Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1895-12-19
A HCinCho Business.

| There is a very singular thing about
| the Christmas-tree man. He works for
! only two weeks in the year. His labor
begins now and ends on Christmas day.
During that time he bargains, dickers,
works and SELLS. When his last tree
is gone he is done with work for another
year There is only ONE Christmas tree
man in the United States who works
during the year. This man is a very
ambitious down-Eastermer, who wants
to make money for a brig family. This
Woodworking man rests from Christmas
day until July. Then be gees to work
again. He buys UP wnternesons and
sells them in town. He is tire go-between
for watermelons in summer, just as he
is for Christmas trees in the winter.
The other Christmas-tree Tren do alb
so1ltely nothing for eleven and Il half
months of the year but wear good clothes.
They dress in excellent taste, own a
books, enjoy their horses and are gem
tEe1nen of leisure. A little before Christ
uras they bestir themselves.
The absolute ''cinch'' Of the Christ
mas-tree man has not passed Wnnoticed
by his fellows. Every year new men
start in to be Christmas tree men, and
every year they fail To be,a Christmas
\ tree man you have got to be- born in
tire business.
Said one of these men a few days ago:
New, young Teller, suppose you are
buying Christmas trees, say down in
Maine You go there and they tell you
the crop is short: that they are only go
/: ing to cut 10000 trees this year; that
! twenty men have been after those trees,
and that they want 40 cents bunch
for them: You look around, Rnd you
can't do any better and your pay it.
When you get back to town the, market
is swamped with trees, and YOU are GLAD
to sell for enough to get your money
back.
'.When l go up there I know those
, fellers well. [ say to them: T'H give
you so much for them trees am YOU can
take it or you can let it alone They
take it,
A Million Trees
One million trees come to, New York
city every year. This is a tree fer each
family, and some to spare.. But each
family. you say, does not have a tree.
This is true, but the churches AND halls
use up enough to make up. Last year
one church bought 1000 trees and cut
them off, using only the tips of the trees.
For the poorer quarters of the city
the Christmas-tree man provides small,
scrubby trees. The big. feathefy ones
he saves for Fifth avenue. The little
trees. ii very poor and scrubby, sell for
nickel. The good ones average s.
apiece.
There is no way of telling whether it
will be good Christmas tree year OF
not. The times do not seer1 material
~ to influence it. Two years ago, in
hard times everybody boaaght little
tree to set off cheap present In pros
porous years they may leave out the
tree and buy something too grand to
need its clarifying influence.
The Wcodmen have an influence upon
tbs. se're years they wiz combine and
snip 50 many secretly to the city that
the price slumps down to nothing. Next
year they get discouraged and will not
chop down trees for love or money.
The Christmas tree is as uncertain to
the Christmas-tree man as Santa Claus
is to the small boy. He knows there
will be something, but whether it will
be enough to keep him happy all the.
year he does not know until the morn
of Christmas day itself.
Clarence S. Russell.