Evening star., 1934-12-23

those whose hair is white and
whose brows denote the passing of time, it will
be time of retrospection and meditation
recalling days when they, too were young and
enjoyed, with other boys and girls, the ginger
cakes and cookies their mothers baked for them
during the holiday season, and the stockings
their Santa Claus filled for them long before
the word hose generally employed to
designate that useful article Of wearing apparel.
To many the bygone days and the good old
days mean much-juSt as much, indeed, as
the present day means to the young ones who
are preparing to enjoy this Christmas. A half
century-and in some cases few decades
more-has elapsed since the older folk now
with us awoke on Christmas morn and scram-
bled out of bed to find out what Santa Claus
had brought them, and many things have hap
pened since then: War and disease have taken
their toll and the grim reaper has made inroads
among friends and relations alike, but the good
Old days of yore are still recalled and the
memories of Christmas and of their childhood
days are as bright as ever
Indeed, we of another generation just cannot
help but reflect on our early Christmas days,
when the pine or cedar tree was lighted with
candles-before the days of the electric light,
and recall the white -and-red colored candles
IN the shape Of rings, canes and other forms,
then part of the decorations, as well as the
cornucopias made of gold, silver and bright
colored paper, which filled with little
candies, gum drops and nuts and the little
white candies, made in the shape Of animals,
which were hung the tree with pieces Of
string, some of which we would "snitch' if the
opportunity presented itself.
OF course, this was not all the trimming 1t
received for there were the paper rings made
into long chains, to drape the tree with, and
the cardboard figures, also covered with gold
and silver paper, and plenty of moss around
the base. which we gathered in the woods be-
fore Christmas, in order to help Santa Claus.
And then, not far from the tree, in the corner,
was the whatnot, and the little parlor stove,
that always looked so red and cheerful when
the weather was cold. But the parlor would
not be complete without mentioning the Brus-
sels carpet tackled to the floor on all four sides;
the mohair furniture with the handknit tides
fastened here and there; the marble e-top table,
upon which stood the glass globe of wax
flowers, and over which hung the long mirror;
the Nottingham lace curtains at the windows;
a square piano and, of course, coal oil lamp
or two; few large, colored candles and the
family portrait gallery which hung on the
wall-and you can almost see an old-timers
parlor on Christmas morning.
THERE is a difference between Christmas
now and what it used to be, generally speak
ing, and in saying this we are not unmindful
that certain forms of So-called pleasure existed
as far back as the District of Columbia goes,
and even from the earliest time the day was
celebrated, for there were always those who just
had to have their fling, and who had a certain
quantity of oats to SOW and did not hesitate to
SOW them
Samuel Harrison Smith, editor of the Ma
tional Intelligencer, sounds sad note along
this line in that paper on December 28, 1901,
when evidently of his printers had been
imbibing too freely and too long during the
holiday season, but at that, with editorial as
tuteness, he let them down automatically say
Ing
I'm consequence of the absence of several of
our workmen engaged in the festivities of the
season, we have been obliged to contract the
usual quantity of information presented to
our readers" Though, after all, is it not just
about what the poet, Churchill, has said?
"December last, month. but best, which gave
A Christ to man, Savior to the slain;
While falsely grateful, man, at the full feast,
To DO God honor, makes himself beast"