Show rr 5 r LITERARY m n 1 r 1 1 i 1 V i 1 1 V I 2 Casey's Christmas B BY EDWIN R. R WILLIAMS M MAMMA Il IA wont won't Santa Claus come this year said the little daughter of our landlady II I I am afraid not pet said the mother mournfully II Things a are are re not so easily made this year year and money is very scarce so Santa Claus will probably probably probably proba proba- bly be compelled to let a great many children go without presents Poor Mrs Sharp it was a hard struggle for her She had married at atthe atthe atthe the age of eighteen the man whom she had loved as a girl at school He was a bright young lawyer with every promise of success with clients who trusted him and with a confidence inspired by the love of the woman who had become a part of his life They had lived lived happily together and God had sent to them a little daughter who should knit their lives the more closely together At first it had been a hard climb b but these two hearts so inspired and inspiring made the burden light an and now they seemed to be he rising in the world without much endeavor They had a comfortable home and friends who made life pleasant for them But Buta a man of Frank Sharps Sharp's ambition was not to be so easily satisfied that when he had enough to live on he would stop and let the world run on without him He had imbibed the spirit of the West of the world I might say the de desire ire to tomake tomake tomake make money A scheme was unfolded to him by some some friends by which they were all to become rich One of them had a silver claim in the mountains mountain not far from Salt Lake and they were to form a company to develop it Sharp went into it as he did into most enter- enter l' l with his whole heart and it was not long before he had sunk all he could get together in the affair At first the mine seemed to pay but soon a crash came By an act of Congress Congress Congress Con Con- gress silver was demonetized and their claim was about worthless Those who had entered the company were stranded and Sharp found himself worse off than any anyone one of the rest for he had not only put up all his own savings but had borrowed heavily from his friends His life seemed wrecked All his aspirations seemed to fade away in the theair theair theair air and had it not been for the loving woman who was always at his side he would have given up in despair He must begin again To be sure he could not begin as he had before for then he had only the future to care for now he had the past to think about debts to pay before he could start again He wen went to work bravely at first but in his anxiety to get the burden burden burden bur bur- den off from his shoulders he forgot that man requires nourishment he forgot forgot forgot for for- got that man owes to himself a duty as aswell aswell aswell well as to others and he worked almost incessantly in his eagerness In the winter that followed his financial fall he was taken down with pneumonia and his weakened co constitution gave way to the dread disease He died and his po poor r wife with a year old child was thrown upon the world alone with his debts staring her in the face It was a great blow to her but she was wasa a brave woman and when I met her three years after his death she had succeeded in paying off part of the debts and had to live quite comfort comfort- ably She was a woman woman of resources and although not physically strong got along without any outward show of her poverty She had a room which she shet t rented to University students and by stenography and typewriting had made madea a neat sum of money every month The conversation we had overheard my room-mate room Casey and I took place about a week before Christmas in 18 18 a We had rented the room from her and had heard what was said through the wooden partition We were not very much interested at first but after fter y she had said good night to little 1 Geneve and the child had gone to f sleep we again heard her voice She 1 R f was praying and as she prayed she sobbed sobbed sobbed sob sob- bed piteously Poor woman 1 little she 6 thought that other than God heard that prayer and as between her sobs she s addressed God in the following words i little did she imagine how fully it would S be answered Oh Father in Heaven 1 she said give me strength to do my j duty Oh good Lord give me the thee s strength and means to make this blessed Christmas a happy one for my darling In that thou hast seen fit to afflict me 0 give me the spirit to say Thy will be done Help me to bear it bravely and to feel that it is really thy will Amen Casey dear fellow looked at me and tears filled his large gray eyes Neither of us spoke for some time but finally he said Dick chap goin to answer that prayer I knew t that at he meant it Casey was wasa a fine whole fellow who had inherited from Irish parents the large- large heartedness so common among the true sons of Erin Yes I knew very well that he meant every word he had uttered so I awaited his next remark with but little curiosity I knew what he was about to say as well as if he had already said it His father was superintendent superintendent superintendent super super- of a gold mine in Colorado and he had plenty of money so he could both say what he would do and do it boy goin to help God answer that prayer he continued II be Santy Claus and you you kin be me hand man if ye loike git the little dear to hang up her and thin fill it i You kin help help me to to get the things and nd well we'll make it a Christmas that the little f one niver saw the of before V E I do not know how he did it but he t. t contrived the next day to get from the If woman how she was situated financially financially finan finan- and when I got back from my i F work at the University he lie told me the following sad story When her husband had died he had Is left a debt of about five thousand dol dol- lars She had managed in the three f- f years to reduce it nearly two thousand thousand and had gotten on very well until the I C past fall faU and the winter now upon us It had been very dull times and it was I about all she could do to get enough together to keep them in food and i. i clothing and she did not know how she could possibly afford this year to make Christman any different from other da days s. s f He had gotten from her a list of things that she would like to buy for little le Geneve but how he pad had accomplished accomplished I it 1 I could never find outDid out f Did you let on to her why you wanted to know said I. I and oi of didn't said he and he laughed quite heartily at the idea if Well how in the name name of sense did you do it Well since yere so inquisitive f tell ye Oi asked her about things in and the poor womans woman's heart Ii w was s so full that she d me Oi 01 knew she would if oid od let her He was very much absorbed the most I i of the week so much so that he flunked two examinations and said that he care at all when I laughed at him If for it i You wait said he and show that have ye a better time on ona a Christmas day than if oi of had passed all the exams that iver was given in all the colleges in the world II F I realized realised fully what his threat m meant ant r when on Wednesday two days before Christmas he showed me a cheque for fifty dollars from his father Come chap said he we will go and play Santy Claus now And go we did to town to the toy store to the jewelry store to the dry goods store where he bought all sorts of things from a pair of shoes to a hood and muff and furs for Geneve He had all these things wrapped and sent to the room of another University fellow and then we went to a grocery store and the order he left there to be besent besent besent sent the evening before Christmas day made me open my eyes in wonder But I dont don't know why I did for he he was that sort of a fellow who never did things by halves in order to get praise for all with each half When he had finished his purchases he turned to me and said Dick how much money have you got Twenty dollars said I. I Thin give it to me oi of want to buy buya a nice piece of cloth for Mrs Sharp And buy it he did We vVe waited anxiously for Christmas morning Casey had arranged it that I should offer to take Mrs Sharp and Geneve down town to see the shop win win- dows So we left the house at about seven o'clock and while we were gone he arranged everything in order The groceries turkey celery cranberries and other good things were put into the pantry and he had fixed the door in inthe inthe inthe the hall so that it could not be locked I did my part as well as I could while gazing into the windows by prevailing upon Geneve to hang her stocking up in the parlor near the fireplace for Santa Claus often comes to little chIldrens chIldren's children's childrens childrens children's chil chIl- drens dren's homes when they least expect it said I. I Had 1 I not known the true condition of affairs the look of despair on the poor mothers mother's face at my remark would have staggered me but I was prepared for it and turned it off but I had accomplished my purpose and when we got home before Geneve would go to bed she hung her stocking in the parlor as I had advised her After she had gone and Mrs Sharp and I were alone in the parlor she began began began be be- gan Mr Evans I cannot tell you how sad it makes me that I have nothing this year for that little stocking and I felt as if my heart would break when you mentioned it for I had just about gotten her contented to do without any any- thing I answered quietly I I am sorry Mrs Sharp that I did not tell you before and so saved you pain but I have a afew afew afew few candies and nuts I would like to put in the stocking There was no noway noway noway way out of it I must put something in before her and so I went to the room and brought out a bag of candy and some nuts These we emptied into the little stocking She thanked me and we parted for the night She was soon asleep but Casey and andI I crept crep softly to the parlor filled the new stockings and piled those we could not get into them on a chair We were happy and when we got to our room we laughed and chuckled like two children The next morning we were up early but none toc toe soon for little Geneve was soon heard to rush into the next room and calling at the top of her voice voice- II Oh Oh mamma Mr Evans was right Santa Claus did come come And look what a lot of pretty things he has brought me The poor w woman man was dumbfounded My child she said II where did you get those things Santa Claus brought them and left them beside the fireplace in the parlor r I know it was he because the floor is ashes all around In a few minutes there was a patter of bare feet in the hall and a knock on our door We opened it and there stood Ii little Geneve with a doll in her G iY tiny tIDY arms and she said II Mamma says I must say merry t r Christmas to you both and that I may kiss you both for asking Santa Claus to i come and bring me all these pretty thO things In g s. s I rr Before we could get out Mrs Sharp came and than thanked ed us both for the things things she had found foun in In the pantry I tried to tell her that it was to Mr Casey she rl l t tl towed owed all the thanks but he would not v i have it and we both accepted an invitation invitation invitation J tation to eat our Christmas dinner with her that afternoon il F FAt At the dinner she again with tears in her eyes tried to thank us s but C Casey sey ii would not allow her and said blushing Mrs M s. s Sharp ashamed of f it but 1 must tell you that this is IS simply an i ianswer answer to the prayer you made a week ago and to which we were base enough to listen God is good Mrs Sharp Wand and it is to Him you owe the thanks not us He told me that night that the money he had received from his father was to 4 have taken him home but that he would rather have spent a Christmas as he had this one than to take a trip around the 1 world And I believed him m A r. r |