Mower County transcript., 1908-12-16

llllll1 -. for the Christmas season,
which was originally celebration, un-
der the disguise of various national re.
ligious forms, of the turning Of the
sun at the winter solstice, and the con-
sequent renewal Of hfe on the earth.
When Constantine MAS converted,
he seized upon every underlying like
ness. however remote, between the old
faith and the new. Every fhmiliar
symbol that might be stretched to at
the strange faith; every old custom
that would help to reconcile his lately.
and sometimes forcibly. converted
people to their unaccustomed belief,
was adopted and re-explained And
the return Of the sun. bringing life
and light to the winter-bound earth,
became the prototype Of the coming
Of the Son OF Man, bringing life and
light to the soul Of tbs sin-bound,
world. So that at first all, the heather
observances were retained as far as
possible, and merely given new
meaning. ...: a
AT the Christmas festival, the ivy
and holly still made q summer screen
ae the stone wallis as In nSancient Ger.
many they had turned the huge halls
at mid-winter, to bowers of greenery,
wherein the sylvan sprites, who dwelt
in summer among the forest trees,
might pass the frozen months without
too much discomfort An echo from
Scandinavia is still heard in the say
ing current among the peas onts of the
old world that if any bit of holiday
decoration is left in the house afte1
Candlemas day February q, troop
of little devils will enter and sit, one
on each withered leaf, every one
bringing its own small curse upon the
house. These little devils are merely
the old forest sprites, detained against
their will by their undestroyed winter
refuge and fretting to return to the
awakening woods Of spring.
The churches were still green with
Christmas garlands in those early
days, and ablaze with candles, as the
temples of Saturn had always been
during the corresponding Roman fes-
tival Of the saturnalia. But as Poly
dore Vergil remarks, "Trymmyng the
temples with hansyngs, floures,
boughes and garlandes, was taken of
the heather people. which decked
their idols and houses in suche array"
And as time went on, and it became
no more necessary to make conces-
sions that would help reconcile the
people to their changed faith, these
heather" customs became distaste-
ful to the church. One Of the early
councils forbids men longer .'to deck
up their houses with lawrell, yvie, and
greene boughes, as we used to doe
at the Christmasse season. ;.=s.53 55.#s
This command was observed in the
temples, but in the baronial halls the
old customs lived on; lived down their
questionable past; won again the toll
GRAFTON Of the priests who had sternly
banished them, and to-day all the ever
green's again are admitted +. to the
strtctest church, so that we again can
say at Christmas, ss s.,' : I, ls. 5Sss. Il:
Now with bright Holly all tho temple.
I, strow rs 5sS5 S@33
. 1 With Ivy green, and sacred Mistletoe.'''
/ The Early Calendar Of English
Flowers an old poem wherein each
month nor is recognized by it's appropriate
!! plant symbol, ends with these lines:
Soon the evergreene Laurel alone i,
4 5 greene, 80 go
When Catherine crowns all learned
4 MEME. sss34 &4ss b 5s8
i The Ivie and Hollie berries are scene,
l5S And SYule log and Wassaile come round
$iS8$s agen. s;sS8
III Tho laurel Is used not at ali. and ii.