THE Wairarapa Mercury. MONDAY, DECEMBER 23, 1867. A MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Wairarapa Standard, Volume I, Issue 51, 23 December 1867, Page 2

THE Wairarapa Mercury. MONDAY, DECEMBER 23, 1867. A MERRY CHRISTMAS!

TOf N EDITION

“Christians, awake, salute the happy morn.” Whose heart does not bound within as he hears this cheerful invitation sounding in his ears from all quarters. The whole of creation seems to pour forth thousands .of enchanting strains, all of which harmonize with this holy and joyful season .of Christmas ; and our hearts .overflow with joy and gladness in the remembrance of the unspeakable blessings which were conferred upon our race on the first great Christmas Day. We have -arrived almost to the end of another year—it has glided past never to return—and we have seen changes and experienced trials. We feel some regrets, it may be, from various .causes, though we take delight in contemplating other events. ‘On the whole we find, as we contemplate the occurrences of each month, that we have much cause for gratitude ana rejoicing; we therefore, with thankful hearts, respond to the kindly greeting, of this good old season (which is .now.no less than 1867 years old), and wish that you all will spend a Merry Christmas. There is scarcely a necessity-for us to draw .our readers attention 'to the first issuing of, this invitation. It will be sufficient to say that then it was filled with joy for those few poor hard-faring : shepherds; for it was the message of peace and goodwill promised .to the striving and unsettled nations of the-earth. “ On earth peace, goodwill towards men.” How wonderful it is to contemplate—a small band of shepherds and some few .other poor folk alone partook .of the joys of the first Christmas. Now, as is supposed, no less than three hundred and fifty millions .of Christians of every country and nation may, if they will, take a share of the privileges and .happiness which this universal holiday offers.

Now.one object, among others, which we have ever .kept steadily in view, is the promotion of the social and moral well-being of the community. All our efforts, we hope, .either directly or indirectly, have had that tendency. Bearing this in mind, we bow proceed to fulfil a grave duty by offering to our readers .a few brief .remarks on the manner in which the Christmas Festivities should be .carried out; and we shall give a hint or two which may be conducive of innocent mirth and joy;— that our mirth may “Fill with pleasure the listeners’ .eyes, .and ears with melody ; ” and that we may enjoy ourselves with “Delight and laughter, deck’d in seemly sort.” For everything, at this season sings,of joy and gladness of heart. Indeed, we should much regret to see any tendency towards a diminution of the sports and enjoyments which Christmas has ever brought with it. DeUS NOBIS OMNIA BONA FECIT. We would therefore mot say one word against the lawful .use of the good things which the earth offers to us, but we must enter .our strongest protest against the abuse of them. And especially do we this at this season of peace.and goodwill. What happiness do men derive from excesss ? What lasting pleasure does intemperance give them? None—absoutely none. On the contrary, they generate strife, ill-feeling, and sorrow in the persons who indulge overmuch, and make them disagreeable and surly towards their fellow-men with whom they come in .contact. In our opinion, the old heathen poet was right in his notion of what produces pleasure when he sung:—

If nothing, as Mimnermns strives to prove, Can e’er be pleasant, without mirth and love, Then live in mirth and love,” This is exactly what we should wish—gather together in social meetings—use all the gifts which a beneficient. Creator has showered down upon you, and enjoy yourselves. But anything which approaches to excess banish from your friendly assemblies, or you will in vain - look forward to a pleasant termination of your festive season. We can gaze on two scenes. In the one we behold an aged man and .woman hearing the stamp of internal happiness on their bright though wrinkled countenances. They are not alpiie., They , are surrounded by an almost'numberless ' hand, of children and grand-children, . who look quite as happy, and a great . deal more iqischievous,<tban .their .agqd’ progenitors. What tales, wonderful, and wholly arn there;.; narrated, \ which bring forth such strains of laugh- 1 - ter by fits and starts, shaking the 'house as if it felt the shock of an earthquake. Wonderfully contagious is the laughter, for wo find ourselves laughing and crying with that happy assembly., But

listen again, and hear the children and grand-children join in perfect harmony in the Christmas Carol. At one time they sing of “David’s greater Son/’ and at another, about “Good King Wenceslaus,” and sober and heartfelt joy is depicted on their faces as plainly as these words are printed on this paper. For a time their joy- is hushed and toned done by the serious thoughts which the carols bring to their- minds. Soon, however, the joke is given and taken, toasts are given and responded to until it grows quite late, and when we peep in again we find them separating for the night, greeting each other soberly and cheerfully, every one having derived something which will rivet the bonds of affection more tightly, and enable him to hear the trials of tbs .ensuing year -with fortitude and Christian endurance. Let us now turn and take a look at the other scene. There is a goodly assembly, indeed, of all ajres and ofboth sexes —young men and women are there, in all the pardonable pride of strength and beauty —each person’s heart isfilled with gaiety, and the pleasant joke goes round as they pledge each other over the friendly cup. But will this harmony and blameless happiness last? Already we see in our imagination, we trust it will only exist ■in our imagination, first one and than another guilty of some improper act or some insulting word to the others. The festive songs which at first were both appropriate to the season and sung with much good taste, have now gradually assumed a more doubtful character, and are shouted out in jarring discords -with idiotic solemnity. Intoxication has seized upon most of them, and the appearance of that happiness which the season brings has wholly -disappeared, wrangling and strife, which often lead to worse things, have now the dominion over that assembly. Perhaps the thought that this season only suggests to many minds the idea of sensual and corporal •enjoyment, has been the cause of this sad change; and they have not understood that this season is an universal holiday in commemoration of a wonderful and ineffable mystery. But what are the effects which this licentiousness are calculated to produce ? At once they render the younger folk unfit to take part in the manly sports to excel in which has been ever the ambition and glory of the .English youths; and the older folk are prevented from deriving real pleasure at the sight of such sports. Another effect is that-strife and ill will and much sorrow rare often caused to their own families by neglect of duty ; and by not settling just debts; while those who employ many hands upon important works are put to much inconvenience and 'loss. Perhaps too, the seeds of a mortal •desease are now for the first time sown in the body, and thus this season, which was intended for true pleasure, has been made by such foolish ones simply a curse to them. And yet we cannot but think that the greater portion of those who so much forget themselves would, in their more sober moments, acknowledge with the poet: — “ I see the right, rnd I approve it too ; Condemn the wrong, and yet the wrong puisne.”

We ourselves have heard of such instances were men have censured others for intemperate habits, when the preceding and the day following they have been guilty of excess themselves. We repeat, that we hope the above sad picture may have no existence in reality during the Christmas Holiday. There is not the slightest cause for its existence, it will be useless for any good purpose, and disgraceful to a Christian community, and a stain, not easily removed, «n a so-called civilized people. If the leading members of the community, in conjunction with the heads of families, would resolutly set their faces against the turning ox the innocent pleasures and past-times of Christian into a Saturnalia, we feel convinced there would be no attempt at breaking through the bounds of decorum which common sense and Christian feeling have set. We once again wish our readers a Merry Christmas, and in taking our leave we give them the toast of Dickens’s Tiny Tim—tl God bless vs every one.”