The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1891-12-23
4 MAD CHRISTMAS
BY E. PHILLIPS oPPENHErM.

If there is one thing more than another
when a bachelor commences to doubt
whether his state of single b~lessedness is
the most desirable form of existence it is
at Christmas time. The joys of the sea-
son are essentially domestic joys; and
every one is either looking forward to
convivial meetings with a circle of rela-
'tions and friends or a happy reunion
with his own family. at such a time a
middle-aged bachelor with no relations
feels rather out of it.
Now, although I must plead guilty to
ten years of bachelorhood, I never was
one of the misanthropical type. I was
single (observe the past tense) not from
principle, but merely from force of cir
cumstances, and I wa addicted to
shutting myself up with my books and a
cat, and growing cynical remarks at the
pleasure seeking world. On the con-
trary, I am of a somewhat jovial DISPOSE
ton, and was always fond of society.
Christmas time liked to spend at a jolly
country house, and could turn my mind
to charades, dancing, rompiug with the
villagers or children, >conjuring and
many other accomplishments. In fact,
I may say with fine modesty that I once
heard myself described by a couatry
hostess as an s'extremely useful sort Of
man."
The idea of spending Christmas in any
1olsforr ~N1poo NTH nnlu MN 1onH1o6u
and her domestic to talk to was a con-
tingency which I had never contem-
plated for a moment; but last year I
was very nearly brought face to face
with it. I generally had at least two or
three invitations to select from, and
chose the one where I should be likely
to meet the most interesting set of
people; but on this occasion my usual
invitations did not arrive. The Har-
woods, with whom I had spent the
Christmas before, had lost a child, and
were in mourning; the Houldens were
wintering at Nice (Mrs. Houlden was
delicate) and at Houghtop Grange both
the girls were married, and the Christ
mas house parties were things of the
past. These were my stock invitation;
and as I recollected others among my
circle of acquaintance to whom some
thing or other had happened since last
year it slowly dawned upon me that if
I desired to avoid q Christmas in Lon
don I had better make arrangements to
remove myself either to a northern by
dropathic establishment which I had
occasionally honored with my presence,
or to a Brighton hotel, where 1 was sure
of falling in with some pleasant COM
pany. just as I had arrived at this
melancholy decision, however, a letter
arrived which afforded me the greatest
satisfaction. 1t was an invitation to
spend a week or two with my old friend,
Fred Halleton, at his place in Leicester
shire; and with the vivid recollection
before me of a pleasant Christmas spent
at Gaulby Hall some three years ago. I
lost no time in penning a cordial assent
to the welcome invitation. A few days
later beheld me, followed by a porter
carrying my various impediments, on the
platform Of St. Pancras, prepared to
make my journey down to Leicester by
the half-past three Manchester and Liv-
erpool express. The Pullman was
crowded with a pack of noisy school
boys, so I eschewed it and selected an
empty frst-class carriage. I took pos
session of my %favorite orn seat, with