The times., 1897-12-19
CHRISTMAS IN SCANDINAVIA.

SweGeH and Norway are the Christmas
lands of the earth: it is there that the feast
In a IL its inllness is celebrated. Every house
from TIC poorest cottage near the 'DoYre
gubhe' to the palaces in Christian MIA and
Stockholm, lingS with the melody cf
Christmas carols, is fragrant with the odor
OF spruce trees and Norway pines; in every
house the little ChrIst-child is supposed 20
descend to earth again, and TO deck the
Christmas trees with fruits and candies
and to bring gifts to the children; before
every wii:dUw shea Is Of corn are bunchcd
that the little snow birds may have also
Christmas cheer; 10 all who come, in the
cities or the country, the delicious fat
tigma andes poor mans caKe-iS freely
given-indeed, upon each ofthe twenty da SIS
on which they celebrate Christmas these
far nortl err lands Of bleak mountains and
snow wra pped earth are as smiling as
southern island under a tropic sun.
The 'east is So Gn-important that one-haf
of the ear is spent in looking forward td
it, the other half in looking back. Ever5
household begins its preparations early in
October.
The first step is the ''butehering -
DalecarIia in Sweden has special
passes from farm to farm in Le'lsand
Mora and Ratvik and kills the hogs and
cures the hams. When enough meats
| have been procured to last until the 18th
| of January they are put away in great
pots and the house cleaning begins. The
rooms are scrubbed from ceilings to floors;
| the furniture is polished, the win lows
washed, every member OF the hoIsenold
at it with vim ana energy. The great
| cleaning done, the washing of rlOt hes,
! blankets and curtains is taken up, and
! by the 1st of December the household is
| ready for cake ba king. Cakes of I'll
sizes and kinds are baked, most of all
the Christmas cake" which is like our
Iaisin bread, and the national dish, poor
| mans cake" a ricn compound of eggs
! and cream, which requires great skill In
! cookery. Bread baking is begun later,
| vegeta bles procured. and, by Little Christ
| mas Eve, the work is a. II accomplished, SO
! that the servants may be free 'ruTn labor
and the housekeepers lifted IRON care
during the twenty Christmas days.
Thisprogramis follow edin every Swedish
| and Norwegian household in country and
town, the prepa rations, of course, being
| more or less extensive, according to the
| means OF the family. On Little Christmas
| Eve the last marketing is done, and the
market space until early afternoon is n
moving mass of color. The peasants ga ther
| from far and wide, and as each parish
differs in the style and color of its
costumes, the srene is gay and picturesque.
| The stores close at 8 O'Clock, and theT
the bells OF every church begin to ring
and all the air is filled with Christmas
chimes. On the following evening great
silence has passed over the cities; the
| drags and street cars have cea sed rattling
| the shops are closed; the market space is
hushed and the pavements deserted. II
is Z O'Clock the night Of Christmas eve; a
sacred hour, the hour of family reuni ion
! The father and mother invite the servants
! into the parlor, where all the family is
! gathered. The youngest child recltes a
| Christmas hymn and che supper is served,
the servants eating at separate table,
! but at the same time. The first dish is
| always rice porridge. followed by spare
| ribs and cranberries, and lastly tue poor
| mans ook e.
Their the doors of ''tle room" are opened.
/ The great tree stands in the center lader
! with 1.-THE Christ chld's gifts,'' bright with
| color brilliant with light. In some houses
the Northern flags are draped on the
walls: the blue and yellow of Sweden, the
| red and white of Den mark mingling with
the green spruce branches and the blue