-Glauonbury

Mikael: Play In i i Modern T exar Town

LOSS PASTORES, the hybrid

In honor of the Hawthorn, which legenderily shielded Christ while he rested in the woods before the crucifixion, Joseph of Arirnathsee chose a thorn staff when he start- ed on bis long journey to Britain shortly after the death of Christ. Arriving at lest at his new home in Glastonbury, Joseph stuck his walking stick into the ground; the stafl began to grow and soon acquired the habit of producing flowers each Christmas Eve. -

The first literary mention of the thorn is contained in Hearne‘! His- tory and Antiquities of Glastonbury, published in 17B. In this work, Mr. Eyston states: "Whether it sprang from St. Joseph of Arimathaea’: dry stall. I cannot l‘lnd, but beyond all dispute it sprang up miracu- lously."

When Britain adopted the Grego- rian calendar in i753, 3,000 persons assembled at Glastonbury on De- cember 25~new style-to see if the Holy Thorn would bloom in agree- ment with the new calendar; when it did not, many refused to particl- pate in the usual observances of Christmas. The evil of changing cal- endars was proveu when the thorn blossomed on January h-Chrlet- mas Eve-old style-and many ministers in the vicinity of Glaston- bury appeased their congregations by announcing that Christmas would be observed according to the old calendar. A cutting cf the Glastonbury thorn was brought to America in 1900 and planted near St. Aiban'a school in Washington, D. C., by the late Right Rev. Henry Gates Satterlee. The cutting grew into a tree, blos- soming for the first time in De- cernber, 1918; since then, it has blossomed each year at Christmas- iime and attracts thousands of visitors annually.

Look your pretiest to greet the New Year! Pin flowers in your hair. Mistletoe, dipped in silver powder, makes a beautiful “frosty” hair decoration! You won't have to stand under the mistletoe-you'll be under it, just in casel

Hunting the Wren In Old Ireland

Once upon a time in Ireland. the wren was hunted and- killed on Christmas morning: a branch of holly and bright ribbons were at- tached to his body which was car- ried from house to house by wren boys who sang songs and expected to receive a dole from each house- hold.

The story goes that during the Danish-Irish war, the Danes were resting after an arduous march and the Irish were creeping up quietly. All of a sudden a wren, spying a few crumbs which the drowsy Dan-

, ‘ - Indian miracle play introduced to Mexico centuries a by.Spanish monks and presented Sen Antonio during the Christmas season, is enacted primarily for its spirituality.

A group of amateur actors go from house to house by invitation and because it is traditional that no one prompted by idle curiosity should witness the performance. only the initiated can find the scene of presentation. '

Usually someone’: back yard be- comes the stage; the doorstepa serve as background for the Nacl- miento. Manger scene: various objects are set on the stairs; pieces of crockery. tinsel, pincushions, pa- tron saints-anything the household considers especially beautiful. In the center of the lowest step, the Christ Child (a life-sized doll placed on a platter with divers gaudy candy) is surrounded by

plaster shepherds, donkeys. etc.

A tent opposite the Nacimientc gives evidence of representing hell: a bonfire has been built within and live devils emerge therefrom. The play has no definite time for beginning, but finally, a girl starts to walk back and forth reciting. Overdressed shepherds drone a seemingly endless song. Ermitano, the comic relief, carrying a rosary of spools, also represents the soul of its earthly journey and is often accompanied by the white winged Archangel Gabriel.

It is a never-ending performance: even devils, six in sequined black -with animal masks and the fork- tsiled Lucifer in brilliant red, are finally vanquished; likewise, a wild Indian is overcome and kisses the Christ Child; the shepherds and all in attendance kiss the Child, solemnly and as slowly as possible.