Ok cHßisiyttyi*WKHyf
AVID believed
I in a great
-I I many things.
.tm -;B MHe waß fond
of mystery,
r~ nml some of
- ■' the things he
could not ex
plain he believed in most.
He believed in pulling wishbones,
for he knew if he got the long end, and
then put It over the door, his wish
would be almost sure to come true.
Aloug about Thanksgiving time there
were a great many wishbones, and the
narrow shelf at the top of the door
casing was filled with grisly hopes
that were mostly to come true Christ
mas morning.
For in the goodness of Santa Claus
he believed most of all. There was
just one Santa Claus, and there was no
faith aud no feeling quite like that on
the afternoon before Christmas, when
he drove the tack into the back left
hand corner of the mantelpiece and
hung on it his longest and reddest
stocking, and than sat In different
parts of the room to look at it and
BO make suro that Santa Claus conld
not fall to see It first thing.
He had wanted a knife. He had
wanted one since he could first remem
l>er, but now that ho had been going
to school it seemed to him that there
was nothing in the world he wanted
like that. The other boys had them.
To be sure they were all older than
him, but he had caught up with them
in his lessons, and It seemed as knives
aud lessons ought togo together. His
parents were afraid he would cut liis
fingers, but he had used the other boys'
knives and had not cut himself; at
least only a little once, aud that was
an accident.
He made up his mind at last that In
Santa Claus lay his only hope. Santa
Claus, who knew everything, would
know that he was bid enough to have
a knife—perhaps one with two blades,
a big one and n little one. He men
tioned tills to his parents, but they
looked grave and said that Santa Claus
was very particular about little boys'
lingers.
He had been getting all the long
ends of the wish bones, and his wish
was always for the knife. Above the
sitting room door there was a perfect
thicket of long ends. The knife was
certain. He could hardly wait for the
time.
But one day, when Christmas was no
more than a few weeks off, IJIS father
returned from the village with a pic
ture paper. It had a great deal in it
about Christmas, and inside there was
n sot of pictures that covered over two
whole pages. The little boy saw them
aud spread the paper down on the
floor to look at them. Then he forgot
everything else In the world, for they
were pictures of the life and home of
Santa Claus! lie had seen other such
pictures, but never before any like
these. There was the workshop, with
the old fellow at his bench, and the fin
ished gifts piled around him. There
were dolls and playthings without
number, and there right In front of
him, sure enough, was a whole row
of pocket knives!
The little boy got down and looked
at the pictures very close. Which
knife was for him? If he only knew!
By and by he took the paper over to
where his mother was sewing. There
THE LONGEST AND REDDEST STOCKING.
was one picture he did not understand.
It was Santa Claus looking at a big
book with writing in it.
"Why," she said, "lliat is where he
keeps the names of children. He puts
after them whether they are good or
bad."
"Oh!" he asked, "is my name there?"
"Why, no; they go by the alphabet;
your name would be just on the next
page."
The little boy's hands trembled with
eagerness. He must see what was
on the other side. If he could only
see the other side of that page he
would know then about the knife.
It was very dark when he woke on
Christmas morning. His parents,
sleeping In the same room, were not
awake. It was very cold, too, but
that did not matter.
"Is It morning, ma?" lie called, soft
ly. "Ma, is It morning?"
There was a sleepy sound from the
big bed that might have meant any
thing. Bat like a flash the little boy
was out on the icy floor in the dark.
Out into the dim Bitting. room, where
the empty fireplace was cold and
shadowy in the first gray of dawn.
KEEPING THE NAMES OP CHILDREN.
Then the full stocking that crunched
when he hugged it to his breast, and
a bound back into his little home-made
bed, shivering with a delicious sense
of cold and joy.
There was something hard and kind
of long at the too. That was candy—
Qlad, bells have a iweefcr
brighter beam the sfcn sublime
' ~'\ Qr Qhmlfrw time.' w 1
Jn tfory wed; and* silver rhyme"
. fyf M from lands when? Bcttilebems infant lay >
N$ Qnd kin our care? and fcars away-, * =
* \ "Dweel" Chnstma? day.
a big stick of peppermint; he could
tell by the feeling and smell. He bit
a little piece off at the end of It. How
good It was. Nobody ever made such
candy as Santa Claus. He laid It
out on the cover and went In deeper.
There was a small package next, but
It was not the knife. It was soft, and
when he opened It It felt woolly. Oh,
yes. It was mittens. He tried to see
what color they were In the dark. They
were fastened together with a long
knit string. That was togo round
Ills neck. He had wanted mittens like
those before he wanted the knife so
badly. Then there was a round, quite
big package that he could hardly get
out. That wasn't the knife, of course.
He knew it was cookies as soon as
he got It open. Real Christmas cookies,
with white frosting and red sugar
sprinkled on the top. He wondered
why his mother never made such good
cookies as those. He bit one in two
aud went deeper. Still no knife. His
heart sank a little as he drew out a
long roll, that much reach, he thought,
to the very end of his stocking. It
was a book rolled up, and Inside of
it was another package of candy
mixed candy this time. He stuffed a
gum drop into his mouth and seized
the stocking again. There was some
thing more in it, but it did not feel
like a knife. It was kind of big and
soft. He drew it out and made sure
that the stocking was empty. Then
he began to unwrap. One paper caine
off, aud then another. Still another
paper, and yet another paper, and an
other, and another. Each paper that
came off loft the parcel harder and
harder, and there was something now
about the shape of it that made him
fairly wild with eagerness. He was
so excited he could hardly unwind the
last paper, that seemed to have no
end. He tore off great pieces of it,
and once the package slippend out of
his fingers. At last the wrapping was
all off, and, clutched tightly in his
hand was a treasure cold and hard,
but which warmed the little boy to
his very soul.
"Ma!" he cried, "Oh, ma! Oh, pa!
Santa Claus did bring me a knife! He
did ma. I told you he would!"
There was a sound something like
laughter from the big bed. Then a
voice:
"I guess Santa Claus must have for
gotten how old you are. I s'pose we'll
have to lay it away for & year or two."
The small fingers roamed over the
smooth, wooden handle which be could
not yet see. The sturdy thumb nail
bent itself time and again in the little
catches of the two cold blades that
were too new for him to open. Now
and then he reached out to feel of his
mittens and the cookies and to find
another piece of the mixed candy. He
sucked the candy to make it last.
Dear heart, how happy he was!—
Chicago Times-Herald-
A Telephone In a Christina* Tree.
One of the prettiest stories of what
the telephone has done is told of a
family out West The mother was
sick in a hospital many miles aw&y.
She insisted at Christmas time that
no change should be made at home.
There must be Christmas presents and
the tree. The father and some men
worked at the Christmas tree for
some hours on the afternoon before
Christmas.
The mother far away was well
enough to walk to the telephone In the
hospital. The hour was arranged.
Suddenly, when all the children were
around the tree, the father reached
into the tree, put the transmitter,
carefully concealed there to the ear of
the youngest child, and the child
heard its mother's Christmas message.
Each in turn spoke to her, and they
voted their mamma's voice was the
best Christmas present they had.
Christina* May on Sunday.
Few people are aware that Christ
mas Day falls oftener on Sunday than
on some other days, says the Gran
tham Journal. It falls 011 Sunday,
Tuesday and Thursday fifty-eight
times and on Friday and Saturday
fifty-seven times each for every fifty
six times It falls on a Monday or a
Wednesday. This, according to the
vicar of All Saints', Margaret street,
London, who is an expert in these cal
culations, will continue to be the same
until the present era of twenty-two and
a half seconds in the length of the
year Is compensated for by substitut
ing a common year for a leap year
once in 4000 years.
A Popular Parasite.
The mistletoe lias become so popn
lar as a Christmas decoration in Eng
land that It seems likely to be exter
minated in certain places. It was for
merly permitted to grow in many ap
ple orchards, sometimes seriously in
juring the trees, but with the in
creased demand this lias all been re
moved. In some places steps are
being taken to propagate it, and young
apple trees can now be purchased on
which the parasite has become estab
lished.
iVliy Jonas Hardluck Didn't Ilnvc n
Christmas Tree.
He bought one but — A bulldog tackled
him on the way home —
And after a des- This is all that was
perate encounter— left of it.
if - If ../$ rC* Hilt
I MT
Among the diverse fruitage prepared
for one Christmas treet this year are
a number of home-made articles that
will be not only ornamental to the
tree, but of use to the recipients. A
pretty workcase for thimble, needles,
scissors and small pieces of work was
fashioned after a banana. The sec
tions of the skin of a large banana
were used for the pattern. These were
cut from yellow khl, heavy silk and
velveteen, and were lined with silk
of the same shade, and bound with
narrow yellow ribbon. The pieces
were then overhanded together, leav
ing the shorter side open. A few
strokes of the brush and brown paint
gave a realistic effect.
Another case similar to this, but cut
in pieces that were regularly shaped
and somewhat larger than a banana,
was made of bronze kid and bound
with brown ribbon. It is a particular
ly neat and convenient needlework
ease. Another made of yellow silk
was stuffed, anil will be used as a pin
cushion to hang at the side of the
dressing table mirror.
Oranges and lemons made of heavy
silk and kid were cut from sections of
the large fruits. In those made of
kid the pieces were lined with silk
and sewed together on the wrong side,
over and over, and two sides were
bound with ribbon of the same color
and left open. These made pretty re
ceptacles for needlework or odds and
ends, and looked much like the origin
als. A few made of silk, and stuffed,
are Intended for pretty cushions for
fancy pins. Pumpkins of silk, with
real stems, which are not hard to
make, resembled the old fashioned
fruit more than ihe pale, cultivated
pumpkins of the city markets do. The
sections of these were outlined with
line silk. These are also made of kid,
with one open side and one used for
needlecases.
Natural ears of corn, which are not
hard to make for people who know
how to knit, were made from direc
tions found in a book on knitting.
Two or three husks were hung from
the open top of the ear.
Cuff buttons, pins and stuils were
concealed in glided walnut shells,
which were tied together with nar
row ribbon. These added to the pretty
appearance of the tree.
Grandmothers may be made happy
at Christmas time by a gift of a.series
of little photographs illustrating the
history of the summer outing of their
grandchildren. Feeding the chickens,
counting the pigs, riding the pony and
wading in the brook, with other pretty
pictures, will delight more people
than the grandmothers.
Chrlatmaß In tlie Philippines.
Last year Christmas was a merry
day for all our troops in the Philip
pines. Large dances were given in
the various quarters of our army, and
the city was alive with midnight or
gies. The boxes from home came in
by the thousands, and the boys joined
together and had a "lay out" that
made them forget that they were
10,000 miles from home. The ships in
the harbor were brilliantly illumin
ated at night, and the festive sound
of music floated across the bay, while
the officers and men reveled In dance
and song. During the day water tour
naments and athletic exhibitions were
given, and the jaekles enjoyed a feast
A CHRISTMAS DAT IN THE PHILIPPINES.
that gave them the nearest to a home
feeling that they had enjoyed since
they sailed across the Pacific. The
afternoon was given over to dinners
aud visiting, and all lent themselves
to the spirit of the day.
Last year the Filipino turkey was
abundant, and many of the Christmas
messes were supplied with stuffed
turkey. Some had roast pig aud oth
ers ducks from the great duck town,
Pateros. The table service was not
of the Sherry or Delmonico pattern,
but although the boys had to wash
their tin plates anil Iron knives be
tween courses, there was no com
; plaint on that score.
THS EIS)I©T& Of FA&H'ON-
New York City. Nothing suits a
girlish figure more perfectly than the
full round waist. The very pretty
May Manton model given is suited
MISSES* WAIST.
to a variety of materials and can be
made high or low, with long or short
sleeves, as suits the occasion, or can
be made to wear with a separate
guimpe, the lining and undersleeves
furnishing the model—a method that
makes the waist high or low at need.
Simple soft silks, cashmere, wool crepe
de chine, albatross and Henrietta, as
well as such thinner materials as
point d'esprlt and moussellne, are all
correct with yoke and sleeves of white,
of lace or contrasting silk. As Illus
trated, the material Is embroidered
crepe, with trimming and yoke of
lace, chou and belt of pastel pink
panne velvet ribbon, and the bodice
is suited to dancing school and party
wear; but with a change to cashmere
or veiling, with silk, it becomes ap
propriate to less formal afternoon oc
casions.
The foundation for the waist is a
fitted lining, the pattern for which is
perforattd at yoke depth. On it are
BATH ROBE.
arrannged the yoke, the full portions
of the waist which close at the centre
back, and the two circular frills that
outline the yoke. The long sleeves
are In guimpe style with straight cuffs
and frills of lace. The short sleeves
ars» puffed and extend to the band. At
the throat Is worn a high stock of the
lace. When the waist is desired low
It is necessary only to cut on the line
of the yohe and omit the long sleeves.
To cut this waist for a miss of four
teen years of age four and one-half
yards of material twenty-one Inches
wide, cr two and one-half yards for
ty-four inches wide, will be required,
with three-eighths yard of lace
eighteen inches wide for yoke, four
yards of lace applique and one yard
of lace for frills at wrists to trim as
Illustrated.
Womnn'ti lfnth Kobe.
No woman with a proper regard for
health allows herself to be without a
bath robe. Eider down, cotton velour,
Turkish towelling, French flannel and
the still simple flannellette or cotton
elder down, are all used. The excel
lent May Manton model phown in the
large Illustration Is simple and at the
same time Is cut on good lines and is
tasteful as well as ideally comfortable.
As Illustrated It Is of eldef down In
deep warm red with bands of satin
In the same shade stitched on, but
plain flannel or light-weight cloth
can be substituted for the trimming,
or the edges simply finished wi*l
stitching or cord. If preferred.
The back Is fitted by means of J
centre seam and curves Into tin
figure to give a graceful loose-fitting
effect. The fronts include under-arm
darts that render them siaosth and
comfortable. The right side ly.ps over
the left aud Is held in place by two
or more buttons or button-holes, and
the neck Is finished with a shawl col
lar that Is cut after the latest style
and may bo drawn closer If desired.
The sleeves are In bed shape, the
lower edges being faced and turned up
to form cuffs. At the waist Is a har
monizing silk cord finished with tas
sels that Is held In place by tiny
straps of the material a: each under
arm gore.
To cut this bath robe for a woman
of medium size eight and three-quar
ter yards of material twenty-seven
inches wide, six and one-quarter yards
thirty-two inches wide, or four and
one-half yards sixty inches wide, will
be required.
Motal Velvet.
The new metal velvet and metal vel
veteens are very handsome. The trade
name is a trifle misleading, because
there Is no particle of gold or silver In
the material. One piece of velvet Is
stamped with a design in brilliant or
ange spots, the size of a French pea
on a black ground. The orange has
a metallic lustre. A'dark blue has pat
tern of lines executed with silvery blue
lustre. Another black velvet is stamped
with arabesques of emerald green, a
brilliant metallic sheen like an enamel
attends the pattern color. These ma
terials are not expensive, but very styl
ish und suitable for an odd waist.
New Muffs.
The new muffs are large and varied
in style between the soft round muff
of fur, with tails across one side, and
the dainty little novelty of velvet, fur
and chiffon. One kind of large muff
Is drawn up at the top, where three
little heads are the finish, with some
gold tassels attached to gold cords.
Woman's Breakfast Jacket.
The comfort a jacket that slips on
with ease, is not tight-fitting, yet is
tasteful and suited to wear at the
breakfast table is recognized by every
woman and requires no urging. The
admirable May Manton model illus
trated combines many advantages and
has a really smart appearance, if
well made, at the same time that It
allows perfect freedom. As shown,
the material Is French flannel In rouge
red, with stitching of black silk au*d
small black buttons, but elder down la
required and both cashmere and Hen
rietta, plain and embroidered, are em
inently suitable.
The back fits smoothly to the figure
and includes side backs, under-arm
gores and a centre seam. The fronts
are arranged In box pleats that are
stitched at their under folds to below
the bust line and fall from the pointed
yoke in Empire style. The sleeves
flare slightly at the hands In bell
style. At the neck Is an unstiffened
turn-over collar that can be worn with
a simple brooch or necktie, as pre
ferred.
To cut this jacket for a woman of
medium size three and three-quartet
BREAKFAST JACKET. '"**
yards o» material twenty-seven Inches
wide, three yards thirty-two Inches
wide, or two and one-half yards for
ty-four inches wide, will be require^