The daily morning journal and courier., 1897-12-24
READY FOE cHRIsrMAs.

Preparations for the Holiday in the City.
 Once again the old City of Films is on the eve of Merry Christmas. The spirit of Christmas has been lowering over the town for several weeks, and now every one is prepared to make the most of the great Christian fete day. Printers ink is by far too black to eX- press the feelings and emotions of the boys and girls. Johnny thinks 1t Is al- most as good as the Fourth of July, and Jennie thinks it is better. The storekeepers are getting some good substantial enjoyment out of the hoi- day season, too. It is they who are reaping the rich harvest of the hoarded earnings and incomes of the people for the past twelve months. They are shrewd fellows, the most of them. By all the varied means known to them, by unique, in some instances artistic, show window displays of their choicest wares, they have lured the economical out of their economy and sent them home with luxuries instead of lucre. This art of attracting customers has been worked to its utmost limit, one would say. The butcher, the baker and all the other purveyors to gastronomy have made such appetizing displays of their wares that it has come to be the | concensus of opinion that three meals day are wholly insufficient.
 The grocers have shaken and picked, 1t would seem, every kind of tree bush and vine known to the human race and !. piled their fruit and nuts in large mounds before their stores-a constant temptation to lead the small and big boy alike in the way of indigestion The confectioner is particeps criminis with his neighbors. What, with windows filled with sweets, tempting arrays of glucose and sugar made up into all the | conceivable forms of flowers, fruits and animals known to men, angels and gods, who wouldn't be tempted?
 The dry goods dealers as usual set 1 their caps for the ladies and as usual | they captured the most of that charm | ing portion of the city's population. | They have made every woman misera- ble and happy-miserable because there were so many desirable things from which to select, and happy when they | have selected in having found just the | thing" There's everything in a dry l goods store during the holiday season. | from the child's rattle to the prayer book of the age. Evidently the author of there's nothing new under the sun" had never visited dry goods store in the closing days of December.
 The jewellers, furniture men, hard ware dealers, clothiers, milliners and all the other traders which society is heir to have also kept their eyes open for | business these days and found it, the most of them, too. Stores and store keepers would not be much without crowds of buyers and these have been both eager and constant.
 The crowds are all imbued with the air of mystery and anticipation which so marks crowds at the approach of the holidays. Carrying packages and bun | dies has actually become fashionable again, almost a fad Some carry sev- eral at time-of such curious shapes some of them-and then handbag of goodly size is also full of Christmas day mysteries, no doubt.
 The weather has not been all that the | very fastidious could wish. There has been trif1e too much malaria and grir to the square inch of atmosphere tC give real aesthetic finish to the joy and merriment of the occasion. Now that Weather Observer Myers has pur. chased his Christmas presents he vii
 doubtless be more judicious in his se
 lection of suitable weather. After all coasting, skating and sleighing are but few of the ingredients of Merry Christmas. We shall get along nicely without them-if we have to.
 On the whole, it would seem that New Haven ought to be very happy to-mor
 row. The cream and the skim milk O.
 it's society, not widely distinguished
 have made up the crowds of gift buy
 CTS. From Johnny and Jerry to grand
 pa and grandma, from Hillhouse ave
 nue to Oak street, every one seems tt
 have been provided for. If any hay,
 not let them speak out in meeting.
 The ministers have sermonized tn
 people on the duty of giving; the doc
 tors have felt their pulses to see if the!
 were in proper state for receiving
 the merchants have had their whacl
 at them, and now it only remains fo
 the Santa Clauses to get in their worl
 and for the people themselves to have
 Mery Christmas. Let Santa Claus d.
 his full duty. Let all be merry.
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