The Daily Alaska empire Newspaper, December 20, 1931, Page 23

T WAS three weeks b: fore Christmas. But al- T 7: - Al ready the atmosphere of the-holiday season seemed to cover the city. Paul Ratner felt it as he boarded the street car &7 that took him home eaca iing; already men and women et® loaded down with packages hE had all the earmarks of Yule hide: gitts. ere was something about Ctilstmas that always thrilled Paul; 1 ven liked to repeat the pame Jovs and over to himself. He often fied that he might be selling Q and things at Christmas in- aad of being office boy at the big mber concern where he worked. Bee, mother!” he yelled as he in the door; “the Daily Mir- POy’ is giving prizes for the best porated homes at Christmas. Jpldn't it be great If we could one of them?” i;lfint, Paul,” Mrs. Rainer spoke o] t she hated to throw cold wates B his enthusiasm, “you know we ean't afford to do anything of that . I—I only wish we could for r sake,” she added. "Maybe next r «#aul looked arcund the sparsely furnished room before replying: “Never mind, mother,” he said, “for 4he time, I forgot about things. Darn maney, anyway; why does it al- £s have to block the way when we want to do something we like!” , “It—it doesn’t always block the way, Paul; in fact, most of the time Enhsum‘o of it Is an incentive to big things, If everybody had money many of the great deeds that have thrilled the world never would have been accomplished. And—and, fiul, don’t you think we have been rly happy without a lot of it?’ 8She looked anxiously into his face as she put the guestion. ul was his old happy self when Ne replied: “Bet your life we have. Why, a2 the fellows say they'd rath- é‘comc to our house than any- wh else, And—and, mother, if dad had lived we could have been well off as the rest of tham ! n the hours that followed Paul mingly forgot about the news- paber prize, but his mother did not. That night, after he had retired, sat down in the little living and pondered the matter over. there any way that she could him to carry out his desire? t a happiness it would be to e him the joy of competing in the test ! ddenly she started from her fhair and a smile came over he~ ad the Earmarks of Yuletide Gifts. . Her thoughts had drifted 'k through the years; back to ldhood days. She remembered on the farm how her mother taught her to fashion many ¢ Benutiful Christmas decorations out € scraps of tinfoil and-colored pa- er. Always there had been a box “the attic where everything of sort had been stored away. And, as Is often the case, ‘the gs we,do in childhood stay with M; so she herself had continued save bits of paper and other things as her mother had, and now there was a huge box of it stacked way in the closet. Perhaps out of “she could fashion something that uld enable Paul to enter the con- t? “For a whole week two busy per- s worked across the table from ah other every evening. Carefully all rolls of tinfoil and rolls of en-and-red paper were smoothed und fashioned into Christmas orations. Out of the discarded es of silver paper and tinfoil eat gleaming star began to take fape, a star that seemed to fill p whole room with its radiance. , from the moment that mother jid son began working upon it, It med to them as if the Star that B8 the Wise Men was shining again. om the love and care they. had into its making it seemed to = taking on real life, and all un- sansclously their voices grew low hushed as they worked upon £, d slowly from the red-and-greem er letters were formed, huge let~ simple lines that told (2 {44 4537 | mesage that the angels sang in-the long ago. L4 “Mother, it's going to be great!” Paul would say every now and then in his enthusiasm. “There couldn't | be anything better than this; why —why this star seems as if it were really alive!” But Mrs. Rainer knew of the many lavish and expensive decora- town. The simple things that they yere fashioning would probably show up very small beside such dis- play. But she tried to keep faith with the fafth of her son. And even though they should not get a prize, this work that they were doing was bringing them a great amount of happiness; a deeper and finer spirituality than they ever had known before. They seemed to have caught the very spirit of Christmas; each day seemed to be bringing them nearer to Bethlehem, In a week the decorations weré finished, and Paul took a ladder and set to work. Across the high side wall of the house that faced the street he placed the letters that had been woven from scraps of p: per. When completed, tliey read “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.” Above this he placed the sii- ver star which had grown to be so real. With Tong extension cords snd three reflecting lights that they had been able to hire fram a nearby electriclan for a small sum, the lighting system was complete. Paul could scarcely wait watil darkness fell to turn on the ctr- rent. His hands trembled with ey citement when finally the mowment SA=P ] rlnns that were going up all oyer “Mother, It's Going to Be Great|” came, and his heart alfuost stood still as he looked up and saw tbe message that has thrilled the worid for nearly 2,000 years stand out in bold relfef. Above it the silver sta~ gleamed brightly; to Paul it seemed more alive than ever. Through the days that followed mother and son thrilled ag they no- ticed the many people whe stopped outside. Cars from all over the city drove by each night, and| the comments and pralge that they heard was as music to thelr etifd “Paul, do you think we could have got as much happiness out ot this if we had lots of money and could have bought anything wae wished?" Mrs. Rainer inquired of her son one evening. “No, mother, I don't,” Paul um swered very quietly. “There i siea ~ W e T e T T T e T T T T wonldn't have been half the fun T it that there has been. T just don’* care now whether we win a prize ot not. To see how much beanty we haye been able to make out of s little has been reward enough. A ft has taught me a lesson I will never forget. Oh, mother!” his voice grew excited, “you are just wonder- ful—you are! \Who but you would have thought of such a thing?” But Paul did win a prize—to the surprise of his mother and himself he woh the biggest prize the paper had offered—=#$200. The simplicity of the design, the artistic skill that love and care had woven iuto it, the cohtrgst between it and ether elabordte decorations cntered, and the evident spirituality of the mes- sage all lent their influence toward the final decision. Three times the Judges drove by to see it, and each time they grew more impressed. There seemed *o be a strange radl- bnce about this particular exhibit that they could not account for. They could not know that 1t came from a1 that had been put there by lovitig handg. But all were unan- fmous In deciding that it merited the first and best prize, It is doubtful if any two ever i spent a more wonderful and joy- | ous Christmas than Paul and his mother. They could scarcely credit | the fact that their work had been counted the best in the whole city. | And the prize meant much to two who had to scrimp atd save for so | many years. To thet $200 was a ' very large amount—it would buy many heeded things. But over and above this was the thought that the thing they had fashioned from almost nothing but faith and love had been considered worthy of a prize. And as they stood In front of the modest little home after the judges had left and looked up toward the great, glistening star that Seemgd to smile down at them, they were both filled with the deepest and most wohderful happiness that even Christnias can bring. Love and faith had dhte again found a way! Its star was ‘shining brightly for th¢ grateful pair! Belisved Holly Used in Church Would Bring Luck OLLY, with its brilliant red berries and rich green leaves is an accepted Ohristmas decoration, not just because it is an attractive and cheerful plant, but because in the early days it was thought to be “hateful to witches” and there- fore offered protection against them, says an artlcle in the Washington | Post. Later it was used as a re- minder of the crown of thorns Ohrist wore, the scatlet berries reps resenting the blood he shed. The superstition then grew that if one could obtain a plece of holly which had been used in & church it would ing of k3 ) Ehristmad Iyortha, Banning . Thomey UPPOSE for instance that you were walking along 4 country lane at night. That It was very cold and frosty, that the snow creaked pnder your feet, and the twigs on the bare trees snapped when the wind touched them, You' are thinking of nothing but zetting home to a warm fire and » hood supper, When suddenly a new light pours down from the sky. You stop and look up. This light is soft and golden; many colors grow |and dissolve fh It. You stand transfixed. You heat volces, a whole cholr of them. Angelic and sweet fhe mu ¢ floods the night. Gradually you discern floating res lifted on great and shining wings. The volces swell to a rich crescendo and go ritiging on through the world—“Fo: Christ the Lord s born:” The light fades. The music dies away. You are left alome in a country lane. It I8 dark and cold But the familiar lane takes on a difterent aspect. It I8 leading you not home bt to a low stone build ing. There are volces within. You hear many people moving about. Without reali#ing the direction your feet' are taking you find yourself stepping over the low threshold of a stable. YOy advance, finding yourself confronted by a scene of great simplicity. A mother and her child, & wanger, the big eyes of cat tle glowing in the shadows. Th¢ glory that wa# In the skfes a lit- tle while ago §eems centered above the baby's hedd. How wouid §ou feel? What would yoz do? When the vision faded. would you ever again forget the beauty and meaning of Christmas? (®. 1931, Western Newspaper Unlon.) —8 1931 @&z fad ST N e Asparagus Fern as Decoration Asparagus fern wound about the cords makes an attractive disguise for the mechanics of the Christmas tree lights which are used as table decorations. The lines of trailing green may be made to simulate a pumpkin vine, with tiny paper pumpkins at each light. bring good luck all year and would | protect against lightning. v i ;S - There is no finer harmony than to be in tune with ene’s fellowman--- ' That is why we take real pleasure in wishing all our friends and customers a Merry, Merry Christmas and a Hap})y Prosperous New Year wmenfipeemraflpresen, ]. B. Burford & Co. “Our doorstep is worn by satisfied customers” fimunnmmuTummlm|nuflmfimifimiuiluTlmn“uflllflml’mum||inuunufluulimu|||ifi||“uin'|'||u'|i|‘§ 00O A A OO THE DAILY ALASKA EMPIRE, SUNDAY, DEC. 20, 1931, SRR &S s > Dtizr’m the heatt of the timber- lands Toitsrich greén tassels and its dark | brown cones. v { For their Uuletide 4ifts that are e i Bark for the beaver, sprouts for the hare, Golden honeg for the drowsy bear. : Moss foli:‘l‘\:k'doo andthe antlered | Wildwood les for the wooa&%wk.f“ T Nuts for the chipmunk, haws for the grouse, And alder frult for the white~foot mouse. L o - o Many policemen have varicose reins. s The Christmas fir of the woodfolk stands, | Bright with the glitler the Frost|! o King l;m 4 i Andthewoodiolk conpthsonghthe | drifted through the waters of the Thames River, near Lon- the chugging ferryboat linking In- diana and Kentucky across the Ohio River here has been discon-|on Near Bast fields. A Steel ilippo What 1s pelieved to mark the most sensational de- velopment yet made M the ficld of armored cars is represented by this amphibian fortress, equally at home on land or in the water. The strange-looking but deadly land-or-water tank is shown plowing p;iamus;That F ig"hts wiy don, in one of its recent tests. The craft was photo- graphed while it was making six miles an houz against both wind and current. is armored. The more dangerous which the tank resembles, coul v Note how heavily it un sticking from the turret is far n hippo_pomu, 125-YEAR-OLD FERRY STOPS |tinued following the building of a | MADISON, Ind.—After 125 pears | modern bridge. —— Locusts descend periodically up-I gmmfi|ml|||||||ifiufi||1||1n7n7|fi|||uuilfiuuu = = E = = = = = = g = = = = E - = £ = £ = = = = = = = = = E = = E = é = = = = = s = Christmas MAY IT BE FILLED WITH PLENTY FOR ALL The City of JUNEAU THOS. B. JUDSON Mayor , AR RO IIIIHIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIAIAIIIIIIIIHIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIilIIIIIIIII|IIIIlIIIIIIIIIIII|||IIIII||IlIlIIIIIII||||II|IIIIII|||II } A new dam in Brazil claimed to be the largest of its kind in South !Amerlca, impounds 120,000,000 cubic feet of water. - = = = = = E = = = § % £ = =