The Newberry herald and news. (Newberry, S.C.) 1884-1903, 1893-12-27
ARP has TEg GRIP.
But He Talks OF How Christmas Should
be Spent. a Season When People
Should Give.
ATLANTA Constitution.1

TAtlanta Constitution
Only a week until Christmas-the
day of hailowed memories-the day Of
peace on earth and good will to men,
and especially to women and children.
The day of firecrackers aud fuss for
boys, and dolls and dainty things for
the girls. The day when everybody
ought to smother their troubles and try
to make all around them happy. Sell
fisbness is sin at all times, especially
] on Christmas, and so let US all open our
/ hearts, and if we have nothing else to
give to Others, let US give our smiles
and benedictiops. We are all poor now
poor in purse, but love and good will
cost nothing ard there are many ways
| of showing it besides making presents
that we cannot afford to buy. see my
folks working over their scraps OF silk
and lace and stufhng home made dolls
making cravats and hemstitchlng
haudkerchiefs, and doing some other
| things Oh the sly just for little tokens
and surprises, but we will have 10
Christmas tree this time. When W. 8
in my teens we had debating society,
and one of the favorite questions was
lis there such a thing as disipteresteG
benevolence?" was for the affirmative
then and am for it yet. With many
people know that it is more blessed to
give tnan 70 receive, and it is a comfort
| 10 me TO believe that am one of them.
Sometimes I wish that was rich just
to have the pleasure and the fun of
helping the unfortunate. l would like
to 60 about in disguise as King Rupert
did and look in upon the huts and
haunts of poverty by night, and see
their wants and miseries, and send
round my charity wagons next morn-
ing and make them happy for few
days, if no more. l would like to follow
the wagons along and linger at the
doors and see tie eager-wonderipg
faces of the children as the good things
were handed out. ] would have some
thing good to eat aud good shoes ana
stockings and blankets and quilts and
SOAP and towels and few simple med
icines and some secondhand books
with pictures in them. l would raise
the family up for week OF so any how
and leave my card, From friend who
wishes you we'll and begs you to look
up and not down. Be true man and
true woman and raise your children
to be good and happy. Don't despair
Yes, I have at times had just such
utopian dreams as that, but will never
be rich, and it is all right Iknow-hest
for me and best for the children. Old
Agur's prayer was put in the good book
for good purpose. Solomon was trusted
with riches but be came to grief. We
have scores of miIlionaires in our day,
but the Peter Coopers and Peabodys
are few and far between. Most or them
hold on with selfish grip until they
die, and even then they let go unwlii-
ingly and would take their treasures
with them if they could. I knew a
rich man who would never make a
straight out deed to piece of land
when he sold it, but would only convey
lt by lease to last s'as long as trees
grew and rivers ram" He actually.
claimed a reversionary interest in every
acre that he sold, and seemed to
imagine that he would get it all back
some day. If the time ever comes when
there shall be new heaven and new
earth, Pm afraid be can't locate his
boundaries.
We have got the grip at our house.
The worst thing about this new tangled
disease is its depressing influence upon
ouremations. [ don't feel like doing
anything, or saying anything or writ
ing anything. / feel blue and have.
lost my hilarity, and so we have con-
cluded to go to Florida for season..
We will divide the family. Four OF US
will go to Clearwater Harbor, on the
gulf coast, and bathe in the salt Water
and breathe the salt air, and We will
fish and eat oysters and oranges until
we get well. Board is very cheap there.
and will radiate around to the Eeauti-
ful little town aud mix with the yam
kees and sell my talk for more than it
is worth at home. have long wished
that they knew us as we'll as We did
them and / want fair chance to tell
them some things that they do not
know. am now calm and serene and
won't quarrel with anybody nor hurt
their feelings, but it's relief to man
to express his sentiments. [ have re-
Gently written little book-a history
of Georgia, and was just obliged to
give history Of the late war and who
was to blame for it-ootbing to exten-
uate or set down aught in malice, but
had time Of it with my publishers.
CHM & Co., are Boston men. They are
Burker Hill Yankees and love their
fatherland with its glorious memories
which is all right, ofcourse. Patriotism
is to be admired everywhere. They
sengag- d me 10 write a school history
Of Georgia and when they perused my
manuscript and got to that part about
the causes of the war, they were sur
prised and shocked and wrote to me to
know where I got all that. | had writ
ten that England never freed her slaves
until 1S43-only seventeen years be-
fore the late war, and bad TO prove 1t
before they would go on with the book:
I had written that Massachusetts, carried
on the slave trade for year: after their
own slaves were freed, and L had TO
prove that. They bad never heard that
General Grant was elave owner up TO
Lincoln's proclamation. They denied
uany things and required proof, for, OF
course, they felt responsible for the
book. They even felt a sind OF reVe-
renee for old John Brown, for theyeare
Young men who have grown up since
the war and had never read but one
ride, and that was their side. But
! had my way and my say, and estab,,
lisbed what I asserted and l found
! them to be reasonable and courteous
gentlemen in all Of our correspondence
| had the advantage in age aud memo
rv. A good friend said that | should
! have got Georgia publisher. Ot course
| 7 wonld have preferred that but no
Georgia publisher would have paid me
as we'll for my work. No Georgia pub.
Usher would have given away 1,e0O
copies to editors and school boards. No
! Georgia house would have done such
! good work for the retail price of 90
cents, Boston can beat US in book
making and book-pushing, and our
publishing houses had better take les
sons from them. I have tried both.
This reminds ME of old Squire McGln-
mis-, ofour county, who, way before the
war, ruled "GreeIeaf on Evidence" out
; of his court because it was published 10
! Roston. But the war is over and the