The Wellington enterprise. [volume] (Wellington, Ohio) 1867-188?, 1880-12-16
CHRISTMAS IN GERMANY.

uay In the year, mas yet pecullarlty
about it that holds enthusiasm in SUBJ
lection. Whatever is boisterous in this
glorious Yankee Nation comes to the
surface on the Fourth of July,
and recedes from sight for the
next three hundred and sixty
four DAYS. There is a warm glow in
our Christmas celebration, but it never
reaches the flaming-up stage. 1t is
otherwise in many older countries. In
America the day has certain religious
brought over the water thing already
shapen. and it never took on any but
Christian aspects. But in other coun-
tries. especially those bordering on the
Baltic and German oceans, in which a
stalwart mythology struggled tenacious
ly with the new faith centuries after
the Latin countries had been converted,
many customs still retain the impression
of those boisterous old pagan jewellers.
and none more than Christmas.
In America Santa Claus comes on
noiseless runners. The tinkle, tinkle
of his reindeers' bells is only heard by
guardian angels; on tip-toe he creeps
by the bed, and as noiselessly slips out
~ 10 Aahteicls ah AhuoAon W
weave into fairy tale.
But how different in the land of the
German! It is time for the very gods
of thunder. Impatient for the day, the
tide sets in strongest on Christmas eve.
Well is it called P0lter-dbend--" Racket
eve." Here the enjoyment is full and
even supreme; but there it always bub-
bles over, and often becomes madden
fyHp Tho finn hnD;rc a
streets are dark and the lamps are
lighted, and continues well on till mid
night. tFTfi = .-I
= SAt the approach of evening the chill
dren are huddled in a remote part of
the house on one pretense or another,
but somehow, they know what is up,
and. while they conform to keep up the
delusion, they fairly tremble with ex-
citement, and with difficulty subdue
their feelings. 1t is long half-hour
or more they are compelled to wait,
but finally the summons comes, they
enter the parlor, and there the lighted
Christmas-tree bursts upon them in all
its glory. The gifts for the little ones
hang upon it in profusion, but nothing
for the elders.
1t would be a waste of time to de-
scribe the scenes about a Christmas
tree. This, in modified form. is even
an American institution, and hence the
reader can draw the picture for him
self. But what now follows may be
new to him.
An hour or more having been de-
voted to the joys of the children, and
the surprises of the Christmas-tree add
ing gladness to gladness. the company
is suddenly startled by veritable din
of demons. Has crockery store gone
to smash at the very door? There are
shouts from the male members, shrieks
but half suppressed from the woman
folk, there is real alarm among the
smaller children, to whom the ways
of Po,ter-abeal are yet new, but, some
how, there is a simultaneous rush for
the street-door, and a universal inquiry
.. For whom?" t... ..- =.
For weeks before Christmas there is
in every family a great boarding of
cracked crockery-ware. AS amatter of
fact, the boarding goes on all the year
round. Every disabled jar or Jug is
stored away for Polter-abend. This is
the mothers mission, for well she knows
that about. Christmas eve the bigger
boys of the family will be coming
around in great stress. hunting through
every nook and Granny for something to
make n clatter and racket with, and it
frequently happens, if the provident
housewife has not provided the cracked
article-saved the pieces, so to speak
the boys in their zeal will make pieces
of what is yet whole, for anything is
forgiven on Christmas eve, and prudent
mothers keep their pickle and preserve
jars well out of reach. 1t is anything to
make a racket with! And surely there
is nothing equal to dropping ten-gal-
Ion jar on the tagging in front of the
door, accompanied by a tremendous
banging against the door itself Some
times the frolic takes even a rough turn,
and many door gets split with sound
cudgeling.
Except when mischievous bows make
merry with tricks--and they surely do,
for-the temptation is irresistible-th
unearthly racket means that Santa Claus
has just dropped a present in front of
the door, and, in his mad hurry, instead,
like decent folk, getting out of his
sleigh and ringing the bell, he simply
gives one Of his unearthly yells, and is
away.
We haye seen everybody rushing to
the door. One of the big boys reaches
the outside first--and well he might,
for he has been on the alert, knowing
that his still bigger brother had only
moment before slipped out to make the
clatter. 1t is great bundle that he
picks up, and is marked Mother"
1t is joint present from all the chill
dren, and before the bundle is opened
the mother goes around, with the glad
dest tears in her eyes, and gives them
all kiss.
Then such a time as there is opening
the bundle. Perhaps the present is a
pair OF earrings, and yet the bundle is
as big as weeks washing, and
wrapped about as il it were the inten-
ton to express it to the antipodes.
"Wbat fol-de-rolr' some old curmud-
geon may exclaim. "What fun, what
glorious fun" say oil the merry family.
Aofhar aaaaYa tn ofaaf TIM hsandln hn,.