Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1884-12-24
KRIS kINGLE'S MAIL BAG.
Letters Which Little Ones Send to Goo.
Ste Nicholas.

KRIS KINGLE's MAIL BAG.
Letters Which Little Ones Send TO Good
81. Nicholas.
LITTLE GIRL VINO WANTS AN UMBRELLA AND
T00TH-BRUsH-A TALK WITH ST. NICHOLAS
PRIVATE sECRETARY-wHERE THE LETTERS
ADDRESSED TO Kris GO, AND HOW TREY ARE
ANSWERED.
Here's another card for Kris Kingle" said
city post office clerk bringing a postal card
up to the desk of one Of the officials OF the office
with whom STAE reporter was talking. 1t
was a postal card, on which some small boy had
written on one side, evidently with much diff
Guilty, the words kris Kingle" On the other
was the message to Kris Kinsle, printed in big
letters. which, however. ran IN different direc-
lions, now and then colldng with one another
and getting into inextricable confusion. 1t is
not likely Kris kingle will have time this year
to decipher the inscription on the card so as to
know what the little bov wants
DO We get many such letters?" said the Off
cal Eyes a good many come into the Office
Here is one that was dropped into letter box
just as it is now. You see there is no postage
upon it at all. The carrier when he collected
! the letters from the box, brought this in with
him.
The letter or note was written upon what ap-
peared to be a fragment Of blank Sunday
school report. there being spaces on it for re-
cording the number Of Sabbath pupils who were
In attendance. and other information of a SIM
FLAIR Character.
1t was folded. AMI on the outside were
scrawled the words 'Santey Close" The letter
written On the other side was as follows:
WASHINGTON D. C, 1884
Dear SdntPy CloSSe: My farther Is dead and my
mother is poor and 1 want q new pair OF shose and
Stockings and gosmer and umbrella gloves and
tobth DruSh My mother says Will you please
bring her pair shoes for Sunday and pair stockings
for Christmas icose my letter
MAGGIE J. LEE 1o11 18th ST NV
I'VE keep all these letters" continued the
ofncial. ''for a gentleman on Capitol Hill, who.I
believe. answer them.
SANTA CLAUS PRIVATE SECRETARY
The STAR reporter last evening found the
house OF the gentleman, who attends to Santa
Claus correspondence. He was enjoying his
comfort before warm fire, while four rosy
checked, happy looking children, were busly
engaged putting together bits Of colored paper
in odd forms for Christmas decorations
Yes" said the gentleman. laughing good
humoredly, when The STAR reporter told his
mission. II get Santa Claus letters. and do
not object to telling you about it, If you will
not use my name. This is the seventh year that
have been getting the letters. Seven years
ago, noticed in the list Of advertised letters in
! The STAR, letter addressed to Santa Claus
lt struck me some one ought to get the letter
and answer it. applied to the post Office. but
the officials were in doubt whether they had any
right to give it to me. | told them that
was as much Santa Claus as any one, and that
had as much right to the letter as any one
else. They were satisfied, of course, that my
intentions We're good. and finally gave me the
letter. After that, by arrangement all letters so
directed were saved for me. have got great
Zeal of pleasure and amusement out of Them
and think have done some good. too. 1t has
| given me such an interest in Christmas. In
| fact. look forward to Christmas with as mnch
, interest as children do. Some Of these letters
| are very amusing. and some are very pathetic"
what do you do with them?"
| ''ff any address is given I invariably answer
! them, Sometimes | refer the children to their
| fathers or mothers In such a way as to let the
| parents know what they want. If 1t is q case
| that looks az though there was something more
needed than the p!aythings which Santa Claus
cares in his pack l may 60 and visit Them
look up their surroundings a little and maybe
help them in some way.
ALL THE WAY FROM KANSAS.
! last year he continued. Il got a letter
from little Norwegian girl way out in Kansas.
who wrote that she had just heard of Santa
| Claus and would like to know about him. She
| addressed her letter to this city because. sup
pose, she thought this was the capital and
| Santa Claus must make his headquarters here
this little girl. SO far away. who had written to
Santa Claus. and each one contributed some
| thing from their Christmas-ail except my little
girl who had no money. She wanted to send her
best doll. but we would not let her do that. We
bought for the little girl a copy of Hans
Christian Andersen's tales. sent it to the post
| master in town and he delivered it.
SANTA CLAUS Rad NEVER COME.
81 remember another letter." the gentleman
went on, "a very touching little letter from two
little girls-one six and the other eight years
old. They wrote that their father and mother
were Gead that their mother. before she went
to heaven, told them about Santa Claus, but he
had never come to see them. They gave their
| address as South Washington. I looked them
up. and found that they were living with their
grandparents-two very nice old people. 1
called upon them, saw the children, and then
asked the old gentleman If / could see him
alone He took me into another room and
! read the letter to MIN. He called his wife in,
and when she heard the letter she was go
touched that she cried. Well. I need not say that
Santa Claus was very good to those children
after that These old people we're kind. but
had never thought about the matter. They
were in deep sorrow on account of the death Of
their sOn-a sorrow that so overshadOwed every
thing that they did not think of the Christmas
entertainment of these children: II have ac
cOmpshed nothing else by taking an interest
in these letters than to bring these children into
happy relations with Santa Claus am satisfied
with that. l believe the old people, too. find
that Santa Clans brings some happiness to
them.
There WAS one boy up in New York who
wrote that he did not want any skates. or any
sled. but something to read as he was far away
into the country, where he could get nothing to
read. We made him up package Of books out
OF the library and sent him."
How many such letters do you get each
year," asked the reporter
From six to twenty. Some years q great
many more come than in other years. They be-
gin to come in the first week in December. Last
year [ framed a reply, and made hektograph
copies oft. / sent copy to every child whose
| address was furnished. / dated the letter from
the Hartz mountains, in Germany. SO as to keep
up the character l assumed. and stated that
there were so many children to think of that
some might be overlooked; that my pack was
getting SO large that places had been established
In the United States where toys and other things
were deposited; that | had no doubt that if they
consulted their father and mother they could
arrange so as to get the things they wanted;
but If all the articles Of the kind called tor were
gone they could find something else just as
good. OF course, many of the letters receive
contain no addresses, and have no means of
telling where they come from. Here" said the
gentlemen, taking from his desk a packet of
letters, ARE some have recently received"
SOME OF THE LETTERS.
One of these letters had been folded and
dropped into letter-box without postage and
without being incloScd In an envelope On the