The times., 1900-12-23


Some say that ever. 'gainsu that season comes, %
Wherein cur Saviour's birth is celebrated,
The bird of dawning sngeth all night long:
And then. they say spiri; can walk abroad;
The nights Wholesome; then no planets strike
No fairy takes nor witch hath power 70 charm;
So hallowed and gracious Is the time.
Christmas time is very much changes
from what il used TO be- for in feuda
ages the whole holiday season was Gn
almost uninterrupted round of feastin'
and jollity For a picture of Christina
Eve in the olden time, We can have n'
more graphic picture than that presented
by Scott in "Marmion."
on Christmas Eve the bells rung;
On Christmas Eve the mass was sung;
That only night, in all the year.
Saw the stoled priest the chalice rear.
The damsel donned her kirtle sheen;
The hall was dressed with holly green.
Forth to the wood did merry-men 60
To gather in the mstletoe.
Then opened wide the baron's hall
To vasssi tenant serf, and all:
Power laid his rod of rule aside
And Ceremony doffed his pride
The heir. with in his shoes.
That night might village partner choose.
The lord, underogating, share
The vulgar game of post and pair"
AL hailed with uncontrolled delight,
And general voice, the happy night.
That to the cottage, as the Crown,
Brought udings OF salvation down.
Tie fire. with well-dried logs supplied
Went roaring up the chimney wide;
The huge hall tables oaken face.
Scrubbed till it shone. the day TO grace,
Bore then upon its massive board
No mark To part the squire and lord.
Then brought in the lusty brown,
b. old blue-ooated serving man
Then the grim boar's head irowned on high,
Crested with BAYS and rosemary.
Wei can the green-earbed ranger tell.
Bow when ard where the monster fell;
What dog before his death he tore,
And all the batting OF the boar.
Tho xrasS1il rOitud in good brown bowls
Gsrnished with ribbons bthely trowls.
Therc the huge sirloin reekcd: hard by
Plum rorridge stood. and Christmas pye;
Nor failed old Scotland TO produce
At such high-tidc her sayory goose.
Then came the merry masquers in,
And carols Toared with h'itllesome din;
Ii unmelodious the song,
1t was hearty note. and strong.
Who lists may IN their mumming see
Traces Of ancient mystery;
White shirts supplied the masquerade,
And slnutted checks the yisors made;
But oh! what gnasqueTs richly dight,
Can boast Of bosoms half 50 light!
England was merry England when
Ola Christmas brought his sports again.
Twas Christmas preached the mightiest ale;
Twas Christmas told tine merriest tale;
4 christmas elmbol oft could cheer
The poor mans heart through half the year.
Napy of the ceremonials which are OBJ
served in England at the present day, are
derived from ancient pagan rites. Two
popular ohseFyances will serve 10 illu-
strate this-hanging up of the mistletoe,
and the burning of the yule log.
AS regards the former of these prac-
tices. it is well known that, in the re-
ljgion of the Druids, the mistletoe was
REGARDED with the greatest veneration
though the reverence which they paid to
1t seems to have been restricted to the
plant when found growing on the oak
the favorite tree of the divinity Tutanes
who appears to have been the same as
the Phenician god Baal, or the sun, wor-
shiped under so many different names
by the various pagan nations of anti
guilty At the period of the winter sol
rtica a great festival was celebrated in
lis honor. When the sacred anniversary
arrived, the ancient Britons, accompan-
led by their priests, the Druids. sailed
forth with great pomp and rejoicings to
gather the mystic plant which, in addi-
tion TO the religious reverence with
which it was regarded, was believed to
possess wonderful curative powers. When
The oak was reached upon which the mis-
tletoe grew, two white bulls We're bound
to the tree, and the chief Druid, clothed
in white (the emblem of purity, ascend
ed and with a golden knife. cut the sa-
cred plant. which was caught by another
priests in the folds Of his robe. The
bulls. and often also human victims were
thea sacrificed, and various festivities
followed. The nistletoe thus gathered
was divided into small portions, and dis
tributed among the people, who hung up
the sprays over the entrances to their
dwellings. as q prOpitiation and shelter
TO the sylvan deities during the season
of frost and cold. These rites In connee-
tion with the mistIetoe were retained
throughout the Roman dominion in Bri-
tain, and also for a long period under
the sovereignty of the Jutes, Saxons. and
ANGLES.
The following legend regarding the mis-
tletoe. from the Scandinavian mythol
ogy. is interesting: Balder the god of
poetry and eloQuence, and second son OF
Odln and Friga. communicated one day to
his mother dream which he had had,
warning him he should die. Friga. to
protect her son from such contingency,
invoked all the powers Of nature-fire,
air, earth, and water, as well as animals
and plants-and obtained an oath from
them that they should dc her son no hurt.
Balder then went and took his place amid
the combats of the gods, and fought with
out fear in the midst OF showers OF ar
rows. Loake, his enemy resolved to dis
cover the secret OF Balder's invulneraoll-
fly, and, accordingly, Disgusting himself
Bs an old woman, he addressed himself to
Friga with complimentary remarks on The
valor and good fortune of her son. The
goddess replied that no substance could
iniure him, as all the productions of ma
ture had bound themselves by an oath to
refrain from doing him any harm. she
added. however, that there was one plant
which, from its insignifcance, she did
not think of coniuring, as II was impos-
sibIe ii could inflict any hurt on her son
Loake eaquired the name of the plant in
question. and was told 1t was a feeble
little shoot, growing on The bark of the
oak. with scarcely any soil. Then the
treaeheroUs Loake rar and procured the
mistletoe, and. having entered the assem-
bly, OF the gods, said to the blind Heda
why do you not contend with the ar
rows Of Baider?" Heda replied: II am
blind, and have no arms" Loake then
presented him with an arrow formed from
the mistletoe, and said: Bladder is be-
fore thee" Heda shot, aSd Balder fell
pierced and slain.
The mistletoe, about which are entwined
SO many mystic associations, is believed to
be propagated in its natural state by the
rlisse,-ihrush, which feeds upon its ber-
yies. II was loB- .hanght impossible TO