...from Wikipedia (some format edits):

Knecht Ruprecht, Companion of Father Christmas, is also known as "Servant Ruprecht", "Farmhand Ruprecht", "Pelzebock", "Pelznickel" ("Nicholas in furs"), "Zwarte Piet" or "Zwarte Peter" in the Netherlands and Flanders, "Black Peter", and "Schmutzli Samichlaus" in Switzerland, sometimes associated with Saint Rupert. Other names include "Rumpelklas", "Bellzebub", "Hans Muff", "Drapp", and "Buzebergt" in the neighborhood of Augsburg.

His is a character found throughout Germanic peoples and cultures. In Bavaria Saint Nikolaus is accompanied by "Klaubauf", a shaggy monster with horns. In Austria the horned creature is covered with bells and dragging chains, and is called "Krampus". In Styria it is servant "Bartel". The term "Krampus" is relatively synonymous with devil.

Often the subject of winter poems and tales, Ruprecht travels with Santa Claus or his various equivalents, carrying with him a rod (sometimes a stick, bundle of switches or whip, and in modern times often a broom) and a sack. He is sometimes dressed in black rags, bearing a soot-blackened face and unruly black hair.

In some of the tales the children would be summoned to the door to perform tricks, such as a dance or singing a song to impress upon Santa and Ruprecht that they were indeed good children. Those who performed badly would be beaten soundly by Servant Ruprecht, and those who performed well were given a gift or some treats. Those who preformed badly enough or had committed other misdeeds throughout the year were put into Ruprecht's sack and taken away, variously to Ruprecht’s home in the Black Forest, or to be tossed into a river. In other versions the children must be asleep, and would either awake to find their shoes filled with sweets, coal, or in some cases a stick.

Over time, other customs developed: parents giving kids who misbehaved a stick instead of treats and saying that it was a warning from Nikolaus that, "unless you improve by Christmas day, Nikolaus' black servant Ruprecht would come and beat you with the stick and you wouldn't get any Christmas gifts." Often there would be variations to the particulars idiosyncratic to the individual families.

In some regions, the local priest was informed by the parents about their children's behavior and would then personally visit the homes in the traditional Christian garment and threaten them with rod-beatings.

In parts of Austria, Krampusse, whom local tradition says are Nikolaus's helpers (typically children of poor families), roamed the streets and sledding hills during the festival. They wore black rags and masks, dragging chains behind them, and occasionally hurling them towards children in their way. These Krampusläufe (Krampus runs) still exist, although perhaps less violent than in the past.

In parts of the United States in the 19th century, "Pelznickel" traditions were maintained for a time among immigrants at least as far west as the US state of Indiana. (Link and emphasis mine! pk) In this branch of the tradition, the father or other older male relative was often "busy working outside" or had to see to some matter elsewhere in the house when Pelznickel arrived.

Boy, what those Europeans used to tell the kids! I always wondered where Dad was when Unkle Pelznickel was administering another brutal Yuletide beating.

A terse summation can be found here: "Black Peter is an evil, crippled dwarf who lives in a coal mine."

Nice thumbnails here, and check out this--and this (click Fotos)! Clearly, Krampus runs are kind of a Satanic European tractor pull. Volksy!

Black Peter is also the title of a Sherlock Holmes tale; film director Milos Forman's 1963 debut; and, unfortunately, a song by the Grateful Dead, which resulted in this.

Rotten Dot Com also has an amusing Krampus character summary, likening him to the Norse god Loki, and introduces notions I'm not about to start explaining to Max. ("After all, he had a foot-long red tongue.")

All this, and still no Web rendering of the drawing I clipped from the paper. But I'm beginning to realize our immigrant ancestors left more behind in Europe than persecution and poverty--like snowmobile rallies in Satan masks!

Big thanks to Jim for the tip.