Eugene register-guard., December 20, 1936, Image 21

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Since The 13th Century Sailors Have Decorated
Their Ships With Garlands And Trees On Xmas
. . . :, u;. ;n, . ' feyfeiC&-- 715 cvter
Tiunboat warped alongside a pier on T " " ' '" 1
Christmas, decorated with evergreen trees, L .J $ . " .
following the old custom of the tea. f alA.k " 1 T
CHRISTMAS! Crowds surging across streets
at the clang of the traffic bell, holiday
ipirit shuffling through store entrances, outdoor '
Christmas trees brilliant in the crisp, night air.
These, and other equally familiar sights, are a
part of the picture with which we are all ac
quainted. They belong to this 1!)36 world, of
which you are a part. Yet there is another pic
ture, of a separate world, which seems to reveal .
itself only to those who have become a part of it.
The picture is that of a Christmas tree ex
ultantly mounting the foremast of the little
Dutch freighter over at the next pier, of simple
anil dee"!v relisr;ous services before shrines in
ships of the Latin countries, gay parties for
children on Uncle Sam's men-o-war, and of
droning planes circling lonely lighthouses of our
to-sts ready to drop Christmas boxes.
This Is the picture of Christmas as known to
those who go down to the sea in ships, the age
oM observance adapted to the needs and possi
bilities in the maritime world. And there's noth
ing slow about a sailor's Christmas! The need
for such observances in sailors' lives is apparent
nw-t to the seamen themselves, not so much in
(V. ., .i j,a 0 divert their minds from the
dangers of deep water as to dispell the fits of
lo: in;..s and melancholia which now and then
overtake every sailor. With the need for an
occasional celebration imperative, the question
of possibilities fades into nothingness.
CHRISTMAS has always been a time for old
customs and old legends. Such customs as
lave survived the rush and ridicule of our mod
ern workaday world indeed have a meaning
which makes worthwhile the efforts to carry
them out. It's comparatively easy to grasp the
reason why the old English custom of hanging
cakes in a tree and dashing cider on them was
abandoned. While that must have been some
fun, there wasn't any point to it, and there Bre
plenty of customs to be had with perfectly re
spectable histories and lots of point.
There are many customs revived at this sea
ton of the year, but few are as picturesque as
the maritime custom of making-fast a small
evergreen to a ship's foremast. This is a very
ancient observance on practically all ships of
every Christian nation throughout the world,
nd in late years it has become part of the life
of many ships belonging to un-Christian nations,
ro'-ably aboard the Marus from the Land of the
Rising Sun. While there is no rule which pro
hibits a sailor from including various decora
tions with the tree, it is rarely done, consequent
ly it is rather amusing to see that the Japanese
frequently attach several or more paper stream
'ri and a few lanterns before sending their
trees aloft. True, the crack North German Lloyd
liner Bremen has always, when in port, carried
to fully lighted trees on her masts, but almost
universally a single tree is hoisted without dec
oration of any kind.
THE meaning attached to this tree is much th
same ai is associated with a Christmas tn
i Zugjghoffen parlor or a West Philly livint;
Jm and is the sailor's way of saying "Merry
Christmas" to his shipmates and to the world,
nithout meaning to discredit a sailor's inUrH
fur many sailors in thse times art uni
wity mm, it is tru that he is, more I
" buddy ashore, very much ehlld. He i J
! better hand thn a soldier at imptovis-
a good time, and s sailer rarely take ki
"uu.-n Mully.
'.npe to centiikr that a tree at th
i iuit uBcisry on most ships b
of t) small tro in the sailors' tte,
it is rtslly no brch of marine ctiV
J" M to iav m at the shia'i foreman
"iftit S aid tt wsfiy seams f) to
amount e trnu.Ua i uprose- tki holi
T nuWjsftc. Hot (Anient wits. topil Jt
J swUiirui.t Ihey oiten wax artistic and tip
! yrdarrr nd the bow ml stem with
trees befors ffoiBg bek to cekkfcte,
' Wvve other aurieat'custom&lS
hile llapa,.I4yd ships, are in port,ith no
rMe ' tn pnntiiiav tViA make merry:
! the captains of the vejgels acting as hoitSj,
the Christmas Eve Sfelebratlow,, the offiesnr
) H all members of the crew dine and wine and
lift? in ... A J 1L .1. M
uallfMhe sh!pg5)maln lounges,
-"ns adareja them and wish them Merry
Clays Rides Waves
; jib L ' i i 1-
rSSSSL. rTi ' Christmas deco- ' I ' S I 1 V Hli , 1 V
iPnn fill -..4 - 0 U j fe a 1
Christmas tree tied to the top of the mart ' Y ' L " - Lufs..fll . .1 ...... i
o a imp auring me nutiaay season iiS B
Christmas and a Happy New Year, and present
them with some small personal token in appre
ciation of faithful service and cooperation. Then
they all Join in singing and what voices! and
later they enjoy their beer and smokes and va
riety of goodies , . . "gemuetlichkeit" personified
at Christmas time.
AND while these men on deck wrestle with
fir boughs and rope yarn there are, espe
cially on the larger passenger ships, other men
who add their bit to the festivities and who are
as much of the sea as Jack in the wlieelhouse.
Never was there a better excuse for the galley
magicians to invent and otherwise conjure-up
unbelievable sights in the form of cakes, pud
dings and other delicacies. In fact, in this re
spect, he who is so fortunate as to share the
holiday spirit with the fraternity of the sea will
more than likely have a much better time than
he has ever known in his own home. 0 German
passenger vessels the Christmas ava dinner is
most elaborate", including beside the stuffed
roast goose with its npple and chestnut dress
ing, kale awl kraut, the famous Christmas Stol
ln (a light bread full of raisins, almonds and
other tains and plentifully severed with sugar)
lebkuchen, maraipan, Anise cookies sf many
shapes and sizes, pretzels, eto. . . . and, of
course, the Individual'- favorite beverage, the
golden wines of Moselle and the Rhine, the pop
ular slowing red winea or the golden frothy
beers.
To the traveller a Christmas at sea is decided
ly not a thing to be avoided as one might a
Bestilenc. It is a surprising thing that travel
o the high seas during Christmas is second
only to the summer tourist peak and though the
high priests of the galley have much to do with
it there are many other valid reasons wffy It Is
pleasant to have a latitude-longitude address on
gcember 24th and 25th.
Trjjfact, there is always so much of Interest
planned for f.i.-ean voyage that trans-Pa-cifie
travellers are encouraged to look Inte the
date of "meridian day." To lose Christmas day
Orient bound would be nothing short of a catas
trophe.Jl to celebrate two Christmases on the
return voyage would for obvious reasons liter-
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Strra f the "Chelae", she ing the Chni
mas tree lashed e the flan tM.
ally slay a man! Prior -te the departure ef ship
the passenger lists are studied aaJ the tmroiw
and ages of the children are carefully ao-teal.
THE moming of the sailing the gifts fa t)wr
yountftsfolk sre tabs oars' ssmI eawynr
to. the steward Mid his as sVaWasw, 0 Cswstwvo
m marine Santa, dSTerinaj littb fa tips
man who handlefjthe job $horef comes slidiis)
down the funnel and makes his way to the
library where tk gift are distributed. Occa
sionally hi voicr is ttartlingly like that of the
skipper' or the tteward's. The ship's orchestra
plays special music nd generally one of the
.at.
c:.)0 0 O
For Xmas AboafdShips
. .1
German Christmas Stollcn, a favorite "Icuchen" with crew as well as passengers on
liners of the Hamburg American line. Photograph shows a display of the pastry in
s one of the pantries of the liner "Europa." .
IWograpli Courttijr of North German Moil
Christmas tree on the foremast of the liner
"Bremen" on her arrival in New York.
officer leads a chorus of passengers. There are
. many things to amuse the passenger and to
enliven his day, and always sufficient evidence
of that symbol of the season the Christmas
tree. Last season the liner Bremen counted no
less than fifty "Weihnachtsbaume" on display
throughout the steamer in the main saloon, in
the dining rooms, In the crew quarters and in
private suites and staterooms. Even the engi
neers, In their quarters, proudly displayed an
extraordinary tree made entirely of metal nnd
decorated with parts and gadgets from the
ship's machine shop.
In the maritime world as well, the best ex
pression of the season is found in giving to
those less fortunate, It has been for years the
custom of the Maritime Association of the Port
of New York to give a Christmas party for
destitute children of seamen. A grand time is
had. Popeye is there, magicians, a ventriloquist,
clowns, Punch and Judy show and a cartoon
ist who mingles shins and lighthouses with tho
portraits of the young guests. Boxes nnd boxes
of gifts are supplied by shipping men of New
York, and after the ice cream and cake the chil
dren are escorted home.
Then there are the sailors themselves, unfor
tunate in being without work, or as they express
it, "en the beach." This number has steadily
rrarcsejut emce the very difficult days of the
nse inpvvnitm, but each year the mvn In mtek
stnut fmi suW vuek-waie t the maay
Ken's) laeMtttaa thwaMt the country. A snuV
ee !e mvwt vermd awer frm aa Injhitutf.
0(
l ef Mm mm isHsnNtrcs Vej of ts
Ctratawe rUrstit hi the wilinf pro-
is tea eVtfTvty ef eMa)e peVktgcs to
Ut aonsty Many of Mb tswsTwko eiSird the
HA-Uwm Abi liftfcijt mi t lighthouse
oa teak and remotes enists are families for
whose Chnstma clgr flrffctO rides the skyways.
For the past seven year a Boston pilot has
made these flight over the wild New England
coast, skimming perllmnly close to lighthouse
nd rocky promintorie'lo drop bundles contain
hotnsrinh Cntirtfiy nt Knrlh Qrrinan LluyJ
Ing cigarettes, gum, coffee, magazines, and
newspapers. So, too, have planes carried this
same cargo from Seattle to the lighthouses of
the treacherous Alaskan coast, that the keeper
and his family might enjoy In part the little
things that make for a very merry Christmas.
Yet above all It is the Christmas tree that
imparts the feeling of this particular season 1
and it is this spirit of friendliness which prompt
Japan, a Bhuddest nation, to adopt one of the
most interesting of Christian customs. Before
this age of speed and refrigeration and before
it became as easy to buy a fir tree In Puka Puka .
as In Washington, the Evergreen State, sailors
occasionally found themselves in the tropics or
in the Arctic at the holiday season. What to do ?
As has been said before, the sailor is generally
a better hand at improvising and jollification
than a soldier, and no such senmlnglv Impossible
situation would ever deprive him of his Christ,
mas celebration.
Some years bto a British traveller, Lady
Brassey, while in the Hawaiian Inlands, wrote:
"The whole town (Hilo) was en fote today, end
our own men from the yatch contributed not a
little to the gaiety of the scene. They were nil
on shore, and the greater part of them were
galloping about on horseback, tumbling off,
scrambling on again, laughing, flirting, joking,
and enjoying themselves generally after a fash
ion peculiar to English sailors. The nppoarn-co
of the Sunbeam from the shore was very ay
and, as we approached, It became more festive
still. All her masts were tipped with sugar
canes in bloom. Her stern was adorned with
flowers and In the arms of the figurehead was a
large bouquet. The whole deck was festooned
with tropical plants and flowers, and the decor
ations of the cabins were even more beautiful
and elaborate."
JUST a few years preceeding Lady Brassey'
ccorrt of the Christmas festivities in Hllo,
(iermnny sent two ships, the ''liana and the
Germnnia on a cruise of exploration noar north
ern Greenland. Christmas found the two ships
separated, and from the leg book of tho Hansa
we have read how a tree was erected In the
afternoon, artistically put together of firwood
and mntweed. Dr. Laube, the man responsible
for the Hansa's celebration, had saved a twist
of wax-taper for the tree's llluminntlon, und
chains of colored paper end a few glided wal
nuts served for the decorations.
At the end of the day Dr. Laube concluded
his rr"?rk In the log by snylng: "If this Christ
mas l" t'-2 Int we 'o to so". It wes nt least
a cheerful one; but should n happy return homo
be decreed for us, the next will, we trust, be
far brighter."
Aboard the Gcrmanln at Sabine Island a na
tive evergreen plant was wound round small
pieces of wood, several of which were attached
jike fir twigs to a bough; and when these boughs
were fastened to a pole they formed a very
respectable Christmas tree. Tills was placed In
the center of the table, which had been enlarged
to accommodate the ship's company at one sit
ting, and this awkward little tree was illumin
ated with many small wax candles.
HE wnlls of the cabin were bright with sig-
tives, who foresaw a Christmas In the Arctic
wastes, were banked around the base of the tree,
and after the lights had burned low the dinner
of roast seal and Sicilian wine was served. In
the course of the evening the partition separat
ing officers and men wns removed and the two
met on equal terms. Toasts were drunk to home
and then in burst of merriment the evening
was climnxed by un improvised polar ball. The
boatswain seated himself with his harmonica
and the magic of that comfortable instrument
drew the men two and two to dance on a floor
of ice.
Just how the custom began of making-fast
nn evergreen to the mast has been lost to our
knowledge. In the memory of living men who
sailed in the windjammers it wss a very old
custom, although the evergreen was not aiwnps
rd. I the Thirteenth and Fourteenth cen
tauries, we ara told, whalers were in tho habit of
lieerxlleg aloft a garland of wreath of flower
l leaves and carrying It to sea with them.
Thl was probably the earliest beginnings of tho
present custom, and throughout tho centuries it
has been modified and accepted by every branch
of the maritime profession. TodTw one may see
,"."'
this unusual holiday observance in the harbors
world, but undoubtedly one of the most
fascinating settings for this show Is at Shang
hai. Here, amidst the bobbing sampans of the
Whangpoo Klver, not only the merchan'essel
of all countrle lie t anchor, but the gray arsen
al of Battleship Row face the Bund with the
evergreen message of Peace On Earth,
tAOI THREB
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