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IP®<ai<s@ ©m ELoiritk
QwrnsttM®s W5i to Mm
IFakacr
By A. W. I ERRIN
%TO ono welcome* tin 1 advent of
tho holiday season more heart-
I ^ ll.v than the sidewalk tner-
/ rlmtil of Hu* city, tlio street
fakir, for, while he seems to flourlnli
like n Kroon buy tree nil Uie yenr
riiiiiul, lit «'lirlMtiiiiih time be roiipu bin
groat bnrv(;Ht of pennies, nickels mill
dimes. The lienrtM of even the most
inirxIinonlotlH open with llie approach
at i lirlstinjiH. mid purse strliiKs loosen
its ut no other time. On every corner
mill tietween corners these curbstone
noiniiils lire surrounded by sduilrlng
mnl piircbnsliiK citizens, and "novel
ties," from rubber plK* which can be
Inflated to the size of a small tin I loon
mnl III eilmuntlng their nlry contents
H|iienl like s renl porker, to elnhorate
mechanical toys, sell like hot cakes.
Nvery year distinct features Of thla
tpieor trade come to the surfaee and
ure pnt on the market simultaneously
tiy fakirs throughout the country. The
fnetortee 111 which these things are
made work overtime to meet the de-
iruind of the shrill voiced "barkers"
who personify Hants Clans to the chil
dren of the city. New York la the great
licadquartara of the feklra, and they
visit It at least once a year to arranga
for tile noveltlea of the enanlng seaaon
mid to do a little business In the me
tropolis itself. There are several large
Jobbers In the city who deal etclualTely
with the sidewalk peddlers, and they
Imhup voluminous catalogues describing
thousands of articles suitable for sala
on the street. Kvory fakir carries one
of those books, and when ho runs out
of stock lie sends an order to hla Arm,
whirl) Is tilled by return express.
(In must of the tbliiKs lie handles the
fakir makes h profit of 11MI per cent
and sometimes umre tliiiu that. Ar-
tlcloa sold for a dime are uaually
botiKht for a nickel, and thoao which
sell for a nickel for L’bj cents. Occa
sionally, however, when some novelty
nmkes n real hit, the manufacturers
put up the price until the fnklr'a profit
Is only s cent on each aale.
The old time favorite, the Jumping
)nck, evolved Into a sailor who elltnhs
n rope hand over hand; dirigible tin
mice, klsalng bugs, lobsters and craha,
papier tuache frogs which Jump like
the hero of Mark Twain's famous story,
all find a ready market, while cheap
perfumery, Christmas cards and lead
soldlera are peddled In vast quantities.
Just where the fakir gets hla title la
a mooted quentlon. The real fakir,
whose habltnt la India, la a person of
religious consequence end has nothing
to do with "fakes" unless It be that he
performs wonderful tricks which owe
their success to sleight of hand rather
than to the Influence of the gods by
whom the fakir la professedly actuated.
However, fakir Is as good a name for
fbe Itinerant vender ns any other, and
N'
By J. A. EDGERTON
Cnjnirighl. IDOS, hy ./. A. Kdgrrtns
IN6C66N hundred year* ago
Came a meneage swtet and low |
O'tr sn Infant's humble birth
fill a new strain to the earth.
Hngel* *ang the choruo then,
" Peace on earth flood will to men.”
6 1J0C6 that
dtmandd'S-
tant time
Blar has been In
every dime,
Barth has been
submerged In
blood
Of a common bro
therhood i
Yet amid the bat
tie cries
Oft that sweet
song would
arise.
B uck and
forth the
standards
reeled
On the grim and
tested Meld,
II title star that
hallowed air
gaae to heaves
like s prayer,
■Here the few
were chanting
atilt,
"Peace an earth,
to «an gaad
m Bang ib tub nan-
nan.
I N thta later, brighter day
Ire we nearer peace than they I
•till our aotl with bland la wat.
Bar la round about ua yet.
Hill the carnage ever eaaac i
•tilt we hear the aong of peace.
r
C will come. Xla not a dream.
Chrough the darhaeaa ahlnea a
'Cl# a gllmpee, a prophecy
Of the years that are to be,
Of a new time come to birth,
Of the dawn of " peace on earth."
LINTON, honeyboy, Isn’t It
charming nntl awfully, de
lightfully wicked to go off ou
11)ire spree all by ourselves?"
“Absurdly so," replied the Htill Infat
uated young husband, squeezing the
plump arm tucked so confidingly under
Ills.
"And Aunt Mary thinks we are In
Connecticut, whllo Uncle James be
lieves us to Ih> In ('Hirnda and our
mothers and fathers are sure we are
lit Florida. It Is Just too lovely for
anything. Isn't It?"
"And so we escape the deadly bother
of n Christmas tree nnd the Intermina
ble dinner party nnd nil the sticky
lilldren. And we will have our Christ
ust going to turn out horrid, after I
nil"'
“Now. honey”—
“Don’t homy mo! Please call me by |
my proper name. I am not a child. !
You Just snld so.”
“Hon—dearest, don't do that!”
She was showing symptoms of tears, I
though she bravely tried to hide her i
feelings. She frit the eyes of the very |
respectable head wnlter upon her. His
portly back was turned, but she sensed
the disapprobation In his attitude. The
lights swam, nnd the hum of conver
sation was like the strange noises In
deep forests at night. Hhe winked furi
ously, angry with herself. She finally
overcame her temptation to dissolve Id
mas eve dinner all by our lonesome In tenrl1 ’ ol j* y to that her honeyboy
the swelleat place In town. And here
we are, honeybun."
The happy couple stepped Into the
vestibule, shaking the flukes from their
mats and stamping the snow from
their feet. The light lingered lovingly
ou the pretty young face with Its blue
was nlttlng partly turned away In an
attitude of deep dejection as well as
set determination.
People came In from the snowy
streets laden with parcels and carry
ing hunches of holly and mistletoe, nud
every one beamed with Joy and pleas-
JUMI’ED
THE CONCLUSION THAT
HAD RELENTED.
Tfe ©IF
CIM&teiasftntdl©
By ARTHUR I. BURDICK
Copyright. inns, by Arthur J, Burdick
7JTGUL, Christmas Is her*
\Vl With Its chfll as’ cheer,
Hn' l am happy an’ broke I
My surplus has flown
Co the “Qrcat anhnowst"
I've not the price of a smoke.
But looh at the smile on my Johnny's face,
Hn' listen to Molly's laugh I
Hn' I ain't regret-
ttn’ the cash
I've spent
In my little ones'
be half.
T 66. Christ
mas Is here,
Hn' It’s mighty
dear
Chat I am cleaned
out o' pelt i
But should I mah*
moan
O’er each as has
flown
I would bt
•shamed ef
myself I
for Jfancy to wast
in' a happy
•tails—
With the dmaa I
bought far
her
Chat’s worth about
twenty - fly#
ttmaa the price
X am ready to
aver,
iim ut BBon!"
Tin, Christmas to haw,
J.1 Ha’ It’s worth s yaar
O’ savin’, -on' slavin' too,
far to get tbs feel
O’ the Christmas ssal
H coursin’ yer at’ hsort through.
Bn’ a gttmpaa a’ the happiness X vtetr,
Ms I’ve satiated to bring,
Xa a recomptnae far ou I bays spent,
Mn’ a let to boot, X flag!
CKHNOtt of steel end cable bind
Closer all of humankind,
HnJ the workers of the world
have a common flag unfurled.
Chough! and traffle banish strife i
Love becomes the law of life.
N INBCB6N hundred year* ago
Came a message sweet and lowi
Hnd that song by angels sung
Chrough the centuries has rung,
hark I It rises once again,
“peace on earth, good wilt to men."
home Clirletllins History.
In isttt the terms of pence between
France anil Austria were argued and
j agreed to on Christinas. In these Aus
tria was forced to trnke several large
gifts of territory to France, and Italy
1 to acknowledge Napoleon ns king of
! Italy.
The United States forces began their
I withdrawal from Charleston, S. C., to
Fort Sumter on Christmas, 18d0.
Under duress from the powers, Tur
key, on Christinas, 1S70, gave out a
new constitution for the whole Otto
man empire, which granted Christians
equal rights with Mohammedans -n de-
! cree, by the way, which the sultan be
gan cheerfully to disobey as soon ••
eyes nnd rosy cheeks and the snowy
teeth showing between the smiling
Ups. And the same nrc light looked on
the handsome, clear cut features of the
tull man with his fond and protecting
nlr. “A flue couple,” It spluttered. "A
flue couple. Ah, I've seen mnuy such,
but they aII ciul the same way.”
With this pessimistic remark the light
blinked wickedly. The door closed on
the young couple as they walked slow
ly along the thick carpet waiting for
that lordly personage, the head waiter,
to assign them to a place. This astute
personage Instantly sized thorn up us
a recently wedded couple nnd beckon
ed them to nil Ideal spot, a cozy little
table In a corner, half surrounded by
palms. There they were shut In from
prying eyes and shut out of the hurry
and noise of the rest of the world. As
a work of supererogation the head
waiter brought a bowl of white roses
aud with hu unctuous smile, directed
I at no oue lu particular, sot them in the
i center of the table, and tills called up
a pretty blush on the fair one’s checks.
Clinton took the elaborate menu nnd
with a hopeless glance at Us foreign
| names handed It to his bride, saying In
the blind hope that she understood It.
"You order the dinner, honeybun."
Miriam glanced In the mirror and
gave a cry of dismay.
"Oh, I am perfectly disreputable!
Just look at my hair!”
She remembered the time when she
THE VAklit AT WORK.
Its etymology doesn't matter much.
Koine of the fakirs make enough by
their petty trade to graduate Into man
ufacturers of Christmas novelties or i the duress was removed.
even Into a higher line of business, and
It Is well known that oue of the
wealthiest men of New Orleans, who
owus sugar plantations, stores and fac
tories, once peddled shoestrings.
Carrying his capital In his pack, the
wandering salesman Is Independent to
a degree rarely equaled except by tha
lldle rich and Weary Will!*. In tha
olden days, before the Invention at
the new»p«|ver and the telegraph, me
diaeval merchants, traveling from pal
ace to palace and from town to town.
David'* Well.
Within two miles of Bethlehem Is a
well which Is said to have been the
one from which the mighty men of bat
tle In Israel, after breaking through
the rhlllstlne host, brought water to
David. In response to hla exclamation,
“Oh, that one would give me to drink
of the water from tbtf wall which la by
the gets!” David refused to taste the
water for which hla brave men had
risked their livea and poured It eut aa
►hared with the troubadours the pro- j an offering to OoA. Some pfletnraaqua
feast on of disseminating the news. rains are said to be tboee at Che henae
1 ef David's youth.
ant anticipations. Time passed, and
tho obstinate young couple grew hun
grier aud angrier, for now each began
to nurse the situation ns a real griev
ance. But, though the waiter hovered
around with unmistakable anxiety,
no one called hltn to give tho order.
Tho situation was growing tense. Hon
eybun was seriously thinking of get
ting up and going straight home to her
mother, aud honeyboy was wondering
why men were fools enough to marry.
The old head waiter was sutHoiently
Interested to watch them meditatively
by menus of mirrors, all unsuspected.
Something lu the air, or maybe It was
the Christmas spirit, crept under bis
vest, and he felt a tugging at bis heart.
The bride was so pretty and the man
so handsome be could not bear to see
this discord, especially tonight. Sud
denly he said to himself;
"Blessed, if 1 don’t do it too.”
He called the waiter and gave him
a quiet order and thou took from bis
pocket a small package of cards, each
having either a bit of mistletoe or
holly in colors in one corner. ’ On
these he printed lu very neat charac
ters:
"POT AG E-CHRISTMAS EVE. VERY
PEPPERY.”
The waiter came to him with the
tray, on which were two plates of soup
and ail the concomitants belonging
thereto and the proper wine. The
CWsttDl®
Triumplii
By GEORGE LAY LAW
H FTER a little over 1,900 years
from the birth of Its founder
Cliristmas has become the
most generally observed re
ligious holiday on earth. There Is
scarcely a land beneath the sun that
does not wltuess some celebration of
the dny set apart to commemorate the
birth of the Carpenter of Nazareth.
While In many Asiatic countries few
participate In these celebrations, there
are yet enough so that all peoples are
learning the significance of tie cere
mony. Then, too, the number of actual
participants Is increasing year by year,
so that It takes no very great stretch
of the Imagination to picture a time
when Christmas observances will be
practically universal.
The charge of the Master to cirry hie
gospel to all the world has been re
ligiously obeyed, and the propiecy of
the thousand years of peace wlibb were
to follow close on that coneunmatlon
should be on its way. Of the six conti
nents Christianity entirely dantnatee
four and Is rapidly winning Its way In
the other two. Both North aid South
America are Christian In ever part.
The same Is true of Australia and the
surrounding Islands constltutng Aim
tralaata. All Europe follows he same
faith, with the single except!® of the
southeastern corner belonglnf to Tur
key, and even a conslderabl! part of
the Turkish empire, Including Armenia,
Bulgaria and others of th< Balkan
•tatee, embraces Chrlstlanly, while
Christian missions exist In Tlrkey.
In Africa, where the Brlttb govern
Egypt and all South Afr-a, while
France has virtual control € Morocco
and other European powers iave colo
nies throughout the contlnen. the faith
of the Nazurene has a large following
than any other religion.
Asia, teeming with Its vst Chinese
and Hindoo hordes, is prattcally the
only continent In which Ctlstlanlty Is
not the dominant fnlth, aii even here
It has incalculable politico and strate
gic advantages that are rpldly work
ing a transformation. Sibrla, occupy
ing uearly half of the entre continent.
Is ruled by a Christian pwer. India,
on the south. Is under to control of
England, and the mifloiiaries are
gradually winning thehway. Tibet,
the stronghold of BuddUm, Is under
Russian Influence and iibeing Invaded
by England from Ima. Palestine,
Syria and Persia com In Important
Christian missions, tlmgb as nations
they are still under loslem control.
The Boxer uprising w» practically the
last gasp of the virulit opposition to
the advance of Chrlsanlty In China.
The lesson received rom Europe at
that time, the Impoaut concessions
granted in the chief )rts to the great
Christian powers, thiuvaslon of Man-
tried to translate the menu to some "’alter entered the tluy place and de-
frieuds lu a restaurant, giving poisson ■ posited the things with a grave busi-
aux raux vlves as “poison to the lively ; nessllke air, putting a card at each
waters." She was not going to allow
Clinton to gloat over her—above all. at
this early stage of their married life.
Bo she returned the menu to him with
great apparent self abnegation.
“No; you order, honeyboy."
"I asked you to do It, honeybun!"
“Oh, well, I can't do It. 1 never had
to order a dinner in my life. Father or
some oue always did.” This last was
said with Just the least little bit of
spirit. Besides, she was hungry; so
was be. That fact may pardon his
next words, spoken with wbat be
thought a noble and masterful air:
"It Is time you learned then. Now,
honeybun. I don't want you to look at
me In that grieved and frightened way.
I am In the right It la your duty—yaa,
fluty—to learn to make out the dinner
■ards. You are not a child."
“Sir, I never had to do ouch a thing,
and I won't* bo bow! I think yon are
place, and then discreetly retired.
Clinton scarcely noticed the arrival of
the man, but honeybun saw him. The
soup looked good, and the little card
caught her eye. She was the one woman
In this generation with a keen sense
of humor. She began to eat
Clinton now turned squarely and
looked at the table. He Jumped to
the conclusion that ahe had relented
and had been adroit enough to give the
order unpe>:celved, but though be
would condescend to eat and the soup
smelled very good, be would not let
her enjoy bar triumph too soon, so be
took hla soup in dignified alienee. The
next course was ready as soon as ha
was. On ona large platter filled with
chopped ice were placed sixteen small
clams arranged to spell the words:
“LOT* ONE ANOTHER.”
Ona small clam officiated aa a period,
thla arrangaaaant was toe tkrlotn aa-
OIFTS FOB A BO TIL FORLORN.
Y 68, Christmas Is here
mtth its chill an' cheer,
Hn’ I know one soul forlorn
Hs will dine today
In a diff’rent wav
Chan she flggered on this mom.
If I had not sent that basket down
Co that wldder, I would choke
H-catin' my dinner, but now, ye see,
I'm happy. If I am brohe 1
pecially as the waiter sot the clisti so
tile words should read. The little clams
went where all good clams should go,
and two hearts began to soften insen
sibly. Two squabs, nestling side by
side on toast, were accompanied by
two cards bearing the legend:
"PEACE ON EARTH."
The salad was delicious, the entrees
a dream, and with each course came
two cards with some sentiment calcu
lated to remind the recipients of the
day. Honeyboy pushed his cards ln-
gloriously away, but honeybun gath
ered hers In a neat heap. The last
course was ice cream—very pink—uud
molded into the shape of a large heart
with a white ribbon tied In a true lov
er’s knot around It, but the heart was
broken through the middle and press
ed apart deftly. A single card read:
“CHRISTMAS NIGHT.
PEACE AND GOOD WILL.
GET TOGETHER."
Even Clinton now saw, but he
thought this was all the clever work of
I honeybun. He looked at her. She was
j all rosy and sweet, no longer pale and
hungry. Maybe, too, the good dinner
had something to do with it, but he
: beamed love on honeybun, .and reacb-
I lng over took her little left band and
‘ kissed the wedding ring. Neither aver
> knew that the fat head waiter nearly
; danced In hla retreat aa be saw the
: broken heart drawn together and eaten
| from the same dish by both. He sighed
I aa be whispered. "I have reunited
them, but this house has lost two cue-
tontn.”
churla, the loduetion of the railroad
I and the ev Increasing numbers of
1 mlsslonarierill of these things are
gradually wiing a change In the Chi-
I nese ernpir Mission work Is rapidly
increasing Korea. Japan has bor-
| rowed moof her civilization from
; Christian ions and is seriously dls-
t cussing t proposition of adopting
j their rellg also. The Philippines be-
| long to .erica, and a considerable
I portion bbeen Christianized.
Christn morn In the year of our
Lord 190-111 therefore have a mean
ing to ip nations and more people
than aiyrevlous Christmas morn In
| the hist of mankind. Tha fact that
i this davlll be celebrated by such
; widely lant types and In such wide-
! ly oep*d nations gives a powerful
1 auggaul natty la the human race.