Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1892-12-25
SANTA CLAUS SNOWBOUND.


Ella Wheeler Wilcox Tells How One of Her
Ealy Christmases Came Near Being a
disappointment A Brothers Sscrifice-
Watching the Beautiful Drifts.
The holiday season recalls to me one
Christmas morning in my childhood, when
1 mad attained about my seventh year. L
was n devout believer in Santa Claus, or
st Nicholas, " as I was taught to call the
dear myth. He had never been munif-
Gently liberal with me, but he had brought
me each year many necessities, in the way
of new dress, apron, hood and mittens,
with one or two luxuries like bright col
ored picture book, toy, a doll or a stick OF
candy.
As many as possible of these gifts were
stuffed into my expectant stocking, and the
remainder were arranged about it, usually
presenting quite an array.
do not recollect that ever received
gift at any other time of the year, and my
anticipations of Xmas were naturally large
ones On this particular winter there had
been an unusual fall Of snow. A few days
before Christmas heavy storm set in and
the snow fell incessantly, rendering the
Wisconsin prairie roads impossible. My
! brother, who had been planning trip to
town, IA miles distant, to obtain family sup
plies, was obliged to abandon the idea, as
no vehicle or team could brest the huge
drifts.
began TO worry about the arrival of
est Nicholas" l believed that he Jour
neyed about in his sleigh drawn by rein
deers, and L feared the blockade might in
convenience MIN. To NV CONSERVATION
my mother expressed similar doubts when
1 mentioned the matter She said she
feared he would find the roads impossible,
and hoped would be reasonable if such
proved to be the case. But l found it i'm
possible to be reasonable even in con-
temptation of such a disaster. 1 talked of
nothing else. l watched the still falling
snow through tears, and questioned each
grown member of the family concerning
the probability of S.. Nicholas detention a
score of times day. The morning preced-
ing Christmas the weather cleared, but
came off sharp and cold. The drifts were
above the window sills on the west and
north sides of the house.
L stood in chair and gazed over wide ex-
panses of snow, stretching away and away,
like white seas with DRIFT billows Here
and there. widely scattered, distant Chin
Not a team passed the whole day. One or
two neighbors climbed over the cresting
tops of the drifts and hailed each other like
shipwrecked mariners, saying how impass-
able the roads were My disappointment
increased with the hours. As night fell
pressed my face against the window pane
and peered into the darkness and listened.
hoped against reason to hear the jangle
OF approaching bells. With the falling of
night my mother had grown hopeful and en-
cou-aging. She said 1t might be possible
that st. Nicholas would come on foot She
had heard of his doing so in few instances.
Of course, in such cases he brought very
few gifts, but he was expected to keep his
yearly engagements by leaving some small
token.
retired to my bed, cheered by this faint
hope. 1 hung up my stocking, as usual,
and tried to keep my eyes and ears open to
listen for the sound of st. Nicholas foot
steps, but was soon sound asleep.
lawoke early, sad, sitting up in bed, I
glanced eagerly at my stocking. 1t hung
on the nail seemingly as limp as when 1
placed it there. My heart sank in my
breast. There was no array of parcels on
the floor as in former years. ST. Nicholas
had not come.
arose with tears in my eyes and lump
IN my throat and began to make my toilet
The day doomed before me, long and lonely.
had drawn on one stocking and reached to
take the other from the nail when lol
something hard lay within it, and there
was a brilliantly illustrated copy of "John
Gilpin's Ride" rolled about stick of candy
the barber pole candy that to-day looks
more inviting to me than all tine tempting
boxes of Huyler or Tenny.
St Nicholas came after ali Then, az I
continued with nv toilet lipht-hearted and
joyous, found that the old stubbed-out