The Bon Homme County independent. [volume] (Tabor, S.D.) 1904-1913, 1906-12-20
How the Wanderer Slghs
for a Home Christmas
nv n. r. DAvIDS.

6Y n. r. DAvlps.
To tho wanderer. the man who
spends his days travelling from one
place TO another. whose stop In town
Is just long enough 10 make few
friends and who then moves on 10
newer pastures. Christmas In about the
most dismal time OF the year. He Is
seized by an uncomfortable loneliness.
He watches others happy In their
homes. he secs the ''heImwcih' I'm all
Its most beautiful aspects and he sick
ems OF the wanderlust. the fever I'm his
blood which sends him onward like
plaything moved by tho hand OF an
unseen power. During the rest OF the
year he prides himself on his freedom,
no thanks the gods because his feet
are not shncklcd NJ those or other men
and the sentiment OF home and family
ties do not affect him In tho least.
But ut Christmas all Is changed. The
hundreds OF years OF convention which
have hallowed Christmas day has. Tor
all his conviction ana scorn for such
matters. left It's imprint on him and
though he IN loath TO admit IL. his
feelings on Christmas time are OF TN.
saddest. This homeless Christmas L. a
theme which Christmas writer's have
handled from times unknown. They
have harped on the string until IL IL
worn and fraycd. but the note Is still
there and though the rest or the world
the stny-at-homc worldly hearing:
u so often expressed. take Il as n tritc
platisidc. admitting It's fact. they lose
Its true significance. Only the man
who has travelled can properly under
standard he would give n lot TO be
Ignorant on the matter.
To him the little pleasure that lies
mt Yulc tide period In not In the Christ
mas present. but In the Christmas past.
Memories which for months have been
lying dormant come TO the surface and
as he smokes and dreams. he forgets
his present surroundings. and dwells I'm
the "reminiscences which bring a hall
smile TO his lips and which make him
feel tho terrible usclcssness OF his life
Some one hns declared that when God
made man and burdened him with sor-
rows hc also placed tobacco In tho
world for solace and to tobacco the
wandcrcr turns. knowing that I'm Its
cloud dreams. he can Mt least still the
gnawing loneliness In his breast.
Tho pipe Is an old acquaintance. IL
has been with him on many such other
occasions and may have been given Ia
him as n Christmas present many
years. But the latter Is q mere pos
slbillty. the probability being that IL n
Christmas present he never would have
the courage to smoke 1t. With nervous
fingers the wandcrcr lifts the match To
the bow. his mind scething with things
he had hoped and thought he had long
forgotten. As tho smoke rises TO the
ceiling. enveloping him In It's vapofy'
curtaining. IL takes the form OF old
faces. some dead. some living and all
up To that time forgotten. Before him
there rises the scene or Christmas
last. Through the smoke he sees n
mental picture OF the eternal sea. black
and angry. rising and falling. The
white crested waves strike against the
sides OF the tiny tramp steamer. bat
tering increasingly. He sees himself
at the bow gazing ahead as the boat.
pitching and grooming. creaking and
rolling, crashes It's way through the
dark waters.
IL ts bitterly coid--the damp cold OF
the foggy seas-and he swings his arm
against his sides In an effort 10 keep
warm. The lights OF n liner fash.
glimmcr and die down In the distance
and tho loneliness he knows 30 well
crecps over him. From the focs'le un-
dcrneath his feet rises the voices OF
men I'm anger. Greeks. Italians and
Portuguese OF the lowest type. the scum
OF southern Europe, sandbaggcd and
shanghaicd aboard. form the crew. and
they are fighting among themselves.
But he heeds them not. Soon IL will
he his trick Mt the wheel. and rs he
double strokes almost being lost In the
whistling OF the wind I'm the rigging.
the unceasing dashing OF tho waters
against the sides and grooming rattle OF
the engines. lie hears the hoarse
voice OF the mate. deep with curses OF
the channel. routing from their warm
hunks the new watch. They come out
angrily. and one OF them rushes at the
mate with the evident intention of
knitting him. Through the darkness
hc dlmly sees the mates arm swing
md the man goes down 20 the deck
with "A sobbing grunt. a minute later
"a the wnndercr passes him he sees
blood flowing from his head and frecz-
ing on the Ice covered decks. He u
used TO such scenes, and as he hastily
climbs the companionway to the
wheelhouse he wishes some one would
bring him n glass OF grog that night.
The sen fades away from his sight
and another picture appears. There IL
nothing now but n few date trees, "a
well OF brackish water and n space OF
sand stretching far To the horizon.
sparkling and glinting In the hot sun
light and dazzling the eyes. lie smiles
ut that Christmas dinner. Everybody
has placed n macintosh on the hot
sand. n bottle OF Bass ale Mt each cor
ner tn keep IL from being carried away
by the wind. and I'm the shade OF the
stunted date trees. there on the edge
OF the RaJputana desert. he takes his
Christmas dinner. The food " nearly
all tinned-with a flavor OF exceeding
tinniness. The ale II sticky and the
water impure. Yet they all laugh as
they sit down ut the impromptu meal
toasting each other royalty In the fiat
tasteless ale and hoping TO meet under
better circumstances next time. As
they eat and drink. the sand devils