The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1900-12-19
OLD TIME CERIsTMAsES.
Changes Wrought During The Last
Half Gel tury.

N-S">- -AA
The Christmas Of 1S47 was simple
and tender affair, COZ ss,irg 9 mainly Ct
Santa Claus aud we'll filed stockings
The presents were home made, with
few a5ded swsetmeats and tcya. Thiak
of the charges! An orssga was sisht
more rare than casta!d--rpIes are low.
A banana 60 not remember having
sesn before 1880. Farmers used fos
lccks to shoot the squirrels for Chris
mas pie-or what we used to call ths
Queens arms" These we're British
musdets, captured during the re7olu
ton. Tie first b1eech loader vas pat
euted in 1896; cut they nere notla ccm-
mon use. We vent in thick stoga boots
because rubbers were barely kncWn;
AID do not think rubber boot vas
in existence What We had were sort
Of Indian moccsssn i'm ported from Bra
1ll, capable Of wearing for ten years
The 6rst Goodyear pstent was taken
cut in 1888. About the same time the
first machine was put in operation for
making pens, while fer pens We used
goose quills or eveR hen quilts. 1t was
hoWev.r, a peculiarly inventive per-
period. Ali the knick kDacks that are
most familiar to Us were theo novelties
and costly. A bunch CT pirs in Christ
mas stocking vas njt despised. If a
bex Of matches could have been had it
would have been Welcome gift from
santa Claus.
The stockings were hung up BY the
huge old fireplace, wbc-e grcat legs
buried and Goals were covered up al
night. IL rural sections Te lad never
seen seut,le Of coal and had oaly
heard Of 1t as an fort to burn black
stores. Whale OIL! lamps marked the
advanced line Of progress in lighting
streets AID bouses. There was no dFeau
Of canned fruits and cocoa and choco-
la.e, although re had plenty of tea and
ccffee. 1t WAS impossible to give sew
ing machine. or photograph. DsGusr-
reuiJ pes w.re not ce7lscd until 1889;
and the FIRST were taken IN America at
least year later. remember when
Avery, who took the first suo picture
vest Of Albany, carrlsd |, up and DOWN
tie streets, flushed with Lis SUCCESS;
and ran into house after house 10 ex-
nl0ll 1t. 1t vas gbostly affair, to be
:quinted at anu guessed out; but after
alilt was the Leg nniEg OF great art.
The presents we're !uiier o: All ctl2n
because home made. The Hhcle family
hao been at Tork for weeks p.snnls &
and executing little gifts The boys
made boxes aud Toys and Land sleds.
rhe women made .cckirgs and muh ITS
and dainty caps, while the girls made
slippers, and the fathers made shoes.
4 tome was a word that me-nt great
.bings in those days; for both tie Wo'
men aid the men had traats, as veil SIS
Arack sro knosledgs Of land cul
iure, 1t is interesting to note that
sCme Ct our best observers and social
students prophesy a large reaction form
our present fast and uneasy age to the
que: aud CAIN Of those earlier days Of
sne century. 0! course &c shsli not
70 up our Inventions; but with them
ne nay lose ouI boylsh sIHtement, and
ceact 10 another erIod uf Iecon5ldeIa-
ton. This has been the history Of
The past.
The most deliq ,fu! part Of these
Cd lime ho!icsy sss the sports, ru;e
and free fromcV ~ guile. Our even,
lngs we're always st home; AID IN The
oae great family room, which vas the
aiming Iocm and the kitchen in one,
We gathered before the huge IRE OF
logs ed had that sort Of uDad liberated
fun Hhich caa &c had only where the
ahele FANNY is uL;ted. We parohed
our bcns grown coru, snd made ouc
csEdy G! N 1:asses, aud played simple
games, il wLich 10 oee joined Lore
neart!y than ske father ano mother.
No Child Vas ever permitted 10 assent
ulnsclf from Tie household after datk
sithcus the dir -ciioa Of his parents.
Bat after O'Clock no one ever thought
OF bclrg absent THIN "e were in
,ur beds. Ii ne react to t:ese CT to
SIZE pier methods OF living it viii be BY
resurrection of more home life. Let
US see to ii that the farm home is more
of home, and the farmhouse family
mere self contained.