The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1900-12-23

South Congrega tionaI church (Unita-
rian), Boston, Mass.
Some one has said that there cannot
be found in literature single Christmas
sermon which meets the occasion. Of
course there cannot
The occasion is the new birth of the
world. Unless the preacher is compa-
tent TO say how far the world has
grown since its new birth-unless he can
comprehend and declare the infinite
greatness OF that kingdom of God which
the Savior Of men promises in the world,
and unless the same preached can de-
scribe the world as it was 'the DaOple
who sat in darkness''-he cannot preach
the sermon which shall meet THE occa-
siCn,'
But history is great preacher. His
tory often chooses to preach Il serYr on
such as no pulpit can preach, and which
indeed no writer, however skillful, can
IS put in words. Let US today instead Of a
regulation sermon, with its introduce
ton. its three regular heads, and" its ap-
phcauon-let us dip into jouTnas 8 and
diaries and compare two accounts of the
same Christmas season. 1t shall be the
Christmas of 1920. And the people whose
celebrations are described shall be the
great GRANDPA Tiers of our grandfathers.
The first scrap of history shall he
from William Bradford's journal dcScrib-
ing the first Christmas OF the Pilgrim
fathers of New E,ngland. Observe, that
an exploring party has fixed OF Plym-
outh as the place for the settlement.
They have brought the iyay,,)vec with
the women and children acIoss from
Provincetown into Plymouth harhor.
1t was the first day hey Spent en-
shore.
"Munday, the %. day, we went en-
shore, some TO fell tymber. some to saw,
some to rime, and some 10 carry, so no
ma oil IA TstIt n
night some as they were at wor'Ie, heard
a noyse of some Indians, which caused
US all to goe to our muslets, but we
heard no further, so we came ahoord
agaire, and left some twentie to keepe
the court of gard; that niSnt We had
stoTme of winde and cayne.
"Munday. the %. being Christmas day,
we began to drinfle water aboOrd, but a
night the Master caused US to have some
Deere, and so on board we had diverse
times now and then some Deere, but on
shore noen at all.
Theses people-who made Christmas to
be their first day cf work in the new
world-had called themselves six weeks
before loyal subjects of our dead sover-
eign lord, King James, by the grace OF
God of Great Britain, France and ire
land. king, defender of the faith, etc.
Let US see what their king was doing
at this time. Here are some records:
Carleton. In spite Of perjury, there is to
he a masGue at court this Christmas.
The king is coming in from Theobalds TO
receive the French ambassador, Marshall
Cadenet, who comes with a suite of 4OO
or $780,
Who was Marshal Cadcnet? Read and
YOU will know. "The Marshall of Cadenet
is to be sent over to calumniate those Of
the religion (tho Huguenots) and TO
propose Nine. Henriette for the prince.
prince Charles) And again; The
king of France at the end of this year
visited the frontiers Of Picardy. Ia
this whole journey, which lasted from
the 18th of December to the l2th OF Jdhu-
arv new style) the weather was Dad'
and those in his majestys suite found
the roads bad Change the style back
to the way our Puritans counted 1T. ana
observe that on the same days, the otn
of December to the Sd Of January tolo
style). those Americans in the SUITE ol
John Carver also found the weather pad
the roads worse Let US deVoutly nope
that his most Christian majesty dln h91
find the roads as bad as his suite DID,
"Aud the king" continued the mef-
c1,rn ''sent an extraordinary ambassador
Ia the king Of Great Britain, at London'
the Marshal CadeRet' (brother OF me
favorite Luynes). He departed lloi ron
T,alais on Friday, the first day of Janu-
10 arrived at Dover the same evening
and did not depart from Dover until the
Nfondav after Christmas day, OLD Style);
.a1To I2nelish master Of ceremonies had
sent twenty carriages and S0o horses Ao5
his sl1ite" If only we could nave hdu
ten of the worst of them at Fly il soo -.
Tbev would have drawn our logs iof uS
that half quarter OF mle. D"I We
were not born in the purple! 49,,
"At London the ambassador was leu ny
+ba Farl Of Arundel to the palace OF the
late queen, which had been supeIply a1o
magnifcently arranged Tor hiIh' ne 60
US sneut in visits on the part OF MS
,aioet2, the king CT Great Britain, OF
49, prince of Wales, his son, and CT the
ambassadors Of kings and princes, reslo-
mo In London" So splendidly was ne
entertained that they write that on tle
day Of his reception he had tour tao'5S'
With fifty covers each. and that the JuAa
Of Lenn0N, grand master OIL E1'l7 i@ ''U'
served them with magnificent order.
1.-THE following sunday (Which at
1oIx.r,outh we could not spend on shore),
The was conducted TO an audience og
the Marquis OF Buck ngham' for shame,
Jamiei an audience on Sunday! " nat
would John Knox have said to that3
s.whera the French and English nobility
were dressed as for 4 great feast day.
The following days were all receptions,
banducts visits and hunting parties, TIL
the embassy departed.
ON the 9th OF January was masGue
at Whitehall" a Puritan was. f1outed
and abused at the masque. which was
thought unseemiy, considering the state
of the French PiOtest3nts. 1T IS
thought the ambassador proposed Nine.
Henrtette for The prince" At Lord Don
casters house the feast cost 95,000-be-
s:Ges GS COO worth Of amberGris used IN
the cooking"
On tie one side Christmas is celebrated
by fftv outcasts chopping wood FOR their
fres-and out of the celebration springs
an empire. On the other side it is cele-
brated by the noblssse of two nations and
the pomp Of two courts. And out of the
cclebra ton spring two civil wars, the eX-
ecution of one king and the exile of an
other. the downfall twice repeated Of the
royal house, which came to the English
throne under fairer auspices than any
before it. The whole. as we lock at it is
the tale of ruin. Those are the only two
Christmas celebrations Of that year that
l have found anywhere written down!
II is The contrast batween poverty ami
wealth It is the contrast between hard
ship and luxury OF all the subjects of
King James that day there We're not
fifty men and fifty women together who
were so exposed to every peril as were
the hundred men and women at Ply
mouth.
On tbs other hand, the court of King
James and their guests who celebrated
Christmas at Whitehall thought them
selves that they were the finest and
=Eyeatcst people in the world They spent
their own money and other peoples mon
ey with IaYishncss indescribablc. They
carried a boar's head. or they "houtcd
a Puritan with equal gayety and indif-
ference.