Decatur Daily Democrat, Volume 8, Number 289, Decatur, Adams County, 8 December 1910 — Page 7

CHRISTMAS ON THE PLANTATION By ELBERT J. LEE. IN the antebellum days the negroes enjoyed a whole week of rest at Christmas time. Now that they are hired hands Instead of slaves they cling to this privilege, refusing to work while the holiday spirit is in the air. This means that Christmas lasts a week. Every negro-man, woman and pickaninny—makes the most of the week, and the fun runs high. On many plantations the negroes are almost a« much a part of the “plant” as they were during slavery. They have the feeling that, inasmuch as they belong to the place the rest of the year, the place belongs to them for the hoildj* week, and they take advantage of th, ■opportunity to do as they please. For weeks in advance the holidays are anticipated with joy, though not with any great degree of preparation. The plantation negro, generally speaking, lets tomorrow take care of itself. But some of the more provident ones begin to store up for Christmas. The fattest pumpkin Is picked up from the corn rows and put away for pie ma-1 terlal. The turkey gobbler in the back yard Is fattened for the occasion. Old Aunty hides her jars of preserves from the younger generation. Uncle Ike becomes a confederate in the happy conspiracy for saving things to augment the Christmas spread. Christmas morning the negro children are up bright and early. There is method in their early rising. From time immemorial southern people, both white and black, have cherished the belief that there is jpuch virtue in being the first to shout "Christmas gift!” in meeting a friend on the morning of the great day. In some sections this priority of greeting is expected to result in the forfeit of a gift from the other party. Accordingly the little negroes make a point of running up to the big plantation house and greeting the white people with a lusty “Chris'mus gif!” in the hope of receiving at least a big red apple, a fresh baked pie or a stick of striped candy such as the general store on the plantation is sure to keep in stock. The lx*<t fiddler on the plantation is the hardest worked man of all. but he enjoys every scrape of his bow, while rhe dance goes merrily on. The Christ-1 mas dance is a continued story. It begins Christmas eve and continues every night in the week. If the weather is not too cold the big barn floor Is cleared for the dance, but if heat is required the “function” takes place in the biggest room of the biggest negro house on the place, with a roaring fire in the fireplace and plenty of cheer on the kitchen table, both solid and liquid. Christmas week is spent in visiting. The negroes go from cabin to cabin on their own plantation, or they hitch up the work mule or steers and visit friends on a neighboring plantation. Everywhere the Christmas spirit prevails. . If one family is short of this world’s cheer, another family-is. glad

MflBK iffllN 1/ -fe A- - M .7 J New ■ Price jIISSx Edition ' ~ rlvc JfiWteX SX as £oM ejo. Which still .Ils by the way, at $50.00. This new edition is only s2s.oo—tor the Z 3 volumes. It had been w American home, and he maoe a g p AUa time J Rut for Mark Twain’s action this would have been impossible. Never befo« copyHghted library set of a standard author’s works been issued at such a low figure. . His Complete Works— / 25 Beautiful Volumes /gn r x°i :.r /' I headed by Mol ‘J r ' f a "^ nt e "Xn writers, and will be handed down to posterity y/pie... send me for exZuThYbT:r S io Of of re hi S works ‘Huckleberry Finn,*^ * Pudd'nhead Wilson.* Twain is * j’ ~ Js one of the finest /WORKS. Author’. NoThoreau and his ‘Man that Corrupted Hadleyburg o , / tional Edition, twenty five volTh £ln Fnvlish literature.” Mark Twain himself wrote a preface X clolh blndlng . K | s underworks in English literatur has wHttefl the biograp hica! X ti)od j may re tain the «t for fi«d.ys. to this edition. B ™ n< h .. . k There are portraits of / 4n d Bt the expiration of that time, If Ido criticism of Mark Twa.n and h.s work IJwre a p / not \ aro lor the Uh., I will return them at the author at periods when the different books were V , If f the book., I will remit ... „» writinc — / *2 00 « month until the furl price, »2C.00, ha. ° f Wf g ’ , rp , bv such artists as Frost. / been paid, or, within thirty days, *23.76 a. pay- * There are beautiful pictures by,^" n a " lS ' Kemble . / ment in full . Newell, Smedley ThuUtrup, - s ilk book / and Opper. The binding is in The books / cloth, with title labels stamped in g . are printed on white antique wove paper. *• P X signature / ; [harpcr .» ~— —-* D. D.—l 2-8 10

to siuiro its own. The Cbrlslmns spitI It on a cotton plantation is much more j n evidence than in a prosperous white | foiks* town. CHRISTMASBERRIES. Wh«r. tha Holty Grows and How to Find the Beet. Ibe old fashioned Christmas greens Were rosemary, ivy and bay, but In the 2.000 tons of wreathing and decorating material which it Is estimated that we now use every year there is a much I greater variety. Best loved of all Is the glossy, red berried holly. "Holm” was the old English name for it, and it is thought to be identical with the “gnamwood tree” of British ballads and of Robin Hood fame. On our side of the Atlantic the American holly (Ilex opacai is found from Maine, where it grows as a shrub, to North and South Carolina, where it lifts a symmetrical cone of dark, shining leaves set with scarlet berry clusters along a beautiful trunk of gray and sliver to the height of seventy or eighty feet. Delaware and Maryland are usually credited with furnishing the best grades of holly to Christmas markets, but their “Three X” brand, as seen after shipment to northern cities, is , not so finely berried as the Carolina holly, plentiful hi the region around , Asheville, in America there are three distinct grades of holly. Trees that stand on dry. barren hillsides, as a rule, nre heavily laden with thick, knobllko clusters of berries, but their leaves are likely to be small, yellowish and imperfect. Follow some little stream to a sheltered, sunny glade where a holly trunk gleams white, and there you will find leaves large, dark and perfect, with a thick scarlet fruitage lighting the shadows evenly all over the tree. TRAGIC CHRISTMAS DAYS. World’s Greatest Holiday Has Often Been Reddened by Blood; ' Christmas, which should be and usually Is the merriest day of all the year, has sometimes been reddened by bloodshed and blackened by tragedy. One of the most barbarous of the persecutions against the Christians was begun by Diocletian on Christmas day. A. D. 303, when a church in Nicodemia, filled with Christians, was ordered by him to be set on Are. Every way of egress was barred, and not a single worshiper escaped the flames. Yuletide in 1066 was a melancholy time in England, which nevertheless always celebrated it with the utmost eagerness, for Harold, the last of the Saxons, hnd fallen before the Norman conqueror, and on Dec. 25 of that year William the Conqueror was crowned in Westminster abbey. The occasion was signalized by the slaughter of a huge crowd of Anglo-Saxons , outside of the church through a mis- 1 I taken idea that they had risen in re- | volt Exactly two years later there was an uprising of the malcontents in the , northern counties who hoped to throw I off the Norman yoke. William march- ' i ed iu person against the rebels and , directed a universal slaughter. His < men surprised, several, garrisons and

pus tliefiT to the sword! Neither age nor sex was spared, and every house In the disaffected regions was rated to 1 the ground. It is said that over 100,060 men, women nnd children perished 1 on Dec. 25, 101’8. It was on Christmas day in the year 1170 that Thomas n Becket, the greatest English cleric of his day. ascended the cathedral pulpit nt Canterbury nnd preached what may be called his own funeral sermon. The words he made use of so angered Henry 11. that he let fall those fatal words: "If anybody loved me he would rid me of this turbulent priest.” Four knights took him at his word, and on Dec. 20 they slew the prelate before the altar of St. Benedict In the northern transept of Canterbury cathedral. On Dec. 25, 1384, John Wycliffe died as he was about to preach his Christmas sermon. One of the saddest Christmases known in London was that of the year 1663. The great plague had stricken the city, and the people were dying at the rate of 1,006 a day. Pleaded an Extenuation. An Indiana youth bad called with a cab to take the judge’s daughter to a dance, scarcely two blocks from her home. The judge entered the room where the youth was waiting. Pacing across the room a couple of times with his head bent and thoughts concentrated, he came short about in front of the youth and declaimed: “Young man. this cab hiring to go turn blocks is foolish, unwise, unthoughtful. misguided, unreasonable, lavish—a prodigality— a—a—l am surprised. My daughter is flesh and blood, and she won't melt, and if her gown should be ruined I bought it. and I can buy her”— "That’s all right, judge, but my father is' paying for that cab.”—Woman’s Home Companion. The Curse. An Irish authority thus defines as an expert the effects of a well delivered curse: “The belief among the ancient Irish was that a curse once pronounced must fall In some direction. If it has been deserved by him on whom it Is pronounced it will fall on him sooner or later, but if it has not then it will return upon the person who pronounced it. They compare it to a wedge with which a woodman cleaves timber. If it has room to go it will go and cleave the w’ood, but if it has not it will fly out and strike the woodman himself who is driving it between the eyes.”—London Globe. Strict Women Who Love. The strictest women are at times the most loving. When this happens their attachment is as strong as death, their fidelity as resisting as the diamond. They are hungry for devotion and athirst for sacrifice. Their love is a piety, their tenderness a religion, and they triple the energy of love by enshrining it as a duty.—Henri Frederic Amlel. Shadows. The shadows of the mind are like those of the body. In the morning of life they all He behind us, at noon we trample them underfoot, and in the evening they stretch long, broad and deepening before us.

SPARED THE CHIEF. Jackson Admired the Bravery of tha Famous Indian. Andrew Jackson was magnanimous In his treatment of Weathersford, the famous Creek chieftain, when that warrior surrendered. Weathersford hnd done all In his power to prevent the horrible massacre at Fort Mims, i but most of the frontiersmen were bitter against him, nnd Jackson himself had sworn to put him to death if he were taken. One day after the power of his people hnd been utterly broken Weathersford came riding Into Jackson’s camp on his famous gray horse and stopped ' in front of the general’s tent. “How dare you ride up to my tent after having murdered the women and 1 children at Fort Mims?” demanded Jackson in astonishment The chief denied the truth of the ‘ charge, but said he: “You may kill me if you will. I come to get aid for the ; women and little children who are ' starving in the woods. If I could fight you any longer I would do so, but my warriors are all dead. Send for the women and little children. They never did you any harm. But kill me if the white people want it done.” The troops, crowding about, began to cry menacingly: "Kill him! Kill him!” “Silence!” ordered Old Hickory sternly. “Any one who would kill as brave a man ns this would rob the dead.” The general treated the chief kindly and even gave him permission if he desired to depart and continue the war. The chief afterward settled on a plantation, where he resided for many years, honored alike by white men and red.—Chicago Tribune. SOLVING A PROBLEM. The Green Country Brakeman Who Introduced the “Saw By.” Many years ago a green country boy applied to the superintendent of a western railway for work and, somewhat against the superintendent's wish, on account of the danger to life and limb attendant upon such occupation, was given a place as brakeman of a freight train. On one of his first trips It happened that his train met another freight train at a station where the sidetrack was not long enough to accommodate either of them. The conductors were debating which train should back up to a point where they could pass when the new hand ventured to suggest that neither should back; that they could pass each other by means of the short sidetrack if the thing was managed right. The idea excited a good deal of laughter on the part of the old trainmen, but the boy stood his ground. “Well, how would you go about it?” asked one of the conductors, confident that the lad would soon find himself against a stump. The boy took up a stick and traced in the sand a diagram to illustrate his plan. “Good gracious!” said the conductor. “I believe that will do it!” And it did do it. Today every trainman in America probably knows how to “saw by” two long trains on a short sidetrack, but it is not so generally known that the thing was never done until an inexperienced country boy who became the manager of a great railway line worked out the problem for himself. The White Shark. The shark of sharks, the real “man eater” and the one most dreaded, is the white shark. This variety reaches a length of thirty-five feet and a weight of 2,000 pounds. Its head is long and flat, and the snout far overhangs the mouth. Its six rows of teeth are sharp as lancets and notched like saws. Its mouth is very large, so that one has been known to cut a man’s body completely in two at a single snap of its cruel jaws and another to ■ swallow one at a gulp. Near Calcutta one of these sharks was seen to sw’allow a bullock’s head, horns and all. From the stomach of another a bull’s hide was taken entire, and the sailor who made the discovery insisted that the bull had been swallowed whole and all except the hide had been digested. From the stomach of another was taken a lady’s workbox filled with the usual contents, scissors and all. It is commonly the white shark which follows the vessel at sea day after day and week after week. The Retort Courteous. “Camp Meeting” John Allen was a famous Methodist preacher and revivalist of the old days down in Maine, and, like most successful pulpit orators, his sense of humor was equal to his gift of speech. It is recalled by the Boston Journal that on one occasion the old gentleman’s wife was getting into a carriage, and he neglected to assist her. "You are not as gallant John, as when you were a boy!” she exclaimed in gentle rsbuke. “No,” was his ready response, “and you are not as buoyant as when you were a gal!” In His Father’s Footitapi. Sinks—Did Smith’s father leave him anything? Jinks — Only his debts. Binks—How is Smith getting along? Jinks—Well, he has greatly increased his inheritance.—Baltimore American. The One Way Out. She—Why did lie marry her at all if he intended getting a divorce so speedily? He—Because he didn’t think it would be honorable to break their engagement.—Kansas City Journal. Let no man presume to give advice to others who has not first given good counsel to himself.—Seneca.

t Dear Old Sarita I B Has just arrived at the Boston Store and he says he g s believes it a good plan to shop early and get first g S choice as well as the individual service of the sales- ’ s people. Santa Claus has brought us loads and loads of I | Children and Ladies Furs, Scarfs, Embroider- f g ied and Silk Hose, Kid Gloves, Handkerchiefs, S g Hat Pins, Purses, Belt Pins, Carpet Sweepers, f I Umbrellas and everything suitable for a nice 1 Xmas Present. 1 Chnn Fnr w - . » \ i ’ Il while the selections are best. * (J | and get better attention. § j Boston Store i S Our Slogan—No Trouble to Show Goods. g

PUBLIC SALE. ‘ The undersigned will offer for sale at his residence six miles northeast of Decatur and one-fourth mile east of Kohr’s school house, in Union township, Adams county, Indiana, beginning at 10 o’clock a. m., Tuesday, Dec. 6, 1910, Six head of horses, 1 yearling draft colt, 2 spring colts, 4 milch cows, all will be fresh, 1 heifer, will be fresh in January, 3 yearling heifers, 4 spring calves, 1 Durham bull calf, 6 months old, 7 full-blooded Duroc brood sows, pigs by side, 15 shoets, will weigh about 125 pounds each; fifteen Shropshire owes, 1 Shropshire buck, 9 dozen chickens, farming implements and tools, 10 tons clover hay in mow, 600 bushels corp ia crib, 9 acres corn in shock, about 9 acres of fodder in the shock, at the usual terms. FERDINAND BLEEKE. John Spuhler, Auct. Fred Kolweway and T. J. Durkin, Clerks. o — FINAL NOTICE. I have disposed of my stock in the Holthouse Drug Company and by the terms of the sale have taken over all the accounts due the company up to November 1, 1910. I shall leave this locality about Devember 10th. All accounts not settled, either by cash or by note within this time will be left for collection. 281t6 H. F. CALLOW. RHEUMATISM RELIEVED IN SIX HOURS Dr. Detchon’s Relief For Rheumatism usually relieves severest cases in a few hours. Its action upon the system is remarkable and effective. It removes the cause and the disease quickly disappears. First dose benefits. 75c and SI.OO- Sold by the Holthouse Drug Co. wed&sat-3mo o Good results always follow the use of Foley Kidney Pills. They contain just the ingredients necessary to tone, strengthen and regulate the kidneys and bladder, and to cure backache. The Holthouse Drug Co. — —o The old, old story, told times without number, and repeated over and over again for the last 36 years, but it is always a welcome story to those in search of health —There is nothing in the world that cures coughs and colds as quickly as Chamberlain’s Cough Remedy. Sold by all dealers. o Lame back comes »n suddenly and is extremely painful. It is caused by rheumatism of the muscles. Quick relief is afforded by aplying Chamberlain’s Liniment. Sold by all dealers. NOTICE TO MERCHANTS. Until further notice is given no good? except perishable will be delivered after 5 o’clock p. m.. 285t3 D. F. TEEPLE. O FOR SALE —A number of new oak meat barrels; also some secondhand meat barrels; also new lard cans at a low figure.—City Meat Market, Dyonis Schmitt 283t6 100,000 bushels or corn wanted at Bowers-Niblick grain elevator. 285t12 If you want to get next to your job. just look over Dldot’s stock of watches and jewelry.—Didot, north side court housa 28113

WabDsh Portland Cement I \ Great Strength, Durability, Fine Color. | Best for Sidewalks, Foundations, Floors, Webs,Concrete Blocks,Bridges etc I WABASH PORTLAND CEMENT CO. General Offices, Detroit Mich, Works, Stroh, Ind. J Kirsch, Sellemeyer & Sons, Agents. | POST OARD COUPON Clip this coupon and bring it to the office of The DAILY DEMOCRAT with 10 cents and receive one set of 25 Colored View Post Cards Tour of INDIANA. By mail 3 cents extra for postage. llllllllllllllllllllliaiHllll ■ ■ ■ ® If a man'should say, “Home cigars are no'good’’ U ■ Just politely tell him he’s fibbin’. s ' So, make goodjhis damage which you'easily could By calling for Geary’s ROYAL RIBBON. gg —Geary Brothers, a EB w E9 ■ H ■ ■ ■■■■■■■■■■■■■l

Full market price paid for all kinds of grain at the Bowers-Niblick grain elevator. 285t12 LOST OR STRAYED—A Fox Terrier pup; black ears and short tall. Notify W. L. Lehne and receive reward. 268t3

SPECIAL : F/YRES : WF.ST Via Clover Leaf Route, 1910. FROM DECATUR, IND. TEXAS AND RETURN, Homeseekers’ rates rN J f~X T’"' to Houston, Ft. Worth, Galveston and other I 1 *"> principal points in Texas, in proportionate low 11 J y JtJ .\J rates to intermediate points in the West. Ticker ets on sale Dec. 6th. and 20th, 1910. WINTER TOURISTS TICKETS to San AnaK [•”' tonio, Texas, and return.. . Proportionately low I II I rates to Mexico City, New Mexico, Florida, Jv J ,\ /\ / and Louisiana, on sale daily until April, 30th„ limited for return June, Ist, 1911. I ALL YEAR TOURIST TICKETS to California, Oregon and Puget Sound Points, on sale daily. Limited nine months returning. .. Courteous passenger agents meet all through trains, assist In the care of transfer of passengers’ baggage. A letter or postal card to H. J. Thompson, Agent, Decatur, Ind., or to this office, will get you time-tables and complete information as to service, sleeping oar reservations, etc. .. E. L. BROWN , Diet. Pass. Agt. 6 Erie and Krause Sts., Toledo, Ohio. a SANTA CLAUS. — i sthe best judge of coal, and he knows a goodthing when he sees it, and the people of Decatur know a good thing when they try it ‘ The proof of the pudding Is in eating it.” That is the reason that our patrons never swerve from our yard when wanting to lay in their supply of coal. There is nothing to risk, for our coal Is standard In quality and low in price. 'Phone 495. P- H. WAGNER.

The Bowers-Niblick Grain Co. is buying new corn as well as all other kinds of grain. 285t12 WANTED—Boy, aged 12 to 15; must be honest and willin; rich or poor, Matter not your clothes. —Didot, the jeweler, north side of court house.