Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1894-12-25
ON CHRISTMAS MORN.
Santa Claus Forgot 10 FIJI the Stocking
Of "BanSo," the Dog.
THE CANINE WEFY And WALLED.
Rat and Other Tricks-A Real
Richmond Story.


resounded throughout the city. The blasts
| from the horns of irrepressible small boys
| disturbed the very foundations Of the
| town. The joyous yells OF children, roiiick-
| ing through the snow, with new seds ana
skates, and divers other contrivances, CAL
| culated TO increase the price OF cough
syrup. and cause their paternal relatives
sleepless nights, heralded to the COM
munity that Christmas was at hand.
| Christmas. with all Of Its environments
| its joys, It's surprises. its wealth Of merri-
ment, and its variety of memories, tender
and dear, Its glorious significance-was
| here in old Richmond. 1t was typical
| day for the festival, and 1t seemed as
| II everybody in town had made abundant
| preparation to participate in the grand
| celebration. Santa Clauses of various ana
| sundry proportions and financial and So
| clal bearings in the vicinity had provided
| a most unusual assortment OF novelties
| and fancy things for the good children
| and for number who would never De
| prize-winners in Sunday-school contest
| and, as i have before stated. everything
| was propitious for the day.
Away over into the fertile fields OF Ches-
| terrified, and up and down the undulatlng
| hills of Henrico as far as the eye could
reach Dame Nature had on the evening
| before spread a beautiful coverlet OF
white. The snow was about knee-deep
| In many places. and it looked so pure
| and lovely that II seemed a pity to desc
| crate it's immaculate beauty 1t was the
most ideal Christmas-day / ever saw
| Everybody and everything appeared TO
| be happy, and there was manifest every
where a sort of Wont you join me this
time. old boy?" feeling. and people were
doing all manner Of things just to make
themselves nice TO other folks. 1t is Won
derful how people who stay at home
and never look at fellow Tor three
hundred and sixty-four days in year
will come out on the three hundred ana
sxty-fifth and take up with man ana
almost make one believe that there is
n certain degree of affiliation among men
even on this earth-which degree, In q
great many instances. is the day TO when
I have already made reference. once
knew n fellow who worked as nara as
the mischief all the year and would not
think of being at all nice to anybody
but who. when Christmas would come
around. would have about twenty-five or
thirty OF the best fellows In town TO so
nm 10 his house, and he would then put
,ho bip not in the little one and-they
wouldn't have n speck Of fun. Another
gentleman of my acquaintance Is as per-
verse as he can be. He VIII go Out on
miniature "jags" a number OF tunes
during the year and will celebrate the
most commonplace and uninteresting OF
DAYS lust as though they were fourtns
Of Julv." but on Christmas he won
touch a drop. or engage In DIT VI
hilarity. $500, door
reader III YOU are Of the sterner sex)' the
eccentrcty Of human nature. =,
ON the Christmas morning TO when l
have made brief reference there occurs
in a home in this city an incident Which
has stamped itself upon my not always
unapDreciative Imagination. No DOUBT
many Of YOU have read the patneuc
little definition of true love- as gwen
bv n bachelor who owned Il doB' MHo
vben he ran to greet his master and 10
caress him for returning nome was sdiu
not TO have had his mind hXed upon d
sealskn sacque or an SIS bonnet WI
the canine who Is the nero OF thls
story never saw sealskin sacque pIor
babiv because the Canadians have been
catching all the seals lately and they are
not fashionable down here any more put
he had tasted Of Huyler's bon-Dons anu y,
Maillard's CONNECTIONS, and mad ehJoEeu
all TO himself a tin snappnS-turue WIN
a string to it, and many other Things III
fact for many years Bango which WaS
tic name. had been treated as a member
of the family--he was the pet OF III,
community because OF the beauty anu
GRACE Of his languor and Indifference
and because Of the peculiar uhshapehheaS
Of his short. thick, and crlnKieu IA'I'
Many Christmases he had occupied
nosition second TO none In That househoii,
q
and he held a high head among terrleio
and "fces" Of the neghborhood' IN conse
ruence Of the distinction when ne naH
had thrust upon him. When his fourth
,Jrtbd,v arrived his mistress gave him
Marty and he had cake and four can
dlns and celebrated the event in ntting
opd annropriate style. on this Christmas
morning. as he had done upon many other
such occasions, Bango, In all MS canine
iubllance sprang from his own ped anu
rushed with the children. or whom 'here
vere four. into the mothers room, where
the stockings were hanging, hlled WIN
the good and pretty things santa IlauS
had provided. Even as tho niue ohes can
ternd eaIly toward the firesde, which was
,heiy GOAL for that day, the pugnacious
mig ventured TO enliven the scene Dy
ia rlsinp three times as loud as ne
could His crinkled tail wagged viva
cIouslv and his little feet pattereu
more spryly upon the carpets ana TUGS
than they had for many years. me
children rushed into the room, where oiu
Santa had planned the happiness OF 'ne
hearts Of the young. and each one uasneu
for his or her own stocking, which hune
ont in bold relief under the glare OF the
morning sunlight.
But. alasl There were only TOUR ar'C,eS
Of hosiery hanging around that hres'ue.
Poor Bango saw II. The others Were
bepnv. they had all been remembered
hut he had not Sensible pug that ne
was. he felt the slight Tremendously;
For seven long years Santa Claus hau
brought to him stocking hiled 70 .ne
Trim and now, in his old age. he was
forsalen .'Bango" was unhappy lie
could not imagine what evil he had done
10 bring such reproach upon himseh:
He had chewed the ends OF no co"S
tails in a month: neither had ne lurheu
over the pitcher of milk. or broken n
fower-pot. In an uncertain anu iheu'
tative way he tossed his head from one
side 10 the other, and scanned WIN pls
big CLASSY eyes every part OF ,ult I'mn'
MI there was no stocking for him. linen.
uitb his crinAled tail closely drawn 10
his bodv. he skunk OFT into the hallway-
ord went He hal, indeed. been Tor
gctten. but his walls and means reacheu
his masters cars. ard he, remembering
not no had not hlie1 the inSeniousiy I'M
revised stocking of Bango, bounded from
he nod got the article referred 10. ana
tro,r a small reserve fund left behind by
ola 81 Nick. he stuffed the quaint con
,r,vance full of confsctions ana rP'
and nut therein az we'll small rupber
ball and candy rat. ,
with Bango's stocking thusly pre-
nared and hung upon the wall the Weep
,,g canine was called into the apart
,nent His distorted orbs were not long
IN resting upon his familiar piece or
boslery-the only piece he ever possessed
and with a happy bound through the air
80 se,zed II between his teeth. He was
de,,phted and manifested his great pleas
ure nv Jumping and racing around the
room with the stocking In his mouth,
smiling the goodies as he went. HIS
heart leaned for Joy when he finally shook
the aggregated rodent from the little
sock with vicious though unmeaning
srarls. he first would shake and snap
at the rat and then stand on about
foot as though he were a dray mule try
ING 10 back In load OF coal, and then
again he would tackle what was then
the object of his souls delight. And
while all this was going on four other
creatures PLAYED with and caressed dolls
and rode hobby-horses and the like. and
the golden rays OF crisp December
sun came through the east window and
,to 81, Of N y