The daily morning Astorian. [volume] (Astoria, Oregon) 1883-1899, 1897-12-19
YULE-TIDE

Again Christmas with all It's delShttul
associations approaches fostering domcs.
| tic harmony. and repeating the elorioys
gospel OF peace ON earth and goodwill
towards men. No other period OF IN,
year is SO poJeUt as this in heating the
wounds OF Friendship, and IN warming the
heart IT man toward his fellows All
whosoeyer has British. Scandinavian or
saxon blood IN mis- veins welcomes /,
with enthusasm. yIe observes II Vlth
{ gladness whether IL comes tc MIN in So
/ torrid or arctic cline or any iu,Dlu'adiatg
zone. The best ot good cheer Is spread.
his dearest friends are invited. and what.
ever else may grace his table. plum
pudding stuck with herry-ladca holly will.
IL possible. be there. and hun-i OF mis-.
tetoe not FAR off: customs strongly SAVIOR
ing OF pasanisn. without ioub' and
handed down from heather ancestors. who
were. nevertheless in jhair own time and
way. good men and true.
Christmas il the Christian Saturnal
when even the s;rlctes: and mos, decorous
countenance some degree OF license. The
polite leaders Of our faith in the earliest
days OF Christianity thought q wise TO
graft most of tine rites and cerem )nies
q psgInism upon the doctrines Of Chris;
IN order to make the latter popular Thus
they caused His birth TO coincide with
the Roman Saturnalia which for q whole
week from the 18th to the 25th 1f pr,em-
ber commegnorated the freedom and equal
ity that existed during the whole II the
golden reign Of S1tnru We are told thnt
long before the foundation Of Rome these
heather felsts were remarkable for thoi.
universal liberty. Slaves we're permitted
to fdicule their masters and 10 discuss
every topic With freedosl Friends mad-
presents to one another. the schools were
closed. no criminals were executed public
and private animosiiy ceased. While they
lasted war was never declared. and m!-th
riot and debauchery had fun swing
During the sacrifices the priests made
their offerings with uncovered heads.
which was never done at any other festi-
walls The fetters were removed from the
public statues Of the god to whom every
temples we're decked with holly and Ivy
and other sacred evergreers, and 50 pro-
fusely as our own were IN the last CEN
tury VIII N Hiss Jenny Simper thus com.
plalned to the Spectator. "Our clerk, |
VINO was once a gardener has this Christ |
mas so overdeckt the church with greens |
that he has quite spoilt my prospect. IN |
somuch that have scarce seen the young
baronet for three weeks. and unless the
greens are removed shall soon have little |
elss to do in church than TO say my pray |
ers."
The holly and the mlstletoe are indi- |
genous although mt peculiar TO this coun- /
try. and the latter. az every one knows !
was pre-eminendy the sacred plant of the
Druids. that mysterious. learned, and re-
markable caste whose history remains To
te written. In the Scandinavian mythol- |
ogy. tine mlstletoe was consecrated on
neficent purpose, to Frlsa. the northern
goddess Of love. For tne protection u
her son Balder an oath was imposed on
all things Of earth, air. fire and water not
to inture the beautiful young god The
alone from it's apparent harm
was excepted ami It was with
an arrow fashioned from its wood mat
Loki. the evil one, slew him All nature
bitterly incurred his death until Hela
Ditied and restored him TO his mother.
and from that time the fatal plant was
to Friga-our native Venus.
that it might henceforth become an IN
strument Of love but never more of
hatred. Thus at Christmas. when the
Druids were wont to cant It with golden
Knives, we pass under its branches with
tisses. and formerly, when it was scarce
Jur maidens. not to be defrauded of their I
customary rights, made "kissine bunches"
4 evergreens ornamented with oranges
md ribbons, to do duty Instead
His must be a sour heart that can view
ihese sweet old customs with any ether ,
ceiling than that Of general appreciation.
Hundreds Of generations have enjoyed
hem and made merry over them. the
,oung and the unlear7od IN happy and
innocent thoughtlessness. while the
earned and phllosophic have busted
themselves with the deeper import that
ies beneath their popular surface These
zee in then the relics Of a universal re-
igion devoted to nature whose origin II
hrouded in the Cimmerian gloom Of the
iOrth and in the myths of remotest an
iquity. They observe their close rela-
Jon not 10 the Saturnaia Of Rome alone.
,ut to the Egyntian PamyHa the Bac-
hic and Dionysfan orgies Of the Greeks.
he obscene Festivals Of India. Mesopo-
anna and South America. ard 10 the
,ther religious mysteries n those and all
he rest Of the world whore nature-wor.