Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1906-12-28
The CHRISTMAS SPIRIT. ,


torial so full of gentle humor and
, sound sense that it must ineyitia:
bly, 6nd welcome in the minds and
hearts Of men. 1t is the very last
thing IN the December number OF
The American Magazine:
Christmas comes but once a
year. and the reformer is sorry it
comes so often, because it breaks
up with little "a hours Of sun
shine the melancholy work Of
making the world better. / know
what my friend. the Enthusiast
over there, is saying to himself.
He j, lamenting the fact that |
permit the frivohtv of a Chris
tian festival to divert me for q
day from the cares and anxieties
of the Responsible Person. Is
there no political meeting in
Hoboken or Coharies that I can
attend on the night of December
%. when by the Grace Of God I
hope to be whiting a turkeys
Why should l be'beaming down
on my well-fed Tor soon to be
. well-fed) children, crack ing old
Jokes, slashing at the savory
white meat and probing for the
stu6ing, when | might be address
sing meeting of the down-trodden
in some centre of freedom and
tyrannyl A few enlighte ned
words from me might spur in
dignant citizenship to the last
snperb effort that will land Hans
Machsnixsaus as coroner, and
thus at once abolish pov erty,
crime. suffering. Doodle, graft,
disease aad,lynching in the south.
But [ refuse to utter them. l re-
fuse to permit the Christmas
yelling that mounts within me to
be put aside by any other feeling,
human or political. If there is
one man at that reform meeting
on Christmas night. | say olsen
franchise him-strike him from
: the rolls, deprive him of speech,
reform him into the shape of a
dMkeyl Nay, if the great Hans
Nachsnixsaus is there himself, if
he is anywhere but beside his own
Christmas tree with a fur cap on
his bead and false white whiskrs
n'his chin. then may be ne yer
achieve bis crown. Maybe never
Bold inquest on me or mine.
I agree with you, this is no
time FOR laggards. We must
hasten to the toy shops. A grave
question presents itself to the
maphood of America. 1t is. fell
low citizens, what am l going to
give my wife9 Shall our child
rem starve while John D. Rookie
fellor. gluts himself on boiled
milk9 No. a thou sand times, no
'sthey may have Indigestion, but
starved Neverl The real issue
before the American people to-
day, issue that cannot be confus-
sed by false reasoning or OBJ
Gured by the hired scribblers of
plutocratic tyranny. is: Is
there a Santa CLAUSE And when
the masses of libertyloving people,
rise in their might, and their
nighties and creep with bare feet
into the parlor and see the stock.
ings bulging, they will decide as
with one voice that there is.
They may not put it that way.
They may just say: 'Oh, look
what l gotp' But it will come to
the same thing.
Who wants to change this spirit
for any otherl Who fails to
see in 1t the beginning of all gooi
awOrk in Che worldl The spirit o.
Christmas, the unselfish selfish
%
ness of giving happiness and tax.
ing it, the desire to do good if il
is only for one day, and only to.
wards ones own and the beggal
at. ones gate, this is the tru,
. eOufce of all right improvement
You cannot go to the Patent
Office in Washington and take ou