Show wm cristman Crist mas arff rr ff t si ital it wl dy 0 tac pi iy ay by ELMO SCOTT WATSON N ARTICLE about historic would be in complete without mention of the first and most hla christmas ot all par had it not been for certain events in the little town of bethlehem in palestine some cloeteen centuries ago there would flave been no christmas to be tele berated each year hence no christ nases to be characterized as historic what those events were have best een recorded by the beloved ghyst dan st luke who more than any one of the tour have written the story ot christ has given the historic background of those rents and this Is the story of that first historic christmas as st luke tells it and it came to pas in thoc days hat there went out ft decree caesar augustus that 11 the world hould be taxed and this taxing was first made when corenlus Cyren lus was governor ot syria and all went to be taxed every one into his own city and joseph also went up from gal uee out of the city 0 nazareth anio judea unto the city of david which Is called bethlehem because he was of the house and lineage of david to be taxed with mary his espoused wife being great with child and so it was that while they were there ahe adayr were accomplished that ahe should be delivered and she brought forth her farat born jion and wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger because there was no room tor them in the inn and there were in the same country abiding in the field keeping over their flock by night and lo 10 the ancel of the lord came apon them and ahe glory 0 the lord thone round about them and they were sore afraid and the angel said unto them pear not tor behold I 1 bring you good ald alnea of great joy which shall be to all people for unto you Is born this day in the fe city of david a saviour which Is christ the lord and this shall be a sign unto you I 1 ie shall find the babe wrapped in i clothes lying in a manger and suddenly there was with the L angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising god and saying alory to god in the highest and on earth peace good will toward men and it came to piss as the angels were gone away from them into heaven the shepherds said one to another let us now go even unto bethlehem and see this thing which Is come to pass which the lord hath made known unto us and they came with haste and found alary and joseph and the babe lying in a manger and when they had seen ll 11 they anada known abroad the saying which was told them concerning this child and all they that heird it wondered at those things which were told them ty the shepherds but mary kept all these things and pondered them in her heart and the shepherds returned glorify ing and praising god for all the things that they had heard and seen as it ax told unto them those were the events then which were desired to bring about the worldwide celebration of december 25 of each year however tills ob nance did not begin nt once for the try first evidence of a feast having bien held in honor of the birth of christ was in egypt about ibe year although the regular observance of christmas begin sometime in the fourth century it was not until the thirteenth century that the celebia alon became a general custom it is interesting to note that the first Chrls tiras in the new world took place only a little more than two months after that event which Is usually referred to as the discovery of america soon after columbus set foot upon the soil of the new world he started upon an exploration of the group of islands which he had found during this time he anchored his chips in a harbor of haiti to which he gave the name of a saint whose lay Is celebrated on december 0 and alo in the minds of children Is inseparably con with christmas day st mcholan Mch olaa the first christmas in the new world and surely it was a historic one wao an eventful day for colum bus and his men they spent it tn a vain effort to save the flagship the santa barla which had been beached on christmas eve finding that their efforts were doomed to fall they took what goods they could from the ship and carried them on board the amna since this vessel was too small to carry all those who had been on board the flagship columbus found it feces sary to leave some of ahls men in a fort which was built on an island and which in honor of the season was called le the nativity although christmas was no doubt celebrated by the early spanish and french settlers in the new world there Is no record of any outstanding events on that day connected with these settlements which would make their christmas celebration worthy of the characterization of historic christmas must also have been a joy ful occasion for the settlers of the first english colony at jamestown va even amidst the privations and troubles of the early days of that colony for they doubtless brought with them the engleh tradition of the old country yuletide Yule tlde with all of its feasting and merrymaking qulie different was the first christ mas of that other english colony founded on the stern and rock bound coast of new england the pilgrim fathers landed from the mayflower at plymouth on december 21 but christmas day that year brought with ft no thought of revelry or gaiety gayety to these englishmen this first christ mas day found them without shelter from the piercing winds since the day before was sunday and no one was allowed to labor and disturb the sanctity of the sabbath even for the purpose of building some sort of shel ter from the icy blasts of a new eng land winter so instead of observing christmas in any such manner as their descendants do these pioneers celebrated the day with the swinging of axes the felling of trees and the clearing of ground upon which their rude log cabins were to stand when the second christmas in new angland came around there was no joyous celebration for still another reason during the preceding year an other ship had brought a load of deml grants and of this colony william bradford a stern puritan was gov anor he formally outlawed christ mas a the puritans of england had done when they had gained control of parliament because it was looked least BO far a the old eng ush celebrations with their strange mixture of ancient druid customs and christian ceremonies as a godless and pagan rite more than that the general court of massachusetts frowning upon the idea of making the christmas season a time of enjoyment passed an enactment which stated that who Is found observing by abstinence from labor feasting or in any other way shall pay for every offense alve shillings for more than a century the stem puritan influence prevented anything but a most joyless observance of christmas until the gradual growth of episcopal influence in massachi sets and its association with official power when the colony came under the direct control of the crown brought about a relaxation of aba antl christmas sentiment of the puritans in contrast to the massachi Mass achu type of christmas was that celebrated in the great manor houses in virginia the carolinas Caroll nas georgia and maryland especially in those day when george washington was unknown to fame except as a prosperous virginia planter and it was this same george washington who was the central figure in what Is perhaps the most historic christmas in the annals of america on the evening of december 25 1778 the continental army led by this former virginia planter was drawn up for evening parade near newtown penn nine miles above trenton on the delaware river instead of return ing to their quarters they were marched toward ferry where colonel glovers fishermen from massachusetts bay were manning boats and trying to launch them in the river it was a cold raw evening and a snow storm bad set in the wind waa from the northeast and beat in the caces of the ragged barefooted sol aters who were about to embark upon one of the most desperate enterprises in history for washington was plan to cross the delaware that night and lead them on a nine mile march ovar snowy roads to trenton where tha hessian troops of colonel rahl were celebrating christmas with feasting and merrymaking ibe crossing had begun at six odeck washington had planned to have his entire army on the jersey side by midnight begin the march to by one so that he could make hla attack just at day light but the river ice threatened to apoll his whole program and gatea and other generals declared that the whole echeme was impossible the iron will of washington wis w is not to be daunted however and although the crossing took no less than ten hours it was finally accomplished then he set out tor trenton and after a terrible march with some of bis men leaving tracks of blood in the snow and others struggling along with their guns wet and useless be arrived in trenton and immediately attacked As he had anticipated the appear ance of his army was a complete sur prise although the hessians rallied aind put up a stubborn resistance tor 4 short time the determination of the continentals Continent als could not be denied babl the commander and seventy 0 his men were killed and 1000 of the surrendered so christmas day 1770 Is a red letter day in amer lean history because on tint day a great commander aae to his country one of the finest christmas gifts that has ever been best oweda brilliant victory at n time when the cause ol 01 freedom seemed all out lost |