The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

But whoever is responsible for these thefts and wanton des- truction can have no Christmas spirit whatsoever or be victims of a very peculiar attitude. Three days later when we ar- rived home about 10.30 pm we work late hours) we found three spotlights and more bulbs mis- sing. I admit that we leave no lights on and that makes us an easy target- I hopé that our letter will put other home owners on the alert and prevent husbands from say- ing: My husband and I. being fairly new in the district «we are actually spending our sec- ond Christmas herel once again decorated our home with spot- lights and colored lights on the veranda. etc. However one morning we dis- covered one spotlight and a few bulbs missing. Thinking it some prankster‘s idea of a joke we bought new buibs and spotlight and replaced the missing ones. The following day. as I left for work. I saw the smashed spot- light lying in the culvert. CHRISTMAS LIGHT THIEVES Dear Mr. Editor: Dear Mr. Hid: In the pale light of dawn the tissue paper will fly around the room and you will be up to your knees in an acre of new ties and socks and strange Martian weapons that shoot sparks and pink bath salts (“To mummy with love from the kids"). The Christmas tree will fall down three times but. in the end, it will stay up with ingenuity and two bits of string. Christmas! Humbug“! MRS. M. CARDELLA 18 Orlon Crescent, Richvale. Now while Christmas incorporates these customs, traditions and prac- tices. it does So for' a purpose, to honour, respect and adore the Christ- child. To pay homage to the King, for "today in the city of David a de- liverer has been born to you â€"- the Messiah, the Lord.” (Luke 2:11). This means that any symbols or tra- ditions employed in the celebrations of Christmas should not become ends It won't be long now. It's hard to believe but somehow you will get all your Christmas shop- ping done. ' Maybe you will be up a little later than you intended on Christmas Eve. but all the gifts will get wrapped and ribboned and stuck with gummy holly leaves. Perhaps as we celebrate it‘ Christ- mas involves for us. regardless of philosophical bent. choice of occupa- tion. practically all of these practices. But if Christmas simply becomes a celebration with no reason, purpose or direction in that celebration, then surely the entire event becomes empty in effect, devoid in design and poverty-stricken in purpose! It am- ounts to little more than a “gay old time”, which possesses neither depth in meaning nor any degree of perm- anence: it incorporates neither a wholesome “raison d’etre” nor ex- emplifies the full intent of Christmas. It then becomes an abbreviated “Christmas” in which we share in the festivities and celebrations of Christ- mas, but fail‘to acknowledge the ac- tual reason for Christmas - in short. it becomes “Christmas Without Christ.” By Rev. Arnold D. Weigel. Christ The King Lutheran Church CHRISTMAS! What is it? What does it mean? Why all the excite- ment and jubilation at this season of the year? Is it simply a length- ened holiday from school -â€" a relief from that rigid nine-to-four sched- ule? A beautiful array of multicol- ored lights affixed to the cornice of the house? The evergreen tree in scintillating beauty, the holly and the mistletoe? Santa Claus parades and all sorts of goodies from his alleged office at the North Pole? What is Christmas? Is it simply a series of staff parties and family gatherings? Turkey dinners, fruit cakes, plum pudding? Thousands of greeting cards? Gifts of all sorts inter- changed in family circles? Is it joy. good will and peace among all peoples? What is Christmas? Is it a series of symbols, traditions and customs which have been preserved down through the ages and which are resurrected every year â€"- something which we’ve gotten so used to that we can't do without? mas? What is Christ- in themselves â€"â€" for this is sheer idolatry â€"â€" but should rather lead us to an awareness of Christ’s presence, to an acknowledgement of his Sav- iourhood, and to a realization of the significance of his coming for the life of every person. Therefore, in a full and wholesome celebration of Christmas. worship will play a major role. for therein we acknowledge our need for a deliverer and pay tribute to himself. who has delivered and daily does deliver us from the bar- riers which are prone to separate us from a living relationship with God. What is Christmas? It is the Christ-event; “and the Word became flesh and dwelt among us. full of grace and truth.” (John 1 :14) Christ has come to bring salvation to all the world: therefore, we rejoice together, not only on Christmas Day. December 25, but throughout the entire year. “I bring you good news of great joy which will come to all people." was the angel's song. God shared his only begotten Son in a sacrificial love * for all mankinrl- thm'pfnrp we also And then, Christmas dinner. Réést 7 ‘;AA -uuurv..uv..- n v-...d . __.-V _-_-__-e. __ a- UULA“ Subscription Rate $4.50 per year; to United States $5.50; 10c single copy Member Audit Bureau of Circulations Member Canadian Weekly Newspapers Association Published by Richmond Hill Liberal Publishing Co. Ltd. W. S. COOK, Publisher “Authorized as second class mail, Post Office Department, Ottawa” THE LIBERAL. Richmond Hill. Ontario, Thursday, Dec. 22, 1966 Show You CARE An Independent Weekly: Established 1878 mine liberal Quiet hearts with time to care For the old, the maimed, and the ill. For the broken in spirit, or filled with despair They surely are doing His will. The merry hearts, the happy and gay. The sunshine they shed is so healing, They seem to know yhg‘ rigth _thing to say, 1.“... ALL” I" - A v uâ€"J, For them Christmas belle grill lie-Sealing. Oh grant that we all may search for a way To find God, as revealed by His Son, Then peace and good will to all men. will sti Be the message when this day is done. Blest will they be who follow His light. In kindness. and caring for others. Takjng time to give thanks for blessings each When God looks down this Christmas 'eve On colored lights, so bright and gay. Will He find those who still hplieve And seek to walk in His way? night Knowing all men are their brothers Someone will lean back in his chair and sigh. and say: “We’re awfully lucky. aren't we?" We'll all agree. Two-thirds of the world goes to bed hungry, Christmas night and every other night of the year. A dollar mailed to CARE of Can- ada, Ottawa, sends a package of food to someone who is not so lucky â€" someone who needs it desperately. Your name on the package tells him you care. turkey with cranberries and mashed turnips and candied yarns and pickles and plum pudding and two kinds of Christmas cake and ice cream and . . . “I couldn't eat another bite, thanks just the same!" That'é when soméone will say it. Maybe it will be Aunt Martha. this year. or Uncle Fred or Grandad. light, The many twinkling stars aglow, Like diamonds in the night. Christmas is a wonderful season. In amazement oft I stand. Thinking of God's wondrous mercy In the things that he has planned. Christmas is a bounteous season, God’s praises let us sing Glory in the highest To Christ, our Lord and King. In the full acknowledgment of Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour. may you have a very blessed Christ- mas! May the love of Christ, the shared joy of the season and the good will of mankind, enrich and strengthen your life! What is Christmas? It is the Christ-event; “and the Word became flesh and dwelt among us. full of grace and truth.” (John 1 :14) Christ has come to bring salvation to all the world: therefore, we rejoice together, not only on Christmas Day, December 25, but throughout the entire year. “I bring you good news of great joy which will come to all people." was the angel's song. God shared his only begotten Son in a sacrificial love for all mankind: therefore. we also, as we acknowledge God’s gift to the world, share our gifts with one an- other. ' Christmas is the grandest season, Full’of ,ioy and mirth. Gay bells ringing, children singing Peace, good will on earth. Christmas is a glorious season, Sincere greetings we extend, Hurriedly looking for an address, Wrapping something for a friend. Christmas is a beautiful season, Snow flakes glistening in the C/Iristmas Elizabeth Jeffre Richmond Hill. ‘1ID ‘till December 14. four young ladies, Beverley Char- gicri’s‘gznggg‘”:zegmé’egvggé'twag: banick, Colleen L'Esperance. Shirley Young and] ' ‘ I adopted that would afford fun (Contmued on Page 16) and merriment to the masses. Wk“me There is a very full calendar of Christmas events but all events were not known at the time of writigg this golumn so the list is incomplete. The festivities started off with a bang on Dec- ember 1 with the UCW from St. Matthew’s United Church. They provided a variety programme which included some of their children as participants. December 6 saw 18 girls ffom St. Gabriel’s Anglican Auxiliary entertaining patients with carol singing and slides. December 7, 30 girls from 1st Richvale Girl Guides added their contribution of Guide songs and carols. December 8 was a film night. It was “High Society" put on by the auxiliary from Bloorview Hospital. Other organizations provide the young people with pocket money. Among these are the Doncaster Ladies Club, the UCW of the Richmond Hill United Church and the Thornhill Lions Club. A unit of the Richmond Hill UCW has also established a library which is open every Tuesday afternoon. (A free lance writer, Mrs. Porter. formerly lived in the Jefferson area. She and her husband now reside in Lon- don, Ontario.) Just north of Richmond Hill there creeps a weed that over the centuries has taken a firm hold 'of the ground. Today we call it Yellow Bed- straw and Vaughan Town- ship tries in vain to eradi- cate it. In ancient times it Yellow Bedstraw is a nat- ive of Europe. It was brought over here for deer bedding. The deer gradually disap- peared from the built-up area around King-Vaughan Townline. But the tough little weed. with its reddish root and thickset yellow flowers. lived on and flour- ished. Deep ploughing is the only way to control it. Al- though it is of some benefit in preventing erosion on the slopes and uneven ground. gardeners heartily dislike the pesky plant that seriously interferes with other growth. “The plague of our country- side". says a farm neighbor of mine. was the housewife’s useful friend and known as Ladies' Bedstraw. They tell it was in the hay when our Lord‘s Mother slept in the stable that very first Christmas. Yet. back in 1635. Nicholas Culpeper. an English physi- cian. attributes to this weed many medical uses in his Pat Wynn teaches the Villatones to sing and Mrs. E. Harwood teaches a class in music theory. The Curtain Club of Richmond Hill is responsible for the art lessons taught by Denny Featherstonhaugh. ;I‘hey provide the material for art and music theory essons. A film is supplied once a month and every Tuesday the younger ones are taken to the Jim Vipond Pool for swimming lessons. The Red Cross provides transportation. On Wednesdays Jim Har- vey of Studio Nine holds a class in photography. The equipment for this is supplied by the Richmond Hill Rotary Club. Once a month, the Civitans put on a bingo and hold variety shows. The units of Thornhill UCW visit and hold occasional parties throughout the year. They tell me how much they appreciate the many visits and the abundance of Christmas Cards. They thank everyone from the bottom of their hearts and want you to know how glad they are that there are so many that care about them. a bright and merry Christmas Mrs. G. Barenthin, the Villa’s director of rec- reation says that the groups from this area and the city come every night throughout the year except Saturday and Sunday. It works out, approximately, to one visit per month from each group. Every Sunday at 5.30 pm a church service is provided by the ministers from Thornhill, Maple and Richmond Hill. The service is undenominational. A film is supplied once a month and every They spent their timé decorating théir rooms, holding parties for nurses and other patients and exchanging gifts. December was a happy gay month for the shut-in citizens of the Villa Hospital on Bathurst Street. They can do very little for others except to give the glad response of their hearts for the many kindnesses they enjoyed during the past year. Don't‘ put the tree w too wlv â€"bu\ do Atore it In a cool plum Rambling Around EVERY DAY IS CHRISTMAS IN DECEMBER THE PEOPLE WHO MAKE IT CHRISTMAS ALL YEAR ROUND A Merry Christmas To Everyone From The Villa BY LORAINE PORTER Christmas Memory Of A Weea’ Yellow Bedstraw was a handy~plant to have around the house in the "old days". The housewife stewed it a little and the roots made a red dye that brightened many a faded frock. or home- spun carpet. She crushed the plant for the yellow color that gave her butter 3 golden glow. book “The Complete Herb- al”. A liquid was made with one ounce of herb in one pint of boiling water and tak- en in a wine glass several times daily as a remedy for gravel, stone, and urinary diseases. It was also used in hysterical complaints and ep- ilepsy. And, according to this 17th century physician. if you bruise the yellow flower and put it in the nosâ€" trils, it will stop nosebleed. Nicholas Culpeper also tells of the weeds soothing effect on burns: the flowers and herbs were made into an oil by being set in the sun and some wax melted in it. Often this ointment was used to bathe the tired feet of travel- lers. to relieve stiffness in the joints. and “the itch in children". Today the useful weed of long ago is a nuisance. No- body wants it. Defiant. it suCCessfuIIy struggles on against powerful sprays. Its branches lean a little to the ground, taking root at the joints. and thus easily in- creasing. However. Vaughan homeowners try to mow It When you put It up, keep :1 in a water-filled container and place It when It M“ not block an exit. by Elizabeth Kelson | Christmas as a festival early ‘became popular throughout all Christendom. every device was ladopted that would afford fun and merriment to the masses. In the fourth century by order of Pope Julius I a convention was called to make an investiga- tion regarding the day of Christ's nativity, and by com- mon agreement December 25 was accepted. So Christmas was changed from a movable to a fixed festive day. It is pleasing to know that for 1,600 years December 25 has been observed as the most fes- tive day of the year, and that in the year 1909 we say to each other as they said centuries ago The first record of the instiâ€"l Among the early revels of thellti tution of Christmas as a churcthhristmas season was what wasl festival reaches back to the year known as the Feast of Fools.'y 138. It had a double signific- Society was turned upside down‘tlI ance. It was a day of holy com- and submitted itself for the time% memoration and a day of fes- to the government of the Lord tive merriment. For 200 years, of Misrule. Order and decorum a like other church days. it was were set aside â€" the rich acted â€"‘ movable. Then came the con- as if they were poor and the, troversy between the Western poor as if they were rich. after and Eastern churches as to the placing themselves in ridiculous: date of the birth of Christa and laughable positions. i {Ki You Fins/wad down quickly before the golden flowers blossom. Otherwise, the small black seed will scatter in all di- rections. REFERENCES Forest Flora of Canada Potter‘s Cyclopaedia of Boâ€" tanical Drugs The Complete Herbal ~â€" Nicholas Culpeper â€"- writ- ten in 1635, but not pub- lished until 1814. Observers of Yellow Bed- straw on my property at RR 1. Richmond Hill, which Vaughan Township tried to destroy with the re- sult that newly planted trees died but not the bed- straw. They replaced the trees for me. There is a great deal of it around Jefferson. Yellow Bedstraw belongs to days long past when man had more slmple needs. It was when the world was young that Mary found shel- ter in a stable. And down through the ages came the story of the weed with the yellow flowers that was in the bedding for mother and child that very first Christ- mas. On a spring day a city visi- tor may stop to admire the deep green of the small leaves branching out in a whorl from slender stems. But the rural dweller is con- tent only when winter‘s white blanket covers it menacing tenacity. Christmas has become so commercialized that Canadians will soon have to rely upon the immigrants for their Nativity. A North York school trustee says if he were in the shoes of a teacher teaching sex education he would rather teach basketball. . . . More emphasis on court-ship, eh? Thought for driving home from the Christmas Partyâ€" This is the time of year when everybody dreams about a white Christmas â€" while going into the red. Finance Minister Sharp brought down his mini-budget this week with “a Christmas present for the older folks” . . . Yeah, it was SAINT Nick for them and ANOTHER nick for us! LONDON â€" (Reuters) â€"â€" London's strippers today stepped out. of their clothes with official bless- ing from city fathers when the Great London Coun- cil voted to legalize the “spectator sport of sex". . . . Except that in this spectator sport the onlooker is more of an off-looker. One Christmas present we could do without is g0ve1‘nmental statements that it definitely intends to put bi-lingual signs on all federal buildings . . . decking the halls with vows of folly! Canada has finally got into the Vietnam Warâ€"â€" we have sent a couple of thousand Christmas Trees (Continued on Page 16) Qeyrge Mayes 0n â€"â€" The best Christmas present is a Christmas, present. A Merry Christmas to you! How these words go from lip to lip and from heart to heart. How they echo and re-echo from continent to continent. from island to island, wherever the story of the Babe, born in a manager in Bethlehem, has been told. In these words Wllliam Har- rison opened an article which was published at Christmas time in 1909. A Merry Christmas To In Year: 6009 By Turn off (he lights when wugo out‘ or even leave me roomNever use electric hghtsvon a metal true and |eeprmetal iCIdes sway flown Iightmg sets. Me Flip Side by your electrical inspector .for old and young to be dis- ‘tributed by an ancient liberal Christmas has long been re- garded as the children’s festival} and Christmas eve the favorite; period of the year for the givJ ing of gifts. especially in the. family circle. The Christmas tree is set up in the house, illu- minated in various ways; its branches decorated with gifts old gentleman. familiarly known as Santa Claus. The celebration of Christmas varies from country to country. It is new summer time in New Zealand and Christmas Day is spent in picm‘c parties -- the cloth is spread on the grass and the roast turkey and plum pud- ding are served in the open air. All the children of that land. know of Santa and his marvel- ous midnight excursions are what they read of him, his sleigh. and his eight tiny reindeer.: Here. in Canada. we hear the iingle of sleigh hells every year and it is easy to imagine we can see Santa arrive to distri- bute his gifts. KKIRE!lfififl‘flflflflflfllflflKfifififlfiKK‘fl I As soon as the clock strikes" 12. in every home parents beginx‘g to laugh, the children laugh. my fact everyone in the housegy laughs. This laughter is caught: up on the streets of every townig and village and is heard fang miles along th‘e public highway‘ The Fijians laugh until they; are tired, then they 10 in for 11 something good to eat. g In the Fiji Islands Christmas Day is proclaimed by the ring- ing of bells, the shaking of hands and a sort of contagious epidemic of kissing. There also the day is introduced by a laughing chorus adapted from an ancient heathen ceremony. It became the duty of the Lord of Misrule to provide all possible forms of amusements with the people of all grades and all ages as the actors. Comic masks and fancy costumes were worn and everything that would add mirth to the occasion was encouraged. In later years the custom of trimming the church and houses with evergreens became com- mon. The holly. the ivy, the mistletoe. the cedar and the pine are the most popular evergreens. 11 every inn When the hohday IS oer tnka mam flow" as quictdy as possum and m the hgsls m a dry placeermg on lighting nets detemratea qmckly m the enacts of summer sun and heat. WMWW g 88 YONGE ST. s. RICHMOND HILL 2 BOOK SUGGESTIONS FOR CHRISTMAS GIVING THE SPY WITH FIVE FACES by Amelia E‘. Walden Ryerson Press $4.35 A very exciting book for boys and girls between the ages of 12-15. Mounting suspense‘ romance. adventure and dan- ger in the violence of a fascinating setting. THE SUN KING by Nancy Mitford Harper & Row $15.00 A lively, readable biography of Louis XIV, King of France commonly called the "Sun King". It is also beau- tifully illustrated. THE BIRDS FALL DOWN WILD HORIZON by F. Van Wyck Mason McGraw-Hill $6.96 The exciting story of a little known but decisive batle of the revolution which made possible the ultimate victory at Yorktown. THE BRIDE'S COOK BOOK by the editors of the Bride's Magazine Harper $5.95 Here at last is a very special cnnkbnok designed to make the new cooks' introduction to the kitchen a happy one. THE MAN WHO LOVED HIS WIFE by Vera Caspary Putnams $4.95 Another thrilling suspense story by the author of Laura. Vera Caspary reveals with a sure psychological insight the strange desires that hide in the hearts of seemingly re- spectable people. BIRDS OF THE NORTHERN FOREST by John Livingston McClellaud & Stewart $17.50 Fifty-six large reproductions of Fenwick Landsdowne's paintings with text by one of Canada's foremost naturalists and director of natural science programs for the CBC. NEEDHAM’S INFERNO by Richard J. Needham Macmillan '66 $4.95 The Globe and Mail columnisf's exhilarating collection of editorial page columns with two main themes down town Toronto and the world of ideas. TWO UNDER THE INDIAN SUN by Rumor and Jon Godden Knopf $5.50 The Godden sisters as young girls In India between 1914 and 1919. the hook contains personal memoirs with a panoramic view of the India they knew and loved. A major account which. is a combination of entertaining biographical accounts and critical judgments in a lively style attractive to the general reader. PAINTING IN CANADA: 3 hintnry by J. Russell Harper Unvty.. of Torontn Press 1966 $20.00 ALL IN THE FAMILY by Frank O‘Connor Little Brown $6.96 A memorable nostalgic novel about an Irish-American family that will remind readers of the Kennedy family. by Rebecca West Vikinx $5.95 This book is based on true events. a period piece captur- ing the eSSence of upper class Russian life in the 1900's. R. Lynett Clerk By virtue of a resolution adopted by the Town Council of the Corporation of the Town of Rich. mond Hill, it is hereby proclaimed that Monday, December 26th. 1966, Tuesday, December 27th, 1966 and Monday, January 2nd, 1967 shall be Civic Holidays. CIVIC HOLIDAYS At Your Richmond Hill Public Library TOWN OF RICHMOND HILL 93-32939 T. Broadhurst Mayor As cctmlers sing their Happy Christmas songs, We add our voices to wish you good cheer.