Fairhaven herald. [volume] (Fairhaven, Wash.) 1890-????, 1892-04-01
TIE CHRISTMAS TREE.

Observances in Different Countries In
Which "A Decorated Tree Is Used.
| or course the lgg Drasill Ash and the
| lrmen Saule are, geographically, the near
est archetypes OF the German Christmas
trees that have spread 50 much over Eng
land since the marriage Of our present
sovereign. But ON that pair OF grand SYM
Dol givers it is not needful here mlnutely
to dwell. Here at home, perhaps, the only
| genuine native instance of the Christmas
tree now easily discovered by us was the
wassail Tor vessel or wesley bob-that is
! bunch-of holly and other winter greens
put together like a bower" hung with
oranges, apples and colored ribbons, and
sometimes inclosing a pair of dolls also
| decked with ribbons, which was still car
! RED about on stick on Christmas day in
Yorkshire some forty or fifty years since.
Let us therefore, in default of better
take a flight to Japan, where we shall find
a dozen centuries ago in its sacred book,
the "hozhii1," the then doubtless most an
cient legend OF the adorable fve-hundred-
Told Saka tree, which the gods pulled up
| by the roots on the heavens mountain
kagu, and they then hung, as to its top
branches, with sacred jewels, mirror and
blue and white peace offerings to the shin
ing goddess Of the heavens, devoutly re-
| citing grand ritual the while.
This might almost have come from
Lucian, where he described those trees,
covered with ornaments and sacred attri-
butes, which were brought each year to be
burnt offerings in the temple of the god
dess Atcrgatis at Herapolis, Of Syria
And he gave US an even more savage
though cOcXistent type in the great trees
loaded with goats, sheep, garments and
gold and silver objects hanging to the
branches, which were burned before the
! Syro-Phgnician gods at the same fes-
tivaL The pine Of Cybele and Attis, as
still to be seen on the ancient bas-relefs
is hung with bells, a reed flute, wheel
and so on and there are sacred birds among
the branches and a ram and bull standing
for sacrifice beneath. Pictures and other
yOtive objects were attached to the laurel
of Apollo.
The central theory that PROFOUND for
all this and all other tree worship is that
the tree that was really worshiped, of
which all these decorated ex-voto'd trees
were mere idols, was the abstract universe
tree, whose trunk was the cosmic axis,
whose roots were in the under world and
whose branches spread alofJ into the skies
and bore up the heavenly hostess. Every
thing in nature grew on, was a fruit Of
this tree, which was the Hindoo parijata
and kalpavriksha, yielding all the objects
of desire (alias every mortal thing') and
also the lranian harvisptokhm, the tree Of
all seeds
But before dealing any further with
eastern instances, let us bark back TO Eng
land and look at one Of the strangest
survivals of this tree-which survival is
not in any way connected by date with
Christmas, remember in the Besant
which, until 1890, was carried in procession
with music at Shaftesbury (alias ShastonJ
on the Monday before Ascension THURSDAY
1t was trophy some four feet high, con
structcd ON framework and covered with
ribbons, flowers and peacock tail feathers
Around it were hung jewels, coins and
other objects of value lent by the local
gentry for the purpose. "Ilutchin's His
tory Of Dorset said in 1903 that this "be-
SON. or bryant was sometimes valued at
as much as 81 800 1t is futile to theorize
any but sacred pagan ritualistic origin
for this pulling and Qor the matter in
hand most important observance.
And if we now go eastward again, and
change the scene to Buddhist Siam, Ala
monies a framework made to represent a
tree whereto are tied lines and nutshells,
instead Of which are put lottery tickets
and money. These, which are called Kara
phruk (Kalpavriksha) fruits, arc scram bled
for by the crowd after the ceremony. And
the scavenger caste of upper India have
professions Of their deity Zahir Pr, in
which they carry a bamboo pole decked
with bright colored cloths and crowned by
huge bunch of peacock's tail feathers at
the top. Fans and punches Of cocoanuts
are also slung from the pole. The econ
ventional' made up tree that we see on
endless Babylonian cylinders was doubtless
a similar artificial Christmas" tree or
May QIattl, majus); and one of the biliu-
gual hymns translated by Professor Sayce
describes how the place Of the tree (of
which these idols were inevitably symbols)
is the central spot of the earth while its
fruits-obviously the stars-are of brilliant
crystal and reach into the liquid vast
National Observes.