The Pioche weekly record. [volume] (Pioche, Nev.) 1906-1908, 1906-12-21

Rise up. gude-wife. and shake your
feathers
Dinna think that we are beggars:
| We are BARNS come to play,
And to seek our hogmany."
Much excitement was manifested
over another Scottish custom. The
first person who entered house after
the clock struck midnight New Years
eve was called a first footer," and
often fArties of first footers went
about calling on friends and making
merry generally.
In striking contrast to this frivolity
was the habit the next morning of
opening the Scotch Bible at random,
a verse in the chapter read containing
prophecy to be made good by fate
during that New Year.
At all the courts of present-day Eu
rope the New Year is celebrated with
great impressiveness. 1t being the Of
fetal feast, just as Christmas is a
family one.
In Belgium, on New Years eve, the
children have special frolic tingling
with the thrill of suspense. Early in
/ the day, all the door keys in the house
are spirited away from their locks
into small boys pockets. A pet rela-
! tive, called sugar aunt" or sugar
uncle, is then beguiled into a room,
and while her or his attention is di-
verified, key is whisked out from it's
| hiding place and click-a-ty-click the
door is locked, OF course the pris-
oner, confronted by hard-hearted,
giggling jailer, is glad to negotiate
freedom at any price-a ransoms pos
sibilities no doubt ranging from a
candy cane to rocking horse, accord
ing to auntie's indulgent humor or
the size of uncle's pocketbook.
The Germans have very impress
sive old custom. At Frankfort on-the-
Main in almost every house is a fam
lily party, and at the first strike of
midnight from the cathedral all open
wide the windows, and-filled glasses
lifted in their hands-cry: "Prosit
Neujahr! Happy New Year"
France practically makes a Christ
mas of New Years day. All Paris is
en- fete, and the Latin Quarter jubilant
with song, fiddling, and droll farces,
while the poor, starved art student
splurges in all sorts of culinary ex-
travagances. In fact, even the beg.
gars are merry, singing instead of
whining their appeals for charity, and
dancing jig for SOU
The French children find their
stockings filed by good st. Nicholas.
who in his Christmas rush must have
thanked his lucky star that these
young clients would not expect a pro-
fessional call until seven days after
he had attended to the impatient
American youngsters over the sea.
After midday dejeuner a la four.
Ghetto, the younger members of the
family call on the older, and in the
evening there is grand reunion for
dinner.
Amid all this French gayety there is
that one pathetic little touch that so
often creeps into this rainbow world
of ours, where tears mingle with the
sunshine of our smiles. II a member
of the family has died during the past
IL months, early on New Years morn.
ing the near relatives meet at the
grave and lay upon it their offerings
of love and remembrance.
The Russians, following the Julian
calendar, do not celebrate their New
Years day until January 10.
In rural Russia there are a great
many amusing customs connected
with the season. Roguish boys rise
at daybreak and with gleesome
chuckle fill their pockets with dried
peas and wheat. Stealthily entering
houses, they pelt all whom they find
still sleeping, their enemies with a
singing fire of peas and their friends
with the gentle missile of the wheat
After breakfast-for which their i'm.
pish gymnastics no doubt have given
them ravenous appetites-they select
the "handsomest" horse in the village
and decorate him with evergreens and
red berries until the dumbfounded
quadruped must be a spectacle for
gods and men. They then lead him
to the home of the nobleman. who
good-naturedly admits the steed and
his attendants into the parlor, where
New Years greetings from the pea
shooters and silver coin from the
nobleman are duly exchanged.
The grown-up, not to be outdone by
the small fry, now form gorgeous
procession to pass under the critical
nose of the nobleman's upper window
Oxen, cows, goats and hogs, adorned
with evergreens and red berries, are
driven past, while old women bring
up the rear bearing gayly decorated
barnyard fowls as presents.
In our own country we Americans.
"half-pagan, half-Puritan," take our
New Year ENTHUSIASTICALLY. With
flashing eyes and smiling lips we
greet its dawn; dancing, feasting. up
roariously blowing our little tin horns.
And at the same time In our secret
hearts-the curtains of pride and con.
ventionality closely drawn--we sadly
sit beside the dying embers OF the
past years hopes and SILVER at the
knocks OF the unknown future at the
door,
MAY C. RINGwALr.
.hSseySAA,A