The record-union., 1891-01-18
How He Won His Way to Triumph
in This Country.
AN HISTORY DAY IN THE ANNALS
OF THIS COUNTRY.
The Puritans Against Making the Time
One of Recreation-The Christmas
introduced by the Germans-The
Day In the Revolution.

enL IT1ullpndHt pOSitiOH. wien liiiS
country received its first settlers in Vir-
ginia, things went badly; there was very
little TO be merry about, provisions were
poor and scanty, church rooted with
sail cloth, no young children to prattle
and talk of what Christmas and its holi-
days were to bring, so King Christmas
was hardly recognized.
But other English settlers came further
north; and King Christmas may have
expected greater honor at their hands.
They were stern rebels to his authority :;
they would not recognize him at all. Some
few of the people wished to keep the first
Christmas as a holiday, and let work
stand over for day, but their leaders
would not crafty them. King Christmas,
they knew, had many loyal adherents III
England, and they did not wish TO arouse
their anger. So they declared any man
might rest from work on December 25th
If he chose, but that only those who
worked should have anything 10 eat that
Gay. This settled the question; to keep
Christmas with nothing TO eat, and nothing
to drink but ice water from the nearest
brook, was not keeping Christmas at all.
They all gave in, thinking sadly OF the
merry days in their older land. a chron-
icler wrote: "Monday, the 25th day, we
went on shore, some TO fell timber, some
to saw, some to rive, and some to carry
so no man rested all that day"
When, nearly ten years atterward, the
Puritans came in force to settle around
Boston, they, too, joined IN the rebellion
against King Christmas, and woe betide
the merrymaker who wished to keep the
day The statute book furnished a clause
for the punishment OF any one observing
the day with any festivity. The diff
Guilty, however, OF repressing the joyous
spirit OF the day is shown in the colonial
records Of an early Christmas. They say:
ION ye day called Christmas Day this
was in 162D ye Goy'r called them out to
worke (as was used, but We most of this
new company excused themselves and
said it went against their consciences to
worke on ye day. SO ye Gov'r tould
them that if they made it a matter of con-
science, he would spare them till they
were better informed. SO he led away ye
rest and left them; but when they came
home at nOone from their worke, he
found them in ye streete at play, openly;
some pitching ye barr, and some at Stoole-
ball and sluch like sports. So he went to
them and tooke away their implements,
and tould them that was against his con-
science that they should play and others
worke. If they made ye keeping of it
matter of devotion, let them kepe their
houses, but ther should be no gameing or
revelling in we streets. Since which time
nothing hath been attempted that way, at
least openly"
1t was not until William III took away
the charter of Massachusetts that King
Christmas managed TO obtain recognition
in New England. A Kings chapel was
established i'll Boston, and there, at least,
Christmas Day was kept, and q few Epis-
copalianS began to gather together and
honor Christmas in a quiet way, but the
people around shook their heads in disap-
proval.
But where the Dutch settled around
Hudson's River, King Christmas was in
higher honor. The Dutch were jolly,
good-humored, fond OF children and fond
of seeing them happy. st. Nicholas. the
patron OF children and sailors, was greatly
respected by young and old. He was
represented with three children in a tub.
Old Dutch ships were so much like tubs
that, seeing the tub, the sailors took him
for their patron; and the children all ad-
mired ST. Nicholas, or Santa Claus, as
they called him, although they did not
like Rupert, his attendant, who carried
switches for the naughty children.
st. Nicholas and King Christmas seem
to have had an understanding with each
other. At any rate, the Saint gave up his
own particular Gay in the calendar, sent
Rupert off, and assumed the dress of old
Christmas, with his winter dress and
snowy hair. He became the special man
ager of Christmas for the King in New
Netherland. Old and young looked for
ward to Christmas and the Christmas
holidays; such preparation III barn-yard
and kitchen; such fattened turkeys and
geese; such pies and crullers and dough
nuts; such preparations among the chill
dren to propitiate Santa Claus, gatt hettig
man :,
King Christmas ruled wherever the
Dutch spread up the North River, over OF
Long Island, up the Sound and over in
Jersey, from Bergen and Communipaw
to the banks of the Hackensack and
Raritan. And all was cheerful and bright
there from Chistmas Eve to the close OF
New Years Day. When English settlers
came to elbow out the Dutch i'll Jersey,
and settle Pennsylvania, they were chiefly
men Of Puritan stamp, who set up meet
ing houses and believed in George Fox;
and much as they disliked each other,
they agreed on refusing to recognize King
Christmas or honor his day; and they
looked askance at their jolly Dutch neigh
borS. But this could not go on forever.
Virginia, as soon as it began to prosper,
and Maryland from the outset, followed
in time by South Carolina, settled in the
bright days of the Merry Monarch, We're
Royalist to the core. They honored the
King, and especially King Christmas, and
kept his feast right royalty in the old
English way. The Maryland pilgrims in
the Ark and Dove kept their first Christ
mas at sen, and seem to have overdone
the matter, as two men killed themselves
by their excessive honor to the King.
In the Southern colonies the churches
and houses Were decked with green's; the
bounteous board was spread; Christmas
came with all its religious and social
rights; the poor, the indentured servant
and the slave were kindly remembered,
and bounty filed even their homes with
plenty and gladness, so that everywhere
on Christmas people gathered around the
nhHnrflll rirpS and thn
and songs sung, sending out with the
light of the windows CLEANS of cheer and
welcome to all without. Old games and
amusemeiits peculiar to England were
kept up with zest. The young enjoyed
their blind-man's buff and other si1orts.
snap6ragon and hunt-the-siipper. The
plum pudding came in smoking and de-
Gcious; the wild fowl, geese and turkeys,
and canvasback and veniaon were as
toothsonle as the best roast beef of old
England or the boar's head of the castle.
As the mistletoe is not uncommon, the
woods supplied that plant so identified in
England with the Christmas holidays It
was hung up with honor, and all the
privileges claimed. Then, too, the Yule
log was dragged in by the young men
cheerily and the fire lit before it with cer-
emony. The two great wax tapers
mas candles, stood on the sideboard, to
be lighted at supper time on Christmas
Eve. And the next day opened with
carols, and the churches were thronged
when the bells rang out their glad sum-
mons. The day had the religious char
acter of Sunday, with none of the strict
ness of observance, for merry bands of
amateur musicians Went round. The
dinner was the strong point, and in the
houses of the well-to-do the punch bowl
was brought in, and when the banquet
ended the afternoon was given up
z<,fe. IL