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FOR J] 3 _ Thty Uninvited Guest 2-: Mr. I). It M me! th er seen such a He stood in -d with delight. t on the horse's I up the reins, an to ride. Ho uncomfortable. They realized ll rathered bright fi is of laughter othy, wander. md Roderiek's BY VIRGINIA Sr'ANARD, the hon: tn swam he spoke eir silver 7K own He It was as}; ed "ess Th hold hil- get He me the H He fed {sanity ed. Que Christ m ly ft tl Ever since, and long before Henry. IV., as we read, "kept Christmas, with the usual {castings and sports1 at Windsor," Windsor's historic castch has been the scene of such Yuletidol junketmgs as no other castle in the world can boast. Unlimited good cheer has alwaysi been the chief feature of the eele-l, brations, and the boar's head and tho baron of beef, which still figure on our Sovenign’s table, were custom- ary even then. As to the sports and pastimes, they were of a boisterous and sometimes barbarous kind. It was at Christ- mas that a "lord of misrule" was elected as a sort of master of the cm‘mnoxzies: and one of the special) been overlooked. They eyed one an- other in dismay, “Perhaps mine fell on the ftoor," Timothy suggested gently. At that Roderick scrambled to his feet. "Bee hese, Timothy," he said. "You run back to bed for just fice minutes, and then come down and gm your stocking." As the door closed, he turned quick, ly tp the others. "We'll have to make up a stocking for him," he said. "And there's no time to lose." When Timothy appeatvd, tive min- Utes Right after breakfast a b sleigh drew up in the y: othy's grandparents had col him. d iamoL “versions led by him was called me .Fcstival of Pools." in which was en- wted a "mumme'ry" that was an ex- .raoniinary jumble of religion, pro- ?anity and bufrconery. Queen Victoria spent many happy Shristmases at Windsor, until that orrf'u!e December of. 1861, which nought with it an untimely widow- iood. But it is worth remembering hat King Edward VII. spent the first fuletide of his life there. In one of the Prince Consort’s let- ers. he tells of the Christmas tree it up in one of the drawing-moms, md of how it delighted the Primes: tor up later, he had tii, shark with%' Revels at Windsor. drew up in the yard-tant grandparents had come to get He V presémts ll it rshabby led the Throughout the Christian world the Christmas season is celebrated in much the same spirit, though cus- toms differ greatly, and in some lands ehureh-goiiig is more general than in Canada. In Italy, particularly, there is much church-going, and the Christ- mas tree is little known, though gifts are exchanged, and each family has a great‘dinner, the feature of which is a capon, which takes the same rank as the Canadian goose. . The Russian working people have always seized upon Christmas as an excuse for ceasing all work for a somewhat lengthy period-sometimes for a month. Before the recent revo-; lution "Kolenda" was the celebration' on Christmas Eve, when the peasants gathered about the houses of the nobles, sang carols and scrambled fun the coins tossed to them from the win- dow‘s. Then came a great masquer- ads, when peasants of all ages dress-, ed themselves to represent animals, TI Royal, while the baby heir-apparen' was brought in to see it also, and gazed astonished and open-eyed at its many lights, as a babe of Inst seven weeks might well do. . manner, mm ttoCericrr, "ict him have the horse. He must have “it. Don't you. seem." "Do you mean that. Ro'idy?" asked Mrs. Dale. t . . Roderiuk nodded. "I don’t want it so very much." he said. - So they lifted the horse into the back ‘of the big sleigh, while old Mr. and. Mrs. Baxter lroked on, smiling, and the Dales and 'cll the little guests stood by to watch. Timothy would not stir untn""Ge hurse was firmly tied in with its head toward lhc real horses' heads. Then, when Mr. Dale started to lift him into place between the old people, he squirmed out of his hands and m-ramblerl over the side. t h If hen he found out the tttt his had with its g1!) p and hid his face in Ra , did not cry; he only sto sptdr. A bigger boy .ve made such a mistake hy was only five years a "Mother," said Roderiel Queer Christmas Customs of Other Lands. old And the angel said _unto lthem, Fear not; for, behold, I ibring you good tidings of great Ijoy, wycr,t spa" be to an peo- the idea being to perpetuate the memory of the lowliness of the Sa- viour's birth in the stable. In Ru.mania it is the custom to bless the Danube on Christmas, and a procession of priests and people dressed to represent biblical charac- ters moves through the streets sing- ing chants and so to the bank of the river. The ice is broken, and a small wooden cross in thrown into the water. Any one who can recover this cross is regarded as extremely fortunate and sure of good luck for the year to come. A quaint ceremonial is observed in Holland on Christmas Eve. At mm- night the men of‘ the towns and vil.. lages, dressed in varied costumes, to the hobbyhorse's back and sat there clutching the reins. As thNsleigh drove slowly out of the gate. the hobbyhorse bounced up and down. Timothy sat erect, drum, horn and all. lt was a strange sight; all the way down the road people turn- ed round and looked. Roderick stood on the porch laughing. The last thing he saw, as the team turned abend, was a spot of bright red bobbing gay- ly in the Christmas sunshine. As many mince pies as you taste at Christmas, so many happy months will you have.---0ld English Saying. Christmas was abolished by Act of Parliament in the reign of Cromwell. meet in With Mt good wishes for a Btervg (thristmus and tt 3am Beto Beau the public squares. One is 1 "While Shepherds Watched Their l, Flocks" was written by Nahum Tate, iwho became Poet Laureate in 1690. (Thales Wesley wrote "Hark! The illerald Angels Sing." “Passion Play" never fails to attract great crowds, nor do the bull fhrhu. In the Philippines grand masses are held in the churches in the morn- ing, the buildings being elaborately decorated with palms and flowers, Great chains of flowers are carried to the churches by the children, who parade through the streets singing Christmas songs, bands preceding them. In the afternoon there is dams ing and marrymaking. In Spain the religious note is predominant at Christmas and there are curiéus per- furmances of mystery plays. In France the Christmas celebration lasts three days, and is the occasion for much charity. In the south of France there is a quaint custom of blessing the Yule log, not unlike that of England, and on -Drcember 25 there is n great family 2“,),201‘. i To the Giver of all blessings Let our voices rise in Iiruise, For the joys and countlvss mereies He hath sent to crown our days; For the homes of peace and plenty, And a land @ fair and wide, For the labor of the nconday And the rest cf eventido, . In Norway they hate wetty cus- tom. Above every "Ure pole ig hung a sheaf of wheat, a Christmas feast for the birds. _ For the wealth of golden harvests, For the sunlight and the min, For the grandeur of the ocean, For the mountain and the plain. For the ever-changing seasons. And the comforts which they bring, For Thy love. so grand, eternal, We would thunk Thee, Our Kirg. The Mexican Christmas is a strangely mixed week of sports, rtvelss and religious Observances. The selected and into his chame is given a large illuminated star mounted upon a pole, and with this Mar is I truide--qrs the Wise men were guided to Bethlrhem--a procession winds through the streets, the men chant- ing the "Gloria in, Excglgis." After the parade a great suppgr is served, and the Christmas Day Wham. l Christmas is n festival that appeais to every one because every one can understand it. The some of the fellowship which pervades our common life is our common share in the gifts of the world's against Life, which was given to the whole world. The Year's End. I "There seems to be a magic ‘in the very name of Chrimnas. t kindly hearts that have yearn- l ed toward each other but have I been withheld by false notions I of pride and self-dignity are (again reunited, and all is kind- ; mess and benevolence! Would l that Christmas lasted the ctrhtt.le year through (an it L"3113110. 'u-Dickens. _ Although I don't believe in having my Christmas table laden w.'th sev- eral kinds of desserts and an out- rageous variety of vegetables. I do try to have something a little unusual. i like to decorate my table prettily, and plan cunning fuvors, so that the eye as well as the appetite will be appealed to. Carrying out some color scheme makes the Christmas dinner so much more attractive, and will cause very little extra trouble. fied and white, it seems to me. is tho most appropriate color scheme for the holi- day season. . . I serve my salad as an extra course. It is much nicer and scarcely any mm trouble. There are many salads that are inexpensive to mike and yet so delicious. "Grandpa," said a small girl, "t ned your advice. I have only seventy- itvqt cents to spend on Cousin Ether: wedding present, and I mm to give something that looks twice as much as it is. What do you suggest?" "Well," he replied, "in considera- tion of the high cost of living, I should buy seventy-five eerds' worth of rice and boil it." Some of the learned folk who trol deeply into than mutter. any that the burning of the Yule log is a relic of paganism. Others, mom, prosaic. any the log was merely w provide. gartm light and warmth and chm "i nest. After a heavy dinner, such as the Christmas feast always is, wo like tt light dessert. and cake, or a padding, rather than a rich pastry. A chilled dessert is easily prepared, and noth- ing is nicer. We Jlaish up, of course, on raisins, nuts. and candy. But in remote rural parts of Eng- land a big log in still set wide for Christmas, and in the North a big lump of coal. In Lineohughiro the na- tives still refer to tho "GulAloek," and "oldest inhabitants" provide I link with the past by dubbing any big piece of firewood a "trul1er." There was a custom that so long as the Yule clog burned the servants had a right to demand ale at their meals. This may or may not account for the supersized clogs. One old writer lays that they burnt for slum days! C The ecclesiastical authorities of the past did not look kindly on the burn- ing of the Yule clog. "The blazes," in their opinion, were "foolUh and value." But their fulmlnations had no effect. Yule clogs were burnt unhii coal firm, and smaller fireplaces gave them a moral blow. I usually plan my dinner so I won't have to prepare it all in one day. I make the laid dressing and cake, and prepare us many of the vegetables the day before as possible, for I do not like to be hurried with this din- ner. Moat of us who do our own work know that this prc.'pareti.rwss makes things easier. The “clog" was laid in some time before Christmas, was generally of birch, barked and dried, and of no meagre dimensions.. It was lighted on Christmas Eve, and what was not consumed by Christmas night was saved and burnt on Christmas Day. It was deemed very lucky to pre- serve a piece wherewith to light next year’s clog. Here ard found (-5th family: let. stand in cold cream cheese with , and add enough cre choose. Season the it in centre of 9914 and serve when firm In "Merrie England" --oever called that, by the Yule Cog, the Ch, in the ho pars, l 1 the corn add hut chopped crumbs, ing dish sf Or Tv ONTARIO ARCHIVES TORONTO "i2i:,jri""i'i"i's"iic;"t"iod' for the (4:. Block Ye Christmasse Logge. ap MI Grandpa's Advice. ts'tutrm1 Celery Hearts small celery hearts. r; MI and bake greet Duchess Potatoes ps cold mashed 1 1p hot milk. Mix vs with the beater id any rr a great n the cheese, and stuff celery stock. Chill u 'ew it, by the way" e Christmas " popular sor, Christmas Dinner P 'PP' J?" u t Mun-‘1. mum i' n M it an an ave m y ‘03 up ’ Six apples. 2 cups sugar, r, m chopped celery, 'a cup chsppod nut 1 cup water. Wash, pare, and cm me amnion. Mike 3 syrup cf sum and water, and add enough colon: to make 5 deep red color. When tl syrup come: to a boll, drop in tl apples. Turn apples over and (we uni let cook until tender and so, Take out of syrup and chill., Pla the apples on a lettuce loaf. and m with celery. Serve with whipp cream dressing, ant garnish wi nuts. PM! Sal-d. Drain and chill canned pears. Mace on I lettuce leaf, garnish with nuts and cherries, and serve with whipped cream dressing. A hum” portion of cream cheese may be added lo salad cream cheese may if desired. Cherry Sponge. One tablespoon gelatin, 1 ine water, 'd cup lmnou ar juive, la cup cold water, cherry juice. % cup sum whim. Swell the geiatin wator and dissolve tho Bug: juices and remaining water mixture, cool until' it mick thoroughly, and add he! whiten. Place in “at mold with whipped cream. an! top with cherries, tron do we in of the l thy: knew a The Christmas occupy a place in minds of Canadian my other custom c holiday scum. It old Santa Claus in 1 tion. tree in his hometo re of Life,,tnd deeoratin ie heard all ov Christmas morni: clued with this. nectod with that green of mdquit; have been invent spom but! in re ehopp ture. Santa M ‘mm wl eer H "lf cu; What constituted new of Christmas? that for one day in least, t larger p: mankind contrive: genume e And what is that spirit? " in the spirit of peace on earth, whbeh is the inevitable outcome of sod-ill new“ 'pe ed upon ft, with momma!!!“ ’eace on ear and all O' " out The Christmas mange Steamed Sue-t l'uddin Red tpple Salad wr as." Dale Puddi nvente " " " Jl'! rut: ' tr et )mo childrer as n rit " N men to pity mo who my eh (Mm: " r MU' p ree .h ', 5 cup pod mm. and com m M l1: sugar stuff pped ring the the Pgtt cold on: -rv0 ood ish ‘9