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Show I "The Old Order & A Changeth" Modern times have changed and none for the better our manner of celebrating the New Year. It was once a popular custom to spend the last three hours of the year singing hymns and giving thanks for blessings received. This watchnight, while it might have been unpleasant for the younger generation, was an excellent preparation prepa-ration for whatever lay in the year ahead. It was somewhat grounded in tradition, as was the old custom of graciously paying and receiving calls. The downfall of this manner of receiving re-ceiving the New Year was started soon after the Civil War, when the prodigious growth of the larger American cities caused them to begin be-gin to lose the home-spun aroma and take on the faster, more, exciting ex-citing tempo of city life. , As time wore on, it became more and more the custom to make the New Year's eve a time for indulging 'in one more last fling before the I disagreeable business of turning '. over a new leaf. |