Thus ended our love adventures at the University. Our heroine we have
never heard of since, and we have resisted the most tempting offers
from the loveliest of her sex; and in spite of sighing heiresses and
compassionate old maids, we are still a bachelor; and a bachelor,
in defiance of all their machinations, we are firmly determined to
remain.--_Blackwood's Magazine._
* * * * *
MANNERS AND CUSTOMS OF ALL NATIONS.
* * * * *
CHRISTMAS CUSTOMS IN THE NETHERLANDS.
(_For the Mirror_.)
Many singular customs are observed in the Netherlands at Christmas, and
as they materially differ from those known in England, a brief notice of
_one_ of them may probably prove acceptable to the readers of the
MIRROR.
In almost every Dutch town, and in every considerable village, the
following custom prevails:--At a little after two o'clock in the morning
of Christmas-day, a number of young men assemble in the market-place,
and sing some verses suited to the occasion. One of the young men bears
an _artificial star,_ which is fixed to a pole, and elevated above the
heads of the people; it is very large, and is rendered beautifully
transparent when a light is placed in the inside. This artificial
luminary is intended to represent the star of the east, which directed
the wise men to Bethlehem, the birthplace of Christ.
Pages:
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35