Wassail

[Leigh.Perkins@sset.com]

     Ironic don't you think that the christian faith should adopt such a 
     paganistic ritual - maybe it was done to gain popularity with (us) the 
     heathens!!
     
     Leigh


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Subject: Wassail
Author:  love-hounds@gryphon.com at INTERNET
Date:    7/8/97 11:04 AM


I think I've got a recipe for "Traditional Christmas Wassail" in one of my 
ten thousand cookbooks here, possibly the Joy of Cooking?  I believe it is 
a variation of either mulled wine or mulled mead, and is what one made to 
serve to the "wassailers" when the came to sing at your door.  
     
Those old pagans probably used mead.  Mmmmm, mead!  Yum yum!
     
Interesting note about Christmas . . . the sentimental family celebration 
we think of as so traditional is of fairly recent origin.  In the late 
1800's Christmas was a rather wild time.  In New York the streets would 
fill with drunken "wassailers" who got out of hand and made it dangerous to 
go out at night.  
     
There was a conscious attempt at the time by both city government and local 
businesses to sweeten these drastic Christmas revels into a more 
family-oriented -- and more consumerist -- holiday. This also coincided 
with the growth of a more enlightened attitude towards children, who were 
coming to be seen less as miniature workers and more as budding people.  
     
One direct result was our now favorite Christmas poem, The Night Before 
Christmas, which was purely designed to promote a nicer holiday -- but with 
some of the loveliest occasional poetry an American has come up with.  
     
Karen  
     
"As dry leaves that before the wild hurricane fly, 
 When they meet with an obstacle, mount to the sky, 
 So up to the house-top the coursers they flew,
 With the sleigh full of toys, and St. Nicholas too."
                                           Clement Clark Moore