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Show "home for GS1RSSTMAS WICKS WAMBOLDTrfj jifZJ EE ! It's great to get home (HTfpoJ for Christmas! iV?57 "0U '.'ave been away for the first time In your life, holding down a job a thou-land thou-land miles from the home town, but now you're on your way home for Christmas, rolling Into a country that pou know all about You are the first one off the train, and the first through the gate. Father and mother are there waiting for you. Mother hugs and kisses you without a word, but there is a tightening of her arms that speaks much. Father shakes hands with you heartily and says, "Well, my boy, you're looking fine !" When you reach the car, there are grandfather and grandmother, and Aunt Jennie and Aunt Molly; and they all act as though they never had seen anyone in their lives look so good to them as you ! You climb into the front seat alongside your father. It is Christmas morning and most folks are at home. But yon see an occasional acquaintance and wave your hand gaily and shout, "Merry Christmas!" And one or two step out from the sidewalk and stop you and say, "Well, I'll he dogged !" and shake hands with you and tell you how glad they are to see you. You are out of town now, speeding over the road that runs along the river, riv-er, that beautiful, wide, blue river, where in summer you swam and boated boat-ed and caught fish, and in winter hunted hunt-ed ducks. There down the road comes a familiar figure with a gun on his shoulder and a dog at his heels! It is Chuck Andrews. He recognizes you a hundred feet away and grins joyously. "Merry Christmas!" he yells. Your father stops the car, and you and Chuck grip hands. "Jlminy! I'm glad to see you," he says. "How long are you going to be home?" "A week," you reply. "Fine and dandy!" says he enthusiastically. enthusi-astically. "There Is the biggest flock of wild turkeys I ever saw over in Cedar Ce-dar Swamp; and the quail are as thick as grasshoppers this year. We'll start something." The car moves on. You are turning in at the home place; you are purring up the avenue jto the house. Cousin Xat and Cousin Bill have your grip and hat and overcoat over-coat and carry them to your room. - Suddenly you ask, "Where's Uncle Harry?" Grundmother answers, "Harry "Har-ry couldn't come. He is so far away he felt he shouldn't leave his business so long." You are disappointed, for Cncle Harry Is your favorite uncle, and you have been loking forward especially es-pecially to seeing him. . You all sit down In the large living room before the crackling, fragrant log fire in the big fireplace. All are talking at once. Then mother says, "Mingo and Maria are in the kitchea Don't you want to see them?" Mingo and Maria helped raise you. You open the kitchen door and Mingo Min-go and Maria, their black faces shin- J And Says With a Grin, "You Hit Me I Where I'm Weak." ; ing with affection, greet you with "Cliris'mas gif! Chris'mas gif!" And Maria hugs you and croons endearing en-dearing names to you as she did when ; you were a youngster. Mingo shakes hands with you and says, "I'se sho' . powahful glad to see yo', Mistah i Sam"; and you tell them you have brought Santa Claus with you. Back you go to the bunch, and you are no more than seated when therv is tile whir of a motor outside. Som-e-Imd.v looks nut the window and shouts, "Here's Harry !" Everybody tries to get out t he door at once. Uncle Har ry, natty and debonair as usual, steps smiling from a taxi. "Thought you weren't coming!" somebody yells. "Had to come!" lie Hashes back "Couldn't stand the pressure." Then the folks crowd round him. And lie pushes through to you. grabs your hand in both of his and says. "Well, here's Sam !" And he adds, "1 don'! know as I should have come If 1 hadn't known you'd be here." "Let's have the presents before din ;er " suggests some one. And there Is a rush for the library where packages pack-ages are stacked high on the big table. "Sam, you give 'em out," says grandfather. grand-father. And you tackle the job. Everybody Ev-erybody is pleased, or pretends to bfc, with what he or she gets. And Uncle l'eter sidles up to you with your box of cigars In his hand, and says with a grin, "Tou hit me where I'm weak." Presents are viewed and reviewed and right In the midst of it mother calls, "L'inner is ready." You all pour into the dining room. There are eighteen of you at the table. ta-ble. Your father sits at one end and your mother at the other. And you are at your mother's right Your father fa-ther asks the blessing; then grandfa-' ther carves the turkey. There is a jolly clatter. Plates are passed until each has made' the circuit and received re-ceived Its load of good things. After all have eaten all they can hold, your mother pushes back her chair and rises; you all follow suit And your grandfather says to your mother, "Sally, that was a fine dinner"; din-ner"; and Uncle Bob adds, "Yes, 1 think I can get along all right now until supper." The family sifts back into the living room. Mingo comes in and puts more wood on the fire, and the flames shoot up the throat of the chimney. Talk lags. And cousin Xat asks you. "Who was the most precocious h?8 a OK r -" i- " .' ' . t-TlTflntftii i"" f y11w.LJ-..-.-'f The Chiffonnier Your Father Gave You for a Birthday Present. child mentioned in the Bible?" You answer glibly, "Job; he cursed the day he was born." "You've heard that one before," says Nat. Then you give Nat this one: Every lady In this land Has twenty nails upon each hand; Five and twenty on hands and feet; And this is true without deceit. "Say that again," asks Aunt Eleanor. Elean-or. You repeat the doggerel, and are required to do so again and again. "It's nonsense!" declares Cousin John. "Hold on!" says Cousin N'at "There is some catch In the punctuation." punctu-ation." And while the rest continue to puzzle, he takes out a pencil and an envelope and writes the thing down. "I've got It !" he announces, and reads : Every lady In this land has twenty nails; Upon each hand five; and twenty on hands and feet. Everybody laughs and Uncle George says, "That's a good one;" then the conundrums fly thick and fast. Before Be-fore you know It the family is called in to eat cold turkey and other fixings left from dinner. You spend the evening cracking jokes, and you pop corn, eat candy, and commit various gastronomic enormities. enor-mities. But who cares? Christmas comes but once a year ! What if one should feel logy tomorrow? It is worth It. To everybody's surprise, the tall clock in the hall booms twelve. And the folks say good-night and go to bed. You go up to your room the room you always have had and always will have. The lights are on. There is a cheery fire on the hearth. The bedclothes bed-clothes are turned down and your pajamas laid out. Your mother has been there. You close the door and look around. There is the chiffonnier that your father gave you for a birthday present pres-ent And paper on the wall, yon picked it out yourself with your mother; moth-er; and you and she selected the carpet car-pet There Is the tie-rack which Cousin Marjorie ga;e you made of embroidery hoops covered with red satin. You go over to the closet and peer in. Your shotgun is right where you left It. You think of what Chuck Andrews said about the wild tu.-keys and the quail "Oh, boy!" There is a tap at the door. Your tell my boy good-night." You and she sit down.Non the edge of the bed and talk ; then she says, "Now you must go to bed and get some rest," and she hugs and kisses you and goes out You step to the window and raise the sash. The full moon Is shining as only a Southern moon can shine. The air Is frosty and perfectly still. Far off a dog is barking. You hear a cow lowing softly. A rooster, fooled by the moon, crows for daylight. Down in the village the chimes ring out from Matlin tower: Lord, through this hour be Thou my guide: that In Thy power I may abide. You put down the window, undress, and climb into those pajamas that your mother has laid out You extinguish ex-tinguish the light And the next thing you know you are on your knees by tie side of the bed. You have been skipping that sort of thing lately. You crawl In between the sheets ai ti snuggle your head into the pillow. A delicious drowsiness creeps over you. Gee ! It's great to get home for i 'lii-istnias i (fX 1927. Western Newscapo- Union.) |