THE CHRISTMAS THEE
AN INSTITUTION OVER THIRTY
CENTURIES OLD.
Holy Trees in the Roman Saturnalia
The Druidical Sacred Tree-Symbolism
of the Glass Globes and Candles
Survival of Pagan Worship.
Mm
Firs't Tree in America.
Muau the queer
relics of a grout an
tiquity is the Christ
mas tree.- The very
name of this object,
familiar as it is at
Christmas time, in
dicates a Christian
origin, but there is
no doubt whatever
that the customs
connected with the
Ohrisitmas tree, to
gether with the tree
itself, were a part
nf the Druidical religion perhaps thou
sands of years before our era. The Druid
V.Mgion was a curious combination of na
ture, sun and fire worship. Nature was
adored in the oak, which, in North Eu
rope was the sturdiest, largest and
strongest member of the plant world; the
bum was worshiped bwause it gave light
and heat and brought life to all the world;
fire was worshiped because it was not
only the warming and comforting ele
ment, but also, when unbridled, a demon
to be dreaded. Thus, the Druidical cere
monies and worship comprised a combina
tion of riles, some undoubtedly a growth
of the cliniaOe and country which the peo
ples devoted to this form of religion in
habited. The great festival of the. year
was at the midwinter season, when the
sun, after sinking low in the southern
skies, began to return toward the north
and to bring with it renewed life to the
Northern Hemisiphere. The date was,
approximately, about the time of our
Christmas, the third o fourth week in
December. At the beginning of the last
week in the last month the sun is at its
lowest point, and from that time the days
begin to lengthen and, little by little, the
ice king loosens his grip and retires to his
PACKING FOR PITIPMENT.
own regions in the north. Then begin the
rejoicings at the sun's return. In Itaiy
the festival took the name of the Satur
nalia, a season of the wildest license.
One of the favorite observances of the
Saturnalia season, as well as of the
, Druidical festival at midwinter, was the
setting up of a tree, f requently. ornament
ed with rude decorations; around thjs In
the public squares of every city in South
ern Europe circles of men, women ! and
children danced and shouted. To the
Druids the oak was a sacred tree; to the
gay dwellers in the sub-tropical countries
of the South the green tree of the Satur
nalia was merely the emblem of the re
turning life and foliage of the summer.
Long before the time of Christ, among
the" Celts of France, England and the
British Islands, at the midwinter festi
TaJ a tree decorated with bits of gay cloth
and bright polished nieta! was carried in
procession. Generally it was an oak, but
whatever its species, it was honored as a
symbol and was set up in the Druidical
circles, portions of which still remain at
to the exact date of the birth of Christ.
The 25th of December was not fixed until
about 500 years after that event, and the
impossibility of determining accurately
by tradition a date 500 years before will
easily be appreciated. The festival itself
was observed, it is said, as early as the
end of the first century, but with no
agreement as to the dae; dn some places
the feast occurring as early as the 21st
of December, and in others as late as the
middle of January. The efforts of the
Christian preachers and teachers finally
succeeded in supplanting the Saturnalia
with the Christmas rejoicings. The tree
around which the people had danced was
converted into a Christmas tree; the bon
fires which the rabb!e had lighted, and
which the priests had adoTed as symbols
of the devouring element, were made to
throw their cheerful light in honor of the
Child of Bethlehem; the decorations
which were hung upon the branches of
the oak took the form of crosses and
crowns and globes of bright metal.
Long after the Christian era began, the
yule tree, or yule log, remained an insti
tution among the Germanic tribes. As
already stated, the midwinter tree was
burned at the conclusion of the festival,
and a trace of this ceremony is still seen
in the yule log, which, in country districts
of. England, is dragged in by half a dozen
sturdy yokels and thrown back of the
hearth to furnish a basis for the winter's
fire. The ashes and charred coals of the
mldwim'er tree were formerly gathered
to use in incantations, being deemed to
possess supernatural qualities, and even
in this century bits of charcoal from the
yule log are treasured by English coun
try girls nnd boys on account of some
superstitious fancies collected with these
bits of sacred wood. Even the songs of
the Saturnalia, in a modified form, have
come down to the present day.
The midwinter tree, modified from its
pagan uses, became the Christmas tree,
and even in its ornaments and decora
tions may be found a symbolism not so
deeply hidden that it cannot be easily de
tected. The linked chains of gilt paper
were once so many emblems of eternity;
the glass globes and gilded balls were
emblems of the sun and moon; the little
cake images were once figures of the
saints; more anciently still were little
idols fashioned of whearten dough and
baked hard in an oven; the tiny candles,
without which no Christmas tree could be
a Christmas tree, are a reminiscence of
the days when every sun and fire wor
shiper carried with him to the great an
nual festival his torch or candle, and
when the sacred fire was lighted, in the
round tower or on the altar of the Druids,
the light was passed from torch to torch
until the entire circle was ablaze. In
court, in camp and in cloister in Ger
many, France and Italy the Christmas
tree was an institution for hundreds upon
hundreds of years.
The tree most commonly used in En?
gland is the holly or holy tree, so called
because, producing its berries toward the
Christmas season and remaining green
throughout the winter, it is, in popular
superstition, associated with the greatest
of Christmas festivals.
The first Christmas tree in America
was decorated and lighted up in New
Amsterdam when Manhattan Island was
a colony of the Dutch. The honest Dutch
men, even in the New World, could not
forget the pleasant associations connect
ed with the season, and it is recorded
that on the first Christmas passed by the
Dutch colonists on this side the Atlantic
they cut down a cedar, took it into the
church, and, with such means as were at
hand, decorated and lighted it, hanging
upon its branches presents from the Gov
ernor and has lady to every member of
the colony. The tree was never in favor
among the Puritans of New England,
however, until after the beginning of the
present century. They imagined that in
some way not very clear to1 their own
minds it savored of papacy, and that for
them was enough to cause its rejection.
As has been said, the Christmas tree
is the representation of many hands, and
often, too, of the products of many lands.
The tree is cut down by the ax of the
farmer and forwarded to market by the
monopolists who control the railway traf
fic of the country. The cut and gilt
paper with which it is decorated formerly
IOIIEillAN GLASS-BLOWERS MAKING TIIE GLOBES.
Stonehenge and many other parts of
Great Britain and Ireland, and was
adored as a symbol of life, and finally
consigner1 to the flames, a huge pile of
wood being placed around it and set on
fire. Where there was a round tower,
the tree was burned in this artificial fur
nace, but otherwise the great bonfire was
. the center of attraction and around its
glowing flames the people capered and
rejoiced.
JChe chroiiologists have never agreed as
came from Germany and France, but is
now made in this country. The glass
bulbs, emblems of the sun and moon,
form a very important item of industry in
several large glass factories in Bohemia,
and, being hand-painted and packed with
great care, give employment to hundreds
of women and children in the great cen
ters of the glass trade. The presents
hung upon its branches may represent ail
parts of the globe. The dolls may come
from Germany, the knives from England
Hll MM M CALENDAR
JANUARY. JULY.
8 M TW T F 8 8 M TWT FS
-..1......T . l-.l-.l-.l.-l ill
2 3 4 5 6 7 8' 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
9101112131415 10)111213141516
16117,1811920121 j22 171819i20212223
23124125 26l27l28 29 2412526272812930
30j31..i........ 31...........-
FEBRUARY. AUGUST.
,... 1) 2 3475 .. 1 2 3 4 5 6
6 7 8j 9,10 11112 7 8 9jl01111213
131415161718 19 14151117181920
20,212223242526 2122231242512627
2728j.......... 28293031....l..
. MARCH. SEPTEMBER.
.. 1 21 8 4f5 2 3
6 7 81 9101112 4 5 6 7 8 910
131411516il7l819 1 1 1213l 141 15j 16 17
202122232412526 181920212223 24
2728293031.... 25i2G127l28l2930
APRIL. OCTOBER.
l-..-....l lj2 1
3 4 5 6 7 8 9 2 3j4J 5)67 8
10,llfl2,131415 16 91101111121131 1415
,17118119120121122123" 16171 18192021 1 22
'242526272829 30 231242526272829
............. 301311.
MAY. NOVEMBER.
II 2 3 4 5joTT .... 1 2 3 41 5
8 910)ll12jl3il4" 6 7 8 9101112
1516(1718;i9,202T 13141516171819
, 22,' 23j 24 1 251 26 1 27 1 28 202"f22242526
293031........ 2728129;30.....
JUNE. DECEMBER.
..f.. H 2 3j4 ........ H aiS
5 61 7 8 910jiT 4 5 6 7 8 9,10
121131141 15161718 1112 1 3 14 151 16 17
192021I222312425 181920121222324
26;27282930 . - . 2526272829130131
find far more pleasure, too, in dolls with
movable eyes, hair that will brush and
faces that can be washed. Above all else
the clothes must come on and off. Wash
dresses are generally liked most by chil
dren, because they can be done up. ' ,
It is very funny the decided preference
for certain complexions in the doll fam
ilies. The boy dolls most children like to
be brunettes; but nothing ever approaches
the popularity of the blond girl doll. A
great novelty this year is a doll that walks
alone not wheeled as some of the walk
ing dolls have done in the past, but actu
ally puts out one foot after the other, and
walks as naturally as though it were real
flesh and blood.
' Boys always did and always will like
drums and things that make a noise.
There are some wonderful rocking horses
this year, with manes as. glossy as silk
and tails banged in the most approved
style. A rubber frog, attached to the end
of which is a bulb, that when pressed
makes the frog jump, is something entire
ly new. And it is so real that it will an
swer in every respect naughty Tommy's
fiendish ambition to frighten his small
sisters.
For boys there are any number of toys
which have a bearing on architecture in
all forms. Bridge building, house build
ing, ship building and the laying of rail
road tracks and the management of trains
are all worthy of recommendation. The
practical iron constructor1, something en
tirely new this Christmas, will teach a
boy important laws of nature and science.
But so simply does he learn them that he
is under the impression he is merely play
ing, i ,.
To designate all the other excellent toys
for instruction would be impossible. Some
thing new but not particularly attractive
are the Brownie dolls. Like the negro
babies, these new dolls are too unnatural
to inspire much longing in the breasts
of tiny mothers who take their doll chil
dren to their hearts. In games there are
many new things. The game of Babb,
which consists in driving small wooden
pegs into certain holes by tapping on the
under side with a small wooden mallet, is
greatly in demand.
or our own factories, the jewelry may be
made from gold brought from the Trans
vaal, Australia, or Colorado; the dia
monds may come from Kimberley.India or
Brazil, the rubies from Slain, the sap
phires from Burmah, and the pearls have
been brought up by dark-faced divers off
the coast of Cey lon.
The Christmas tree is thus more than
a fanciful reminder of the day and sea
son. It is an historical institution recall
ing customs which years ago became ob
solete and a religion which has been
dead for many centuries. It is a
beautiful token of the season and a rem
iniscence of ages so remote as to have
left no written trace. There is no dan
ger that the world will forget-or ignore it.
An institution which can last for thirty
centuries at least is probably good for
thirty more.
THE BIRTH O- CHRIST.
The Message to the Judean Shepherds
the Best Ever Given Mortal Man.
No better tidings were ever given to
mortal man, writes Evangelist Dwight L.
Moody in the Ladies' Home Journal, than
that first Gospel message delivered to the
humble shepherds on the Judean hills.
There must have been a special solemnity
about that night. Above, the heavens
were resplendent with the glory of God,
and even the elements seemed to appre
ciate the benediction of ''peace and good
will toward men." A holy quiet rested
On the scene. The noise and tumult of
the overcrowded streets in the distant
city at last were stilled, and one by one
the lights below them disappeared.
In the realms of another world those
who had long looked for the promised re
demption gaze down upon the scene. Pro
phet and law-giver, king and leader all
look toward the One who shall make the
atonement for their transgressions. And
as the shepherds watched and waited for
the morn I imagine that their thoughts
and conversation were on heavenly things.
It may have been that they were talking
over the strange rumors which they had
heard regarding the son that was born to
Zaeharias, and how it had been prophe
sied that he was to become the "Prophet
of the Highest." At least, their thoughts
and conversation that night must have
been on things above, for God reveals His
best gifts to those "whose minds are stay
ed on Him." "The time is at hand," I
can imagine one saying, "the MessJah will
soon be here to save us from our enemies."
"Great is the Holy One of Israel in the
midst of thee," exclaims another. And
thus as they rejoice among themselves
there suddenly bursts upon their sight the
glorious light of the other world; midnight
gloom Is transformed into midday bright
ness, and there appears before them the
Angel of the Lord. He proclaims the de
liverance for which this world had so long
yearned. With exultant shout the choir
Ttf heaven chants again the Gospel mes
sage, that first and glorious carol song.
And as the full meaning of the vision was
realized what thrill of love and joy must
have filled their souls. How their hearts
must have burned within them as they
hastened to worship their Savior King in
His lowly abode at Bethlehem.
Gifts for Women.
Women's wants, if measured by thei;
belongings, would seem to be almost in
numerable, and of a kind which require
constant renewing and replacing. Wom
an's interests and occupations require a
greater number of small things for their
equipment than do those of men, and
Christmas gifts for them are, therefor,
mora easily prepared. Women's belong
ings have the further advantage of being
useful as well as beautiful. Men are al
ways pleased with simple gifts, and axe
usually embarrassed when presented with
expensive articles of any sort. The value
to them of a gift is, as it should be with
ail persons, in proportion to its simplicity
and usefulness and out of proportion to
its cost.
THE WANING YEAR.
O O R, lingering old
year, how lazy, how
slow,
You're trudging along
with your capful of
snow;
Your youth, I remem
ber, was gladsome
and gay,
You capered, and frol
icked, and danced
all the day.
But you became older
as Sol rolled along.
He chastened your
spirit, and mellow
ed your song.
You bleBt us, you
plagued us, you fur
nished us cheer.
Deceitful, capricious,
i yet lovely old year.
And here's your last milestone, you're pass
ing from view.
Your record, we know, will be faithful and
true,
When "weighed In the balance," may we
stand clear.
Triumphantly greeting heaven's Jubilee year.
A Plan for Christinas Eve. .
Some ancient religions, as those of the
Greeks and Romans, furnished opportuni
ties for man to relapse periodically into
primitive impulse, allowing the natural,
not the artificial, man to express himself.
In our religion another opportunity once
a year has been given us, when good-will
may have all its way with us good-will
that is greater than all prudent restraints,
all economic theories, all considerations of
convenience.
And what an opportunity it is for us,
who, in our intercourse with men, are so
often hemmed in by conventionality or
controlled by self-consciousness! To revel
in good-will! To have the church and
state sustain us in it! To have custom
and tradition give us their sanction! It
is like getting one's childhood back again,
or having health once more, or, after a
j city's bondage, feeling the freedom of the
' hills! - What if in our generosities we
make mistakes it takes time to remedy, if
to-morrow we must retrench! What of
anything, if good-will can reign with us
for a day!
Then away, too, with discussions of the
meet and appropriate that poor gifts
may go to the poor and rich gifts to the
well-to-do! In the good-will first sung by
the angels to men there was the glad am'
sudden burst of unlooked-for joy, givei
fully, without conditions, without balanc
ings, without questionings of deserts a
blessing to all, to the just and the unjust,
the sinner and the saved.
It is in this spirit that a group of well
known men and women mean to work this
Christmas eve. To the poorest and the
neediest, to the hardest worked, they
mean to carry bountiful gifts, retiring
themselves quickly, as they came, so as to
remain unknown. Their desire is to bring
into the life of some poor suffering soul
the glow and warmth that come of unex
pected joy and fullness unexpected, un
earned and undeserved perhaps.
We measure so much we do for others.
We weigh our best impulses against their
deserts and our ideas of the appropriate.
And yet the glad burst of that melodious
message of good-will to all should teach
us this one of God's ways might be ours
by making our gifts as joyous outpour
ings, filling full of promise the lives of
those who wait. So that, like the voices
of those angels who sang, the gifts we
bring may be as though they fell from
heaven. Harper's Bazar.
Farewell, fading year! All hall to the new, ,
We'll shun every folly, and virtue pursue; ;,
Each day as It passes some mission of love
Shall lessen earth's woe, and place treasure
above.
Western Rural.
CHRISTMAS IN THE STORES.
Toy Counters Surrounded by Little
Folks an Interesting Sight.
HERE is no prettier
sight to be seen any
where than can be
found around the
toy counters in the
big stores at the
Christmas season. It
is not in the toys, al
though some of
them are marvelous
enough to inspire
rapt admiration, but
in the groups of tiny
people who surround these wonders that
the charm lies. Big, bright, anxious eyes,
yearning, chubby fingers and hearts so
filled with longing that they are near to
bursting for the possession of some cer
tain china beauty with flowing blond
locks or a rocking horse which gallops. .
Little boys gaze with respectful won
derment on all the household things in
tended for their sisters' amusement, but
it is at the sight of a martial soldier, a
train of cars or a boat that can be sailed
in the bath tub at home that their hearts
beat faster. Girls always like dolls. They
never can have too many. The increase
of another doll in the little woman's fam
ily is treated precisely as the advent of a
real baby in the mother's. While new
and young it is tenderly cherished even
!f the detriment of older and better
Known children. But once the newness
robs off, and dolly's cheeks begin to fade
and the crimp comes out of her hair, the
youthful, mother, like many an older one,
decides that the baby is old enough now
for her to go back to the rare virtues dis
covered in her first-born children. So you
see the little woman can't have too many
dolls. Only don't buy them too large.
Eighteen inches is a good size, easy to
carry. A child grows very tired of a doll
big enough to be cumbersome. Child-
Christmas Entertainments.
For Christmas entertainments in the
church, cantatas give an opportunity for
the children to take part. Such enter
tainments should be given early in the
evening, and care should be taken to avoid
exciting the vanity and self -consciousness
of the young participants. Wise mothers
object to their children's coming into such
publicity, and in order to meet their objec
tions a skilled and sensible leader should
be secured one who will teach the chil
dren their parts without unnecessary de
mands upon their play time, who will reg
ulate the tempers and allay the passions
which are sure to be aroused unless the
small people are well guarded. First of
all impress upon them that they are to
consider the pleasure of others, not their
own, and that selfishness can have no part
in Christmas pleasures. The decorations
and other accompaniments must be suited
to the place.
It was twilight by the river we prepared to
cross the flood ,
We knew the meed of danger, a night of toll
and blood.
Calm silence permeated every line and
every rank
As we muster'd for our country on th
river's darkling bank
Above the troubled waters no straggling
moon rays gleam
We saw the foeman's watchflres blaze be
yond the gloomy stream.
'Twas brilliant, fateful, fearful It seemed a
hope forlorn-'
No sound of drum or trumpet or fife or bugle
horn
We knew onr desperate enemies, we knew
the mcSarch's power,
We knew the dreadful crisis our country'i
darkest hour
We dreaded not the waters feared not the
Delaware
None cared for death or danger, for Wash
ington was there.
It was midnight on the river and fiercely
cold the frost
Upon the ley waters our feeble barks were
toss'd ;
We ferried o'er the treacherous waves mid
Icebergs small and large-
And tolled away the live-long night with
ferryboat and barge
And ere the sunbeams flashed again In hope
ful ranks we stood
To march upon the Hessians' camp to strike
the men of blood.
Still, silent, calm and resolute, we cross'd
the dangerous wave, ,
To reach the base Invaders Jtmerica to
save
'Twas Christmas night and memory brought
the messenger divine,
As we saw tue blazing campflres of the
soldiers from the Rhine
The mercenaries bought for hire to crush
our country down
Then we breathed a vow for liberty and .
vengeance on the crown.
Our cannoil broke the silence confusion to
the foe
Our columns marched to triumph mid drift
ing sleet and snow.
And then our hearts beat high with hops,
the word to "charge" was given.
One blow for home aud liberty, humanity
and heaven
The Hessians rous'd from slumber from
dreams of war and spoils
To find themselves surrounded and In the '
freemen's tolls.
A Glorious Christmas night! My boys let
cheers of triumph ring!
Oh! flash the news across the sea to Eng
land's despot king,
And tell the ruthless tyrant his scepter
never more
Shall oppress a free-born people or rule
Columbia's shore.
And Trenton, glorious Trenton, that name
shall ever be
A '""free"11 0f Ubertya watchword for the
Charles'J. Beattle.
GIFT FOR A BACHELOR.
The Presentation of a "Housewife"
May Make His Heart Glad.
The heart of a bachelor who is far from
home and f riends may be made glad by
the presentation of a simple "housewife," '
or bachelor's companion. - This is by no
means so helpful or attractive as a real
.vife, but in the absence of the genuine ar
ticle the bachelor will be delighted to
liave the imitation at hand when buttons
come off or clothes rip. The housewife
may be made of bronze leather, of kid,
of linen, of cretonne or of silk for the
outside, which is all in one piece. Use a
stiff interlining and a lining of some
durable material. On the large fly ribbon
or tape furnishes a place for scissors, etc.j
A HOUSBWIPE.
above this is a long cushion with a slip
for a thimble, and resring upon this a
spool of silk and one of thread, both white
and black, fastened by ribbons run
through them and stitched at the ends.
The two outer ends are shaped with card
board and the edges are bound with rib
bon. The fastening is effected by means
of a button and loop. If plain linen is
used a monogram may be embroidered on
the outside.
Didn't Get It.
Freddie I want a watch for Christ
mas. Colewigger You are rather young
to have a watch. Freddie I'm as old as
the little boy next door, and he can take
his watch ail to pieces. New York Joui
nal.
, . . A Phenomenon.
When Christmas comes with merry pace
The sma.ll boy is a peach;
His stomach Is the resting place
Of everything In reach. 1
Judgev "
"MERRY CHRISTMAS, MOTHER EARTH I'