Image provided by: Santiam Historical Society; Stayton, OR
About The Stayton mail. (Stayton, Marion County, Or.) 1895-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 29, 1905)
LATE C H R IS T M A S A FT E R N O O N . the glml, Klml boll* of uiornlug. lb« Uuilk- ter nt the dftVBl The lustre » ( ihe children's e j e i I» A » » • ** look upon— But, O, tho bout o f Christmas «h » l>«-*t ilaj o f them all la wlion th « las» firelight makes picture» ou the wall. And 1 uiaï alt lu »ilen«-e and give uiyaalf the boon O f going bark to boyhood, lut» l'brlaluiaa afternoon. Hare I shall fa ll to musing o f picture» In the g r a t e - Thara, eager for my summons tba boat or boydaya wait, And In and out a marching I ’ ll aoa them roma aud go . W ith hands waved high In welcom e the boys I used to know; And thara. If I am patient, tw ill be for me to sea, , , As one seas In a mirror, the boy 1 naed to bel Out of the swaying shadows w ill rise the long ago, . . , The sleigh bells' tinkle tinkle, the soft kiss o f the snow, . The white sea of the meadow, where the pranking winds w ill lift Tbs long sweep of the billow foamed np In drift on drift. And crisp aeroos the »a lley w ill come a bel lo w es t tune T o set me nodding, nodding, late Christmas afternoon. “ And where are yon going now?“ “ T o Bud my mau," eulleuly, “ He promised to marry me, but he went away — he didn't keep his word— I ’m looking for him." 1 led the girl to the kitchen and di rected the aerruutn to provide for her needs. 1 weut away aoon after to dreaa Jacquita for her bridal. Guests came trooping in and tilled the house. C o der au arch of Chriatmas pine, with the mellow wax lights shining lovingly upou her, Jacquita. iu tulle and lace and satin, stood by the aide of her bronzed young »iking, and took the t o w s which made her his, and his only, till life should end. Throughout the ceremony Cedric kept hie chair and made no sign. She waa married— ehe was Dacre's wife! Then followed a hubbub of congratula tions aud farewells—-a confusion of friendly tongues; and presently Jac quita. in a Paris traveling gown, with soft bands of fur about her throat, and eyes brimming with happluesa, came and knelt by Cedric's chair. “ Good-by,” she said, lifting her beau tiful face to his reluctant gate. "You may bias me. Cedric. If you Ilka." ruth through the hall. A hand flung aside the curtain at the parlor threshold. Cedric uttered a sharp cry, and made as if to rise from hia chair, for there, before our astonished eyes, stood Jac quita, the bride of au hour, her travel ing dress all stained and disordered, and powdered with the snow that was begin ning to fall, her face like the face of one who had looked on some ghastly thing, aud froaen with the horror of It. “ Iu heaven's name, what has happen ed, JacquitaT” cried Cedric, wildly. She held out her hands; they were red with blood. Her white lips moved; we heard her say: "llo w u there, at the base of the hill, near the elation, iu the shallow of the trees, she waa waiting for ua—the girl who sang the Christmas carol at the door. I saw her by the light of the carriage tamp«. Something bright was ahinlug In her hand. She wrenched open the carriage door— the glared In on ua. She hnrled a terrible accusation at him — at Dacre— ray husband Then she fired, ami he fell hack dead, l«ook at my hands! This blood U his! They are bringing him after me— my husband - dead!” with th# life savera In th# warm, bright* ly lighted station. What memories did the face of my brother conjure up before this stranger lad? die tried to clutch at Cedric's storm coat. My brother beut down aud looked at htiu. “ Great heaven!” he cried. “ This la no boy, but the woman who killed Dacre llolm e!” At this accusation the youug sailor heaved himself up on the supporting arm of a aurfuian, and Iu one shuddering scream hla soul passed Into the night. 1 stood Iu the bow window of the parlor, peering out Into the darkneea, when Cedric returned from the station. The lantern Iu hts hand shone brightly; hla erect figure advanced aturiilly through the tempest of wind and snow. He had grown hardy aud strong Iu the last year. Ills crutch was now a tiling of tho past; of the Injury only a alight limp remained. Aa hla familiar halting step reached the door Jacquita sprang up from the hearth, where »he had been feeding the fire with dry pine cones, and flew to meet Cedric. For three muuthe she had been his hupp» wife. “ Oh,” ahe cried, iu alarm, "how grave Late afternoon. In Christmas! The tw ilight soothing In, . ... And me with these my ytslons of giaa days that have been! T or 1 shall dream and wander down un forgotten ways, My eager arms enfolding all of my yes I'a r s r Ik a v liia a NeAe. Ksrinlna by K lfkl, In order to demonstrate that. If n«<v easary. agricultural operation« r «n bo carried out day and night continuously with gasoline motor, au Interaatlug trial waa roceutly carried nut In Kng- I m ml on a farm near Biggleswade. A field waa Illuminated by acetylene gaa. aud tw o tl fo n t tunwera were attached to an Ivel gasoline trader. Under these conditions fifteen acres were cut In tiie short time o f .1 hours SA minute» ¡^•w Without, t i e mallow echoes of blended chime and hymn; W ithin, the bygone »olces In mnrmurs far and dim. for In several placea In Pruaala, experi ments are being made with a some what novel m a I or In I fo r soldiers' boda, namely, ahnvlnga o f paper atxiut three centim etre» broad and several hundred m etre« long Th ee« are stuffed Into baga on which the añidiera Mo They ara said to he more com fortable than straw and m or« springy Ht raw bed«, moreover, must he changed every «1« month« T h e «« n «w heda o f paper •h a rin g« need changing only o a r « Ua tw o or three years. A ril*« \ o lo ««u la IV «vad*. A volcano throwing o ff molten lava has been discovered In Nevada. Ttia volcano la In Itye Patch, Humboldt County Although that section haa been traverse«! for years tha crater haa Just heen found. The man were In search o f cattle when they cams on the attvarn o f lava, and, tracing It to Its source, found the volcano O. nitre the g ift of fancy, and mine thin magic chair. And mine the dim procession of Chrlst- massea that ware! I ask no richer token of I ot » on Christmas Day Than this which comas unbidden, than this which w ill not stay— This wealth of recollections that »anlsh OTcrsoon, The dreamland o f the shadows, late Christ- ms* afternoon. — W. D Sesblt. In Harper’ s Weakly. One o f the lnrgeat and most famous trees In England la the Cowthorpe oak, thus named from the town wherein It stands. It la gradually de«*iiylng and disappearing, although It atlll puts forth green leaves «v e ry year. Lika other giant trcee In a state o f de«'ay. Its trunk seems to be «Inking Into the ground. About 'jut years ago It waa 78 feet In girth at tho ground level, I anil Ml) feet high. Now It la but little more than (Vi feet In girth at the ground, and only 87 feet high A Christmas Bridal? BY E T T A W. PIERCE. 4 G IR L stood at the door, with s red shawl pinned serosa her bosom, and in a shrill voles sang: China la so well aulted by natural conditions for the production o f allk that even the m«>et autli|uatc<1 and tin- scientific method» cannot deprive her o f the firat rank In that Industry In Japan everything connecte«l with the silk hualneas la scientifically regulated. No silkw orm la allow to hatch unless tli« egg haa paa«e<1 a scientific In selec tion. Tho mulberry tree« are cu ltiva ted on artentlflc principle« Hlmllar method« are pursued In other countriee where silk la produced. But Iu China th e«« tilin g« are almost entirely disre garded, and yet Chinn keeps nenr (ha , head In production. H er undeveloped resources In this Industry are so enor mous that Mr. Anderson, onr consul at Amoy, predicts that when Chinn mlopts | modem methmls she w ill give n new Some turn to the »Ilk hualneas o f the world- "Carol, brothers, carol; carol Joyfully. Carol the good tidings; carol merrily. And pray a gladsome Christmas F or all good Christian men. Carol, brothers, carol, Christmas cornea again." “ In heaven's name, who la that crea ture?” said Cedric. His easy chair, pushed Into the bow window, commanded a view of the gar den walk and the singer. His crutch leaned against the wall beside him; his blond head rested languidly upon a crim son silk cushion. “ I haven't an idea," I answered, as I pot the last touches to the Christmas pine above the high carved mantel. “ A "You belong to Dacre,” he answered tramp, evidently. Do you like the effect o f Christmas roses In silver bowls, Ced bitterly. “ I do not want to kiss you. Good-by.” ric? e saw them enter the carriage to "Arrange your rosea in silver bowls, or in iron-bound buckets, Just ts you gether— both young and beautiful and W e flung the rice and like, Beth,” answered Cedric, peevish wildly happy. ly. " I hate weddings— they are even shoes after them; the horsea pranced worse than burials. Cannot you see that down the drive; the guests departed, and you are all riding, roughshod, over my Cedric and I were left alone. Darkness had fallen. The wind tore heart 7” H e raised himself on the arm of his wildly up and down the curving P ly chair and looked out at the figure before mouth shore; the bay was white with I turned with a »hirer to the the door. The bleak December wind was foam. blowing through the girl's thin gown. leaping wood fire. "W h at a dreadful night for a wedding H er face, which bore traces of beauty, , was livid now with cold, and perhaps journey!” I said. In the red glow of the log# Cedrlc'a 111 nets. face looked like gray stone. “ She la the image of despair!” he “ I like storms,” he said, savagely. cried. “ I feel a fellowship with her! “ That pair is too happy to know whether Go, E«th, bring her in— give her meat the sun Is shining or a norther raging. and ¿rink, and whatever else yon may Beth, sweep those flowers out o f the have at your marriage feast.” room— their odor stifles me.” • Cednic was the most unreasonable of "W here,” he asked, quickly, “ is the human beings. I was always afraid of girl that sang the Christmas carol at bhn when he was in his dark moods. I the door? Waa she warmed and fed, as ran out o f the room. I directed T* But a third person had heard the sing “ Yes. Cook set her a good dinner, er, and, as I reached the hall, lot there and when we were rushing about, too was Jacquits, gliding down the shining, busy to notice, she just slipped off, with shallow stair— Jaoquita, with her dusky out a word of thanks to anybody. Un hair and creamy skin and great South der her plate, cook found a gold piece.” ern eyes— she whoee bridal had filled onr "W h y, that must have been the money old Plymouth house with bustle and ex which Jacquita gave her! H ow very pectation. odd! Evidently the girl had a soul For years we had been classmates In above gold pieces,” said Cedric. a young ladies' school. She was of the I drew a stool to Cedric’s side, and hot South, I o f the cold North. Yet we loved each other devotedly. Proud was sat down in the light o f the biasing brands. An oppressive hush had fallen I when, at the end of our school days, Jacquita came, an honored guest, to the on the house. The riot of wind and sea old house overlooking the gray waste alone disturbed us. Cedric’s eyes were of Plymouth Bay— proud was I when fixed on the red core of the fire— his all hearts went down before her there, heart, as I well knew, was following and that gallant sailor, Captain Dacre after the bridal carriage and its freight Holme, hastened to lay himself and his of happiness and hope. “ She will go with him around the future at her feet; and, alas! sad was I when I found that she had also made world, Beth!” he groaned. “ More than wild havoc of my poor crippled Cedric’a once I have heard her say that she was a bad sailor— that she cared noth peace. “ That girl looks sick and heartbrok ing for the sea; but her love for Dacre en," said Jacquita, as she stepped light has changed all that. And hot for an ly down into the hall. She flung back accident, Beth— a blow from an iron the hall door. The eyes of the vagrant hoof— a mere trifle— I would have won fell on her with an expreeaion that I her, in spite of a hundred Dacree— yes, shall never forget. An unapeakable but for that I might have been in his hatred and deapair blended In the look. place this night!” It waa his one bitter, constantly re “ Here is a Christmas gift for you, I stroke«] his white, poor girl,” said Jacquita, and she held curring thought. fevered hand, which he had laid on my ont the gold piece. A wicked look flashed Into the way •honlder. farer's face. 8h* took the money, spat “ By this time they have reached the on It, flung It on the ground. Then, station, Beth— perhaps they are on the seeing my rising wrath, shs snatched It train, whirling farther and farther from again and slipped It Into her pocket. ua— Listen! There Is some one com “ For lack!” the mumbled. In apology ing np the walk, I aay— I hear foot for her strange action, and then added, steps I” curtly, reluctantly, "Thank yon, miss.” It chanced that no one bad thought "H a ve you traveled far 7” asked Jac- to lock the main door of the honse after gulta. the departure of onr guests. Now we " A good bit,” replied tho girl heart It open violently. There was • With the last word Jacquita reeled, and strange you look, Cedric! and fell face downward on the floor. thing has happened." Then love for a moment conquereil the He dashed down the lantern and press infirmity of the flesh, for, regardless ed her to his heart with paeaionate ten of the crutch which had been hia con derness. stant support for months and years, “ Tell me." he said, huskily, “ do you ( edric leaped from his chair, and with love me, Jacquita? Does the pnat seem s terrible cry rushed to the widowed to you like s nightmare dream?” bride, and knelt beside her. “ Yes,” she faltered; “ oh, yea, yea!” “ Then you shall know the truth. That T w o years later, in a terrific winter girl ia lying dead at the station. She storm, an English bark was wrecked on came ashore from a wreck, disguise,) „„ s neighboring beach. a sailor. Don't tremble, darling— yon Several bodies drifted ashore, and must forget that portion of your life among them was a sailor, slender, young, altogether. Y’ ou arc mine, now— mine! l»eardlet<s: When found by the patrol a and I mean to love and cherish you till little life still lingered in him. He was the end of my «lays.” — People's Home carried to the station among the rocks, Journal. and every means which surfinen know- employed for his resuscitation. Only T h e D a w n o f C h ria tm a s. once, however, did the wild eyes of the Christinas day begins in the middle of boy open, ami then they chanced to fall the Pacific ocean, and theri Is where upon Cedric, who had hurried to the Santa Claus starts anil ends his great scene of the disaster, end was standing nnd only journey of the year. G E I TING R E A D Y F O R A H O T T I M E . q a s llS ril to P rw rtlee . When the late Heoretsry May was croaslng tho Atlantic In lHUfl on hla wuy to Paris to servo aa secretary o f legutlon ho told the follow in g sue, dote to mat o f hla (ellow travelers. On ap plying for ««linlsslon to the bar o f Illinois he wiih summoned to appear before a com m ittee o f proinlneut Cbl engo law yers to be examined as to hie qualifications. H e went to the place appolntc«! ami found the com m ittee aaaemhlcd; but for a long time they took no notice o f the young candblate, but continued talking rigorously together on various •ubjerts. At Inst one o f the law yers, turning to him, said: “ Mr. Hay, what would you do I f a client ahould come to you with such a cane as this?” and proceeded to tie •crllm very elaborately a complicated legal case. “ I should aak for a retaining fee o f fifty dollnrs,” prom ptly replied Mr. Hay, "and tell ~lm to call to mor ro w ." "M r. Hay, you are adm itted." xntd the genth-man, ami with a hearty laugh from all present the proceed ings cloned. V ery l o r u <-1 fii I. •fiergynian —I'd like to pay a fittli, tribute lo your hunhnnd's memory. VN blow H e dbln't have any mem ory; he couldn't rem em ber to mall i letter. S o c ia l P r o b le m s . Lum ber Yard I«cm— I haln’t sect W eary W illie around lately. Seven League Asunder* -N o ; he’i disguised hi in seif ns a college profea •or an' livin ’ In one o' dein. Ile 'i Köln’ to w rite a magazine article on •loir llvoa au’ habits.” — Puck.