$1 A YEAR, CASH 18 ADYAHCE. . -
"LET ALL THE ENDS THOU AIMS'T AT BE THY COUNTRY'S, THY GOD'S AMD TRUTHS."
BEST ADVERTISING HEDIUI
VOLUME XXV.
WILSON, X. C.DEC. 26, 1895.
NUMBER, 52.
mi A 1 T .
lit: us mm mi
If you are ready to look
We are ready to show !
For years we have always
iday
Goocls in this little city,
ycu KNOW
astonish the natives. We are crowded to me uoui m t,
nf onr three' stores with merchandise suitable for the season.
Wo Kp1;pvp this will be the year
which we have a Grand Stock for you to choose from, We
mentions few things that will make useful presents, and to
begin with the useful as well as the ornamental, we mention a
3 E A U.T I F U L.
STERLING
11M J
an d N e w Thi n
01 HE US THAT ABE "PRESENTABLE"
PLAIN AND EMBROIDERED HANDKERCHIEFS.
FINE SILK MUFFLERS. 4
nnc, .SKIN GLOVES. FUR BACK.
FINE SILK SUSPENDERS.
GENTS NECK AND 4 IN HAND TIES.
SHOPPING BAGS.
STAMPED LINEN. 1
CHINILLE TABLE COVERS.
TURKISH RUGS. 1
CURTAIN POLES.
HOLL AND SHADES.
LACE CURTAINS.
DINNER NAPKINS AND DOYLIES.
FINE DAMASK TOWELS. - '
LUNCH BASKETS.
HAIR CURLERS.
FINE CHINA INDIVIDUAL CUP AND SAUCER.
" BREAD AND BUTTER SETS. ,
.CAKE PLATES.
ice cream: SETS. -
BREAKFAST SET.
DINNER SET.
GLASS WARE OF EVERY DESCRIPTION.
TOYS OF ALL KINDS AND THOUSANDS OF OTHER
THINGS WHICH WE CANNOT TAKE THE TIME TO MEN
TION HERE.
Cash
Ga
cries
and if you are wise you will spend . your money
where it will go the f urtfiest.
M.
rax.
CASH
:1 j Hi
lETIAEf
If you are readtobuy
We are ready to sell !
shown the largest line of Hoi-
but this yeac we propose to
i i . . i j : "U
for giving useful presents of
L I U E O F
MLTIB
gs i n J e.wel ry .
lie Barp
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LEA TH, llnager,
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RACKET
STORE
SANTA GLAUS IS REAL
THOUGH MANY PEOPLE SPEAK
HIM AS A MYTH.
OF
In England St. Nicholas Was Recognized
as the Guardian of Youth Legend of the
Wicked BufccIier--In Germany He Pats
Good Things In Lucky Bags.
In spite of the fact that Dec. 6 was
. "Niphnlfis' "flflv thnnRands nf rArm1p
talk of Santa Clans as myth. St. Nicho
las -was a very real personage. He was
archbifchcp of Myra in 342, and the ,
nanie'nnder which he enjoys an annual -popularity
in this country is the Ger
man form that came with the German
custom of the Christmas tree and all
the rest of it.
St. Jnieholas is a great saint with all
the Teutonic and Scandinavianpeoples. n
It was his . prerogative, says the New '
York Recorder, to manifest his piety
when at his mother's breast, for even
then he is said to have fasted Wednes
days and Fridays. As a matter of course
he soon became famous in working mir
acles, and here again he appeared to seek
favor with the young people.
An innkeeper having killed two young
gentlemen and put them in the pickle
tub, intending to sell them' as pickled
pork, the saint, who, in a vision, had
Been the deed ddne, declared he would
pnt a stop to the business, and there- 1
upon he transformed himself from Lycia
to Athens and stood before the astonish
ed innkeeper and said, "What hast thou
done?" : ' '
The man trembled, confessed and im
plored forgiveness. Having patted the
man on the back nndsaid, "Don't do it
any more,' the holy man turned to the ,
pickle tub, when the imitation sides, '
legs and hands of pork began to stir,
and in quick sticks there came forth not
two boys merely, but three, as may be'
proved by reference to the Salisbury
missal of 1534,. wherein there is a pic
ture of the event, and one of its pecul
iarities "is that, as the three boys rise
complete cut of the pickle, the barbar
ous butcher is still busy in cutting cue
of them up. .
St. Nicholas established yet another
claim to be regarded as the . friend of"
youth, for he was partial to boxing and
employed his skill in the "manly art"
upon the heads of bishops.
The guardianship of the young by
Sanla Ciaus was of old recognized in
England by the custom of choir boys in
cathedrals choosing a boy bishop on-the
.day cf St. Nicholas, Dec. G. This was.
a very important event, as may bo seen
by Hone's "Every Day Book, "T, 1559,"
where there is an effigy of a boy bishop
from Salisbury cathedral. The custom
was 'in 'fail observancefrom early times
until 1542, when it was abolished by a
proclamation of Henry VIII. -
According to- the old north German
custom, the happy time for the childreu
is the vigil of St. Nicholas, the night of
Dec. 5. Then it is that he glides about,
putting g:cd things into lucky bags and
spying out the merits and demerits of
boys and girls and sometimes unspar
ingly praising or rebuking them. v
-The north German fashion requires
the saint to pay a visit to the house
where the young are assembled in fes
tivityon the night of his vigil. He
speaks in kindly words to the juvenile
throng, -reproving some, encouraging
others. On retiring to rest, each member
of the party places an empty shoe on the
table, and the door of the room is at
once locked, and behold ! when morning
dawns and the doors are opened in the
presence of all, .the shoes are found to
be rilled with gifts for' their owners and
the table is covered with trinkets and
sweetmeats.
We have fiimply incorporated St.
Nicholas' day with Christmas day and
made the night of Dec. 24 the time of
the saint's visitation. But he is not a
myth now any more than he ever was.
He is a very real as well as a very good
saint indeedand for the children-' s sake,
may his shadow never grow less 1
The Bird of Dawning. - v
A popular superstition is that on the
eveof Christmas the bird of dawning
singeth all night long to frighten off
any evil thing. -
It was - from .this belief that Shakes
peare wrote: .. -
Borne say k that ever 'gainst that season comes
Wherein oar Saviour's birth is celebrated.
The bird of dawning singeth all night long,
And then, they say, no spirit dares stir abroad.
She 'nights are wholesome. Then no planets
i -' . gtrike, ' - ' ; - -
2fo fairy, takes, ' nor. witch hatb. power . to
1 - - " charm, . ...... r. ".- .
Bo hallowed and io gracious is the time. '
St. Nicholas. In. France. .
St Nicholas holds a, prominent - posi-!
tion in France as the: dispenser ; of gifts,:
though in many 'places it is the Christ
child who diBtributes them, he Christ
child frequently appears to children Jai
Ganta Claus'does witrT us; He is usually
assiitted by a company of angels, lo Al
Cace he is represented by a maiden in
rhit-V with a sitvex bell in one hand
I tsar fk pasjtet. .ot . sweetmeats in. tne
' ether. Selected,
THE MISTLETOE BOUGH.
Origin f the Christmas Tree and Decora
tion With ETergreens.
Among the votaries of the early Druids
there was a superstition that the houses
should be decorated with evergreens in
December in order that the sylvan spir
its Jrnight enter them and thus be kept
free from the, blast of the cold ndrth
wind and the frost until a milder season
renewed the foliage of their usual r
haunts. " . . : .. :,
. The Christmas tree is really from
Egypt, where the palm tree puts forth a . r.
branch every month, and where a spray , V
of this treer with 12 shoots on it, was I
used in Egypt at the time cf the winter h
solstice as a symbol of the year com
pleted. . ' '- ; ;
Who does not know the poem begin
ning: ' .... ,
'. The mistletoe hung in the castle, hell;'
The holly branch shone bq the old cak wall?
Years ago over every man's door in
England; hung a sprig of mistletoe at
this season. There still hovers a mystic
charm about the mistletoe, and many
a girl now, with a thrill of expectancy,
places a branch of it under the chande-.
Tier or over the door. According to a
, former belief, when a girl is caught and
.kissed under the mistletoe a berry must
be picked eff with each kiss, and when
the berries have all been plucked the
privilege cease's. -
Among the ancient Britons the mis
tletoe that grows on the oak tree was
the kind held in favor. Because cf its
heathen origin it is. not used often in
church decorations, a fact which is re
ferred to by Washington Irving, fa his
"Bracebridge Hall," where he has the
learned parson' rebuke the unlearned
clerk for, this very thing. t
In Germany and Scandinavia the holly
or holy tree is called Christ's thorn, be
cause it puts forth its berries at Christ
mas time, and - therefore is especially
fitted fGr church decorations. With its
glossy, dark leaves and bright, red ber
ries, it is an attractive decoration for
the house. "
The ' Jews used to decorate at their
feast of tabernacles with evergreens and
flowers. . "
t The laurel was used at the earliest
times cf the Romans as a! decoration for
all joyful occasions and is significant cf
peace and victory.
In some places it is customary to
thrGW branches of laurel on the Christ
mas fire and watch for omens while the
leaves curland crackle in the heat and
flame.
The evergreen tree is a symbol used
as the revival of nature, which, astro
nomically, signifies the return of the
sun. Hung with lights and offerings,
the tree has for centuries been one cf
the principal characteristics of Christ
mastide. New York Mercury.
THE UNIVERSAL HOLIDAY.
Christmas Hells Kins: Joyful Tidincs to All
the Earth.
There is no holiday in all the long
calendar of the months that is eo uni
versally and so enthusiastically cele
brated as Christmas. All men every
svhere take heart of grace and smile a
cheerier smile as the music of the
Christmas bells falls upon their ears.
Whoever will look back to his young
days" cannot help remembering "what a
strange, mystic time Christmas was. j
There was something almost awe inspir- j
ing in the music of the Christmas carols !
sung at midnight m the open, frosty air.
And these Christmas "waits" who sung?
who were they ? Unseen and unknown,
we almost deemed them beings of a
fairer. world sent down to make Christ
mas delightful. If we had known in
those days that these men who broke the
silence of the starry nignt to tell us j
what "the herald angels" sang were j
j mortals given to the smoking of tobacco
and the drinking of norter, all our ro
mantic dreams would have ended there
and then. - As we grow older we grow
wiser, and therefore a little sadder. We
know, of course, that there is no real
Santa Clans ; but, oh, how we wish there
were! .:v );: ..A-. '
How tne Greek Celebrates Christmas. ..
It is more than likely that many of
our Christmas customs - were born in
Greece, more particularly the decora
tions, lights and games. Here ghosts
and hobgoblins are rampant; between
Christmas day and Epiphany, and chil
dren are often frightened into unwilling
obedience by the tales. As the pious
Greek fasts for a month before Christ
Trias the feast of that day is very 4 wel
come to him, though it, consists princi
pally of macaroni and strong cheese.
On the . island of Chios there is in use
a strange jort . of .Christmas tree, which
b sometimes simply ' a pole adorned
ittii fruits and1 flowers, carried by a
tenant zarmer .t.o jiia landlord as . a pres-
ent .that4 typifies, the . good., will and
Irishes for an abundant, harvest. Ex
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Christmastime. "
There's a little eld man with silvery hair
An a long white beard "at flies in the air,
With twinklin black eyes an a rosy, red face,
An onct a year lie comes to our place.
An our little maid "-
An our littlo man
Ez anxious to see 'ini ixxm's they can. .
In the dead o' night when all's asloop
An the cold frost snaps an the snow ez deep,
With a rtindetr team an a, .silver sled
He comei straight, from fairy aad, 'ti'sakT
So bur little man . .
An our little maid " . .
Ez anxious to see 'im thty ain't afraid. ;-
But you lettfr take kct r, fernscrae folks say.,
'At ef yer naughty- he'll ily axs'ayi
,Ah quieker'n you kin vrhistlc phew-v
Away he's g-one up the chimney Hue I"
So our little maid r
; An our little man .
Ez tryin to be jest ez good's they can.
But ef yer good an 'bey yer pa
An don't never cry an vex yer ma
He'll fill yer stockin's with yames an toys.
An huts an sweets an all sorts o' joys.
So our little niaid
An our little man,
tfants Santy xo come jes' as quick's'he can.
Nvw York Sun.
K.issin2 unaer tne mistletoe.
- .
The mystic mistletoe bough then as
now granted a kissing charter to the
swains, and the maids were willing suf
ferers. The sacred mistletoe was regard
ed with religious veneration by the
Druids.and its berries cf pearl as symbols
of purity and associated with the rites,
of marriage. From this the transition
Was but slight to the kiss beneath the
tiabalistic bough. This traditional sa
credness, the genesis of which is un
known, has endured through the ages,
and today for man and maid to meet be
neath the mistletoe gives the right to a
sacred kiss. Few York Herald.
' Hosanna! Sinff. .
Awake, good Christians! Long ago
The shepherds waked at night' .
And saw the heavens with' glory glow
And angels in the light.
Hosanna 1 Sing hosanna! Sing
Hosanna in the height!
New life they told to all on earth,
Vew life &nd blessing bright,
Forewarning of thcS:iviour's birth
In Bethlehem this night.
Hosanna! Sing hosanna! Sing
Hosanna in the height!
' . . - - . .
New life to all, new life to all.
The tidings good recite.
i New life to all, which did befall
. At Bethlehem this night. : . ,
Hosanna I Sing hosanna! Sing
' Hosanna in the height!
Old CaroL
Crontes a la Noel
Line some patty pans with fine short
paste, fill them with mincemeat, cover
with a cardboard box lid and bake.
Then, instead of a pastry lid, cover
them with equal parts of fresh butter
and sugar beaten to a light white cream
and flavored with a squeeze of lemon
juice or rosewater or any good cordial.
Be Not Dismayed.
God bless you, merry gentlemen!
May nothing yon dismay .
, Not eren your finances when
" You find 'tis Christmas day.
Washington Post.
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