The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

"Aren‘t you the one," I claimed, "washing clothes :c mas Day!" Mary conceded it wasn‘t the best way to pass the dgay, but added that it must be done. "I wonder if you‘d do me a favor," Hattie asked. "John and Fanny have asked us to come to town for Christâ€" mas dinner and the tree tonight. You know, times were a little tough for Mary Crane empticd the last tub and stood it against the shed to drain, sighing her thanks that if she must wash clothes on Christmas Day the job was at least over and done with by noon. She had just to the kitchen when a knock came at the door. It was her neighbor, Hattie Jamieson, decked out in her finest. § abay the jovy and bappiness of the WEDNESDAY. DECCFEMBER 1947 be with all our JFriends anod everyp day of the Dear \",'i‘. t T2 s soy wer ‘ +\ ® * ~May your Christmas be one of X‘ 4 . )# joy and conténtment. M ay your k’\‘-. Now Y oa4ar Anverfnwy with snnred \ The Sisters of Providence m St. Mary‘s Hospital Ebristmas Beason 143 Commercial Ave. Phone 2120 Timmins To all our friends both old and new .. Superior Fuels C, E. Holland Prop |||SEASDNS CRBEETINGS | )T T > tie 2xX Christ T immins, Ontario Henry and me this year, I took those evening?" "Why, of course," Mary replied, smiling. "It will make Christmas for me, who was snpendin‘ it alon«, What time will they come?" :\: o ; _ ~ 4 P . I don‘t want to leave them at home alone, and Fanny wouldn‘t want them to come mingle with her youngsters." She sighed faintly, "Would you let them come stay with you for the Waiting there in the old rocker, her heard dropped slowly, and Mary Crane fell asleep . .. two little State orphans to board,. Now, "One thing T‘d like to do before dinâ€" ner,." rich old Andrew Craig said to his wife. "S‘pose there‘s t‘me? You remember Mary Crane had s me tough luck a few years back. She borrowed money from the bank on her house and couldn‘t keep up the payments. Well, the directors decided not to give her any more time. * . "All tall beautiful." "I couldn‘t help remembering. our lean years, Sue, when Mary was our neighbor and worked day and night night to pull you through pneumonia. So I‘just gathered in that debt â€" it was only a few hundreds â€" and had some papers made out to Mary. T‘d kind of like to take them out to her on Christmas night." She pulled his head down and kissed him. "It . will take jus t 10 minutes to pack a basket for you to take along," she reckoned swiftâ€" ly, "If you drive there and back in half an hour, you can do it. Reâ€" member, we have guests coming!" It was snowing when Andrew alighted from the car. A lamp showâ€" ed him Mary‘s kitchen through the window, the cheery tree, and the sleepâ€" ing old lady. He tipâ€"toed in and placed his basket on the table, papers on top. The latching of the daoor aroused Mary. Her small guests rushed in a few minutes later to find Mary holding the papers to her heart, her face alight with joy. $ "Merry Crhistmas, Mary,"‘ cried the little girl. "There was a .. man on your steps when we came down the lane. We saw him plain as could "Wel," said Mary. ‘I‘m not surâ€" prised. Some folks might say it was shadows and lamplight an snowâ€" flakes, but" â€" tapping the papers â€" "wherever there‘s things ilke this goin‘ on Christmas night, I‘m perâ€" suaded He‘s there!‘ "Not the man in < the fur insisted the child, "It was another just behind him. All tall and bright andâ€"and beautiful." ‘"You‘re right.‘""‘ said Mary. "Anâ€" #esw Craig is a man, if ever there was one.‘ Mistletoe Distinct As Yule Decoration Mistletoe, that distinctive Christmas gréeen so common in many parts of America, is usually thought of as merely good holiday decoration or as a creator of open season on ladies fair for otherwise bashful swains. Mistletoe did not always hold this position in our liveg. The Druids called it "allâ€"heal," and thought ‘ it held many miraculous virtues. The scandinavians dedicated it to their goddess of love, Friga. Probably this goddess of love is responsible for the custom Of kissing under the mistletoe. The power to heal, to protect against sickness, to perform â€" magic deedsâ€"all these and more are the qualities ascribed to this plant in legends, traditions and even in anâ€" cient histories and literature. fests branches of various trees of both hardwood and conifers, but mainly on hardwoods. One species is found exclusively, however, on conifers. Among the Celts and others misâ€" tletoe which grew from the oak was considered to have peculiar magical virtues not possessed by that from any other trees. Some even considered it so rare as to be only cut with a gold knife. Another old tradition is that the mistletoe supplied the wood for the holy cross, as previous to that time it was a forest tree but after the crucifixkion was condemned to exist only as a dwarf parasite. Mistletoe was taken over into the Christian â€" tradition in due course and dedicated to the Christ Child. An old rhyme reads: ‘ The mistletoe bough At our Christmas board . Shall hang to the honor Of. Christ our Lord.. . Mistletoe is a parasite, which inâ€" and bright and â€" and THIE PORCUPINE ADVANCE, TIMMINS, ONTARIO But how would Rachel take it? If only someone, anyone, would spend Christmas with them to relieve the loneliness! Well, how about young Tom Wakefield, with whom Caroline had once been in lové, a fine young chap who didn‘t have a home. and who probably would miss Caroline . this Christmas as much as he and Rachel would? f Noisily he stamped the snow from his overshoes on the back porch, then walked into the kitchen which was savory with the odor of his wife Rachel‘s Christmas cooking. Then, as Rachel approached the bundle of letters he had placed on the table, Timothy found himself shrinking from the room. fearful of how Rachel would take the news. omm mm L o 0 _0 0 O C i “\V;nderml weather for Christmas!" Timothy Rowan thought as he trampâ€" ed home through the snow with an armful of mail from the post office. No Caroline for Christmas! Why never once in her 24 years had Caroâ€" line been away. But, then, she was building her own lifé in the city, now â€" new friends, new interests. And spending the holidays with two old parents was probably pretty dull. A few minutes later Timothy was trampine â€" downtown through the snow again, and into Tom Wakeâ€" field‘s garage. But he was apprehensive, for in the bundle was a letter from Caroâ€" line, his daughter. Why, h*e kept asking, would , Caroline be writing now, the day before Christmas, un«â€" less to tell her parents that she wouldn‘t be home for the holidays? "Merry â€" Christmas, Tom!" he shouted, walking into the small office. "Same to you, Mr. Stone!" cried Tom. "What can I do for you?" "Well, Tom," Timothy began, "you can make a couple of old people pretty happy if you‘ll come to dinner with us tomorrow. You seeâ€"I don‘t expect Caroline will be coming and, well. it would be nice if you‘d join us.‘ "Gosh,‘ thanks Mr. Stone!" Tom answered. He turned red, then pale, "T‘ll be there!" Back home, Timothy was repriâ€" manded. "Well, Mr. Stone, where have vou been, leaving me all alone with this news eves sparkled "I know, darling." Timothy said. "It‘s too bad she can‘t be here for Christmas, but I‘ve asked Tom Wakeâ€" field to join us. It‘ll be kind of nice Waving him, remembering how he and Caroline used to be so close. You know, I think that boy is still in love with herâ€"." about Caroline?" Rachel‘s et 1t be Christmas in our hearts And church bells tell their song of joy in [)eac‘efll_l'héavéfis; Suddenly she saw Tom, standing white and tense beside the fireâ€" place, and momentarily her mouth fell open with surprise. "Oh, Tom!" she cried, "You here. too? This makes it perfect!" And she ran to his arms, while Racher drew her puzzled husband into the kitchen. Mrs. Stone smiled. "Well, we‘d better get busy, since company‘s coming. Fix a fire in the hearth, will you?" And as Timothy went off on his errand. her eyes followed him, smiling. The Stone household was a busy place Christmas _ morning. While Timothy tended his stock and poulâ€" try, Rachel fixed the turkey, set the table and then went upstairs to dress. And shortly after noon Tom Wakefield arrived, handsome young ‘Tom, and the three of them sat down in the living room before the fire for a short visit before dinner. Then an automobile horn blared out ‘front, and Timothy ran to the window. "It‘s Caroline!" he shouted, beâ€" side himself. "Rachel, come quick! She must have come in on the noon train!" Then she burst into the room, lovely Caroline, â€" laughing merrily, tossing her bags on the floor and running to her parents. "You may be a pretty smart man, Timothy," she explained quietly as she lifted the turkey from the oven, "but we fooled you that t‘me! You just assumed. because Caroline wrote the day before Christmas that she wasn‘t coming home. What she said in the letter was that she was tired of the city and was coming back to stay. "Of course," she smiled, "T‘ll give you credit. Poor Caroline‘s â€" heart was breaking for Tom, so your inâ€" viting him here today makes everyâ€" thing perfect!" living; born of the heart, is the‘ true spirit of Christmas Let us be,thankful we live in a land of plenty . clad we can share our many blessings with peoples lighted trees spread their boughs over many gifts. Our tables are heavy with good things to eat. Let it be Christmas in ‘our hearts, too. in countries less fortunate than ours. Peace on Earth, Goodâ€"will to Men‘". Amid children‘s bubbling laughter, in Canadian homes again this year. rood Christmas, a happy Christmas, living is the one wavy to pUS We bring to you the warmest of wishes for Christmas . a greeting full of good cheer for the entire New Y ear, {mas w otiund| 2 Stores â€" 1 Service Blahey‘s Stores 48 Third Ave. Timmins Phone 303 â€" 3094 Schumacher 46 First Ave. Phone 733 â€" 734