HEIGH HO, THE HOLLY! been practiced ever since the family lived there. When the money is gone, the servants have full liberty to drink, dance, sing, and go to bed when they please." Stukely says, that at York, England, only a century ago, 66 on the eve of Christmas day they carried mistletoe to the high altar of the cathedral, and proclaimed a public and universal liberty, pardon, freedom, to all sorts of inferior, and even wicked people, at the gates of the city, toward the four quarters of heaven." In a previous article we gave a full account of the rise and fall of mumming, and the antics of those gentlemen who figured so conspicuously as "Lords of Misrule." The actions of these individuals cannot be looked back upon lowers, the "Merry Makers," who are thus "A strange and motley cavalcade, preceding Christmas day, may hear the | with pleasure, nor, indeed, can their folringing of subterranean bells, and in the mining districts the workmen declare that high mass is solemnly celebrated in that cavern which contains the richest lode of ore; that it is brilliantly lighted up; and that the divine office is chanted by unseen choristers. A contributor to the "Gentleman's Magazine" for February, 1795, thus describes an amusement practiced on Christmas Eve, at the mansion of a worthy baronet, at Ashton, near Birmingham, England, down to the end of the last century. He writes: "As soon as supper is over, a table is set in the hall. On it is placed a brown loaf, with twenty silver threepences stuck on the top of it, a tankard of ale, with pipes and tobacco; and the two oldest servants have chairs behind it, to sit as judges, if they please. The steward brings the servants, both men and women, by one at a time, covered with a winnow-sheet, and lays their right hand on the loaf, exposing no other part of the body. The oldest of the two judges guesses at the person, by naming a name, then the younger judge, and lastly the oldest again. If they hit upon the right name, the steward leads the person back again; but, if they do not, he takes off the winnow-sheet, and the person receives a threepence, makes a low obeisance to the judges, but speaks not a word. When the second servant was brought, the younger judge guessed first and third; and thus they did alternately, till all the money was given away. Whatever servant had not slept in the house the preceding night forfeited his right to the money. No account is given of the origin of this strange custom, but it has and feast. Some of the customs above described yet remain. In Yorkshire, Staffordshire, Cornwall, and Devon, the old spirit of Christmas seems to be kept up more earnestly than in most other places. In Cornwall they still exhibit the old dance of St. George and the Dragon. A recent writer informs us, that happening to be staying with a friend at Calden-low, in the Staffordshire hills, at Christmas, in came a band of bedizened actors, and performed the whole ancient drama, personating St. George, the King of Egypt, the fair Sabra, the king's daughter, the doctor, and other characters, with great energy and in rude verse. In reference to the modern secular observance of Christmas day, the same writer observes: "In large houses are large parties, music and feasting, dancing and cards. Beautiful faces and noble forms, the most fair and accomplished of England's sons and daughters, beautify the ample firesides of aristocratic halls. Senators and judges, lawyers and clergymen, poets and philosophers, there meet in cheerful and even Here sportive ease, amid the elegances of polished times in this refined age, there are visits paid state of all grades of business, the season itself, from its cold and dreary nature, increases the wants and necessities of the poor, not unfrequently to distressing extremity From the palace to the prison, from the hall to the humble home, there are countless opportunities for the practice of Fuller's third hospitality, charity. Hence, one of the best indications of the approach of Christmas is the distribution of a few of the necessaries of life, by those who enjoy the "luxury of doing good.' Not as by our ancestors, in the lavish expenditure of money for selfish gratification in excess, and revelry, and gluttonymay you most fittingly welcome this festival season, and evince gratitude to Him from whom cometh every good gift; but by acts of benevolence and brotherly kind bringing blessings upon yourselves and your children, may you expect what from the fullness of our heart we wish you, a right merry, joyous, happy Christmas, to be followed by a heaven-blessed New Year. There is no more interesting, and, by the way, no more hackneyed feature connected with the celebration of Christmas in the olden time, than the custom of bringing in the boar's head with minstrelsy, which, as we remarked last year, is still retained, in all its pristine dignity, in Queen's College, Oxford. Tradition rep-ness, by remembering the poor, and thus resents this usage as a commemoration of an act of valor performed by a student of this old institution, who, while walking in the neighboring forest of Shotover, and reading Aristotle, was suddenly attacked by a wild boar. The furious beast came open-mouthed upon the youth, who, however, very courageously, and with a happy presence of mind, is said to have " rammed in the volume, and cried, Græcum est," fairly choking the savage with the sage. This may or may not be true. Indeed, it is very doubtful, but we give it, en passant, to show how hard it is, even in such a learned institution, to root out the old superstitious customs which ages have so religiously sanctioned. Christmas, above all other seasons of the year, the civilized world over, brings with it more happiness, more cheerfulness, more hospitality, more genial good nature, than any other. And if ever they were needed, it is at the present time, when there is so much suffering in our midst, the result of the disastrous financial panic which is now sweeping over the country. And O, charitable, open-hearted reader, pardon us if we give you a hint from Old Fuller, which we would fain have you remember, and which we hope you will not regard as out of place: THE VALLEY OF THE NAUGATUCK. ON N the west bank of the Housatonic, a little above the village of Birmingham, is Fort Hill, a high bluff, which rises abruptly from the stream; once a strong fortress of the Pequots, and probably of tribes before them. About two miles above is the great camping ground, where the Indians of the up river country met the coast tribes to hold their clam feasts; acres of ground are still whitened with the shells. Near here the old Indian spring is at the present day a favorite resort of the pale-faces for pic-nics and pow-wows;" it is claimed that its waters, with a slight addition, possess the power of causing the pale-faces to approximate very closely that of the red man. 66 I have found very little of tradition in regard to the old Indian Well. There is no doubt that it was once looked upon by the aborigines with as much awe and veneration as the famed temple of Delphi by the ancient Greeks. For a superstitious people like the Indians, no place could be found where their imaginations would more dispose them to look for the Hop-Mog, or Indian devil, than the old well. It is a quiet spot in the gorge of the mountains, where the sun never casts its rays, away from the habitation of man; silence reigns here, broken only by the murmur of the stream falling from the precipice above. It is a "still small voice" which lulls the visitor into quiet and thoughtful repose. The far-famed fountain of Egeria is not a lovelier spot; but tradition has clothed that classic ruin with especial interest as the scene where Numa met his shadowy counselor; a legend that has been acknowledged one of the most genuine flowers of poetry that ever started from the hard rock of the Roman mind. But the Indian Well, like many other enchanting spots in our new country, has yet to be clothed with legendary interest, although a greater number of ages are doubtless already its dower. There exists a tradition, that in former times the Indian Well was unfathomable, and that it was once sounded to the depth of some one hundred and fifty feet without finding bottom. The illustration which I present, of the confluence of the Naugatuck with the Housatonic, was sketched from near the bridge over the Naugatuck, at Derby. The Naugatuck appears on the left, the Housatonic on the right. The picturesque edifice which is the most prominent in this cut, was built about the close of the war of the Revolution, by Leman Stone, Esq., and was occupied as a store-house.. The name of this gentleman is conspicuous among those interested in the commerce | of Derby in her palmy days. In the year 1806, a company was incorporated here, under the name of the "Derby Fishing Company," with a capital of one hundred thousand dollars. As early as 1809 a bank was established at Derby. The village of Birmingham was commenced in 1834, by Sheldon Smith, Esq., and was originally called Smithville. Subsequently, Mr. Smith disposed of a considerable portion of his interest here to Anson G. Phelps, Esq.; the name was then changed to Birmingham. General William Hull, governor of Michigan, was born at Derby, 24th June, 1753. There can be no question that General Hull exhibited bravery, and was a useful officer of the Revolutionary war. He graduated with credit at Yale College, after which, in accordance with the wishes of his parents, he devoted himself to the study of divinity," rather from motives of filial affection (says his biographer) than from a conviction of religious duty." He studied for a year with Doctor Wales, subsequently professor of theology in Yale College; after this, he determined to change his profession, and attached himself to the celebrated Law School at Litchfield, and was admitted to the bar in 1775. CONFLUENCE OF THE NAUGATUCK WITH THE HOUSATONIC AT DERBY. property to his family, but William is said to have declined any portion of it. "I want only my sword and uniform," said he; and thus he left the paternal abode to enter into the service of his country. Many interesting facts are related of General Hull's services during the war of the Revolution. At this period the war with Great | terminated fatally. He left a handsome Britain absorbed the public attention. One evening, after a meeting of the citizens of Derby, his father returned home, and said to his son, "Who do you suppose has been elected captain of the company raised in this town?" The young man named several. His father replied, "It is yourself." Mr. Hull at once accepted the appointment, so unexpectedly offered by his townsmen, and soon placed himself in readiness to join the regiment of Colonel Webb, at that time being raised in the state. His father was immediately after this seized with a severe illness, which In 1805 he was appointed Governor of Michigan Territory, in which office he was succeeded by Lewis Cass in 1814. At the beginning of the late war with Great Britain, he was requested to command the Northwestern army; he surrendered Detroit with two thousand men to the British General Brock, August 15, 1812. He was tried by a court martial on several charges, and was sentenced to be shot, but recommended to mercy on account of his distinguished revolutionary services and his age. The president approved the sentence, and remitted the execution. In 1824 General Hull published a series of letters in defense of his conduct during the campaign of 1812. These letters first appeared in the "American Statesman," a Boston newspaper, and were copied into numerous journals of both political parties, and are said to have exercised a great influence on the public mind. "The North American Review," in a notice of these letters, understood to have been written by Jared Sparks, says, "that from the public documents collected and published in them, the conclusion must unequivocally be drawn, that General Hull was required by the government to do what it was morally and physically impossible that he should do." After their publication, "a public dinner was given in Boston to General Hull by citizens of both political parties." He also received letters from various quarters, particularly from his old companions of the Revolutionary army, expressing their gratification at his having vindicated so completely his conduct and character. General Hull did not live long after these events. He had, however, the pleasure of meeting General Lafayette in 1825, who paid him a visit while in Boston during that year. He was present at the celebration of the battle of Bunker Hill, and afterward visited his mother in his native town of Derby, the citizens of which gave him a public dinner. Returning home, he was attacked by disease, and died at his residence in Newton, near Boston, November 29, 1825, in the seventy-third year of his age. On his death-bed he declared in the most solemn manner, "that he had done right in surrendering Detroit," and expressed his happiness that he had saved the lives of the peaceful citizens of Michigan from being needlessly sacrificed. The village of Humphreysville (Seymour) is situated about five miles above the junction of the Naugatuck with the Hou |