:“For Christ the Lord is Bom!" | B, MARTHA B. THOMAS : Sur of BatkUhMI ! Outshone All « Conference of the Heevenh/ » coaferenco ; They could ooi leere their place in the sky. because It wu against txi« Imw of night, so U ey maneged to talk I'.v niy-dlol That is, each star sent r my toward a certain spot, where all tbi other rays were shining, and this mad) the conference I Star talk-! Worts of light! It bright and busy time. The largest stars did the most talking; they had a good dea' to ssr toout way they shone wher the moon 'was away. “Ws are not only beautiful to look «t" they declared, "but we help folks to get about on dark nights. The earth folks like to look at us, and wonder shout us. We are eery Important P If stars could swell with pride, these stars ""uld hove burst When they had •4ikod very hard for about an hour, a s"'Uli, slender shaft of light twinkled Inio their midst. '■Who are your cams a chorus at Waning voters. "1 am the Star et Batbleham." was ti* answer. Th* other stars had never heard of ' -r. They were Inclined to bush bar , ' 1 '- Hut there was aMnetbing so so penetrating, so beautiful In " r l! **'ht that they wars esosirslned to Pve herd. What Is your history r then dr"“■tided the larsest aso oldest star. The Star of U-thlebew quivered w "h a clear radiant* which seemed to "uve aM the colors of the rainbow. "Ac angel with s torch cams and edited me the very drat tlulstma* 1 I shone with n *pe>-lsl luster und • uldcd many (irople to the manger h

* Qiristmas Eve | i TS=rH~— Ttoeeeebihraas ; iSarssa^..—. cfsorsf. . I WW» rich eed 4ms «h» M •“‘w TeebBe4dwT«n 8rs,-^s

Bethlehem where the Christ Child lay with his Mother Mary- Shepherds saw me w’dle they were watching their Bheep on the hillside. And other sngeli of blinding beauty sang near roe. They played on golden harps. The sky shone with a heavenly glory. There has never been a night so wonderfuh" The other stars listened w»h twa Before thfs sweet. roroiH-Wng light they fait silent and humble. Then, for an Instant, there came an Incomparable brilliance. The Star of Bethlehem blared In tadescribaWe beauty. And faint und far came the ■nolle of harps and singing . . • •For Christ the Lord is * . (C »», Wwl«m N«wp*P* r UatoS-l POOR THING

Just a Pictui-e of His Mother bq MAtl] QEAMAV BONNER

Plum Pudding-Alas for the good old days of brandy sauce!

Likeaess of the /fT WAS Deamt Illocnia W in the DJorld, a away from Christmas Qift to home and I „ lie WQS 1 ftlllLcaesome Soo man other years he had been near enough to go back home for Christmas, but now his work hud sent him across the continent and he couldn't possibly manage the trip. _ . He had some excellent new friends and he was going to have Christmas dinner with them. And the family from home had sent a beautiful Christmas box—every member of the family had sent a present. It had been tied with holly ana red ribbon and he bad opened It Christmas Eve. , But now It was Christmas morning and he was Just a little bit homesick. Ie*. Just a little bit—perhaps It was more than a little bit I And then came the postman’s ring. He had received all his presents, cards, too, from his friends at home who would not send presents, but wh« had remembered him. Tes. he had been very fortuncte. The homesickness he felt was only natural. And then he opened the small package which the postman’s ring "ad brought to him. It was a photograph of his mother, and It arrived on Christmas day. A nd under It was a little note. Just a few words of love and devotion and a Christmas greeting. He felt better already! For. eve*, though there must at times ho separation*. he had so wonderful a home and mother that even though they were apart actually their thoughts and spirits were as close together as though they were not separated. It was an excellent photograph of hi, mother, i™. "Tint « Christ mas morning gif’! (©, lltl. Wnurn Si-w»p«p»rUnion ) THE HERALD ANGELS SING Hark! the l.or.M r," " im - Ood and *' nn *^£”rt!£" W eslS7.

(© liil. WtsUrn N*wanap*r Union.) j^olnral;, ylmMijlj, ckank kalis m te at * mntagt amm tk» kUta ants, Casfcarlj, Isafarjl^ to as era krtojtoy ilitoga Ikal tint tear a kraajkt syas Bgaq Ktolsja Skat maka Baa’s kaarts

£altt* aak jlata

2* •* tkat Ckriatmaa kaj

^3" sja.

^ajlallj, taakarlj, rkxrck kails art rktorto] to aa tkair grrrtiaga arreia tka kaajr aaaka, yriagto^frask kopa to tka kaarta tkat axa Sploark to ararrk of tkat faaltog of glota,

^ack sa tka skapkarka faU

^gaasgo,

9kta tkaj laara taliak fcj tka

Star’s taakar gists.

What Christmas Brought to Him By LAURA ELAINE CAMERON

Back to His Old ,aA s waltbb

Job, the Present

Walter Manners Needed Most His Cup Was Full to Over-

ine With

Yuletide Joy

MANNERS stumbled out of Clarkson’s store he felt

that Christmas was Indeed going to be a dreary time for him and his fatally. His hands were clenched l!gbtly as he came out Into the glare

winter sunshine, and his face showed a dull red—the hue which creeps over a man's face when Insult or humiliation has come to him. For twenty years of service to old Clarkson, twenty yerrs wherein he had given the best Hut was In him to a man who was reputed to be the most Ill-tempered man In all Washbum—he had Just been told that from now on his services would be dispensed with, and all because of a small mistake tbat had been made, which Clarkson in the blind rage which bad taken bold of blm, had laid on the shoulders of Manners. It was hard, he told hlmse'f as he walked along, that a man who had given the best of bis life In service could be cast away like an old glove. It must be that he was not as competent as other men, be told himself. For the hurt of dismissal had sunk Its Iron deeper Into Waiter Manner’s soul than it would have done In the case of another man, for always he had been possessed cf the feeling that he was not quite as capable as other men. Something within him always tried to belittle him to himself, and although be had often fought with this feeling and had tried to assure himself that he did as good or even better work than some. In spite of himself It came every cow and then to torture him. Now, In the face of b!s recent dismissal. It came with added force, and he told himself over and over again that he was a failure or else old Clarkson would not have let him out. He never stopped to think that perhaps It was the long association with a man of Clarkson's type tbat had made him so diffident

about his own worth.

He dreaded the thought of going home and telling h!s family the bad news. He reproached himself that hs had not broken away from old Clarkson ten yeors bef- • when he had an offer from you..g Peters, who bad Just then come to Washburn, and who had since made such a success. But then, as always, the fear of himself kept him from accepting and he had stayed on and borne the Ill-temper of old man Clarkson since. His forty-live years huug heavily upon him as he

When Dreams Come True I

wrong upon them were he to go to them non ivltb the story of bis failure and to spoil their Christmas. What of hl» own feelings—surely he could be man enough to hide them for a few days for the sake of those he loved! After Christmas there would be time enough to tell them the dread news— i to let them know what a miserable failure he was. He decided then that he would not go home until his usual homecoming hour, lest It might create suspicion, so to kill time he wandered aimlessly around town. He stopped to gaie In Peters’ window as he passed. He admitted to himself that there was a vast difference between the appear^ ■nee of this store and Clarkson’ Here everything was up-to-date and attractive; the window arrangement such as might make anyone pause look. Once he had broached this

went on and he looked with dread to the future, for his family was Just at the age when a steady Income was an absolute necessity. He shuddered now as he thought of Christmas, when only a few hours ago he had been living In happy anticipation of the day. He uad planned so many things; so many little surprises that would bring Joy to his loved ones; but now that was all over, for how could he enter Into the spirit of Christmas, weighed down with care and dread cf the future as he was now? Waller Manners had always been a man who set n great stress upon duty, und as ho went along now the thought came to him that n real duty to his family lay bef ire him. For he felt that bs would be Inflicting a C^ut

subject to old Clarkson, but had been met by such an outburst of wrath that he had never dared to oi>en the sub-

ject again.

8o engrossed was he with hte thoughts that he never noticed that Clyde Peters was standing Inside the window und gazing straight at him. He flushid a dull red (.gain as the thought came to him that surely Peters would suspect something to set. him wandering aimlessly around at what was usually the busiest time of the day at Clarkson’s. But he nodded as pleasantly as he could to Peters

and walked on.

Somehow he got through the evening without his family suspecting that there was anything amiss, lie Joined In the general gayely and helped with the decorations and various other little Jobs,-but sll the while the heart within him was sick with misery. But he knew that the burden was his to hear alone, md the thought that he was savlnr his family from the truth for lew days gave him a little feel-

ing of comfort.

At ten o’clock, nfter the smallest of the children hud been put to bed and (ho Christmas tree had received all Its trimmings, the door bell rung with a loud peal. Walter Manners opened I thinking It was n neighbor or possibly t Christmas gift of some kind, but Instead the tall figure of Peters

stood In the doorway.

In a few minutes he told what he wanted—Seeing Manners standing outside his store that afternoon and suspecting from his attitude that

thing was

qulries and found he bad left CXarfcson's. Whereupon he had come to ask him If he would consider a po«lwlth him, and when he named the salary Walter Manners gasped. It was nearly twice the figure he had been getting. And when, because of his high sense of duty that was his. he told Peters that Clarkson had let him out, Peters only laughed aloud and said: "As If that would make ; any difference. The wonder to all In Washburn has been how you could have stood him so long." After that It did not take Walter Manners long to give consent to the offer, and his cup of Joy seemed full as he bid good-night aud good wished , to Peters at the door. i But It was full to overflowing a few ; minutes later when old Clarkson came puffing to the door and told him he could have his old Job back again, 1 with a small Increase In salary. For , although he never wanted to see Clarkson's store again, yet the feeling that , b was wanted back in the old plac^ added to the offer which he had Just accepted, gave him the confidence in 1 himself which he had always been lacking, and that Christmas Waiter j Manners really came Into his own, ] he had gotten the gift which he need- i ed most of all. J (©, IMS. WMtern N«w.p»p»r Union.) ^

Yes, Santa Was Here

, he had made In-