Waterbury Democrat., 1900-12-22
AS YOU LIKE IT
Some Stray Leaves from q Reporters
 Note Book

devil, who will be with you himself next season." People who do not keep track of the characters in the different shows might think that the idea con yeyed in the card was that the dra- matic editors are already in charge of agents of his satanic majesty and that the old fellow himself has decided to honor them by his presence ill the near future. The former conclusion may not be wide of the mark, but if there be any truth in the latter we hope the dramatic editors will entertain his nobS at their own homes. instead of at their offices, for every such place has a devil of its own: and one of these Jokers is quite sufficient in any build ing at the same time.
 After all, it doesn't pay to buy Christmas presents ill advance | man who did this tells funny story about how he lost on it. He was in New York several months ago and while there he bought the makings of q handsome silk dress for his wife, but made up his mind not to let her know anything about it until Christ muS. He put il away i'll what he con sidercd q safe place in a remote corner of an unused r0Om where he knew no one but himself would find il. Last week he thought it time to take down the present. but when h2 got hold of 1t he Was aStOniShel to see that mice had cheWed it into rags. so that there was not enough of it safe to convey an idea of what ii once had been. He tried to conceal his chagrin from his wife. but he couldn't and finally made q clean breast of the situation. Cn condition that she wouldn't speak of f J,A E-ta tn keep and leaked out in some way or other. so that quite q few people got hold of it. and now the mans intimate friends are rOiin@ fun at him about that present he gave his wife.
 A live duck ill a paper bag created cOnsternaton in d South Main street trolley car yesterday afternoon. The c;sr was crowded with shoppers on their way home all holding onto as many bundles as they could take care of. and some of them had so many they were piled around them in tiers, so that one would think the car was q special sent down the road by santa Claus. Everything passed off quietly until the car reached Liberty stree l. when a bag which stood against the stove was seen to move q little. but no one took any notice of this until the duck gave a couple of "quackS.
 and then every eye was turned in the direction whence the strange noses lad proceeded. The owner of the parcel. a jolly German woman, appar- ently didn't seem to mind it at all, and kept on chatting with Il lady who sat beside her. while the duck, judging by the way the bag wiggled was becom- ing more and more dissatisfied with it's new quarters at every jolt of the car. and finally started a continuous "uuack, ouack.' which was soon drowned ill rOarS of laughter. The conductor opened the door and peeped in to see what was up but finding everybody in a good natured mood. he closed it q gain. Finally q little woman who occupied a seat across the way from the talking bag. inquired: '.What the devil is that:' No one an swered the question and after a brief pause she remarked. "Oh. you had bet ter ride with the rest of us. me boy.
 This created another laugh. which was kept LID until the duck commenced again and kept at it until the owner, evidently thinking that there was dan ger of it breaking out of it's prison. picked up the bag and set it down some distance from the stove. and the change of temDerature seemed to have the desired effect. much to the disap- pointment of the passengers. all of whom enjoyed the affair immensely.
 4 year ago to-day President Kruger and his family were enjoying them selves in Pretoria over the futile ef- forts of the British to make good their promise to have dinner in the capitol Of the TranSvaal on Christmas day. The inhabitants of two republics lift- ed their hands to heaven in prayer i'll thanksgiving for the preservation of their homes and their firtsides and consoled themselves with the hope that before another year would have elapsed they would have lid them selves for all time of any further in reference on the part of their hered
 itary foe But the fates decided against them and to-day President Kruger is an exile from his native country and thousands of human be- ings. who until quite recently. knew nothing if the horrors of war, are scat tered all over the world. some widowed and fatherless and all desolate and broken down in spirit. The bones of vast numbers of brave men who went out full of life and hope to do battle for their homes and their families lie buried beneath the soil which their willing hands and those of their fath- CTS had converted from a wilderness into delightful farming districts. and above them is heard the tramp of the ruthless invader. Others. Cronje, for example. are prisoners of war. with little hope of ever again tasting the air of freedom-alI. all those noble sons with. few exceptions, who joined in the iubilation of the defeat of Butler T tweIve-month ago have since felt the heel of the tyrant. and it is q question if those who are still in the flesh are not greater objects of pity than the ones who have fought their last fight and passed over to the silent major ity. Surely it would seem that the Boer cup of sorrow has been filled to over flowing and that the survivors of the awful devastation of the past year in the Orange Free State and Transvaal republics have just reason to feel that they have been sorely chastised. Won der what has become of the groups of merry boys and girls who gathered around their native hearthS last Christ mas-tile and heard their mothers tell of the deeds of daring performed by their fathers and uttered q prayer to fy y<.1 f1l1t io1af 11n f,,