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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Exeter Advocate, 1915-12-16, Page 3rilmsleaszneasms CHRISTMAS GIFTS There is a 'good deal of blunderin n Christmas giving. There are number of delusions in relation this subject which it is worth while discover and avoid. One delusio which prevails is that all our gifts a to be valued `at the dollar and cent rate. At this rate the gift which cos $1.00 will be worth to the recipien just a hundred times as much as thi one which only cost one dollar. Th is surely a bad blunder. The value the gift depends comparatively littl upon its monetary value, It depend very much more upon its suitabilit and most of all upon the person•wh gives it. While Christmas is no tim for extreme and unnecessary eco,. only, it is just as little a time f . ostentatious display of wealth. Th emphasis must not be laid upon th dollar, for, if it is, the value o Christmas will be sadly impaired, an possibly wholly destroyed. Another blunder is to allow ou Christmas giving to worry us. I seems strange that this should hap yen, and yet we are persuaded tha ,,here are not a few who .every Christ. pas really suffer from nervous ex- haustion on account of the worry in eident to their Christmas shopping This probably may be largely avoided if we take plenty of time to choose our gifts, and purchase them as we have opportunity. And if the gifts are largely our own handiwork we can probably commence them much earlier and escape the penalty of Christmas weariness. Another mistake is harder to rem- edy. It consists in giving people what we think they ought to like in- stead of what they really do like. The boy would like a top or a sleigh; the father gives him Baxter's Saint's Rest. The girl would like a book or a brooch; the mother gives her a pair of boots. In all giving we have a right to consider what is best for the recipient, but we have an equal right to consider what be (or she) would most prefer. The tragic element in. such eases too often lies in this, that the giver is woefully out of sympathy' with the one he wishes to please, Probably the heart `is grayer than the hair. Christmas, rightly used, should help to keep us young. Another blunder lies in foolishly giving what our better judgment con- demns. There are fathers and moth- ers who are too fond to be kind, and at Christmas they seek only to get that which the children most desire, forgetting that the day may come when the child, grown wiser through bitter experience, will curse the well- meaning folly which made his own wishes his parents' law. The child's wishes should be consulted, but the parent's judgment and experience must not be ignored, Another mistake lies in confining our Christmas gifts to our own little circle. If the Christian church in Canada were fully alive to this, there need be no family in the whole land without a goodly measure of Christ- mas cheer. If each one would only , look after his own corner! It would mean a Iittle more time, a little more money, but a good deal more happi- ness, both to those who give and to those who receive. The Christmas time, if it is to realize what it seems to. us it is divinely intended to rea- lize, should make the whole world of mankind, at least for a little time, one great family, of which no mem- ber should be left out in loneliness or neglect. g. a t t n re t t s. o A FEAST OF LIGHTS. „see- The Jews Keep Up the Festival of Hanukah. Almost coincident with the Christ- mas festivities, when the lighted Christmas -tree is the special feature of the occasien, another feast of lights is celebrated by Jews. It commemorates the victories of the Maccabeans (Jews led by Mecca- beus) over a tyrant king of Syria. This king had attempted to force the Jews to idolatry, hesitating at noth- ing to compass his ends, but the lat- ter, led by .Maccabeus, resisted, and, fortified with a true belief in their own religion, they gained a complete victory over, the large armies of the enemy. The Holy Temple, which had been polluted by the heathen soldiers, was again sanctified, and the true service of prayer re-established. But on attending to the perpetual lamp it was discovered that there re- mained but one flask of holy oil suffi- cient for one day only. By a miracle of providence it sufficed for eight days, until a fresh supply could be. obtained. In memory of this dedication of the Temple, the Jews keep up the festival of Hanukah (the; Hebrew wordfor dedication) by lighting up a candle hi their synagogues and houses on, the first night of the festival and adding one more each successive evening, so that on ,the eighth evening` eight. lights are kindled:' After the candles 'A, have been lit a special hymn, express- ing feelings ofgratitude, is ,chanted to end the •evening's ceremon. Why He Needed It. "There are things more valuable than money," ruminated the philoso- pher. hiloso-pher. "Sure!" retorted the iconoclast, "That's the reason I needmoney to buy them." DINNER FOR FAMILY OF SIX f amu::^ .cM.5M1V.. 'a,v,�, Good Christmas Fare at a Cost of Less Than $2. As the holiday season approaches the housewife is busy making the usual plan for a family dinner party; or' for as many guests as she can ac- commodate. Christmas and New Year's dinners are frequently elabo- rate affairs, especially with those who can afford to buy all the good things in the markets. It is the less expen- sive dinner that the housewife has to figure out and plan for. The dinner given below is of good quality and costs very little; What Soup to. Make.—Cut celery and one onion into very small pieces, cover with four cups of cold water and let boil until thoroughly cooked; do not strain off the water, but crush the celery and onion with a large spoon or potato masher, season well with salt and pepper; add to this one cup of milk and one teaspoonful of butter, thicken with a little flour or bread crumbs. Stuffed Shoulder of Pork,—Have the butcher remove all the bone from three pounds of a shoulder of fresh Holiday Games,. At, our Christmas bazaar gree canes (cut on the river bank an closely resembling bamboo) furnishe the foundation of a most effectiv Japanese booth. They were easily made into a latticed sumter-house over which wild smilax was trained This keeps its glossy greeai leaves al winter in the South. When heavy clusters of loosely made pink paper flowers were added the result was beautiful, Several hundred of these flowers were made in one evening by simply scalloping two circles of pa- per, one slightly smaller than the other, twisting them together in the centre and slightly curling the petals, They were fastened to the leaves with pins, This little flower -covered booth, with its lanterns half hidden by the flowers and leaves, had a distinct- ly Japanese air, The "lucky bean" •game can be played at any informal dinner, supper, children's party, fancy dress dance or pork, Wipe the pieces of meat with masquerade. Each guest, on arrival, a damp cloth and be sure there are is asked to partake of a small piece no particles of splintered bone re - of cake, a bean being hidden in one morning on it. Rub the meat well . of the pieces. The lucky finder of the with salt, pepper and powdered sage. evening, becomes king or queen. of at Pill the cavity from which the bone' evening, and is crowned with great has been removed with a stuffing ; ceremony. The sovereign holds full made of two cups of bread crumbs,' swayWhatfor the rest of the evening. the onion finely chopped, chestnuts suit. he lie she does all must and that have been blanched and put s low If chooses to hop around through the grinder, season well with ! the room, all must do so, if he drinks, salt and pepper, tie together with $ ^ all do the same; in fact, every action strong white cord and bake in a has to be•imitated by the other guests,. double roasting pan, Bake in, a butter- oi. the penalty is a forfeit. 1 ed 'dish three or four cooking apples { that have been pared, cored and In the left-handed party the host quartered, Serve on platter with the and hostess have their right hands fastened behind them in receiving their guests. Any guest giving his a right hand in greeting pays a forfeit later in the evening, Potato races form a part of the entertainment. Potatoes are placed at one end of the room in a row. Contestants start from the other end, take up the pota• - toes in spoons held by the left hand, and return to the other end of the room within a given time, Then a large bowl of peanuts is put on the table, and each guest removes as many as he can on the back of his left hand, even to the partaking of refreshments. n d d e • A LITTLE CHILD. Babe of Bethlehem Was a Simpi Helpless, Rumen Child. Did you ever stop tothink what must mean to the world of Christian men and women that once in ever year they are everywhere' impelled t gather about the cradle of a lttI human child. For we must remeinbe always that Jesus was that. He was indeed, no make-believe child, an more than He was a make-believ man in the after years. The Gospel tell us no marvel tales of His earl years,. for there were none to tell. R cannot understand it; it is the great- est marvel of the many marvels tha crowd our lives, but we must Stan by this, that the Babe of Bethlehem though He was the Son of the Father was a simple, helpless, human child. And every year we stand about His cradle, learned and unlearned, and standing there, with Him the centre !of our thought and feeling, our earth- ! ly hopes and ambitions and longings "grow to be something other and bet- ter than they were. Apart from all , that Jesus does for us in other ways, His influence over us as the little Child in Bethlehem is wonderfully full of blessing and of helpfulness. That little Child must make the life of the world simpler, honester, purer, more •kindly, more helpful than it could 4 therwise have been. Looking at Him there in all His helplessness, filled !with all the mystery and strangeness i and condescension of that scene in ' Bethlehem's inn, the hardness and coldness and self-seeking of our lives drops from us at least a little, and purposes for better and kinder and holier living fill and grip our hearts. In a fulness of meaning that we but little understand, it is true that "a little child" is leading the world into ever new and better and happier and. holier ways, Looking at Him to -day we ought to resolve that our lives will realize the promptings that stir within us as we gaze with the shepherds and wise men of old at the strangest, most beautiful sight this world has ever seen, We ought to determine that we will let Him, the Babe on Mary's knee,'who was so much more that we may never understand, lead our lives up along those higher ways of love and charity and holiness and service. H:NDKERCHIEF GIFTS. A Very intimate Little Token of Re- membrance. Handmade handkerchiefs are the most delightful of gifts. Every wo- man likes a dainty handkerchief, but many women consider them an ex- travagance not to be bought out of their own purses. • It remains for friends and anniversaries to form a conspiracy and give that economical woman a supply of daintiness that will last her until another gift time comes about, As color is one of the ending notes in handkerchiefs, both eminine and masculine, pretty, plain handkerchiefs can be made from quares of sheer linen button -holed in olor about the edges, instead of be - ng hemmed. Add to this a mano- gram worked in color, and possibly a monogram frame or wreath about that, and you have as smart a hand- kerchief as one could wish. Still other and -made handkerchiefs have little prays of foliage and fiowera, worked e, WFTS. FOR THE MEN FOLKS. A. Few Suggestions ggestions That Will Come. it In Useful; % SWEETMEATS y a. e r HOLIDAY A remark often, heard at this sea- son wof the year is, "I can't think rlia to give So-and-so: for Christ- ! There is no culinary• niaS'' secret so dear to. the feminine heart as a recipe be - That is the trouble ---to think of queathed byone's great -great -grand - things. The making or the shopping mother. Te recipes wefo grhat-grande p g r capes for these little are Minor details when one has, de- cakes have been used for ratio tided what to k gene mabuy, The by the Moravians shops do not helpwhose quaint Old rriuch, for there is World religious customs have with- Y so very much to be seen that they stood our fin-de-siecle civilization , are apt to dull the imagination rather a century and acry cateon fore e than sharpen it. ,- half. Ta them t..9 neighborly exchange of Christmas t Here are a few suggestions that cakes is an institution as honored as d may prove useful, or may at least the singing of carols,and much , suggest something else to your mind. gratifying to the youngsters d more We will think of y ndtebs who re- presents for men vel in edible birds and beasts cut first, as they are by far the hardest. after the grotesque Moravian at The older man, who usually is ade- ; terns. The cutters used to form these quately, supplied with gloves, ties, unusual shapes are nowfound din handkerchiefs, sleeve links, cigarette " some house -furnishing u n cases, etc., who has no idea what else they can be made b h axiy stores, but he wants, is the problem of every F Cakes made from these recipes will household. Would he,. for instance, , keep for weeks if they are ut in a like an electric toaster, They comerstone crock in a cool place. Pepper now for $2.50, They make the best ° nuts are especially good for long toast imaginable, and the man with a keeping, because they contain n • toaster beside him on the breakfast shortening to become rancid. If the table can be sure of hat, delicious are made before Christmas they will toast each morning, no matter how keepperfectly il, until late in the spring, early or late be may be, for his break -All of these cakes are better if the fast. are mixed one day and baked the If there is a motor in the family, next. The dough should be covered. brass initials ' or a mor.ogram will and kept in a cool place overnight, make a nice gift for its owner. These Pepper Nuts.—Mix one pound and a can be made by a harnessmaker or a quarter of brown sugar, two table - silversmith, Pocket travelling slip- spoonfuls of cinnamon, one table - pees of soft leather that come in little spoonful of cloves and one teaspoonful leather cases and cost from $1. or $2, of baking powder. Stir into this three are a good idea for a man who has eggs and add as much flour as it is to travel much, Florida water is a , possible to work in, The dough must. gift often appreciated by the fastidi- be very stiff. Roll it out moderately ous man, as it is a toilet water that thin, and cut the cakes no larger than can be used after shaving without a silver quarter. Bake in a very cool leaving an offensively perfumed odor Sfe meat. • One pint of cranberries, sugar, make into sauce or jelly, The cran- berry sauce or jelly is very attractive when served in small individual glasses. Take seven cents' worth of pota- toes that have been boiled, mashed and seasoned well with salt, pepper and sufficient milk to make them creamy, place in a well -greased bak- ing dish and put in the oven to brown. Creamed Pumpkin.—Use half of a pumpkin, remove all the pumpkin from the rind, taking care not to break the latter, as it makes a very attractive centrepiece for the table filled with fruit. Take the pumpkin that has been removed from the rind and steam until tender, then mail Meeting" and nothing else, can often and add seasoning or salt, pepper and be roused from its starched stiffness a spoon of cream or button. by the highly intellectual game of A Mixed Salad.—Salad made of one Cat. Seat the players in a circle small head of lettuce, two apples with one in the centre to be the cat, finely chopped and a little grated This animal at once proceeds to make cheese; just before serving put the his moan at the publicity of his posi- apples and cheese on the crisp lettuce tion, and with as wailful waouls as leaves, pour over all a French dress - of kneels before some member ing made of two tablespoons of oil, of the party and tries to make him ; two of vinegar, a pinch of dry mlaugh. The cat can make three pleas, tard, salt, pepper and a dash of A company of boys and girls who seem determined to play "Quaker each as long and doleful as possible. 1 prika. Apples, cheese and dressing. Meanwhile the seated players must 'f Steamed Pudding.—To two cups of reach out his hand, pat the cat on s bread crumbs add one-half cup of the shoulder and say, "Poor pussy, finely chopped suet, one-half cup of poor pussy, poor pussy!" three times , seeded raisins, chopped nuts, three- without laughing, If he laughs he quarters of a cup of sugar, nutmeg must become the cat. This is not a and cinnamon; moisten all with equal game that can be played long, but to parts of water and milk, put into a : break the ice it is very successful, well -greased pudding pan and steam since it is so utterly ridiculous that for three hours. Serve with a pad. even the shyest must smile at least a s ding sauce of one large cup of boiling bit. water, two tablespoons of sugar, one tablespoon of butter, half teaspoon of nutmeg,. and thicken with corn- starch to consistency of cream. Just before serving add a little brandy or sherry wine. Cost of sauce, 9 cents. Crackers and Cheese.—Crackers, cheese, spread cream or grated cheese on saltines or water crackers that have been split. If using grated cheese, place the crackers in the oven just before serving. If cream cheese. is used spread on crackers and sprinkle with a dash of paprika. •T+ Santa Found Out. Ha! ha! You can't fool me— I know who Santa is! For I lay awake the whole night long, And solved the tactless quiz. I wondered why my mamma put Us kids to bed at eight, While she stayed up a-workin' round Till it was awful late; So, with my eyelids almost closed, I kept awake, ha! ha! And waited for old Santa Claus To find it was just—Ma! n A i the came color, in one corner. Vhite lace and sheer linen combina- tions are as welcome always. They may be simple little hemstitched squares with an edging of Iace, or more elaborate handkersliief with in- sertion, edging and even inset medal- lions of valenciennes or filet. A handkerchief has the advantage of being, if you wish it, a very inti- mate little token of- remembrance if enclosed in the same envelope, with an affectionate note. A handkerchief will make a "letter" gift worth hay- h ing. tl WHEN MISTLETOE WAS SACRED. Ancient Druids Brought Greens With- in for Sylvan Spirits,. The Druids with .ceremonies of great solemnity used to collect mistle of molasses, one ounce of cinnamon, toe "against the festival of winter one ounce of ginger, one ounce of all - solstice." Only the oaks bearing mis spice, half an ounce of cloves, the tletoe were sacred to this ancient or- grated rind of one orange and flour der of men, and they made solemn - enough to make a dough stiff enough procession to such oaks, a prince of to roll out very thin. the order cutting the mistletoe with a 'Moravian Chocolate Cakes. --- Nix golden sickle. together two cupfuls of light brown It is recorded that the people's rev- sugar and half a cupful of butter and. erence for the priests proceeded in lard mixed. Add two eggs, a half great measure from the cures which cupful of grated chocolate that has the priests effected by means of this been melted aver hot water and one curious green plant of the peariike teaspoonful of soda. Stiffen this with berries, It was collected thus cert- flour and form into a long roll as moniously by the Druids because it large ground as a ;mall baking pow - was supposed to drive away evil spi- der can. Slice this down very thin, rits. dip one side m granulated sugar, and The reason among the Druids far bake in a moderate oven. bringing in bits of evergreen from the Nazareth Chocolate Cakes.—Cream woods and adorning the house is a two cupfuls of granulated sugar and most charming and lovable one. "The a scant three-quarters of a cupful of houses were decked with evergreens butter. Stir into this one cupful of in December that the sylvan spirits water, two eggs, two small teaspoon - might repair to them and remain un- fills of baking powder, half a cake of nipped with frost and cold winds un- melted chocolate and four large cup - til a milder season had renewed the fuls of flour. Roll very thin and bake foliage of their darling abodes.:, slowly. .k Almond Cakes. — Rub together a IF ANIMALS COULD TALK. quarter of a pound of powdered su- gar and a half a pound of butter, add Would Recall Events Which Happened the yolks of four eg!s, three table - Hundreds of Years Ago.spoonfuls of cream and one pound o flour. Mix sufficient sugar and flour It is a startling fact that if some in equal parts to sprinkle over the animals could tell their life history dough board. Roll the dough on this they would be able to recall events until it is a quarter of an inch thick, which happened hundreds of years then cut in diamonds, and when the ago. cakes are baked ice them with the A Russian eagle, for instance, following icing; Beat together the would be able to remember watching yolks of two eggs and two tabieepoon- with greedy eyes as one by one the fuls of water and thicken with confec- French soldiers under Napoleon fell tioner's sugar. Spread this on the exhausted out of the ranks in their, cakes and sprinkle thickly with al - awful retreat from Moscow in 1812. monds that have been blanched and There are crocodiles alive in India ; cut fine, then set in the oven a few o -day which saw the first English ; minutes to dry. reveller set foot there, while there { Crisp Molasses Cakes. — Mix a are whales in the sea which might pound and a quarter of dark brown ave skirted the coast of France when sugar, half a pound of butter and to English invaded it in 1415. ihalf a pound of lard. Add to this oven. These cakes will puff up round, and are more attractive if the flat aide is spread with a hard icing. This re- cipe will make between three and four quarts of cookies, Bethlehem Spice Cakes. --- Cream one pound of brown sugar and one pound of butter, add to this one quart WELL! „•ttL1- YA LooK1T THA u571- Kamp Sorel The Busiest Fellow in the Land r<i A great many elephants could re-, call historical events of a hundred years. ago, while there are ravens still living whose memory could go back,! twice that period. Talking of birds, the parrot, the' crow and the, swan often live a hun- j dred years—that is, of course, if they do not meet with misfortune—while the heron will live 60 years. Geese and pelicans will survive half a cen- I tury and the sparrow 40 years. Pigeons, linnets, canaries, cranes and peacocks will live to well over 20 years, while the goldfinch, partridge, pheasant, lark and nightingale will live from 15 to 18 years, the robin 12 years and the thrushand hen 10' years. .Z. Napoleon and Hannibal. Napoleon and Hannibal were both supreme in the art of battle winning. To the"` question, "Which was the, greater?" it is difficult to, give an answer. A great many military au -1 thorities give the palm to Hannibal over all the great captains of history. one quart of molasses, two table- spoonfuls of ginger, two tablespoon- fuls of cinnamon, one tablespoonful of cloves and a small teaspoonful' of soda. Work in enough flour to stiffen and roll very thin. . Bavarian Christmas Cookies.— Mix half a pound of butter with a quarter of a pound of granulated sugar, add three-quarters of a pound of flour and moisten with three tablespoonfuls of orange juice. Roll the dough thin, cut into small round cakes and spread a little of the well -beaten yolk of an egg in the centre of each. Sprinkle pulverized sugar and a little cinna- mon over the egg, and bake in a slow oven. White Christmas Cakes. — Cream one pound of butter and one pound of sugar, add five eggs and one cupful of. sour cream in which has' been dis- solved a teaspoonfulof soda. Stir in flour 'enough to make a soft dough, roll thin, cut into round cakes and. press half of a hickory nut meat in the centre. Rice Cakes. — Rub together • one pound of butter and one pound,of su- gar, add two eggs and one pound -of • The common hen lays about `50 rice flour. After the dough is rolled thin and cut, spread a little :beaten egg on each cake and sprinkle with sugar -and cinnamon. 'Vanilla Wafers. One-third of a cupful of butter and lard mixed, one cupful . of granulated sugar, half a teaspoonful of salt, one egg, a quarter of a cupful of sweet milk, two and a quarter cupfuls of flour, one teaspoon- ful, of baking powder" and two tea spoonful's 'of .vanilla. Bake in a r rod- crate oven. Some people are always more sus or 600 eggs in ten years. "I understand Smith and Jones had high words the other day." "Yes; and they're going to have higher ones. Each of them has engaged a lawyer." In the matter of recruiting, Wales. has done better in proportion to her. population than either, England or Scotland. Proud Father—"I believe, my dear,. that the baby knotvs as much as I dog" Mother. (gazing at the infant)— "Yes, poor little fellow." 111°1°11s of a self"admitted saint than they areof a self-confessed sinner.'