The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1850-02-14
EUROPEAN CORRESPONDENCE.
BERLIN. Chrisimas. ISL

| You have, perhaps, had on your side of the
water few mornings which bit your noses SHARP
| ly, and made thick gloves, muifs, and eloaks in.
dispensable to persons well to do in the world.
But in this city Of broad streets, set in the midst
of plain which stretches far away beyond Saint
Petersburgh, and up to the very icebergs of the
Arctic seas, We know what cold weather means
The thrilling breezes from the region of white
bears and eternal snow come cutting into every
individual pore of ones face and hand whistling
as they cut, merrily as ice-choppers The
streets are covered with layer of solid ice, and
the boys 90 flying along on skates over the public
squares, and through the most crowded thorough
fares Respectable, staid persons, old gentlemen
with gold-headed canes, thin-slippered, bue-nosed
spinsters, wrapped up in furs, tripping up and
falling down in every direction. As frogged shoes
are not much in use, the horses 90 slipping along,
and tumbling down occasionally on the pavement
Now and then a brisk furry of snow and wind
from the north makes it next to impossible to see
further than the end OF ones nose Everybody
people too poor to be anybody are, ofcourse, not
referred to, for poor people in Prussia are Just
nobody at alleges about so disguised in coaks,
big shoes, and warm fur caps, as not to be recog-
nisable by any except their taiI9rs All that is
visible, at this season. of German taking his
morning walk, is reddish beard with a huge
pipe hanging out of the middle of it. This IL
better than to see nothing at all for, If you have
lived long enough in Europe, you can easily infer
from the beard the political opinions of the wearer
Is it short, stiff, and well brushed? He is con-
sentative, who entertains holy horror Of the
unwashed democracy. Has it taken the form Of
a six-nch moustache, whose ends stand out stiff
and fercely? He is soldier, and one of the
pillars Of the royalty. Is it r,as,y untrimmed
one, Of two years growth, all horrent with ic-
clesi lie is a man OF dangerous political prin-
cipes; radical who, with all his fellows, seems
to have sworn great oath to let their boards
grow so long as they may be compelled to tarry
in the Jericho Of the monarchical form The
bomb-King Of Naples understands well the insur-
rectionary tendency of long boards for his first
measure, on regaining possession of Sicily, was to
order every man to be severely punished who
should appear with beard more than an inch
and half long. General Van Wrangel did not
60 quite so far, when be took military possession
of Berlin last year as to impose public order on
the subject, but everybody knows that he author
lied privately the persecution of every one of the
long-bearded gentry.
Every German smokes in the streets This is
of the liberties conquered in ls4s, which have
been left untouched by the fury of the reaction
At oue of the Examinations of that ever memora-
bic year, citizen stuck up in his window one
light for each popular right acknowledged by the
King The central one was immense "This,'
said he, is for the right to smoke where one
pleasesn
But, notwithstanding the cold, the annual Fair
is thronged from one end TO the other For four
teen days before Christmas, and as many after
the whole length of Broad street. and the two
large squares north and south of the palace are
occupied by the toy merchants, and Christmas
tree merchants, who come nobody knows where
from, and put up in few hours whole city of
booths of plank and canvass. These are filed
with toys of an infinite variety both of form and
workmanship. Everything that has ever been
devised for the delight of little people and the
annoyance of big ones, may be found here No
carriages permitted to pass through the alleys
formed by the booths except the royal ones,
which are driven through slowly, to avoid hurt
ing anybody And really, when the booths are
lighted up in the evening, and the light is reflect
ed from millions of gay and Offering toys, and
the alleys are crowded with thousands of happv
parents and children, the sight might well tempt
a king 1t is doubtful whether the carnival at
Rome shows anything better worth seeing.
The Fair is not the only sign of our being in
the Christmas hoydays In twenty different
halls in the city, the most extensive preparations
have been made to receive visier Some of them
have been turned into Moorish palaces of surpass-
ing beauty; others into galleries of grotesoue
paintings, caricaturing the well-known men of the
day, or their acts; others, again, represent the
different elements, and, by chaotic arrangement
of striking productions of nature, astonsh and
bewilder the beholder. Everything was to be
seen there, from the volcano actually belching
fire and lava, to whales and sealions But in all
of them, the great attraction is the puppet-show
Punch and Judy, who are scarcely known in
America, except By reputation, here in the full
glory of popularity. They are, indeed, the most
comical creatures alive; saying the funniest
things, walking about in the oldest manner. and
making incredible bows and gestures The
Punch theatre is not so good for children who get
the side-ache a-laughing but excellent for old
folks who are not too stiff to enjoy it, The mer-
riment Of children is contagious, and must &C
knowledge deep Indebtedness to Punch in the
matter of happy moments The Germans all go,
and seem, young and old, to join in the mirth
without restraint.
This is the best season Of the year for the
shops and stores They are all crowded, for
everybody is buying something for presents
everybody you meet in the street is carrying
something home. If you go musing along, intent
on gathering up items for a newspaper article,
you get poke in the ribs from the rocker of a
hobby-horse. As you side away, the green
branches of a Christmas.tree whip you in the
face. and knock off your hat; you recover the
unlucky beaver from under the feet of the crowd
but, in rising, upset whole tray full of little
chocolate horses, and funny looking cows, sheep,
and other animals, which have no resemblance to
anything living, the race having probably perish
ed before the food, and only existing in the fossil
and chocolate toy states. At each new mshap
you cry, " Ich buie!p after the fashion Of the
Germans The best way, If you are given to
distractions is to square yourself up against the
WALL and observe. One Of the most remarkable
things which will attract your notice is the i'm
mense gingerbread hearts carried along by you:
These vary from the size Of oven tops 10 that OF
tea-table tops, and are destined for the servants
of the different houses. The right to receive one
at Christmas is principal article in The BIZ OF
| Rights Of all German housemaids.