Show ofle FESTAL CUSTOMS TO TUE FIRST DAY OF THE TEAK A few observances of modern times of antiquity aad interest fur the of all the many bostal customs of modern society there are few which can boast of a greater ost and universality than those which are practiced in the celebration of the first day of the vear or new years day though many of its observances ser vances which once enjoyed great prosperity are now almost or wholly obsolete among the ancient romans from the time of the julian reformation of tho calendar the first day or the calenda of january was observed as a public holiday marking the beginning of a new year they dedicated the day and the whole ensuing month to the god janus from whom it derives its name or january and whom they represented as a man with two faces one looking backward the other forward implying that he stood between the old and the new year with a regard to both throughout january they offered sacrifices to janus upon twelve altars and on the first day of that month were careful to so regulate their conduct that their every word and act should be a happy augury of all the ensuing days of the year ovid and other latin that age allude to the suspension of all litigation and strife the reconciliation of differences between friends the smoking altars and the white robed professions processions process ions to the hospital upon the first day of janus or new years day as we now call it they also tell of tho exchange of visits the giving and receiving of presents or st renal the masquerading and the feasting with which in their time the day was celebrated throughout the koman empire the modem dude who puts on his swallow tailed coat and his white necktie today to day and sallies forth to visit his lady friends will be surprised to learn that the elomaa dude arrayed in a new shirt and ogay wont out poa precisely tha same errand 2000 years ago from the very birth of christianity the participation by christians in the festival observances of new years day was vigorously opposed by the church until about the fifth century december had gradually become a fixed festival commemorative of our lords nativity whereupon january ast 1st assumed a specially sacred character also as the octave of christmas day and as the anniversary of christs circumcision As euch it still holds a place in the calendars of branches of tho eastern and western church but onh as a feast of subordinate importance the custom of giving gifts upon New Years day though it has to a great extent been superseded in our time by the giving of christmas gifts is one of the oldest as it was formerly ona of the most universal observances of the occasion the persians celebrated the beginning of the year by exchanging presents of eggs the ancient druies druids distributed as new years gifts among tho early britons branches of mistletoe cut with peculiarly solemn ceremonies the early saxons observed the festival of new years with feasts and gifts among the ancient romans the st renae or now years presents already alluded to ware not only exchanged between relatives and friends but were also expected by the emperors from their subjects under the caesara caesars these new years gifts became such a source of profit to the sovereign and so onerous a burden to the people that claudius limited their cost by a henry m of england followed the roman precedent in extorting new years gifts froza his subjects the practice being revived in the reign of henry VI and continuing till the reign 0 charles L but it was during queen elizabeths reign that this custom of presenting new years gifts to the sovereign attained its greatest and most extravagant height thesa presents made by every one in any way associated with the virgin queaa from the great officers of state down to her maje dustman and included sums of money for tho queens person or apartments caskets studded with precious lets gowns mantles petticoats silk lockings and a great variety of other articles howell states in his History of the world that queen elizabeth in 1561 was presented with a pair of blaek silk knit stockings by her silk woman mrs montague and thenceforth she never wore cloth hosa any more the queers wardrobe is said to have been wholly supplied by these new years gifts in return for which sho made presents of gold and silver calato A good story is told of archy armstrong court jester to charles X who on receiving twenty gold from a noblemen one now years morning complained that they were too light let me see them again then archy said the donor and by the way there is one of thorn which 1 would be loth to part with is confidently expecting a larger gift the jester handed tho gold pieces back to the BT who put ahem in his poc ketan d walked off saying 1 I gave my money to a fool who had of giving ew years presents ienglish tEn glish ceased with the thclma bf heyer since ladies know what pin money is but it may bo interesting to them to learn the origin of tho expression and also to know that it is directly connected with new years day until the beginning of the sixteenth century the only pins used by the scorer classes wore made of wood m fact they not pins at all but skewers which for the use of the wealthy were of boxwood bone and silver at the period above named the metal pins now in use were invented and people of fashion were eager to possess them they at once became the most popular and acceptable new tears gift for ladies but it soon grew customary to give instead of the pins themselves the money with which to purchase so them and this was pin money a term which gradually came to be applied to all money given to for general purpose of dress and personal adornment among the oldest and most interesting of new year s customs but all of theia peculiar to england and never known or practiced in our own country are those pertaining to the wassail bowl wassail is a compound of hot ale spices sugar toast and apples and is believed to have originated about the time of the saxon invasion of england its name being derived from the anglo saxon huel or 0 o in health among tho early anglo saxons the phrases was haile or aride heil were tho ones between friends when about to drink together being equivalent to the here s luck and the aldrink hearty I 1 of conr modern american bar room i thus the phrase hael soon corrupted to was haile and finally to Sv assail came to bo applied to the i drink above described which was made only between christmas and new years day the season of all others when men overflowed with kindly feelings toward their fellows and heartily wished them ha haeler elor good health and all other blessings it besasie customary to have a bowl of wassail at every new years feast and for the master of the house to take a long draught and then pass it to the guest sitting at his right who also drank from tho vessel and passed it to his nest neighbor this being continued until the wassail bowl had gone the table round and every one present had quaffed of its contents this custom continued in england all through the middle ages and even centuries afterwards as did also that of young women going about in the streets with wassail bowls and offering them to passersby passers by who were expected to reward the fair brebes for their hospitality with a ding 1 money i that rare old gossip mr tells us in his diary how on new years day 1661 he was offered the wassail bowl by one ofa the damsel who sang for him very sweetly it being often customary for these wassail lasses to sing appropriate songs while he wassail was boing quaffed quaff ed the wassail bowls which these girls carried were of ten prettily adorned with ribbons and garlands warton the antiquary says that the wassail bowl is identical with the gossip bowl menti bashakes speare in bis midsummer night s dream though the custom of passing the wassail boffl around the table at the new years banquet and that of hai ing it carried about the streets by pretty girls has fallen into disuse wassail is still made at now year s in many parts of great britain in certain counties of ireland however the name wassail has been discarded and the drink which d ignatee is now known as lambs wool A once highly popular new yeara custom in various parts of our own country but one that is annually falling more and more into disuse ex cepi in remote rural districts is that of young men and women often disguised by grotesque costumes and masques going about from house to house now yearns eye firing off guns blowing horns singing and partaking of any good cheer that may be offered them this is undoubtedly a modification of the old scottish cus torn of first tooting which was observed by largo parties of men ani women carrying a great bowl oral g on of thu wassail already de and a plentiful cupply of cakes bread and cheese thus equipped they went about from house to house at midnight new years eve and if in any of the dwellings visited aliey were the first to set foot after that hour they were called the first footing and were treated with the utmost consideration by the people of the house who provided tham with good cheer and vartook oar took in return of that which the first footing party brought with them among many other old 1 eions associated with years is a belief that if a lamp or candle bo taken out of a house on that day come member of the family will die within a twelvemonth while to throw out dir ashes or anything whatever no matter how worthless is regarded as certain to bring ill luck during the whole of that year if the first visitor to a dwelling on new years day is a female and she is admitted misfortune and misery are said to be suro to follow that household for the twella months while it is also thought to bode serious evil to a lady if her new years caller bo a dark complexioned dark haired man instead of one choso whoso hair and skin are fair it is said in scotland those who desire to leam what fate or for tu netho new year has m store for them may do so by M bible on ew years enox breakfast the lai dugon the tabla ash io consult itt random |