Abolition of Christmas Day.
On December the 24th, 1652, there appeared in a small gazette called the Flying Eagle one of the most curious statements ever published in connection with Christmas Day. It told how the House of Commons had that day been considering the business of the Navy, and how, before it separated, it had been presented with a "terrible remonstrance" against Christmas Day. "In consequence of this," the Flying Eagle went on to say, "Parliament spent some time in consultation about the abolition of Christmas Day, passed orders to that effect, and resolved to sit on the following day, which was commonly called Christmas Day."