Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1919-02-14
w. S. S. VALENTINE

dope articles aDout war
Saving Stamps and sends them
by the ton. from his palatial WASH
ington office to editors whom he be-
lieves have nothing to do but run
them bodily on the first pages of
their newspapers, has bright idea.
He thinks War Saving Stamps
should supercede the old-fashioned
crimson heart and paper lace affairs
that are SO popular with lovers on
the anniversary of st. Valentines
Day. Stick Thrift Stamp on a
card, write a verse to go along and
you have what Harry Lauder would
probably term "a fine valentine
nice and at the same time cheap"
Imagine the thoughts of the young
woman who, upon opening her mail
on Valentine Day, discovered a
stamp with an inscription running
something like this:
II could not love thee, dear, SO
much,
Loved l not honor more
A gallant lover truly said
On going to the war.
These Saving Stamps I send to
thee,
A victory valentine,
In them my love and honor.
l truly interwine.
Not so bad at that, as Valentine
verses go. perhaps, but not so very
satisfactory, either, viewed from the
standpoint of the blushing maiden
uyho wants IN haliaxya bar 1oyar n IN g
no thoughts but for her. When did
thrift and love ever go hand in
hand. anyway. and what does Dan
Cupid know about the necessity of
reducing the war bills by means
of twenty-five cent stamps?
But if one MUSf send a War
Stamp to ones true love on st.
Valentines Day, why not forward
it with the suggestion that it be Used
to help keep the Hope Chest filled
during the more or less lean days
that are sure to come in even the
best regulated families some time
during the first ten years of welded
bliss, or it's opposite. as the case
may be. For such the following
stanza is suggested:
The Hope Chests full of dainty
wear,
OF linen sewed with loving care,
And laid away
Against the Day,
When thou'lt be mine.
This token of the way | build
To keep that chest forever filled
Shall bring to you
Loves greeting TRUE
My Valentine.
There! That combines something
both of sentiment and practicality.
1t indicates that the sender is what
experienced housewives call a good
provider." 1t expresses the hint
cunningly, oh, very cunningly, intro
duced, and not too greatly empha-
sized-that the writer expects his
wife to keep up her supply of dainty
silks and linens after marriage, and
it is altogether about as satisfactory
as anything of which we can think
where'Thrift Stamps and Valentines
go into the same mail together.
On the whole, we are inclined to
recommend the foregoing as about
as diplomatic a bit of w. S. S. valen
tine literature as can be devised,
for one is treading on dangerous
ground when discussing thrift with
one who expects us to blow ourselves
to the limit of our pay envelopes
for her sweet self. For example,
what do you imagine a girl would
think who got a stamp and a verse
like this:
Though n5l some son in flowers their love
And some send bonbons for their
gift,
My valentine alone will spell
True love: because that's based
on thrift
Take it from one who has gone
through the mill and don't talk
about candy and flowers that other
girls are getting while you are hand
ing her lovely Thrift Stamp. The
war is over and the young lady who
would have gone into raptures of self
denial a year ago will hold it out
against you unless you tuck your
patriotic reminder into the top of a
big box of chocolates or between the
buds of a dozen of those lovely red
roses she 1oteS unop