The Seaforth News, 1933-12-21, Page 2'have always thought
ehristrnas
IGa+4ea71Kas9.•a7IFs�0�tlka+Oea�IKrr0�a71ke.�4•a7lKase•a71Ka:A�n7I�Ka�Aa)IFs�4+s71
as a good time, akind,
KesOtztaKa54,aars5Ota71kesQra71Ka50+a7tF. 344zrattaSd OIltaA'aAKa'4 a71kc4a71Ka4eaara3.14:01
forgiving, generons,-
Kas4ea71Kas4a)tica.Pa71Ka%Azoiwonai 7P�Akitoo..wimx.ettJtta.wee Ks'•Aa9teso.s71kesteto
pleasant time; a timewhen
Kroorzaitzwt ncet'a71Ka34+a71Ks4a71rstWzo1kssAa71Kseoa7tce.owKe.wroiKa*•aaKa.4eta
men and women seem by
1oaAm71KssPeOlcs Aa71kr34:atIKa:4ea71KeO0eana70z0ltasP•a71Ka.�Ma11ka50.401ca3OtaAKs'4.a71
one consent to open their
ka34ea71KasOeaakseAta ka74tralca'Aeal/ra7 zalta54ealice74ea71kssWallIti a7lka talkaWa71.
hearts freely and so I say
1cQ4ealltcoit llCe4a71ka7Ote71kas4ta7 ePtelkasda71KisWa Ka4ea71Ka=4401Kr.5PWlkaAta71
God Bless ehristmas.
14sW. IKr150 a71Ka:4 1Kis7ota71Icss.W 71katnen*eaeea7l Dickens Icte XKaatoy
3:fir i
ACE TWO.
�•waasmmmuiwesem;mairc.. �+-,x` -�-
1 S iAFOR'TH NEWS.
aev�.»�cr�eda:aum.w4 ,taix'aDv.�.3vix "ia'wea:i+cnk: uueivavyy-uu4'�:cssauc�t,mYr".
THURSDAY, DECEMBER 21, 1932,
THE CHRISTMAS TREE
tiF'rurt, the essay by that title by
Charles Dickens,)
,Being now at 1tome asii'in, and al-
once, the only person in the house
awake, my thoughts are drawn back
by a fascination which I do not care
to resist, to nay own childhood, I be-
gin to tonsit!er, what do we all rent
anaber be'st upon the branches of the
"Christnilas tree of our own young
Christmas days; by which we climbed
-to real life.
Straight, in the middle of the room,
crainpecl in the freedom of its growth
by no encircling or soon-reac,hed ceil-
'ing, a shadowy tree arises; and, look-
ing up hrto the dream} 'brightness of
'its top—for I observe in this tree the
singular property that it appears to
grow downward towards the earth—I
look into my youngest Christmas
:free recollections!
ISinall toys, at first, I find. I never
-wondered lvh'at the dear old donkey
with tire, long eara—there he is! -was
made of, inside. I -lis hidewas real to
the touch, I found, And the great
black horse tcith white and red spats
all over hint. The tinkling works of
the music cart, I did find out, to be
made of quill toothpicks and wire;
and I always thought that little tum-
bler in his shirt sleeves, perpetually'
swarming Milt one side of a wooden
frame, and conn ng'duwn ,head fore-
most, on the otter. rather a weak-
minded person—though "good -nature'
but the Jacobs ladder, nest him mad;
of little squares of red woad, that
went flapping and clattering over one
another, each developing a different
picture, and 1110 whole enlivened by
small bells, was a ;nighty marvel and
a great delight.
Cpni the next branches of the tree,
lower down, hard by the green roller
an'd miniature gardening tools, mw
thick the books begin to hang. Thin
books in themselves. at first, but
many of ileal, with deliciously
.511100111 'covers of bright red or green.'
Good for Christmas time is the
ruddy color of the cloak, in which—
the tree 'staking a forest of itself for
her to trip through, with her basket—
Little Red Riding Hood conics to me
.011 Christmas Eve to give me'inform-
ation of the cruelty and treachery of
that lis -milling wolf who ate her
grandmother, without malcing any im-
pre-,lon on his appetite, and then ate.
her, after making that ferocious joke
about his teeth. :She was my first
love. I felt that if i could have mar-
ried Little Red tRitling II toil, I should
have known perfect bliss.
ITus11! Again a forest, and some-
body tip in a tree --•n' 1 Robin Hood,
not \ a;lent nc. not the Z el',>w D'wat•t
•11 have passed hint and all Mather
Bunch's wonders. without 1110111:111,)
but an Ca -tern King with i gi tte1 a
' cimttar and turban. By Allah! two
Eastern 1'.ki,s, 1.r 'I see another,
looking over his shoulder! Down up-
on the grass, at the tree's foot, lies
the length of a coal black giant,
stretched asleep, with his head in a
lady's lap; and near them is 0 glass
hoc, fastened with four blocks of
shining steel, in which he keeps the
lady prisoner when he i0 awake. 1 see
the four keys at his girdle now. The
Hely makes signs to the two kings in
the tree, who softly descend. It is the
setting of the bright Arabian Nights.
Oh, now all common things he-
,eome: uncommon and enchanted to
1115. All lamps are wonderful; all
rings are tali'ntalts• Conn. -non flower.
pots are full of treasure, with a little
earth scattered on tate top; trees are
for Ali Raba to hide in; bsefstealcs
are to throw (100n into the Valley of
Diamonds, that the precious s1.tles
play stick to .hem, ,aucl he carried by
the eagles to their nests, whence the
1'ader', with loud cries will scare
then Tarts are made, according to
1t11C recipe e1 the Vizier's son of 13L1-
1011", wh Ittrnett !'sully- '1,a10 after
he was -et r .au in his drawers at
the gate of Dam; toms; cobblers are
Jil lfu,taprao, and in the habit of
serving tip pe .0;e cllt into four pieces,
to whom they are taken blindfold.
Yes; on every object that I recog-
nie ani'ting 1110:41 upper branches of
alit' Christmas Tree. I see this fairy,
liglitl When I wake in led; at clay-`
l)real, no the cold clank winter nlarn-
ogs, the white .110w slimly beheld,
outside, through the frost on ,the wilt-
dnte pane, d hear Oinarzade. `Sister,
sster, .if you are yet awake, S pray
you finish the history of the Yoan n
ling of the Black Islands. and the
reply, "H my lord the ,Sultrin will stif-
fer me to Live another clay, sister,. I
will not only finish that, but tell you'
r a more wonderful sito-y : yet," Then
• the gracious' Sultan go0 out, giving
-no orders for the esecu,ion, aril the
1 ":'loey= al•e caing to Christmas dimer
all that immellnse 001.11111y Iltat lies
. north of the Goth degree symbolized
'0' ancient and modern history,
It is Ito caput apci i•el'ero" bhat
hey <115 c'h'autiug. 'Chet' ,do not de
Mand a boar's tical; they would even
be content wit11 fish heads: These
Carusos and Galli Curcis of :true Sant "
Claus Land do not insist .on a Metro-
politan O'pera Hottse in which to sing
their carols,
At Christmas, the northland, is di-
vided into two empires, the holly belt
and the II'usly belt, If you live`.in the
latter your !leant will leap with joy at
the open mouths of these Christmas
songsters. If you have runon frozen
trails, or tramped knee deep or waist
deep 111 snow--drifited trails, making all
Speed, or 00 speed at all, to some dis-
tant Christmas dinner, the very sight
of these dog songsters caroling lustily
will make you exclaim as never before,
"Hark, the 'herald angels sing?"
Down in the soft, southern, slush
land, where a white Ohris'tmas brings
unexpected 'rapture to the hearts off
small boys, who have found a tobog-
gan or a pair of 'skis 111 their stocking,.
church bell calls to church hell the
glad news that Christmas Eve has
passed into Christmas Day. 'Way up
in the great North front Lake 14.is-
tassi.nala -to the mighty 'Mackenzie,
where pork and beans are as likely as
not to comprise the 'Christmas 'feast,
like wild bells ringing out to .a wild
sky, 'husky calls to Husky, from
Hudson's Bay 'Post to ''I-Tu'dson's Bay
Post. 'That is the true wireless of the
North, the one native Christmas
greeting all understand, to be thrilled.
On Christiania -T1ve, tune out t
jazz ftomt the radio and ,tune in on to
land of the wild drake and the Arctic
Circle. Break till -one -la .the southern
static of church tells and listen in on
the chorus of 'Husky yells that from
Labrador to the 1'tountains of 'British
Columbia and I:Alaslca, chant northern
carols to the accompaniment of nor-
thern lights, • '
Then you will talon' something of
the music of a real Christmas in the
North, 'Perhaps you Ire content with
the music of the red 'tis'sue paper
Christmas bells that hang ill the win-
doww,"or from the parlor chandlier.
Perhaps you shiver at the very
thought of •the north tvi,nd whistling ,
over the frozen muskeg, and think ill
true Christmas music the whistle r'r•-
the triflic officer shepherdingthe late
Christmas shoppers at a ''downtown
intersection, You just ilo aiot like the
frozen` music of the ,North I Well, -
there, is no disputing of tastes, whe-
ther in Christmas music or Christmas
festivities, but tlic fact remains that
the trite" Christmas is born of the
North, (111010 '.these 'Huskies shag
LhClr carols,
tDon't be too dogmatic in asserting
that these,IIuslc'y wassailers are not
singing ti- true Christmas glee. You
have read somewhere that the Pitts
-
ides spend, their nights 'weeping_ the
blows they have received during'' the
clay. 1\utters hare made' your flesh
creep by their description of the Leng-
th -awn, mournful howls,' tite upper re-
gister shriek and the lower register
sob, of these ',Huslc!es 'of the northern'`;
trails mouthing ,their melancholy bal-
lads of bondage,
You think ,the . tinkle of reindeer
heels, .the hong.- of taxi horns, the
postman's knock lyrical because they
bring you Christmas presents. You
would 50011 feel that these husky:
carols are poetical, if you but real-
ized that they are the Christmas car-
riers of .the 1North.
will all three breathe again,
Still, on t11e lower and ntaiturer
branches of the .tree, Chris'firas asso-
ciations cluster thick. School -hooks
stint up; Ovid and '\'ir it silenced;
the rule of three, with its cool imper-
tinent inquiries, long disposed of;
•J'er0000 and Plautus acted no more,
!n an arena o'F huddled desks and
uns, all chipped, aucl notched, and
in1(11cd, cricket -fiats, 'stumps, and
halls, left higher up, with the smell
of 11'01r1ea grass and the softened
noise 0f s'110(112 in the eventing air;
the tree is still fresh still gY a . if I
no morecome home Christmas time,
there will be boys and girls '°thaalc
-[leaven!) while the world lasts; and,
they dol Yonder they dance and play
upon the branches of sly Tree, 'God
bless them, merrily, aiid my heart
dances azul plays tool
1n 1
T do conte home at Christmas,
We 01 clo or we all should. Wo all
conte hoale or ought to come hone,
for a short, holiday, the longer the
better, from the great boat'cling-
school, where we arc forever working
n* 'our arithmetical slates, to take,'
and ,give a rest. 015 to going a visiting,
where can we not go, if we will;
here have we not been, when we,
would start in Our fancy (rout :our
Christmas Creel
Anlo1g the latter toys and fancies
Itangilih there --its idle often and less
•oure—be the images 0nce, associated
with the sweet olcl waltz, the soften-
-ed music In the night,' ever unalter-
abtel Encircled by the Social thoughlts
of Chri.st•mas time, still, let the - 'be-
n!gnant;figure of my childhood stand
unchanged! Iu every cheerful !ma e
g
and suggestion that the season brings
may the bright star that rested above
the poor roof, be the stat- of all the
Christian World! A moment'sP ause,
0' vanishing tree, of which the .lower
boughs are dark to 1115 as yet, and let
me look once morel I know there are
blank' spaces on thg br1110155 where
eyesthat1 have loved, have shone
and. smiled; from'which they are de -
carted. 13111, far above,'I see Ibo1rais-
er of the dead ;girl, and the Widow's
Son; E1.1111 Good is good! Pf Age be hid-
ing fof• .1ve in the unscten portion of
thy down'tt'ti111 growth, 0 may I, with
a gray Bead, turn a child's' heart to
tl•sl`, figure yet, told it child's, trustful-
;toss
rustful-
i
1 es?:and confidence!
Now, the tree is decorated h with
bright nlerrinlent, all (1 '50 ng, and
Glance, and cheerfulness: And they are
w'elconne, Innocent and 11ciconle', be
they ever held, beneath the braltbhos
oi_,the Christmas Tree, which c1a'st nit
151001ny s''hl1(1001 But, as it sinks into
the ground; I hear a'w"hisper going
through the leaves."This, in cotn-
naemoratiou o''f the law of 1, e and
k.ndess, mercy and couynassiln. This,
iii remeutbrance of Mel"
CHORISTERS OF THE NORTH:,
iNature's Olu'lslmIs; choristers of
the Far North sing a wild symphony
in song littler the glare of Arctic
shies. Not "waits" of old England, but.
wolves, tatted wolves with iintarled
voices, these anirnalst tcelebrirte the
Yuletide sunder tvcn•c1 northern lights,
Like .1 peal of bents in a cathedral
steeple, above: thehehtlit of land, as
choir loft, they sing the Chris ,-tt•ts
carols 0] thc. 1111210(1,10 • T -Trow" t'lese
HItsky dogs do thtow hack their
throats and show red ,tongues—red as
holly berries ---teeth as white as ,organ
keys, as they sing ! "[lacy are bari-
tones, basso profuha!os, and tenors
They run the whole gamut of 'Christ-
mas glee: They are Arctic contraltos
and mezzo.; but never muzzled, so-
pranos. On Cliristntas Eve they are
off on the snowy trail ,with a y' 1
This Chri1tnla, hde there will be
111011 lilting down the Moose giver to
Moose 'fa'ctory, or down the Nelson
River t0 '0(11 factory 21010 bus Gisab
Slave Lake to Fort ,Cihipswayan:
Aw'ay in the distance ,they 'will hear''
the northern buglers blaring out the
51:1 Lc the cook -house door. Over the
til -arctic tundra or over' the Ontario
or 'laniiolia muskeg, it will conte,
crisp and clear as the sizzling 'of -(aeon
iia the pati. It will :make .tlle 'horiz,on
blaze with the glow of an open oven.
II: will sh{111d light as buckwheat calces'
or the top ,notes of '1 soprano: tit will
be as heavy with sweetness 1s golden
syrup, or 1111 low notes of
Tlten
len' of the ,snow trail will'
quicken 1 en their steps, Their dogs tvi'.l'
brealc
trealc into a 'gallop, Their seal v,-11
leap over the hunnro'cics as if full' of
Christmas spirit. No children waking
early on Chrlstntasintonr will rush so
impetuously Ps they to ,their 'Christ
alas tree, which i 'their nearest roof
tree IDio no't e•tne1voc to tellthe.s
c
men and these dogs th^t .t'h'e" canine,
Chaliapins of the 1Narth are
fag true acrols of their own hinterland.