Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1896-12-24
THE CHRISTMAS MERRINESS
Where the Joy of One Day is
an Event of a Lifetime.
WEARY ROUTINE OF HUMAN ANTS

WERhf hUUllNE Uf HUMAN RNlO
Twelve-years-oId "Cash" in
Santa Claus Bazaar.
How Good Choer Can be sent Into Youth
fnI nearts-Tbe Folly of Yuietide = The
Bible as a Holiday Gift TO a Child Com
pared to Pretty Toy.
specaloorrespo of Gazette and journal
New York, Dec. Isl make my very
best bow and wish you merry
Christmas. The wish, can assure
you, comes straight from my heart,
for after all what can be better than to
have everybody in the world merry for
one day? You, to whom money means
little, whose pleasures are numerous.
who need scarcely to cypress desire
to have it gratified to you day--one
entire day In the whole year-over-
flowing with merriment seems but
little. And yet, there are people.
thousands Of them, millions of them.
to whom day of joy would mean the
episode Of a lifetime. They are not
people like you-they are tho people
who are really the human ants-carry-
ing burdens larger than themselves.
wonder IL man / saw the other day
over on the East Side will have a
merry time? My friend, he lives in
one room, and in that room at 2
O'Clock in tho afternoon 1t is go dark
that the ul-smelling kerosene lamp
must be lighted. This man is only 30
years old, but he has bent over SOW
ing machine until, judging from his
body, he looks 90. He has wife and
children-thr of them. The poor
always have so many children. And
they love hem-sometimes. Then
there are three men who. come in
every day to sew with him. and the
wife does the finishing. The children
well, they hope that the Oldest boy
will soon be able to help a great deal;
he is years old, and does help little
now, for ne draws out the hastings
What is your 9-years old boy doing
these days? This man and the human
ants who work with him. cannot stop
long enough to be merry, and doubt
il they would know how to be happy.
It's heen such long time since they
thought Of anything but work. But
the mother, we'll, she remembers some
thing about the Divine Child who
came 80 many hundred years ago, and
she has saved lew pennies to buy
some of the queer German candies that
are never soon on Fifth avenue, but
which are sold at very low price over
on the East Side. Christmas is some
thing of bore to you. Suppose to
rid you of ennui you hunt out one of
these hard working ants, relieve him of
his work for the day, and try to teach
him what happiness means; try to
mako him understand by giving him
and his day Of pleasure that the good
will, about which the angels sang, was
meant not only for people like you, but
for the people who work and work aud
| lind little Of joy In anything until the
grave is reached.
| wonder if the girl who worked till
9 o clock Christmas morning to finish
your dinner dress can have merry
Christmas?
| 1t is true you never saw her, per.
sonalIy-it ia the suaye French Madame
who promised you SO positively that
| the gown should be yours at the time
you wished--but there are many ants
needed to give steady, earnest work, to
| put in stitch after stitch before the
beautiful combination of lace and silk
and velvet and ,plumes becomes a
toilette. II is true that holiday is
to be given to the girl who put the
| last stitch in your gown, holiday
which che doesn't accept very gladly,
because a deduction is made in her
wages. How can she be merry and
think OF the angels and Of tho Christ
Child when she will have dollar less
at the end of tho week, while already
it is difficult to feed and clothe berself
on what she gets and be honest. It's
hard to be an ant, bearing an enormous
burden, when you are young and see
beautiful things all around you and
know very we'll that these beautiful
things which arc for other people
would make dainty butterfly OF you.
| It's hard to be merry when you ara
thoroughly tired out and yet, i an
sure that out of her miserable wages
this girl has saved enough money 70
buy trifle for somebody 1t may be
for the girl who runs the errands, for
the poor are SO beautifully thoughtful
OF those othors who are poor also.
Did you ever think that it was not
easy to he merry when you are IL
years old and cash girl in toy shopY
Your heart goes out to the lovely dolls
which you can never possess Your
brain, made quick by the artificial
life you are leading, would conquer
every game that is sold for happier
children to puzzle over. You have 10
inS!viduality-you are simply ''Oash ~
Sometimes this name is yelled out in a
way that makes you shudder. That q
when it comes from the impressive.
looking floor walker. Sometimes it
comes IN gentler tones, for the girls
behind the counter feel sorry for you.
But always it means hurry, hurry, as
fast as you can, or at the end of the
week you will be discharged. "Ah, +"
says some charitable lady, "but each
girl is allowed to have either a toy or
its value 10 money as her present from
the firm" Do you think that the girl
called "Cash" dars take toyf and il
she did, when could she play with it,
Because some ladies fancy shopping
late in the afternoon, the .cash girls
work doesn't end when the store closes,
and tine money that is given to her for
a present cannot be used for merlin nt.
1t either Coca to buy her something
that she needs Grand this is more
than likely-it is absorbed into the
general fund at home. and is that
much more bread and butter.
How can this child be merryP Poor
little ant, already her back is weaken
ing under the burden Look at her
orer-bright eyes, look at her pasty
face, and, when she daTes, how she
does cough! She wonders what it is