The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1899-12-26
DAYS OTHER side
Some Actual Experiences Of
Wichita Men Who
DIDN'T ENJOY CHRISTMAS
Just a Little Part Mud Played
With one Young Man.

Christmas day, with all its joy. does not
succeed always IN making the heart glad.
There are few people in Wichita this
morning who. while they may not be so
desperate as to wish to never see another
return of the day, have registered a SOL
emn vow that next year they will spend
the 18th OF December in Honolulu or the
Philippines.
A few ridiculous incidents, such as make
a man long for the desert waste and sigh
for moments in which he can be alone
in the wide wide world, came under the
observation Of an Eagle reporter yester-
day. They represent the other side Of life
at Christmastime.
One young man, whose name is familiar
IN the city, went shopping Christmas eve
with a heart as merry as merry could
be. He had money to spend, but only
had a vague idea as to what to spend it
for. He wanted TO buy present for his
girl-his real girl He also wanted to buy
a present for his sister. Likewise he de-
sired to buy some presents-eomething
usefuI-for a poor family who lived next
door.
For his sweetheart he naturally expect
ed to find a Jewel Of some description at
the goldsmith store. A charming female
clerk assured him that a ring would be
the proper thing and he struck five
dollar bargain for eleven dollars and fifty
cents He purchased a. package of books
for his sister. He purchased a pair of
pantaloons for the poor neighbor and
He was happy. Life presented no gloomy
aspect for him. There was no cloud In all
his skies He placed small card with
his name and the wish of merry Christ
mas in each package and then called a
messenger boy to deliver the goods.
Here, boy" he said, take this to No
- street and leave IT for Miss --.
Take this to No. - - street and leave
it for my sister, Miss . Take this
to No. - street and leave it for
Mr.. - and his children" The boy left
upon his errand, made glad by the hand
some fee Of one dollar for his labor.
Today that merry-hearted young man
Is a mental wreck. His best friends can
hardly approach him. For him there is
no sunshine The gladness of his life
has been made bitter in a few short
hours. The messenger boy delivered the
books to his sister all right and then
his memory failed him The ring went
to the poor neighbor and the pantaloons
and toys to the best girl.
Another one Of those embarrassing &C
cidents which go to mar the Christmas
festivities happened to a certain married
man whose name IS withheld upon threat /
OF death. He came down town Saturday /
night and purchased for his wife hand |
some jewel case. 1t was wrapped up |
neatly and he put it in his overcoat /
pocket While he was down the street !
a friend called him aside and presented |
him with a bottle Of Bourbon. This was
also neatly Wrapped and he placed it in !
the other overcoat pocket The pack |
ages were Of equal size and difficult to /
distinguish without a label on the out |
side.
Now It happened that at this mans |
house that night there was a gathering /
Of friends and a Christmas tree. It was
almost time for the exercises of distrib- |
uting presents to begin when he reached |
home Hurriedly taking a package from |
his pocket he appended his wife's name |
and had it hung on the tree. The other |
package he took to his room and hid it /
carefully from view. When the present /
was handed his wife from the Christmas /
tree, everybody Of course, demanded TO /
see It, and she, proud IN the knowledge /
that her husband had remembered her, |
proceeded TO unite the mysterious pack |
age. When al last it was unfolded to /
the anxious group-horrors! 1t was the .
bottle OF whisky.
The man may escape a divorce suit,
but he wants no more such experiences. /
He win have to be mighty good for a
whole year to square himself.
Another young man whose home IS be
tween here and Kansas City, but who
has a position in Wichita, bought up a
lot Of presents for his father and mother
and other members Of the family, present
and prospective, and got everything ready
to leave on the Sunday night Missouri |
Pacific train Eor the east at 1910. He .
was ready at o'clock Sunday night. and .
after ordering a hack to come for him
and swearing the hackman by all that
was molly and all the gloom OF a sulphur
Gus hereafter 10 come for him sure and /
not forget TO come at 900, an hour before
train time. he went TO the home Of a
friend on North Emporia for the even
ing The party drifted TO whist and rem
iniscence. the calistheniJs OF placing seal
Ioped oysters and the general good smile
OF Christmas time. The .hackman knew
there was mud on North EmDoria, eight
bloT]Js 81 St to where hA had 10 go for
his patron. He had other orders on other
muddy streets and he dreaded them all
He sat down behind the big stove in the
Manhattan lobby and execrated the bust
ness Of hack driving with the usual pass
ages from profane history. Then he fell
to thinking OF The time when ne was a
boy In knickerbockers and didn't have 70
make hack drives He went on in reverie
and from reverie 10 dream. \ heavy hand
woke him at u o'clock and Vesuvius
never was a marker 10 what happened
there The young man spent the day
here playing whist with a party Of stag
friends after he got the mud Of his feet.
But he was not quite SO embarrassed
and unfortunate as the o,her young man
who, after he had remembered his fam
ily. bought presents for five girls he
knew and sent them away with the COM
forting thought that while his money
was al gone he had gotten around and
had placed gifts every place from where
he was likely to ser presents himself.
He went 70 the postofTice yesterday and
got presents, not from these five. but