The National tribune., 1907-12-19

| AS weak imftatorS OF the lowly NaZa-
rene, we have our duty to perform this
search for the duty, for 1t lies under
our hands. Not to our own alone must
we bring this incense of the holy sea-
son, but to the strangers within our
/, gates the neglected ones along our
pathway. the lonely ones in dreary
haunts, called by courtesy "home.' we
must extend the right hand of fellow
ship and bid Godspeed. 1t is some-
| times comfort to reflect that no mat
ter how badly the world may treat US,
our condition is not as hopeless as that
of yet another whom fortune has
Knocked and happiness deserted. That
other is the one whom we should reach
out after and upon whom we should
bestow bit of our greater bounties.
! Our first duty, of course, is to those
nearest and dearest to u.s. but it is not
meet that we should expend upon them
all our energies, nor yet upon our
| friends. The gift-making that becomes
a duty is dreary farce, and loses to
us the delightful essence of the season.
| When Christmas giving descends to the
level of business proposition, simply
a fair exchange of presents with a
sense of obligation discharged. the Gus
tom is degraded, and we are sensibly
| lowered in our own esteem. One of
| the surest indications of good breeding
| is the ability to make acceptable pres
ents in an acceptable manner. The
value of present should never be the
measure of it's acceptability, and it new
er is with the incest people.
A showy present, given ostensibly for
its costly character, calls attention to
the fact that the donor is a person of
coarse instincts, devoid of taste and
breeding. Costliness in surroundings
and benefits bestowed are the only ways
that some people have of showing that
they possess money and you do not
Presents bestowed in that way smack
of patronage and condescension, and
that is something that no self-respect-
ing American can endure for a mo-
ment. The true woman gives from her
heart and not from her purse, and her
presents always bring pleasure because
good taste and judgment have guided
the selection, and the monetary value
has not once obtruded itself before her,
nor will 1t to you, un,ess you have been
an ungrateful recipient.
The Children Come First.
It cannot be denied that present-giv-
ing has got to be a terrible strain, and
that we come perilously near the edge
of deserving the criticism of our for
eign friends, who say that we are vul-
carly fond of display. We air this folly
at home and abroad. Our social func-
tiOUS are nldue the neQlurn IOr the
greatest display of all, and from christ
ening to coffin we overdo the matter
all along the line. It is un-American.
If the democracy of a republican form
of Government means anything it
means simplicity, and it is unpatriotic
to degrade our institutions. whether
public or private. by an ostentatious
display Of wealth. 1t is quite time that
we get away from the commercial ex-
change nf rnnrtpSinG tn
beautiful Christmas customs of by-gone
days, when the presents given had a
purpose, and that purpose was not to
exploit the riches of the giver.
The children come first. of course. 1t
may be that in your home there are no
childish feet to patter down the stairs
in the gray Christmas light to the
stocking hung close to the chimney
Perhaps the child that crept into your
arms last Christmas to show its pres
ents lies under the drifting leaves in
Gods acre, and your heart is too sore
to enter into the joys of the day as it
comes to others. For that one day, at
least, nurse your sorrow In silence. and
do not let your sad thoughts intrude
themselves upon those about you Per-
haps the little one who has slipped |
from your arms had playmates less for |
tunate than herself You might lavish |
on them some of the wealth of affec-
ton that fills your aching heart. and in
the self-effacement there would come
much comfort. 1t was a lesson of self |
abnegation such as this that the Christ |
child taught. and if we would enjoy to |
the fullest extent the blessings of the |
anniversary we must practice the pre-
cepts of Him whom it commentaries. !
The Friendly Hand.
Perhaps you have prospered- far be-
yond some of your friends in the year
that has passed. It may be that while |
your path has seemed to be rose-cov- |
cred that of your friends has been |
strewn with shards, flint and pebbles |
There are many ways in which you |
can make the day brighter for her and |
the season holer Not by charity, in |
the shape of a present, for charity is |
cold comfort to one who needs instead |
an encouraging word, a friendly grasp
of the hand, a sign that she has not |
been forgotten. tho the gay world that
was once at her feet has turned aside |
from her. Some one said not long ago
that the most pathetic sentiment ever
expressed, and the truest was that
Sorrows crown of sorrow is remem-
bering happier things I doubt not
that this is so. Never to have pos
sessed is never to have enjoyed Never
to have enjoyed is never to have re-
gretted
Those who are born poor ands dis
tressed take charity kindly, nay, de-
mand it and accept it as their due
They may long for joys that are out
of their reach. but the sense of be-
the bitterness of loss. never
enters into their desire for possession
and that element of regret must be
forever lacking. But to those who have
always been beStowers of benefits the
acceptance of charity is the keenest
torture. Yet reversals of fortune such
as this are common in this country of
sudden changes, and to them. indeed,
sorrows crown of sorrow is in re-
membering at this season the "hap-
'er things" of the dear, dead days. 1t
takes the gentlest tact, the most
thoughtful grace of a true-born gentle
to make the Christmas ami
versary one of pleasure to these.
Spirit of Christmas Giving.
Then there are the peor-tiiose who
have never known what it is to have
enough to eat, or clothes enough to
keep them warm. They are legion, and
you do not have to seek them. for theyl
are at your very doors. Remember
hem as literally as lies within your I
means. "Be merciful after thy power. I
If thou hast much, give plenteously; if I
thou hast little, do thy diligence gladly
to give of that little, for so gatherest
thou thyself a good reward in the day c
IF necessity do thy diligence gladly I
to give of that little" that is the es- l
sence of the spirit of Christmas giving. &
And so, whatever may be our cir 6
let us endeavor to make I