ackened face, long
beard, and threatening rod. He "goes for" the naughty children, who are
only saved by the intercession of Christkind.{2}

In the Mittelmark the name of _de hele_ (holy) _Christ_ is strangely
|231| given to a skin- or straw-clad man, elsewhere called Knecht
Ruprecht, Klas, or Joseph.{3} In the Ruppin district a man dresses up in
white with ribbons, carries a large pouch, and is called _Christmann_ or
_Christpuppe_. He is accompanied by a _Schimmelreiter_ and by other
fellows who are attired as women, have blackened faces, and are named
_Feien_ (we may see in them a likeness to the Kalends maskers condemned
by the early Church). The procession goes round from house to house. The
_Schimmelreiter_ as he enters has to jump over a chair; this done, the
_Christpuppe_ is admitted. The girls present begin to sing, and the
_Schimmelreiter_ dances with one of them. Meanwhile the _Christpuppe_
makes the children repeat some verse of Scripture or a hymn; if they know
it well, he rewards them with gingerbreads from his wallet; if not, he
beats them with a bundle filled with ashes. Then both he and the
_Schimmelreiter_ dance and pass on. Only when they are gone are the
_Feien_ allowed to enter; they jump wildly about and frighten the
children.{4}

Knecht Ruprecht, to whom allusion has already been made, is a prominent
figure in the German Christmas. On Christmas Eve in the north he goes
about clad in skins or straw and examines children; if they can say their
prayers perfectly he rewards them with apples, nuts and gingerbreads; if
not, he punishes them. In the Mittelmark, as we have seen, a personage
corresponding to him is sometimes called "the holy Christ"; in
Mecklenburg he is "ru Klas" (rough Nicholas--note his identification with
the saint); in Brunswick, Hanover, and Holstein "Klas," "Klawes," "Klas
Bur" and "Bullerklas"; and in Silesia "Joseph." Sometimes he wears bells
and carries a long staff with a bag of ashes at the end--hence the name
"Aschenklas" occasionally given to him.{5} An ingenious theory connects
this aspect of him with the _polaznik_ of the Slavs, who on Christmas Day
in Crivoscian farms goes to the hearth, takes up the ashes of the Yule
log and dashes them against the cauldron-hook above so that sparks fly
(see Chapter X.).{6} As for the name "Ruprecht" the older mythologists
interpreted it as meaning "shining with glory," _hruodperaht_, and
identified its owner with the god Woden.{7} Dr. Ti