Montour American. (Danville, Pa.) 1866-1920, 1905-12-21
.>On1rlly Atkins
i Ch 'istmas
How King Edwards Thin Red
Heroes" Celebrate Their
Hoi day.

q TO matter where he may be or In
what circumstances he may be
placed, Tommy Atkins never
fails to make a special effort 10
reicbrlte Christmas day in a befitting
manner Four years ago saw thou
randS of British soldier lads spending
the festive 25lh round camp fires on
the South African yeldt, but they en-
joycd themselves, nevertheless, In spite
Of their surroundings and the Difficult
ties under which the Christmas dinner
was prepared 1t is Christmas in bar
racks, however, which TonHly enjoys
best Of all next, of course, to spending
It with. those who are dear to him.
Comrades unite with comrades, and
each contributes his share of help to-
ward making the occasion one of joy
GUS tcStiyity.
Early Christmas morning sees the
soldiers bu,ily engaged in turning their
respective barrack rooms into dining
places. Bed cots, which at ordinary
times would be standing at right an
giles to the walls, are ranged length
wise, and with the aid OF spare pail
lasses and gay bunting borrowed from
the torres for the occasion are trans
formed into luxurious looking divans.
The companies vie with one another to
make their rooms as attractive as pos
siblc.
The homely custom of spreading fes-
tOOns Of pink, blue and green paper
from wall to wall is duly carried out,
while notices, usually of military
character abound These notices, by
the way. are often dedicated to pop
uiar officers, the following being exam
pies Of the favorte forms: Long live
Colonel and Mrs -" God bless the
general" Good luck to Lieutenant
-" etc
In some regiments it is the custom
to usher in Christmas morning with
ffeS and drums Immediately after the
sounding of reveille, and after break
fast Tommy has to prepare for church
parade This duty finished, he is at
liberty to make a grand attack on the
Christmas dinner The soldiers are
drSt of all marshaled and arranged in
their places at the table in the com
pany'S dining room, which the captain
then visits in order to make a brief in
spcctiOn and see that "alrs well" with
the boys.
After that there IS still another mat
ter which Thomas has to attend to be-
/ h, fan1ip,r l,Ytt iS
/ matter which is very agreeable to him.
A few inmates after the captain has
made his inspection the soldiers Of the
company are again called to their feet
and to order by the sergeant majors
"'Shun" and Immediately afterward
the colonel. followed 10y the adjutant
and other officers. enters. Needless to
say, they are received with rousing
cheers The colonel will drink the
health Of -- company, toast answer
ed with wild cheering and the time
honorcd refrain, He's jolly good fell
low"
When the officers have gone it is not
long before Tommy proceeds to sample
the good things which have been pro-
vided for his enjoyment Roast beef
and mutton. turkey. goose and duck
are usually included i'll the company's
menu, ~, To- mention such things as
/ potatoes. green's, puddings and pies.
After dinner Tommy INDUCES in his
favorite free and easy, enlivened with
songs Of all descriptions. Patriotism,
of course. enters into the greater part
of the music, although the comic song
IS also great fayOrite. Tommy cares
little what the song may be, however,
so long as it has Il good swinging cho-
rus in which he can join. Thus the
hours pass by, the days enjoyment
generally ending in the veterans Of the
company being called upon to relate
stirring incidents which have won
glory and renown for the regiment
PearSon'S Weekly.