A MERRY SCOTTISH YULETIDE.

Gisborne Times, Volume XXXIII, Issue 3711, 21 December 1912, Page 14

A MERRY SCOTTISH YULETIDE.

“A guid New Year to ane an a’, And niony may ye see, And during a’ the years to come, Ob, happy may ye be.”

The foregoing lines of this wellknown Scottish song meet one at every hand, on New Year’s Day in Bonnie Scotland. The message boy whistles it cheerily as he.trudges along on New Year’s Eve with his heavily laden baskets of New Year’s fare- The factory lads turn out in small companies and march happily along to the strains of this popular melody, usually played on a melodeon by the leader, greeting their friends gaily as they

go. Christmas in Scotland is, one might say, almost a dead letter, excepting for the sending and deceiving of Christmas cards and gifts, which gladden one considerably and remind one of the festive occasion. The churches of course are mostly open, but the attendance are generally small. The usual business routine goes on, only the banks, the Law offices and a few of the higher class shops being closed. But Hogmanay (New Year’s Eve), New Year’s Day and a few days after are jolly times. On Hogmanay in most of the larger towns, thousands of people (usually young folks) of both sexes, congregate at the Town Hall, to ‘‘bring in” the New Year, and when the hour of twelve strikes, seasonable sentiments and good wishes rise from thousands of throats. The crowd then quickly disperse to