The Washington times., 1915-12-20


to death about Christmas.
She has two perfectly good
children a generous husband.
plenty OF money in her own bank in
her own name. two aunts, two regular
uncles. and one of the bachelor va
riety. a grandfather and two grand
mothers-a perfectly ideal family for
perfectly ideal Christmas,
But the woman next door can't see
her way out of her Christmas troubles.
TITS all so false" she says, so much
pretending and flbbing and what l call
up-and-down lying about 1t. There
Santa Claus, to begin with. 1 think it's
absolutely wicked to tell children there's
a Santa Claus. and teach them to be
30 fond of him. My children believe me
because always tell them the truth.
How are they going to feeI about It
when they find out the Santa Claus
fraudR
Why, the very churches connive
at 1t! We're going to have a Christmas
tree in our church. and the Sunday
school superintendent is going to dreas
up for Santa Claus. He's tickled to
death over his white whiskers and red
flannel overcoat. Such childishness, and
so deceitful, call It! My children are
awfully smart. and they know the Sun
day school superintendent very we'll.
What IL they should recognize him and
ask me about It? What could say?
How could they ever believe a word
he says again? And then, there are the
books that people are sure to give them.
Grandma is talking about Jack the
Giant Killer already. Just think of 1t.
giving such a murderous thing to a
timid little boy to read: And grandpa
has got The Night Before Christmas
with brand new illustrations, all picked
out. More fairy tales!
And I simply know Aunt Sarah has
heen waiting for chance to give little
MnrJory, Hans Andefsen's Fairy Tales
What am I going to do about it?
The whole world seems to be in league
against my attempt to bring up my chill
dren in the real, honest world. and not
to teach them whole lot of things
that they've got to unlearn by and by!"
She Isn't hypochondriac or ner-
vous subject at all, my friend the
woman next door. Two or three years
ago she was one of the most whole
knew.
Just Loving" Needed.
lust the sort you'd ask in to have
pot luck" with you when the cook was
i'll. Just the kind who would be a per
feet treasure or a camping trip, and
now she's like this! All on account OF
ciubs-women's clubs and the striving
for what she loves to call the ethical"
point of view.
don't believe that woman breathes
without stopping to think whether it's
ethical or not. And as for her poor
children, she's making such a consci-
entious and all-absorbing Study" Of
them that she doesn't seem to have
anything left to love them with, and
children do need such lot OF plain,
everyday. old-fashloned, simple-hearted,
come e-and-cuddle~me' loving.
They really cannot thrive without It.
Ask the metron OF any orphan asvlum
In the world about 1t and she'll tell you
the same story. Babies die in found
are neglected or because they were
poorly equipped to begin with, brt be-
cause they are starved to death for
want of love. There's nothing parttcu-
larly scientific about this, but it's true
Just the same.
I wish the woman next door wasn't
so worried about Jack the Giant
like Jack the Giant Killer" myself
I'm just that unregenerate. And as for
Jack who climbed up the beanstalk, life
wouldn't have been life to me without
him somewhere in the foreground, or
the background whichever you want to
call It.
When I think of that handful of spot
ted beans-purple and red and gold they
were, you rememper-I don't blame Jack
a bit for trading his mothers cow for
them. And when l remember the way
that vine grew up. over Jacks window
in one single night, and what Jack
found at the top Of IT, well, wouldn't