The DeLeon Free Press. (De Leon, Tex.), Vol. 41, No. 25, Ed. 1 Friday, December 19, 1930 Page: 3 of 16
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installment notes on automobiles,
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Then in a husky voice Bill told the
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♦ * *
An Eastern woman, despite the les-
sons taught by the Master at the 'tower
fading embers brighter hopes, sweeter
joys, better conditions, and stronger
faith in God and man and things to be.
sion of
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they, like human beings, are remem-
bered for their contributions to the
world and their influence upon life. The
man who contributes liberally to human
happiness, who renders large, unselfish
service, is remembered kindly, because
his life bettered the lots of those it
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Bill, here’s the paper and here’s the pencil
to write that letter to Sandy Claus.”
some wher and was layin’ fur me that thejittle boy?”
evenin’ an’ come a runnin’, meatin’ me.
II
Looking over the census returns of
the States of this glorious nation, I
find that three of them “aren’t fitten to
be called States.” Nevada and Wyoming,
with less than 200,000 people, and Dela-
ware with not many more, ought to be
demoted into counties or precincts until
they can raise enough people to hold an
election and put out a fire at the same
time.
0‘
He’s about six or
Paradoxical as it may seem or sound,
the child that will have the poorest
Christmas is the child that will have the
most. It is a question of which is most,
deserving of pity, the child that has
nothing or the child that has too much.
I am inclined to the opinion that the
latter is the greatest sufferer. The pet-
ted child of wealthy, foolish parents al-
I
I
J
ment of a West Texas friend in the
matter of giving advice. This friend
and another man were partners in the
cattle business, and his partner went to
Mexico to see about selling a large drove
of cattle. When the partner reached
^lexico he found the price of cattle very
low and going lower, so he wired my
friend whether he should sell at the
price offered. The reply was, "take one
more drink ami use your best judg-
ment.”
By J. H. LOWRY
(Copyright. 1930, by th« Hom. Color
December
N the old Roman calendar Decem-
ber was the last month of the
year. It gets its name from the
Latin decern (ten), G,clc
only ten months in the year at that
ULI
oy
and wavin’ that little piece of paper,
Bill, Bill, here’s the
paper an’ here’s the pencil to write that
letter to Sandy Claus!’ But I was tard
of foolin’ with ’em an’ told ’em to quit -
botherin’ me, that I was too busy to
write fur anybody. And blamed if he
ain’t still tryin’ to git me to write that,
letter. This mornin’ when I passed his
house there he stood out in the cold rain
barefooted, holdin’ out that ragged
little paper, pleadin’ with me to write to
Sandy Claus.”
Sympathetic Response
Strange as it may seem. Bill’s story
created no merriment, but left a look of
sadness on the faces of his listeners.
The milliner and the young lady in
charge of ribbons and laces thought it
was smoke from the stove that, made
their eyes water and Mr. Hill, the cloth-
ing salesman, attributed tightness
in his throat to one of the worst colds
he ever had.
The gentle-voiced, charitable
Mary Winters, who had charge of the
ladies’ ready-to-wear department at
Macey’s, was loved by all who knew her.
For the first time in his life Bill’s heart
was heavy. He had always fought his
own battles in his own way without
asking for help. But now he was in a
losing fight—he was in a battle with
his conscience and he had about gone
down for the count, when he thought
of Miss Mary.
It was probably a week after Bill had
related the story of Johnie and the'
Santa Claus letter he refused to write,
that he came into Miss Winter’s depart-
ment and said: "Miss Mary, could I get
_ _ you to pray for a little boy that’s sick
aayin’ I had no pencil and left ’em in a with bheumonia?”
run. But blamed if he didn’t git a pencil "Why, Billie, you surprise me. Who is
S tory
awful sick an’ not to wait till Christ-
mas, but to come right on with yoar
presents an’ bring urn to my house an’
I’d give 'em to you. So las night about
midnight here come old Sandy lickaty
split with bells ringin’ an’ reindeer
rarin an’ snortin’. Here’s what ne
brought you.”
And then Bill began to untie bundles.
True to his promise, there was a new
suit of clothes, a box of candy, four big
oranges, five red apples, a pistol with a
box of caps, a drum, a tin bugle, a rub-
ber ball, a set of glass marbles, a French *
harp and a toy fiddle and bow.
“Oh, Bill,” exclaimed Johnie,
air the bestest fried’ I ever had, and
this is goin’ to be the bestest Christmas
that ever wus!”
Johnie was tired and weak and fell
asleep surrounded bj7 his precious gifts..
Miss Mary and Bill stole softly out into
the night, hand-in-hand, filled with a
strange, inexpressible happiness.
♦ ♦
The story of Bill’s devotion and sac-
rifice was published in one of the local
newspapers several days before Christ-
mas. The story touched the hearts and
loosened the purse-strings of all who
read it and caused many men and wom-
en to go into the homes of the sick and
unfortunate in the remote and obscure
parts of the town and give aid and com-
fort without stint to the poor and needy.
Some people believe that wealth
takes precedence over everything, al-
ways and everywhere. They are dead
wrong. Recently I heard a fair young
thing say that even beauty could never
stand, a ghost of a show against wealth.
She was sadly in error. If you doubt
what I say, make a fair test. Suppose a
very rich and crabbed old sister and a
eighteen summers,
with cheeks as lovely as the ripe wind-
sap and form as perfect as the angelus,
desired the assistance of a man in cross-
ing a branch; which one do you say
would get across without soil to her
slippers, and which one would be left to
wade the mud?
Armful of Christmas Presents
“Dr. Jones, this is Miss Winters
speaking. How is our little patient,
Johnie Mason, coming along?”
“The finest kind, Miss Mary,” replied
the doctor. “The crisis is passed and
Johnie, thanks to you and the splendid
nur»e you sent him, will soon be up and
out again." 1
“Oh, thank you so much. But say,
doctor, will it be all right for Billie to
come out and see Johnie tonight? He’s
standing by me at the ’phone now.”
“It’s all right if you will come with
him, Miss Mary. Good bye.”
Miss Winters knocked gently at the
door and it was opened by Grandma
Roberts who threw her arms around
Miss Mary and hugged her. Bill follow-
ed with an armful of presents, no matter
if it was five days before Christmas.
“Hello Johnie, how air you f.eelin’?”
was Bill’s greeting.
“Fine,” came a weak little voice.
’“Now, Johnie," said Bill, “lay right
still while I. tell you about my experience
with Sandy Claus. Soon as you was took
down with pneumona I wrote ’em that
letter about them presents you wanted.
But I was afeard he hadn’t got the let-
ter and telephoned ’em that you waa
n d phonographs,
may
of Babel, believes all races and peoples
can dwell together in love, peace and
unity. She wants to show that this is
possible, and will attempt to so do by a
concrete example. She says she will
adopt fifteen children, of the same age,
representing all races and nationalities,
and raise them under the same roof. I
am sure this woman is a lady of phi-
lanthropic impulses, but she is courting
- trouble and will gt t more than her
share. The Mexican will start an insur-
rection before the family is out of kilts.
The Jew will soon have all the money,
which may turn th*' other fourteen into
anarchists, crying for an equal division.
The American will fool away most of
his time talking politics and then insist
that the negro do most of the chores.
The frolicsome Irishman will cut off the ,
Chinaman's queue; the German will
cdffSume more than his share of beer,
and all the other nationalities wjll
pound the Englishman because he can’t
see the point to their jokes. The good
woman will land in the asylum for the
insane, and most of her adopted family
wilUprobably find the way to the peni-
Of course we can’t have Christmas
all the time, yet I know a lot of people
in my neck of the wood s" whri^e stock-
ings are filled with pretty things every
day in the year.
* • •
In giving advice you must be very
careful. If possible, first,.find out what
the person seeking your advice wants
to do, then so advise. Not long since a
young man whom I had always liked
called me to one side and told me he
wanted me to give him some advice. He
went on to say that he had always look-
ed upon nje as one of his/best friends*
was sure I was deeply concerned in his
welfare and happiness and would take
a deep interest in a matter that was
bothering him. He tickled my vanity
and caused me to feel very important
by Spying he .knew F was a man of
sound judgment, and that he knew of
no other whose opinion he would prize
so highly. He then in trembling voice
_told he was considering the very impor-
tant step of getting married. He said
he was deeply in love with a rare and
.radiant maiden, and that her love for
him was just as deep and pure, and he
wanted me to tell him what he should
do. Approaching the matter in a very
sensible, practical way, I first asked the
young fellow about his savings. He con-
fessed that he had only thirty-five dol-
lars in the bank. The next question was
about his salary, which was just about
sufficient to pay his board and laundry
bills and leave a few dollars for cloth-
ing; and no prospect of an immediate
raise. Duly considering the young man’s
financial condition and the high cost of
living. I told my friend that he should
postpone the nuptial event until his sav-
ings were larger and his salary suffi-
cient to meet reasonable family ex-
penses. Three days later the young man
and his little turtle dove were joined in
matrimony’s holy bonds, and since our .
confidential talk he hardly speaks to me
THREE CHILDREN IN FAMILY
HAVE SAME BIRTHDAY
Mr. and Mrs. E. E. Owen, of Cole-
man, have three children who were born ,
on the same day of the month, and they
are not triplets. The three children were
born on the 13th day of October. .Wil-
son, who is 20, was born October 13,
1910, Charlie Joe was born October 13,
1917, and Francis was born October
13. 1915.
1
pitiful story .of Johnie and the Santa
Claus letter that was never written,-
Miss Mary cried like her heart would
break and hugged Bill to her bosom.
“Yes, Billie,” she saiil.1 ‘T shall pray
for Johnie as I have neVcr prayed be-
fore.”
“T/ll God, Miss Mary, fur me, if He
save Johnie’s life I will give ’em
the suit of clothes I was goin’ to buy
fur myself this Christmas, to say
nothin’ of the toys I’m a goin’ to stuff
his stockings with
("nristmas.”
of cruel concatenation that killsj
dreams, it taxes the muscles, and is
drudgery, but if it is surrounded
with the mists of imagination it makes
of drudgery a thrilling adventure.
* * ♦
The Postmaster General says letter
postage must be advanced from 2 to 3
cents if the postal senice is ever made
self-sustaining.—This means that, in a
short time all letters must carry a3-cent
stamp. Well, the law of compensation
can be found even in as cruel a blow as
this. It wjll cost our creditors more to
dun us.
The only tilt I have ever had with
the clergy was on the question of lying.
On this question I am somewhat of a
liberal, while it appears to me that my
pastor and other good ministers are
radical. The ministers say we must tell
the truth every time, even though the
heavens occasionally take a tumble; 1
contend, that when a lie serves human-
ity better than the truth it is all right
to lie. I have lied many times to sick
people, telling them they looked so well,
when in truth they looked as if they
were headed for the grave on a straight
track. Wasn’t that the thing to do? As
a newspaper writer I have written of
many a fellow who had frequently
strayed from the royal road of right, as
a good man, when life’s golden bowl
bad been broken and his loved odes were
in sorrow over his demise; and I have
praised the beauty of brides who were
red-haired, freckle-fiiced and bow-leg-
ged. Anything wrong in that? Rahab
was a woman of Jericho’s underworld.
She sheltered the Hebrew spies who
were sent to look Jericho over; and Ra-
hab lied in order to save the lives of the
screamin’, ‘Bill,
ready has every kind of a toy that’s
made, and so much sweetmeats and
fruits that he can’t eat any of jt. He
can’t think, of anything he wants, and
worries his’mother trying to get her to
think of something for him. It is rather
a painful feeling to want something,
but a far more horrible condition to
have everything already, leaving noth-
ing to be wanted.
...
Age and viewpoint have much to do
with one’s attitude toward labor. Last
Hallowe’en a boy of my acquaintance,
who is about 14 years old, carried a
neighbor’s gate, which weighed fully
100 pounds, 100 yards
and dumped it into a
ditch. If that boy keeps
on living he will reach
the age of fifty sonje
day and when he does I
wonder how much he
would puff and blow
and cuss if he had to
-carry a gate of his own,
weighing fifty pounds,
a distance of one hun-
dred yards. After all,
perhaps labor is only a-'
matter o f viewpoint.
If it is merely a part
of a dull routine, a sort
concatenation that kill^
t h e y
were afraid
lest they be
so they
scheme of
out of ten •
.Myrtle’s sweetheart evoked a round of
laughter that quickly subsided when
Bill resumed his story of the Mason boy.
Bill’sJstory of the Mason Boy
“I wish you 'ait could s6h that boy.
seben years old and
looks like a skeer
crow. He has been
ding-dongin’ me fur
moren a week, ever
time I pass h i s
house, to write a
letter to Sandy
Claus to bring ’em
some presents. He’s
the funniest lookin’
boy I ever seen —
wears an old coat
with the sleeves
rolled up and the
tail almost tetches
the groun’; his
breeches air full of
holes, showin’ his
necked hide an’ he
wears a gal’s hood
with a tossel on.it
an’ goes barefooted.
The fust time he tackled me to write that
letter I tried to get shet of ’em by tellin’
’em to hang up his socks an’ old'Sandy
Claus would put presents.in ’em. But he
jumped up an’ down an’ bellered that he
was counting on you tried it last Christmas an’ didn’t get a
letter for me to my sweet-, thing. ‘I ain’t got no paper to write on,’
I said, an’ run off an’ left ’em still bel-
lerin.’
"Natuly I thought I was through with
’em, but I wusn’t, fur the very ncx
mornin’ when I was passin’ his house
he come runnin’ out shoutin’, 'Bill, Bilk
here’s the paper, now you can write me
that letter,’ but I put ’em off agin by
spies. Rahab’s life was spared, she was .
adopted into the family of the people of
God. and the list of her illustrious des-
cendants includes David, the sweet
singer, Solomon, the wise, and Jesui
Christ, the Saviour. Seems to me that
Rahab was rewarded for saving the
lives of the Hebrews by telling a lie.
♦ * *
The Year Is Closing
This is the last installment of Cur-
rent Comment for the year that is now
with us. Nineteen Hundred and Thirty
nears the end of its journey, and with
a few more risings and settings of the
sun will live only, as a memory. Death
to years'is what death is to human be-
ings—a passing from the stage of ac-
' 1
By JOE SAPPINGTON
(Copyright, 1930, by the Home Color Print Co.)
T Was a cold, rainy morning in De-
cember when Bill, the errand boy,
for Macey Co.’s department store,
came blustering back to the big
stove where were assembled three or
four of the sales
Aitaff. While warm-
ing his hands Bill
gave vent to his
feelings as follows:
“I shore wush
e v e r b o d y would
write ther own let-
ters and quit both-
erin’ me about it.” *
"That’s right.
Bill: if you start
writing letters for
your friends they
will take up all
your spare time,”
‘said Miss Harkins,
the milliner.
“Taint no frien’
that wants me to
write for ’em,” con-
tinued Bill — “no-
body but that Johnie Mason, what lives
with his Granma Roberts, who takes in
washin’ an’ lives twixt here an’ wher I
Hve.”
“Bill, I wish you would reconsider the
matter* as I was counting on you
writing a 1—--
heart,” jokingly observed Miss Myrtle,
the blonde young lady who sold laces
and ribbons.
"You mean lhat long-legged grass-
hopper what’s got a head about the size
< a nickle watermelon?” inquired Bill.
"Naw, 1 wouldn’t write ’em a letter
a tall even if you wus to pay me. I’d
lack to hit ’em between his jimlet eyes
with a rotten termater, insted uv
writfri’ to ’em.”.'
Bill’s ludicrous criticism of Miss
1
Pl1
ill i
1
Comment- —Making Twelve Months Out of Ten
and seemingly looks upon me as a cruel judging men; and his standards are
enemy who has done him a great wrong, not always true. Men who give large .
My experience in this unfortunate af- pervice to the world are frequently mis-
fair has caused me_to praise the judg- understood, and are despised, because
they look beyond the hour, and their
deeds and motives are misjudged—but
Tipie dispels the clouds of error that J
darkened the vision of thosie who mis-
judged them, and then tall monuments
are erected ih honor of the toilers who
went to their'graves condemned by false
standards.
Nineteen Hundred and Thirty has not
ministered abundantly to the material
prosperity to the people of this section,
and. for a time a,t least, will not have a J
golden setting in the galaxy of years.
The seasons have not been well-timed,
the elements have been unkind, and
plagues of dtstroyers have been visited
upon the land. The yield of the country’s
great staple crop was far below expec-
tations, the prices below the cost of
production, and tillers of the soil have
but slight reward for their toil. The
merchants’ trade has been light, and
instead of money in the bank, they have
goods upon their shelves, notes in their
safes, and unpaid accounts on their led-
gers. The professional man and the ar-
tisan have fared no better. Large fac- .
tories have been shut down, or operated 1
only a day or two each week; great
stores have reduced their sales forces, '
leaving thousands without the means
of earning ajiving. As man counts the
years good or bad, the year now draw- I
ing to a close has not been a good year,
and foF a time it will not be a year
pleasant to dwell upon.
But perhaps if we look higher than
our bank accounts, our houses and
landsj we may be forced even now to
admit it is the best year given man
since the Divine hand turned chaos and
utter darkness into order and light.
People are better than ever before and
righteousness is more strongly en- . J
trenched in the hearts of men. Science
has witnessed some of its greatest tri-
umphs, official wickedness has been
routed from many cities and States,
and corruption now dwells in fear in
dark places whereas it once walked"
proudly on broad avenues. Ways to bet-
kXer. health have been pointed out,
progress has been made toward the cure
of disease hitherto believed incurable,
and the ties of brotherhood have been
strengthened. I believe that it can be
truly said, although we are yet far from
the ideal life, that we have made a
year’s journey in that direction. The
white wings of peace have been spread
tion to make rootn for other actors; over our land, and, despite war rumors, j I
the love of peace is so .atrOhgly en- I
trenched in the hearts of our people
that we almost feel we can safely say
that we will war no more. The year’s
failures will soon be forgotten, but the
year’s triumphs will live on and on,
with torch ever burning, to light the
touched; the man whose touch js hurt-- way to perfect life. I
ful, whose words wound, and whose And now, as the fires of Nineteen
deeds touch sorrows into hearts is. Hundred and Thirty are burning low in
gladly forgotten or admitted to mem- the grate, let us read in the glow of the |
ory as an unwelcome guest.
Man has his standards for judging
years, just as he has his standards for
there being
time. Just why two more months were
added I am somewhat'in doubt, but I do
know the addition has worked a great
hardship on people who have to pay
grocery and dry goods bills, and meet
y ** A —» 1 1 A- - - A • « « a t
dios a
’economists may tell
you that it has proved
a blessing in keeping
down unemployment
by providing jobs for
bill collectors, but per-
sonally I prefer unem-
ployment to bill col-
lectors. I know that I
am much happier when
I am unemployed than
when five or six bill
’■ collectors are chasing
- me. It is quite prob-
able, however, that
members of the Ro-
man Senate were paid
by the month, and
wanted
to raise their wages
defeated at the next election,
nit upon the
making twelve months
After further study of the matter, I
Incline to the opinion that I was wrong
in charging the Roman Senate with the
change. Old Augustus Caesar probably
made it. He wasn’t any too popular with
the soldiers, and had to do something
to cinch the soldier vote. With October
the last month of the year, the soldiers
were away fighting when Christmas
came on, and.were as mad as Tucker.
Augustus added the two months, which
made Christmas come later when the
weather was too cold and too wet for
fighting. This put the soldiers at home
for Christmas pudding and Christmas
egg-nog, and from that day all of them
swore by Augustus.
I may do some bad things this Christ-
mas time. I may dance a little, may eat
more than my share of the Christmas
dinner, and if I. get an invitation to an
egg-nog party I may be strong enough
^(.decline; but there is one thing I will
not do. I will not write the holy day
“Xmas!” From the little studying of
algebra that I did I learned that X rep-
resented an unknown quantity; further-
more I don’t want to leave the impres- '
sion that Jesus Christ couldn’t write
His name and had to sign with a cross
mark.
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Scott, R. L. The DeLeon Free Press. (De Leon, Tex.), Vol. 41, No. 25, Ed. 1 Friday, December 19, 1930, newspaper, December 19, 1930; De Leon, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1247768/m1/3/: accessed July 7, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Comanche Public Library.