One might imagine that the whole Yuletide happiness of each family, together with the good name and reputation of the housewife, depended upon the success of the matter in hand. One of our old village dames once put into concrete form something of the feelings of those respon-she for producing a Christmas cake 'Some has one thing,' she whined to the vicar, and some has another. The Lord gives us all] a erds of some sort. Now there's Christmas a-coming on and I have n't got the cake made yet, and I'm sure as each year comes round feel my cross growing heavier and-my trust in the Lord growing less so far as cakes goes.'
In our village the Christmas cake may not be cut till the eve of the great, festival, though the small taster'—made specially to know the worst—may be sampled by the anxious dames in solemn conclave, for it has no tradition or sentiment surrounding it. Final criticism and a reopening of the whole discussion in calmer frame of mind are postponed till the Christmas parties, at which those who sighed and panted, shook' their heads and clasped skewers in' one hand as with the other they flapped apron-borne air to their faces, can afford to laugh at what for the nonce was such a tremendously serious undertaking.
SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITIES, These. Christmas parties are not easy to arrange. Mrs. Brown or Mrs. Jones, In. the neighbouring:.town, may: invite a few friends from one another's houses on for an evening at Yuletide with-
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.