The Kalispell bee. [volume] (Kalispell, Mont.) 1900-192?, 1900-12-20

Ola world would run more easily. but
who yet have their difficulties. The
picture comes up of the youth--and
MS name spells thousands has
spent ali his money on the one girl
That exists for him, in the buying OF
la christmas gift for her, and who
with empty pockets, must spend the
day dolefully in his little hail bed
room. Too there arises the gloomy
Cnr lstmas OF the man whose wlie is
SO extravagant that she has lett him
moneyless on these festal days, filled
with many a foreboding OF the NOR.
row. The joke writer's may make
much o. this man, narrowed, worried
MS substance wasted, but IT is trag.
edy, not comedy. He is the most to
be pltled OF all the ChristmasIess.
One more scene l must show. It
IS the kitchen of an old farmhouse
where all should be merry, laughter
should be ringing out, where pink.
checked girls make festival with stall.
Wart youths, the old, the middle-aged
looking on. In this farmhouse there
Is no such joy. A few little attempts
at Frightening have been made, bit
they are half-hearted. BY the oven a
feeble woman sits. With sptingless,
letharglc feet young girl walks
back and forth, making ready the
meal.
There is a crinkle of paper in the
Old woman's lap. A letter is there,
an illustrated supplement" These
take the place of the Christmas cheer.
The girl drops down at her mothers
side. Both their lips frame the
word, Will" Far off in the Philip
pines this Christmas Day Go their
thoughts go for the gallant son and
brother there.
| A Christmas board, spread With
good things. A sturdy man at it's
head, his hair f1ecked with gray. Gen
uine holiday cheer, one might think.
But no! Abstractedly The man
carves his turkey, his brain alert up
on other things. This is no Christ
mas for him. He is an editor, and
he is already at work upon his next
years special Christmas number.
In the big, bustling metropolis there
is little of the true holiday spirit on
Christmas, the day of days. Even he
great mansions on Fifth avenue look
as gloomy on this day as on most
others. Whatever Yuletide revelry is
INDUCED in will be found in the homes
of the poor and the moderated: con
Portable
Among the workers to whom CHI ist-
mas day is as all other DAYS of the
year the engineers of the STUFFED lC.
comotives on the 81" roads are bound
closest to duty Theirs is an important
task and a thankless one ut any
time; it is especially SO on Christ
mas Day. 1t is safe to say that not
one of the thousands whose lives are
placed in the keeping of the hcgrimed
and unlovely man at the throttle give
that individual thought. 1t may be
the gayest kind of crowd which he
pilots along the longest bridge in the
world-the elevated railroad--but the
engineer and his assistant, the stoker,
have no part in the emotions Or holt
| 6ov limo nf him, I><,
hind. Indeed, one seldom recognizes
the faithful services of these men un-
til some accident occurs, when I'LL hll.
mainly seems ready to condemn them
for neglect of duty. The Christmas
dinner of most locomotive engineers,
whether on the 'L' roads or on the
surface lines running in and out of
New York, is compressed in a tin
dinner-pail and time limit for eat
ing.
| Then there is that other class Of
public servants hired by private cor
porations. l mean the deck hands
and pilots of the various ferry lines
|
New York Bay. Who ever dreams Of
noticing these men at any time Or
mentally commencing them for skill
full performance of their duties? Ger
tainly on Christmas Day they 10 not
enter into the calculations Of the
crowds they transport from dock to
dock. You who will eat your fill over
spotless linen can spare but little
thought on the poor devils who
must needs spend the great festival
at the wheel or on The ferry-slip.
Most dismal, disheartening, and de-
pressing of all Christmasless people,
however, are the sweat-shop workers
of the East Side of New York. Toil!ne
endlessly at their sewing-machines,
and earning the most trif1ins wage
for their labor, these workers offer
the sharpest possible contrast to the
Christmas good cheer which prevails