Birmingham state herald., 1895-12-25
One of the Best, Busiest and
 Brightest Ever Seen.
LOTS OF MONEY WAS SPENT
Great Crowds From the Suburban Towns
 Swell the idaItitudeS of the Magic City,
Tn Birnipgham. Christmas eve!

give the fireworks chance to show off.
 The crowd was largely made up of bundles and suburbautes, but every now and then comes a dapple-gray hobby horse, with flowing mane and tail, or a bicycle or doll carriage big enough for a fieshy baby, or even an evergreen tree, to say nothing of numerous evidences of the despoler of the forest of it's choice growths of holly and mistletoe, all to play important parts in some suburban home on Christmas and lend picturesque sentimental effect to many brilliant home scene on the day itself of the birth that Signalized the sweetest message that ever came to humanity-"Peace on earth, good will toward men,"
 All in all, the processions on the streets and the crowds at the passenger station and the crossings were gay with eagerest enjoyment of the height of the season, and especially the balm breathing atmoS- phere. The dark attire of not a few are enlYened with the deep green of holly wreathS which they carry on their arms, as well as by the multi-colored, vari- shaped packages that come from the Bir- mingham stores. So great grew the hol- iday trade that merchants would not un- dertake to deliver goods, and begged E<buyers to take their purchases with them.
 With this Christmas season at the un- ion passenger station the crowd is enor- nous and the hurry and hustle bewilder- ing. The Incoming throngS all day long in the aggregate were many times larger than on ordinary occasions and after it. has completed it's round of the shopping district and has started home it is so large that you are fain to wonder if you will not hear of numerous accidents. During the thickest of the struggle the tile floor of the handsome waiting room is almost hidden from view by bundles. In the middle of them stand their care burdened owners. Some of them have young babies with them. Sometimes it is not easy to tell by a simple look whether the bundle is alive or not. Many. are staggering under and tumbling oyer bundles The lOng-suffering, ratiebt3 railway employees have to wind their wfy to inexora ble duty through. these coh- glomerations of folks and bundles abd look in mild astonishment. like ancient martyrs whose features are scarce seen for the smoke from flaming faggots, looking on their prosecutors as some great auto da fe," when the folks com rlain and protest about slow accommo- dations and delayed trains.
 Inside the cars the matter grows ser1- ous. A rocking horse and a patrol wag- on comfortably fill the places of four or five passengers who have jugs to carry, and of some, sad to say, who have jags to rest This has been typical of all the roads that merge into the union station. ever since the middle of last week. The railway men tell you that 1t takes much longer to fill the train during the gift buying rush than at any other time of the year. More time is also consumed in the stops. because of the time consumed by passengers in gathering up their goods, and then, too, the railroad men have sympathetic hearts and they would not see anything marred or broken that may rejoice the heart of some eXpectant tot So. it is--the runs must be slow ond the lime table broken,
 The processions have begun early in the morning and until deep twilight have constantly filled First and Second ave nues You note now and then some of the old bankers and money-changers looking out of doors with faces lighted with unwonted expressions of pleasure. They observe that all is going well, that people are spending lots of money and merchant depositors bid fair to keep their bank accounts on the right side of the books
 But just look at those crowds trying to get on the East Lake dummy! There a poor loaded, fat woman, with five load ed chubby children trailing after her She has six bundles and two wreaths of holly, and she is perspiring as though she were in Turkish bath. Another has four little ones and more packages, ahd another similarly situated has an escort who carries a dressed turkey for dinner today.
 There are the unmistakable bright faces of college girls and college boys, home for the holidays and here and there you note a handsome cadet cutting his par tial martial eye at some 'steen-year-old coQuette.
 A group of negroes are talking at a cor ner, and you are struck by something one of them sententiously remarks to his companions. It is: "Who. me? ain had time ter look at nothin'. jes' got out O jail today" Then you wonder if the pris- ons will not today give the sweet boon of liberty to others.
 And you are going on working yourself into. oh so gentle Christian feelings of charity to all mankind and wishing it were in your. power to make glad and bright every stricken, darkened soul, whether it's blight came from sin, crime or cause updeseryed;. you are feeling all kindness to your. brothers everywhere, when your entire Christmas stock of piety is suddenly destroyed by some dod- gasted galoot exploding a cannon cracker between your Tiilbies. A small crowd of iunaties pro tenn. fendishly howl at you. and you say to them with with erinsIi glance as you see them preparing to blow up another dreamer; "A fool and his fire works are soon busted"
 Speaking of fireworks. there never was anything like the amount of festive ok plosives sold and burned as made bust ness and devilment in Birmingham this Christmas. The ordinary dealers in pyro" technics had competition on all sides with merchants of all sorts. including even druggists. who had invested in the noisy oombustibles as a side line specliaa4 ton. -
 So much for the looks of things on the streets Inside the houses affairs were equally animated. and by bed time last night merchants and clerks must have been a dead tired"-set. But of all wto- had to answer with quick wits and ther hardest sort of toll to the exigencies of the holiday season. none must have en' dured so much or accomplished so much al the handlers of freight, baggage and express packages. They must see to unprecedented numbers of stuff in all kinds of shapes. going and coming. and to them the sweetest time of Christmas must be bed time, -whan at last 1t does come.
 Aftersall. 1t Is a jolly. good Christmas