The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1903-12-19
THE SMITHS CHRISTMAS.

"Well, l never did ~ proclaimed
Mrs Smith on the oath of December.
Nobody does thing to help me,
and the way things go does beat every
thing. l feel as if 1 should fly, Pm
so nervous. When this is over I'll
60 to bed. That's what L do"
Mrs. Smith made the same remark
every 24th of December, and the fam
lily should have been used to it, but
the observation never failed to cast a
gloom.
1t worked like charm, that sys-
tenn of hers. 1t began on the 22d.
On that day she said, loud and clear,
so that all the members of the family
might perceive and mentally note her
self-sacri6ce:
''I'ni tired to death. There's just
one thing l m thankful for, and that's
that Christmas only comes once a
year."
The next day she varied the words,
but the motif, as the musicians say,
was the same.
"I ache all over. 1 can't keep
this up. I feel that l shall drop be-
fore long"
The family always looked appre-
hensive. Mrs. Smith never did drop,
but then she might at any moment.
They all regretted having carelessly
told, in moment of holiday enthusi-
asm, what they wanted for Christmas
presents. Indeed, an atmosphere of
criminality lowered over the tree.
The pleasure had been purchased,
you might say, with mothers life
blood. This is at any time depress-
ing thought. 1t played havoc with
the holiday spirit of the Smith family.
The Smiths were an average fam
lily. Mr.. Smith worked pretty hard,
and he liked holiday as we'll as the
next man. The boys and girls were
all at school, and they talked Christ
mas for the entire month of Decem-
Der. About the time when the shop
keepers began to get in barrels Of
Christmas green the holiday spirit
began to stir vigorously in the soul of
each young Smith. They made out
lists of things they wanted. They
were long lists, but the writers did
dot expect to have everything. They
weren't the kind, they would have
told you, who wanted the earth with
a fence around it and it wasn't very
hard to please them.
Mrs. Smith was an average moth
er; perhaps little more conscien-
tious than a good many. She want
ed the best for her children, and she
worked hard to give it to them. She
worked hard, anyway, with only one
servant to help her ; but the children
were not little any more, aud she
might have kept more time for her
self if she had d,tried at Christmas time.
She worked herself into frenzy that
not even by poetic license could be
called fine. The children wanted
things, and the children should have
them. John and his wife, and James
aud Ellen and Cousin Maria came tc
dinner every Christmas, and they
were to have the best Of dinners
There was nothing inhospitable about
Mrs. Smith and in housekeeping
matters she thanked Heaven that she
was not as many other women-shift
less and happy-go-lucky.
So every Christmas she went Wig
orously to work, and, in her enthu
siastic desire to keep the letter o
Christmas, the holiday had its spiri
crushed out of all recognition. Sh'
never suspected for an instant wha
she was doing. Could woman keel
Christmas better than by giving he
children everything they wanted anC
by serving a dinner to her relative
which should prove both her regarC
for their tastes and her ability as
housekeeper? 1t never entered Mrs
Smiths head that any woman coul'
do better, or that holiday fun ant
good will were preferable to elaborat
preparation.
When Christmas morning dawne'
she was "all unstrung." She said
"Do be quiet" to the smallest Smitl
when he made a noise over the pres
ents she had worked so hard to Pre-