New Ulm weekly review. [volume] (New Ulm, Minn.) 1878-1892, 1888-12-26
TRADITION OF SANTA CLAUS.

TRADlTIONO OF SANTA CLAUS.
Empty and Full Hands, Baskets that are Self
replenishing.
From Harper's Magazine
Merry Christmas to all. and to all,
a good-night!'' These are the
words of the tinkling verses VIII ich
are as familiar and as likely to be en-
during as any lines in our literature.
The man who wrote them is not
counted among our poets, and while
everybody knows the "Visit from ST.
Nicholas" nobody probably can re-
call any other poem of the author.
1t was his good fortune to put into
brisk and melodious form the univer-
sal Christmas feeling and to describe
Santa Claus as the fancy ofchildhood
sees him. The good giver Of gifts is
the true genius of the season. 1t is
a giving which does not invite nor
permit the refnements of philosophy
and speculation upon their spiritual
fitness, but with a generous hand
showers them upon old and young
as the rains descend upon the Just
and unjust. tits the great and af1uent
giving of food and drink and dolls
and toys and all that rejoices the
heart of man or boy.
Yet it is undeniable that this ira
dition of Santa Claus has become
almost as oppressive as it is delight
| full. Santa Claus himself, indeed, has
| the cap of Fortunatus. His baskets
and stores are self-replenishing, and
when he arrives upon the roof the
very gifts for every age and taste
| peer out of his pockets and push
| themselves into his hands, and he
has only to slide down the chimney,
and there are the capacio stockings
eagerly awaiting him and ready to
stretch to the utmost to receive his
gracious largess. Santa Claus is a
happy fellow, as indeed how could
the fountain of such universal hap
piness help being? The Pied Piper
is only one of his DISCUSSES, and if we
| could once catch that dancing der
wish we should find that the merry
music to which all the children caper
is merely the bewitching tale of the
coming gifts at Christmas.
But the disciples of Santa Claus,
his viceroys and substitutes, are very
different from the saint himself. To
| sally forth into Broadway or Four
tenth street or Twenty third street,
New York, with intent to fit yourself
out as a Santa Claus is one of the most
=beWildering of delightful occupations.
A poor book-lover used to say that
the only way to save his money was
| to go into all the book stores, and in
seeing that he could not buy every
thing that he wanted he was recon
ciled to buy nothing. So at Christ
mas the embarrassment of riches
moderates expense, and the gaping
stocking is in danger of going I'M
fed from the very fulness of thepossi-
BILE supply. The fascinated and
confused loiterer, as willing to. buy
one thing as another, and unable to
buy all, stares and admires, and uni
versally desires, and buys nothing.
In the happy enchantment of the
spectacle everything seems to him
fairer and more attractive than any
thing else, and he returns, how often!
jaded, delighted, dazed. with his head
full of fancies and his heart of emo
| lions, but with his hands empty.
The empty-handed, however. are
not all. The full-handed, indeed, are
themselves one of the pleasantest
Christmas spectacles. The satisfac-
ton Of the disciple who hastens
| homeWard conscious that he has Sc
cured what every stocking at his
chimney most desires, is as serene. as
that of the parent bird Winging nest
ward with the plumpest Of worms in
his bill That sweet smile is the
forecast OF childish happiness. The
beaming parental faces glow with the
light Of happy homes. The streets
seem to be full OF hurrying benedic-
tions:
Merry Christmas to all, and to all
a good-night!''
But as we linger along the Christ
mas streets and survey the lavish pro-
fusion ofcostly, or tasteful or useful,
or fanciful devices to charm the gold
and silver from the Wayfarer's purse,
we may well wonder whether Santa
Claus himself, should some mishap5
befall his journey in mid air, and some
OF his fleet team, Dasher or Dancer,
perhaps, Donder or Bitten, should
cast q celestial shoe or trip over a
snowflake, or the whole team shy as
Jack Frost sparkles By whether