, 1878-05-31
Hares and Easter Eggs.

II would be difficult to eSplaln "hci Z
came the notion that "The hares lay the
Easter eggs" Queer hares they must be'
indeed, but German children believe II
AZ deyou,ly as they do that the "Christ,
kind" brings their Christmas presents, OF
~ our own little ones do in Santa Claus
No one knows exactly whence came this
myth. Many think it relic of heathen
Worship; but writer named Chrlstoph
Won Schm;d, in an interesting story fol
children, suggests this much prettieI ori'
gin:
MANY hundred years ago, a good and
noble lady, Duchess RosiIinda Won Lin
denburg, at time when cruel war was
devastating the land, was obliged to fly
from her beautiful home in Germany, &C,
.companied only by her two children and
one old man.servant.
They found refuge in small mining
village in the mountains, where the sim
pie but conteDted and happy inhabitants
did what they could for their comfort,
and placed the best of all they had at the
disposal of the wanderers. Nevertheless,
their fare was miserable; no meat was
ever to be found, seldom fish, and not
even an egg; this last for the very good
reason that there was not single hen in
the village These useful domestic
fowls, now so common everywhere, were
originally brought from the East, and had
not yet found their way to this secluded
place. The people had not even heard of
such strange birds" This troubled the
kind duchess, who we'll knew the great
help they are in housekeeping, and she
determined that the women who had
been so kind to her should no longer be
without them.
Accordingly, the next time she sent
forth her faithful old servant to try and
gather news of his master aud Of the pro,
gress of the war, she commissioned. him
70 bring back with him coop full OF
fowls. This he did, to the great surprise
of the simple natives, and the village
children were greatly excited a few weeks
later at the appearance of a brood OF
young chickens. They we're so pretty
and bright, were covered with such soft
down, were so open-eyed, and could run
about after their mother to pick up food the
very first day, and were altogether such
% contrast to the blind, bald, unhedged,
helpless, ugly little birds they sometimes
saw in nests in the hedges, that they
could not find words enough to express
their admiration.
The good lady now saved up eggs for
some time, then invited all the house
wives OF the village to feast, when she
set before them eggs cooked in a variety
of ways, She then taught them how to
prepare them for themselves, and, dis
tribuliDg a number OF fowls among them,
sent the danes home grateful and happy
When Easter approached, she WAS srx-
ious to arrange some pleasure for the
village children, but had nothing to give
them, "not even an apple or NUT" only
some eggs; but that, she concluded was
after all, an appropriate Offering, las an
egg is the first gift Of the reviving
spring" And then it occurred TO her to
boil them with moses and roots that
woul1 give them variety of brilliant
colors, las the earth" said she, "has just
laid aside her white mantle, and deco,
rated herself with many colors; for the
dear God makes the fruit and berries not
only good 10 eat, but also pleasant tc
look Upon,' and the children's pleasure
would be all the greater.
Accordingly, on Easter Sunday, after
the church service, all the little
ones Of about the age of her
own met together in a garden; and
when their kind hostess had talked ia
them awhile, she led them into a small
neighboring wood. There she told them
to make nests OF moss, and advised each
to mark well his or her own. All then
returned to the garden, where feast OF
milk-soup with eggs and egg.cakes had
been prepared. Afterward they went
back to the wood, and found to their
great joy In each nest five beautiful col.
ored eggs, and on one of these short
rhyme was written.
The surprise aud delight of the little
ones when they discovered a nest of the
gaily colored treasures, was very great
aud one Of them exclaimed
"How wonderful the hens must be that
can lay such pretty eggs How l should
like ~ see them"
-"Oh! no hens could lay such beautiful
eggs answered little girl. ~ think il
must have been the little hare that spranl
out of the juniper bush when | wanted t
build my nest there"
Then all the children laughed together
and said, THE bares lay the cOlored eggs
Yes, yes the dear little hares lay th'
beautiful eggs" And they repeated i
1iiI they began to believe it.