The Lutheran Pioneer St. Louis — 1897, Page 46

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46 i The Lutheran Pioneer.

Christmas in North Celebes.

jis heard a half-suppressed exclamation of
|wonder. We can also overhear one or an-

Celebes is an island of the Malay Archi-| other of the beautiful things mentioned in a
pelago, under the control of the Dutch since| whisper. Upon a sign from the missionary

1677. Mission work is carried on by a Mis-|
sionary Society of Holland, through whose}

labors the northern part of the island has be-

come a Christian country. In one of our ex-|
changes we find {the following description of |

the celebration of Christ-
mas Eve in North Cele-
bes:

Let us visit one of the
towns where a mission-
ary resides. The house
is easily found. The way
is pointed out by a
stream of boys and girls
who in childish glee are
hastening in that direc-
tion. A dense throng is
gathered in front of the
illuminated veranda, for,
besides the sixty to
eighty children, some of
the parents have put
in their appearance.
Through the open win-
dows we get a glimpse
of the missionary and
his wife, busily engaged
with the final prepara-
tions. Observing the
visitors, he invites us to
ascend the stairway and
receives us most cor-
dially.

The Christmas tree
was not missing. Why,
itis a German pine, we
had almost said; but
no, it is a casuarina, a
magnificent native tree,
reaching to the ceiling,
twelve feet high. The
missionary explains in
passing: ‘My boys got
it, roots and all, out of
the woods and planted
it in a large wash-tub,
as you sce. You are
probably aware of the
fact that the German
custom was introduced
here by Father Riedel. None of the principal
stations is without its Christmas tree.”’ The
many tapers which adorn the tree consist in
part of such as are made here by running the
melted wax of wild bees into slender bamboo
reeds, while others are of European manu-
facture. The numerous presents that are tied
to the branches show that the mission friends
in Holland continue to generously remember
the mission in Celebes.

The children are now called in. What a
cheerful throng as they form in large circles
around the glittering tree! Here and there

all is quiet, and the school teacher starts the
hymn: ‘‘O thou joyful, O thou blessed, glad
and gracious Christmastide!”’ The children
all join in the beautiful song. The words are
in the Malaysian language, but the melody

od

THE CHRIST CHILD.

and the Christmas emotions which find ex-
pression in it go out far beyond the limits of
any national tongue. It is indeed a touching
and inspiring scene.

What would be the lot and condition of
these dusky children of heathendom, if they
had never heard of the great Friend of chil-
dren who Himself became a child to save us
from our sins? Of Him the missionary
speaks in his address, and it seems to us
that in many an up-turned, attentive face in
that group we can discover a yearning in-
terest in the great and gracious Christmas

Gift of our God that is not forgotten amid
the earthly gifts.

After the singing of another hymn the
Christmas story is told. A little chap in a
bright colored calico waist and white pants,
with sparkling eyes and a frank, smiling and
yet bashful face, is called forward for this
purpose. He tells the old, old story in child-
like simplicity, with clear voice and quite
correctly. As a reward
of merit the little fellow
is allowed to go to the
tree and take down from
its branches one of the
candy ornaments. Then
begins the distribution
of presents, each one of
which is marked with the
name of the child who is
to receive it. How ex-
pectantly the children
wait until they hear their
name! Then they come
forward so joyfully and
yet somewhat shyly, to
receive the gift and po-
litely to return thanks.
Their joy finds varied
expression as the little
packages are opened.
A little girl yonder,
standing and quietly ex-
amining her gift, is a
picture of happiness,
while another, beaming
and laughing, runs to
her mother to show her
treasure. The boys are
louder and more demon-
strative, some of them
leaping and _ prancing
with delight and even
swinging their presents
in the air amid loud hur-
rahs. And the joy of
the children is reflected
upon the faces of the
parents.

A song which is now
announced is effective in
restoring order among
the little ones. Then
some time is spent in
social converse and in
eating confections and sweetmeats, inter-
Spersed with the singing of Christmas hymns.
Finally all depart with renewed expressions
of thankfulness to the good missionary and
his wife.

But to-morrow is the ‘‘great day.” “Blessed
great day !’’— this is their usual form of greet-
ing at Christmas. Everybody goes to church,
and some fail to get in, for the church is too
small on thisday. Of course there are present
on this occasion some who are not regular and
diligent attendants at the Lord’s house; but
should we not feel glad that they are at least