New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1870-12-24
PRICE FOUR CENTS.
CHRISTMAS.
with footsteps SLOW. IN fsrg psI yslsd.
His bross enwresthei viii holly nsser ssre.
Old hrs'mss Genes 10 clos. ihe vsnsd yssr"

ancient Druids he permitted merge from those ms
beyond the styx, where departed greatness
supposed 10 expate the sins and foies Of terrestrial
hfe, how shocked and Mortified he would be 10 witness
the graduation 10 which his vorte my ca
the nsetOe, IL subjected in the lands where Christianity
holds its sway; that is where oak and cherry
indigenous Ia Che soil What would the unhappy
plifcation q the doctrine Of ransmigaon ~
give had his ambition but scared a little lower
than the brilliant and variegaed hues Of bronze turkey
cock when Christmas sares him In the face! It's true
the turkey u the period has glorious time Of IL while
spreading his magnifcence to the bright OF Indian
Summer mornings; but alasl the unerring season Of
Christmas down upon him with relentless cruelty
that plumage which he prided himself and that
farmyard OF which he rjoiced to be the lord aud
ter the admiration Of pebean cocks and hens rudey
and fOrciby exchanged for bunch OF bonnie blue rib
bons and the post OF honor In stall in Washington
Market Turkey and mistletoe, garnished with pent
full supply Of eyergreens and haOwed by certain msu
final religious exercises the embodiment Of the typ
cal the realization OF the ideal in this practical, every
day nineteenth century. Yes. make point OF getting
out Of bed the right side Christmas morning. We
go TO church. little children, sisters.
our maiden aus and sweethearts under the mstlo
toe we love our wives little more on that one particular
l day; give of substance to the poor,
| some literally, some sparingy they dare
with due and cautious regard 10 their
| social position; and, having fulfilled these higher
duties sink, abstracedly and without effort into
II
sauce, utterly reckless of the inevitable consequenee
| four andtwenty hours severe attack OF dyspepsia.
And yet. below this apparently matterOffact 0bserv
Of OF the greatest Of Christian festivals there
undercurrent OF deep thought and feeling in all we'll
balanced minds, which must be powerfully working for
good for cannot work for harm. Reverence, gratitude.
kindness OF heart charity and Joy quietly and unobtru
siyely strive within for the mastery. All the tner
and holer feelings OF which the human heart capable
instinctively and yet nelligeny forced into aey
ity throughout the entire Christian world at each
sye Of the festival Of Christmas The mind
ia compelled TO the SOLDERING contemplation OF the events
OF centuries ago. The past minges with the present.
The Christianity OF the Nineteenth Century not afraid
to walk hand in hand with the Paganism Of ancient Brit
ain OF the Goths and OF old Rome and fraternizes
with the oldest OF all the religions or the worldthe vor-
ship Of God by the Jews We decorate our homes and
churches because God commanded the Jews OF old Ia
decorate "the OF the House Of Cod their own
courts and houses and the Gates Of the City with olive
branches and palm branches and branehe thick trees
during the Feast Tabernaces We have introduced the
festivities OF Roman saturnaa with their merry greet
ings presents. peaceOerngs, feasng games and dane
ing Christmas obseryances. In the yule los re
membered the old Gothic rejoicing at the feast OF Jue 81
Yule In the mystic msetoe preserve the emblem OF
the worship Of the ancient Druids In our Christmas
carols repeat the gloria in eIcess OF the angels Ia
that commonplace. but to the youthful mind delicious
connection. the mnce pie, have the emblem of the
casket containing gold frankncense and myTrb which
Mechoir, King of Nuba, Balthazzar, King OF Chsdea
and Jasper, the Ethiopian King Of rshis, those three
OF the East whose bones were brought to Eu-
rope by Helena, the daughter of the Emperor conssn-
tine to the infant Savior hen ytte chylde
| of xiii dayes ode"
One Of the old English ballads shows rs how rigdly
Christmas and Christmas customs observed in by
: | gone times One OF the runs thus:
Now Mrs Bettye prsye get up and rise
\ Hyou nenie o make your, Christmas pyes
| scosriaS be pewtre falss TO Cisley's share
Ard Margery clesne the house tAke
And lette Dsrs ingenuie be scene
In deeEinge all the wiudowes up sth greene"
From Herrcks verses on Candlemas Eve, We get
glimpse OF those curious old superstons attached "
Christmas decorations
| Dows with the Rosmsrie, and
l with the Bales and iseoe;
| with the Holly. Iyie all
| wherewith drest the Christmas Hall
| That o superstition, find
Not one least Branch there left behind;
For look how many leaves
| Neglected there, maids, 0 me-
SO many gobhns you shall see7
1t sundoubtedy from the customs OF ancient paeapism
that the more festive characteristics OF Christmas are
derived At this period OF the year the Romans held
saturnalis rejOicngs that the had passed the
Winter sostice At the same the Persians
shipped the under the figure OF Mithras their
Light and the Ph9ncians held rel ous holidays in honor
Of Baal Bel, their God Of the The Druids
shipped Tutanes and the Goths and scandna vaps their
God Thor. The scythians did honor their God Wodn
| who WAS afterward imported into Saxon mythology.
The singing Of Christmas carols IL almost cocyal with
the establishment Of Christianity. the early ages Il
the Christian Church, the Bishops ia the habit of
singing carols with their clergy. The word carol de-
rived from cantare. sing and roia, word expressive
Of great JOY. which, though at first only applying to
solemn ecclesiastical hymns has in the OF many
centuries been brought TO comprise variety Of secular
chants connected with Christmas Carol singing undoubt
edy had origin in the gloria sroeiss OF the angels
| cinrt ha lnfG IN nc
has some Paradise Lost which bear testimony to
this:
| His place Of birth a solemE angel tells
To simple shepherds keeping watch by Biytt;
They gladly thrilling haste AL by choir
Ofsqusarond sbyrA bear Hi. carol sung
In the many Christmas candles early Chris
tians symbozed the coming true light of the world
now they indispensable TO the modern Christmas
tree what OF the turkeys and mince pies, without
which Christmas dinner would be dinner ut all The
Christmas turkey is by means invention OF tho
gornets Of the nineteenth century the following old
lines will prove:
"Ye, mus be haunt hi, greedy landlords hall
| With oarn presents each festival
| With crAmmed espons every Christmas NON,
Or with green cheesss when bic sheep are sho'n
The mince pie Of the period one OF those decAces
which Puritan forefathers studously avoided, be-
IT standing dish on the Christmas tables OF
the quasi Catholic and therefore doatrous Cavaliers To
such an extent did The Purans In Cronwels time carry
their dislike OF Christmas festivities that many lam
pooh and humorous dstych in consequence written
about them. An old song Gays
Al pums the prophets sons dsny,
AMI spee-brots too hot
Treasons in December pie
| And death within the pot"
And again, another old song. In auding TO THE pun
tanic dislike OF Diince pies, says
| "The high shoe lords Of Cron~eirs nslins
Were 10, Tor dsindss-rcastins baking;