Christmas in the American Civil War "the best recruiting sergeant the North ever had". Nast was not the only one to use Christmas as a propaganda tool. On the Union side, "The New York Herald" also engaged in propaganda. One illustration published in the paper included Santa Claus fuming that he could not reach southern children, due to the northern blockade. On the Confederate side, "The Richmond Examiner" described Santa to its young readers as "a Dutch toy monger" who was a New York/New England "scrub" and Hottentot that had nothing to do with traditional Virginian celebrations of Christmas. Even through the war was over, Nast
St. Thomas (song) St. Thomas (song) "St. Thomas" is among the most recognizable instrumentals in the repertoire of American jazz tenor saxophonist Sonny Rollins. Although Rollins is commonly credited as its composer, the tune is based on the traditional English song "The Lincolnshire Poacher". By way of the folk process, "The Lincolnshire Poacher" evolved into a nursery song in the Virgin Islands, which Rollins' mother sang to him when he was a child. "St. Thomas" became popular when it was released on Rollins's 1956 album "Saxophone Colossus", though it had been recorded by Randy Weston in 1955 under the title "Fire Down There",