Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1900-12-13

py tno nre prstenuihB W iooh az epe
mirror overhead, hut In reality with
his eyes on Beth at the window, with
her dainty head bent over some crewel
work, "Christmas is that particular
season in which We spend the money
We cannot afford, buying for our friends
things which,, as rule, they do not
want.
Nonsense, you horrible pessimist,"
said. Christmas is beautiful season,
whom everybody has that good feeling
in his heart. IL is season of loving
and giving, and we should always
think OF the sentiment not the gift.
Even last year, when Kitty Duncan
gave me that beautiful brassie, know
ing we'll enough that / never played
golf. don't you suppose that 1t was the
sentiment that | appreciated and did
not criticise the giftS"
Yes, l think Christmas buying is
altruism for the most part. We go
forth in the spirit Of those enacting
the part Of Santa Claus. Beside bril-
liant shop we loiter on the fringe of q
throng who are spell-bnund at the
sight Of Christmas tree, Christmas
reindeer, and the Christmas saint him
self, with all the traditional glory OF
snowy beard and white flowing locks.
the truest thing we know is that Kris
Krinkle is real There is Kris
Krinkle for every body. Santa Claus has
many deputies and he endows them all
| with loving feeling. Yes, there is a
subtle witchery and good fellowship 10
the glimmer of n red berries amid the
green OF the air and the mistletoe in
the Christmas mai kets, groaning with
their abundance. We Just had such
nice talk about Christmas to that dear
little Mrs. Kimble-Smith. You know
abe has very little of worldly goods,
and yet she always manages to infuse
such delightful character in all her,
hospitality. She was just in now telling
lis Of her plans for Christmas dinner.
1t needs, she says, only little thought.
II shall select green as a color scheme,
and shall place in the centre of the
table very small Christmas tres. You
can buy them potted in the market
and more fashionable Jerusalem cherry
tree, the dwarf Caatelane cherry tree,
you know. But like the old fashioned
fir. 1t has an odor and memories of
Christmas about it. Cover the pot
with green paper and bank all about
it, mosa Hang on to this little tree
gay elassbslls, light it with tiny
candles, and suspend to its branches
little gift-a surprise to each person at
the table-something amusing, IL pos
sibls Trim the table with holly and
at each plate rlaoe bunch of mistletoe
tied with green and red ribbon
This sounds very simple and easy and
has quite charm about it for Christ
mas dinner.
Speaking of dinner, isn't it strange
how much We associate holidays with
their respective feeds? Ii always re.
minds me- of the small boy who was
reproved by his mother when he cried,
II like Christmas best and plum pud-
ding" And how she scolded him for
associating the day SO entirely with
things to eat. And, as the story goes,
she then turned to order her turkey
for the great holiday and to tell her
new cook to be cure to remember that
they always had salt fish for Saturday
dinner, baked beans and fishballs for
Sunday breakfast 1t is not exactly
flattering to our higher selves TO observe
the way In which we have welded into
many of our festival and fast days some
dish and danny SO strongly that the
day and the dish have become INSOFAR
able. What is Shrove Tuesday with.
out lis pancakes, and don't we always
associate Hot cross buns, one penny,
4 two penny, hot cross buns" with
Good Fridayf Must we not have eggs
/ in every shape at Easter? DO We think
the Fourth of July dexterously observed
without spring lamb and green peas on
the dinner table? Is not loaf Of
4 bread sacred to Lammas Day the LIST of
AugustY A pretty custom 1t is, too,
4 since it commentaries the old one of
bringing to the church loaf of new
bread in recognition OF the first har-
vesting when the day was called Half
4 Mas, finally becoming Lammas, day
4 we remember for the sake of sweet
Juliet, whom Romeo loved sn well.
"On Larnmas eve, at night shall she be
fourteen" DO we not have green
goose on Micbmaelmas day and apples
i and nuts on Halloween; turkey on
Thanksgiving Day, ring cake on Twelfth
Night, and plum pudding, the sacred
dish, on Christmas? SO it seems that
from times immemorial humanity has
known how to give no better grace to
day than to associate it with certain
choice and seasonable foods from the
dish of beans that belongs to Mid-lent
Sunday to the plums that "JaclSey
Horner" pulled from out his pie. and
which forevermore Belong to Christ
mas.
But to return to Jack and his pessi-
mist ideas of Christmas. / said to him:
"Jacgey, my dear boy, norhing but an
inourable attack of indigestion should
give you such pessimistIo ideas about
this great holiday. There is no holt
day like it and it would be pity of
the world to destroy it. Perhaps there
is no danger, but agree with you thus
y far, Jack, that the American people
a have developed an unexpected capacity
for destroying things. They call Il
e. running thing into the ground. 4"
They have made every old custom un-
n popular. They prosecute everything 30
n vigorously that they either wear it out
NJ or wear themselves out on il, whether
81 it be game, or festival, or holiday.
s. Is Christmas wearing out? We hope
not. But since the American nation
fairly got hold Of this holiday Christ
mas, they have made IL hum. They
have appropriated the English con-
II vIviality, the German simplicity, the
n Russian Glory and the Roman pomp,
and now is anybody beginning to feel
X 1t burdsn, this sweet festival of
4 oh srity and good willp Anything that
M interrupts the ordinary flow of life may
In time be AZ hard to bear as that fes-
tival which housewives call houseclean-
ing, that riot in the house which men
& fear more than panic in Wall Street.
81 Do we make so much of Christmas that
1t is beginning to be panic to some
of us? Let us hope Dot for it is
holiday that can never be replaced. 1t