Evening star., 1928-12-23
Christmas Feasting, Manners Customs Traced Throug

You may remember that King Alfred
was only caught mapping by the Danes
and his army virtually destroyed, in
878, because he was celebrating Christ
mas. Festival began on December 16
and ended on January 6. Christmas
morning itself began at daybreak with
Sumptuous breakfast In the great hall,
to which all tenants and neighhers
came. The Yule log must be lighted
from the embers of the one OF the year
before to bless the house for the year
ahead. There was the Christmas tree,
stockings hung for little people, mis-
tletoe for shy maidens, waits sung in
the snow from door to door and the
huge and gallant repast, at which the
waSsat bowl and bringing in the boar's
head were the most noble moments.
There is a curious legend about the
boar's head, which Robert Haven
Schauffler relates. 1t is supposed to be
done in memory of an oxford student
who was attacked by wild boar ON a
far-gone Christmas day. The students
only weapon was copy of Aristotle, but
legend says that it was a doughty one,
for with it the young man choked the
boar and carried his head home to feast
uponi
SHTNhen, too, mince pie is popularity
- said to represent the gifts of the
Magi, with the bits of mutton some
times used to simulate the sheep over
which the chosen shepherds were keep
ing watch. They could properly be
eaten beginning on the 18th, and
should be called Christmas pie
Perhaps an old song by Thomas
Tusser will give you a better idea Of
the strength Of a. mans Christmas
digestion in the sixteenth century than
any feeble words of mine could do. 1t
says:
'Brawn, pudding and souse, and good
mustard withal,
Beef, mutton and pork shred pies Of
the best,
Pig, veal, goose and capon, and turkey
well dressed,
Cheese, apples and nuts, jolly carols to
hear,
AS then in the country is counted good
cheer
"And how the waits, when they came,
would sing:
"'Wassail and wassail all over the town.
The cup it is white and the ale it is
brown,
The cup it is made of the good old
ashen tree,
And so is our beer of the best barley,
To you waSSail-
Aye, and joy come to our jolly wassail'
Last but far from least was the
mumming or Christmas play, including
for long the custom. very ancient, Of
the Boy Bishops and of the Lord of
Mtsrule. How the PuritanS hated all
these dissertations of the true spirit
of the Lords birthday. Under the
Roundhead Parliament in 1643, Christ
mas was abolished as feast. and even
eating the famous mince pie at that
time was made a misdemeanor. Lon
don rebelled, but for IL years the iron
hand held sway. With the restoration,
of course, the old days returned, but
there was curious aftermath in the
American colonies-that is, in Puritan
New England. The General Court of
Massachusetts in 1859 passed an orii-
nance saying: Anybody who is found
observing by abstinence from labor,
feasting or any other way any such
day as Christmas shall pay for such
| offense five shillings' Although this
harsh ruling was repealed in 1851, the
feeling against truly joyous celebra-
ton of December 25 persisted in New
England until the beginning of the
| twentieth century. It was to the Dutch
and the Cavaliers that we owe the debD
Tor our present American Christmas.
But even when the more worldly joy
OF gift giving and receiving and Of
merry eating are considered in their
due place, we come back to where we
started, which was the Manger of Beth
lehem. We cannot forget the baby
Christ wandering over the world with
his bundle of evergreens on Christmas
eve, knocking on closed doors with His
tender fist, choosing His path by the
candles set aglow in loving windows,
finding His way at last into Mary's
waiting arms. Then truly father
says, and pauses for a moment in the
still room. can we hear the heart of
the world singing softly:
Lullay, lullay, lytil chyld,
Why wepy thou so sore,
| Art thou not God and man In one,
What woldyst thou be more?
SO blessed be the tyne
Blessed be the moder; the child also;
With bene dicamus Domino:
So blessed be the tymep"