The Sun.
London, England, 1842-01-25 00:00:00

The PAINTER of the CHRISTENING.

TO -r-- HATTER.

Flowing colours! flashing colours !—ye that upon high
Ever beauteous make the clouds and rainbows of the sky—.
Ye that stream your rose and gold from rays and sun-

light-gushes—
Ye whose rich carnation tulles tint the Summer's blushes—
Jacinth Opal ! Chrysapraze ! Would I could combine
All your shades and splendours in ote gathering divine—
Bind them in one glzwing heap, with roscid lustres wet,
And fling them all triumphantly on HATTER'S proud

palette.
Painter! 4.-nine a noble task—quit thee nobly then!
So thy work hereafter stand a worship among men:

Gra,",ner thou the images of all transcend ant dings-
-efaish thy work with pomp of lights and rosy glitterings:
Sure the dazzling Royalties that wait upon thine art„
Shall make its living miracles to full perfection
,start—
Make its shades and radiances, and harmonizing tints..
Strain their finest spendour-tones to picture England's
Prince

Paint him-0 how splendidly I—enmantled in his bright
Apparellings imperial of purple and of white :

Lay him in embroideries with gold and gem e'erllowered—
Paint a rain of starry eyes thrice-sweetly o'er him

showered
Paint upon his infant lips, by Kings and Princes kisspd,
Drops more sweet than honeycombs, with dews of

amethyst :
Types of his own innocence, let lily-flowers spring,
Then strew him all with silver-drops ofsainted christening.
Round about him gird a throng of Princes and of Kings,
With purples, aria with pageantries, and gorgeous bla-

zonings :
Crowd the calques and coronets ; with plumes, and
swords, and spurs,
His nobles, and his Barons bring, and knightly horn agers:
Gonfalons, and herald-arms, and trumpetings, and throngs
Of people and gay minstrellers with loyal-sounding songs :
But proudest show, and chiefest, 'mid the grandeurs of

the scene,
The mother bright that bore him—England's diamond-
crowned Queen

Now, Harpers ! peal your honours—to the princely infant

ring !
Your honours to the courtly Sire from whom his graces

spring 1
And honour—mighty honour—to his mother bright and

bold ;
Who truly through her infant's veins her own rich blood

bath rolled 1
And honour to the Painter—full honours, loud and long,
Who lastingly hath fixed the scene in draughtings grand

and strong :
And blazoned, on this famous day, in Colour's living spring
The young and primal glory of a newly. christened King.

SCRAPS UPON CHRISTENINGS.

Parvoque 41cmena superbit
Hercule, tergemina crinem circuradata Luna.
Proud of her son, behold Alcmena wear
Three moons, an ornament to grace her hair.

The present august occasion, on which the
Heir to the Throne is supposed to, be admitted
ilitQ the Church, and sanctified to a virtuous life,
":4ot unappropriately allows of some remarks on
the nature and antiquity of the ceremony, as
well as some account of the mode of performing

.•
it in different countries, and also of the more
remarkable christenings of British Princes.
Christening, according to its verbal significa-
tion, is disguised under different names in eccle-
siastical phraseology. Palingenesia is one of the
most ordinary, which signifies a new birth—the
true signification of christening. It is otherwise
called the " Signaculum Domini," or Seal of the
Lord, which the water-cross marked upon the
forehead by the officiating christener imprints.
ANTIQUITY OF CHRISTEINING.—AIthough
ac-
cording to the obvious derivation of the word,
christening would have been supposed to have
originated with Christ, yet many among the

learned attach to it a far greafer ancientness.
Grotius was of opinion, that the rite of christed_
ing had its origin from the time of the D',-,tig."
immediately after which he thinks it -.vas
insti-
tuted in memory of the world
'bei:ag purged by
water.

ORIGIN OF WniTE-SuN ,
,Ay on CHRISTENING-
DAY.—St. Cyril in
.exTtaining the symbols and
ceremonies of chri:,tening, says that after being
printed on the ‘forehead with the cross, the child
christened nras put into a white garment, to de-
note his •!ming washed from the defilements of
sin, Jr, in allusion to that of the Apostle, "as
JP:any as are baptized in Christ have put on
Christ." From this custom the feast of Pentecost,
whiCh was formerly one of the annual seasons of
christening, came to be called Whitsunday i. e,
White-Sunday.
CHRISTENINGS AT ROME.—Among the cere-
monies used in the Papal dominions, is that of
blessing the salt, a little of which is put into the
child's mouth, with the words " Receive the salt
of wisdom." This is performed at the church-
door. Being come to the font, the spirit of origi-
nal sin which is supposed to dwell in the child is
exorcised, and taking a little of his own spittle,
with the thumb of his right hand, the priest
christening, rubs it on the child's ears and nos-
trils, repeating, as he touches the right ear, the
word Ephatha, be thou opened; oils are then
poured over it, and the child is anointed.
CHRISTENING AT THE GA NGES.—The Brahmin
believe that christening has a virtue in it of 're-
mitting and washing away all sine. At the season
that the waters of that immense river are clear,
and the brilliant weather sets in, the. cleansing
or sanctifying qualities attached to its streams,
cause the people to flock from the remotest parts
even of Tart=lry.
CHRISTENINGS BY FIRE.-.--St. Johns expres-
sion o 4: "baptism by fire" has occasioned much
et-'7..necture. The fathers, 'held on this point that
all children before fney enter Paradise are to
pass through a e'ertain fire, which is to purify
from all pollutions of flesh. • The ancient Selen-
cians and Ilermians, understanding the passage
literally, maintained that material fire was ac-
tually necessary at baptisms. Valentinus re-
baptised all who had received only water-bap-
tism, and conferred on them the baptism of fire.
CHRISTENING PRESENTS.—In Germany these
are in extensive use, and are made by the sponsors
to the infant, consisting of money, plate, and
sometimes fiefs of lands, which by the law of the
country are to be kept for the child till of age,
the parents holding them in trust.
CHRISTENING OF A POPE.—PerbP"
.es one of
the prettiest christenings on rece•rd rendered so
by the very apt and beaus'
Pail triplets that com-
memorated it, is that ". - •
.eiateu by the quaint old
Fuller on the oce:a.
- „
sioning of christening Sir
William Pope-•_,
little daughter, in the presence
-
of King "riles who was then on his progresses.
While t.
tie waterdrops were sprinkled upon it
the i- ."
Jabe was presented to King James, who
a
..:ted as sponsor, with a copy of the follOWing
verses in its hand :
See this little inisttefi3 Ifte,
Did never sit iti Pet-Ws chair,
Or a triple UtOwn did wear,
And yet she is a Pope.
No benefice she ever sold,
Nor did dispense with sins for gold,
She hardly i 3 a sencnnight old.
And yet she is a Pope.
No King her feet did ever kiss,
Or had from her worse loeirAhtft this-
Nor did she ever 1.R40
To stint one Wtth a rope; = - -
And y•tit she is a Pope.
-14-:fernltkt Pope, you'll say-= it second Joan ;
.4..03, sure, she is Pope Innocent, or none.
'PRINCES CHRISTENED AT WESTMINSTER.—III
the noble pile of Westminster, just after its aisles
and transepts had been rebuilt by his father,
Henry 111., Edward the First was christened.
The mild virtues of the Coi-dessol• were thus
hoped to be conveyed with the name which
Saxons loved and revered.
Young Edward V. was chrietzned in the
Jerusalem Chamber of the Abbey, not by in-
tention, but by the pressure of afflicting circum-
stances. The distressed Queen of Edward IV.
had fled thither, - when the victorious Lancas-
trians were bent upon her capture, and as a
sanctuary-woman she confided in Thomas Mil-
ling, the Abbot. No pomp attended this deso.
late christening; the font of stone was arrayed
in no draperies of gold or tissue; a small knot
of friends, rather in fear than in pleasure, assisted
at the conferring of the ceremony upon one,
whose after-fate was yet a mystery. The kind
Abbot stood godfather ; his godmothers werq
the old Duchess of Bedford, his own grand-
mother, and the attached attendant of ISIS W^-
ther, Lady Scrope. _-
Another Westminstss '
the only son of *- ... Christening was that of
formed ”4" zsenry VI., which was par-
r
..,Lit unusual pomp by the pious Wayn-
itete, Bishop
of Winchester. The sponsors on
the occasion were the Duke of Somerset, the
g
Archbishop of Canterbury, and tchaesiDonucilivaelsssaor-f
Buckinham. The font on
this
rayed in russet cloth of gold, and circled by
, a blaze of tapers. The ch
Royal rysome, or christening
mantle, in which the
after immersion, cost 554116 s babeBd was received
:,hand the issue
rolls-state that it was very ricl
and precious stones. Within thliv.l t embroideryl
fine white linen wrapper, to prevesnnt-itahnt
brocade was a
cud g,cms from coming in the
contact with the deli-
cate skin of the young heir. Ten
10 Countesses, one: Viscountess, d, '
0 0