The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1896-12-24

az uIolduC UT SOQ0-UlSCduC ITl0uUS.
The rule was for those who had mon
ey enough to spend in purchasing
Christmas cards to send them to all
and sundry whom they knew, even to
their next door neighbors, and to these
with those further removed, the cards
always went by mail. 1t seemed to
be part Of the idea of Christmas card
that it must be delivered by a post
man. Young ladies with plenty OF
time on their hands and liberal sup
ply of pin money at their command,
for several years at that time, used to
do little else for two weeks before
Christmas, than select cards and send
them off and little else for two weeks
after Christmas than discuss with
their friends the cards they got in re-
turn. 1t used to be great sight to
60 into a fashionable drawing room in
those days, in a house where there
we're several daughters, week after
Christmas and see spread around in
every corner of the room or sometimes
suspended in wire frames made for
the purpose, al array of cards, many
of which we're worthy of place in an
art exhibition. I have seen as many
as three or four hundred such cards in
one house.
"Christmas card makers" started up
all over the country and the few men
who happened upon a pattern that
took the public eye, made in one year,
small fortune. Though the sending
of cards was greatly overdone, it was
not devoid of it's mental uses. Young
boys and girls would be brought to
the card store by their parents or nur-
ses, who would stand by until the
children had looked over all the boxes
and had made their own selections.
Ten cent cards, even, such as children
might be directed to select, had artis-
tic points about them which seemed
wonderful considering the price. Thus
the mind of the child or the grown up
girl or boy, under proper direction,
could get in one season, liberal init
alton into the secrets of one of the fine
arts. There is but little doubt but
that some of the young men and
women in Scotland to-day whose
paintings are appearing in the Scot
tish Acadamy can look back to the
time when they went with mother,
nurse or governess to select their first
set of Christmas cards and can mark
that day as the time when they got
their first taste for the brush.
This was evidence in new depart
ure that took place in Christmas cards
two or three years after the craze be-
gan. Cards painted by the persons
who sent them came to be the order
of the day. So as to develope the mind
of the child and save expense also
parents encouraged this with the re,
suit that many young ladies in the
larger cities, daughters of wealthy
men, came by and by to pride them
selves on sending no cards but what
had been painted by their own hand
Many girls who would not touch work
of any other kind, lest it should de-
grade them, went into the business OF
painting Chriatmas cards; occupied
their time at it for a good many
months before Christmas and sold
them to their friends as Chris mas
approached. Though much needless
time and money was spent on card
sending during the five or six years in
which nearly every mind was concern.
ed about this work, there was much
gained in the drawing out of art feat.
ures in the life of many Of whom il
would not otherwise have been known
that they had any art tendencies in
their
But there is nothing that takes hole
of the public mind generally that
lasts very long unless it be something
by which the public generally is to
have as result some adequate com.
pensation. Such compensation was
not found in Christmas cards. Those
who bought them at the stores paid
high prices and those who bought
hand painted cards paid higher prices
The few only painted, while all wish.
ed to buy. When there was nothing
written on the cards the receiver could
keep the stock he received the former
year and, as was often done, send
them out the next year again to others
than those from whom he had receiv-