The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1904-12-24
THE CHRISTMAS SPIRIT

THE CHRISTMAS SPIRIT.
Christmas time is at hand. 1t is the
| time whenspeople of all ages shoul,l
lay aside their struggles and take part
in the joys which have ever character
,, lied this great Christian festival, #
is the one day in all the year which,
notwithstanding changes due to ou
advancement in age and the increase
of cares, never fails to bring it's JOYS.
There is Christmas for the young,
for the middle-aged and the old. The
day is peculiarly in it's practical festi
vities, the children's day. To the Or
binary child it is day of mystery, of
romance and fantasy. 10 most every
one recollections of Christmas-tide are
the most pleasant of the entire life.
There is no other romance comparable
with it. That person is to be pitied
indeed who cannot look back upon his
childhood with pleasant recollections
Of the Christmas times.
1t is right that it should be pecu-
liarly a children's day, for it is the
birthday Of Him who said, "Suffer
little children to come unto Me, and
forbid them not, for of such is the
Kingdom Of Heaven" 1t is the chill
dren's day by every right, human and
divine, and we who have passed the
estate of childhood can take pleasure
in seeing the pleasures of the little
ones. We can recollect with what
wonderment we listened to the fairy
tales Of Christmas time and Santa
Claus and all the pleasures, expectant
and realized attendant upon the day.
No one who has enjoyed a Christian
Christmas in his childhood could be
mean enough or sordid enough to de-
stroy for any little one the fictions con-
nected with the day; but the meanest
man in all the world would be the
man who would tell little one the
truth about Santa Claus. Christmas is
so full of golden dreams and mysteries,
joys and hopes to the child that there
is nothing in the world which seems
more desolate, more cruel and hopeless
than child to whom Christmas never
comes. Nothing in all after life COM
pares with these hopes and joys. Per-
haps the nearest approach is the ro-
nance 'of youthful love, but even that
does not compare to the true Christ
mas happiness Of children.
Though the day be one peculiarly
for children, yet every age has it's
Christmas time. Men in the prime of
life stop for short time in their mad
rush after wealth and the honors of
this world and become again little chill
dren. Old age forgets itself and en-
tiers into the happiness of the young
We no longer wish for sleds and dolls
but we look with a loving interest on
the little beings who respond so limo
Gently and SO fully to these little
things. Christmas time should be
simple time. We loose the joys of
Christmas in proportion as we lose
the simple habits that should be char
acteristic of the festival. There is in
these later days too much of an effort
to make it day of material splendor.
We grown people are too likely to
judge of the estimation in which we
are held by our relatives and friends
by the costliness of the presents which
we receive. Many a heart-ache is due
to the fact that we do not receive 2s
costly present as we expected or that
we are unable to give as costly one
as we had hoped. Young men and
young women go into debt in order to
buy costly presents for one another.
They leave unpaid their just debts,
and in some cases they even embezzle
their employers money. This is a
very sad perversion Of the Christmas
spirit. In this commercial age, where
we measure everything by dollars and
cents, there has been great loss in
human joy through the perversion Of
the true Christmas spirit. Christmas
is not the festival of the rich alone.
1t is peculiarly the festival Of the poor,
for it fixes the thought Of the world
on the manger in the stable at Bethle-
hem where He, in whose honor the day
is celebrated, came into the world in
utter want. The poor too often lose
the special significance Of the day be-
cause Of their desire to do the things
which the rich do. He who would
have n merry Christmas should cele-
brate the day simply as do little chill
dren. He should lay aside his .strug-
giles for wealth and be at peace with
himself and the world.
Governor johnson has met difficult
ties Of patronage with great prompt
ness and skill up to the present time.
The parties whom he has designated