The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1877-12-22
SELECTED MATTER.
REAL CHRISTMAS.


The real Christmas of children is {
wonderful thing. 1t is like the Christ
mas of men and women, and yet SO diff
ferent, that the two hardly should beal
the same name.
Most of us grown folk know what oul
Christmas is-that golden fruiting o.
the year when the best that is in us II
pens, and falls into our neighbor' heart
when, all aglow, we plot beautiful trea-
son against those we love most, revel-
ling in sweet deceits and delicious sub
terfuges that pitiful, CHEEKY time when
we can feel the poor shiver and hunger,
and it is quite in the course of things to
help them when the richness of hui
mainly inspires us in our very churches,
if only for that once in all the year
The birthday of the dear Friend and
Healer, no wonder we feel that, with
its dawn, even as the little Child came
to Bethlehem, holy simplicity may
come to us, lighting with love our poor
est places
But, after all, Christmas is a busy,
busy time. There is a kitchen and shop
going accompaniment to the CHEEKY
clasping of hands and shedding of ben
efits. There are matter-of-fact calcula-
tions to be made for this blessed TWEEN
ty-ifth, difficulties and fatigues to en-
counter, in short shall | say it?) a
thousand and one vexing little matters
that are apt to make us confess on the
twenty-sixth we're glad it is over.
All, there is the difference!
The real Christmas has no such trail.
1t hath perfect beginning, wondrous
development, and, at the end, is round
ed off in dreams. The beautiful next
morning, with its recent wealth, opens
Just three hundred and sixty-four days
before next Christmas. Already the
last stands apart-a shining, glorious day,
at which the child-heart can only look
back in wonder.
And what glorifedit? Alittle stock
ing pinned to the chimney SHELF, grow
ing full over night A spray of ever
green stood in a box, poisoning with
toys. If in Holland, a stumpy little
shoe outside of the nursery door, bub-
bling over by morning with precious
things. Or it may be something finer
than these-a beautiful tree reaching
from carpet to ceiling, and quivering
with bounty and light. Whatever it is,
it makes Christmas real, as the Christ
child or Kris Kringle and Santa Claus
are real. If they were not ''true, " how
could the stocking have had that doll or
that cart in it, to say nothing of the can
dies, the picture-books and all the other
things? How could the tree have
had its little candles burning, if the
Christ-child had not lighted them and
rung the silver bell? And how could
every branch be heavy with things that
never grow on evergreens unless the
Christ-child orders it? And how could
eight tiny reindeer prance safely over
the roof-tops with their sleigh, if Santa
Claus were not there in earnest to drive
them? Ah, the children know well
enough what Christmas is
Did you ever notice the marvellous
sophistry with which children cling to
their real Christmas-how they will help
us by wise evasions to make it more real
still, and how, never suspecting, they
yet put searching questions and are sat
ished with answers in any other cause
they would scout Indignantly.
f:Mamma, is Santa Claus very big and
fat p
81 don't know, my boyl perhap.
thinking to make the picture more at
tractive), perhaps he isas thin as papa.
go mamma, knOz0 he isn't. He:
awful fat and he shakes when he Laughs
like a bowlful of jelly. Don't you
know! Why're saaguf big, mamma !
(gleefully.)
eyes, dear"
"And, mamma, he'll come right dow
that chimney Christmas, won't hep"
81 guess SO, dear. =
"Say YES, mamma. OF course he
got to come down the chimney"
Certainly I'll say yes, pet. Ever
one knows Santa Claus does that. 3"
eyes UNI" (quite content.) "But,
mamma When the dirty man put II
the stove looked up the chimney an
it's ever SO little in there-littler tina
! am. There amt hardly any hole ;
all. How can Santa Claus get through?
Here mamma loses her presence (
mind and says "what ?"