ST. NICHOLAS'S DAY.

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 13, 23 December 1911, Page 14

ST. NICHOLAS'S DAY.

THE DUTCH CHILDREN'S XMAS. No festival in Holland exercises a more enchanting spell over both young and old than the Dutchman's "Feusl. of St. Nicholas." The jolly old l'alrou Saiut of children corresponds in Holland to our Father Christmas, though coming three weeks earlier; and, as most people arc aware, the date fixed for his celebration is the dato of the old Spanish Bishop's birthday, December C. Thu original custom was for tho children (says a writer in an English paper) lo place their littlo wooden shoes upon the hearth on the ovo of St. Nicholas's Day, the legend being that on that night the holy man rode over the housetops on a snow-whito steed, accompanied by his jittle black servant, a Moorish negro. "Sinta lClaas" was supposed to cany I with him a largo bag lull of loys and [ sweets ot all kinds for the good children, and riding over the roofs ho threw the i presents in passing down tho chimneys ; into tho shoes below, which were geuorI ally stufl'ed with a handful of»stra\v by , the children, for tho white horse. After , him camo tho negro boy carrying a birch > rod as o souvenir for the very naughty t ones, and one of Jan Steen's best-known pictures represents a sceim from "St. Nicholas's Day," with a naughty boy with a woebegone countonanco gazing ruefully at. ,his birch rod amidst the jeers of his family. In early days the Eve of St. Nicholas was given-over to tho children entirely, but by degrees tho grown-ups bavo come more and more to short in it, until now in Holland it is a great gathering for big and littlo ones alike. People 6eml presents ono to another, and a good deal of licence is allowed for fooling and toazing people about their pot weakness. St. Nicholas's Day is for all Dutch' children a day of tremendous excitement, of alternate hopes and fears (tho latter for the naughty boys with a wholosomo dread of tho rod}), and all that day they can talk and think of nothing else but "Siuta Klaas." As a rule dinner is taken an hour earlier than usual, to enable i.lic children lo sit up for him, and after tho meal is cleared away a cosy red cover is spread over tho table, according to tho old Dutch custom, and all sit round the table, tho biggest children beiuij rapplied with scissors to cut the strings of the parcels. Tlicy are also given little tables at different parts of tho rooms on which to arrange their presents for themselves when they pet them. The father then says; "Children, I think St. Nicholas may Iks here now at any moment; lot us sing him a little song that' lie may hear you are all good children and are expecting him." Whereupon all the lights are turned down, and in the dimness and in a perfect fever of anticipation the children chant some quaint old song, tho translation of which would run something like this:— Pee tho moon shines through the trees 1 Children wo must all keep still I Tho longed-for eve has come at last, The evening of St. Nicholas! With expectation how our hearts ar« throbbing! Oh! who will get the sweets and who— tho birch? Oh! how nice 'twill be to play With the coloured harlequins; Wo will skaro in all alike, Sugar, sweets, and marzipan. Willi expectation how our hearts art throbbing! Oh! who will get the sweets and who— tho birch ? The Harlequin was a doll dressed up in that character, whioh was a very favourite present to children in davs 'gone bj, Or:St. Nicholas, dear good gentle mar;, Throw something down as soon as yon oan; Throw something into my littlo shoe, Good Nicholas, and I'll thank you. There aro many other quaint little folksongs (ho children sing, but (ho most generally sung is:— _ , Sinla Rlaas, good heiligmaa, Trebt jo b«to labberd aim, etc., etc. which runs;— Santa Klaus, good holy man, I'll I. oil your finest robe, And ride in it to Amsterdam, I'l'om Amsterdam to Spain; Bring littlo apples from Oraugc, And HI tic pears from a high tree, Dear Santa Klaus, our Godfather! Whilst theso songs are going on on« hears a ring at tho door bell, and a shuttling of feet on tho threshold outsi do announces that at last tho great moment has arrived, and old Father Nicholas and his little black boy are here. Steps aro heard along tho passage, and then in walks the good St. Nicholas, a venerable, white-bearded old man, dad in a long (lowing robo of rod or purple, ami leaning heavily upon his golden ttaff. His man tie is trimmed with golden embroideries. and ho wears a beautiful golden mitre. Silonoe falls upon everyone: even tho children are too overwhelmed by llio solemnity of tho moment lo chatter. As ho, advances into tho room, he holds out ,1 hand first to mother and then to father, and clasps (hem bothi then he asks them if all tho children nave been good throughout tho rear, and calls oiich child by name, and "each in (urn comes to shake hands with him. And it is indeed a marvellous tiling how St. Nicholas seems to know all their littie faults and failings, and very oflon it has a very good effect on the ch'ildren for months after when lie tells them how it grieve.-' him when they arc naughty. The blank boy then opens tho bag, n'nd Iho presents are handed round to each and all, but. not till St. Nicholas has gone away are the lights turned on and the presents looked at. When Iho children hare gone to bed, ustinllv between eight and nine o'clock, though sometimes in honour of the grout occasion tliev are allowed to sit up (ill later, then the fun lwgins for the grownup people, There is a tendency of la to years towards more and more formality, and the giving of more eostlv and le=s personally ingenious presents without any of the quaint (ars and original rhymes which caUfixl half the pWttre nnd fun in former days, and made St. Nicholas's fc.ist a red-lelter clay to be remembered With delight by young and old alike.