Omaha daily bee., 1899-12-24
TALES OF YANKEE ENCHANTMFNT.
FIFTY A LOADS OF CHRISTMAS SNOW.
BY Charles Battell Loomis.


Copyright. 1899, by Charles Battell 1oomisl
Roderlck Dawson lived In that part of the
United States where the mercury never gets
lower than so and where snow is so entirely
unknown that the very word has dropped out
OF the local Dictionaries. Rain they have
and plenty Of it,, but they wouldn't know
snow II they saw 1t.
When Roderick was II years old he wac
invited to visit his cousin, Frank Parsons. Of
Loudon Hill. Now, for six months of the
year they have snow every day at Laudou
Hill. II comes in the shape OF a buster of n
storm on November l and stays until May /,
when the sun melts 1t and it all goes off in
a freshet and does a lot OF damage to people
living below Loudon Hin. But, as water has
never formed the pernicious habit OF running
up hill, the Loudon Hillites are always safe
1t was the middle Of November when
RodeTick was driven from the train up to
the Parsons house and Of course there was
snow everywhere and his delight at moving
smoothly along on runners was something to
make a northern child wonder.
Didn't you ever see this before 20 asked
Frank.
why, no. Does it really come from the
sky, as you said?
"of course it does. My, but you're green!
Why, what do you do with your sleds down
there?'
"Sleds? What's that" asked Roderick,
innocently. and Frank concluded that he was
not quite bright. But he never made a
greater mistake in his life, as he soon found
out, for Roderick was as smart as any boy
OF his age and when he had learned all the
uses Of snow he wasn't behind any of the
boys in applying his knowledge. To be hit
In the eye by a snow ball of his propelling
hurt inst 10 much oa n bn hnd lnnu,n ,Lon.
snow all his life.
But as II happened, he never connected
snow with cold. He supposed that snow was
a peculiar kind of white dust that came from
the sky and If they didn't have it in Tara
poosa parish why there were lots of other
things that were peculiar to the north. SO he
accepted snow as a curious but none the
less delightful fact.
He stood the cold weather very we'll for a
southern boy and indeed sometimes went
without an overcoat when his playmates
were wearing both coats and comforters.
Roderick was a generous little fellow and
he often thought what a source of delight
1t would be to his old playGna tes OF the south
II they could have snow in which to play and
build forts and caves and down which to
coast, and in one of his letters home to his
brother he told him that he had Just about
decided If 1t did not cost too much to send
down a train load of snow as a Christmas
present to his native place.
One day he and Frank and a half dozen
other fellows were fashioning a gigantic
snow woman. She was so tall that they had
to use a forty-foot ladder to finish her head
and they drew the snow up in buckets and a
boy straddled her head and slapped the snow
on in the proper place.
1--WE have a sculptor down home and he'd
Just about go crazy IL he had a lot of snow
to make his statues out of" said frederick.
"How much snow do you suppose it would
take II l shipped some home? How many
cars full?"
why, I guess it would take a whole
train oad-say fifty cars answered Frank.
He was just about to add that it would
all melt and turn to water long before it gat
south, but a mischievous thought stopped
him Say, fellers," said he, winking at his
companions, Rod wants to send some snow