Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1879-12-26

Much Grudltlon has been wasted
in establishing the chronology of
Christmas, but its sincereSt belief is
found in those little heads that are
50 innocent Of all learning. What
care the children whether the
festival dates from the days of the
Romans, or of the Colts, whether
the calendar is FIVE or ten years or
only u month or two more iuaecu-
rate in its chronicle of the birth of
the Saviour than the register Of an
English parish church, Theirs is
the faith that needs no figures TO
rest upon. They accept the religion
that comes from Palestine, the
Christmas tree and the Santa Claus
from old Germany, the sumptuous
feastings from old England, and
best of all to the childish heart
the gift-giying that venerable and
dry historians would tell the little
ones, if they could only be got to
listen to them, come down to us
from those great borcs, the ancients, /,
though probably the highly intel
lgent heathens never had any gift
season SO exclusively Juvenile as this
of ours, in which even tho oldest of
its gay worshipen enjoy themselves
only as they can become children
again.
So identified is Christmas cheer
with youthful joy that we can
think of no sadder life than a
childhood without any Christmas
in it. The old soul oyergrown with
the selfish cares of the world may
not be made much the more selfish
10y ignoring festival which it
could not enjoy, but the hearts ofthe
little children, all full of affection
ate impulses and longings for that
blessedness of receiving, which in
their case isso unsbripturally great
er than that of giving, are visited
with great wrong when bereft Of
the Christmas tide of happiness
that marks the true observance of
the day.
II all the household economy
there is no expenditure that brings
back so rich Il return as the amount,
be IL tens or hundreds of cents or
dollars, that Saint Nicholas sets
down ON the credit side Of his big
ledger, under the head OF Christmas
expenses, II takes 30 little W make
a child happy that no parent can
afford TO save the cost Of a merry
Christmas. God pity the man Ono
woman could be SO mean) who can
shut his soul up inside Of his wallet
at this season of good will on
earth.
Is il not almost paridoxically
strange that in this cold cline OF
ours the festival of festivals should
be the celebration Of that old-time
incident in the far-oif Orient, where.
under SO different II civilization,
Christ, the Lord, was born. But
few of us can even imagine, much
less appreciate, the peculiar nomad.
ic, almost wild, Jewish life out OF
which the religion typiiied by
Christ and materialized in Christ.
mas, originated so long ago. Yet
here, under the shadow Of the arctic
zone, we celebrate by glowing fires
and with rejoicings that owe much
of their zest to the crisp frostiness
of our polar air, the great pastoral
that was enacted in the land of the
palm and oil and wine. From d
country where such households AZ
these English-spcaking homes oI
ours, in which the iiresidc stands
for the family altar, are to this day
unknown, we have inherited u
faith that has made these homes
all the dearer, purer and holier.
We can not imagine such n
Christmas Us ours, with its hearty
enjoyment Of indoor and iire-sidc
and leastings and sports, as being
celebrated III that iar-oil'land from
whence il came. There il an old
Saxon heartiness about Christmaa
Us We know il, that is born Of rud
dicr blood than ever flowed III
Judean veins, that comes from tht
far north Of Europe, and is allied
with the robust living and sturdy
enioyments that those rough old
conquerors brought into our grand.
mother country and made the
basis of what we are wont 10 call
our Anglo-Saxon civilization.
For a genuine celebration Of the
Christmas that we have inherited
with our language, there must be
winter with its unkindly outdoor
weather, the home with its fires
and welcome within, and a North.
ern language, maybe Teutonic
maybe Scandinavians; or maybe
English, but any rate blunt and out.
spoken. And these we have. and
with them we can right joyfully
keep up the custom, centuries old
! nf making orr hofnp9 haDI,v in