New-York tribune., 1905-12-24

OHRISIMAS already However welcome l. =
| its coming, Christmas always seems to
take us by surprise Is the year really
50 soon at the end OF It's journey? Why, it
seems only yesterday that it needed special
effort OF remembrance to date letters
with the new ammo doufini" And have YOU
noticed that always does that reluctantly, /
with something almost OF misgiving? The
figures OF the old year have warm human
look but those of the chill,
familiar. almost nenaClng expression. Nine
teen hundred and five we know. 1t IS nearly
i" all in ct has done its best-and its worst
Between Christmas Dav and Newly ear It has
hardly time to change its character. Good or
bad as II may have been, feel at home
with IL and fam TO keep the old
almanac a little longer on the wall But
the last leaves are falling, the days
shortening There IS q. smell of coming snow
in the air, and for weeks past i has already
been Christmas in the shops
Yes, however II strikes Us, we are a year
older On the first OF January last had
twelve brand-new months OF q brand-leW year
to spend and now the last Of them IS all but
spent. We had a new spring to look out
for, ike the coming OF ones sweetheart, q
new summer bounteous IN prospect with mex
haustible wealth Of rovaI sunshine. autumn
with rddv orchards and The glory Of the tapestried
woods and now OF the four new seasons that were
to be ours but one remains:
And here is but December left and !,
To wonder # the hawthorn bioomed IN May,
And i the wild with 50 fine flush
Manted cheek Of June and i the way
The stream went singing foarned with meadow sweet
And # the throstle sang yonder bush
And if he lark dzzied with song the sky.
| watched and listened--yet sweet, 50 feet,
The mad young year went By.
Strange that feeling at the end Of the year that
somehow we have missed have failed to experience
it all to the full taken It too carelesly not dwelt
sufficiently its rich, expressive hours Each year
we feel the same, and however intent we may have
been however we have watched and listened sens-
tivelv eager to hold and exhaust each passing
moment, when the year-end has come, We seem
somehow to have been cheated after all Who,
al the beginning of each year, has not promised
himself stricter attentveness to his experience!
This wear he will load every rltt with ore
This year l said when first along the lane
With tiny nipples of the tender green
The winter-backened hedge grew bright again. 4
This wear watch and listen have seen 4
So many springs steal prottless away
This wear garner every sound and sweet.
And you, young year. make not such haste 70 bn9
Hawthorn and rose; tumble, indlscreet,
Treasure on treasure of the precious spring.
But bring all softly forth upon the ar,
Unhasting to be fair
Yet for all our watchfulness, the year seems MN
10 have escaped us We know that the birds tAl
sang that the flowers bloomed, that the grass w
was green but it seems to us that we did
not take our ioy of them with sufficient
keenness; our sweetheart came, but we did
not look deep enough into her eyes Il only
We live TO see the wild rose again! But
meanwhile here IS the snow.
Unless we are still numbered among those
haDDv people for whom Christmas-trees are
annual DrematuTItV OF