Evening star., 1946-12-17

chief duty OF q Henry McLemore.
Christmas tree Is not to lend beauty
or cheerfulness to room. ANY
Christmas tree worth Its artificial
snow knows that its prime function
is to impede the progress OF the
family and guests during the yule-
tide season by threatening the ad-
visibility Of cautious detour upon
approaching It. A sturdy Christmas
tree is disgrace to its breed. equally
as much as one which insists on It's
green foliage"
Not the Final Word.
But to the open minded man, this
must not be the final word. Those
famous collaborators, Judd Gray
and Ruth Snyder, tossed on q little
tome on Christmas trees which
many educators and wardens think
is even more scholarly than the
work OF l.. Diamond. After . brief
introduction touching on the care
and feeding of sash weights, Juddie
and Ruthie had this to say about
Christmas trees:
1.-THE angle ut which Christmas
trees lean is of slight Importance,
no matter how many books have
been written to the contrary. The
all-important thing about Christmas
trees is that they must look shabby
on Christmas morning. They should
have been in the living room just
long enough to have lost what luster
they might have had when chopped
down on posted property.
zone reason for this Is that no
tree should be brighter In ap-
pearance than its ornaments and,
as most of us know, the average
Christmas tree decorations are six,
seven. and eight years old. They
spend most Of their lives hidden
away in dark closets with only an
occasional moth ball or roll Of tar
paper with whom to talk. Yet
come the festive season and they
are expected TO come, unblinking
from their hiding places, and
sparkle, shine, glisten, and look
Just rs gay as the next fellow
People will discard or exchange
automobiles made Of steel, houses
made Of stone and concrete, but
they will hang onto the fragile
Christmas tree ornaments come
heaven or highwater. The angel
with the busted nose is going to be
on top Of the tree or else; the
lights which predated Edison are
going to be strung short circuit or nc
short circuit, and the same old
stars now round Is biscuits from
so much use are going right back
on the tree in the same place they
went when they were new and re-
sembled stars"
Starts Making Book.
My, my. myl How I do wander
from my original subject, which
was asking your advice on how
Christmas trees should lean. You
see, each year have to build the
box and supports for our tree. and
it is Just rs easy for me to make
it lean one way as another-right
left, backward, or forward. ]
don't care. Last year our tree
leaned right. The year before that
left.
We have had trees that nodded
trees that had nervous breakdown
and leaned against the wall. and
so help me, one tree that stood
right straight up. This lastrmen-
toned tree made every one nervous
because every one wondered which
way it was eventually going to lean
I started making book on the tree
and one of my aunts-Aunt Bess
from Nashville-has been mad at
me ever since because the tree
didn't yeer to leeward as she had
taken even money it would.
Which way should tree lean?
Why not take your pens that1l write
under water, get IN the bath tub
and send me the word?
Distributed by McNausht Syndicate. IncJ
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