OCR Text |
Show The Syrian NciiTveor rij;jKjV'-L.L tbu Christians of Now j3ftjyttg York do not observe s fiffi)" Ohrlstniaa ns a tltno for Wffik Wi Snnta Clmia Thl" Sy C iT?)M? Hans, tor Instnnco. who t i.&xA&-fia vo )n tne 0Wer en(i 0f Manhattan Island. In Washington street, from tho Hattery up to Albany street, have nn old custom of Rlvlnc their presents on Now Year's day. Then there also 13 a difference In tho manner of giving Tho Syrian chll-dreu chll-dreu do not hnng up their stockings. Neither do the pnrunts disguise themselves them-selves as Santa Claus. On the contrary. con-trary. The Syrian child Invariably I knows who Is goInK to bo his Santa Claus, and consequently is treated to V no extraordinary eurprlBo. There is y one thing, howover, ot which ho ro- H' mnlns In Ignorance, and that Is tho naturo or the proseut ho will receive. The child picks ou whosoever ho thinks will treat him best In case ho succeeds in meeting and greeting him at tho proper tlmo on New Year's day. Then comes n long vigil for midnight, as the custom so prescribes It that tho ono wno offers tho first greeting at tho beginning of tho now year shull recelvo a fitting roward from tho 0110 Creeted. A good wish for success. and prosperity In tho first hour of New Ycar'B day is held by tho Syrians to augur well for tho following twelvemonth, twelve-month, and the ono who first wishes good prospects is entitled to a reward. Custom prescribes that nt tho tlmo of this Now Year's greeting whatever tho ono greeted happens to hold In his : hand becomes tho property of tho oth er. Tho ono who receives tho greet-S greet-S Inc Is supposed to 00 so pleased with ? It that, acting upon tho happy lmpulso I of tho moment, ho hesitates not to ro- I quite' his groeter with whatever he I Drst can lay hold on. This latter cua- I torn originated In feudal times, when I" tho Eniir was omnipotent In. his pro I vlnco und his followers depended for I their sustenance upon his gifts and I what ho allowed them of tho plunders I of war. ? Of course you can't nowadays stir- , other day and the Chlncso nnd Jtfpan-j Jtfpan-j eso still anothor, but whonover tho I day falls, according to their special calendnr, thero Is always a very Important Im-portant celebration of it Tho Druids, who wero tho priests of England beforo tho Christian rollg-ion rollg-ion was taken Into Oreat Britain. nsf celebrated New Year's day. They wero very Interesting and very straugo peoplo, theso Druids, and, according to what ono reads about them In history, ono always Imagines them as wearing beautiful whito robes and having tall, magnificent figures fig-ures and flowing whito beards and I' iswMWSi : 1 rXlimiM jm I gy prlso any Syrian early Now Year's 1 day fooling with a costly article. Ho B can be dopondod on as knowing bot-i bot-i tor, for elthor ho would hnvo to mako a a gift of it to tho ono who first greot ft cd him, or else ho branded as a mlsor. 9 Wlso Syrians carry candy to hand to tho children who greet them. pHRMSMIWSMIUaSlMMyMNiJMSHM ft I Nezv Year's Day I I in the Long Ago 1 UKfoj&flflONQ yenr3 ago tho peoples 1 fifSj wbo 1,ve(1 ln a Grent many 1 ShS&?Js9 differont places ln tho 9 KfljjSfl world wero very much I WI 'ntorested ln Now Year's tfj" i LjsiA4K2l day, just as wo aro, and K thoy did many things In honor of I tho day. exactly as wo do. Thoy I foapted and decorated their houses nnd churches, nnd at 12 o'clock thoy n woro very particular to show ln aomo M way that thoy woro rejoicing that an- othor year had begun. 9 Not ull of theso peoplo celebrated I Now Yoar's on tho samo day. Tho an- I clent Romans usod to have their Now Year's day ln March; then thoy I changed to January, and a lamo part of tho rest of tho world follo"rl I them. Tho Jewish peoplo havo n.' i J hair. At any rato, thoy alwayB woro whito robes on New Year's day, for that was tho day wher thoy cut down tho sacred mistletoe. For tho Druids didn't think that mlstlotoo was only p pretty green vino. They believed it to bo a ml-raciilous ml-raciilous growth hich would pro-vent pro-vent people from being harmed by poisonous food or drink. On that day a particularly largo, handsomo Druid, with glistening whito beard and hair and rather cold gray oyes DrulJB always had cold gray eyes wo bollovo and clothed most beautifully in whito, would climb tho oak treo ou which tho mlstlotoo mls-tlotoo grow and cut it down with a goldon sickle. Ho wouldn't take it in his hand, becauso they didn't consider con-sider that respectful enough to the sacred mlstlotoo, which could do such tvondorful things. Instead ho would cntch it In a pure whito cloth and climb carefully down tho troo with It. After thlB an altar would bo eroded erod-ed und white bulla sacrificed nnd prayers offered. Then tho Druldical community felt that for tho following year thoy would have all tho good luck possible. You boo ln thoso days Now Year's celebrations woro vory serious, things, and all ot tho coromonles attending thorn wore religious. |