Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1903-12-19
BILL NELSON'S GIFTS
Made Many People Happy in
Unexpected Way.
UNDER LIQUORS SPELL
MEMORABLE CHRISTMAS EVE IN
HIS HOME TOWN.
Expended All His Cash for Presents
Then Bought on Credit-His
Generous Side.
UNDER LIQUORS SPELL

ceStors, said 81 western senator, who lived
IN the empire state before he pulled up
stakes and moved toward the setting sun
to seek fortune and fame. a goodly amount
of both of which Injuries came to him after
hard struggle against all sorts of difficult
ties.
''Bil was a queer combination of mean
ness and generosity continued the states
man, settling back In a comfortable position
and working his cigar into activity. "Usu-
ally Bill was hard al work living along on
the ragged edge of nothing and now and
then buying something. from a horse to a
farm. He was always scheming and some
people predicted he would own the entire
county before he died He had a sharp eye
for business deal that was always about
1our-hfths'to his advantage and one-fifth to
the advantage of the unfortunate man he
happened to trade with. Lots of people who
had little confidence in their own shrewd
ness absolutely refused to do business with
Nelson However fine his propositions
sounded to them, they accepted the stua-
ton as one in which as a matter of course
Bill would have the best of the bargain, and
they kept off on principle. But that spirit
on the part of a portion of the community
didn't hamper Bits activity very much.
and ne grew in niggardliness and the pos
session of his neighbors' goods
L said there was a generous side to Bill
and there was. With all his closeness in his
business dealing he would oCca sionally grow
generous for a brief period which was al
ways simultaneous with indulgences in the
pleasures that emenate from the seductive
influence of John Barleycorn. These in
duigenceS never lasted long. but they were
redoient With open handedness while they
We're on.
The day before Christmas 1873. Bill went
into Rochester near which his home farm
was located He went to town merely be-
cause his soul had somehow caught the
spirit OF good cnee1 that was prevalent. and
he allowed himself to indulge in a small
portion of the spirits that were flowing
freely that day. The transformation of Dr.
Jekyll into the beast. Mr.. Hyde, was no
stranger than the transformation of the
close BIZ Nelson into the generous Bill
Nelson. He lost his cautious manner of
speech and his sharp, piercing eye. His
calculatin demeanor disappeared and he
was ready for a hearty hand grasp with
every man. woman and child he had ever
known
1T was my fortune to see this transfer
nation take place. When Bill got to town
he went around to discuss the purchase of
Il picW with dealer who had known him
well. He couldn't get it cheap enough and
declared that he would send to New York
for pillow before he would pay such
dod-gasted price.
The Thawing-Out Process.
Then he went around to a nearby hotel
and at the bar he got that first installment
of Christmas cheer. The thawing-out pro-
cess began at once. Several installments
followed the first one and the change was
complete. 1 was standing by his side when
he declared that the first thought of every
man ought to be to build up every home in
Gustry. He said Rochester ought of right
to be as great a city as New York. and he
thought any man who didn't approve that
sentiment ought to be driven out of the
country as an enemy to the public veal
- I'd rather pay 800 for a plow at Wee
dons store he declared, than to buy one
outside the county for So
He was about to start out for Weedons
to order the plow but he just sent around
word that he would take the one he had
been looking at at any price Weldon thought
he ought TO get for il, and added Be sure
to charge enough to make a good profit L
tell you, boys, he said addressing the
crowd the only way to build up town is
TO have everybody get a good profit out of
his business.
Before long Bill was declaiming on the
spirit that ought to animate every good citi-
zen at Christmas time. Some of his senti-
ment was rather maudin, but it had the
real ring. He said every good citizen
should at such time of the year try to
make as many people happy as possible,
and for himself he proposed to do It. He
forthwith invited several of the crowd to
accompany him on a trip through the stores
of the town. He said if Santa Claus could
do things at Christmas he could go him one
better
We'll. to make long story short. Nelson
ordered presents sent to everybody he |
knew and to a good many people he didn't |
know, except as their names and addresses |
were given to him by those he had attracted |
to his person at the hotel He wrote re- |
cipts for mony people owed him and had |
them delivered at their homes by sDecial |
messengers. all in envelopes that were not |
to be opened before morning He sent the
presents out in the same way. Nelson had |
credit at the stores. which he found he had |
to use before he got through, although he
drew several checks his hank uvhI bs |
was indulging in his generous escapade No
one ever knew just how much Bill spent
that day before Christmas. but there Is no
doubt about his success In making people
happy. All sorts OF household furniture
were sent around to people who needed
them The toy shops were simply cleaned
out before he got through. There was a
scarcity OF turkeys at the market place
when he had given his orders to see that no
family In Rochester was without gobbler
for the next day.
'All the while Bill was spreading good
cheer he was a hail-fellow- well-met or a
kind that no one had ever dreamed he could
Initiate. Everything has to have an end !
and so it was with Bill Nelson's generosity.
He wound UP the day by driving back to
his home with the biggest lot of Christmas
truck the family had ever seen. Strangely
enough, Bill didn't indulge In drink beyond
the limit necessary to set his generosity IN
motion. He was the kind of a father you
may have read about that Christmas eve
when he got home. The family couldn't be-
ileSe II was the real Bill NellSOn at first
but they had glorious time trimming the
tree and stacking up under 1t the presents
Bill had brought home.
Morning Brings a Change.
There was difference In the morning,
sure enough Bill awoke with a hazy Idea
that he had not been himself the day be-
fore He wasn't sure about it ALL but he
knew he had let loose in some unaccount-
able way. Several weeks passed before he
found Just what that day of generosity had
cost him.
with the awakening came that hard
sense for which Bill was SO well known
Lots of people thought he would try to undo
some of the things he had done that day.
The men who got receipts for their debts
expected in some way to lose the adyan-
tage they had gained. Others thought Bill
would refuse to pay for some of the expen-
sive presents and oblige them to return
them to the stores
They wei aaill mistaken. It was to me-
and probably to me alone, that Bill ana
yzed the problem that had been made
,lear to him that Christmas morning when
he awoke with a bad feeling in his head
You see,' he explained done it. and
while Oughtn't to have done it. yet II war
! fact. Now, eff SHOULD squeal ia never
ret any credit for a blamed thing I donai