Virginia free press. (Charlestown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1832-1916, 1914-12-24

By CHARLES DICKENS
HAVE been looking on this even
Ing at a merry company Of chill
dren assembled around that pref

Il AANE Deen looking on tnlS even
Ing at a merry company Of chill
h iren assembled around that pref
ty German toy. Christmas tree.
Being now ut home again and 1lone.
| the only person In the house awake
my thoughts are drawn back BY fas-
| cinatiOn which | do not care to resist
| to my own childhood. Straight in the
middle If the room. eramped 10 the
freedom OF its growth BY 40 enclrcling
willis Or soon reached ceiling. shad
owy tree arises. and. booking up into
the drssliny brightness of It's top. for
lloissefte Id this tree the singular prop
etfy fiat Il appears to grow down
Esrd toward the earth, look into my
| youngest CHRISTMAS recoIlectious.
III foys II first l find. But upon the
branches OF the tree. lower down how
thick the looks begin to hang thin
Books. In themselves at first. but many
Of them. with deliciously smooth covers
Of bright red lind green.
was NH archer and shot at 4 frog. !"
OF course he was. He was nm ripple
| pie also. and thereahe Is. He was =
| good many things III. his lime. was a,
and so were most Of his friends, except
x. who had SO little versatility that /
never knew him to get beyond Xerxes
or Nantippe.
But now the very tree Itself changes
and becomes beanstaIk. the marvel
Gus bennstalk by which Jack climbed
up to the giants house.
Good for Christmas time Ia the rud-
| dy color Of the cloak In which. the tree
making forest OF itself for her to
trip through with her BASKET. Little Red
Riding Hood comes to me one Christ
mas ere to give me information OF the
cruelty and treachery Of TINT disseIn.
bling wolf who ate her grandmother
without making any impression on bis
appetite and then ate her after maxi
| ing that ferocious Joke about his teeth.
| She was my first love. | felt that II
could have married Little Red Rid
ing Hood should have known perfect
| bliss Hut It was not to be. and tlere
was nothing for it but to look for The
wolf fnsthe Noal1's ark there and put
him last in the procession on the table
| as monster who was to be degraded.
Oh. the. wonderful Noah's ark! IL
was not found seuwOrthy when put In
washing tub, and the animals were
cralnmed in at the roof and needed to
have their legs well shaken down be-
fore they could be. got in even there,
and then ten to one they began to tum-
be nut at the door, which was but I'M
perfectly fastened with a wire latch.
But ~ifat svas that slgeaiinst # 49,
Again forest and somebody up ia
La tree not Robin Hood, not Valentine,
not the. Yellow Dwarf; I have passed
these and ali Mother Bunchs wonders
without mention but an eastern king
| with the glittering scimitar and tur-
ban. 1t is the setting in OF the bright
| Arabian Nights.
| OH now all common things become
| uncommon and quite enchanted to me!
| All lamps are most wonderful. All
| rings are talismans. Common flower
| pots are full of treasure. with little
earth scattered on the top; trees are for
| Ali Bahia to hide in: beefsteaks are to
1 throw down into the Valley of Dia.
| monds that the precious stones may
stick to them and be carried. by the
eagles to their nests. whence the trad
ers. with loud cries. will scare them.
All the dates imported come from the
same tree as that unlucky one with
whose shell the merchant knocked out
the eye Of the genie's isible SON
But, bark. The waits are playing,
and they break my childish sleep.
What limoges do j associate with the
i Christmas music ms | see them sci
forth on the Christmas tree! Known
before all the others. keeping far apart
from all the others they gather round
my little bed-an angel. speaking "a
group of shepherds in field; some
travellers. wiki eyes uplifted. following
| star; a baby In manger: child In
spacious temple, talking with great
men; a solemn figure, with a mild and
beautiful face. raising q dead girl by
the hand; again. near a city gate call
1 ing back the son Of widow on his
bier to life; ascrowd of people looking
through the open roof of chamber
where be sits and letting down q: sick
person on bed with ropes: the same
in a tempest. walking on the waters;
i In ship again. on seashore, teach
! ing q great multitude: again. with o
child upon his knee and other children
around: again. restoring sight to the
blind speech to the dumb. hearing to
tie deaf. health to the sick. strength
Isto the lame. knowledge TO the ignorant
akain dying upon u cross. watched By
armed soldiers. q daE kness coming on
the earth begihnfb 4 to shake aud only
lone voice heard sFsorgive them. fol
they know NOT what tney dor.
Encircled by III d social thoughts 81
/ Christmas time, still lei the benignan
figure OF my childhood stand unchang
ed. In every. cheerful image and sug
/ gestion that the season brings maj
the bright star that rested above th,
poor roof be the star of All the Chris
tan world.
A moments Inuse. o vanishing tree
Of which the lower boughs are dark Il
me yet. and let me look once more
know there are thank spaces on fhy
branches. where eyes thai have iovee
have shone and smiled from which
they are departed hut far above 81
i nee the raiser of the dead girl and thu
widows son and God II good
| sst
Il.