The morning star and Catholic messenger. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1868-1881, 1875-11-28
A CHRISTMAS RECOGNITION.

We were old. fashioned people at Aldred, and
Christmas was our special holiday. The house
was always filed with guests, not such as
houses, but such as cared for good old fash
toned cheer and Anticipated habits. Not all
we're relations: for we never asked relations
to the regulation mixing of o conventional
Christmas party, but among our own people
were many whose presence at our Christmas
gatherings was as certain as the recurrence of
the festival itself. Among them was O great
aunt, q soft, mild old lady, always dressed in
widow's weeds, bat with face as fresh as g
girls and hair white as the snowy cap she
wore to conceal it. She had not come alone,
for her adopted son was with her, the promised
husband of her only child, dead years ago. He
had left his own home and people, like Ruth,
for the lonely, chldless woman whom he was
to have called mother, and remained her in
separable companion through her beautiful
these, young girl whose aspect was peculiar
and attractive, and whose manner had in its
mixture Of m9desty ar, and reliance s ,a
person. She had come with distant cousin of
hers, widow of different type from our dear
old relative, and whose object in chaperonin1g
Miss Houghton must have been mixed. She
was small, blonde coquettisb, and thirty two,
though no one " ould have taken her for more
than twenty Ave. She looked soft, pliable,
irresolute, and tender, and men often found in
her o repose which was soothing contrast to
her cousins energetic, peculiar, somewhat
eccentric ways; only it was the repose yielded
by downy cushion, and people wearied of it
after while. The secret of the apparent
partnership between those two opposite
lures was perhaps this: the widow had a rich
jointure, and was an excellent parti while her
cousin was portionless. Miss Houghton was
TINS doubly foil to Mrs Burtleigh.
] shell not speak of the other guests in de-
tail, with the exception of one whom 1t would
be impossible to overlook. He was q man
nearer forty than thirty-fve, good humored
and careless to all appearance, q hard worker
in the battle Of Of life oosmopoiitssIn phiioso
can sew on q button, cook an onelet, and kiss
bride as easily aud unconcofnedly as they
gallop across country horsewhip villain.
ing for an English railway company, and he
had spent some years in the East the land.
kSeW as we'll as We knew p Adred, WhiIe the
year he had been absent from us had been
filled by new aud stirring experiences in Upper
Egypt. But forget we have yet to speak OF
many little details of Cbrstmas-tid which
preceded the gathering in of the whole party
Tho kitchen department wac, of course, con-
spicuous on this occasion. This included the
village poor, who were regularly assembled
every day for soup until Christmas eve when
each household received joint of beef and q
hue plum-pudding Some of US went round
the villa ge in q sleigh. and distributed tea and
suRar as supplementary items. 1t was q
traditional Ynle tide, for the snow lay soft
even, and thick over the roads, as it but seldom
does in England. Then the school was visited
and solidly provisioned, the children were in
Vited to q monster tea with accompaniment o.
y msgio-lantern show, after which the prize.
were to be distributed, as we'll as warm cloth
ing for the winter season. Nothing said
of the Christmas tree, as that was kept as
surprise
The decoration of house and chapel was
wonderful and prolonged business, and a ffordet
great amusement. Holly grew in profuson a
Aldred, and q caTtload of the bright berriet
evergreen was brought to the house the dR!
preceding Christmas eve. The people we havt
made acquaintance with were already with us
1,a1wN Nl
tious. Such fun as there was when Mis-
HoughtoB insisted upon browning the marble
bust of the Indian Rrandee, Rammohun Roy
with holly wreath, and when Mrs. Burtlei e.
gave pretty, lady-like little cry she prick eC
her fingers with the glossy leaves! The child
rem of the house and those of another house il
the neiRbbOrhood (orphan children whose
gloomy home made them perpetual source o
pity to us) were helping as unhelpfully as ever
but what of thatf 1t was o joyous animated
scene, and, still more, q romantic one; for the
traveller, who had claimed q former acquaint
ance with Miss Houghton, now seemed to be
como her very shadow-or knight, let as say
il is more appropriate to the spirit of festiva
so highly honored in medieval times Tht
chapel, beautiful Gothic building, small bu
perfect, was decorated with notices wrought
in leaves, such as Unto us Son is born, unit
rs . Child 10 given" and Gloria ia eroeisis Dec
= etc, while fcstoons of everGreens hung from
pillar to pillar, and draped the stone-carved
tribune at the western end with o living
tapestry. Round the altar were heaped il
rows, placed one higher than another, ever
greens OF every size and kind, mingled will
ialands of bright oamellas, the pride of the
renowned lighthouses of Aldred. White, red
and Streaked, the flowers seemed like start
among dark masses of clouds; and, when We
lit few of the tall candles to see the effect, il
was 80 solemn that we longed for the time tc
pass quickly, till the midnight Mass should
call forth ell the beauty of which we had seer
bue part
These decorations had been mainly tho woTl
% the traveller (whom, in traditional
familiarity, we called "Cousin Jim ~ and Of
ouE other friend the adopted son of our old
amt bnt, though their brains had conceived
Is was Miss Houghton's deft fingers thai
executed the work best. The last touch had
Suat been pus Co an immense cross of holly
which was TO be sWung from the ceiling, tC
aupply the place Of the rood that in old times
Rnardod the ohoiE-screen. A star of snow-WhitG
SamelIiaS WAS 70 DO poised just above it. and q
taIl ladder had been put Ia readiness to fsoili.
tote the delicate task. Miss Houghton stood
ether holding aloft the white star. Her friend