DECEMBER 17. 194v

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THE GUARDIAN. CHARLOTTETOWN

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Danger From Tree ﬁres ls Ever Present

‘ht/mush the Christmas tree is ‘ gf the most picturesqque em]; ornaments, it is also one we "mt, dangerous, with the of firs an ever present pOo-

Yul‘ oi threat

iii’- miqgillaceinent of U19 Candie by

m. electric light has removed ‘we U; the hazards formerly ex- erlenced, but danger still lurks lrom faulty connection; or care- 1m handling of bulbs and strings. To minimize tiie fire hazard. ‘J18 qepartitient of itgricuiture offers m, pertinent suggestions: First, km, tiie tree well wntcrcd and, "Cong, fireproof it with ammon- ium guiphate or calcium chloride. T‘; provide the tree with suffic- mr. water, cut the butt on a slant |t least an inch above the orig- ma] out. Keep the water level gbiﬂP. the slashed surface. In pur- mwyig 5 tree, always look for one ma; h“ been felled recently so mt. the needles have not dried. push trees also are essential for Q-prooiing. ln using ammon- ium miphntc, a. chemical content Onedourth the weight oi the m0 should be used. After dissolving one and a half pints of the am- iiiorilums in a Pound "1 ‘Vald-‘r- -' 155i‘! the stern of the tree and plice it in the solution. Then. let the ma stnnd four to six days in the solution for complete absorption Trees firepnoofcd in this manitcr Wm m; be ignited by an electric

Wassail Bowl For Auld Lang Syne

1mg wasrrill bowl goes around i.i

gootlaiirl-and ciscirherc-at New Years time. The origin of the custom 15

really lost in antiquity: Saxon an- mwr,‘ probably quaffed their are 3mm the polished skulls of defeat. ed enemies, and the Rowena leg- eiirl must be classified as "pre- siimably fiction."

Rpwenn, ta reported to have of- fared her father's guest - Prince vartlgren -- a bowl of wine with the sanitation "lord King. ivass- hgel." literally, "To Your Health." Draining the bowl with one draught, Vortigren (ell in love w.th Rowena and they lived haired! over after.

Anyway. in time the bowl itself became an ornament of graceful design-decorated ivltli branches of greenery which formed a cantipy over tho bowl. The mixture within w“ warm and included ale, sugar. spices, sweetened wine was added by hosts who could afford it. rin- ples floated on top or the decec- tim, snmellriics called "Lamb's noel‘ or the "old man's beard." The poorer classes carried a bowl decorated with ribbons around the rclghborhood. begging that it be tiled. so they, too, might enjoy the Wassall.

The custom of making short calls in New Year's Day was in full swing throughout America about 1900. Newspapers carried columns oi “at home" notices specifying the hours during which visitor: would on received. A succession of "open houses" and punch bowls sonic- times minimized tho courtesy sc- eorded to hostesses - receptions were often "crashed" by bibulous strangers; hence. the publicly ari- rioiinced "open house" custom has fallen into decline and, New Year's calla now being exxchanged only by intimates, the Wassaii bowl goes ‘round in private.

Abbreviation. Xmas 0i Greek Origin

There has been much wifzwor- able comment on the abbreviated form icn" Christmas that is win- mﬂﬂly used. Many think it inap- Pmlfrlliie rind undignified. to use the shortened forvn. Xmas.

ihe explanation or its origin Ls "that the initial letter of the Greek ii.liil0 for Christ la X and the ooin- miicilﬂi of its crulciforni shape led '° ii" "HY adoption of this lCilier f‘ ill" "glue and symbol of Christ. A is frequently found on walls of tile catacombs. When the early hllrisllrlils wished to snake h rcp. ie-culzitiori of iiie 'l‘t'iniiy, they ‘Mild place either cross or run X besides the names of the Father 1nd the Holy Ghost. Ftmm uhig some the shortened for‘ is, instead of chrioimiia,

Christmas Rose Real Significance

legend tells Us ‘that a voting ﬁieflhmi Klrl was weeping bitterly their!” watched the Wise Men on Chﬂsmﬂy to lake gifts to tile ‘m! Child. An angel airpearcrl. alter ascertaining why the

r 112:": girl was crying, aha waved

‘lend. and instantl the flzuiifhlgs carpeted with yiiltter- you“: 8m gmlélﬁlllnns roses. The blocm. wh y gathered these ‘m’ um Chm ‘he Presented nei- u M. n PM Child smiled, and

"lei-a touched the whee

flow wnheznﬁl" Petals became tinged

friend prepare Christmas list. You can be sure '01’ 119-119 81X‘! ﬁnd. Oh. yes! a wagon for her older brother.

Than

‘Two heads are better than one“ seems to be true in this se as Kris Kringle and his little that included in order, will be a doll and carriage

For Christmas Shopping

"Ring out the darkness in the land, Ring in the Christ that is to be."

-~Alired Tennyson.

On this coming anniversary of Christ's natal day. the bells of the Empire should pcal forth with extra JOYVUS vigor. Alas, that so many of those cheery. metal melody-makers should have been so long silent in the Bitplres pulsating heart,

The fine art of bell-ringing. for it is a very ﬁns art. interestingly enough was born in the Mother- land —— the country that with the hell‘) oi Providence withstood the shock of would-be invaders. and demonstrated to the world that, this indeed W85 "Britain's fittest hour." 1f any people have a right to ring its bells on Christmas Day ~— the dﬂy of the coming of the Prince of Pence --~ it is the gallant. PBOple of the "light little Island" in the nildst cf the blue.

Canada has a preference for chimes and carillon: on which tunes are played from a keyboard. and in- Which the unmoving bells are rung by striking them with a. clapper. But the i-lnglish early appreciatvd

pulling them with ropes. and nliil’ the English have thoroughly accept- ed boils. not as rigid pieces of metal to be hammered. but as instruments to bc swung rhythmically, mouths upwards to the sky.

Ringing the Changes

course, because the ringers Ciflllfii< nully rhniigc. according in it method. the order iii which t‘ii;l' ring. 'l‘lir_v begin by ringing i'C\li‘.Ll. A that is. they ring their six. tzlii. or twelve bells in siraigiilfoiwv. .. nirlcr. but aitcr that they iicvcr rc< peat. themselves until they arrive into rounds again.

Tbc possible number of changes without repetition on ding. dons. bell iii bells) is only six. With four bcl‘; the limit extents io twcrziv- mu,- .4 x m, mid Willi five bells, . one hundred arid tiveuly t5 x 1'4». The rather staggering iiniit-niiiribcr of cimnges on the twelve bells of St. Fouls is exactly 479,001,600. The composition of peals (a peril is reckoned as five thousand (‘hdnflns or over, anything less is a section of a peal, the smallest culled n "touch“l is lliu art of arranging these changes into various patterns based on a fundamental principle Ji‘ method.

The earliest method. which la still widely used in different forms. was stedmana- A Cambridge printer, Stedman wrote the first books on lilo technique of campanology. ills "Tintinnelagia," published in 1668. was dedicated to “T110 Noble Soc- iety of College Youths," and when he became Master of the Society iii 1682. the College Youths trove!- led to Cambridge to ring there. in his honor, his "method" for the ﬁrst time.

The record numlber of changes hi that method vena conducted some few years ago by Mr. Langdon of Si. Paul's Cathedral ‘Mr. Langdou con- ducted the ringers at St, Lawrence. Appleton. for close on twelve hours and a half, when they concluded n peat of Siedman Caters of 21.351 changes, the longest length ever rung by one set of men.

Heavyweight Bells

It is sometimes risked. “How heavy are the belts vciiLh can be S\\'il _

by the Esgltli ‘u: lied?" Th4 mm

Let The Bells Ring Qut!

Sweet, chaining, Christmas being; three tOn Though two of the middle-

Change-ringing is so-cnlierl. ti‘

or heavyweight of the twelve belis of St. Paul's (which is Clio head- quarters of the College Youths - u lsoclcty of coinpaiiologlstsi is over

‘aged Youths will swing it appar- ently with as much case as a mul- fiii bell, there is. of course. a secret behind this casual pulling of three tons odd of metal. ’l‘hose priv- ileged to climb into the handsome bell-chamber of St. Paula will prob- ably be asked to ring bell numlber eight which weighs a imere twenty- two hundredweight. Yet. pull n5, they may, there never can sound the faintest note.

Swan; by Momentum

The secret is that this great bell must first be brought mouth up- wards to the sky. The bell-ringer has then only to accelerate the nio- meiitum of its fall towards earth and to help swing the bell iuoutli upwards again. The bells, by ii-ic way. are never swung in a. complete circle. but. swing backwards and forwards. By a. well-calculated pull. the College Youths check even the tenor as it is about to complete the

iho joys of swinging the bells bylﬂiﬂfle. and will it beck over the

balance to fall in the reverse diret- tion.

Ukrainians Hold To lMany Old Customs

i Ukrainian churches, both Greek ‘Grtliorox and Uiiiale, cling io the .Ii\\'i?:‘i Jliliﬂn calendar. so their Christmas Day tomes 12 d-ays late." ‘than ours, or on January 6 Christmas Eve is celebrated with much traditional ceremony and festivity.

The Holy Supper or Swiata Wccern. is very elaborate. consist- ing ct 3Q courses, in memory oi

. the 1-2 apostles, Fish, baked broil-

ed and jellicd. lakes the place of meat. BMSCil. or beet soup, is gen- erally srirvod, and stuffed cab- bage. filled wiili millet or rice. Vnrenikl, something like the Ital- ian ravioli. also is n usual course. Dessert consists of special pildding culled kutya, made 0f wiheat poppy seeds iind honey.

During the Chriswnas Eve Sup- per. some member of every Ukrainian family throws a hand- ful of kutiiya or pudding at the celi- lng. If it sticks, the coming year will be a pamper-oils and happy

one, After supper. n. plate of braided bread, called koiwh, la left on the table between two

lighted candles. Legend says that the spirits of the family's dead will return at midnight to eat this bread.

The Uhainian Christmas festi- val lasts iivreo days. In the vii- lngvgs singers known aaKoiyad- niky go from house to house sing- lng the Kolyadky fulksongs relat- ing the birth of Christ and the events or his lite. They usually carry a arranger with them, and in some crises they perform miracle plays. They are rewarded by gifts of food ori- mcney.

Bt. Nicholas is regarded as the special saint of the schoolboy. and certain of the customs oi’ "Montem Day" at Eton School in England. rare sairl to have originated in his

lmiinv-

Thong/it

The one thing necessary in life is the know-ledge that we are born to serve God. arid for nothing else. ii’ we fulﬁll this duty. everything ill the universe will take its rela- tive place.

Significant meanings

Christmas, according to

tions believed in various the world.

In Holstein, Mistletoe is not only supposed to be a. cure for all green wounds, but will insure success in the chase and give strength to the wrestler.

Early Norsemen believed for cen- turies that the Mistletoe would give protection against both bodily ailments and evil spirits.

A person iilio is born on Chris‘.- mas will have power to see and

supersti~ parts o!

command :pirits, according tn a Scottish belief. French peasants believe that

babies born on Christmas have the gift of prophecy.

If a. baby is born at sermon time on Christmas Eve in Middle Europe, it portends that someone in the house will die within the

year.

Daughters born in the Vrisges. France, on December 23 will be wise, witty and virtuous.

A baby born on Christmas in Silesia will become either a Law- yer or a. thief.

Girls in the ancient Duchy of Swavia seldom missed the oppor- tunity offered by Christmas to look into the future at that future husbands. On Christmas Eve they would go to the woodpile to draw sticks. If a. girl pulled a thick stick, her husband would be stout; if a long stick, he would be tin‘; if a crooked stick, lie would be ce- formed. They would determine the business of their future husbands by dropping melted lud into n pan of cold water. The molten metal would form various shapes in cooling fiilfi thus resemble the insignia of ills occupation: ham- mer shaipe, a carpenter; shoe shape, a cobbler. Every piece of lead re- sembled some occupation to the old. wives.

A maiden in Switzerland who ac- cepted a bunch o! Edelweiss at Christmas also accepts the mun who proffers it.

All animals in the German Alps can speak on Christmas Eve.

It is believed in the Netherlands that nothing soim on Christmas

Reduce Christmas Hazards By Care

To avoid tragic Christmas acci- denta in the home. the Fire Protec- tion institute issues tries, precau- tionary tlps:

-—Use materials marked flair-ne- proof for (tree trrinmings and home decorations if they are obtainable.

-—~Inspert Christmas time lights

sockets. -Never leave Christmas lights burning unless someone is armmd- -Never unwrap gifts neatr an open fire or flickering flume. Dis-

mable wrapping: immediately.

Superstitions About Christmas

aurroundl Eva will perish. Even seed sown

in the snow will live.

A Bohemian wife will die within a year if she burns a Christmas cake.

To insure an abundant harvest in Denmark. some of the bread baked on Christmas is kept until sowing time, when it is mixed with the seed.

lt is said that bread baked on Christmas in England never be- comes moldy.

Ashes m-ust not be thrown out on Christmas day in some sections of Europe, for fear they might be thrown into the Saviors face.

Some families iii Scandinavia place all their shoes together on Christmas. This will cause them io live iii harmony throughout the year.

pose of paper and other mflam-,

and repair frayed wires or loose,

The GLORIA

I Symbolic Stars The five pointed stair is some-

times associated symbolically with Mary the mother of Jesus. which in a way is peculiarly appropriate, because the Hebrew wmd for Mary Ls Miriam, meaning a. star.

The large silver etaa- placed in the floor of the Grotto of the Church of the Holy Nativity in Bethlehem in the nineteenth cea- tui-y, at the gupposed IpOt on which Jesus was born. has twelve points.

lit will be remembered that tlhere were twelve tribes and twelve dis- ciplcs, Tradition associates the number with closeness of relation- ship betvweeu the divine and the human.

Formerly. the Fleast 0f the Epi- phany Was known as "Tweltthlde," or “Twelfth Day," because it fails on the twelfth day after Clhirisu

LUZIS. -- -

GIFT SUGGESTIONS

SATIN QUILTED HOUSECOATS SILK CREPE NIGHTGOWNS EVENING SLIPS

TAFFETA SLIPS

ANGORA BERETS

ANGORA GLOVES

HAND WOVEN SCARVES SWEATERS

TAFFETA DRESSES!‘

FLANNEL BLAZERS CORDUROY SKIRTS

SILK CREPE and WOOL JERSEY BLOUSES - - - -

HAND-BAGS, KNITTING BAGS HOSIERY '

All Aftractively Giff Boxed

l 79 Grafton Street \

Aims-Giving A Christmas Charity

.____4

Giving aims at Christmas origi- nated in the belief that the Christ came sometimes to the door dis‘ guised as a beggar during the hull- day season, and it was feared that he might be turned away unrecog- nized. There is an old legend that tells of the Christ child going from door to door on Christmas Eve in search of those who were kind, and deserving. His test was to plead for aid and often he was turned away from the door. This story led to ahis giving on Christmas Eve and it. was rare that a beggar was refused.

lo a practical Santa and give a gift for u your ‘rounil

Christmas!

Give her u gift that means lasting pleas-

ure and hours of extra leisure. Choose from our largo

and complete stocks of nationally-advertised electrical goods to thrill tier for a long time to come.

The Edison Electric

Phone ‘I760

CHARLOTTETOWN

136 GI. G00. Sf.