The Frontier. rum.TSIIKI) EVERY THURSDAY ltY JAMES II. IiraOS, Editor and Prop. CIO. D. RICOS, Associate Editor. Ca, 1 Rarki.y, ifever before, in the HIS te TORY OF THIS COUNTRY HAS TURKIC BERN £ A TIME WIIKN TIIK PROCEEDS OF ONK DAY S LABOR OR TUB PRODUCT OF ONK i FARMED ACRE WOULD PURCHASE SO LARUE AN AMOUNT OF THOSE THINGS THAT ENTER INTO TIIK LIVINO OF TIIK MASSES OF TIIK PEOPLE.— Prcsulent Har rison's Message. Remember the little ones at Christ inas time. -. .«» *-—• The store windows of O'Neill prosent a pleasing slirht to the eye of the Christ* mas buyer. There is every indication that the Re publican party will achieve a grand'vio lory in 1892. ■ i It is estimated that the cost of run ning the government at Washington for the next year will be 8409,000,000. Mu. Harrison and Mr. Blaine undor stand each other thoroughly, and if one is a candidate the other's name will not be presented. And now Mr. Cleveland says he doesn’t want the presidential nomina tion. He has Ruth, and that’s enough glory at present, thanks. Ai>Ij will admit that you are entitled to • (bare of the sheriff's patronage, ! Messrs. Alianct-Tribune “reformers.” If The Frontier gets noue Tub Frontier la not only able to stand It but will makenokiok. Nehlier will It “let up" if it gets a share. The A.- T. is entitled to all it will get. no doubt of it. The political breezes seem to be blow ing gently through the long, luxuriant whiskers worn by our osteeined friend Mr. Joseph Hartley of Atkinson. Tub Phontieh is pleased to sen the iiame of one of Holt county's distinguished citi sens mentioned so prominently in con nection with the nomination of a candi date for state treasurer: Mr. Bartley's ability is well known, aud Holt county ; ’ is entitled to recognition by the nexi state convention. For state treasurer in 1893, "Our Joe,” of Atkinsou. Tub Frontier feels like congratulat ing Judge Klnknid on the good judge ment or good politics or what not dis played in the appointment of Mr. J. .1, King as his court reporter and we wish to again say that we consider Mr. King in all respects worthy and competent and rejoice with his many friends at his good fortune. If the judge will follow this up with some needed reforms in other respects we will givo him all due credit. Let him do his duty as a Repub lican and as an official and he will strengthen himself with the people. Preston B. Pm mu of Kansas died of apoplexy in Washington Sunday morn ing last. Mr. Plumb has represented the state of Kansas in the United States senate for three terms, and was ono or the hardest workers and most influential members of that body. Although not ' possessed of the brilliant oratorical pow ers that havo made the name of Ingalls so famous in the halls of congress, he was nevertheless the favorite son of Kansas, and has been for years the most important factor in the politics of the Sunflower state. The overwhelming Kl > publican victories recorded in that state j-- this fall were to a very great extent dm to the personal enery and popularity of Senator Plumb. lie has been a resident of Kansas since 1838, and his first busi ness venture was the publication of n country newspaper. He was a practical printer, and while publishing a news paper in those early days he spent his spare moments studying law, being ad mitted to the bar in 1861. He was one of those men who never rest, and the real cause of bis death was overwork. The slate of Kansas has lost a most worthy citizen and the government of the United States a valued servant. Major Domo, writing in last week's A.:T. concerning tbe character of John Skirving and others whom it is unneces sary to mention shows himself to he either a knave or a fool. He seems to think thnt anyone who does not -come up to his standard of excellence or see everything just as be does is not fit to associate with men of his high standard. Well, now, that is curious. And because the editor of Tub Frontier does not happen to run his pat er to suit Major Domo, that worthy fhinks the aforesaid editor is not entitled to any considera tion at the hands of the people. As for Mr. John Skirving. The Fron tier knows, and it has every possible chance of knowing thoroughly and well, that John Skirving is not an immoral and intemperate man, and we believe him far more worthy of confidence than the sneak who, behind a nom de plume, seeks to smirch the character of his fel lowmen. True, John Skirving may have faults, the same as other men, but he is so far above the other character men tioned (having left the county we will not give his name) and Major Domo as could be imagined, be be (the major) the greatest saint on earth. John Skirving is a gentleman, and that is more than we believe Major Domo is entitled to be Called. Christmas, 1891 THREE CHRISTMAS CHIMES. I. Hearken! how the Christmas chime Sings on earth Us song sublime! "Seethe twain whose weary feet Wander through the village street— Doors are closed against the stranger. See the Child, the meek and lowly, Christ the mighty, the all holy. Sloeping cradled iu a manger.” Sing your Joy, O Christmas chime! Let us keep the Christmas time. Be the loaf of plenty doled. Be the poor man's heart consoled. Thus we koop the Christmas time. II. Hearken! still the Christmas chime Bings on earth its song Nublime! •‘Wondering shepherds see the night Flooded with celestial light— Wondering hear the angel message: Come and let us kneel beforo him. Let us Hnd him and adore him. Peace on earth this child doth pres age.” Sing your joy, O Christmas chime! Let us keep the Christmas time. , Let all strife and hatred cease, Kindness live, good will and peace. Thus we keep the Christmas time. Hearken! still the Christmas chime Bings on earth its song sublimel “Eagerly tlio Magi sped By the wondrous star beam led, •Gold and myrrh, and incense offer, lie brings most-yes, he the nighest Drawoth unto God the Highest Who a heart of love doth proffor.” Bing your Joy, O Christmas chime! Let us keep tho Christmas time. Lovo shall bo the law to bind In one band all humankind. Thus wo keep tho Christmas time. —Century. A LIVELY OLD PAIR. Harders Flint, Esq., lawyer, sat alone in his bachelor’s den in a big easy chair, his feet incased in a pair of dilapidated old slippers, resting on the fender, his hands thrust half way into his trousers pockets and his head bent forward until his chin rested on his breast. On the table beside him lay a couple of newspa pers and a yellow covered law book, open at the page he had been consulting. Lawyer Flint was deep in perplexing thought, to judge by the expression of his face, for his brow was clouded and his lips compressed, and occasionally he turned his head toward the open volume as if inclined to seek further aid from it, but with a slight shake of the head relapsed again into his former attitude. He had sat thus for a long time when there was a knock at tin door. “Come in,” said the lawyer, without looking up. A servant girl entered, handed him a note and withdrew. Lawyer Flint opened the note, read it, uttering an exclamation of impatience, aroso and paced up and down the room. “So Rolingold can’t meet me tomor row because it’s Christmas," ho mut tered, as he stalked across the floor; “ev ery day is important in this matter and yet lie, the one most interested, delays proceedings twenty-four hours simply be cause it happens to be Christmas. Gad I I can’t see how a business man like Rol ingold can be so foolish. Well,” he con tinued, “let him take his holiday and enjoy it if he can; I couldn’t. It's many and many a long day since Christmas interfered with my business.” He returned to his chair, but the train of his thought had been interrupted and his face now wore a cynical, hard look as he gazed into the crackling fire. Once, long ago, his Christmas days had been bright, too, but their brightness was ob scured by more vivid recollections of other Christmas times in later years, when ambition and disappointment and poverty and greed had steeled his heart and left no room for Christmas thoughts. Oh, the years that he had worked and starved and hoarded to reach his present condition of comfortable independence! As ho looked back upon them now his lips closed tighter and the bitterness deepened in his face. From a distant part of the house came the sound of music, and the laughter of children, and the hum of conversation. But the lawyer remained motionless with his head upon his breast. Rat-tat, rat-tat, rattle-tattle, rattle tattle, rat-tat, rattle-tattle, rat-tat-tat. What was that? It seemed to come from the closet at the other side of the room. The lawyer went over and opened the closet door; there was nothing to be seen except a lot of old law books piled upon the shelves and a pair of heavy old boots on the floor. “That noise must have’come from be low stairs, after all,” he said, “but it seemed to be right in the room; sounded just like some one dancing on a bare floor.” “I was just thinking of Uncle Tom,” he continued, “and there are the boots the old man left here when he got his new ones at the close of his visit, a month ago. I must tell Joe to take them away.” He went over to the chair and sat down again. “Uncle Tom,” he said to himself. “Bah! I hope he enjoyed his visit hero. I didn’t. I’d go crazy with that blundering old man around me, nudging me and slapping me on the back, ’trying to get a little fun out of me,’ as he said, with that everlasting, good natured laugh of his. ‘Christmas ’ll soon be here,’ he said, as he was leav ing, ‘ ’n I hope you’ll brace up, Harders, and enjoy yourself. I'd show you how to do it if I could stay with you.’ Well, I wonder now what he’d do to show me how to enjoy Christmas?” said the law yer, as he settled down in his chair. Again the sounds of laughter and con versation came faintly from below. The . violins struck up a lively air and Rattle-te-tat-te, rattle-te-tat-te, rat-te tattle-te-rattle-te-tat! The lawyer looked quickly toward the closet, the door of which he hod left open. He rubbed his eyes and looked again. Yes, there could be no mistake ! about it, there were Uncle Tom’s boots stepping about on the closet floor, rat tling oil the time with heel and toe, sidling across and back, right boot first, ! left boot first, up with the right, up 1 V with the left, and, as the musio grew lender, np with both, crack! crack! the heels cniue together twice in the air, landing on the floor in exact time with the music, and finishing np with a live ly rattle-tat-te-rattle-tatfle, rat-tat-tat. Then they came briskly over toward the astonished lawyer exactly as though they hud feet and legs in them. Over to tho fire they walked, turned heels to ward it and Btood there wide apart. Involuntarily, Lawyer Flint glanced np as if expecting to see the ruddy, jovial face and portly form of his Uncle Tom. There were the boots jnst as the old man would have placed them, but Uncle Tom was not there. “Bless my soul!” exclaimed the law yer, “but this is mighty curious.” The toe of the right boot be&an tap ping the carpet gently, then they moved over to the window, stood still a mo ment and then walked out into the hall way, “Gad!” said Lawyer Flint excitedly, “I believe they are going out I must see the end of this thing.” He threw off his dressing gown, hur ried into his shoes, overcoat and hat, and followed the boots out of the street door, which hud opened at their approach. Down tho steps they tripped gayly and turned toward the brilliantly lighted avenue. The still, sturlit night was bit terly cold, and Lawyer Flint shivered as he buttoned his heavy coat close up ground his neck. Up the street he has tened, following the empty boots, which slipped sideways at every other step and jammed their heels into the trodden snow, but made their way rapidly, never theless. Around the corner, into the avenue, in and out among the throngs of Christmas eve pedestrians, dodging here and there, stepping on toes, stopping in front of show windows, kicking themselves to gether and stamping on the ground— thus went the old boots, and after them followed the excited lawyer. They turned into a big store. “Now,” thought Lawyer Flint, as he entered the door, “some one will be sure to see them,” but strange to say, the boots were entirely unnoticed by the buzzing, laughing, happy people who thronged the store. The lawyer leaned against the toy counter and watched the boots as they shuttled around on the floor. ‘‘Something for the little ones?” The question was asked by a pretty salesgirl, and it was addressed to Har ders Flint. He started, and for the first time realized that he was in a rather peculiar position. Why was he standing around there, the people would ask, if he did not wish to buy? How long would he he obliged to remain? He couldn’t tell. Should he say that he was waiting for those old boots? No, no; he didn’t wish on any account to call attention to the ridiculous perform ance they were going through. “Yes,” he said, coloring, “something for the little ones;” aqd then he went about selecting tin horns, and silver bells, and woolly dogs, and wooden monkeys, and trumpets, and checkers, and dominoes, growing white and red by turns as he thought of the fearful extravagance, and, glancing furtively, with increasing impatience and anger, at the boots, which seemed livelier than ever as his purchases increased. “Seven dollars and forty cents, please,” said the salesgirl. Into the silver ball went a good ten dollur bill! click, click, it shot upward and slid across the cashier’s desk, while the lawyer groaned and waited for his change. Kattle-te-tat-te, rattle-te-tat-te, rattle te-tat-te, rat-ta-tat! went the old boots close by his side. Several people looked at him with smiles of amusement. “Happy time, isn’t it?” said a jolly little fat man, glancing at the lawyer’s big bundle. “I feel like dancing myself.” “Change, sir; thank you. Merry Christmas!” The exasperated lawyer grasped his bundle and hurried after the boots, which now seemed anxious to get away from the store. When he struck the cold air and again drew his coat around him he seemed somehow to feel less annoy ance. The excitement of the chase had warmed his blood. It was a curious feeling that began now to steal over him, the like of which he had never experi enced before, or at least not for many years, he said to himself, as he stopped before a candy store and followed the boots inside. “Candy for Christmas?” He smiled almost to think that he. Harders Flint, should hear such a question addressed to himself, and more astounding yet was the fact that he did want to buy some candy for Christmas, and that he really stood there, pocketbook in hand, wait ing for it. Uattle-te-tat, te-tat-te-tat! A smile broke over the salesgirl's face as she handed him the package of candy, and away went the lawyer, after the boots, which seemed determined to give him a lively chase before the evening was over. Again he was in the biting air, but the warm blood coursed through every vein in his body as he hurried along. Again and again they stopped, until the lawyer’s purse was nearly empty and his arms more than full. The old boots seemed fairly wild with de light, and Lawyer Flint could not, to Bave his life, help laughing at them as they skipped and slipped and danced along the sidewalk. Away they led him, out of the avenue, down the dark side streets, until he heard the sound of children singing. In this direction the old boots hastened and stopped before the house from whence the singing came. Up the steps they went; the door opened, and somehow the lawyer, too much flustered and con fused to know how it was exactly, found himself in a room filled with children, and a lovely lady was saying to him: ‘•Ah! you're in time, sir. Thank you so much. We haven’t distributed the pres ents yet. You will make a good many little hearts glad tonight, sir.” And all around him was warmth and light and music and a clattering of happy tongues, and altogether snch a joyous atmosphere as ke would not have believed could poft libiy exist anywhere. I “Good eight! Merry Christmas!” The sound rang in his ears as he followed the lively old boots out of the door and back through the dark streets into the avenue. “I wonder where they’ll take me now?” he said, chuckling and laughing softly. “Gad!” he continued, “I had more than forty dollars in that pocket book, and there isn’t enough left to— hello! there they go into a cigar store. H.in, cigars are too great a luxury for Harders Flint; not tonight, though,” he laughed. “I’ll smoke tonight,” and he came out of the store a moment later with a box of choice cigars in his hand. And then the old boots led him back at a moderate pace to his bachelor’s quarters. He whistled softly as he re moved his coat and got into his dressing gown and slippers; then he lit a cigar, threw himself into the big chair before the fire and sat contentedly puffing the fragrant smoke and watching it curl up ward toward the ceiling, and he laughed when from the closet he heard the old boots dancing again. Rattle-te, rattle-te, rattle-te-tat, rat tat-tat-tat-tat-tat-tat-tat “They must be tired,” thought the lawyer, as the lively rattle dwindled into a regular monotonous tapping. Then he started, sat up straight and opened his eyes. The tapping did not come from the closet, but from the hall door. It was Joe, come to replenish the fire. “I’ve been dreaming,” said Lawyer Flint to himself. He turned his back to the fire, looked over toward the closet and smiled. Then he walked to the window and looked out into the street. He took out his watch and looked at it, while a light shone in his eyes and his mouth worked curiously. “There's time enough yet,” he said, and Joe was surprised to see him hurry on his coat and hat; but not half so sur prised as he was when he stood alone in the room a moment later with a big sil ver dollar in his hand.—Morris Waite in Detroit Free Press. ! - CHRISTMAS CHEER. First Turkey—What is your opinion of Christmas, anyhow? Second Ditto— Don’t ax me.—Philadelphia Inquirer. A ring would he a very appropriate gift for a Christmas belle.—Norristown Herald. The most useful Christmas present this year would seem to be a pair of goloshes or an umbrella.—Baltimore American. The cash girl in the notion store didn’t need anybody to tell her that Christmas was coming.—Merchant Traveler. A green Christmas makes a cross coal man.—Milwaukee Wisconsin. Miss Cumso—I don’t know what to' give papa for a Christmas present. Mrs. Cumso—Give him one of those new long handled umbrellas. I need it ever so badly.—New York Sun. What a good thing it is that Christ mas comes once a year. We are then able to take note of the number of mean men whom the Lord allows to live on from day to day.—Kearney Enterprise. Worked Him. “Say, boss, give me a few pennies to buy something to eat, will you?” said a ragged urchin to a man hurrying through Mail street at 6 o’clock Christ mas eve. Now the one appealed to had just been buying Christmas presents for a score of sisters, cousins and aunts, to say nothing about the numerous rattles, dolls, etc., which he had bought for the members of his own immediate family, and consequently he was feeling rather poor. “Can’t do it, sonny,” he said rather gruffly, as he hurried on. The boy assumed a tone half sorrow ful, with a touch of independence in it, and said to the retreating iigure: “Boss, I hope you will have a Merry Christmas.” The man stopped, turned around, dug his hand into his pocket and handed the urchin a quarter. Then he hurried on again. Ten minutes later the same urchin en tered a hallway where half a dozen street arabs were assembled. “Hi, Jimmy!” he yelled as he entered, “see what de bloke give me (showing the quarter). Let’s play ‘craps.’ ”—New York Tribune. Mill Believed In Santa Clans. Faith in the Santa Claus myth hasn’t entirely faded out of the juvenile mind, though even the very youngest repre sentatives of the present generation are apt to be skeptical. The proof: Little Bettina, three years old, has a rag doll with whom her relations are particularly tender and sympathetic. A morning or two ago this doll was dis covered near the fireplace in a shocking condition. She was black in the face and, in fact, black all over, and the smell of soot about her was very strong. It was a mystery until Bettina was in terrogated. The condition of the doll made her look a little rueful, but she brightened up, and said: “I firpered to Patty all the things I wanted for Christmas and sent her up the chimney to tell Santa Claus!”—Bos ton Transcript. Old Time Epicures. Listen to the enumeration of good things described by Whistlecraft to have been served np at King Arthur’s table on Christmas day. If the list be authen tic, there is less reason to wonder at the feats of courage and strength performed by the Knights of the Round Table: They served up salmon, venison and wild boars By hundreds and by dozens and by scores. Hogsheads of honey, kilderkins of mustard. Muttons and fatted beeves and bacon swine. Herons and bitterns, peacocks, swan and bus tard, ; Teal, mallard, pigeons, widgeons, and, in fine. Plum puddings, pancakes, apple pies and cus tard. And therewithal they drank good Gascon : wine. With mead and ale and cider of our own; For porter, punch and negus were not know*. 1 __ • \ — Christinas Book. 1 ABSOLUTE!?? PURE jPlONEER HARDWARE DEALER I carry the largest stock of Hardware, Tinware, Copper & Graniteware, In North Nebraska, and make a specialty of Superior Barbed Wire. IN IMPLEMENTS I CARRY THE BEST MADE BRADLEY & GO. AND PERU CITY PLOWS. Harrows, Challenge Planters, Flying Dutchman, SU IK Y*PL0 WS.*PERU * CITY*CU LTIVATORS BLISTERS AND DRILLS.e Call and see me before you make vour purchases as 1 can save you some money. NEIL BRENNAN. O’Neill Ned. First National Bank, O’NEILL - NEBRASKA. Paid-Up Capital, $5o,ooo. Surplus, $2o,ooo. Authorised Capital, $800,000. UNDIVIDED PROFITS, $4,096. THAD. J BERMINGHAM, Puks. J. P. MANN, Vick Pans. ED. F. GALLAGHER, Cashieu. Money Loaned on Personal Security on the Most Favorable Terms. Issue Time Certiticates Bearing interest. Buy and Sell Foreign