AS SEEN THROUGH WOMAN’S EYES.

New Zealand Graphic, Volume XXV, Issue XXVI, 29 December 1900, Page 1232

AS SEEN THROUGH WOMAN’S EYES.

Children Honour the Holy Babe.

One of the most delightful feativaia iu feast-loving Rome is celebrated at Christ mas in honour of "Le Santissimo Bambino de I’Ara-Coeli,”—that is to say, the Holy Babe of the Heavenly Field. Now, the Heavenly Field has been famous e»er since the time of: Augustus as the Ara-Coeli, and long before his time It was noted as the site of the temple to Jupiter Capitolin, which dominated almost the entire citv. > ■ I'n October of the fifty-sixth year of his reign Augustus made an effort to consult the gods as to his successor. Mounting the steps of the temple, step by step, and looking upwards, he called oil the gods, waiting for a reply. ••Suddenly there appeared."* venerable lady with a gracious child in hex arms." as the old story has it, and sh« said: ‘•Respect this place, for soon my son, the King of Heaven, shall rule here;” Then Augustus questioned his gods and the spirit declared that a child of Judea, descended from heaven and conceived without blemish, should soon reign in the temple on the hill. The emperor, in honour of the prodigious event, had a magnificent altar erected, hearing the words “Haec cst ara filii Dei," and placed it lon the spot where the. apparition appeared. Then the pagan idols fell, a grand basilica was built in this place, and it still bears the name of the Ara-Coeli. and there truly today reigns the Santo Bambino, the sanctuary of the Infant Jesus, beside the altar consecrated by Augustus. FOUNDED RY A FRANCISCAN. Then the story takes, us to Jerusalem, where dwelt a. pious monk of the order of the gentle St. Francis of Assisi. All the Franciscans are devoted to the infancy of our Lord, and this gentle monk, whose name is for. gotten, loved Him especially. One night, while he prayed, he saw a vision on Mount Olivet, and heard a voice saying. “Go dig there, and you will fin’d a piece of olive wood which has received some of the bloiod of our Lord." He did so, and finding the olive wood took it to his room and considered what to do with it. Called to Rome to see a superior of his order, he thought he would like.to carve a fitting image on his precious relic and offer it to his superior. Once in Rome he told his superior of his possession, offering it to him and asking what he would prefer for him to make of it His own preference was an image of our dying I.ord, as lie had found it on Mount Olivet, but his superior inclined to the infant, and so it was determined it should, be. On the way home he was shipwrecked and east upon the coast of Egypt, and though his life was spared he was blind. MIR AC CLOUS C ARVING. Finally lie reached Jerusalem, and his tir-t thought was his precious olive ■wood. He refused aid to reach his cell, and when he arrived he hastened to ascertain if his relic was safe, and the moment he touched he saw, and —Oh, miracle!—the wood was carved in an image of the Divine Infant. There arc many stories of this marvellous image before it reached its final resting place in the Church of AraCoeli, where it is to this day an object of devotion aqd th? centre of Jthe charming festival of the children of Rome. Thousands of children gather every year to honour Santjssimo Bambino. and are informed this pretty image is the Bambino who brings them Christmas toys and joys, for whom they look as our American little folks look for Santa Claus or St. Nicholas. A stand is built especially for a child to preach, and the liest little boy or the best little girl of the school or parish is selected to tell the history, child fashion, to the other children assembled of the Christ Child —the true Santissimo Bambino—that Came to a stable in Bethlehem and in a sheep trough speechless that Others might speak for Him and learn of Him wlio was meek and lowly of heart. How tenderly the little child preacher tells the story many visitors to Roiug can testify, for the children

are instructed and coached sod most anxiously watched over by their teachers, who hover near them. _ ; The little Bambino has lieep,‘ihii. r fated, and there is a story of hdfo it • was stolen and a substitute sent in its 5 place, and no miracles taking place , a trill ua tn was begun with profound grief and prayer, when the aculoits image came of itsejj. and knocked at the window and .T<*Mc its place on the altar, to the joy of the 1 faithful and the erm fusion of. the \viek- • ed- woman who had .tried to practise ' the deception. _ .’ " .'

Humourous Yuletide Gifts. 'y

A nice present, for a small-bov td' purchase for his grandfather ’is bicycle suitable‘in’'size' for- the sinaft boy himself'Hie thought will pleasS the grandfather, and the boV -wilh probably get the wheel, so that two birds will be tickled by one feather. . - Children with small feet will’do well on Christmas eve to borrow their big brother’s caddy-bag and hang this up over the chimney place instead of their own small stockings, says a writer in ‘‘Harper's Bazar.*’ A caddybag of ordinary size recently tested wns found to have a capacity of thirty pounds of sweets, two dozen oranges, and toys enough to set up a small shop. Wives whose husbands smoke are again reminded, in. vie-w of the approach of Christmas, that the man who smokes intelligently woiiffUrather receive one cigar costing 1/ ‘than a hundred costing 2/, We sound this ■ note of warning merely inthe inter-"' ests of peace and good will. Glass eyes on worsted slippers for your pastor are no longer considered 1 good form. It often happens that these are placed over the most sensitive of-the clerical toes, and lead the wearer of the slippers into the use of strong language if by some inadvertence they are stepped on by an out- » side party. _ - ■ < Persons of moderate means who wish to , present their wives with ropes of pearls or diamond necklaces or gold chatelaines are referred to that charming little volume, “Fifty Ways of Cracking Safes; or, Burglary Made Easy,” by Red Mike, the chanij. pion jewel-lifter of the United States, soon to;be published Ity the Sing Sing Tract Society. Always avoid anything bordering, upon sarcasm in the selection of your gifts. Don’t send a chafing dish, with full instructions as to how mushrooms and Welsh rarebits may be cooked upon it, to a dyspeptic friend: do not-send an opera, cloak to your cousin wlio . lives all her days in the woods; and, above all. never be satirical in your gifts to servants. A set. of Burns for your cook, a work on “Rest" for your hired man, or “How to Dress Well on 1! 1 a Year” for your housemaid would be in execrable taste. Better far stick to the timehonoured gift of an orange and an imitation emerald pin for the-wori|an “ and a plush polo cap for the itfan( j A suitable gift for a millionaire, to< make to his daughter—and I-.make * this suggestion in response to an appeal for information —is a certified check for £2OO. To present her with ft railroad might involve her in & bonded indebtedness that she -could -' not Well meet, find which, to that extent,' would later prove to be an embarrassment. . A certified check for ' .£ 200; however, would appeal to the taste of any woman.

New Year Customs in the Old World.

In England, America and Germany, where Hie Christmas feast is the t-venT of the season, the advent, of the New Year is an occasion of little moment. But in Scotland, France, Italy and other countries where Christmas is of little account New Year's Day is the holiday of Hie year. Both the New Year and Christmas feasts are the survivals of the old heathen festival of Yule. Tn some countries it is celebrated on December 25, and in others a week later, at the beginning of the New Year. In Scotland Christmas was . celebrated with all the old pomp and

jvll>t> «ntii the Reformation, when ths fierier denunciations of John Ifnox against all the ceremonies and rites of -the Roman Church effectually damped the celebration of tl;e “Papistiral and superstitious’’ feast of Christ, mas. But the Scotch merely postponed their winter festival foy a week, and on the eelebration of Ne-w.Yeai concentrated all their energies. New Year’s Eve and Day are the. great t national helidays of Scotland, aiid so » riotously was I he birth of the New Year celebrated 'that these days were , claled “The Daft Days'.” 1 The lest day of the old year in Scotland is eaifed Hogmanay, on the'derivation of. which word volumes might be written. Probably it is derived from the Scandinavian hugger-hot, from the Norse custom of killing (hog . —to kill) beasts for sacrifice to the godet on that night. With their faces , eneealed with jjaper masks and wrap- ; ped 4n large sheets forming a big pocket in front of their little persons . the children go a-begging. for their hogmanay. Halting before the door a. house- they sing one of various tverses, one of which runs:— - Get up, stood wife, and dinna sweir. And deal your bread to them that’s here. For the time will come when you’ll be dead, - ~ "■ And then you’ll want neither ale nor bread. ,- They were then promptly admitted to .the house and supplied with oat •icake, cheese' an<j a dram. Mr Barfie has pathetically described how Sentimental Tommy and little Elspeth observed this custom in fheir mother’s jsqualid London lodgings, playing the part of mummers and visiting- her flor their hogmanay. While waiting for the right time to act their little play Tommy lured his mother into telling them “how they would be holding hogiMuay in Thrums that night, how cartloads of kebbock cheeses had been rolling' into the town all the livelong ' day, and in the dark closes the children were already gathering with smeared Laces- and eccentric dress to sally forth -as guisers at the clap of eight, when the ringing of a bell lets hogmanay loose.~ Inside the houses men and/- women were . preparing (though not by fasting, which would have been, such a good way that it is surprising no. one ever thought of it) for Si series of visits, at,every one of khieli they would be offered a dram and kebbock arid baiinock, and in the grandest Imuses ‘bridles,’ which are a sublime kind of pie.” The custom of young people disguising themselves on New Year’s Eve, singing before houses, and, on admittance being provided., with food and drink, is common to all parts of Great Britain. In Scotland the. custom is still observed, and in Yorkshire bands of mummers may be met on New Year’s Eve going from house to house and singing for money and refreshment. » The wassail bowl has been regarded 5 as;the property of Christmas, but it is ? -retrily u New Year custom. It was the custom of our ancestors to drink the old year out and the Nevv Year in in ' a bowl of liquor, whieh came to be called the wassail ’how] from the ex- > clamatioß. “waps hael” (be in -health) of every 'toper as. he lifted-it to his -lips. Tlierbowi was passed round from guest to 'giiiest,' all ‘ drinking from it. ill,token of the goodwill and happiness with which the New Year opened. From the wassail bowl came' the “loving cup,” which still figures at the banquets . of London guilds. The “gossips’ hpvrl,” which Shakspere mentions in “Midsummer .Night’p Dream,” was the same as the wassail bowl. It was composed of warm alp, nutmeg, sugar and roasted .apples. It was also a more pretentious composition. A raeipe of the seventeenth century directs' cordamoms, cloves, nutiheg, mane, ginger, cinnamon, and coriander seed to be boiled in a cupful of water. TNis was to be added to four bottles of port, sherry, or Madeira, and with it were to be mixed a pound and a half bflfine loaf sugar, the yolks of twelve and the. whites of six eggs. The whole was to be boiled till frothing, a dozen fine, soft, roasted apples to be thrown in-ond -the- liquor served hot. With -deep drafts o< the wassail

Ikiwl our forefathers drank out the old and drank in the new year. As the ehureh clock tolled the death of , the old year aitd the birth of the new each member of the party drank “good health, a happy New Year and many of them,” to the rest of the compaay. The men then sallied forth, with a kettle filled with wassail, to wish their neighbours and friends the same sentiment. If they met other parties on the way they stopped and ilrank to “A Happy New Year” out of each other's kettles. Even now in Scotland it is the custom to carry iu one's ]MM*ket a bottle of whisky (the modern substitute for the hot-spiceirl ale) on New Year’s eve. The streets of all Scotch towns are crowded, and as the clocks chime 18 o’clock everybody exchanges wishes for prosperity ‘ and a ifripk front their flasks'. From this old custom there arose a super- .. st|tioh as to the appearance of the ~ person who let the New Year into a house. There is and always has been a strong prejudice against allowing a woman or a light-haired man to lie the “first foot” to enter a house in the New Year. If this happens bad hick will pursue all the members of that household during the year just begun. Iu consequence of this belief darkcomplexioned men were accustomed to make a business of “first-footing” in the New Year, the presents and hos- • pitality they received compensating . them for their trouble. Even now . dark-haired men are in demand to let. . in the New Year. It was also believed that to take a light out of the hquke ou New Year’s Day foretold a certain death in the family during the year. It was also forbidden to take anything put-of the house on New Year’s ■ Day. “Take out, then takt in, bad Inck will begin; take in, then take out, good luck comes about.”

In the Isle .of Man—probably the most superstition ridden part of the kjngdom—there are many curious beliefs as to New Year’s Day. The lastnight of the old year was called Quoaltagh, and it was the custom for parties of young men to visit from house to house, and, singing a song, wishing the inmates long life and happiness, and plenty of potatoes and herrings, butter and cheese, that they might sleep well during the year, and not be disturbed by even “the tooth of a flea.” On finishing the song th? party was invited into the house, the darkest member being always the first' to enter, and they were regaled with good cheer. For a light-haired man or any. female to enter a house on New Year’s Day is dreaded by all. If. . j such a catastrophe takes place on him or her will be cast the blame for every accident that befalls the home, during the year. Great care is taken, to brush the carpet of a room from., the door to the hearth, and not from the hearth to the door; this makes.’ all the difference between good and - bad luck, health and death, to the family during the year. On NewYear’s eve it was also the custom to rake the ashes of the fire over the kitchen floor. The next morning the ashes were eagerly examined for the trace of a footprint. If one was discovered with the toes pointing to the. door it signified that death would Cer-t-ahily. .carry, off one of the liouselibid’ during the year; if thi; foot,_however, pointed from the door to the hearth,’ then an addition would be made tothe family before twelve months had gone; " • .- "e- ' It is little wonder that the New Year should .be the- occasion of so many quaint. customs -and superstß, tious attempts to see what it had iu .store. For .the death of the old and the birth of the new year is an event of universal interest; it is the birthday of the world, and marks another milestone passed in its great journey.’ As Charles Lamb said: “No onte ever regarded January Ist with indifference. It is that from which all date their time and <*unt upon what -is left. It is the nativity of our common Adam.” And as the clock tolls forth the death of th? old year one cannot but secretly jfrlete over its departure, and as the birth of the new year ia heralded the events.it has in store foe one and all cannot but awoken a feeding of expectation, mixed with awe.

Blouses for Ever.

The newest corsages form fancy jackets, and many are made with basques so that they look like coatees. It will be long enough before women will wear these tightly-fitting bodices in the house, so accustomed have they become to the more easy-going shirt. But since it became fashionable to keep an outdoor dress for the purpose of walking, and never to wear it in the house except for half an hour or so, blouses have become so much a delight that the fact of having to change her dress often does not worry the average woman.

One pretty bodice seen the other day was opened down the front to show a silk vest beneath, and straps fastened the fronts across. It was overlaid with motifs of lace embroidered in coloured silks, and the little basque was irregularly cut and edged with lace. Stiffness of contour and of design will not be tolerated now, and therefore irregular trimmings will have a further vogue and exercise the ingenuity of the dressmakers when tight bodices are called for.

Young Men of To-day.

The young men of to-day are too finicky—too much given to seifanalysis, too self-pampering. Their shoes and neckties cost more each year than did the entire wardrobe of their grandfathers. They feel a sense of degradation in small beginnings and plodding, and they wait for success ready made to come to them. There is not a young man in the country who would imitate Ben Franklin and march through the streets munching a loaf of bread while looking for employment. He dare not, indeed, because society has become also finicky, and he would be arrested as a tramp. The young man of to-day wants capital. Trusts and combines and corporations distress him. He cannot be president of a bank or judge of a court the first week he is from school, and he feels, like the famous Eli Pussley, that he has “no chance.”—“Memphis Commercial Appeal.”

Some Useful Hints on Jam Malting.

'Hie jam season will noon be upon us again, indeed with strawberries it is already here. Miss Mary Harrison, in her practical and useful "Modern Cookery,” gives full directions, which 1 cannot do better than quote for the benefit of my renders.

Fruit for preserving should lie sound and fresh; it should be gathered in dry weather, on the morning of n sunny day, but not so early that it has the dew on it. Of course, for us who live in cities, we must only see that the fruit is fresh and sound when we are buying it, and we should make the fruit into jam as soon as possible after picking or buying. The best sugar is the cheapest in the end, as it throws up less scum. It must be broken small, not crushed, or the syrup will not lie clear. In making jam, be careful to stir it all the time, and to skim it carefully; if left it may burn. Stir always with a long wooden spoon. To test if the jam is made, pour a little on a plate; if it sets it is done. Jam should not he over-cooked.

If too little sugar is used, the jam will not keep; if too much, it wi 1 candy.

It is impossible to lay down a rule as to the exact length of time it takes to cook the fruit.

It depends on the methods employed, the kind of fruit, and whether it is quickly or slowly boiled.

In the following directions the time mentioned is intended as a guide only as not only will the time vary according as the preserve is slowly or quickly boiled, but the same kinds of fruit will be found to differ, some b. ing more watery than others, the more

watery the fruit the longer boiling it will take.

Put the jam when cooked into pote and cover it to exclude the air. This may Im* done with the specially prepared covers, which are sold at a low price, or paper may be brushed over with white of egg and put on while damp. J tuna must lie kept in a cool, dry place. Hamp will make them get mouldy and heat will make them ferment. Glass jars are the best; the condition of the jam can more e isily Im* seen.

The method of jam-making pursued by an experienced housekeeper is as follows: Allow three-quarters of a pound of sugar to each pound of fruit; to stone fruits allow a pound of sugar. Put the preserving-pan with the fru t on the hot plate, but not directly over the fire. Sprinkle a little sugar over it, and as the fruit becomes more liquid add the sugar. When the sugar has all dissolved put the pan over the fire, and bring it to the boil. Let it lx>il for twenty minutes, keeping it stirred and skimmed. Try a little on a plate and see if it will set; if not. continue to cook for a little while

longer. Stir straw berries very carefully, so as not to break the fruit more than can be avoided. Pour the jam. when cool enough into jars, and place a piece of oiled paper over the jam. To exelude the air cover the pots with paper dipped in white of egg and stretched over the top. If properly made jam will keep for three or four years.

When stone fruit is used break the stones, blanch the kernels, and arid them five minutes lM*fore the jam is ready. While on the subject of jam, I mi st mention vegetable marrow jam. m ide with pineapple; it is one of the m st delicious preserves, and is certii Iv not expensive.

Teel four or five large uiarniws, removing the seeds completely, and cut the marrows into pieces about two inches square. Put the vegetable in a large earthenware |mu with the preserving sugar, using alxiut t%ree tpMtrters of a |M>nnd of sugar to a |M>und of marrow. Cut two pine a>>ples into pieces a third of the size of the pieces of marrow, and add them together with tile juice of the fruit to the other ingredients in the | an. Cover lightly with a elean cloth and leave to stand til) the next day. 'The pieces of marrow will by tlien have shrunk to half their original size and they will be covered in their own juice. Now, put the whole quantity in a pre* serving-pan. and boil very slowly for nearly three hours, removing the scum lUa it rises. Pour. w*hen cool, into jars, ai.d finish off like any other jam. Tinned pines may lie substituted for fresh ones, and are almost, but not quite, as good.

Christmas Song.

No winter's blight our Christinas knows. No bitter blasts nor sparkling snows; The old year wanes, the ok! year goes While halcyon hours Drift on enchanted pinions fleet In sunny gardens, where with sweet And haunting perfume violets greet Late summer's flowers. Scarce dream we Christmas is now here. So blue December skies appear; So green the beckoning fields, so clear Rise hills remote. The golden present thralls; no past Nor morrow’s dark shadows east. But on Time’s dial, flying fast. Bright hours we note. Ring out, glad Christmas bells, nor cease From snows to palms by tropic seas; The tidings of goodwill and peace Bxultant sound. King out, blest tale of love divine. Where’er the Christmas wreaths of pine, Or island leis or holly twine The world around.

Some Curious Engagement Rings.

In rhoosiug engagement rings for their fiancees lovers at times discard the conventional jewelled circlet in favour of the bizarre, fantastic and even gruesome.

Not long since, says Tit-Bits, out of a |»ortion of a horeshoe that he had found a young man had a ring made, which he gave to the lady of his choice on the day of their iietrothal. I'he remainder of the horseshoe was utilised in the manufacture of a brooch ami earrings. Another iron ring, which a short while since was accepted by a young girl as a token of her lover’s constancy, was a section cut from the barrel of a pistol, which many years back had played an unenviable part in a family tragedy. ’l'he scion of a wealthy family, whose fortunes owed their existence to extensive tobacco plantations, had a ring made out of the fragrant weed, hardened by some process to the consistency almost of metal, with which to encircle the finger of his inamorata. A single diamond gave relief to the amulet's sombre hue.

Opals, formerly considered so illomened, are now not infrequently employed in the setting of engagement rings. One gentleman, a native of Manchester, went, indeed, to an almost extreme length in his reprobation of superstition, the ring which he gave to the lady he has now married being a hoop of thirteen opals, the former possessor of each of which had met with some serious misfortune.

The engagement ring chosen by a well-known actress hacl once decked the finger of an Egyptian mummy. Disdaining the everyday gewgaw with its vulgar glint of gems, she set her fancy upon this strangely discoloured stone, which had nothing to recommend it but its unconventionality and age.

A wealthy bachelor, whom we will call Taylor, has lately compounded his third threatened breach of promise action by the payment of a sum running well into four figures. To each of the three ladies who have in turn promised to be his wife this gentleman has presented an engage-, inent ring made of a peculiar glass, in the sibylline character of which the eccentric giver places such faith that its fracture presages, in his judgment. some matrimonial disaster.

Recipes.

I AKE.S. BL XS, AND BISCUITS FOR THE CHILDREN. All utensils used in making pastry of any description should be carefully kept an<l appropriated to that purpose only. The Hour should be dried before the fire previous to use. The butter should be sweet and thoroughly washed in a clean cloth in «-old water to remove salt. etc. In making all cakes remember to have the ingredients ready and properly weighed out. The eggs should be well beaten and used at once. If butter is used it should first be beaten to a cream. I'he oven must lie properly and equally heated. SPONGE CAKES. Break six eggs, put the yolks into one pan and the whites into another. Beat up the yolks with six ounces of best white sugar and a tablespoonful of orange flower water. Beat the whites well with a knife until a snowy froth appears and add them to the yolks quickly. Then sift in carefully five ounces of dry flour and pour the mixture into well buttered moulds and sift over them fine castor sugar.

SHORT CAKES (PLAIN). Bub into one pound of flour four ounces of butter with the same quantity of sugar, one egg, a teacupful of cream and a pinch of Carraway seeds, with enough milk and water to make it into a paste. Roll it out thin and cut into oval shapes. Bake a quarter of an hour on tin sheets lightly dusted with flour. RICE CAKES. Mix ten ounces of ground rice, three ounces of best flour and eight oi pounded sugar; sift all gradually into lour yolks and three whites of eggs well beaten. Add the grated rind ot a lemon. SPANISH CAKES. Take a pound of sugar, a pound of flour, a pound of eggs, leaving out one-third of the whites; mix together, put into buttered moulds and bake in a slow oven. Turn out when baked carefully. QUEEN CAKES. Take a pound each of flour, sifted sugar and fresh butter. Wash ths butter in rosewater. Pour the watel from the butter and squeeze dry in a clean ciotn. Work it, a small piece at a time, into half the flour. Beat well six yolks and four whites of eggs. Then work them in with the rest of the flour and the sugar, to which add three tablespoonfuls of orange flower water, a little beaten mace, and one pound of currants and raisins mixed. The latter must be stoned aind chopl>ed small. Butter the hoop, which should be only half filled. Sift over each cake some fine castor sugar. Set in a good oven. When cooked turn out upon straw matting to cool. A NICE ORDINARY CAKE. Rub eight ounces of butter into two pounds of dry flour. Mix into a paste with three tablespoonfuls of yeast and a little water. Leave it to rise in a

warm place for an hour and a half. Then mix into it the yolks and the whites of four eggs which have been separately beaten, a pint of water, 'or enough to make it of a proper thickness, a glase of ginger wine, the grated rind of a lemon, and a saltspoonful of ginger. Then add a pound of sultanas, washed, picked and dried. Beat the whole well together. Put into greased moulds ami bake in a steady oven. Turn out of the moulds to cool. CINNAMON BISCUITS. Take half a pound of dry flour, one pound of crushed lump sugar, one |>ound of butter, two ounces of powdered cinnamon. Beat the butter and sugar to a cream. Then stir in the cinnamon and jxiur into the mixture one glass of orandy. Roll out very thin upon a slab ami cirt into rounds with a cutter. Bake upon floured tins in a quick oven. CREAM WAFERS. Put into a basin three tablespoonfuls of sugar, three of flour, and two eggs, also a little orange flower water and a little grated lemon peel. Melt two ounces of fresh butter in half a pint of water and make the paste with it. Knead the whole lightly, but well. See that it is not too thin or too stiff. Heat the pan and butter it. Put in a spoonful of the mixture and fry both sides to- a fine gold colour. Take it out and roll it upon a roll, and hold it while it takes the form. Then fry another and form in the same manner. Set upon kitchen paper to drain, screen lightly with castor sugar. SCONES. Take two ounces of butter to nearly a pound of flour. Mix with skimme'd milk until you have a nice smooth dough. Knead lightly and form into round cakes. Priek holes with a fork and bake upon floured tins in a good, steady oven.