The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1900-01-06


that perfect sympathy. tenderness uf
care. n devotion of years. were hers
absolutely. There Is the maiden who
that night could not sleep for think
ing of the new Joy and interest that
had come into her life sine, day dawn,
because of n mutual confession of love
and the plighting of q troih with the
man in whose all-surround;ny care she
now hoped to spend all the future
years.
There is the little family. a baby's
first new wear Is celebrated with glad
ceremonies as n renewal Of graft ude
for the richest gift tina. ever blessed
a human heart. There is the woman
who looked proudly back upon a year
when social ambition had been grati-
tude and desired pos !tion had been
reached.
There is the little CIR! who sighed
contentedly as she awakened that
morning to recall the fact that all her
examinations had been creditably
taken.
But there were others. A motorman
stamping his feet in the bitter cold, as
he stood on the unprotected platform
of flying car. returned fcllow-suf
ferer's greeting as they met and
whizzed past each other with the cry:
Pretty tough, If this is what I've got
to do all the year. Didn't think Id
celebrate New Year So"
\ little chap, with uncovered hands,
blue with the cold, tugged big basket
of clothes home to his mother, as night
fail came on. She had washed all that
New Years day, as she had almost all
the other weekdays Of the year, and
with all her toll had been unable to
procure warm clothing for the little
lad, who wearisomely dragged the
heavy load for another days work He
shivcred in the sweeping blast and his
thin. little face looked up pathetically
at the passcrby A happy New Year?
There was the home where in a dark
ened room lay the father. revered and
loved. There had been no time for a
goodbye kiss, a last blessing, a tender
word.
There was another home, where, rs
twilight fell, Il few friends gathered in
the dim evening to hear the ritual for
the dead as the minister read it above
young wife. whose brief life journey
had been chiefly travelled with much
bodily weakness and fatigue.
There was the other home, where
two sat all day long with clasped
hands, looking with dumb awe into
each others eyes and thinking only of
the morrow and of the parting which
had in it all the bitterness of death
without its merciful anodyne. A Happy
New Year. indeed! Happy for the
other half of the world that the root
of homes and hearts is not lifted that
we may see all the pain. all the mis-.
cry, else for not one of us could it
have been IL happy New Year day.
Resolutions seem to have gone out
of fashion except on such polite occa =
sions as the death Of member of an
important lodge. or the visit of some
convention to town. Either people ar,
not making resolutions or they are pre-
serving some degree of secrecy about
them. I did hear one small boy in the
street remark the other day that he
had 'rosolvCd' in his new diary to eat
more slowly this year, so that he
could hold morc,' and it is said that
certain young lady has recorded the
,
next New Years day or die, but. gen.
| orally speaking, New lear swearing
! off seems To have become somewhat
obsolete. Perhaps people have lost
fai.h in themselves, or. happy thought
perhaps they have attained to such a
degree of perfection that they no long
er need such spasmodic Efforts at re-
| form. The preachers DO say, however
| that there was an usually large at
tendance at prayer meeting Wcdncs-
| day night, which is an Indication OF
something more or less in the line OF
| New Year resolutions.
l know some resolves which would
| be nice for other people to make. The
school board should write down nice
resolution to buy that old Home 70,
| the Friendless plot and secure valu-
able building spot and at the same
| time relieve il most worthy institution
| of an incubus of debt.
The board of trade and Mr.. W, w
Scranton should kiss and make up ant
stop saying things about each othe,
which neither mean. 1T isn't a mic,
| example to set before the little chill
, dren of the city. The Green Ridge Wo
mems club should resolve to start 9
| Town Improvement society, which
would clear the streets of waste paper
| by engaging the cooperation Of tn,
| school children. And it should ais,
start out on a diphtheria- scarlet fever
crusade. The councis-but thea. Whe.
should | end this dissertation, if
stopped to mention the resolutions the
councils should make. Saucy Bess.