THE. HOLLY CULT.
- Within one . day this month six van loads of berried holly passed through :one small village in Hertfordshire. Poor Hertfordshire,. where no holly _tree, even on private grounds, is quite safe ! But those who can forget for a moment the desecration of their trees, will find in the traffic an astonishing example of the vitality of the Christmas custom. The hollies are a marvel of colour this season. It is a coral year ; and incidentally quite large sums of money have been made by the harvest of berries. The prices (7s. 6d. for a central shoot well covered) have tempted some to destroy fair trees ; but on behalf of the county let all riflers be begged to spare the main trunk. It is one thing to cut off a bough. It is a much worse crime to cut out the centre and so reduce the tree to the dimensions of a bush for all time. To-day:s vandals are as bad as the notorious Czar of Muscovy who destroyed Evelyn's famous Holly Hedge at Say Court. Incidentally, what evidence is there for the origin of making holly a Christmas decoration ? Did the Romans especiallY select holly for giving to their friends at the Saturnalia ? Or did any bough serve their turn ?
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