Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1894-12-23
LORE OF YULE-TIDE.
Many Quaint and Curious Supsrstitions
Regarding Christmas.
LEGENDS ABOUT The WEATHER.
Legaciss Of Heather Days when tho Sun
Was NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. and Cakes
Go Hand In Hand.

play times. one OF THESE - Easter, tns
other In m,dwipter. during the Christ
mas holidays. IL Is a significant thing
that both these occasions are those
chosen as the times of heather festivals
closely connected witn the worship Of
the sun. When that beniicent luminary
turned back in his course he was
imagined a wheel, trundllng down the
zodiac. So late as 1870 a festival was
celebrated In his honor. at which
blazing wheel was rolled down q hill.
The old name OF Christmas, still cur
rent in literature and poetry. was Yule.
word coming from the German word
for a wheel. SO. too. Easter. occurring
when the sun arouses nature to full con-
sciousness, comes from a Saxon festival
to eostre, the est, or rising sun.
Many OF the customs OF Christmas are
fast falling into dlsuse. The family fes-
tivals and the church celebration still
survive. however. Homes and churches
are still decorated, midnight masses sung,
and unusually impressive services mark
this great day In the church calendar.
But many of the more friendly customs
associated with the day have entirely
DISAPPEARED, or are fast being swallowed
up in the avalanche Of demands made
upon us by society, letters. or business.
We still continue, however. to celebrate
1t by unusual feasting and dishes, meats,
and cakes peculiar 10 Christmas are
served in this country and In Europe.
CURIOUS CAKES.
Christmas cakes OF curious make and
shape are particularly favored in parts OF
Europe. In the north Of France about
Lille. these cakes are made OF various
materials depending on the price asked
for them, and they are made with or
without raisinS or Irrants. Some are
made with a frostlng OF sugar. and
shaped TO represent the child Jesus or
with the image in suga. attached TO them.
Children who find these cakes-coquilles--
under their pillows are told that the
child Jesus put them there, and some of
them lie awake all night hoping to see
the celestial visitor. To raise the money
10 buy these cakes for poor children the
choral societies give concerts. Such cakes
cost from half cent to many dimes.
Bakers, too, present these cakes to
their customers, Uho are expected 10 give
pourboire 10 the walters and servants.
The CONNECTIONS are not recent institu-
tion. They have been given for many
years. even centuries, and historians and
poets have written concerning them.
Ihere Is popular song:
/ will to Christ my wishes make,
That he Will bring a little cake.
At Boulogne, France cakes in the shape
of the figure s, called craquelins, are given
10 the children Chrlstmas-eve. TO be eaten
while warm. Santa Claus (St Nicholas)
is still celebrated there, and It is during
his feast December 5th) that the curious
st. Nicholas cakes are made and given 10
the children. The Saint is represented
mounted upon an ass or standing in elab-
crate robes along with two or three chill
dren. At Charevoi. In Belgium, Christ
mas-cakes of n peculiar form are also
shown. They are in shape something like
the handle OF a turn-cock, and are col
ored blue, red, yellow. and brown. In a
circle in the centre is a figure represent
ing some animal bird. or rather object.
| modelled In sugar At Lucerne, in Switz-
| erland, cakes representing St Nicholas
are made in December only. Sometimes
the Saint IS on foot, sometimes on horse
back 1T only the Bishop Nicholas, but
also another, Nicholas tbs Ir,rmit, is
| thus figured.
MINCE-PIE.
| a successor OF these cakes or a substi-
| tute for them is our mince-pie, itself an
| offshoot from the English plum-pudding.
| without which no Christmas banquet is
| complete. The latter was known In the
sixteenth century. When first made
| mlnce-pies were made I'm the supposed
| shape of the manager at Bethlehem.
| Just as the Christmas dinner. with its
4 ali Il
| ding, is apparently the successor Of the
| cakes brought by the child Jesus. 30 is the
| usual Christmas pantomims the lineal
| descendant of old miracle plays, or the
| developed carol songs sung stu in parts
| Of the world.
The carols form a literature by them
| selves Not only those Joyous. merry
/ bart songs sung In England. but also n
whole generation of them are known In
| France. These carols are thought TO have
| their origin in desire 10 perpetuate the
| singing OF the angels at the birth or
| Christ. In parts of England a special
service of Christmas carols. with ritual
| prepared for the occasion, Is often held
| in the churches In France these carols
| go by the same name as the day-Noei
| The transition from these to the miracle
| plays Is seen, perhaps, in the Roumanian
| custom, as told by a recent observer.
| "They are called songs Of the star
| Children wrapped In great cloaks, and
| with sheepskn hoods and great boots go
] about the villages carrying staff with a
white star at its end. made OF wood ana
pape~, with a bell at each point or the
| rays Of the star. and representation OF
| the three magi in the center. The songs
they sing called 'Colinde' (Kalcuds) relate
the birth Of Christ, and the events which
followed.
PRESENTS.
Not only have the feasts. the pleasures.
and the established mode of celebrating
Christmas changed. but we also find a
change in another custom formerly preva-
lent This is the giving of presents at
| this time OF the year 1t has Its history
| also We are told that in the early days
| of Christianity 1t was custom in Rome
TO place boxes in the churches wherein
eratuities were placed, the contents being
given to the poor Christmas-day. sums
of money were carried to Christmas mass
| to be put into the boxes. Later servants
and apprentices were permitted 20 carry
box around To procure gratuities from
their masters customers. and so finally
became a cusom in England to give such
presents to servants and the poor on tins
day after Christmas, therefore called
| "boxing-day." Christmas presents among
friends and members Of the family then
became common. Gradually this custom
Is also disappearing, Christmas cards
having largely taken the place or more
useful and costly gifts. The same GUS
tom of gifts prevailed in France. but
there 1t was usually a new cloak. hence
It was called the day OF old clothes"
Germany gave us, with the gifts. the
Christmas-tree. It's use has spread from
North Germany over Europe and America
It Is popularity believed TO be remnant
of a once widespread worship OF trees
Its use In Germany Is traced back GER
tainiy to 1904, although there are tradi'
lions that Luther began its use.
ANIMALS.
Many things out of the natural cours
are asserted OF animals at this time
the year. II the dog howl Christmas-ev
he will go mad within the year. fo'
must not send the cattle to pastur
Christmas-day, for they will fight to
gether and wound each other. In Den
mark II Is said that the cattle will NO
suffer from thirst the whole year II yo'
win set something in motion in the hoas
and keep II going. Cattle will thrive bet
ter, Ii Is said. II they are well fed on ,thi
day. Cattle are also, even at this day
said to kneei In the stable at midnight
In North Carolina this Is said to oecu
on old Christmas January 6th). An oil
woman said OF them that they kept u
"test the masterin' moanin'." German
say II you water them at this time yo
will be stricken blind. In one part 0
Germany II Is also said that the cattl
will not thrive II master or servant ente
the stable Christmas morning with boot
newly BACKED. Neither will they do $
vaIl 20 vou car meat during the holfdays