The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

Ye Canran Statesmanl, Bowmanville, December 24, 1975 Sectio' Two THE BEGiNNJNG -~on December 25, 1492, the history of Ch ristmas sta rted ln the New Worid, when Columbus, ship, the Santa Maria, was abandoned off the coast of Haiti. In \irginia in the year 1613 a record by an expedition of Captain John Smith reads: The extreame winde, rayne, lrost atnd snow caused us ta keepe Christmas among the salvages where we were neyer more merry, for fed on more plenty of good Oysters, Fish, Flesh, Wilde lowl and good bread, nor neyer had better ires in En gland. Settiers in Virginia brought many customs framn England, the burning af the Yuie log, ringing beils, iavish dining, dancing, gamiesand Christmas carois. Churches and homes were decorated colorfully, and parties and bails were memorable. The Pilgrim Fathers arrived in Plymouth some 7 years later, bringing with them their strong distaste for Christmas. Thanksgiving day, wth its feasting and neighbariy celebratiaris with friendiy Indians, was more like Christmas. In 1659, the General Court of Massachusetts enacted the iaw by which l'an yone who is found ôbserving, by abstinence from labor, feasting, or any other way, any such days as Christmas day, shall pay for every such offense 5 shillings." However, the Puritans did nat have their way for long and the anti-Christmas law was repeaied in 1681. HAPPIER CHRISTMASES - The chief winter celebration of the joily Dutch in New Amsterdam was an December 6, St. Nicholas' Day. Signiflcantly enough, it was a figurehead of this ve7ry saint that graccd their ship, the Goede Vrauw,, that brought them ta America in 1630, On St. Niéhoias ieast day the Dutch carried his statue dawn the street, with-chul- dren joining in . .. the promise af presents bright in their eyes. Gradually, hovýever, the deitawl.Chsms increasing number ai Eng- 1THE HOLIDAY ON 1T1E ids theolyaas ll.Chis lish in this area brought MOVING FRONTIER -- hi toly anualetigiaeus abutth aapatonOfThe avnigo h rn lar and official sanction. many aif the old customs;, tier westward took wîth It with the arrivai af the first this weicome holiday. Tur- ENTER SANTA CLAUS- German dissenters in 1700, -key shoots, which provided In America. Santa Claus is wc find a tremendaus in-fawi for the table, were very knawn by three names-St. crease in the observance ai popular. Festîvities were Nicholas, Kriss Kringle, and Christmas. It is wit*h the often wild and naisy. Santa Claus. St. Nîcholas Germans that the universal Traditionai Christmases first appeared in the first customs ai Kriss Kringie or were celebrated in the west, hait ai the faurth century Santa Claus, and the Christ- and in 1846, a German visi- in Asia Minor, as Bishap of mas tree originate. o oTxswteabu yaMn mrcsae The rapid growth ai aurtrta eas rteabu My.Mnymace ae country braught about less seeing a richly decorated attributed ta hlm and there religions antaganism. The and illuminatecl Christmas are many iegends that at- intermingiing of peoplîe ai tree, in a territory held by test ta his generosity. He diferet rligausandna-Indians a short time before. was the pratectar of sailors tional backgrounds aiso Firecrackers and the asbteoatrotchsipsoas wei hpecl. shaating ai guns were a part a h arnsit0 on One ai the more impor- oi the sauthern Christmaspep.Th frsDuc tant histarical events that that traveled as f ar narth church built in New York taok place on.Christmas was as sauthwest Pennsylvania. City was named for him. the crassing ai the Delaware Natianal groups who settled ýSinterklaas, as hie was by eore ashngan ndoutside the thirteen cola- known ta, the Dutch, even- his'traaps, in 1776, when nies carried with themn the talyecm SaaCas they defeated the I{essians aid custams ai their former.. his original red and white at Trenton, New Jersey. The homes. In New Orleans, the vestments became aur mod- Ame(ricanis routcd the red- wanderings ai the Three ern red and white Santa ats wha were sleeping.off Rig wssmbolized by costume. the effectis af the holiday! the French reveillons, gifts The Germans and Swiss Suriday-, Schaols, whîch were for New Year's day. who settled in Pennsylvania hadý thiir beginning in the In the southwest, Christ- in the eighteenth century firt haIt ai the nineteenth mas celebrations were believed in the Christ child, century, helped ta promate greatly influenced byth whbrutgittac- theaccptnceai an i 1kSp)anish. Las Pastores, an dren on Christmas eve, Eng- croi.mast importantîy, aid miracle play, with the ih speaing sretts n SnaClaus and the use ai eternal struggle ai Gaod and nihaigaestas thé Chitaîre hre Evil as its theme, was staged. formed 'Christkindi inta Diknin b'is beautiful and has been revîved on and KisKîge ,lassics. did much to papu- off, thraugh more recent POEMS AND PICTURES laiethis clorful holiday, years. btit wassm iebfr Christmas was recognized Clement, Clarke Moore is Christmas came ta be cele- iegaily, first in Alabama in credited with creating the brated as we know it now. 1836, and by 1890 ail states current Santa Claus image and territaries acknawl- an sor in his' npom " kR N 'eOUFRIENDS lmavy thisJ Chîristmas brig Althe best for you and your family and follow you thru the new vear. From the Staff at » Piekering Welding &Steel ý "163 Base Line E. 6325 Vîsit f rom St. Nichalas." Thýe poem, originaiiy written for his children in 1822, bas been published an endless rnmber ai times and is ane of the most papular Ameni- can paems. The fat, rosy-cheeked Santa we recog-1-e day evolved tram a series ai cartoons by Thama,,s Nast, nin-eteentb .,cenitury eartist,, His serlies ai Christmnas drawings shawed too, haw Santa spends his spare time through the year. AMERICA TODAY Americans taday celebrate the Christmas holiday in Il any calorful ways. The tradition of this beautiful season is strong in America *... narth, santh, east, west. Its warrntb, whicb unites one and ail in peace and brotherhoad, has beenand will be a unifying farce for ail time. Lavish rFeast At Christmas, in the year 1492, when Columbus was spending his day in the New World, King Henry VII gave one of his most sump- tnaus feasts. The King (1485-1509), the Queen and members oi the court dined an no less than 120 different dishes . .. with peacack as its climax! He observed hol- iday customs lavishly, ta say the least, serving among the many delicacies'a pop- ular dish called "frnmenty," made, by adding sugar and spices ta. boiling hulled wheat. K le Ïe4 'y .yyyyyyNyyy.y y.lyàyi lue Si Trewi Cap" F-,eY, S. i /1 L ~ 1 Ici .E01JNOOI2! Le) LIU 0 O /LIL'12e.LL:.e;s e-ý . 12 EJ Ott-, Best Wi shes f rom JAYANDSWEDESHARORA at Foodworthà's 'Variety and, GasBa SHwy 2 Cou rtice Phone 723-9291 mme -ff :: ,ý' l e m Bii fita Mike ormiston Morley Flintoff K nBri ilFn oeayPri y> ~ 3Â g ouak àoMdaybe bhight wtth happtoeg... wcutm wiit Qovc ald tk[Ctd9tip ...wid tcdwe uutditkItheI1aQjogg ût the um~on.9 ouk n'any 6t[eîdg ... a gpectaQ "7fha li Shirey y tk he îwtQige o~ t gyu lVc jiQdgc Ûuk begt ecÎoktý û wuc you bettcfr. y ~i41l~i ~ ~tGln~Rae Dairyy