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About The North Platte semi-weekly tribune. (North Platte, Neb.) 1895-1922 | View Entire Issue (Dec. 7, 1917)
THE SEMI-WEEKLY TRIBUNE, NORTH PLATTE, NEBRASKA. Geautiful Customs an) Traditions of the Chr 5 ID MV1 easoa By VALENTINE YARNALL In Philadelphia Public Ledger 1UT do you know aught of tho first obsorvnnco of Christmas? Of the first celebration by tho masses In general of r? Christmas as n great holiday? And do you know tho origin of the various things that are a part of our modern Christmas the Yulo In ir. thn mistletoe, thn WiaK "oily wreath and tho '-.Ml Pchristmas.card? Tho word Christmas U "Crlstes Maesse," tho Mnus of Christ, first found In 1038, nnd "Crlstes-messe" In 1131. In Dutch It Is "Kcrst mlsse;' In Latin, "Dies Nntnlls;" In Itnllnn, "11 batale," nnd In German, "Welnnchtsfest." Thoso nro, of course, based on the Chrlstlnn celebration of Christmas as tho birthday of Christ. Wo nro told that the pagan countries of the world held festlvnls before tho birth of Christ nnd that as Christianity spread tho early church nought to replace these pagan festivals with Christmas festival. The old pagun nntlons of an tiqulty had a tendency to worship the sun as tho River of light and life. Thoso festivals took place bear the winter solstice, the shortest day In tho car. This holiday was called Saturnalia by tho tomans nnd cclchrntcd with great merriment. Among the pcoplo of the north great fires were kindled to Odin nnd Thor nnd sacrifices of men pnd cnttlo were mndc. Tho ancient Goths nnd Saxons called this festival Yulo, which Is pre nerved today In tho Scottish word for Chrlstmns. Tho early Teutons cclchrntcd by decorutlng giant flr trees ns celestial sun trees. Tho lights repre sented tho flnshes of lightning overhead; tho gol den apples, nuts and balls symbolized tho sun, the moon and tho stars, while nnlmals hung In Iho branches were ns sacrifices. It Is related that Christmas wus not among tho early festivals of tho church. Tho first ovldcnco of the feast, according to church historians, ta from Egypt. And December 25 was not tho day celebrated with, any uniformity In tho early dnys of tho church. Tho celebration of December 25 spread to most parts of the Kast in tho fourth nnd fifth centuries. At Itomo the Nativity was cele brated December 25 beforo 854; In the Eust, at Constantinople, not beforo 870. As Christianity supplanted paganism, many of Hie old customs wcro carried along to lie handed down through the ages. Wo have distinct evi dences of Christmas cclebrntlon In "Merrlo old England" In the Anglo-Saxon dnys of Alfred. Tho liolldny season then began December 10 nnd ended January 0. With tho rise of Puritanism the ex istence of Chrlstmns for a time wns threatened. And this extended to this country with thoso Puritans who brought nn antl-Chrlstmas feeling to Now England. By degreo of tho Roundhead parliament In 1043 nnd tho gcncrnl court of Massachusetts In 1050, tho obsorvnnco of Chrlstmns wns ofllclnlly banned by England nnd tho New England colon ists. Rut the restoration of English royalty brought about tho restoration of Christmas, nnd n 1081 Massachusetts ropcnled the Inw of 1050. And so Christmas has remained through tho cen turies and is celebrated now through tho enttro civilized world. Always, but particularly nt Advent, the Nor wegian makes much of hospitality. On Christ mas day, If you were to call to seo him, his first courtesy would bo to' offer you a plpo of tobacco, nnd at dinner, which is usually moro simple than that of other races, national hymns nro sung be tween tho courses. In Swcdon, whero in truth it is ovldcnt Hint "cleanliness Is next to godliness," tho Industrious housewife has tho entire liouso renovated for tho festival. Nor do they forget their nnnunl friends, for beforo they sit down to their own dinner a phenf of corn Is fastened to a pole nnd placed In tho garden. This Is done In order that tho birds mny not be without their shnro of tho en joyment Another beautiful custom In Scandinavia Is that of placing In n row a pair of shoes belonging to cacti momber of tho household. This Is dono on Christmas eve, nnd signifies that they will lire together Jn harmony for another year. Whcn Chrlstmns comes in Germany tho whole family prepares to go to church. Thoy form In line, probably In the order of their nges, and, lirmed with lighted candles, march to the service. As tho cdlflco bus no other light than that fur nished by tho candles, It mukes a very pretty effect to flco them nppearlng one by one until they lhavo spread over tho entire church. With this bervlce tho Benson Is supposed to begin. In every Wise tho tables are spread with nil sorts of good things, nnd the lights nro left burning tho entire night. This is dono In order that tho Virgin nnd tho angels will find something to ent when they pass. Somo of tho superstitions nro very quaint nnd beautiful. One existing In somo parts of 1'olnud and elsowhero Is that on tho night beforo Christ mas tho heavens open nnd tho scone of Jncob's ladder is enacted, this, however, being vislblo only to saints. Candles nro put in tho windows In certain parts of Austria, so Hint tho Christ Child may not Btum ble In passing through tho village. In Dulgarla they Imvo n curious custom. No one Avlll. If. it can possibly bo nvolded, cross n ntrnnge threshold on this day. It was an early custom among theso people to put corn In tho Blockings. The head of tho family would sprinkle nomo In front of tho door, saying, "Christ is bom," nnd the reply from tho family was, "Ho Is, In deed." Moro corn wns then taken nnd put In tho Arc, nnd wishes would then be made for tho fam ily, for tho house, for tho cattle aiid for tho crops. A brand was saved from tho fire and placed In tho notch of n free, Hint assuring them of plentiful fcnrvesta for the coming year. A maiden In Sunbla, in order to know some thing of tho nppcanmco of her future husband, would draw one from a bundle of sticks; if It wcro short, ho would bo short; If It were long, e would bo tall; If ltwero crooked and so on. Another method of learning of tho nppcarance of a lover (this time his features) would bo to pour melted lead Into n bowl of water, and, from tho shape which the congcnlcd metal took when It cooled, Imagine some one who appeared like that. Christmas evo In Russia Is u very bustling time. (Remember, this menus prewar nnd pre revolutlon times In Russia.) Tho pensnnts pre pare to, and eventually do, form Into n procession nnd mnrch through tho village. Thoy are sure to pass the houses of the nobility, the mayor nnd other olllciuls, stopping nt each one to sing carols and receive, In return, copper. This habit of begging Is called "Kolendn." A masquerade fol lows the procession, nnd ns soon ns the evening star arises the supper Is spread. Paris Indulges In one great fete tho night beforo Christmas. It finds everyone eating u sumptu ous dinner, nnd the restaurants are taxed to their greatest capacity, for on Chrlstmns eve, If at no other time of tho year he has a full meal, tho Frenchman hns it then. At the Foundling hos pital In Lyons u practice is maintained which (In the light of recent statements nbout tho decreas ing birth rate In France) is somewhnt humorous. A royal welcome Is prepnrcd for the first Infnnt received that day. This special honor, however, has n very beautiful meaning It being Intended to contrast tho humble story of our Savior with that of this foundling. In sunny Italy n sumptuous banquet is pre pared, consisting mainly of fish cooked In many different wnys. Fish Is cntcn for n week previous to Christmas and Its fenst day. The churches aro largely attended nnd the Itnllnn Is careful to see that his children go nlso. Tho children hnvo their part of tho rejoicing in wl.nt Is called tho "urn of fate." In somo receptnelo, prefcrnbly nn urn, are placed written fortunes, nnd tho chil dren and their friends, In tho order of their ages, draw lots. Great merriment is occasioned by some of tho ludicrous results. This Is to them whnt tho Christmas tree Is to tho Amcrlcnn child. Peru presents n scene of vnrled activity nt this time of tho year; people nro bustling to nnd fro nnd having n Jolly good time; suddenly the church bell rings, calling them to the midnight muss. Tho Interest of the next morning, Chrlst mns day, Is usually centered nbout n bull fight, the most popular ono of tho year and one In which It Is snld tho women take more Interest than the men. After this there Is' n religious pro From Germany wo get the Chrlstmns tree; San to Claus from Holland ; from Belgium nnd France, tho Chrlstmns stocking, and n "Merry Christmas" from England. And a Merry Christmas It was, with Its ruddy glow from tho kindling Yulo logs and tho gl'enm from tho pearly berries of the mistletoe. There aro early records of tho mlstlctoo having been used as n decoration, nnd It wns held in great revcrenco by the Celtic nntlons. Tho bringing In of tho Yulo log had origin in n really Interesting manner. In the dnys when England wns young It was tho custom of the serfs to bring fuel with them to tho baronial hall. Tho dinner which thoy received there wns to last ns long ns the wood burned. This wns cnlled bring ing n "wot wheel." Tho wet wheel wns usually n green branch or limb of a tree, and it Is obvious how, slnco their dinner depended upon the slzo of the stick furnished, tho stick eventunlly be enmo larger and Inrger until it assumed the pro portions of n log. Tho term "Yule" which Is pre fixed to It simply signifies that it Is n log of tho "Yule" season. In tho old days tho feast of St. Martin, Novem ber 1, opened the Christmas season. From that tlino on mummery nnd merriment wero king. Elizabethan England, nnd even Englnnd of n inter period, Is rich In traditions and supersti tious beliefs. Anyone turning a mattress on Christmas day would dlo within the year; but the baking of bread was commended, and loaves baked on that day would never grow moldy. Yule cakes wero supposed to have miraculous power, and on them representations of Jesus wero sometimes pressed. In some places In Oxfordshire every mnld serv ant had tho privilege nnd frequently oxerclsed It, of asking a man for Ivy to decorate the house. If the man assented, well nnd good ; but If he re fused, tho mnld stole u pnlr of his breeches. The next day they could bo seen nailed to the gato on the highway. Tho first mnld to pass under ths evergreen on Christmas day was sum to be married within tho year, and equally sure of being kissed for Hint was the penalty to bo pnld by nny mold who passed under It. After ench offense n berry was plucked, while tho prlvllcgo was supposed to ccaso with tho last berry. For anyone but u dnrk-BkJnncd person to cross the threshold first on Chrlstmns day was consid ered unlucky In parts of Scotland, the reason for this being that Judas had red hair. No ono would think of giving a light or matches nt ths time in certain counties, nnd tho bees were supposed to sing nil night Chrlstmns eve, nlthough previous to this a Aprlg of holly had been placed ou tho hive. Mortals who die on that night aro ccrtnln of Immediate and perennlnl happiness. nut enough of these children of the Imagination, citizens of tho past. Do we not hear, Just outside our chamber door, n youthful choir singing a carol, as did Washington Irving on that Christ ' mas morning when' he wns at Brncebrldgo hall? And, through the night, were there not voices eith er blended with, or n part of, our dreams, which sang the news of a Savior born? The singing of enrols Is not peculiar to Eng land, whero It was Introduced by the Purltnns. In Frnncc they are similar In character to those of the nntlon ncross tho Channel, and nre cnlled noels. In Itnly tho Cnlnbrinn shepherds nro Itin erant muslclnns and choral singers. At the sen son of Advent they como down from the moun tains to the cities singing their peculiar hill music. Lady Morgun gives an Interesting nccount of tho piety of these shepherds. Having seen' them stop every year In front of n enrpentcr's shop in Rome, to sing nnd piny, she questioned them of the reason for this. They replied that In that way they gave honor to St. .Joseph, who wns n enr penter nlso. Tho name of theso singers Is plfernri. Tho word "carol" Is rcnlly formed upon two other words: Cnntnre, to sing, nnd rola, an Inter jection of Joy. Therefore, the term enrol need not be confined to Chrlstmns music, although that Is the gcnernl use of the world. In Wales and Ireland tho custom of singing enrols Is better preserved than In Englnnd, ns Is nlso tho enso In France. Of the origin of tho Chrlstmns tree, wo have many beautiful legends, of which thnt of SL Boniface Is not? tho least. Unfortunately, It Is too long to have more than n mere mention of the recognition thnt Is due It In an article of this character. A Scandinavian myth tells of its having sprung from blood-saturnted soil, where two lovers met n violent death, nnd always thereafter on Christmas eve lights wero seen to burn In the branches. On of the French legends of the thirteenth cen tury speaks of n gigantic tree which the hero dlS' covers. Its branches wero covered with burning candles, nnd on the top floated n vision of n child. Not understanding tho meaning of this, ho nsked Hie' popo for nn explanation. The pope's reply wns that the tree represented mnnklnd ; the child, the Savior; the cnudlcs, good and bad human be ings. Some writers hnvo found n connection between tho original Chrlstmns tree nnd Yggdrnslll, the giant nsh tree of Scandinavian mythology, which sprend Its branches over tho whole world; others point to the pine tree used In the Bacchanalia, which was crowned with tho Imago of Bacchus, and ngnln there nre those who spenk of the cus torn of tho ancient Egyptinns, who at the time of the winter solstice decorated their houses with tho branches of tho date palm theso nro nil re ferred to ns probable progenitors of our custom of trimming n tree ond decorating onr buildings Similar trees wero used on festive occasions by tho Hindus, sometimes nrtlflclnl and of priceless value, being formed of pcnrls and other precious stones. Whntcver mny bo said, there Is no ccrtnln knowledge of tho use of the trees ns we now hnvo It before the sixteenth century. We find It np penrlng nt Strassburg, In Germany, nt nbout thnt time, nnd for 200 years It was maintained nlong the Rhine. Aftor this period, during which It was gaining strength, It suddenly flushed over nil Ger many. This was nt the beginning of tho nine teenth century, In the 50 years succeeding this sudden growth It hnd struck its roots into all Christendom. Tho preparation of It for the eyes of the young in Germany, tho country whero tho modern prac tice originated, Is an nffnlr of grent secrecy. It Is kept In n separate room, which Is locked, nnd Into whoso mysteries none but tho mother Is lnl tinted. At six o'clock in the evening of tho dny be fore Christmas the door Is opened nnd In tho children rush to receive their presents, which uro hung on and spread nil nbout the tree. Then tho children present their gifts to their parents, nnd then to each other, nnd the whole surprise Is over before Chrlstmns eve hns passed. Probably this explains the lassitude thnt Is experienced the next day which feeling-, nevertheless, Is not solely characteristic of Germany. America received Its first tree through t.U Ger man Immigrant, who brought It with him. But for n long time tho festival did not receive recog nltlon because of the Inws forbidding" it. It wns not until the lnttor pnrt of the eighteenth cen tury Hint these laws were repealed, and nfter that it took somo tlmo for it to emerge from the stntn of quiescence Into which It hnd been forced. To our country belong the honor of being tho birthplace of tho Christmas enrd, which, sndly enough, together with other Christmas rcmcm brnnccs, has degenerated In somo cases to n mere business convention. Tho custom first stnrted with the school pieces which the schoolboy of the middle nineteenth century wns to rend at tho nnnunl school exer cises always given nt this time of tho year. The original flourishes of embellishment on these curds, upon which the pieces to bo rend wero writ ten, grew Into nil elaborately designed poem or maxim, good wishes or whnt not. Tusser, In his "Five Hundred Points of Good Husbandry," snld, and wisely, too: ' "At Christmas piny and mnke good cheer, For Christmas comes but onco n yenr." Ilnppy nro thos who profit by this ndvico, and more happy thotiu who maintain, In somo form this splrU through the 804 dnys which Intervene ueioro anoincr sucn time returns; CONTROLS ALL NAVAL OPERATIONS The most Important man in the navy today Is Admiral William S. Ben son, ranking officer In the service and chief of naval operations. Yet llttlo Is henrd of him outside' naval circles. Outwardly or officially, Admiral Benson is "charged with the opera tions of tho fleet nnd with the prepara tion nnd rendlness of plans for Its use In war." When congress crented tho particular billet which he now fills on May 11, 1015, tho duties of the chief of naval operations were thus defined. Admiral Benson, then n renr admiral, took the Job nnd tho public promptly forgot ho was there. When the war same there were so many other things to occupy the public mind thnt no ono apparently hns sought to disturb Ad miral Benson's official seclusion. Outside Ms door on the second floor of tho nnvy department Is n "posi tively no ndralttnnce" sign. A dis tinguished visitor to Washington la- quired tho other dny whose office It was nnd when Informed blnndly inquired, -who is lieuson?" Evidently he was one of the unacquainted land variety. Deciding matters of naval strategy In home nnd foreign waters, looking nfter the details of every phase of America's naval war program ashore or afloat, and supervising nil mntters relntlng directly or Indirectly to naval war plans, these are the most Important of the duties which Admiral Benson has to perform. From n practical viewpoint he is commander in chief of the nnvy ashore and nflont. He Is to the navy what the chief of staff Is to tho army. MAY REVOLUTIONIZE MOTOR POWER Scientific tests are still being mado under authorization of congress of a wonderful device of Gnrabed T.'Glrn gosslan, an Armenian Inventor nnd me chanic of Boston, which if nil that la claimed for It proves true, will revo lutionize the motor power of tho world. The Inventor calls his device n "free energy" generator nnd It Is sig nificant that congress deemed tho mnt ter worthy of scientific tests. Just what the engine is, Is not made known. It Is claimed by the Inventor that It can drive a battleship any distance without stop for fuel, for this strange device uses no fuel ; thnt it can propel nn airplane around tho world with nrmor heavy enough to turn aside Hie heaviest shells, nnd perform other feats that seem most uncanny. In speaking of his Invention, Mr. Glrngosslan says: "I have not overcome gravity or nnythlng of that kind. The source of tho energy is already existent and I am going to utilize it by means I havo discovered. It Is concentrated. If we wnnt to mnke use of electricity out of tho earth we concentrate on Hint. It is necessary to build boilers and engines to produce thousands of horse power out of coal. My device is utilized In such n way Hiat it is almost condensed energy. The source of the energy is very great. It is portable and you can carry it from place to place. "My engine will produce power to turn something, thnt Is nil. It docs not require any heat. It can be put In any room, In any cellar. Tho prlnclplo is so extremely simple that the minute you see it you will say to yourself: 'Well, why didn't J think of that before.' " LOOKS AFTER COUNTRY'S REVENUE 3 "He Is always good at figures," said Danny's tencher, when talking with his raoUier nfter she hnd called nt Hie school. This happened in 1877, nnd 40 years hns not changed Daniel C. Roper. At lenst Uncle Snm doesn't think so, because he appointed him to probably the hardest Job of a non-mlll-tnry nature to bo found In Wnshlngton. His office door rends, "Collector of Internal Revenue," and ns the revenue has been Increased several times It Is going to bo some Job. Ho began his preparation for this enreer by attend ing Trinity college, nnd nfter he was graduated from that North Carolina in stitution he continued by nttendlng the National university of Wnshlngton, D. O., from which he emerged four years later ready for a fight with the world. Soon nfter his college work ended ho became very much Interested in the cotton nnd weaving industries. It was Mr. Roper who developed n scheme of collecting cotton statistics by n count at frequent lntervnls during the harvest ing period of the number of bnles turned out nt tho gins. This In Itself was quite nn achievement, nnd the government recognized his merit by sending him on a survey of tho textile industries in America and In Europe. From this dntn he was enabled to compile n textbook, which has been used ns authentic Information by experts In this country, ns well as nbroad. CUSTODIAN OF ENEMY PROPERTY Arrangements were made at a con ference between President Wilson nnd A. Mitchell Pulmer, custodian of cne-l my property, to put Into complete op-i erntlon Hie provisions of tho tradlng-wlth-tho-cnemy law for custody of property In this country of Germnn, citizens and Uioso of countries allied with Germany. Receipts of enemy property nl rendy has begun, tho first receipts be ing n draft for $100,000 vountnrlly ten dered the custodian, who promptly in vested it In Liberty bonds. Within n short time property worth millions of dollars will bo In tho cus todian's hands. President Wilson soon will Issue nn executive order which will authorize opening of branch bu reaus for receipt of enemy property. Tho ultimate disposition of prop erty taken over by his office, Mr. Pnlmer explained, rests with congress, which must decide whether it shall bet confiscated or merely held In trust during tho war by tho custodian as a trustee. An executlvo order Axes the salary of Mr. Palmer ot $5,000 a year and directs that ho give a bond of $100,000.
