The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1892-12-25

like the New Years calls of the Knlcker-
bockers, except that no one gets drunk.
At Arnautkeui. at the narrow entrance to
the Black sea. every year the water Is
bles ed by q priest in the presence of as
many Creeks, Bulgarians and Russians as
can be present. After the blessing the
priest filings his large silver crucifx into the
river. Strong swimmers plunge into the
current amid the ice and snow. and the one
who secures the cruclfix ID held fortunate
above all his fellows.
Consul Gustave H. Gossler. of Brazil.
told me when l pumped the question
squarely at him that in all the Latin
American countries Christmas is mainly
observed as a religious or saints day
merely. 'There is, however," he said, "a
| large and growing lumber of people who
| have travelled and seen Christmas days in
America and northern Europe. or who have
! read of them in books. who reproduce the
festival faithfully, usually after the Ger
man plan. with loaded, lighted tree and the
hanging OF stockings. But they are the
minority; the wealthy people must haye
something different from the RES"
Signo Cesare Poma, vice-consul of Italy,
is an extremely handsome gentleman,
courteous and kindly. who has some diff
Guilty in managing our harsh Saxon conso-
nants. The Italians, he assured me. have
scarcely anything corresponding to our
Christmas tree celebrations, with gifts and
the like. "Of course" said he there ia
more or less giving Of gifts, but not es-
pecially at Christmas. The child l-ayss his
shoe on la cheminne-the mantel, Won call
it, and it is the good child, the Cambino
Jesu, who fills it. not st. Nicholas.
On Christmas day they have what they
call a 'presepio,' a representation of the
Nativity. where the figures of Mary and
st. Joseph, the holy child, the adorinp
kings. the OK and the ass. all cut out OF
paper and colored and placed in a little hu,
representing the stable. Outside ID the
hnow, rivers and NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. the
designer wishes. Sometimes the presepiof
are shown in church, and then the tigul et
are made of wood, life size, and the ap-
pointlnents are elegant"
And the carnival!" l asked.
"Oh, that has nothing to do with Christ
mas, though it begins the day after. 1t il
merely the season of winter fashion. opera
balls and the like, and closes at Ash We'd
nesday. The last week is carnival week,
when so many visitors come to see she con
fetti thrown aua the masquers."
The Rev. G. H.. Daniels, district secretary
of the American board of commissioners OF
foreign missions. said: ''Christmas is uni
versally celebrated at the missions in
China. Japan, India and else where, taking
precisely the shape that it has with us, 9
mingled tone of religious and home cheer
1t is even introduced into family lifo
though, of course, to a very slight extent a,
. 1850 ~ sSySf Aokl0
books and the hke are sent from this coun-
try, so that mt the same time that French
child en- are playing with Japanese dolls
japanese children may be gazing in speech
less wonder at the kind that grows ir
Paris"
Writers on Japan say that the Japanes,
are very fond of making trifinR presents, q
that they doubtless take kindly to q new
holiday with n gift attachment. especial,
an they take" religion much easier thar
the Chinese.
DO they have any Christmas in the FIJI
islands?" l nsked Mr.. William Churchill
tho author of "a P~lincess of Fiji" one O
the books of the season.
"Yes, indeed" replied Mr.. Churchill
'and very much OF a Christmas. You kno,
she islands are Methodist now, disnall
Methodist. Well. when midnight comes ii
a Fijian v~lilace-and it isn't n matter O
guesswork. either. when it comes, for the
the great southern Cross constellation
stands poised upright in the heavens
earlier or later it leans to right or left
when midnight comes, on Christmas eve
the girls gathered ut one side OF the Ion
village green. raise n song of JOY. Perhap
it is this. which was written by a native an,
set TO a native melody:
| kykoyn Ia mngu
:, hoi au Su luy0na
i Sa ieye oti mona dra
no JiBu no Crisaito.
+ (which means. literally. He Ia nv In
Their. / his son. His blood was split ali on
jesus the Chr St
Then from the other side of the gree
t the boys take the antistrophe, and last q