Lower coast gazette., 1910-12-24

might cause it to diminish and appear to mol;
away by carrying it of.
Lead, steel and vermin may be circunvpnted
il the proper precautions are taken. For the
nrSt Wea' 4 shirt spun. woven and SoWed by a
pure, cildSte maiden on Christmas day, wear
something scWcd with thread spun on Christmas
eve and no vern!in will STICK to YOU"
If one be born at sermon time" on Christmas
morning he can see spirits; burn elder on
Christmas eve and YOU will have revealed to von
all the witches and sorcerers in the neighbour
hood.
Thieves will find it consolng to know that If
they steal anything on Christmas without being
caught they can safely steal things all the wear.
Likewise, steal hay and give to your cattle. and
not only will they thrive all the year and grow
fat, but you will not be caught In any OF YOUR
future thefts.
A Christmas day passed without eating any
beans and you will become an ass; eat a raw egg
ON Christmas morning, fasting, and you can carry
heavy weights.
II you have been disappointed, save the
crumb for three Christmas ewes and they will
be effective as a physic; shake out the tablecloth
over the bare ground under the open sky after
your Christmas dinner and crumbwort will grow
there; hang a wash clout on a hedge on Christ
La"S o"S VI NiAA StiiiptS w, incl SloOkul LIZ lCIStS
with it and they will grow fat.
Take great care of your fire on Christmas
morning; if it burn brightly that betokens pros
perity for all the coming year; if it smolder, be-
ware, for that portends misfortune and adversely.
1t is unlucky to give to a neighbor a live coal
with which to kindle a fire on Christmas morn
ing; also it is unlucky to carry a coal or any
thing else from the house on Christmas morning
until something has first been brought in.
Our Christmas tree, which is a feature of
most public Christmas eve celebrations, and in
many homes, is comparatively new in Christen-
dom, but 1t springs from some very ancient GUS
toms. The Egyptians regarded the date palm as
an emblem of immortality and of the starlit fir
mament and at the time of the winter solstice
decked their houses with it's branches. 1t was
held by them to be "a symbol Of life" triumphant
over death, and therefore of perennial life in the
renewal of each bounteous year.
A Scandinavian myth speaks of a Service
tree" sprung from the blood-drenched soil where
two lovers had been killed by violence. During
the Christmas season mysterious lights which no
wind could extinguish were often seen amins'
in its branches. a later explanation of the
Christmas tree dates back to Martin Luther and
tells of him attempting to describe to bis family
the beauties of a snow-covered forest under a
starry sky. Unable to make them comprehend
satisfactorily, he went into the garden, cut a
small fir tree and set it up in the nursery with
its branches covered with lighted candles.
AT about the season when we celebrate Christ
mas the Jews celebrated their Feast of Lights, or
the Feast of Dedication, of which lighted candles
are a prominent feature. THE Night of Dedica-
tion," Christmas eve is called in Germany, while
the Feast of Lights is celebrated also in
Greece, at our Christmas time, although Christ
mas is a dismal time in Greece, being disiked
by that warmth-loving people because it is cold
and d~reary-also a favorite season for ghosts and
COLLINS to walk abroad.
During the middle ages the Christmas tree
became an institution at Strassburg and was ia
miliar along the Rhine for 200 years before its
popularity extended throughout the rest of the
world.
Christmas cards, which may now be had in
every degree of elaborateness and gorgeousness
at prices from a penny each upward, are compar-