The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1904-12-23
Is there a Santa Claus?

eve corner OF ONI AaNASAN AAAA~9'
Twas not in the hallowed watches
of the night, when to believe every
thing was easier than to doubt any
thing, but when il came in the clear
light of day. when there was no sha-
dow crowned dimness in which to
hide dear illusions. Possibly we
were standing at some window that
looked out upon the wintry streets.
Even then we we're tiptoelng with
expectation, watching Tor him, t.
merry old saint who iuggled with
narrow chimney tops, TILED our
stockings with treasures once a
wear. We knew that his reindeer
might turn the next corner at any
moment and that if we saw him we
should never be forgiven. Yet we
gazed on in the PASSIONATE hope OF
one dieting glimpse. Then-how
it happened we can never know
but suddenly We realized that every
prosaio detail of the scene denied
his existance. The very passers by
who never looked over their shout
ders to see him coming, Knocked
our faith. Who can describe the
shock. the slow conviction, with
which we faced our desolation?
Most unwillingly we saw our dearest
illusion fade forever. How meanly
ungreatly we felt toward the pBtron
saint OF all childhood. How pray
erfully we questioned our elders,
hoping for reinsurance. But, alas
every answer guardedly given con-
firmed our worst suspicious. When
and how had we developed this ca
pacity for infldelity? Was it awak-
ened by the chance remark OF an
older companion? Did some high
er critic in the primary CLASS trail
the question like a serpent across
the innocence aud glory Of our IN
furnished faith? Is there a Santa
Claus? The leering sacrlllglous
form Of the question seemed to de
mand negative reply. We fought
the impudent traducer, and all the
more fiercely because even then GU
hearts misgave US.
Before this time every thought 0
our happy minds had been cast II
the form Of hope, every hour wa
a sunlit prophecy Of the next, anc
our young faith was the incontest
able evidence Of all things incredl
BILE. We had never seen the pot Q
gold at the end OF the rainbow, L
be sure but we knew it was there b
the witness of our own gold n spll
its. We had never actually dance
with the fairies beneath the hare
bells in the forests, but we ha
fairy souls ourselves and could ca
ily conceive of the performance
And, Of course, we had never see
Santa Claus, but we often felt tn
we were in a wink Of doing go,
proof which was to Us az good a.
vision. All our little heaven-bo
faculties. indeed stretched aw'
from dull realities toward tie ID
aculous and il was not the q
thar bulged so deliciously from !
fat legs OF our Christmas stockin
that afforded the greatest Joy, b
it was the evidence they furnished
the:existence of Santa Claus;
hoEsd all things and We longed
believe all things. We were ;
trailing clouds OF glory, and in
lieu OF wings we held fast ev'
manifestion of the incred BILE a.
ing more il keeping Wi b our L
ural sense Of Immortality. Tn
the fact that the family chimr
was too small to accommodate :
ta's round paunch only called f
M re heroic exercise OF our ia
and we CALAMITY responded.
sides, were we not justified Z
morning by finding smutted {
died kiss on the hearth.rug2
never did vulgar suspicion eI
our minds because similar XII
were sold for penny at the {
on the next street. II saint tv
Bs large as the hue could desc
through it, surely one must
bubble because he made sweets
those found in everyday sh'
Later, our faith was more seve
tried by the performances Of b
authenticated characters in 81
ure.
But all that was before we
lied that there never was or G.
have been a Santa Claus; and
we contemplated our orphaned
dition with rage and mortifcat
From that hour we gave over TO
dark powers Of logic and rea
We began to mark time bet'
~ the credible and the incred