The Brussels Post, 1908-12-17, Page 8*+++ 4 , ++*t-+++++++++:44.41
A Christmas Diener
!N ++ le+++.++• F+++++++++t
Cream of Celery Soup.—Four
beads eS1 celery, two quarts of wat-
elr, two quarts of milk, four table-
spoons of butter, four tablespoons
flour, two teaspoons salt, one-fourth
teaspoon white pepper. Wash and
scrape the celery and cut into half
inch strips. Cook in boiling water,
replenishing as necessary, until
soft. Mash in the water in which
it has cooked. Rub through a
strainer. Make a white sauce with
the butter, flour and milk. Add
the celery stock. Season, beat all
In a double boiler and serve at
once, adding one tablespoon of
whipped cream to each plate.
Bread Fingers.—Cut bread into
strips four inches long, an inch
wide and ono inch thick, removing
all the crust. These are very ac-
ceptable accompaniments to cream
soups.
Escalloped Fish.—A 3 -pound
whitefish will be large enough for
this purpose. Boil, and flake it
with a fork, being careful to have
alI the bones removed. Prepare
two cups of white sauce. Add this
to the fish. Season: Fill twelve
ramekin dishes, cover with buttered
crumble and bake in the oven fif-
teen minutes, or until well brown-
ed. Garnish eaoh dish with a slice
of lemon.
Larded Fillet of Beef.—Secure a
small tenderloin, which your butch-
er can remove whole from the side
of beef, Remove all the tendinous
portion. Secure it into attractive
shape to roast. Lard the top with
strips of fat salt pork. Roast in a
hot oven thirty minutes. Serve on
a large platter. Surround with a
border of mashe ss' potatoes run
through a colander or ricer. Gar-
nish with slices of beet cut into
fancy shapes and a IOW sprays of
parsley.
Bernaise Sauce.— Three table-
spoons chopped onion. Two table-
spoons vinegar. A few grains cay-
enne. Yolks of three eggs. One-
half cup of butter. One tablespoon
chopper parsley, Cook the onion
In the vinegar until nearly all the
vinegar is absorbed. Add the yolks
and a small piece of butter, let
cook over hot water and continue
adding the butter bit by bit, Add
the seasonings. Serve either hot or
cold. It is of the consistency of
mayomaise.
Roast Ducks.—Fill the prepared
and cleaned ducks with a stuffing
of boiled rice. Truss and roast very
much as turkey. After the first few
minutes maintain a hotter fire
than for fowl. Baste every ten min-
utes. Cook about one hour. Servo
on a large platter. Garnish with
slices of orange, maraschino cher-
ries and Endine leaves.
Brown Sauce.—Prepare a brown
sauce from fat in the pan and four
tablespoons of flour. For liquid
use one pint of brown meat stock
or water.
Sweet Potatoes au Gratin.—
Twelve sweet pot: toes (cold boil-
ed), two tablespoons of butter, five
tablespoons of sugar, one-half tea-
spoon of salt, speck of pepper ; cut
the cold boiled potatoes into half-
inch slices; put a layer in the bot-
tom of the baking dish; sprinkle
with salt, pepper and sugar; add
another layer, sprinkle again. Pro-
ceged in this manner and on the top
sprinkle sugar and small pieces of
butter. Bake in a moderate oven
twenty minutes. Let brown on top.
Put baking dish on a plate covered
with a folded napkin and garnished
with green.
Baked onions.—Twelve large on-
ions (red), le tablespoons bread
crumbs; salt and pepper to taste.
Parboil the onions until tender.
Remove from the fire and cut off a
circular piece from the top. Scoop
out the inside, chop fine half the
onion which has been taken out.
Add this to the meat: Six table-
spoons of the bread crumbs, salt
and pepper. Fill the onion cup with
this mixture. Bake fifteen minutes,
putting a little water in the baking
pan. Baste once or twice; sprinkle
the top with buttered crumbs; re-
turn to the oven and brown; servo
on round pieces of toasted bread,
on small plates,
Asparagus Salad.—Purchase one
of the large square cans of aspara-
gus tips, They tomo about four
inches long and ono can contains
enough to make salad for twelve.
Clean and crisp twelve pretty let -
time ]eaves. Lay the asparagus
tips across the lettuce and encircle
the tips with rounds cut from red
peppers, If the peppers are not in
market a touch of red may be ob-
tained by adding two radishes to
each plate. Pare the radishes
thinly :from the top, so that the
slender parings will curl back and
give the appearance of a rose, On
the lettuce leaf lay ane tablespoon
ofmayonnaise. dressing. Serve
with this sandwiches made of whole
white bread, cut very thin and
trimmed into the shape of triangles
or ereecents,
Cheese Croquottes..-»One pound
grated cheese. Four egg whites.
Pinch of eayenne end salt. Bleat the
Whites of eggs to a stiff froth 1 stir
into this the cheese with salt and
euyeirne; mold into balls the size of
a walnut. Dip into eggs and
crumbs, Serve hot on a folded nap-
kin.
Individual Plum Puddings.—
Steam the plum pudding in indiv-
idual tin molds. Those the shape
of timbales are the most desirable,
Then when the pudding is turned
out each one looks something like
a little flower pot. Follow out this
idea by inserting into the•top of
each a little spray of holly large
enough to resemble a tiny Christ-
mas tree. Surround at the base
with a white foamy sauce in imita-
tion of snow.
Sauce.—Two cups of pulverized
sugar. Half cup butter. One tea-
spoon flavoring, Two egg whites.
Cream the butter. Add sugar
gradually, then the well beaten
whites and flavoring,
Maple Mousse.=•Tour eggs. One
cup hot maple syrup. Ono pint
thick cream. Beat the eggs and
syrup slowly. Cook until thicken-
ed. Add cream beaten stiff. Pack
in equal quantities of coarse salt
and chopped ice and let stand four
hours. Serve on a large platter,
garnishing the top of the brick with
whipped cream and preserved gin-
ger.
FOR CHRISTMAS SHOPPERS.
As Christmas approaches and you
prepare your gift list, resolve:
To buy no present that you can-
not afford.
To give no present that you would
rather keep yourself.
To send no present that might as
well be labeled at once R. R.—
"Receive and Recriprocate."
To remember that the shop girl
is human and not a machine.
To do your shopping as early as
possible.
To shop only as much as you have
strength for, so that when Christ-
mas comes you won't be "just tireel
to death."
To make up your mind as far as
possible what you want to buy, and
about how much you can spend,
before you enter a shop.
To keep your temper always.
To observe the law of suitability
in giving of presents; why send the
poorest of your friends .a fifty -cent
present and almost break yourself
by spending as many dollars for a
gift for the woman whose life is a
regular cake walk of luxuries1
To remember that painstaking
care exercised in the choice of a
gift is an evidence of love an the
part of the donor.
Tobe happy as you can and make
others as happy as you can.
To remember your sick or sor-
rowful iriend.
To realize that it is useless to ex-
pect a merry Christmas if you have
to face the New Year in a financial
condition verging upon bankruptcy.
To try, when buying the doll for
your own little girl, to get one that
some poor child can hug to its
warm little heart.
To remember that children never
forget their early Christmas days,
and it is worth a sacrifice to make.
them so full of joy that in after
years the memory of them shall be
a precious possession gilding all
their childhood.
To bear in mind and never Iose
sight of these facts:
That the keynote of Christmas is
giving, not getting: that generosity
is false when it is forced; that bar-
ter and exchange are not giving;
that Christmas will be truly happy
to us just in • proportion that we
bring happiness to others; that the
very first Christmas • gifts of all
were Laid at the feet of a child of
the poor.
LEGENDS OF SANTA CLAUS,
There grew up a crstom in Chris-
tian countries of giving presents in
secret on the Vigil of St. Nicholas.
In Italy it was called the Zopasta,
which means in Spanish a shoe, be-
cause the gifts were put into shoes
to surprise people when they should
put them on in the morning.
In many French convents the
boarders used to place each her sills
stocking at the door of the room of
the Mother Abbess, recommending
themselves at the same time to St.
Nicholas. And in Germany a boy
dressed as a bishop would go round
in vestments and mitre and fill the
stockings hung up.
This solemnity of the boy bishop
came to be kept here, with much
care and ceremony on the feast of
St. Nicholas to commemorate his
youth and his patronage of children.
In Salisbury Cathedral there is, or
was, a monument to ono of these
boy bishops who died during his
term of office. The same custom
was observed in Spain, and in Swit-
zerland until the end of the eigh-
teenth century. At one place in
England, the convent of Godstawe,
in Oxfordshire, public prayer» were
said by a little girl dreesecl as an
abbess.
The custom, stopped here first by
Henry VIII. and afterward by
eetteen Elizabeth, was in e different
form carried on by the I)uteh in
America and became in the end the
secularized ceremony we still non
here of Santa Clause, a person
dressed inTititeh or German winicr
clothes of the sixteenth eentttry.
The Christmas Tree
COAiPABATIVELX RECEICTLX
TIIAT IT CAME IN.
Prince Albert, Vietoria's Consort,
Popularized it in England—The
Fir in Ohl -Time Revelry.
When, and in what manner, the
Christmas tree came to be assoc-
iated with the festival of the birth
of Christ few can say. Although
tho custom has been intimately con-
nected with Christianity, and has
grown with its growth, leo mention
of it is to be found in Biblical his-
tory. In order to find the first evi-
dences of its existence, it is neces-
sary to go back to the pagan glory
and Bacchanalian reeelry of ancient
Rome. Tile fir tree was closely
identified with the celebration of
Roman holidays. Reference to it is
to be found in Virgil's second Geor-
gic. Tho oscine', or gift, wholly de-
pended from the tree, took the form
of pagan deities, jeweled and gar-
nished. They derived their name
from their oscillations, the people
believing that if they oscillated or
swayed in their direction, or to-
wards their homes, happiness and
prosperity would follow in their
train until the holiday came again.
When the Roman legions, under
Brutus, broke through the valiant
German lines, they carried their
customs with them. As a result of
the invasion, Germany to -day as-
sociates her Christmas with the
Christmas tree of fir, upon which
is hung the gifts that serve to per-
petrate the memory of God's gift
to men. .
CURIOUS REVERENCE FOR FIR.
When the Irish priests strove
with the headers hordes of Ger-
mania and Switzerland, they found
that the fir tree was held in a cur-
ious reverence. Despairing of sup-
planting the worship of the trees
with any intangible ideals of Chris-
tian beliefs, they were forced to in.
vest it with a higher meaning, to
the end that the people, through it,
might learn of Christ. Assiduously
they strived, and in the process of
time they were won from their
idolatry to despose the fir tree and
to accept the Christ.
Prior to the seventh .century the
fir tree, because of its eternal ver -
dere because of its greenness when
all other trees are bare and leaf-
less, became associated in the mind
of the people as a symbol of etern•
ity. In the beginning of the sev-
enth century Santa Claus made his
appearance, carrying to the rich and
poor alike gifts at the joyous
Christmastide and most fittingly
distributing them from a fir tree.
FIRST CHRISTAAS TREE IN 1810
But it is only in modern times
that the Christmas tree has won a
permanent place in the hearts of
the people as being indispensable in
the celebration of the Saviour's
birth. In 1818 it first made its ap-
pearance in Austria-Hungary under
the direction of the Grand Duchess
Henrietta, the German consort of
the Archauko Charles. In that
year site caused to be erected a
mammoth fir tree, loaded with cost.
ly gifts for her children. And to
clay the custom, which found its in
ception in a palace, is perpetuated
throughout the length and breadth
of the land, penetrating to the Ion•
ely hamlets in the, Alpine heights.
It is a question if in any country
the custom is so religiously and en-
thusiastically carried out as it is in
the dual empire. Varied and
quaint are the manifold rites with
which the festival is form of cele
bration is that performed by moth-
ers of daughters who are approach-
ing the state of womanhood. Three
cradles are lighted and carefully
oonveyed to a lonely meadow.
There they are burned until noth-
ing but the ashes remain. The ash,
as fine as powder, is gathered and
then shaken over the beads of the
young girls amidst prayers and sup-
plications. The performance of this
custom assures immunity from
harm until the holiday spirit is
again abroad.
Alsace and Lorraine, described
as being the brightest jewels in the
crown of France, were the first to
embrace and nourish within the
empire the erection of the fir tree
at Christmas time, When these
two Provinces were wrenched from
the possession of France as n result
of the war of 1870, the Germans, as
did the Romans in their turn, car-
ried on their swords' points the
ancient customs of their country.
Thousands of the provincials flock-
ed to Paris e.s a result of the Gor-
man victory, and it was there that
the charitable organizations decid-
ed to give to the homeless -ones a
Christmas as nearly approaching
their own as was possible. So
there was erected a gigantic tree,
loaded with food and presents for
the people. All Paris came to see,
and, as a result, the Christmas tree
forms one of the institutions of the
Illranch today.
VICTORIA'S CONSORT IlleLPED,
whether in our own land of pine or
under the brazen skiee of the Far
East, the .Christmas tree lifte its
plume of everlasting green when.
the anniversary of the birth of
Christ pours forth its message of
peace and good -will upon all men -
kind.
It is only a little over a quarter
of a century ago that the first tree
was erected as a part of the Christ-
mas celebration in Spain. Stag-
nant with years of conservative
pride, she has made room but slow-
ly for the bright and cheery symbol
of the Christmas spirit, It was
Queen Christina who Caret broke
through the prejudice against for-
eign innovations, and gave to her
children the unalloyed enjoyment
of a tree glittering with candles and
tinsel, and burdened with gifts and
greetings.
And so, although separated and
divereified, all countries unite in
hailing the ringing message of the
birth of Christ as the 'one advent
which unites teem all, and bids
them extend and radiate peace and
plenty, joy and thanksgiving,
CHRISTMAS REMEMBRANCES.
There are inumerable things suit-
able and acceptable to the woman
who keeps house. Table linen, like
fine lace, makes a beautiful yet ser-
viceable gilt, and towels, scarfs,
for bureau and sideboard, curtains,
rugs, pictures, lamps and a
drop light at once suggest them-
selves. To those may be added,
sewing chair, trays for the table
service, book shelves, odd candle-
sticks, chafing dish for summer use,
baskets of all descriptions, carpet
sweeper and dust brushes, china
and cut glass, a piece of the new
"old" pewter, punch bowl, vases,
bronze, cushions or now covers for
the old ones, kitchen cabinet, bath-
room accessories, eiderdown quilt,
er a Roman striped blanket, so de-
sirable for covering when one lies
down on the couch for "forty
winks." A mother might apprec-
iate a pre -Christmas gift in the
shape of one of the patent pans in
which to roast turkey. Pianos, or-
gans and piano players are really
gifts to the home that are of last-
ing pleasure and value.
For the really personal gilts,
photographs of the family, a dress
pattern, silk petticoat, silk waist
pattern, fancy apron, fine stockings,
gloves, or a bit of jewelry. For the
younger woman a set of metal mon-
ograms for shopping bag, a suit
case, box of fine soap, toilet water,
fine slippers, silk Japanese kimono,
set of side combs, fancy purse, silk
umbrella, party dress or wrap, lib-
erty silk scarf or one made from
the new printed chiffons.
For the younger gir•1, engraved
visiting cards; shoe trees; a cock
ing set consisting of apron, sleeves
and cap; riding habit or gymnas-
ium suit, her school emblems, pin,
penant, cushion, etc.; bath rug,
belt buckle, embroidery for petti-
coat, knitted or crocheted lace to
trim a skirt ruffle, fancy cored cov-
er and hair ribbons.
For a maid or man, beside per
fume, fine toilet soap, bath, hair
and nail brushes, manicure imples
month, fine dressing comb, and Cine
confectionery, may be euggested;
a pair of gloves, fine stationery,
piece of good jewelry, a fancy bolt
or collar and umbrella.
To relieve any possible embarrass-
ment the teoughtful house -mother
will have a few extras in resea•t-s
for the unexpooted guest or belat-
ed traveller. Those may be books,
kerchiefs, a calendar, knitted bed
socks, silk scarf or celluloid soap
box.
CHRISTMAS TREE ORNAMENTS.
Cornucopias—Paste together four
inch squares of white and colored
paper, the white extending top and
left side and the colored at right.
Slip narrow ribbons between for
handles. Gum colored edge over
white; ornament with picture, fill
with candy, and close with extend-
ed white paper. Cut little stars,
hearts, and fancy shapes of card-
board, give coat of glue. Dip in
metallic flock.
Nests—Gum moss over with egg-
shells. Fill with candy eggs. Pep-
permint stick bonbon boxes—Wrap
narrow strips of rod paper around
cylinders made of stiff white paper
out six by two inches. Slash bot-
tom and paste to circular piece of
card board size of cylinder. Fill
with candy.
Artificial snow—Dip email flakes
of cotton in glue, than in Diamond
dust, Put on top branches,
Kisses—Wrap peanuts in colored
paper fringed at both ends. F'ee-
toons—Fold tinfoil ovet once.
Slash each side nearly across to
opposite side. Unfold strip and
pull edgee. Will glisten beautifully.
Handle carefully.
Fringe—Cut two inches wide tin-
foil in fine fringe, wrap around
coarse cord, making ropes of sils.
very fringe. Small Japaneee lan-
terns are safer and prettier than
unshielded candles, Paper flowers
dipped in hot paraffin and sprirrlrled
with "diamond dust" add much to
Prince Albert, consort of the bee the Christmas tree. Also English
let eel Vietnr•ilt, aided in the ;lop- walnuts wrapped with tinfoil end
lx itis; 'if the fir tree in lenglend. suspended by a string, add to the
Ulu a :d d ;we the British Empire,rnany ornaments needed.
A CHRISTMAS DISCOVERY.
'Twas the night before Chriatmaa
and Santa Claus sat
In his palace of ice and snow,
As he rubbed his hands before the
bright brands
His cheeks hod a ruddier glow.
His hair was as white as his palace
of snow,
The) beard on bis chin was the
same,
His eyes sparkled bright as a dia-
mond that night
As ho smiled on his white-haired
dame.
"Tis the eve before Christmas,' he
said to his wife,
`To -night I must hasten away,
The sweetmeats and toys for my
girls and my boys
Are snugly packed now in my
sleigh.
'My boys and my girls have been
good all tho year,
I am pleased (so weal have they
done,
Though some chimneys be small, I'll
visit them all,
And a present I'll give each one.'
Then he harnesseel his little rein-
deer and away
He sped with the. wings of the
wind,
His heart was aglow as he passed
o'er the snow,
And left the cold north land be-
hind.
Then onward he sped over valley
and hill
Till lie travelled the wide world
through
That hearts may be light as his own
was that night,
When morning should break on
the view.
Then I heard ting -a -ling ting -a -ling
at the door,
And quickly I loaned from my bed,
I knew very well it was Santa
Claus's bell,
And wanted a peep et his sled.
I peeped through the door that was
standing ajar,
Expecting the saint I should see,
But there stood papa with presents,
ha, ha,
And was filling my stocking for
me,
A
SANTA CLAUS' BOOK.
Winnie was now sorely perplexed.
She had seen a wonderful picture
of Santa Claus, sitting in his lib-
rary at hone. The room was filled
with large books on each side, from
coiling to floor, and on the desk in
front of him was another book
which he seemed to be reading with
groat delight. In these books were
the names of the girls and boys to
whom he would bring presents. She
thought this a beautiful picture,
and was fancying now that he was
reading a list that ran something
like this :—'Veinnifred, Muriel,
Bobbie.'
She thought no further— a ter-
rible idea came to her. 'The new
baby had never been named, and,
of eouree, if she hadn't any name,
she couldn't be in Santa Claus'
book, and if she wasn't in the book
he wouldn't know about.lier, and
she would find an empty stocking.
Ohl how dreadful. She couldn't
think it out alone, so sbe called
Muriel and Bobbie.
'What do yon think about it,
Muriel ]' said Winnie, for want of
an idea ahoy own, letting hoe little
sister speak first,
'I fink if Santa Clans don't bring
her any fing, her will send to God
for her wings, and go straight back
to heaven.'
At this Bobbie began to cry, bet
Winnie bade him to be quiet, as this
was a time to think, not to cry.
Suddenly his face brightened.
`Winnie, ask Maggie Malouo; her
know){ everyfin,g.'
'You dear little boy,' Bald Win-
nie, giving him a hug; 'you have
thought of the very best thing. Mrs.
Malone is in the basement wash-
ing to -day, and Maggie came with
her. Go and ask her to come here
at once.'
Maggie was a bright, sturdy little
Irish girl, who could tell the most
thrilling ghost stories, climb the
tallest trees, and get the best nuts,
giving them away with a lavish
hand.
Maggie came with her ears, eyes,
and, month open to take in the busi-
ness. They all talked at ones, and
soon told her all about it.
'Shere'n I'll tell him about her,'
said Maggie,
A queer thing happened the next
day. Maggie, Winnie, Muriel,
Bobbie and the baby enoh had a
nice letter from Santa Claris, tell-
ing of the things they would find
in their stockings, and the baby's
letter, was directed to `Edith Ells-
worth,' and she has been called by
that name ever since,
Little Fred: "Mother, sin' father
got a queer idea of what heaven is
like 1" Mother: "I don't know,
dear, I never heard him say any-
thing about rt. Little Fred;
"Well, I did. He told the grocery
man that the week you spent in
the country was like heaven to
ixiinl'f '
Christmas Dinner Table
4-o+o+o4-0 0+o{,o+o.}.oi+elle
It is more important that the dec-
orations of table and dining -room
ahuld be pretty and attractive than
that they should be strikingly orig-
inal, but at the same time, the hos-
teGs who can introduce some ap-
propriate novelty knows that it will
add to the interest of her table.
Where there are lighting fixtures
over the table, a centre is already
provided for the decorating opera-
tions. A pretty and simple scheme
is to bring festooms of ground pine,
laurell, or any kind of evergreens
that can be twined from the gaselier
over the tables to the corners of
the room, or to intermediate points
on the walls, and fasten therm there
with wreaths of holly. Among the
festoons hang crimson bells, grad-
uating from a fairly large one tind-
er the gaselier, to quite tiny ones.
Floral bells can be made by cover-
ing wire frames closely with im-
mortelles or bits of scarlet blossom,
but this of course is much more
trouble than buying the ready-made
ones at the stationer's. The table
decorations would be carried out
in the same scarlet and green, with
a centre of poinsettia on a mat of
evergreen, or of holly, with sprays
of the same laid over the cloth,
dividing the places. If the candles
have shades—they are frequently
used without them now—these
should match the bells.
The design of a star is a good
one for the Christmas table. The
wire shape can be purchased at a
florists and covered with holly,
taking care to keep the outline
clear. If the holly is not rich in
red berries, the star can be bright-
ened by sticking bits of scarlet ger-
anium, or crimson immortelles,
here and there!, closer at the centre
and thinning out towards the points.
A low red candle, unshaded, may
be placed at each point of the star.
If one wants a change from red and
green, a suitable color scheme is
red and white, or white and green.
A big glass bowl of pine mixed with
white chrysanthemums makes a
lovely centre -piece,, the graceful
clusters of pine 'needles' grouping
well with the feathery 'mums. A
vase of white roses or carnations,
set in the midst of a bowl of poin-
settia, is an effective arrangement
in scarlet and white.
When children are of the Christ-
mas dinner party, they will take de-
light in a contre-piece in the form
of a miniature treo. This can be
held in place in different ways,
One way is to nail it firmly to a
block 01 wood, cover the block with
ground pine or other greenery to
form a mound, and sprinkle' this lib-
erally with tiny bits of cotton wool
which have been • touched lightly
with photographer's paste, and.
then powdered with `diamond
dust,' which last can be bought at
a place where they sell artists' sup-
plies. Adorn the tree with pop-
corn chains, and tinsel balls, fasten
a gib star at the top and tie on the
branches different colored little
boxes of assorted bon -bons, a box
for each guest.
Miniature trees, eight or ten
inches high, can be made by nutting
off ends of fir branches and setting
eaoh one up in a tiny flower -pot.
Cover the little pots with silver
paper. The tiny trees can be used
decoratively, ono placed at each
cover, with place cards, bon -bons,
and favors tied on with colored rib-
bons. Or, as one hostess intends
doing, have the individual trees,
with nuts, candies, and little sou-
venirs—some of them amusing—
among the branches, brought in as
a last -course. Perhaps it is just as
well not to attempt to light trees
on the table with tapers, otherwise
he hostess is apt to feel it necessary
to keep a continual watch against
accidental fires.
TITS BIRDS' CHRISTMAS
SHEAF,
A great sheaf of grain -is stuck up
in every Norwegian garden on
Christmas day. It a Christmas gift
for the birds. Norway'sstreets,
the day before Christmas, are
crowded with carts full of grain
from the country, All grain for
the birds, its buying and selling
constitute a big business. It is odd
and pleasant to think of the thous-
ands of Norwegian carts trundling
in from the outlying farms on De-
cember 24th for the birds' benefit,
of the big grain market that is held
on the birds' account alone, and of
the joyous surprise in the Norweg-
ian birds' hearts when on Christ-
mas Day, all over that frozen, bleak,
snow-covered lapel, they obtain
without trouble all the food they
can possibly desire,
BERN INVESTIGATING,
"T know what I'm going to get
for Christmas,"
"Vow disc you find out i"
"Mole one of those early Christi
nae shoppers,"
Kal
1Cff)Ct+ f+KfteKeeie+lx+lel eneelieff
THE MEANING
OF CHRISTMAS
-,t'+ho-3•o+a.Wco$o+0-4-oq o+01•ul
"This is my commandment; that
ye love one another, as 1 Have
loved you."—John xv., 18.
Christianity has given lova thef,
first place among the virtues; its
teachers tell us that this redeem-
ing characteristic covers a multi-
tude of imperfections. One result
has been that this religion has
seemed to men effeminate end un-
worthy, for too often love has
come to mean no more than emo-
tion, passion, sentiment,
Men need moral bracing, The
world is not to be saved by moon-
light serenades, nor by weak and
watery well wishing. Some people
thinic that all the thorns will be
plucked from life's way if only all
the people can be taught to sing
songs about sweet roses. They
hope to save society by honeyed
words and empty smiles of subtle
condescension.
We must learn to distinguish be-
tween love and liking, to love all
men even though there be many
whom it is quite impossible to like,
The great teacher makes this plain.
He had close companions, kind-
red spirits, whom he especially lik-
ed, but his love went out, in self -
giving and service, to all the sons
of men.
Love is a working principle in the
life; it dominates action and waits
not for the impulse or the discrim-
ination of emotion. It is the prin-
ciple of self -giving, whether by sac-
rifice or by service. It has to do
not with sentiments and emotions
but with service, toil, steady work,
and, it may be, unpleasant duties
and hardships for the sake of those
loved,
This was what Jesus was thinking
of when he said, `even as I have
loved you," not of the personal af-
fection he bore them but of the ser-
vice he had rendered them by the
years of patient teaching, by the
giving of his life to them in such
a way that they already began to
show his likeness.
That which marks that good life,
as a life of love is not the kind
thoughts toward all men but the
deeds of help and cheer, of healing
and uplifting l.e did for them. Tho
joy of Christmas grows out of this,
that once a life was wholly given,
without reservation, as the full ex-
pression of the most as
love for
men.
The babe lying in a manger,
heaven's gift to earth, is the picture
we most easily understand of how
the glorious life was literally giv-
en in love of our race. But the
fact of the love that gives itself is
none; the less when we see that life
being lived for others in later years,
and at last, as a necessary part of
its true and full living, dying for
the world.
That picture of the divine life
giving itself is but a glimpse of
what is eternally true—heaven is
ever giving to this earth. Provi-
dence means more than petty and
occasional interference; it means
the constant outflow of the divine
love and life to all the children of
men.
And this is the lesson for us all
at this Christmastide, to catch this
spirit of love's self -giving, a spirit
wd reflect in ,he measure that our
giving of gifts is self -forgetting, is
sacrificial, and joy giving. The
Christmas spirit is ours just as we
put ourselves, without thought of
return, and without bias by liking,
but wholly on consideration of need
and opportunity to help and bless,
into our giving and our service.
Is not this a good spirit for all
our days? Would it not be well,
might it not make a new earth, if
we would put into every day the
lesson of the babe, seeing life as
something WO can give to humanity;
seeking the largest life reply that we
may give tho higher s rvice 1 That
is, not dreaming of liking people,
but doing things to help people.
If so much more joy comes in the
giving than in the receiving, even
though the spasmodic land mercen-
ary enter largely into our gifts at
this season, how much greater shall
be our joy if all life is an act of
giving and of serving? And we
shall fried through such art invest-
ment the full enriching of life just
as that life begun in little Bethle-
hem sends now its gladness und
glory through all the ages.
Henry F. Cope.
CHRISTMAS SECRETS.
You musn't look in corners,
And sound,
r.n t hear a sol nd,
Because a Pock of secrets
Is flying all around. .
They'll porch upon the Christmas -
trees
When weary of their flight,
Or they'll build their nests in stock -
Inge
In the middle of the night.
But catch than Christmes,rtorns
ing-•
For dear old Santa sands
1n every ono a sweet euepriiso
To his loving filen, frond)).