The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1904-12-18

| = . HALF the folk in the world Santa
Claus is a beneficent and kindly
friend, frightening their skies, load
! ing them win gifts. and fulfilling their
| hearts desire. He is the veritable ma
gician of the old fairy tale, who slips into
your presence and offers you three wishes
| which he hastens to grant-only Santa
Claus is apt to drop In something over.
so that your cup sparkles and its draught
itself.
II makes little difference TO this half Of
the world whether Il is very poor or very
rich. In the naked home of want and
| squalor, Christmas kindles a fire. spreads
table. and brings shoes and stockings
] for the children'S feet. The winter may
| the wife discouraged and the family hun
| CRY. Many wretched travesties of homes.
! searched by inclement winds. and un-
| speaka5ly miserable, are found in our
I splendid mansions of wealth, replete with
every comfort
| On Christmas morning a year ago a
/ lady looking from her window. saw a bag
| gard old woman poking about with a stick
! in the garbage pals that lined the side
walk. She threw a shawl around her
and went to investigate. The old crone eX-
| planned that she was looking for a crust
or q bone. as she had nothing to eat in her
house. but smile lit up her w1thered fea-
lures. 1T is Christmas. she said. and
I
before the day Is over. Santa Claus did
what she hoped for. He pays visits TO the
poorest on Christmas day, and If ever he
! is generous IL is then. No question of
worthy or unworthy troubles the good old
saint. He dispenses his blessings to the
f, poor.
As for the rich, laces and velvets are
theirs The shops glitter for them with
tempting and gorgeous array OF satins and
/ Jewels and curiOS. Articles Of beauty and
/ luxury are lavishe0 upon them at Christ
mas-tide. until they scarcely know where
! to bestow their goods. Often II IS a mat
! ter of great difficulty 10 find anything
to give to our rich friends, who already
| have so much.
There is however. a half of the world
that does not have fair play at Christmas:
! II ought. indeed. to have Christmas OF
, it's own. l mean the tOiling half That
never goes to bed so weary as during the
, holidays. The great army Of young women
! who stand behind counters and serve
other women at this busy season. and the
Otner great army OF men who fetch and
I carry. who deliver goods on cold and
/ stormy nights often TO the very stroke or
I l., the eXpressmen. letter carriers. ana, IN
I fact the great host OF these whose bust
: ness il is to serve the public, are 10 be
! pitied during the reign of Santa Claus To
them he is q tyrant rather than a friend
I Not even an increased rate OF payment
! compensates for what they lose in vitality
by the terrific strain of the Christmas
week. This. 20 some extent bears heavily
D upon household toner's yet lneT extra
work is nothing as compared with that
I of the great majority Of wage-earnlng
/ men and women in commercial lines tOr
one thing, it Is carried on under far better
/ conditions.
! Thinking over this seamy side Of Christ
/ mas il is apparent that we might all 90
something to better il If only we tried. 10
I many shops notices are posted asking Gus
/ toners to carry home their own small par
GELS. and many do this most willingly, car
rying home large and bulky ones with
cheerful alacrity. But for one or another
D reason. people postpone their Christmas
! shopping too late, and this makes mucn
/ more difficult and arduouS the WoTk OF
Eclerks and deliverers- A little forethought
Iiwocld enable thousands TO make all pur-
/ chases at least week or ten days before
J Christmas comes. Should this suggestion
! reach you too late this year. why not act
upon II year TO come?
/ AS ] write the Practical Woman looks
over nv Shoulder Heavens and earthi'
| she exclains with the emphasis or con-
Viction. ARE you not wasting an enor-
/ nous amount of sympathy In mere senu-
( ment? Are not these people who have 10
! work so hard at Christmas great deal
/ lad nothing to do? Every one of these
! hard working men no doubt has mother
! or wife or children who depend on him
/ for bread and these girls for whom your
heart aches because al Christmas they
| are a little more tired than usual are
very glad indeed that they have work
! to do What would become OF them if
! there were no Christmas rush? Have
you quite forgotten that every shop of
any size engages a lot Of extra help at
/ Christmas and that many little house
! hold IRE Is fed from Christmas earn
( ings? I am surprised that people cannot
| II Ike a common sense view Of matters like
/ this
The practical woman is right: Should
| ever a Christmas come when the great
| shops We're closed and the factory wheels
STOOD still and the looms were silent and
the working people had nothing TO DO We
| n light well Shed tears over so fearful a
calamity. II is boon that people should
/ have work. and the toilers are the iast to
complain, and we need not forget that
heads and hacks and legs and feet grow
weary even when the heart and mind are
satisfied.
! The fact is that Christmas is one of the
| biggest topics that can touch the home.
1 Ne realize now as al no other season that
| our hornes the land over are bound in
one bundle Each little town and village
| by innumerable threads that weave
J themselves into mighty strands is united
/ TO the great cities The lines of commu-
MICA ton run under the sea and the wire
less biography of science as of love binds
| the whole earth together, because Christ
Imam is the worlds great love feast. The
| practical woman Is only partly right
+ There is room today for somebody beside
Mr.. GrGdgrind in this beautiful world
Facts and statistics and common sense