Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1895-12-25
SANTA CLAUS is REAL
THOUGH MANY PEOPLE SPEAK OF
HIM AS A MYTH.

In England st. Nicholas Was Recognized
as the Guardian of Youth-Legend of the
Wicked Butcher-In Germany He Puts
Good Things In Lucky Bags.
In spite of the fact that Dec. 6 was
st. Nicholas day thousands of people
talk of Santa Claus as myth. st. Nicho-
las was very real parsonage. He was
archbishop of Myra in 342, and the
name under which he enjoys an annual
popularity in this country is the Ger
man form that came with the German
custom of the Christmas tree and all
the rest of it.
st. Nicholas is great saint with all
the Teutonic and Scandinavian peoples.
1t was his prerogative, says the New
York Recorder, to manifest his piety
when at his mothers breast, for even
then he is said to have tasted Wednes-
days and Fridays As matter Of course
he soon became famous in working mir
acles, and here again he appeared to seek
favor with the young people.
An innkeeper having killed two young
gentlemen and put them in the pickle
tub, intending to sell them as picked
pork, the saint, who, i'll a vision, had
seen the deed done, declared he would
put "a stop to the business, and there
upon he transformed himself from Lycia
to Athens and stood before the astonish-
ed innkeeper and said, "What hast thou
done?"
The man trembled, confessed and i'm
plored forgiveness. Having patted the
man on the back and said, "Don't do it
any more" the holy man turned to the
pickle tub, when the imitation sides,
legs and hands of pork began to stir,
and in quick sticks there came forth not
two boys merely, but three, as may be
proved by reference to the Salisbury
missal of 1884, wherein there is pic
ture of the event, and one of its pecul-
iarities is that, as the three boys rise
complete out of the pickle, the barbar-
GUS butcher is still busy in cutting one
of them up.
ST. Nicholas established yet another
claim to be regarded as the friend o1
youth, for he was partial to boxing ano
employed his skill in the "manly art
upon the heads of bishops.
The guardianship of the young by
Santa Claus was of old recognized il
England by the custom Of choir boys IL
cathedrals choosing boy bishop on thu
day of st. Nicholas, Dec. 6. This wa
very important event, as may be seer
by Homes every Day Book, i, 1863
where there is an efigy Of a boy bishop
from Salisbury cathedral The custom
was il full observance from early time
until 1912, when it was abolished by ;
proclamation Of Henry VIII.
According to the old north German
custom, the happy time for the children
is the vigil of ST. Nicholas, the night o
Dec. 5. Then it is that he gL' es about
putting good things into lucky bags ant
spying out the merits and dement's O
boys and girls and sometimes unspar
ing1y praising or rebuking them.
The north German fashion require
the saint to pay visit to the hous
where the young are assembled IN fes
tivity on the night of his vigil. H
speaks in kindly words to the juvenil
throng, reproving some, encouraging
others. On retiring to rest, each membe
of the party places an empty shoe on tn
table, and the door of the room is
once locked, and behold when morning
dawns and the doors are opened In tn
presence of all, the shoes are found t.
be filled with gifts for their owners am
the table is covered with trinkets an
sweetmeats.
We have simply incorporated st
Nicholas day with Christmas day an
made the night Of Dec. "a the time Q
the saints visitation. But he is not
myth now any more than he ever was
He is very real as well as very goo
saint indeed, and for the children's sake
may his shadow never grow less