50 



THE HOLLY. 



namely, the decoration of sacred places at the 

 Holy season of Christmas ; for Dr. Turner, our 

 earliest writer on plants, calls it Holy " and 



Holy-tree," and the same mode of spelling is 

 observed in a MS. ballad of yet older date, in 

 the British Museum.* 



The origin of this beautiful custom is uncertain. 

 Some have supposed it to be derived from a cus- 

 tom observed by the Romans, of sending boughs, 

 accompanied by other gifts, to their friends during 

 the festival of the Saturnalia. This method of 

 shewing goodwill being at least harmless, it has 

 been conjectured that the early Christians adopted 

 it in order to conciliate their Pagan neighbours. 

 In confirmation of this opinion. Bourne cites a 

 subsequent edict of the Church of Bracara,f for- 

 bidding Christians to decorate their houses at 

 Christmas with green boughs at the same time 

 with the Pagans ; the Saturnalia commencing 

 about a week before Christmas. Dr. Chandler 

 supposes the custom to have been derived from the 

 Druids, who, he says, decorated dwelling-places 

 with evergreens during vnnter, that the silvan 

 spirits might repair to them, and remain unnipped 

 with frost and cold winds, until a milder season 

 had renewed the foliage of their darling abodes." 

 Certainly the custom, whencesoever it was derived, 

 was sanctioned by the Church ; for in old Church 

 calendars Christmas-eve is marked, Templa ex- 

 ornantur," Churches are decked." Now, when 

 we recollect that of the three great Jewish, festivals, 



* " Holy hath beiys as red as any rose." 



+ Non liceat iniquas observantias agere Kalendamm et ociis vacare 

 Gentilibus, neque lauro, neque viriditate arborum cingere domos. 

 Omnis enim hsec observatio Paganismi est." — Brae, Can. Ixxiii. 



