The Daily Alaska empire Newspaper, December 22, 1945, Page 14

PAGE SIX CHRISTMAS TREE AND DECORATICKS ARE FIRE HAZARD Fire ha mas tre \;,ijh t them? Will and ¢ 'll'\"k of can be done with penter out of work mac geod thing last Christmas of ¢ cren’s bloc He collec ends of |)1 5 ed od them gay colors ¢ of a dozen scooter good 2 age of y should I kind. Boys like train blecks painted (o are better than the only run pleased with rolling pins, hou trunks, small cha tables,” and dishes. One writes that her most but *mble kinds wooden t can on tracks E: doll beds, irs and mother son’s E lucational toys are popular. ighed gift last Ch fiv peunds of paturally as bread Fam and egg may ma leaves o 16 col through together, ¢ CSRIST'S CHRISTMAS TREE CONCE/ Mary, forced Flight intc within the pine tree. Towards ev diers cf Herc tree lowered its br cealed the Holy The Infant Jesus ble pire and, according ic cutting a pine cc ler may still see the” impri hand hollow trunk of a hug hen t nily - -oo - Robins, now usually half tame ar preferring suburban tp forest 1 have become stupid and many cases LED HOLY FAMILY lazy in AT RTRT NG mgfi-\q«, Candles — Symbolic of R R T R R R R A Y PO P LA SR YA YO YA PO S PR YA alke many shapes and for: sed on the market, to suit the decorative effect Christmas can at home, or purc 1d is eclebrated to honu. stoms have origiy ns ‘“Mass of Chris!” g eless, many Christ of pre-Christ erts 1 been cele the Nativ nated in The seas e figured that Christ d as a time of e heavens were kindled ions within the home, entertain- , the s com- d their mid- ustoms 'm who grey foremost philosophiss continued 1 that TO OUR FRIENDS | The dictionary is full of high sounding words and definitions, but search as we may, we cuan find no better substifufe to ex- press our season’s greetings than the time worn phrase—Merry Christmas. extyy 'C/uclé lmas THE DAILY ALASKA EMPIRE»JUNEAU ALASKA + REPROBATUS BECOMES ST. CHRISTOPHER AND ANSWERS CHRIST'S CALL Reprobsius was a young giant seathen philosophies prompt- ed him to ert one master after whenever he found a mas- tronger than the one he then d. Ncedeing that the mighty Pharaoh cared Satan, Reprobatus deserted Pharach to serve Satan; perceiving that the Devil himself was startled y the cross, he left the services of Satan and went in search of Christ. When he refused to pray, he was ccmmanded to do penance and given the task of carrying travelers across a deep river. On Christmas Eve a voice called {or Reprobatus and, answering the ummens, he fcund a very small child waiting to be carried—across the river. When he had placed the little one upon his shoulder, the purden of bis weight nearly bowed Reprobatus to the ground. ou are, indeed, as heavy as the declared Reprobatus. created the world,” replied the “I redeemed the world and ins of the world.” was no longer a heathen giant; he was Christofera, er of Christ: as St. Chris- he is the Goliath of the , patron of all travelers; his is a palm stem which t bade him thrust into the soil -~wherefore the date palm is said to blossom and bear fruit at Christ- mas time wh child 1 bear the Reprobatus SRR YRR DEOROONNEEE cppees iy DR 'BEAN WINNER RULES ON TWELFTH NIGHT Epiphany, or the Feast of the Kings, is the great somecoming day in France; servant girls would rather lose the positicns than miss the family reunion and expect to receive an extra month's pay to wit. The elaborate dinner features a cake in which a China bean has been hidden; the cake is cut into as many pieces as there are persons in the party. Wheever finds the Many Relics of St. hean in his or her cake matically becomes King or Queen of Twelfth Night and proceeds to choose his or her partner. The King and Queen reign over the ensuing festivities—each mamber of the party being obliged o obey their ridiculous commands Clerical employees = expect a bonus and tradespeople anticipate Christmas boxes on Epiphany and Christmas trees are set up in stores and public places around which patrons pile heaps of gifts to be distributed in hospitals and among the poor. Nicholas Stiil Are Enshrined in Southern ltaly To the residents of the town of Bari, Italy, the possession of a saint’s body meant much in the 1y 11th century. That is why all tt is mortal of Santa Claus—otherwise St. Nicholas, the bishop of Myra, in Asia Minor—now rests in Bari. The body was stolen from its origi- nal tomb in Myra by Italian sailors, who thought as most Europeans thought back in 1087, that a saint’s body brought prosperity and good iuck to a town. - Even an arm or a {oe was rated highly am®ng civic possessions. However, once buried again in Bari, the saint’s body was credited with curing 30 people of distemper and performing other miracles. So Bari became a place of pilgrimage and the legends about St. Nicholas | multiplied apace. We owe our notion of Santa Claus | as a secret dispenser of gifts to a story that St. Nicholas once saved taree girls from a life ‘of vice by | throwing purses of gold through a window in Patara, thus permitting a powrly -stricken nobleman to give s daughters suitable dowries as custom demanded. And St. Nicholas is credited with restoring life to three boys who had been slain and dismembered by a wicked innkeeper of Myra—that is why we occasiénally see stained glass windows in which the saint is shown beside three lads in a tub. So the legends multiplied, and | especially did they become popular in Holland and Belgium. There, too, the children put their wooden shoes before the fireplace on Christmas Eve, and confidently expected that good behavior of recent weeks would be rewarded. Bad children; o course, found only ashes and whips | in their shoes. e all know the story of Christmas full well, years of Church_attendance.) we have all learned the lesson of Christmas, too, from our childhood hours in Sunday school through all the, Evems"of 7the'pas(féiv'war years have only served to emphasize ,more strongly that the lesson of brotherly love is one ith democracy and freedom. So upoir this Christaias Day; 16755 look back to the message of the first Christmas—and let us look forward to the experience of all future Christmases spent in peace and security by a universe of people dedncated to thc e spirit of brotherly love. Libby, McNeill & Libby auto-! S'ATURDAY. DECEMBER 22. 1945 The Greatest Gift m 1] hristmas megns more %’( than mailing pref‘ents ‘.and opening pack %4 ages. Today, as never belore in history, it means giving something of our- selves to others. For that is the spirit of the Prince of Peace, whose birth we cele- brate. This year more families in this community have giventhesupreme gift—the offering oi sons for their country. Stars on some service flags have iurned to gold. Each week this newspaper has proudly recorded the deeds of those who serve, fight and dig, if need be, that we may be free. Thefamiliesof these heroes know the true meaning of Christmas. For they, also, have given a Son. Many of us cannot match such records of high sacrifice: But we can give and we can serve in gther ways. We can make cood willand kindness, chari- ty and understandmg not empty words but heart-warming re- alities in our deal- ings with others. We can help the boys returning to this community from the war build a brave new fu- ture. We can cheer the lonely homes of servicemen still far awav. We can speed the day of pcace on earth, jus- tice and brotherhood. In thus giving of ourseives we will all be far richer. And we will add inner meaning and strength to the age-old but ever-new greeting which this newspaper extends to vou and yours— A Mer: 4 Clrisénas % (rty =