DECEMBER 2!’, 1940___

‘This Gift Problem

want a few unusual suggestions w hglp your purchase" those diffi- flllt last-minute Christmas gifts‘:

=a: villi. A llttle garden of cut fllwers m s tiny house —for a lady who loves a novel centrepiece to start y, talk at her table.

l2) Even pcople-lvno-have-every- tVEIOOIIiG jelly you've made

$1,115.... Dress up the lore vuth ggv. seal-sprinkled wrappmgs. (31 A cheese connoisseur will

bless you for a tawny crock ot fllll- flavored cllcrse and a cheese board sewing a choice of crackers.

l-il To the men folks~young or old H; military brush set.

l5) Does she cook? An eleltrlc “user is bound to please. Ge’ a mrzlsl with a tell-tale switch plate w; _ snows tlle rlgllt speed for my 10b.

.5; He loves ills dog? Conshle: all aulcnlatic fezder with a time duck; a whistle the neighbors clri't hear but tlle deg can; or a stu‘fed rabbit.

171 Is she bride. grand-mother o‘. inflgtllliéfifl? A waffle baker with wntrdlcd heat: or nested pottery how's that come in lovely muted colcl IE»

square-cornered

A punctlllous housekeeper? A portable towel stand to sunnle- nlelit rolls for bath or guest l-com

q 5st of really luxurious towels.

(Qt Initlelled jewellery for a m~._ senarrlte mil file folds into ;l:l-f lobed care.

p9. practical and inexpensive s"t cl’ dentifrice, hand lotion, talc, lilave c:'e"'l

7_____._.

Laziness ll-a-e‘-. so slowlv that pmmlv scoii overtakes him pl-w/lklln.

New low price for Domestic and Foreign Reception Mantel- Automatic Tuning! Available without Automat’ Feature at

I 37.95 DeLuxe Standard Band Mantel Ra io—, Automatic Tuning- Graceful Cabinet and Faithful Tone. Available without Automatic Feature-

Portable with Built-in Noise - Reducing Loop Aerial and Handle. Automatic Tuning. -Without Automatic Tuning-

$26.95

—Wlthout Handle. Automatic Tuning and Built-in Loop Aerial-

$24.9:

Super ValuaWMantel with Transformer for Super Performance.

Now on Display I

TOOMBS

‘Music Store

A Christmas Snowstorm

ii

i3! Sarah Jane Clsrln

‘mum \.\ ._

Thwe "W"! 18W. l-hFSIiOW-btilllld train leaclled Chicago. Mgly mu “memq h" “h8g9 together and took the bus across to the ome,- smimli» i0 find her connecting‘ train had left on schedule, The folks would drive in to town to $95; ti-lilgmtlgiilu unless she could

er message ; m -

U)“ slink (lbwllpuflfl igileamoimilrlg benches to collect her thoughts and ma“ h" Plans until train time. Five oclock. wild h.) tram unm 0 g0 the next mornmg

ailing Out soon?" a cheery voice m?" Her asked. She looked up to find the chief usher standing beside m"- A middle-used. friendly lock- ing fellow. Mary mu wld mm o; her missed connections.

Hm- Eddle. look it thisl" a red "P inwffllllied her story. He was lilfihint §i§f°tl€.‘l"€."‘ ...°“““' “ antiwylylelkow cum- g ue eyes

" a are you doing with the ktild? Is she lost?" Eddie asked inlilrply. tiu-ning away from Mary

“Millht as well be. She came in from Denver, ill charge of the stew. ardess. They missed the train north, and the stewardess is celebrating

hrlsimas by having her appendix Wt. emerzencv case. They tcld me L‘; turlll the kid over to you," the

y gr nned h h t0 the chief 3:110:- mded her over

Eddie look her clumsily. "see here. what can a bachelor like file d0 with a kid like this?" he looked eroenrlmzly at Mary Lou.

Mary Lou's eyes filled with tears. Then she held out her arms toward m0 yflllllf-‘ltef- "What is your name, dear?" she asked.

"Annette Pollard. I am three years old and I am going from Cheyenne to Rio. Wisconsin, to my grandma Pollard. My daddy is there." It was a lesson she had been taught.

Mary Lou held her clo=e. "I had a little girl almost as old u, Am nettle when she died," she said

'0

Marv Lo ll d th I . nettc‘: fatlilene" a W c‘ o: A“

brokenly to Eddie. "Let me keep the child tonight, and take hel- to her home. I missed the same train ahe did."

Eddie studied her face. What ne saw .atisfied him. Still he hesitat- ed for a moment. “Phat sounds 800d to me. But I'd better get the conductor to authorize it "

It was soon decided that Mary Lou should keep her. .1311; shr- must not leave the station. "It won't be very comfortable for you. mlllam but the kid can curl up on a bench here and be dead to the world in no time. There are some rocking chairs in the far rocm there. Why, of course there are some cots there, and baby bowls."

"We ought to telephone the child's rcaltlves." Mary Lou suggested.

‘Of course we should. Here is the address and telephone number You do it for me. will you, please, mwam? I've got my last minute shopping to do. I'm mighty glad you came in on this train. Eddlell take the kid while you telephone ti. Rio." and the collductor was off, after tumlng over the child's nlnney to Mary Lou. But not until Mary Iou had made him promise to send a big doll back for the child’s Christmas.

"We'll let Annette say hello to her daddy herself, if she wants to." Mary bou exclaimed. And so it was done. Mary Lou heard the voice of Annettes father, tense wllll con- cern, and then joyful as he realized where his baby was and heard her childish treble over the phone. "Her mother's parents sent her back here to have Christmas with me. l-ler mother died two years ago," be added. _

The llln Wll shining dasll ly bright the next morning whfl train stopped at Rio. The red-nailed man who was waiting expectantly on the platfonn had only time to thank Mary Lou. and set- her "d- dress, before the train pulled out llmvlng nlm holding Annette as she waved s good-by to Mary 10“-

But the trip home was mucn eas- ier. Mary Inuforgot the burning pain at the loss of her own little daughter, the aching lonelines since her own husband's death. as she remembered the soft kiss of the baby lips of the motherless child who had been lll her charge the night before. And her look in the face of Annetteb daddy made her sure she would see Annette soon-

uivnii? ETOE

Msrioil-Jsck ls Rm"! mu“

l hted. , “Myrtle-it docsnt follow that

there is anyi-hi"! m‘ melt" Wm‘ his eyes because he cant see 7°" u“; ms mistletoe. _ _ .

i‘ . i

r

Lfljbhfl

Old Christmas Customs

Tm: CHARLOTTETOWN continue:

KKK‘! ill-Ii

The Origin Of Th

1n FZSDCG the whole month of Decenlber ls a Lme of s.ng. “From i-he first to lhe last everyone who can utter a sound is sirgilg, s.ng- 1118- StrolLng IHUSABllB-DS go from house to house playing alld sing- "1! Neel-s. and old and y.ung of all classes Ln society, at heme and s- broad. on their way to church d, to market. at work or at play, may be head singing these fascinating carols. Noel sgnifies ‘good news’. and it has been the greeting of the season since the earllcst observ- ailce of Clllstmas." - - . - - At Clllristmastinle in many vill- ages of Holland a star, typcal of the Sta‘: of Bethlehem. is carried thrweu the dork. silent streets, while offerings for the lpoor are gathered from‘ the onlco e s. .. I ¢

Ill Russia and in Poland “every- one wdits for the shining of the Christmas star. Near it i; pa_ed a table which is covered wlm straw K5 l1 fflnilldel- that Christ was laid in a manger Close around the window the child- len gather watching for the first bright star and as soon as th see it they (x111 loudly. “The Christ- mas Stal- Shines!" Then the tree is lighted and all the people of the house ccme to Christmas supper.

. and make merry all the n ght."

O O D U

It was not many Christmases ago that all trolley-car t':kets and transfers in Tokyo, Japan, weze bearing the words:

Glory to God in the highest,

Peace on earth,

Good will w men.

O O U O

"The countries of South Ameri- ca have many specials way-g of cele- brating Christmas. In some of them Christmas comes in the walmest weather of the year. and having no snow or holly or lighted evergreen tlees they put brightness and col- or into the day by setting of: fire works. But. everywhere, in '8 churches and 1n the homes of the people. little models or Bethlehem and the stable where Christ was born are made, some of them in- deed quite large and many very elaborate, showing the Cbxivt dh‘ld lylniz in the manger. with the Vir- gin Mary and Joseph near. and 'he Wise Men bringing their gifts. and all the animals about: on the hills beyond. the SiVDlICTCS can be seen with their flecks. while above them are angels with bright wings. ‘Ihese little models become a. kind

Of Carrots and Chop

Even the animals have their Chxislmas. and in London two quaint customs take place. One the distribution of’ carrots to costers’ donkeys at Gumbel-well, and other a. "feed" at the Honle of Rest F‘Ol' Horses in North London, where "Roger", a fcur-lcggcd war veteran, pulls a bell axlricuncirlg the jsyous event.

On Boxing Day (Dmnlber 26) Britain goes ollt. FCOtbfUl grounds cinemas and theatres are crowded. should there be ice 0i‘ snow winter sports become the cry. Every pack of fox hounds lll England meets in the principal town of its area. today to give the mJx mum number of people the opportunity o- seeing

this picturesque side of English country life. _ Two seasonal functions comm-

ence on Boxing Day. the circus alld the pantomime, without which no child, or grown-up, would thnk Ciuistmas holidays completed.

Th; Christmas Diner

For tile rest, Cllrzslmas is still a home festival. Although within le- oerlt years there has been an in- crease among those who go away or dine out crl Christmas my. i119 whole family goes and ev=n the largest functions in the leading hotels are still family parties. For this. the sea coast and inland r8- sorts are extremely popular. howls and local authorities arrangink many a cherry function of 8111118. balls, Christmas parties and novel- ties.

In the homes of England. Christ- mas dinner is usually an evening affair, followed by party games. music and lomps. with children al- ways leading. Crackers are pulled. caps alld masks uiorn. whl‘c steam- ers. paper chains, balloons, mistietoe and holly form the background.

Many of .tod1y‘s games were played centuries ago by our fore- fathers.

Nelghorliness at Christmas tide ls not only traditional. but active. For throughout Gert Britaill and Ireland. as ‘in clh'r countries, charl- taiblo socieltls-s. Boy Scouts and Girl Guides busy themselves in their thousands with Christmas breakfasts for children and Oihéls- Santa Claus distributes food, coal and toys. Hospital wazds are de- Qlted and for days beforehand gifts of all shapes and sizes arrive.

Here are gifts that speed Ind limPmY

Tunesuuuusrsnanrscsrsausaseusqnssnsssanununun

of Christmas shrine. prayers are offered by them and the ohild en stand before them ard sins their songs. Little scenes like tire are also set up in Spain. and ln France and in Italy. and often the child- ien help in making them". Bu‘. for s clay such as this Christian youth must content itself not with a min- iature repl‘ca of the manger scene, but must. in reality bring its gifts to a Christ new-he'll in our hearts and in our ‘purposes;

Peuhaps the most-v significant Christmas custom of all is one that is obseuved in Poland and Lithua- nia. It. ls the breaking and eating of the Peace Wafer. The village p.lest supplies each member 0i’ the family and each guest in the house with the wafers. which are ssmibolie of “ ce on earth." The painake-is bre and eat the Peace Wafers as good Christmas wishes are ex- changed. How will this bit of cere- mony be observed this year. la a. thought that-comes t? all of us.

The Christmas Tree

Many legends have come down to us legardirlg the origin of the use of the Chllstirlas tree. "One ta describes Martin Luther as attempt- ing to explain tohis wife sndonrdlen the beauty of a snow-covered forest under the gllttellng star besprlrlkl- ed sky. Suddenly an idea suggest- ed itself. He went into the garden cut off a fir t;ee. dragged it into the nursery, put some candles on its branches and lighted them. As a regular institution. however, it can be traced back onl to the sixteenth century. During the Mid- dle Ages it suddenly appears in Stress-burg: it maintained itself o- long the Rhine for two hundred years, when suddenly at be- ginning of the nineteenth oent- ury the fashion spread all over Gemany and by fifty years later had conquered Christendom." Christ- mas lights in millions of trees a- round the world still shine fort-h even in these times.

December‘ Twenty-Fourth

"Tomorrow You are born avain Who died so many times.

Do You like the mndle-rght Do you like the chimes?

Do vou step to wonder Why men never see

How vetiv closely Bethlehem Appo-codies Calvary?"

4' A Star 4' By Mary Colby Smith

I love a Christmas tree, I do, With gifts for me and glits for

you.

But best of all upon its tip I love tho Star that shines;

It means so much to you and me At happy Christmas times

It takes us back long. long ago When wise men from afar Were guided truly. siep by step. By one bright glorious Star. To an humble manger, Whereln the Christ Child lay So simple and so lowly, Upon a bed of hay.

Arid may that S/tar that strode so bri it

Ger Bethlehem long ago. Reflect o'er every land its light.

And make our love to grow- Grow. that the Siar may truly

s ne In your heart and into mine Hidden Fruits

How many fruits can you find hid- den in the following lines? Go range through every cllme, wllere'el- The patrolt muse appears. He deeds of valour antedates. His ban an army fears.

By midnight lamp each poet soul ls plumed for flight sublime; Pale monarch moon and shinning

stars Witness his flowing ihymel

Incllcd by the muse man goes To grapple with his wrongs; The poet. cares not who makes laws 1f he may malke the 501185-

Answerzwllhese ten fruits are hidden; Orange. Pear, Date, Banana Peach, Plum. Lime Lemon. Man- go. Apple. -

LIKE CASH CHRISTMAS PRE- SENTS

Happy ls the woman who received a cash Christmas present, because she will have a lot of fun at the January sale counters.

The delicate flavour of turkey meat combines well with many other foods. By skllful blending turkey meat can be mule the basis of B great vstiety of good dishes

i i i

Christmas Cracker

Kl

Eilhiliilsli?

(By EMMELINE VYNER)

When you throw a log of wood on to the fire on a winter's even- ing and then sit back and watch it burn, you will have noticed that it emits occasionally g tiny bang a explosion, not much louder than a mere “Puff-f!" uttered uilder the breath. It was this sound that was the origlll of the Christmas cracker as we know it to-day. From the very small crackers, priced sixpense d. box of a dozen, to the giant creations standing six feet high, decorated with tinsel, ribbon. and artificial flowers and containing a valuable gift —all have sprung from the chance incident of a log of wood emitting smoky, Lilly bangs! That, and the keen ob- servatlon and tireless thought of the

marl who sat watching that log burn away. Eighty-five years ago, when

crinolines and antlmilcassars ruled the quiet Victorian day. a. certain Briton paid a vlsll; to the Con- tinent —quite an adventure at that time --and saw for the first time

1e French borl-bons. These were mina-

ture sweets wrapped in tissue pap- er of various colours; they were bought mostly for weddings to throw to the happy couples, much as we now use confetti.

Our visitor like the idea and thought it capable of development, so he brought a supply of boll-bolls back with him. filter mediiadllg on how he could improve t-llezll, lle had a quantity of brief mottoes printed on tiny slips of white paper. He folded one motto round each sweet inside the wrapping paper, lo which he gave a tiny twist at either end. The output oi‘ confection-sly lll those days was very limited, so the shopkeepers were glad to in vest in a supply of this attractive line. But the sale of it was only slow, though steady, for people at that time did not eat sweets as they do to-day. The traders stated that unless the product could be im- proved and made more original it would be no use continuing to offer it for sale. So that is how the in- ventor of mottoecl sweets came to be sitting by the fire night after night, watching the logs burn, thinking and vivonderiilg and rack- ing his brains, trying to evolve something that would make lllS sweets sell better. And then one night, right out of the fire he was so intently gazing at. came the in- spiration! Olle of the logs spllltter- ed and fizzled and seemed to have in its composition something that could be discharged, accompanied by a sudden sound. He sat up. his attention riveted on that particular log. His problem was solved.

He would make the wrapping of his sweets much larger and insert- ‘lnto each packet something that would result in a small bang.

For close on two years he worked and experimented with his “crack- ing bon-bon" to make it suitable for acceptance by til-e very clecorous society of that early Victorian era. He must have the “craclfl loud enough to draw notice and make other people lvailt to try one. ‘and be sudden and a trifle startling, yet he must consider the sensiilve lleryes of the ladies. old alld young, of that swoonlllg age If his in- velltiorl didn't suit the ladies it would ilot be successful financially. Cllil- dren were not catered for ‘lll those days as they are now.

At. last he made his invention so satisfactory that it. could be sold and used anywhere Already it was long ln shape, as we see it 10-day. and has been dubbed by molly people-— Tile Elongated Squib It was made in only one type and wrapped up in coloured paper packets containing a dozen or half a dozen. They were called “Crack- ers" right away; but as they were more in demand at Christmas lime than at any other part of the _vear, the festive word was soon added to the title. and they became “Christ- mas Crackers."

One tiling tile inventor had neglected to do. and that was to patent his amusing device. All East-

ern merchant vlslted this country, on business as well as pleasure, and was at once intrigued with the new sweetcum-toy. I-le kept quiet, though, but when he returned to his own land he had a few packets stowed away among llls luggage. HP quickly decided to make tllcnl him- self and flood the home market.

The first shlpload of these for- eign crackers arrived in London a- bout two mouths before the fol- lowing Christmas. Distributions was quickly done and tile shops were supplied, with nlore stock ill rsscrvc at the wholesalers. They were cheaper tlhhn the llome product, thus offering another inducement to the traders

But the originator saw what had happened and, though time was short enough, he instantly took up

6-! hauler-Smu- dsvd modchelsmme 5,5,1...‘ popular pl]

daily household tasks. Smart in design, these G-E appliances will gladden the heart of every woman-benefit the

whole family.

CHAPPELL & CO.

ELECTRICAL CONTRACTORS

PHONE 1440

O-l KaIlla-"Iolls Islet v1.0 [s y- Nnv Nix? elo- nmn- nail/u! finish. Pris-cl.’

164 QUEEN ST.

the challenge. He commissioned oer-

tairl factories to supply him at once with thousands of small goods — paper caps. rosettes. tiny toys and cheap Jewellery. These he put into the crackers instead of sweets; into the dearer kind he put both. He hired designers and artists by the dozen to prepare attractive covers and wrapping; azld he invited rhy- mestcrs to send in their work in bulk and name the price. l-Ie and his staff worked night and day, with the happy result that by the middle of December he supplied the home market with eight different types of Christmas crackers! The foreign goods —all of one type — were swamped: and the Eastern merchantss bit of sharp practice was rendered a total failure. Thanks to British enterprise.

From that day to this Great Bri- tain has led ‘he way lh the manu- facture of Christmas crackers.

As a proof of the ever-growing popularity of this attractive toy. we have only to notice how often the design of a Christmas cracker ls adopted as a costume for a fancy dress dance.