Show af frances A E WAS a small boy named hm HE tim who had never been more ore than ten miles from his home in the ozark hills his teacher said he even bound arkansas his own state but what his teacher know was how well he knew the mountain crick and the hill slopes circled with greengold green gold pine trees that bounded his fathers tiny farm he also knew what it took to keep a family ot of six children and that for as long as h he e could remember his fathers tarm farm had scarcely been able to produce enough to stretch over every need it was just before christmas time that he heard his father teu tell his mother that if there was to be anything extra to give the day its meaning tor for the children hed have to get the ax and hack out a few ties her face went white for she knew what that meant so often had they been forced to remain on the hacking of a few ties to be sold to the railto railroad tor dire necessities that practically all their timber available for that purpose was gone and trees dont grow over night she could tell by the look on her husbands face that he was taking a desperate and backbreaking back breaking chance of finding a few logs tough enough for the commission man to buy As she looked out of the window and saw the passing cars of winter tou on the new scenic road the government had built through t the hills she wondered b by what magic folks could come to own automobiles to and take time off like that to go traveling but she many moments to spare on such thoughts for her husband had returned to say that the ax ax was gone could one of the children have taken it or what with the new road so near and strangers riding through the hills had someone made off with it the father had borrowed an ax from a willing neighbor but on the day before christmas he was silent as he unhitched his team in the wagon lot christmas tomorrow and he had been forced to bring back the load from town the commission man had been truly sorry for he did need ties yet none of these were large enough he crept up to a window lost in the sense of failure that made him ashamed to walk to his own door there an odd sight straightened him inside were tim and his mother joyously trimming a christmas tree tim raced to the door to keep the younger children from bursting gleefully into the room and learning its great secret when the father entered the house no one asked him about the ties dad dad tim shouted do you know those red berry trees that grow way up the crick awful hard to get to but when nhen I 1 found ern em I 1 thought they were so I 1 took some to school the teacher sa said id holly and then I 1 read about holly and learned that folks will 1 I pay for it to have it tor for christmas so ba I 1 I 1 gathered a cia lot of it it and made tj I 1 me a holly stand up on the new road just hopin they would and dad they did buy ill stopped their cars and said why its holly who would have thought wed find it cherev here they wanted so much I 1 had to work awful hard getting it but gee it was fun I 1 wanted to surprise mom and you and now ill tell you both that I 1 made 2782 theres 20 right now in that bureau drawer left after buying our christmas gee dad I 1 love this old farm its got lots of surprises on it yet this one aint the last one the father brushed a tear from his eye and kissed his wile wife then he shook hands with tim youre the kind of son a man can be right proud to own he choked but dad will you forgive me the boy suddenly implored why tim forgive you what nhat the father asked in surprise the boy led the way to the kitchen you see sec dad I 1 just held had to have it the father pretended to frown as tim pointed and then he winked well being as its just about christmas fur for us as veil nell as the rest of the world I 1 guess ill have to overlook it for there in a far corner of the room stood the ax it was tim who had borrowed it western newspaper piper union |