The Coolidge examiner., 1933-12-22
BY ELMO SCOTT WATSON

!. 7 J: : ] ! 4" /. / !.
AAN HAT is a Christmas classic?
kEkS Ii is a piece of writing or a picture,
EVA associated with Christmas. of which
NkA people are so fond that they never
= RN grow tired of reading 1t or seeing it
r Re3t again NId again, no matter how many
u/HH| times before they have read it or
~ seen it.
The birth of Christ, the event which
Is the reason for the celebration of Christmas,
has been the inspiration for some of our great
est painters But among all the paintings of
the Nativity, there is one which probably has a
greater appeal than any of the others and is
therefore true Christmas classic That is
COrreggio's Holy Night"
Several years ago DR.. w. r. Valentiner, di-
rector of the Detroit Institute OF Arts and a
widely known authority painting compiled
for the New York Times Magazine list of the
five greatest Christmas pictures" OF these
five he ranked Botticells Mystical Alteration
OF the Child first but of CorreggiOs Holy
Night" he said ut is undoubtedly the most
popular of the representations of the theme
among the old masters. 1t is. for the most part
the optimism, the radiating serenity of Cor
reggie which makes his portrayal so charming
What charm emanates from the youthful
form of Mary what magic from the Child, from
whom here, for perhaps the first time in Italian
art the light streams out and envelopes the
glowing. with the ecstasy of the new message,
it radiates from the beaming faces of the shep-
herds and the women. from the dancing ges-
lures of the angels"
Just as the Nativity has been the inspiration
for painters. so have various phases of Christ
mas been an inspiration for the poets
But of all the Christmas poems, the one which
Is par excellence a Christmas classic in that
1t is most often reprinted and is most familiar
to the greatest number of people. Is that DID,
old favorite "A Visit From st. Nicholas"
The remarkable thing about this Christmas
classic is that it written quite by chance
and quite by chance it was started on it's road
to fame. In 1922 DR.. Clement Clarke Moore
professor of Oriental literature in the General
Theological seminary In New York city, wrote
IL as a Christmas poem for his two daughters
1t happened that his niece was spending
that Christmas in the Moore home. She copied
the poem in her album. from which copy was
made by friend of hers who lived in Troy " Y
On December %. 1923, the poem was printed
in the Troy Sentinel with this note from the
editor:
ave do not know to whom we are indebted
for the following description of that unwearied
patron Of children-that homely but delightful
perSonification of parental kindness, Santa
Claus. his costume and his equpage as he
goes about visiting the freSides of this happy
land laden with Christmas bounties but from
whomsoever it may have come, we give thanks
for IL. There is to our apprehension a spirit
of cordial goodness in it playfulness of fancy
and benevolent alacrity to enter into the feel
ings and promote the simple pleasures of chill
dren. which altogether charming. We hope
our little patrons, both lads and laSsies will ac-
cept ii as proof of our unfeigned good will
toward them-as a token of our warmest wish
that they may have many a Merry Christmas