New-York tribune., 1900-10-07
ALL HALLOWEEN GAMES.
GHOST STORY TELLING A FUNMAKING
PASTIME-A TABLE
DECORATIONS.

ALI Halloween is not far away on the calendar,
and the festivities this bid fair to shine far
beyond those of recent years. For more than six
centuries fun and superstition have held high car
nival among young and old alike on the last night
in October and the general of apples on this
occasion undoubtedly descends from the Romans
feast to Pomona, the goddess cf fruits and seeds,
who had the apple under her special care and
whose feast held November l.
1t among the Scottish peasantry that ancient
Halloween customs most earnestly entered
into and their old games with all their quaintness
and peculiarites being revived year after year
with greater zest. while to the old ever being
added and modern ceremonies. Each present
day hostess strives to outdo her neghbor in orig
inaliy, and the result is a collection of novel en-
tertainments.
This hallowed occasion of SNAP apple night" has
from tradition always been made to appeal directly
to youth and the unmarried But in these later
years the young matron seeks to lay out pro-
gramme which will contribute interest and diver
sion to her circle of married friends whose market
is made"
In the way OF decorations conventional methods
are adhered to, and the rollicking jack o Ian
tern, made of pumpkin, squash cucumber. is
omnpresent. Ears of field corn. in red and deep
yellow; green peppers and carrots with sprays OF
parsley asparagus add greatly to the color
effect when artistically festooned.
Naturally, the supper Is served in quaint style
and the bill Of fare is embematic of the time hon
ored occasion. red. green and yellow forming the
color scheme of the table. The witch candle"
contributes the only light besides the jack o. Ian
terms. and the candle shades hold the color
scheme. In the centre of the table is a shapely
pumpkin. followed out to a flower bowl
Supper is best served 10 O'clock which allows
sufficient time for those who wish to indulge in
midnight ceremonies.
A feature of the supper is the egg cup surprise
which may bring the feast to a close.
If a large number of guests expected, the egg
shells may be saved from time time the house
hold cookery, may be secured from the family
baker. Each shell must be carefully broken at the
smaller end, and must have its own egg cup which
serves as q souvenir to the guest, whose is
painted In gold letters on the eggsheL The sur
in the she'll which is then lightly glued within the
cup The contents may be in the line of forecasts
various guests present. These are written upon
carefully folded slips of paper, which. when read
aloud, create much amusement. Tiny dolls dressed
fairies witches, humorous small trinkets.
that may suggest themselves to the hostess
The Cookies Prophecy also affords amusement
cookies are provided there guests and in the
centre OF each cake from the under side is embed
ded folded slip of paper upon which the prophetic
lines are written or instead souvenir trtnket In
the way of thmble for celibacy, a coin for
wealth. a silver heart for speedy marriage.
An interesting finish for the evening, for those
tional tricks of Halloween, Is the ghost story
telling" The lights are turned low. and before
dessert spoonful of salt saturated with pure aco-
hol The hostess takes the initiative by applying
match to the alcohol in her saucer. and proceed
ing to tell story. the more ghostly the better.
If the alcohol burns before the climax is
reached, the storyteller Immediately must stop.
no matter how thrilling the situation: Each one
complete their stories before the alcohol hickers
entitled to prizes