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MERRY CHRISTMASTIDE. It
flmos Deai/s Qfyristmas.
(Copyright, 1896, by the Author.]
Twas near the blessed Christmas time. In meadows and upon the hills
Tbc grass was green. The ice king’s breath bad not made mute the running rille
[ / ((ft
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amos and the parson. No tidings of him came '
WJ two years passed, and then we knew that he’d been wrecked far, far at sea.
We know not whether still he lives, and yet we hope and often pray
■®at heaven will send the wandered
home to fill our hearts with joy
some day.”
•He was an honest lad and true,” said
Amos. “But, like many a boy
feared here along this sea beat shore,
the ocean to him was a joy.
3nt, parson, maybe’ll come a day when
you are thinkin of him dead,
Ton’ll see him oomin up the path in an
swer to the prayers you’ve said.
3* was a brave, smart youth, you know
—to go to sea was all his pride—
and, parson, I b’lieve that some day he’ll
come in on some favorin tide.”
Within the fisher’s hut they knelt and
bowed their heads in earnest prayer,
Ind ne’er were heard more fervent words
than those the parson uttered there.
Me prayed for blessing from above. He prayed that heaven his boy would keep
lad bring him home, ere many days, a rescued wanderer of the deep.
’ SSSSr J 4 -' 1
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the snowflakes oittside. had passed.
“The Lord be praised!” old Amos said. “The welcome snow has come at last. ”
loud blew the fierce nor’easter wind. The smacks were prancing in the bay
lte>- the old sturdy fisherman to Parson
Moore’s home took his way.
''fit’s providential, minister,” he said,
with a most reverent air.
“Tins storm is very plain to me a proof
that God does answer prayer. ”
T&e church bell seemed to ring that day
as it had never rung before
Sxons. the gray steeple's pointed tower in
that old village by the shore,
icd while a favorite hymn was sung a
manly form passed at the door,
And in the lingering shadow paused un
til the i-jrvices were o’er.
Then as the parson down the aisle came
after his sweet task was done
IQrestranger said with whispering voice,
“Dear father, don’t you know your
son?”
what a blessed hour was that I Be-i
fore him stood his long lost boy,
And there were smiles, and there were
tears-—aye, tears, but they were tears of joy.
“Thank heaven!” said Amos. “ ’Mother proof it is that mid our woe and care—
ss we believe in him and trust—our God above dees answer prayer.
Weprayed for storm. He sent us snow. He’s fled our thankful hearts with joy,
And at this blessed Christmas time to you and homo he’s brought your boy.
CALEB DUNN.
MRS. CHRISTMAS.
TRANSLATED BY JOSEPH SOHM.
It was in the afternoon.
High up in the mountains
on the line of the Black
F> -est railway, in one of
11 te umall cabins which
a - regular intervals line
the side of all European
i railroads, housing those
I poorly paid men whose
;; duty it is to inspect from
3 time to time the roadbed
' for a certain distance and
warn passing trains of
eventual danger, a door
t opened and a woman’s
'A
ftwad appeared, breaking the monotony
«f tfia snowy landscape. The bead was
quickly withdrawn. Inside in the over
heated room her husband, the flagman,
fey on his bed in a fever. Il had at
tacked him suddenly, ho knew not how,
The air was gentle as its kind, soft whis
pers on an April noon,
Andon the sea the western breeze played
on the waves a pleasant tune.
O’er wooded land and in the vales re
posed at rest a languid haze,
earth with violet bloom as
in the Indian summer days.
,1’56 smacks were idle in the bay, and
quiet reigned along the shore,
Save when some song was sweetly blent
with music of the dipping oar.
“Heaven help us,” said a fisherman—
old, grizzly visaged Amos Dean—•
“And send us snow, for well we know
the meanin of a Christmas green!
Well I remember ten years past how
grass was wavin on that day,
And all that awful winter through sick
ness took many a soul away.”
“And well do I remember, too, that
winter time,” said Parson Moore.
‘ ‘On one of its most stormy nights a run
away passed from our door—
My dearest boy. You know the tale.
Tr} jEfex
i
■ 1 s — FOfeJ icU VTA
I
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AMOS’ FAITH.
And Amos prayed in homely phrase.
Ho prayed that stormy winds might
blow
And cover all the fields and hills when
Christmas came with welcome
snow.
The days went by. ’Twas Christmas
eve, when all good souls are filled
with glee,
And in the seaside village homes warm
hearts beat round the Christmas
tree.
Remembrances of days long gone were
told by old ones, while the young
Passed the bright hours most merrily,
and many a pleasant song was sung,
While o’er the sky the leaden clouds
gathered till not a star was seen,
And little flakes began to fall. Thank
heaven, there’d be no Christmas
green!
When morning name, the earth was
white, the grass was hid, the haze
scar
Mil
o' k 14
1 RETURN OF THE LOST.
and now ho wanted neither to hear nor
see anything; only to sleep.
His wife had brewed a hot tea for
him and made him drink it. She was
in hopes to rouse him by it, for little
Jakob, their only son, had been at her
■ all day, saying: “Mother, dear, won’t
you go down to the village and get me
something for Christmas? See, the tree
is already stuck in the pot, and all I
need are apples and nuts and a big, big
herzlebkuchen’’ [a large frosted cuke in
the shape of a heart].
But whenever she put a warm wrap
around herself and allowed the boy to
drag her to the door, a sudden fear for
the loudly breathing husband would
seize her, and she would return to his
bedside.
Little Jakob finally broke out into
bitter crying, that on this holy eve he
was to have nothing bnt a bare tree,
which seemed to him the greatest sor
row that this world could hold. The
mother, with a sudden impulse, said to
her husband: “In two hours I am back
again. It is Christmas eye, am] no child
PITE ROME TRIBUNE, SUNDAY, DECEMBER 20 18J6.
ougtit to be allowed to go empty handed.
Don’t you think I could get something
for our little boy?’ ’ ,
“Yes, yes,” he nodded in assent. "I*
am feeling a little dumpish yet. When
I’ve had a sleep, I shall feel better.”
“Listen, Jakob. ” The mother then
turned to the boy. “Watch closely.
When the hand of the clock shows 5
minutes of 5, you must wake up your
father, get his flag for him, and noi
stop until he is out there when the train
comes. Do you hear me? You must not
let up until he does it; I charge you
with it”
Jakob promised. “I will not rest,
mother, but don’t forget I need apples
and nuts a-plenty, and a great big
herzlebkucben. ”
The woman was already battling out
side with wind and snow, when the
child's clear voice rang out after her:
“There must be almonds in it. Goodby,
mother, and give my best regards to the
Christ Kindi, if you meet him on the
way!”
Then Jakob went to his tree, gazed
on it rapturously, and from time to
time clapped his hands, for in anticipa
tion he. already saw all the branches
and twigs hung with apples and nuts.
Though the mother could not return be
fore 6 o’clock, and the clock was now
striking only 4, Jacob nevertheless every
little while went out doors to see whether
OFF FOB THE VILLAGE.
she was not coming, returning every
time with his head full of snowflakes.
Then he would plant himself with great
conscientiousness in of the old
clock, watching the swinging of the
pendulum.
At last. There was no mistake, the
hands pointed to where the mother had
shown him. Jakob went to the bedside
of his sleeping father, shook him by the
shoulders and cried into his ears, “Fa
ther, the train!”
The man lay in a deep sleep. After
drinking the tea a sweat had broken ■
out, and a heavy dream seemed to op-!
press him, for when the child bent over
him he struck at him. But Jakob could
net be deterred. He knew what was at
stake if his father missed his duty. He
got the flag and put it in his father’s
hand. He dragged the heavy overcoat to
the bedside. He yelled, he tugged and
pulled at the sleeping man—but in
vain. The train signal could now be
heard catside. f
“Quick!” the boy cried. “The train,
father! Get up! Listen, dear father!
Do listen to me!”
“Yes, yes,” the man murmured. “I
am there already.” Ajjcl he turned to
the wall again.
“There is nothing left but for me’to
go out,” the boy said to himself, “for
somebody must be out there.”
With quick decision he slipped into
his father’s heavy overcoat, drew the
cape over his head and seized the flag
He arrived just in the nick of time at
his post, for a few moments later the
train thundered past the grotesque little
form. The snow had covered him from
head to foot. With great seriousness he
presented the flag, and the rosy child
face beamed most sweetly from under
the snow covered cape—a storm wafted
Santa Claus on a solitary night.
As such he may have appeared to the
youthful lady who stood in the open
window of a.compartment oar, gazing
out into the silent Christ night, for sud-
X
• -111 ft J■ S f v. X
•<!
THE LITTLE FLAGS'AN.
denly she beckoned with her hand, and
the next instant a heavy object came
flying from the passing train right be
fore Jakob’s feet.
He picked it up and hurried into the
house with it. There, after dropping hie
father’s heavy overcoat, he hastened to
the window to examine his present in
the. bright moonlight. It w a small,
fine purse. He opened it and found it
I almost tilled with bright new silver
r I coin. Jacob fairly screamed with d<-
' light. He never thought of a giver, for
wasn’t it Christmas? Ho wonder that
presents fell from heaven.
He commenced to cover the twigs of
his little Christmas tree with the coins,
which was no small trouble, for they
would continually drop off again, so
that finally Jakob, quite exhausted,
placed his head on his arms and fell
asleep under his silver spangled tree.
He did not hear when his mother re
turned. covered with snow and panting
from exertion as she entered the room.
She first set dawn her basket and then
hurried to her husband’s bedside. He
was breathing evenly, and on the floor
was his overcoat. He bad been able to
fulfill bis duty. “God be praised,” the
woman murmured and turned to the
window where the tree was and her lit
tle boy was sitting motionless. Softly,
on tiptoes, with the basket full of ap
ples and nuts, the herzlebkucben |n her
hand, she' stepped behind the child’s
chair. But what was that? Was the
moon shining with extraordinary bright
ness tonight that a silvery shimmer
seemed to proceed from the tree as well
as from the curly hair of sleeping Ja
kob? The woman brushed with her out
stretched hand over the head of the
child and with a silvery tinkle little ob
jects fell right and left to the floor.
i “Great heavens!” she exclaimed, caus
ing Jakob suddenly to start up. First
he looked around somewhat scared, but
then, hopping from one leg to the other
in exuberant joy, ho exclaimed: “Yes,
yes; everything belongs to me. Look,
just look, mother!”
The woman first of all made a light.
Her husband now woke up, too, leaping
from his bed with both feet at once.
“My God,” he said, “the train has
passed I Os course you have been out
there, wife?”
His wife turned deathly pale. “I
have just returned, ” she gasped.
“Bnt I was out there, ” chimed in
| Jakob. “When father didn’t want to
wake up at all, I just took the flag and
the overcoat and did everything all
right. Nobody knew me, but the Santa
Claus threw a heap of money from
heaven down to me—all new money.”
Feeling quite miserable yet from the
spell of fear he had just passed through,
the flagman, with trembling knees, al-
ASLEEP BA' THE TREE.
lowed himself to drop into the nearest
chair. “Have you really been out
there?” he inquired.
“Os course. You can depend on it,”
Jakob assured him.
The flagman’s wife examined the
purse and fount! in it a card, with the
inscription, “A Merry Christmas.” It
took a long tim-> until they succeeded
in spelling out the words. Finally she
said: “Oh, I know! It means Frau
Marey [provincial German for Mary]
Christmas. God bless her! She must be
a very kind hearted lady!”
“Very likely she is Santa Claus,
mother,” ventured Jakob as he sailed
into his apples and nuts.
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