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T \ 4 / f Page Four AROUND THE WORLD UNITED STATES (Merry Christ mas)—Christmas tree, mistletoe and Santa Claus. BRAZIL (Boas Festas)—A fam ily dinner is first on the list of festive celebrations in Brazil. Christmas trees, gift exchanges and other typical U.S. holiday-cus toms are being adopted in South America. HOLLAND (Hartelijke K e r t- grooten)—Land of old St. Nich olas, forerunner of our Santa Claus. In former years, the Dutch cele brated for a month St. Nick scat tered his gifts about the floors of Dutch homes as early as Decem ber 6. ITALY (Bono Natale) — Shep herds gather in villages on Christ mas Eve to play musical instru ments as townsfolks sing sweet Na tivity songs. Thousands flock to St. Peter's in Rome on Christmas Day. PRAYER . . . "O come let us adore him”, these chUdren pray on Chrlstmaa eve. Their prayer Is the true and greatest gift o# aU. 'Silent Night' Hymn Is Often Called Song From Heaven ‘‘Silent Night” is often called the "Song from Heaven” because the jstoxy of its inspiration and com position is one of the most beauti ful Christmas stories in existence. On December 24, 1818, in the Austrian, village of Hallein, as Father Joseph Mohr sat reading his Bible, there was a knock at his door. It was a peasant woman who wanted the priest to visit a poor charcoal-maker’s wife to whom a child had been bom. The parents had sent her to ask the priest to come and bless the infant. Father Mohr was strangely moved by the visit to the mother. And that evening as he returned to his home saw that the dark slopes of the Alps around the village were GREECE (Kala Xristouyeha) — Decorated trees, greeting cards and gift exchanges are season highlights. New Year’s Eve is really the top holiday, with big dances, -parties -and other—eele* —bxations for^young. and okL—«— PHILIPPINE ISLANDS (Maliga- yang Pasko) — Church aervices, singing and dancing are Yuletide favorites in the islands. First Community Tree At Christmas Was Held In City of Cleveland TPHE COMMUNITY Christmas * tree idea was born in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1912. The community raised funds to defray the cost of the tree and celebrations through the sale of preferred stock in “Cleveland, the city of good will (unlimited), incorporated under the laws of the commonwealth of good cheer.” Holders of preferred stock were entitled to “dividends payable daily in the form of happy voices of robust children, the contented faces of friendly fellow citizens and the advancement of the city of good will.” Sale of stock was pushed every where, the most unique place being the Cleveland stock exchange where the stock was listed at the head of other securities. The sale brought $12,000, which purchased Christmas cheer for 13,000 citizens, as well as the first community Christmas for the city. alight' with torches of thcmoun*' taineers on their way to church. To him it was a Christmas mira cle. Later, as he tried to put down on paper his feeling and experi ence, the words kept turnin| Ih'to verse. When dawq came he found he had written a poem—a beau* tiful and moving poem. On Christmas Day his friend, Franz Xaver Gruber, music teach* er in the village school, composed music to fit the verses. Village children heard the priest and teacher singing the song and learned it. From there It spread throughout the world. Today, it is regarded as the greatest Christ mas hymn and wherever there are men of good will they sing: "Silent night, holy night— All is calm, all is bright, Round you Virgin, Mother and Child; Holy Infant, so tender and mild, Sleep in heavenly peace— Sleep in heavenly peace." History of 'Christmas Seals 1 SNOWMEN FOB YOU . . . Year iaeal lamber dealer may ‘have patterns far men” which yea can yearaetf. If net, nee for a Bed When you see the Christmas seal do you ever wonder how it started? It was born in Denmark, home of the fairy tales of Hans Christian Anderson. Einar Holboell, a Copenhagen postal clerk, was sorting mail one snowy afternoon before Christmas, 1903, when he thought of the idea of a penny stamp to swell a fund for children’s hospitals. Authorized by King Christian, the first Christian seals were sold in Copenhagen in 1904. HolboelTs scheme outgrew his wildest imaginings, for before his death in 1927, he lived to see it spread to 45 countries. The seals found their way to America on letters and packages and first attracted the attention of Jacob Riis who wrote an article about them. Few people, however, were interested in the idea. Then, in the autumn of 1907, Emily Bissell, a public health worker, concerned about the fate of a small sanatorium, recalled th article and sat down to sketch America’s first Christmas seal, a wreath of holly encircling the words "Merry Christmas.” With 50,000 stamps printed and nowhere to sell them. Miss Bissell at last enlisted the aid of a colum nist bn a Philadelphia newspaper. The idea caught and within a few weeks $3,000 was collected. The first nation-wide sale was held the following year and was backed by newspapers all over the country, religious and civic croups, and sponsored by the American Cross and the * i We would feel that something has been left undone were we to pass up this opportunity of thanking you for all past favors — to express our gratitude for your loyal friendships. D. E. Tribble Company LUMBER AND BUILDERS SUPPLIES