Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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^ •' FRIDAY, DECEMBER zt, 1951 At this s e o s o n our thoughts go out to ^ those whose courtesy, -• cooperation and loyal ty has meant so much Ifc? * o ° • O «» °o °o 00 o o • 000 • „ • • 0 ^ 0 -° • * • • # O * • » • • 0 0 _ 0 • • o 3 o 0 o _ O - O • © c « • . 000 _ . c O*o _ 0 O O o 0 o o '• 0 <* o' 0 © o o ® ® o 0 00 • °* O 0 o © o 0 p 0 ° « • '© o _ o o o O o«°;oo o v 0 ©o* . - 0 o° 0 °*.V Jo©; 0 o ©o" 0 °oo© o O o O o o 0 o d O o ° o ©o 0 °. 0 .* » 0 0oo_° • O _ o - O O 0 0 & • • 0 • © 0 0 r HERE ARE almost as many Christmas legends and super- Ititions as there have been Christ mases. Countless customs from the Did World have been absorbed through the centuries into the cele brations that we participate in to- fay. A few, however, have been passed down from one generation to another, remaining always the tame. The Indians of Canada, for ex- imple, believe that the deer kneel in prayer each Christmas Eve. An early missionary probably is re sponsible for the idea, but it still lingers and wily Indians have al ways attempted to catch the deer in the act. In England, it is believed that the bees express veneration for the Record* •Show yj. dustoms f \AJere d/ld +3n fourth denturi The exact age of the Christmas Cestival is not known. Records show, however, that the holiday was spoken of in the fourth century as K custom of long standing. Christmas began as Christ’s Mass, or the Mass of Christ, sometime .during the fourth century. It took that long after the blessed night for the great importance of Christ’s birth to be realized by the people. Until yiis time it had been the cus tom of the church to celebrate the anniversaries of deaths, rather than births. Christ’s birthday was the first to be made an occasion for (easting. The date for the celebration of the Christ Mass was selected by the church. So many years had elapsed that the actual date of His birth could only be a matter of conjec ture. The festival and spirit of Christ mas spread through the Christian worlds. Pagan customs, even as they do today, attempted to adapt themselves to the Christmas season. For many years after the origin of Christ’s Mass the church frowned upon the practice of exchanging gifts during the festival season. Later, however, the practice was condoned, in remembrance of the spirit of the Three Kings of the Orient who had followed a shining star to the crib of the new-born Christ, bringing presents with a sense of humility. nativity by singing in their hives at midnight. The bee hives are al ways adorned with holly sprigs for the Yuletide season. In Z or ope it was custom for a young girl to creep to the family woodpile on Christmas Eve and pull out tiie first stick that her hand touched. If the stick was a straight one, with no knots, tradition said that she would have a good husband. Farmers in Europe also gave torches to their children and sent them singing into the apple orchards and the fields. The mice, caterpil lars and moths were said to flee before the approaching songsters. In early Germany it was a belief that water turned into wind during the hour before midnight on Christ mas Eve. Christmas Greens Brighten Home A few well placed Christmas greens can do much to brighten a| house at Christmas time. Properly clipped, the branches will never be missed, and might improve thej looks of the tree from which theyi are cut. Hemlock, red cedar, juniper, yew ( ! pitch pine, white pine, will make suitable material for a spray toj decorate a mantle, door, or a spray: for a newel post. In pruning, however, keep in mind the natural appearance of the tree from which you clip branches. St. Nick’s Spirit It is thought that St. Nicholas died about 345 A.D., and for 30 days following his festival day his genial spirit roamed the earth, filling the hearts of mankind with love and generosity. He gave the gifts without thought of return— the true spirit of St. Nicholas and Christmas. Tb* rosemary shrub, symbol of fidelity and constancy, was once supposed to possess many occult virtues. Hamlets Ophelia und, "There's rosemary, that’s for remembrance.** The fact that Rosemary blooms at Christmas has introduced it into celebration of this feast. Rosemary, according to one legend, opene~ to u ide the Virgin Mary and her child from the soldiers of Herod, a legena ,„*red with the juniper and other trees. Another legend says that, during the flight to Egypt, Mary threw her blue elf 'tk ever a bush of rosemary when she lay down to rest. Ever since, im her bo**r, the flowers have been the heavenly blue of the mantle.