The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1883-12-27
The Original Santa Claus.


Santa Claus" is an interesting archa-
ism carrying the mind agreeably back
ward to those old times which always
have such charm for the critical in
vestigations or poetic reveries OF men.
This cheerful Christmas legend was
quite new thing to most OF us few
years ago-to those, at least, who got
their ideas of such things from the
literature of our own language. Santa
Claus has come, as everybody IS aware,
from Germany TO the new world; and
the curiosity of this matter is that in
thus coming over the sea he underwent
q certain remarkable kind of transform
ation-a sort of sea change. He was
once honored in Deutchland or Ger
many (for both of these names have ex-
actly the same meaning III the Celtic)
as a child, fact which none of the
German critics or philologers have con-
descended to notice, at least in any dis
tinguishable way.
IDuLbA Aidlo WIS Ollt VI TIC OANtSoO
ideas of the Celtic West in Pagan times,
as he was of the Pagan East before. In
Christian times he was still regarded
with religious reverence, sitting, as he
had sat for ages in Egypt and else
where, in the arms Of his mother.
Santa Claus was. IN fact, the child
Jesus in the middle ages; and through
out that period the festive creed of
Germany and all Celtic Europe was that
he visited all family dwellings OF good
| Christians on the eve OF his anniversary,
and brought with him gifts and bless
ings for the children. This beautiful
tradition is still to be found lingering in
Germany, though Santa Claus does not
seem to be specially connected with it
by name. The truth of this original
belief is plainly enough indicated
by the word claus, which, in
the gothic or ancient German,
means child" and "son." Santa
Claus formerly meant the Holy Child'
1t is not very difficult to see how the
chan ge of mems religious beliefs 800
or 400 years ago changed the charac-
ter of the legend Those who had put
away Catholic sentiment in religion,
and wished TO have their own or more
dignifed sort, thought it too rude and
simple a thing to make that holy child
bring knick-nacks and sweetmeats to
! the children down the chimney, and so,
! by degrees, altered the old idea, max
! ing it genial, secular fancy in the per-
son of benevolent and Jolly old man,
such as the Germans and others have
welcomed for many generations, and
we in this country have generally rec
ognized of late years. He is such g
CHEEKY and felicitous old fancy that
nobody would ever have thought of
challenging him III any respect, but for
the great mistake, so long ago commit
ted, of sending him about the world
back, as it were He really should HIM
self have remembered, with the rest of
his recollections, that his name is inter-
preted in Schiller or Buxhorn 1--WE for
get which,, and should have chosen
another.
This statement supported as it is by
the old Christian traditions clinging
around the present season of the year,
will commend itself, perhaps, to the
critics of the old customs and old Ian
guage But "the rest OF mankind don't
see it, and, in reply to that Gothic lexi-
con, eXclaim, in the words of Giles
Scroggins ghost, that's no rule!"
Santa Claus will still be the old man
with the beard and the frosty face
frosty, but kindly" And, indeed,
very properly. The popular instinct.
that is, in these our modern times
was right in setting that image of the
child aside. 1t belonged to a far pro-
founder sentiment than that of mere
household game, pastime and festivity,
was inevitably displaced by q genera
ton in whom the simple old beliefs and
reverence of departed ages lived no
longer After ALL it was lucky that
Santa Claus was turned so very oppor-
timely into an old man. The other idea
could never have come down to such a
matter-of-fact age as this, and orr
Christmas would have wanted the hap
piest genius of its festivity-the Santa
Claus of the German vaterland.