Cynthia Riner, age 7, of Chamblee, Ga., for her question:
How old is Santa Claus?
He has been giving presents to people for a long, long time. Some people say there is no Santa, but for 1600 years real boys and girls have been getting real presents from him. All these children know for sure that somebody must have started these kind deeds.
Someone drew a picture of our wonderful Santa about 100 years ago, where American families saw it in a Christmas magazine. The picture showed his busy workshop and a Christmas tree along with sacks and stockings stuffed with toys. It showed a team of reindeer with the sleigh.
The children already knew about Santa. Their grandparents had read them a poem called "A Visit from St. Nicholas." They knew, ho ho ho, that the jolly little elf in the poem was the very same papa sized Santa in the magazine picture. And they were right.
About 200 years ago St. Nicholas became the special saint of New York City, which was once the Dutch town of New Amsterdam. This St. Nicholas was dressed like a Dutch papa with very baggy knee pants and a wide hat, and he smoked a long pipe. The parents told their children that he rode a sled over the rooftops and dropped his Christmas presents down the chimneys. Of course, everybody loved him.
The wonderful work of Santa did not begin in America. It began in the town of Myra, far away in a country of the Middle East. It was a story of children and presents.
Even when it started 1600 years ago. Around 300 A.D. the young Bishop of Myra was a mere Boy. The kind young bishop loved to give presents, especially to children. Often he went out quietly in the night to deliver his gifts in secret.
The story of Bishop Nicholas spread to many lands. Children grew up and told their children about him. For hundreds of years the schoolboys in many towns of the world had a special day to remember him. They chose a boy to play the part of their St. Nicholas and all dressed up in handsome robes they marched through the streets in a state_parade. Their St. Nicholas Day was Dec. 6. In time the custom changed. St. Nicholas became our Santa Claus. Grown ups arranged for him to pay his visit every year at Christmas time.
The first St. Nicholas was a tall and statley bishop. But in 1600 years we would expect some changes. He was asked to visit many different people in many different lands. The Dutch children wanted him to look like their own fathers. Other people wanted to call him Santa Claus, and so he has changed. But like the boy bishop who started it all, our Santa still brings presents in secret, especially to children.