The Canton advocate. [volume] (Canton, D.T. [S.D.]) 1877-1897, 1878-04-23

nQlu Oh 10 your gOOO character, tor 1t
is, and ever will be, your best wealth.
Easter In Germany.
"Oh, look! look! all those pretty little
Easter things in the window already!"
exclaimed my little sister one day, as
We passed one of the largest CONNECTION.
cry stores in Stuttgart; and, true enough,
though Lent was but half over, there
they were, pretty show. Eggs, Of
course, i'll quantities and of all sizes,
from that of an ostrich to humming
birds, made Of chocolate or of sugar,
and gayly decorated with little ribbons
and pictures. Then there were fat little
unfedged chickens, some just emerging
from their shells, some not an inch long,
and Others large as life; pure white
lambs, with ribbons and bells round their
necks; paste-eggs, with holes at the ends,
and, looking through, behold, a panorama
inside! and eggs with roses on one side,
which, when blown upon, emit musical
sound.
But odder than all these were the
goats playing on guitars, or dragging be-
hind them fairy-like egg-shaped car
riages, with little hares gravely driving;
and lin. others of these carriages were
reclining one or two generally two)
baby hares, or hare mother rocking her
little one in an egg cradle; there were
sugar balloons, in the baskets of which
hares have watched over their nests full
of eggs; wheelbarrows full of eggs, and
trundled by a hare; and dainty baskets
of flowers, with birds perched upon each
handle, peering down into nests of eggs
half hidden amidst the blossoms. When
one knows that each nest comes out, and
forms the cover to box of b0nbons
neatly concealed underneath, this pretty
structure certainly loses none of its at
Effectiveness.
In all directions signs of the approach
ing season begin to appear. Every old
woman in the market-place offers for sale
store of hard-boiled eggs, smeared over
with some highly-colored varnish, be-
sides candy chickens, hares, etc. in
abundance. All the various shop win
dows display pretty emblematic articles.
Besides the sugar and chocolate eggs,
there are eggs of soap and glass: egg
shaped baskets and reticules; leather
eggs, which really are ladies' compan-
ions, and filled with sewing implements;
wooden eggs and porcelain eggs, and even
egg-shaped locket made of solid gold.
Easter Monday is looked upon as a
grand holiday by the peasantry in many
parts of Germany. Weddings are otter
deferred to this day, and many village
games are reserved for this season. The
lads and lassies all appear in their gala
costumes; the girls with short, dark
skirts, braided with gold or silver, snowy
aprons and full white sleeves, bright
colored bodices and odd little caps; the
boys with knee-breeches, white stock
ings, low shoes and scarlet or yellow
vests, the solid gold or silver buttons on
which are often their whole inheritance.
But when they are dancing gayly togeth-
er on the green. they look a good deal
happier than if they were little kings
and queens.
Games vary in different villages
throughout the country, but one exam
pie will give some idea of what they are
like.
Two Of the leading young men of the
place take entire charge Of the days
selecting for the purpose as
the scene of festivities some inn or
Wirthschott, to which is attached large
garden or meadow.
For several preceding evenings, when
work is over, they 60 about from house
to house, dressed in their best, and car
rying large baskets on their arm. Every
where they are kindly received, and
bread with wine or cider is placed before
them. While they eat and drink the
baskets are quietly slipped away by some
member of the family, generous dona-
they are secretly returned to their
places, The eggs are not asked for,
neither are they alluded to in any way;
but the object of the visit is well under
stood and prepared for long beforehand.
When Monday morning dawns, the
inn is found to have been gayly decor.
ated with garlands of green and flowers,
and auttering ribbons of many colors
The tree nearest the house is ornamented
in like manner, and on it the prize to be
contended for, conspicuously hangs. On
the smooth grass hard by, strip, a few
feet wide and perhaps a hundred long,
has been roped in, and at either end Of
this narrow plot a large, shallow, round
bottomed basket, called Wanne, is
placed, one filled with chaff and the
other with eggs, dozens upon dozens,
cooked and raw, white and colored.
The plan of the peculiar game which
followsis that one player is pitted to run
a given distance, while another safely
throws the eggs from one basket to the
other, he who first completes his task
being, of course, the winner. Accord
ingly, when the young men and maidens
have arrived, two leaders draw lots to de-
termine who shall run and who shall
throw. That decided, the contestants
are gayly decked with ribbons, band
strikes up a lively air, a capering clown
clears the way. and the game begins. He
who throws takes the eggs, and one after
another swiftly whirls them the length
of the course, and into the chaf-flled