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By VIRGINIA VALE (Released by Western Newspaper Union.) H OW would you like to be introduced to a pretty girl and, two minutes, later have to throw a glass of water into her face? Barry Nelson knows how it feels to do exact ly that. The girl was Laraine Day; Nelson, discovered by Metro on the University of California campus, had to throw the water because William Seitz, direct ing “China Caravan,” liked the idea. Nelson wants to play tough roles; according to Spencer Tracy, he’s a “sterling actor,” so he should bfe able to. The role in “China Cara van” is his fourth in pictures, but throwing that water was almost too much for him; he’d rather be tough some other way! —*— Ann Sheridan and Madeleine Car- roll probably didn’t know it, but for three weeks they ran neck and neck with Lana Turner in an election. The boys at Forts Hancock and Til- den were voting to choose “The Sweetheart of Harbor Defenses.” Lana won the title. —*— If Joan Fontaine needed to make sure of her laurels as an actress, she's certainly accomplished it in “Susipicion,” the new Alfred Hitch cock thriller. Her performance is JOAN FONTAINE superb. RKO provided an excellent cast, which includes Cary Grant, Sir Cedric Hardwicke, Dame May Whit- ty, Nigel Bruce and Heather Angel. You can see what an actress Miss Fontaine is, to stand out in such a cast. v * Clyde Cook, who has a bit part in “Suspicion,” directed Hitchcock in an English film in the days before the mystery director won his spurs. Incidentally, if you read that thrill er, “Before the Fact,” don’t expect this picture version to resemble it too closely. —*— “I guess the hair-dresser just doesn’t like Joan Crawford,” re marked a friend of mine after see ing “When Ladies Meet.” “And maybe the costume designer felt the same way,” she added. Certainly Greer Garson’s hair was more be comingly done, and her clothes were prettier than Miss Crawford’s. But hair-do’s and clothes must be an old story to the Crawford girl, who could give a good performance if she had to wear a sugar sack and have her hair shaved tight to her head. Rob ert Taylor ought to make new friends in this one, too. —*— Rosalind Russell and her bride groom drove to New Orleans after their marriage, went by boat to Cuba, flew to Jacksonville and took a train to New York. After a brief stay there she had to rush back to Hollywood for wardrobe tests for “Take a Letter, Darling,” in which she plays a bachelor girl. Frances Farmer, who’s been co-starring with Tyrone Power in “Son of Fury,” is cast t* her rival. —*— Richard Arlen wants to go to China to make a picture, when he finishes “Wildcat,” which he’s to start about the fir^t of the year. Says it would take about three months to shoot exteriors there, then the troupe would come home to make the rest of it. —*— A miniature Big Town has been built by a New Orleans man who visualized the imaginary city after listening to Edward G. Robinson’s CBS show, which has been on the air for four years; he wants to give it to Robinson, who hesitates—he’d need a special building to house it. —*— ODDS AND ENDS—Herbert Marshall became an actor because he couldn't add or subtract readily enough to hold a posi tion ms a clerk . .. Raymond Gram Swing’s vacation begins Christmas Day ... John Gunther will substitute for him during his three weeks' absence . . . Jerry Colonna, Allan Jones and a few buddies have the difficult task of concealing the fact that Judy Canova is a stowaway in their army camp in "True to the Army" ... Columbia may finally screen its long-postponed * Life of Chopin," with Glenn Ford as the com poser . . . The famous "Thin Man" is wearing thinner than ever, yet "Shadow ef die Thin Man" is amusing. Santa’s Troubles Our mechanized age certainly puts Santa at a disadvantage, be cause his reindeer never had trou bles like this. Several inches of snow prove too much for his modern carriage, so Santa Claus has to wield a snow shovel in front of a New York store to free it. (Editor’s note: Wonder what he does at the North pole where the snow is really deep.) Christmas Marked In Early Colonies By Jollity, Feasting Early American colonies along the Atlantic seaboard could have been located on different continents, so far as their Christmas celebrations were concerned. Many of the customs of England were followed by the southern colo nies of Georgia, Carolina, Maryland and Virginia. Here the Christmas season was a holiday in the true sense of the word. Feasting and merrymaking were common, but re ligious worship and prayer were not forgotten. In sharp contrast to this happy celebration was the manner in which Christmas was marked in New England, puritan leaders did their beet to create a different concep tion of the day. Celebrations were declared pagan in origin, and it was believed such rites were out of keep ing with the true spirit of the day. Their efforts were overcome after a number of years and New Eng land yuletides gradually assumed a character more like those of old England. Christmas in the middle colonies of New York, New Jersey, Penn sylvania and Delaware was cele brated in the manner that the col onists followed in their countries of > origin. In addition to England, these colonies were populated by people from Germany, Holland and Swe den. The Germans, for example, brought to America the custom of using the Christmas tree, but the Quakers of Philadelphia limited their observance to religious cere monies. Family reunions marked the sea son in both the middle and southern colonies. Houses were crowded with welcome guests who were treated to the best of fowls, wines and sweetmeats. Along the frontier Christmas was a season of active merrymaking which in places verged on rowdy ism. As time went on, Christmas in the various sections of the colonies became fused until there is today a considerable similarity of prac tices throughout the United States. St. Nicholas Loved For Piety, Grace The name of Santa Claus is mere ly slurring the Dutch San Nicho las, which is, of course, Saint Nich olas. American children are proba bly the only ones who say it exactly that way. Nicholas was an actual person. He was Bishop of Myra, in Lycia, Asia Minor, in the first part of the Fourth century, A. D. He was also the youngest bishop in the history of the church. From the day of his birth Nicholas revealed his piety and grace. He refused on fast days to take the natural nourishment of a child. But Nicholas was not a barefoot recluse vowed to poverty. His fa ther was a wealthy merchant, and his riches enabled him to be a dis penser of the good things in life. The feast of Saint Nicholas was originally celebrated on December 6. Later when church people in the late Middle ages tried to suppress the festivities which grew up around the Boy Saint’s day, his festival came to be associated with Christ mas day. Christmas Celebrated in 98 Tradition says that Christmas was first celebrated in A. D. 98. It was ordered to be held as a solemn feast by Pope Telesphorus in A. D. 137. There is no record of any commem oration during the life of Christ. About A. D. 340, St. Cyril made careful investigation as to the actual date of Christ’s birth and reported December 25 as the most nearly cor rect date. Pope Julius accepted this and established the festival at Rome on this date, which was accepted by every nation in Christendom. . « Make Merry With Cookies and Candies! (See Recipes Below) Xmas Gift Boxes Christmas is the time for giving! Thus runs the refrain during this festive season. And what could be more appro priate, more wel come than gaily wrapped boxes packed right in your own kitchen —boxes full of sweet, crunchy cookies warm and fresh from the oven, candies, tempting tidbits of sweetness made with spices and nuts. Cookies and candies wrapped with waxed paper in small tin boxes will delight the heart of that boy you may have sent to camp, your daugh ter away at school, or a neighbor. *Bran Filled Hermits. (Makes 45 medium-sized cookies) % cup butter or margarine 1% cups sugar 2 eggs % cup milk % cup all-bran 3*4 cups flour 2 teaspoons baking powder teaspoons cinnamon 1 teaspoon cloves % teaspoon mace Vs teaspoon nutmeg 1 teaspoon salt 1 cup mincemeat or preserves Cream shortening, add sugar and eggs and beat well. Add milk and all-bran. Sift flour with remaining dry ingredients ancLadd to first mix ture. Mix well and chill. Roll dough to an eighth of an inch thickness on lightly floured board. Cut into rounds. Place 1 teaspoon mince meat on one-half the rounds and top with remaining rounds. Crimp edges with a fork. Bake on ungreased cookie sheet in fairly hot oven (400 degrees) for 12 to 15 minutes. Cookies right in tune with the Christmas season are these with red or green sugar dusted on them. Make them in fancy Christmas tree, Santa Claus or wreath shapes with a cookie cut ter. Use butter for a really good flavor, cut them thin and chill well before cutting. ( * Christmas Butter Cookies. (Makes 6 dozen small) Vi pound butter 1 cup sugar 2 eggs 1 teaspoon vanilla 1 teaspoon almond extract V* teaspoon salt • 2 to 2^4 cups flour Cream butter and sugar. Com bine beaten eggs and flavoring with creamed mixture. Add flour and salt. Mix well and chill. Roll thin, cut into shapes. Dust with colored sugar. Bake on a sheet about 15 minutes or until light brown, in a moderate (400 degrees) oven. Make your cookie and candy boxes provocative with tiny squares of rich, delicious penuche. These pieces can be dressed up in individ ual wrappings of gold, silver, green or yellow gift paper. LYNN SAYS: Now is the time to make your selection of gifts: perhaps you’d like to give away some of that brightly colored jelly or jam you put up last fall. Wrap it in gay paper, and tie it with a bit of silver and blue ribbon. Bring out the fruit cake and plum pudding, someone will be mighty proud to have them, too. When packing cookies and can dies for gift boxes you can make the box more attractive by al ternating the kinds of cookies and candies used. To assure fresh ness, use waxed paper between the layers. Gift Box Suggestions •Bran Filled Hermits •Christmas Cookies •Brazilian Penuche •Popcorn Brittle •Popcorn Fudge •Recipes Given •Brazilian Penuche. 2 cups brown sugar (packed firmly) % cup top milk % teaspoon vanilla 1 tablespoon butter % cup chopped Brazil nuts v Dash of salt Combine sugar, salt and milk. Cook, stirring constantly over low heat until sugar is dissolved and mixture boils. Cook until a small amount forms a soft ball when dropped into cold water (238 de grees). Remove from heat. Add va nilla and butter without stirring. Cool until lukewarm and beat hard until creamy. Add nuts and turn into greased pan. Sprinkle with sliced nuts. Cut into squares. An old favorite, popcorn, is fea tured in a new role in these candy recipes. If you don’t want to go through the busi ness of popping the corn yourself, you can get along nicely by using the popcorn that comes tightly sealed in tin cans. It’s as fresh and nice as if you made it yourself. •Popcorn Fudge. 2 cups brown sugar 1 cup thin cream 1 tablespoon* butter 2 cups popcorn 1 teaspoon vanilla Combine sugar with cream and stir over low heat until sugar is dis solved. Cook until the soft ball stage (238 degrees) or until it forms a soft ball in cold water. Remove from heat and let stand in cold water un til cool. Add butter, popcorn, and vanilla. Beat until creamy. Pour into buttered plate and cut. •Popcorn Brittle. - 2 cups granulated sugar • 1 cup dark com syrup Vi cup water 1 quart popcorn (slightly salted) 1 teaspoon vanilla 2 teaspoons soda Cook sugar, syrup and water in a heavy skillet. Stir until sugar is dissolved, then boil until mixture will crackle when dropped into cold water. Remove from fire, add va nilla and popcorn. Add soda and mix well. Pour into shallow, but tered pan. When cold, break into pieces. No Christmas box of cookies* would be complete without the delicately flavored Swedish Sprits cookies: Swedish Sprits. (Makes 4 dozen) 1% cups butter 1 cup sugar 1 egg yolk 1 teaspoon vanilla 1 teaspoon almond extract 3% cups flour Vs teaspoon baking powder Cream butter and sugar thorough ly, add egg and flavorings. Beat well. Blend in dry ingredients un til mixture is smooth. Press through cookie press into various shapes and decorate with candied fruit, if de sired. Bake in a hot oven (400 de grees) 8 to 10 minutes. Cookies hard to make? Not if you use this recipe: Krispie Marshmallow Stars. (Makes 16 to 18 stars) % cup butter % pound marshmallows ^4 teaspoon vanilla 1 package oven-popped rice ce real 4 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, melted Melt butter and marshmallows in double boiler. Add vanilla and chocolate and beat thoroughly. Put cereal in a large buttered bowl and pour in first mixture, stirring brisk ly. Put in a shallow buttered pan and allow to cool. Cut into stars or circles with a cutter. (Note: this cookie is not baked.) (Released by Western Newspaper Union.) ww ww. IMPROVED UNIFORM INTERNATIONAL S UNDAY I choql Lesson By HAROLD L. LUNDQUIST. D. D. Dean of The Moody Bible Institute of Chicago. (Released by Western Newspaper Union.) Lesson for December 14 Lesson subjects and Scripture texts se lected and copyrighted by International Council of Religious Education; used by permission. CHRISTIAN STEWARDSHIP LESSON TEXT—n Corinthians 8:1-9; 9:6, 7. GOLDEN TEXT—It is required in stew ards, that a man be found faithful.—I Corin thians 4:2. » \ * The Christmas season, when there is so much thought about gifts, is a most appropriate time for a lesson on Christian giving. Dr. John Willis Baer was once asked: “How can we raise money for foreign mis sions?” Quick as a flash, he an swered: “Don’t raise it, give it.” “If all believers could come to a true knowledge of what the New Testa ment teaches regarding giving, and would seriously put this knowledge into practice, the Christian church could advance more in the next 10 years than it has advanced in any 50 years in its history” (Wilbur M. Smith). I. An Example of Liberality (8:1-5). For some reason people are over ly sensitive when one speaks of money. The subject must be ap- proaefied tactfully, so Paul skillfully directs -the attention of the Corin thian clrarch to their fellow Chris tians in Macedonia. They had been in great affliction and were in “deep poverty” (v. 2), but out of their sorrow and want they gave far above Paul’s expectation (v. 5) and “beyond their power,” and then pleaded with Paul that he should let them give more. The explana tion is found in verse 5, where we learn that they had first given “their own selves to the Lord,” and then in loving co-operation with Paul himself, as the Lord’s agent, in this matter of the offering. Is it not strange that those who suffer most for the gospel and have the least to give are the most gen erous in their giving. Those to whom the gospel has come easily, who bear no special burdens for Christ, and who are well situated financially, are commonly the most stingy with their money. Could it be that they have not really given themselves to the Lord? One won ders. II. An Exhortation to Faithful ness (8:6-9). Apparently the Corinthians had made a promise or pledge to give for the poor at Jerusalem, but had become a bit forgetful and negli gent. It seems to be so easy to neglect to keep up a pledge for the Lord’s work. Some folk even feel that they cannot make a pledge. They pledge to pay their rent, to make payments on a car, or a washing machine; but to the church they just can’t pledge, or if they do, the promise is often neglected. Such things are dishonoring to the name of Christ. As they abound in other graces (v. 7), Paul exhorts the Corinthians to abound in “this grace also.” So giving is a Christian grace! And why not? Consider Christ (v. 9), who left the glory He had with the Father and came to the poverty of the One who had not where to lay His head, that we through Him might be eternally rich. Christian friend, when that truth lays hold of your heart and life your purse strings will loosen, your check book will open more easily, you will gladly give—for Christ’s sake. HI. A Principle of Christian Giv ing (9:6). The harvest is always in propor tion to the sowing of the seed. The man who is stingy with his seed at sowing time will reap that kind of a harvest. The Opposite is also true. It works in the field of business too. The merchant who gives the fullest return for one’s money and the most liberal measure of service is bound to prosper, while the stingy one is left to lament the fact that his goods rot on his shelves. In the spiritual realm it is even more true. But, someone may say, we ought not to do good that we may profit by it. No real Chris tian will give just that he may pros per, but, mark it well, if he does give for Christ’s sake and His glory, God will prosper him. “You can’t beat God giving.” IV. The Spirit of Christian Stewardship (9:7). Our giving is to be done according to the purpose of our heart—not grudgingly, nor with grief, nor yet by compulsion, because someone put on pressure. God loves a cheerful or (as it may be translated) hilarious giver. When done in the right spirit, giving for Christ can be one of the happiest experiences of the Christian life. Let’s make offering time in our church services the most joyful time in the meeting. Then we shall be liberal as well as cheerful in this grace of stewardship. Faith in Christ '‘Martha said, ‘Lord, if thou hadst been here, my brother had not died.’ Of all the true disciples of Christ this may with perfect confidence be said, ‘He is here, therefore they shall not die.’ Faith causes Christ to be present in the heart; and where Christ is, eternal death cannot be.” —Dean Howson. Pattern 2969. DE SMART! Crochet these mit- tens for that outdoor girl. The one laced up the back is “tops” in red, white and blue. The other is worked in one piece. • * * Pattern 2969 contains Instructions fot making mittens in small, medium and large sizes; illustrations of them and stitches: materials required; photograph of pattern stitches. 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