A KINSMAN of THE HEART Christmas ■Story By JOHN J. a'BECKET * The touch of a hand, the glance of an eye Or a word exchanged with a passerby; The glimpse of a face In a crowded street, And afterward life is incomplete. -W. R. Hereford. O you think she Is a bride?" I M The duchess dropped the §9 ■ sugar Into her tea without removing her glance from the young woman In ques tion. It was Christmas day at Shep heard's, in Cairo. The subject of her inquiry was interesting enough to seem a grateful present to the guests. "Could any one doubt it?" replied Baldwin. "It is as evident as that the smart, disagreeable male is the hus band." "Disagreeable!" The surprise, almost protest, in the duchess' tone had warrant. The young gentleman was tall, of elegant car riage and with the ball mark of breed ing. His clothes were quite de rigueur. Her grace would have pronounced him distinguished without feeling con strained to qualify his moral or intel lectual traits. After another quick ap praising look at the man she said bluntly, "You think she is so very charming?" "Your grace must see that she is charming," returned the young man calmly. "It was the man, not the girl, who betrayed his disagreeableness. Ix)ok at that!" The girl had drawn closer to her ompanlon and said something. He impressed his thin lips and gave a s&ort nod of his head in acceptance of her remark without turning toward her. He was impatiently pushing on after the porter, the girl pressing after with a gilding briskness which kept lier close at his heels. The duchess smiled again. "Of course he might have turned," she said indulgently. "But there's the luggage." "Of course they should have turned. There's the bride," returned Baldwin dogmatically. "Granting you the merit of your dis covery," the duchess resumed with playful sarcasm, "there are other obvi ous points. For instance, they are Americans. That is as palpable as usual." "Accept an American's thanks," mur mured Baldwin, "not for the truth, but your forgiving tone. Yet, do you know, the note of the thoroughbred American is to be facllely cosmopolitan—solvltur eosniopolitaudo." "So few of that kind come abroad," replied the duchess absently. "But how very rude of me! My dear fellow, I never realize you as an American. You always seem to mo a charming alien interloper at the United States embas sy In London. Do American women know Latin, by the way?" "Your grace knows everything." The young attache assumed the air of being driven into a commonplace as he add ed, "Ignorance with you seems a cour teous affectation." "You have seen me put three lumps of sugar in my tea," replied the duch ess archly, "and know that I like sweet things. Don't imagine that I shall pro test because you pay extravagantly pretty compliments." She smiled brightly, then settled back comfortably In her chair, raised her lorgnette in a businesslike manner and went on: "Let us pursue our analysis of your Interesting countrymen. Set me r '«<ht if I go wrong. She is—eiglit .t And from— New York? Not ac quainted as yet, aux fonds, with Mr. Husband? He is very rich." Then, dropping the rising Inflection, she add ed, with an assurance that excluded doubt: "She has a Baudnltz traveling gown on She will war a smart Worth gown at dinner." "I need not tell you that you are right about the gowns. I can only know that such an exquisite figure deserves to be clothed as acceptably as possi ble. As to her age, you are possibly right; almost certainly so as regards the disagreeable husband's means. Girls of her type marry money. As to her habitat, I hardly think It Is New York. The New York girl Is quick and too p oudly knowing to hesitate In thought or movement. But she does not hurry. That to New Gnglandy or western. Yet her soft, gliding grace unmistakably shows the southern girl." By this time the couple under discus sion had disappeared within the hotel. They had evidently Just arrived on the afternoon train from Alexandria. Shep heard's was crowded that year. The little tables on the terruce In front of the hotel were nearly all occupied by people, chattering and laughing as they beguiled that delightful hour of the Cairo day with afternoon tea. New ar rivals are lawful prey for lodgers' com ments, and to have come two days be fore is to hold a resident's vantage ground, which warrants a critical In spection. Y'oung married people, more over, newly arrived or not, are ever and wheresoever tnrgets for tongue shafts. Two youthful beings mated and licensed for happiness surely suggest the fullness of life. The human doubt as to whether they have It makes con jecture Interesting. The young attache consulted the reg ister later and learned that they were Mr. and Mrs. Luclen Bonvale, where upon he recalled what friends had told him of their marriage at the American chapel In Paris in the beginning of De cember. The groom was from Borden town and, as the duchess had surmised. rieli. lie not only belonged by birth to the class which is not obliged "to do anything for 11 living," but electively pertained to that unhappy portion of it which assumes the ennui of an exist ence stimulated by no tixed ambition, lightened by no definite endeavor. Sucli vital hardship has been known to drive a man to drink. The bride was one of two sisters cel ebrated in European centers for esprit and beauty. They were of line New England stock, both parents descend ing from families of high repute for political and literary achievement. Baldwin was forced to admit that for once a glowing report had not paved the way to :i disappointing reality. Ho had not supposed the girl was so young; still less had he imagined the compulsion of Iter charms. Clarice Bonvale was so radiantly beautiful that the most blase observer could not but surrender to some thral dom. Her face was aristocratically oval. Her clear olive skin, smooth as a rose leaf, was suffused with the ino:tt delicate pink, as if Cupid were breath ing on her cheeks; a well modeled nose, a mouth with clean cut, subtle curves and sensitive to a degree, which revealed perfect teeth when the lips parted and lent a lurking mobility, al most childlike, to her lower face. But her eyes and hair were the girl's crowning glory—such round, lustrous eyes, so brilliantly soft and, despite a keen alertness In their glance, incon gruously beseeching. The long, silky lashes, with their upward curve, failed to lend even a suspicion of language to their brightness. The delicately arched eyebrows were an added note of wlst fulness. In the wavy masses of hair there was a subdued glint as of bur nished copper. On her hands, which were very temperamental, two or three unique gems flashed with dignified splendor. "A transplanted Helen," thought Baldwin after a critical survey of the beautiful young creature. She was a type, and lie relished a n"W typo of th 1 "eternal feminine" more than he would a bottle of .loliannt-sbergcr from Prince Metternich's own cave. During his dinner he watched h:>r from his table with keen but well cloaked vigUanee. The duchess was right again. The girlish bride wore a Worth dinner gown elaborately wrought out in the highest elegance of the prevailing mode. Her neck was so round and plastic that Baldwin felt it a delight to see the shapely bead pivot on it, while the tempered modesty with which her corsage screened her exquisite bosom showed a masterly knowledge of the value of modified exposure. The groom V Why, he was the groom, a side light on the bride. Baldwin re garded him solely as a correlated be ing, an accompaniment to his wife, a worthy one so far as externals went. He was not above noting that Mrs. Bonvale partook moderately of the champagne which Mr. Bonvale or dered. He consumed most of it and with something more than the relish with which a gentleman drinks wine at dinner. "They are married, and It is the hon eymoon," Baldwin remarked airily to the ducliesa as ho passed her table. During the evening in his role of be nevolous spectator and student of hi» kind Baldwin did not neglect to ob serve that the young husband left hi* wife alone two or three times, though as yet she had apparently discovered no acquaintances at Sliepheard's. Thesa withdrawals were to repair the fatigue of travel by supplanting the wine at dinner with more potent If smaller drafts. Besides his absence of desire to supply bis wife with any other com panionship than his own, the perfunc tory character of Mr. Bonvale's atten tions attested no tender solicitude t* make himself as agreeable as possible. He seemed to guard rather tkan pro tect his wife. Later on Baldwin felt tk« young wife's artlessly roving gaze veering in his direction. He considerately ab stracted his own. When he let his glance drift her way again, thinking she would have passed him by, he was momentarily flattered to find her eyes fixed on him dreamily. Almost at the moment her husband turned and, with what Baldwin thought a tactless quick ness, let his own eyes follow the direc tion of his wife's to ascertain the ob ject of her regard. With still less tact he brought his thin Hps tightly togeth er, and his white forehead puckered like a peevish child's. He must have Intimated to the lady his desire to withdraw, for he brusquely roHe and looked about with the repellent air with which some people insinuate, their excluslveness. She got up at once and followed him from the room with jraceful deference. "He seems to like to stalk ahead and let his woman trail after him a la the aboriginal lords of creation," reflected Baldwin with a somewhat contemptu ous smile. "The honeymoon is dwin dling to a crescent, I fancy, and I should not wonder If there were a Bon vale Impaled on its horns before long. But which?" The Bonvales spent six weeks In Egypt. Mrs. Bonvale had that oriental lojourn in her memory ever after with lomethlng of the feeling with which the children of Israel may have revert ed to their bondage In that land. She had little expected in a region saturat ed with antiquity to make acquaintance CAMERON COUNTY PRESS, THURSDAY, DECEMBER 24, 1903. A LONG CHRISTMASTIDE. Holiday* That Kxtcixl Into Hit* \ew Yciir. While in this country, as in England. Germany and other parts of Europe, the joyous spirit of the Christinas fes tival is by 110 means limited to Dec. 25, hut finds expression in many ways In the life and amusement of the peo ple both before and after that day it- Self, comparatively little attention is paid here to the observance of the numerous designated holidays which in other lands goto make up Clirist nmstide. The period opens with St. Thomas' day, which falls 011 Dee. 21, and closes with St. Distaff's day, on Jan. 7. The lirst named festival is known in some parts of England as "Doling day,"on account of the dis tribution of the bounty of charitable individuals, and in most English cities «t the present time the day is given up largely to the anniversaries of chari table societies and the distribution of benetlts among the poor and needy. It is also the day chosen for the election ©f church officers, a custom adopted here in some denominations, and it appears also from the old rhyme that certain public officials were elected at the same time: My masters all, this is St. Thomas' day, And Christinas now can't bo far off, you'll say. And when you to the ward motes do re pair I hope such good men will be chosen there As constables for the ensuing year As will not grudge the watchman good strong beer. As for St. Distaff's day, which closed the merry round of Christmastide, that anniversary is now rarely observed anywhere, but in the good old times in England it was not the least among the happy festivals of the year. It takes its name from the fact that on this day it was tlie custom for women to re sume for a few hours their labors at the distaff or the spinning wheel. It was sometimes called "Hock day"in honor of the rock, which is another name for distaff.—Leslie's Weekly. THE FIRST CHRISTMAS. Prom tin* (ioapel Arrurillnff to St. I.nkc, Clinpter 11, Ver»M 7-80. And she brought forth her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger, lie cause there was no room for them in the inn. And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. Anil, 10, the angel of tlie Lord enme upon them, and the glory of the I-ord shone round about them, and they were sore afraid. And I lie angel said unto them: "Fear not, for, behold, I bring you good tid ings of great Joy, which shall be to nl! people. "For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which i.= Christ the Lord. "And this shall be a sigu unto you. ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger." And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising <Jod and saying: "Glory to God in the highest, and 011 eartli peace, good will toward men." And it came to pass as the angels were gone away from them into heav en the shepherds said 01*' to another, "Let us now go even unto Bethlehem and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us." And they came with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the babe lying in the manger. And when they had seen it they made known abroad the saying which was told them concerning this child. And they that heard it wondered nt those things which were told them by the shepherds. liut Mary kept all these things anil pondered them in her heart. And the shepherds returned, glorify ing and praising God for all the things that they hud heard and seen us it was told unto them.' DrmMi And Mlatletoe. The Druids always sought the mis tletoe by the full moon and, when they found it, rejoiced and worshiped. Aft er cutting off its twigs with a golden ■lckle they sacrificed two milk white bulls beneath the tree. The sacred ■hrub was then immersed In water, and the resulting concoction became their remedy for all diseases. The early Christians would not permit the use of the mistletoe in their churches because of Its heathenish origin; consequently it was hung only within the private abode and usually in the kitchen. Any maid caught standing beneath 11 branch had to forfeit a kiss to the gallant eagerly awaiting his opportunity. With each kiss a berry was plucked, and when all of the berries disappeared the bare branch was useless to the young man who wished to claim the privilege of thus saluting the fair damsel there after. The mistletoe was said to have been the original magical shrub or for bidden tree in the garden of Eden.— Cincinnati Enquirer. Ckrtalniaa mt Ninety In thr Shade. Christinas in the West Indies is very well observed. To meunder about among palm trees or orange groves and fields of sugar cane 011 Christmas day. with the thermometer at IK) degrees In the shade, certainly has the zest of novelty to a northerner. If you an? In the British West Indies on Christmas day your attention will be most attract ed in all the Christmas gatherings of which you form a part, whether in the streets, the home or the church, by the close association of whites and blacks. The "color line" Is not a live question. Iloota M Stocking*. German children do not, us a general practice, lmng up their stockings Christmas eve, but use their father's big boots instead # |j DON'T TRUST TO IATOK. jjf SCON-FI-DENCE | The act of confiding in or placing firm trust fc'yi or reliance on any person or thing. ijjpf In this great Republic the people t^j &SS hare confidence that it is a Gov- |&£3 jgjjE| eminent of, by and for the people. H _ m i i 60 And the people have confidence in the I FIRST 1 I NATIONAL 1 esi J That it is of. by for the people. . J fife Eg -MM i i ! 1- ■ 1 PH ua jii 1 1 ESS 1 US J® DIRECTORS. |jl| MB GEO. A. WALKER, JOSIAH HOWARD, N. SEGER, |S| B B.W.GREEN, W.-L. SYKES, J.E.SMITH, SSS §Sj J. P. PELT, w. S. WALKER, JOSEPH KAYE || Their Confidence in the Bank, gjl P| AS SHOWN. gjjja Their Capital ----- $50,000.00 figs Earnings of 19 years left in the Bank, 55,000.00 ; v ; $105,000.00 ||! liTh.e People's Confidence in the Bank f|| AS SHOWN: §g| Deposits, Dec. 14, 1903 ----- $421,433.17 jfii, Deposits, Dec. 14, 1902,- 366,769.23 Gain in one year, • $54,663.94 The First National Bank has the confidence of thousands g] of depositors, WHY? Because the only royal road to a man's confidence is |§2j to deserve it; there is no other. jfcra EMPORIUM, PA. JSgj
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