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Show THE NIGHT BEFORE j Br wf'it'gwffl'iiww. .! i i.iMiiiiWJji urn .j. i .Mit-uj. p-. I ? rs;7 ' ' , v ,f f ,1 r ill ' , 14 r t-i;. p Ml'--'- ' X ' ' I'M ?1 r W A (b .Iib 1 lfcMt K - v;- life ; MC3 1 1 tb",: -7 s v-: ; :r : r( , m i )v : r b ' , -x:lff - : ' rS Merry Christmas, and Paid in Full How Silas Vaughan Contributed Contrib-uted to Yuletide Cheer of the Needy. By FRANK HERBERT SWEET I I -ym T WAS an eloquent H plea for the public I , S building, an urge dvaik for lt3 beauty ltB Bk value to the town, WwsTlf1" 1 h e educational W'l TyVTp gift to the eyes of O&T N youth. The speaker speak-er was hypnotic. He had been engaged for that. Purse strings were loosened. Money foured freely twenty, fifty, a hundred, five hundred. And lt was Christmas. They went to Silas Vaughan, the Rrocer leader, a wealthy man of the town. 1'eople looked surreptitiously to nee what munificent sum he would give. At first n hand wont Into his pocket like the others, then came out and the arms were folded. There was an audible gasp from watchful eyes. More pleas came, more solicitors vent round, man to man. But Silas sat there, arms folded, rigid, unmoved. "Times are too hard," he was heard to Bay In answer to an Importunate beggar. "It Is a bad year for such a building." "Not bad for me, and all those who yield to noble Impulses," said a neighbor neigh-bor In a voice that all coulo hoar. The next day was Christmas, with the grocery and drug stores open for a few hours. Silas Vaughau (vent to his desk and took out twice as many bills ns ever had been allowed to accumulate ac-cumulate before. Times wore hard, and more were obliged to charge. Fully half of the accounts were selected se-lected from the others, and several words written at the bottoms. That look nearly an hour. Then he slipped the hills Into his pocket, put on his hat and coat, and went out, leaving the store to the clerks. It was nearly closing time when he t'uie back. This he occupied with packing and arranging a number of baskets with fruit and nuts and candy, which he sent out anonymously. In the evenlug came a big church community Christmas tree. Most of the donors of the public building were there, rather proud of themselves and Dot above circulating bits of criticism. When Silas entered, there was no uncertain air of chilliness chilli-ness In the room. A few nodded to him. but frigidly. Silas appeared to take no notice, and found a seat near the front, where apparently ap-parently he sat calm and unruffled. A poorly-dressed man down In front tiad boon looking about expectantly, as though waiting for some one to speak. Suddenly he rose. "I ain't no speaker," he called, loudly, "but I got suthln' to say. T.nut the new buildii)', I ain't nothln' to say. only seems too much aoney for rval need. An' I never liked horn-blowin". horn-blowin". Now, it's been an nwfnl hard time for workin' folks, on 'count o' there bein' so much slack. First time I couldn't pay up In twenty years. "I couldn't see no Christmas for me. Now, listen: This mornln' a fellet carried papers all round. I got one. First, I felt 't was a sheriff thing, like. Then I read on the bottom, 'I hope this will be the beginning of better things. Merry Christmas. Paid In full. Silas Vaughan. Mine was thirty thir-ty dollars. SI must 'a' given away more'n a thousand." He sat down. Silas had lost all his composure. He tried to slip away. I But hands and apologies were appearing appear-ing from all sides. He was pushed to the platform and told to make a speech. He would have made a mess of lt, but all were cheering so wildly no one could hear. So it did not matter. mat-ter. (, 1915, Western Newspaper UnloB.) |