The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1889-12-22

ter over, and then concluded that we
ought TO be kicked. We resolved our
selves into a committee of the whole, rati-
fed the ungenial conclusion, and appointed
each other committees OF one to do the
kicking physical kicking, mind you,
ailopathically administered-and the work
4 began. Joe told me TO kick first. That's
where he had me, for after had kicked
him, he had q standard of force to guide
him, AID he used it. think he must have
kicked about three times as hard as / did,
| bat he says he didn't All know about il
is that remembered the kick when / sat
| down TO my Christmas dinner a few days
| later. There's Christmas story" and he
disappeared into a committee room"
Congressman John b. Farquhar of New
| York, whose impertnrbable GOODNESS made
| him prominent in real battle, aud now
stands him in good stead on the floor of the
House. is too much of a soldier yet to let
| Renaissance carry him further back than
the camp fires of the late war. sit was the
Christmas of 1863 that stands out most
boldly in my memory" says Mr.. Farquhar,
land was the toughest Christmas that
ever experienced. We were just outside
Nashville, and it was Just before the battle
of Murfreesboro. The weather was SO cold
that the thermometer gave up work in dis
gust, and we had not he'd very much to eat,
but had done plenty Of hard work during the
week Christmas eve we slept very little and
early Christmas morning were ordered to
the front. We were skirmishiug, and the
suffers camp and the comniss lry depart
ment were too far behind us for any use or
comfort Toward evening, Christmas
evening, we struck the old Franklin Pike
road and halted. Every man constituted
himself foraging party, and started out
to see what ne could find TO eat, but alas
bad INV
both armies many times before, and
there was but little to be had. Now
did you ever see a Tennessee hog?
Well it has been described as half a
hog. with bristles on both sides, and four
feet. They are so thin that they cut the
atmosphere. The party went out with
returned empty-handed. So did most of
the others, but one crowd brought in pair
OF shoats or young pigs They were not old
enough to have run themselves absolutely
narrow, and we counted on having a fair
meal out of the two, when an orderly from
headquarters, where tue story of the
find had gone, came along and car
rled off one of the shoats. In anx-
ious fear lest something should
deprive US Of the other, we put 1t over the
fire, and had it sizzling in no time That
one little pig did duty for Christmas
dinner for our entire company of hungry,
WORKOUT men, whose only dessert was
memories Of past Christmas dinners, and
over those thoughts they smacked their
lips, and laid down to sleep on the ground
aud dream of a Christmas at home AS
for the dinner, it was verify whole hog or
none"
William E. Mason of Chicago, surnamed
"Billy" by all his friends and colleagues on
the floor of the House of Representatives.
was elected first to the Fiftisth congress,
and i'll one term made an undying reputa-
ton as "story-teller" ''Billy Mason
never tells a story about himself when
the joke is in the subject said Amos
j. Cummings-but at that time Mr..
Cummings had not heard this Christmas
story of the Illinois congressman. at
was when l was a boy at school in
Bentonsport, Ia.," says Mr.. Mason, land
for the weakness of youth | humbly ask
pardon. Being boy, I was in love, or
thought was, which, to the boy, amounted
to the same thing. She was just as pretty
as picture, and knew it, and l thought
that everything she did was Just the sweet
est thing daughter of Eve could do under
the circumstances. There was but one draw
back to the whole matter. She lived about
two miles out of town. Well, one Christmas
eve l started out to see her on the
meanest tempered little pony that
ever ran unshod. That pony is re-
sponsible for many of my pessimistic ideas.
There was about two feet of snow on the
ground. and my fair one lived in a big
house, set in the center of a five-acre pas
ture or park, as they would call il now.
The house itself was surrounded by little
white fence, and to this tied the pony
when l went into the bright, warm parlor
where she sat- just what said or did has
nothing to do with this story. About II
O'Clock started TO say good night, and
at about 1850 had said it and walked out
to where left the pony. The bride hung
limp and snow-covered from the picket,
but the pony was evidently exploring
that ive-acre lot. | started on his trail,
and by the time my boots were full of water
and myself almost frozen l caught sight of
the pony. He saw me at the time, and
trotted unconcernedly off to a valley about
quarter of a mile away it seemed. | fol-
lowed. In fact, | followed that mean little
pony around that place through two feet of
snow for nearly two mortal hours. Then
stopped and went back 80 the house. |
rang to ask for assistance in catching the
pony, and to my horror my sweet
heart answered the ring-as she was
present. designed, as | afterward discov-
cred, for another fellow. | told my story
pathetically, as | thought, and she heard it
with shrieks of laughter. That settled it. |
had been cold, but then was warmed with
righteous Indignation, and [ turned from
the door and walked home through two
miles of snow. The next day boy brought
the pony home with note. l kept the
pony and sent the note back unopened.
That, think, was about the coolest Christ
mas morning ever knew"
Among the most epigrammatic Christmas
stories told by members of congress is that
of Gen. Francis B. Spinola of New York
city, who says: "Christmas was as pleasant
TO me when | made 70 cents day as an
assistant to blacksmith. or 81 day work
ing on the docks of New York city, as it is
now. They ara all SO happy that l cannot
make any distinction. l never had an un-
happy one" The Rev. J. c. Milburn, the
blind chaplain of the House of Represent
atives, told a story that sounded like q
peaceful benediction when he said: "Christ-
mas should mean to us all just what the
angels sang to the shepherds, Peace on
earth, goodwill to men, and from year to
year we feel the depth of the sentiment, or
have failed t. live.n MCC. LINGAN,