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This newspaper page contains 13 articles. Subscribers can read the full text of each article.
Newspaper
Pella Chronicle
Location
Pella, Iowa, United States of America
Date
Dec 23, 1915
Page
2
In a playful tale from St. Nicholas elves hide dreams in a storeroom and travel the village selling wishes. Young and old buy diverse dreams from aging fantasies to a ragged girl’s Cinderella dream, ending as quickly as they arrive with the elves departing into night.
A Victorian verse describes a snowy Christmas Eve with moonlit roofs and a sleighing wind. Santa Claus slides down chimneys filling stockings, spreading joy to children and adults as he departs to the tune of bells and holiday cheer.
Detroit Free Press recounts Mervash Markham’s medieval Christmas feast detailing a first course of sixteen hearty dishes, from roasted beef and veal to geese and swans, plus later courses and festive revels. It notes court and noble household roles, including a Master of the Revels who oversees plays and dances at Christmas feasts.
A reflective piece urging a Christmas spirit in all gift giving. It argues that birthdays become Christmas through generosity, urging people to buy thoughtful presents year round, embrace kind shop interactions, and spread goodwill beyond a single day. The author notes wise men and shared joy, stressing the value of spirit over cost.
The text explains that Santa Claus has no existence in Germany. Gifts come from Kringle, a corruption of Christkindl, or the infant Christ. Gifts are placed on the table beneath the tree to honor the savior rather than the tree. The German Christmas tree stays in the main apartment from Christmas to New Year’s Eve and is privately removed by older household members.
The article traces plum pudding history from porridge and pudding terms in Shakespeare and early texts to the 18th century plum puddings and Hanover era traditions. It notes a fashion shift since 1895 toward enriched puddings with jewelry and coins, and discusses theological symbolism of the Magi. It also describes Christmas sweetmeats shaped like dolls representing the Virgin Mary and Child.
The Grant family celebrated a simple, charitable Christmas at the White House during their eight years in office. Mrs. Grant organized gifts and visits, while the children enjoyed a matinee of Jack and the Beanstalk and a festive banquet. Generals Sherman and others joined in the merriment and games.
A fragment of Martha Summerfield Shuey poetry evokes a mother holding a sleeping child. The dreamlike image lingers on the pillow of her breast as centuries pass, celebrating the enduring bond of mother and child.
Joe Lincoln in the Saturday Evening Post paints a domestic Christmas vignette. A faded worn stockin hangs by the flue as Mary and a child await Santa. Despite hard times mortgage and bills loom, but love and hope endure, Christmas brings togetherness and quiet cheer.
A reflection on how seventy years ago Christmas stood as an adult home festival. It celebrated father mother and home as the source of joy and sentiment. Children hoped to tell parents of good deeds and seek pardon, with Father Christmas and the dear mother welcoming and forgiving with sympathy.
In old lore mistletoe and its white berries held potent charms. Worn as an amulet it was thought to cure wounds reveal ghosts and compel them to speak. This Christmas tide its magic is said to persist as homes display the plant in festive homage to pretty faces.
A discussion of early New England views on Christmas, detailing Puritan opposition, legal fines, and church-state clashes. The text notes 17th century resentment of Christmas revelry, the shift toward secular activity, and Governor Belcher’s conflict over Christmas observance as a measure of religious control and social order.
In Devonshire folklore the Yule log must be a bundle of ash sticks bound with ash, nine in number, no more no fewer. When the log is lit, the host should provide a fresh bowl of liquor to guests lest luck be lost.
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