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About The Falls City tribune. (Falls City, Neb.) 1904-191? | View Entire Issue (Dec. 16, 1910)
i A pretty >oung girl, well wrapped up agtiinst the cold night, and si half grown boy carrying a large basket, were crossing the street when an automobile swung suddenly around the corner. To save themselves, the girl and the boy had to make u sud den retreat, and In so doing they dropped the basket and It was crushed under the wheels. There were four young tnen In the automobile. They were singing and laughing and enjoying the license of Christmas eve. They jeered at the boy for dropping the basket, and they raised their bats in mock courtesy to the girl. “Miss, I didn’t go for to do It!” apol ogized the boy, who had been hired as a messenger, and who had been told that the basket contained food for poor families In the tenement be yond. “I know—1 know,’’ replied the girl. "It wasn't your fault, but I'm so sorry. The sick woman and her children won't have the food and toys now, but I have a little change In my purse and I can still do something. You needn't go any farther; It is just across the Street. Good-night to you." “Missy," said the boy as she was •bout to move away, "you gave me a dime to carry the basket. Here It Is. Give It to some kid up there who, wants a mouth-organ. Oh, you must take It, and if you say so I'll wait here till them fellers come back and hit ’em with a rock.” "But how about your Christmas, Jimmy?" the girl asked "Oh, I can skirmish around, same aH I always do. Night to you. and l hope that sick woman will get better.” The girl crossed the street and e» tered ihe hallway of the tenement and climbed to Ihe third floor Three children were walling for her on the landing, and uttered glad shouts at sight of her She had been there be fore and had promised them that she would come on Christmas eve With in the poverty-stricken rooms called home a sick woman was lying on a bed. She smiled and was glad at eight of the girl. She told them the incident of the auto and the loss of the basket, and then she counted over her scanty change and went downstairs to the nearest grocery. It was little she could buy. There would he Christmas eating, but no feast. The little stock lngs with their holes would he hung but there would be no Santa Claus to All them. The children stood with their faces to the wall and wept, and the girl held the hand of the sick woman and shed tears. As they sat thus the door opened and let In the cold air from the hall. An old tnun stood outside. He was ragged and unkempt, and hunger had given him the face of a wolf. There was not a soft line in it. Peering out of his own door on the same floor, he had seen the girl come bearing pack ages. There was bread on the table before him. The children cried out as they saw the look on the old man's face, and the girl rose up and barred his way. “I want bread and I'll have it!" he •xclalmed nercely. "I it you can't take It from this sick woman and these helpless chil dren.'’ I tell you I in hungry—I want bread! Why didn't you come to me Drat? I am old: there is no work for me, but 1 will not die like a dog. Stand aside! You will not? Then—" He selz her by the arms and there was a a: 'uggle. The children were ihouting for help, and the man-wolf was nearing the coveted loaves when lome one entered and seized him and whirled him about and thrust him out tato the hall, shutting the door on his eaths and snarls. The children ceased their cries and the girl looked up to lee a young man standing in the cen ter of the room, gazing around him "It is your fault!" she half sobbed “You were in the auto that almost ran me down. You laughed in my lace as you raised your hat. Hut for you there would have been plenty of food and some presents here." “Yes, I was one of them,” the man answered. "It Is Christmas eve, and we were out for a lark. Yes, I looked straight into your eyes, and in five minutes I was ashamed of myself. I came back and hunted until I found the boy. When he told me that you were a Christmas angel, and that he bad given his last dime to help out, I was still more ashamed of myself and of my friends. Can you forgive me?" "Yes, It is Christmas eve." she said In a voice hardly above a whisper as ■he seemed to listen to the merry shouts from the street. "There are tens of thousands of persons on the btreets in merry mood, but what have ■we here? What have vye in every room 1n thie old rookery? Were you think ing of It "when you crushed the basket $ was bringing?—when you smiled in io my face?” “I was a brute,” he answered “l was bringing my little mite," shs continued In a deprecatory way. 'T have a widowed mother to support, and I could not spare much. I was weeks saving up to buy what was In that basket You are rich, perhaps. It would h vo been nothing to you." The children stood hushed and awed, and the sick woman dosed her ej es and wondered at It all. 1'he young man and the girl looked straight into each other's eyes ns they talked, and her words seemed to cut him like the lash of n whip. When there had hi on silence for a minute, and the oia man-wolf was heard snarling as he paced the hall, the young man said: "1 am ashamed and sorry. Let that answer for the moment. Will you come with me?" And without the slightest fear In her mind, and with a smile at the mother arid her children, she arose Intuition told her what was in the stranger's thoughts, lie carried the bread and butter out into the ball and placed them in the hands of the lierce-faced old man. lie fell to de vouring them as il' he had. Indeed, been a wolf of the forest, and when another tenant came out and asked for crumbs he was frightened away by snarls and growls. "Now come," said the young man. Up one street and down another for an hour, they went. Wines and jellies and fruits, they bought for the woman whose aliment was starvation more than disease—-food to last for days and days. They selected, next, gifts and | new stockings to receive them—what ever money could buy and the two could bundle Into Ihelr arms, they picked up. And all the time, though neither one knew the name of the other, they talked and laughed and were like children In their delight. The return to the tenement was like the arrival of a lord and his lady. There was something for other chil dren. too, and a policeman, pausing In "I Have a Widowed Mother to Sup port, and I Could Not Spare Much.” the lower hall, heard such shouts of pleasure and so much childish laugh ter that he glanced up the dimly lighted stairs and said to himself: ‘Old Santa must have Changed his route this year and come among the poor.” And at a late hour, when the Christ mas angel and her guardian walked downstairs together and she was put into a cab for home, they still talked and still luughed. nor did they know that they would ever meet again. She had lashed him for his heartlesness. She was hoping that he would see that she had forgiven him. He had been almost brutal. He was hoping that she had seen his better side No cards —no names. ‘Goodnight," they said at parting; and when he raised his hat she knew that it was in courtesy instead of Irony. Hays later, when the girl visited the old tenement again, the sick woman and her children had vanished, but had left word behind for her. The man wolf was still there, but instead of growling and showing his teeth, he smiled at her. In another place, with light and air and food and comforts in abundance, the girl found the j mother and her little ones. It was a glad surprise, and to the look of In- i quiry the widow, no longer in bed, I whispered: “He did it: He did it all!” One evening when long weeks had passed, the young man was waiting at the home of the gtrl when she came from her place of daily employment ‘i have been talking with the mother," he said, quietly. "She says I may call. What does the Christmas Angel say?" (Copyright, 1910.) A Simple Gift. When one wishes to send little more than a remembrance at Christ mas yet does not care to use cards, a novelty that can be made by the girl who paints is a match scratcher *n the form of a card. Have an oblong background of col ored cardboard, and on it paint a quaint figure cut from fine emery pa per In soft tones of brown, heighten ed by gay touches in the costume. It is then cut out and pasted on the back, which may be left plain or painted with scenery to correspond. Sometimes these scratchers are done in entirely monochrome. Chil dren with huge muffs, picturesque colonial or Greuze figures, or quaint Dutch peasants can be copied in colors. Whf c s m .' ^ *V by.Jului Boftcu!cv, O—7 _ KST and men u t ot nil "ir * NrtNBtfc _dim iTf ll it cl I’i.ris'i k extra the grit and put forth, extra < Tort that it may bo set forth In state At the tall of some one, whore heart is "good toward us, we gather round the bright table. Sweet with fir. beautiful with holly, gUsbinii g with white riapery and twinkling glass and all lit with rosy candles, it sets the heart aglow, be speaking a loving kindness, which is the salvation of our workaday world. The dining room is the heart of the house and its great day Is Christmas day. It is really very little trouble to decorate It for a Christmas dinner, and dressing the table cannot be spoken of as a trouble—it is a pleas ure. The dining room must be entirely clean—the windows newly washed and the walls and furniture wiped off and. polished up a bit, before the placing of decorations begins. These should he simple and in green so as not to1 distract the attention from the table If a hanging lump or a chandelier Is suspended over the table, nothing Is much more effective thnn the fes toons of green from lamp to the cor-, ners of the room. Hopes of ever green are made by cutting off small branches and winding the steins with dark cord or heavy black thread. The lamp, or chandelier supports, may be dressed with sprays of evergreen and holly and the evergreen festoons ar ranged along the walls, underneath , the plate rail, the festoons to be j caught up with sprays of holly. | Branches of green over the windows and door casings and wreaths pinned at each window, on the curtains, are the time-honored Christmas decora tions that cannot be Improved upon and are dear because familiar. But in setting forth her table the hostess lias a chance to exercise her Christmas Candle Shades and a Mica Shade for Protection. ingenuity and he as original as she may please. The table Is to be made amply long so that it will not be crowded, and spread with a protecting pad, and an immaculate cloth, smooth and shin ing. Silver and glassware are to be scoured and polished and the china treated to tlie same freshening proc ess. until everything shines. Uny a dinner napkin at each place and pro ceed to decorate the table. A centerpiece is to he provided. A very handsome one is made of a bolt of No. 80 red satin ribbon. Two lengths of this, each 1% yards long, are crossed at the middle of the table, lying Hat and the ends extending toward the corners of the table. Ir» the center an ornamental fern dish is fashioned of the ribbon about a plain fern dial). The ribbon is made into standing loops, each about six inches in length. These are placed in a row about the dish with the loops upstanding. The dish used may be an ordinary milk pan previously covered with red pa per in crepe or tissue. Kill the pan with moss or sand. In the center stand a miniature Christmas tree, a natural baby tree if possible. Deco rate the miniature tree with tiny can dies and the smallest of red tinsel Dalis. The candles are not to be lighted. Place few decorations and have them all in miniature. The effect is charming. Another pretty center piece is made with five ordinary tin candlesticks, supporting five red or white caudles. Set one of these on an inverted paste board box In the center of the table and the four remaining candles one at each corner of the box, on the table. Use a small box. not larger than the bottom of the candlestick. Cover the candlesticks and the box with sprays of evergreen and holly and sprinkle over these the "diamond dust" which may be bought, or made by cutting a piece of tinsel rope into little parti cles. Make shades for the candles, using red paper. Buy the fireproofed kind for safety. The shades are very easily made by cutting four petals of paper and mounting them over an isinglnss pro tector on the brass shade holders. Pull out the edges of the paper to get the ruffled effect. Tie the shades about their support with a small cord. Over this place a piece of tinsel, fin ishing it in a little bow or knot. Each candle will appear to spring from a nest of green. The candles are to be lighted when the dessert is served. A candle shade such as is described is shown in the picture. A third pretty centerpiece Is made ot a small round hand mirror and sil ver tinsel in the form of a five-pointed star. Cut the star from a piece of white wrapping paper, making it 12 to 18 inches across. liry the paper star in the center of the table and place the small mirror in the center of the star. Cover the paper star completely with silver tinsel. Place a tall Blender vase in clear glass on the mirror and fill It with poimettia blossoms or red carna tions or bright re! rosea. If natural flowers are not available a tall candle in a glass stic k, surrounde d bv shorter candles in -hotter < andh ricks, will do nicely. At each place at table, a little bas ket is to be sc t containing salted pea nuts or almonds, or red cinnamon drops and green mints. These has A Bonbon Basket for the Dinner Table, kcts are made of red paper with a lit tle spray of holly fastened to the handle. Or they are pretty made of brown tissue paper twisted into cords and gilded with gold paint. A basket, of this kind is shown in the illustra tion. It the table is long, candles may be placed at intervals around it, but itberwise, the centerpiece, with one or two candles at opposite ends of the. table, will be the better arrangement., Place these candles diagonally oppo site. White candles with red shades are as pretty as red ones for the din ner table. Cranberry Jelly, which is nearly al ways a part of the menu, served in glass dishes, or set in a glass bowl, is decorative. Gellatin in two colors (red and green) in tali sherbet glasses is also fine as an aid in carrying out tiie Christmas color scheme. Triangu lar slices of bread or rolls of bread tied with red baby ribbon and placed on the bread and butter plates gives an additional little finishing touch When the silver is laid and tlie wa ter glasses placed, a small spray of holly for tiie buttonhole or corsage is to be placed for each person at the table, it rests on ilie napkins. In order that the candles may last, out the dinner ii is as well to postpone lighting them until the dessert is serv-. ed. Other lights may be turned lower at this time. Tiie effect of glowing candles is very inspiring to the guests.'. Often the Christmas dinner must be served in the early afternoon. If arti ficial lights are desired the hostess must darken the dining room. But there are pretty decorations from which candle light is omitted. The center piece for such a table may rep resent any familiar winter or Christ mas scene. One may buy, at a trifling cost, a Santa Clans, on a chimney top,’ about to descend. These are made of painted pasteboard and a doll. At, the confectioners' there are all sorts of Christmas pieces in the form of' i large candy boxes. Santa Claus and his reindeers are fine for the center piece mounted on a small box, con cealed by evergreens and holly A table for daytime light may be arranged with a small mirror in the center about 18 inches square. Sur round this by evergreens to represent a skating pond. Dress two or more Decorations for the Christmas Dinner Table. tiny dolls to represent skaters. The closer you can come to making it look like a real pond in miniature the more you and your guests will be delight ed. At the ten-cent stores one may buy small red houses and even glass icicles. Icicles may be represented by little pieces of tinsel also. After you once get to work the thing will grow under your hands and you will be enthusiastic at the end. When all i is finished the Christmas table Justi- j ties the thought and work put on It— the play is Indeed worth the candle. I If one must count expenses careful ly the decorations will be found to be more a matter of ingenuity than money. Evergreens and red paper, wax candles and cheap candlesticks are within reach of nearly all of us. Of all days Christmas is, for that veTy leason, the one for which we should make our very best endeavor. — —————— ( Christmas Precaution. "Mother, if Santa Claus comes down the chimney, he'll have to walk through the kitchen, won't he?” "I suppose he will, dear ” ••Well, don’t you think we'd maybe perhaps better lock up the pre serves?” fy stilts of Calumet Baking Em Powder. No disappoints— ysb1 jS no flat, heavy, soggy biscuits, H Just the lightest, daintiest, most fPe 9> uniformly raised and most deli- ttf cious food you ever ate. K Received hlrhe ( reward World's Pure F->od Exoosition, JN&yj NOTICE I have for sale the 40 acre trac belonging to Charles Portrcy, lying North of the city and ad joining the Meyers land on the North, was a part of the Sarah Iihine land. Can sell the tract in 1, 2, 3, or f> acre tracts to suit the purchaser. Can give 3 years time on twothirds of the purchase price. Mr. Pprtrey will have the land surveyed and give a road from the city to each tract. This is a chance to get a nice piece of laud for a home near town at a very reasonable price and on ex ceedingly reasonable terms. For further particulars call at the office of John W. Powell. 1st. floor of new office building south of Court House square. Falls City, Nebraska. Office Phone 252, Home 51. Land Sale. I will sell at public auction to tho highest bidder on December 20, 1!) I a at the front door of the Farmers State Bank in Shubert. Nebraska at two o’clock p. m., the eighty acre * farm belonging to the estate of the late George Evans, being the west half of the northwest quarter, sec tion 24, town 3, range 15 Richard son County, Nebraska. This is a good eighty acre farm, fair improve ments and only one and one half miles from Shubert, Nebraska. Termsof Sale—$1,000 cash on day o sale, balance in 30 days. Respectfully, 30-2t .1. M. Evans, Shubert. Neb PRICES CUT. PHOTOS. Between now and December 15, I will make special low prices on Xmas Photos. See Oswald over Electric Theater. CALL PHONE 307 FOR SIGNS XMAS BANNERS AND CARDS A. G. REED A 'Beautiful Hat Makes a Desirable (lift for Wife or Daughter The Sturdevant Millinery Co. has the High grade Millinery. Ladies’, Misses’ and Childrens’ Hats. Our reduced prices continue. We can please you. Try us. One Door South of the Union House V_ J TAKE YOUR HOME PAPER FIRST THEN SUBSCRIBE FOR The Kansas City Star and Times The Star and Times, reporting the full twenty-four houis' news each day in thirteen issues of the paper each week, are furnished to regular subscribers at the rate of 10 cents per week. As newspapers, The Star and The Times have no rivals. No other publisher furnishes his readers with the full day and night Associated Press reports, as does the Star and Times. This should recommend the papers especially to the progressive merchant and farmer I deliver both the Star and Times to the subscriber’s door promptly on arrival of trains Give me a trial. RICHARD WYLER, Distributor Should you want Tho Star by mail send 10c per week. $5.20 a year. Address The Kansas ity Star. _ AN EYE TOOTH will often cause much misery to th» owner if it begins to decay. It is wisest to have your teeth looked t* frequently, so as to be sure that none are decayed. FOR APPEARANCE SAKE as well as for the practical purpose of chewing, get your teeth in go«d N shape. It is our business to do this excellently. l)r. Yutzy, Dr. C. E. Heffner, Fail i City,Nebraska