The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1877-01-06
January Magazines.
SCrilbner's.

Scribners.
Those who have read Judge Cations re-
remarkable book on Norway will take es
pecial interest in the article in the January
Scrbner's on Norway, by Prof Boyescn, OF
Cornell. Himself Norseman, he yet writes
with an impartial discrimination that cannot
fail to give the reader clear and corret idea
of the life In this interesting nation. As APP
lpropriate to the season, we make a brief alb.
stract, showing how the Norwegians keep
Christmas:
| The preparations for the Yule-tide, IN the
way of provisioning the house, would, to
American eyes, look perfectly enormous.
Baking and brewing ana bulchering keep the
whole household busy during the last three
weeks preceding the festival. And the fact
that the process is repeated year after year
probably proves that it is necessary. Every
man, woman or child who comes within q
stones throw Of the house during the holidays
which last until week after New Years.
must be invited in and urged to eat and drink
without regard for comfort Even the birds
are to have their share of the Christmas JOY
AS soon as the church. bells have "rung in the
feast" at five o'clock in the afternoon of
Christmas Eve, the father OF the house takes
his richest sheai of oats or barley and at
taches IL TO the end Of pole, which is nailed
to the gable OF the barns or the stOrc.houses.
The mother and the children stand by enjoy
ing the sight of the happy birds tlu,terng
around the sheaf, while the father will per
haps quote the passage about Gods care even
for toe sparrow, wherefore ii is right that the
sparrow too should rejoice on the day when
Christ was born.
Among the many evening visitors which
are sure 10 drop in TO taste the Christmas
brew, some are apt to be disguised by gro
tesque masks, and otherwise Enthusiastically &C
coleIed. These are called Yule bucks, p, =
sibly because the most common mask may
have on Is that ola goat or some other horned
creature. At present do not know that any
special kind Of "a guise is preferred The
rule seems to be, The more grotesque, the
better.
The German custom Of having poor chill
dreh wander about on Christmas Eve, carry
ing a large lighted star Of canvas, represent
ing the star of Bethlehem, prevails also in
Norway M one can hear their shrlll, tiny
voices in the snow under his window, singing
the dear familiar carols, and refuse them their
well-earned penny.
A very interesting and prolusely illustrated
contribution IN the January Scrbner is from
the pen Of Gen Geo. H. Mcclellan, under the
title of "a Winter on the Nile" He discusses
the khedive's improvements, the organiZa-
ton of the Egyptian army, the slave trade,
&c. The third illustrated paper is that In
which Charles Barnard continues the subject
of cooperation IN England, the present art.
Gle being devoted 10 the Shaftesbury Park
Building Association Of London. Clarence
Cook has another instructive article on house.
hold decoration; and the other illustrated pa
pers are "a sketch of John Burroughs" with
portrait by Joel Benton; "Llverworts and
Ferns, "by Mrs 5. b, Herrick; "Day Dreams"
a poem of New England life, by Hannah r.
| Hudson; DR. Hollands nicholas Minturn,"
in which there is shipwreck; and papa
HORNS Tulip" by r. Y. c. Meyers, an ex-
,ravagunza with laughable silhoucltes by
Howard Pyle.
Then GENES the usual installment OF lighter
reading, of which My Friend Noses" by
the author of Helen Babies, will be most
eagerly read. DR.. Holland is luminous, as
usual, in Topics of the Times, and Home and
Society, Culture and Progress, and the other
! departments are always well filed.