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re A A AE TE A Story of a Returned Soldier, Hard Times and Christmas Party. Hood. Overseas, Bill Smith had en Everything he had tried to do seem- ed to have gone wrong. It he kept a job for a month at a stretch he would be a greatly surprised man; but gur- prises were few and far between. Nothing he did seemed to turn out as he wished. It wasn't that he was lazy or a poor workman. they came within the range of his bellicose nature, and that was his finish. He had, somehow or other, acquired the habit of driving along in his own sweet way, and woe betide any man who tried to hold him back, or tie him too securely to a definite routine. But three years in the mud and slaughter of France had satisfied his desire for trouble, so that, when | » he came back to Canada and settled in the big city where he had made his home after he left the farm, an orphan, he had the makings of a good, useful citizen. Still, things did not seem to go right for him, and when his second Christmas out of the trenches came around and found him out of work, almost penni- | less and without a friend to whom he could turn, Bill was well-nigh des- perate, Of course, Bill Smith was not his real name. To divulge that would be to reveal the identity of one of the bravest men who ever cursed a Ross rifle or berated Sam Hughes for his dry canteen system at Valcartier Camp. But that is a' common name and as good as any, and Bill was Just one of the common crowd, and as good a soldier 4s any. Of course, his regimental crime sheet read like a page from the Arabian nights, but | all the entries, it could be noted, were made while his division was flonndering on the morass of Salis- bury Plains. His restless nature and dislike of discipline got him into trouble frequently, and if he did at times take a dislike to"the physi- ognomy of his sergeant and proceed to paint it in various hues, and if he more than once went off on a little vacation to escape from the misery of camp life, there was nothing vie- ious about him. But when his divis- ion went to France, Bill was as steady and dependable as the rock of Gibral- tar. He came through the hell of the second battle of Ypres unscathed, one 'of the few who survived that glorious but ghastly episode. Festu- bert and Givenchy found him in the thick of the fight. - He wintered at Ploegstreet with the division, went back into the salient, and at the bloody encounter at Sanctuary Wood he did his share. Bill was still at his -post when the regiment went to the somme. His restlessness had caus- €d his superiors many an anxious moment, for his pet diversion was to crawl around no-man's land on his Most of the | men who employed him admired his | energy for the first week or so, until | y Huns. Twice he single-handed. Once back is entrench- ing tool I » dripping blood and with a fe irs stricking to it, but | no one has yet been able to find out what happened on that particular d night, brought in he can with Bill's First Wound. It w at the Somme that he re- teeived his first wound and went bask | to Blighty, He had been one of a | party detailed to clear out an enemy | bombing post, and before the job was | completed, he had collected a few | pieces of shrapnel in various parts of his anatomy, including in the fleshy part of his leg which left a gaping hole. A few days in hospital in Boulonge | followed, and then Bill Blighty, to find himself a day later one lying in a comfortable bed in a hos- | { pital away up in the north of Scot- land, Bill's hardy constitution stood him in geod stead, and in a very | short time he was able to wheel him- elf around in an invalid chair. His | times every week by parties of en- | tertainers from the neighboring city. He had a real love music, al- though his hard and tempestuous life previous to the war had somewhat deadened ft, t quickly revived, how- ever,'as he ened time and again {to old Scotch ballads and melodies | rendered by those who came to the | hospital to play and sing for those wounded, shut-in soldiers It was while attending one of these concerts that he met "Meg" David- for ing Bill'was a changed man. 'Meg' was employed as one of an army of city, Her life there was not eas but she was light-hearted, with a Bunny nature, and life passed pleas- antly enough for her. She had an intense sympathy for those .in suf- fering, and her whole heart went out in pity for the boys who had been wounded and were in the hospital near where she lived. She had one great gift, inherited from a father who was more fond of his music than he was of earning money. She could play the violin in a way of her own the" music she played. Her style for she was self-taught, Hut by steady practice she had almost perfected music sing and talk. of a musical career, but she knew ing, so she worked hard and spent little. Her greatest piece of good fortune was when her mistress gave her permission to practic: in her own room. Night after night, as soon as J was sent to | chief delight was to attend the con-| certs which were given two or three | son, and from the time of that meet- | maids in one of the big houses in the | that brought out the whole soul of | may have shocked a music professor, | her art, so that she could make her | She had visions | that would require money for train- | cae . free from dut ; She erept took the es viol acy from Bheér father 4nd played un 4 0 8 To the boys was sometl held she appeared a great them, to be broken only by th - ening applause when sho had. finish- ed, It was about three weeks after Rill 'arrived at the hospital that party from the church of which Meg was a member went there to enter- | tain the boys. happy mood, and her whole heart was the hush 1 a | afire with the beauty of : | as she drew her bow across the violin | strings. Bill listened for a moment, drinking in the melody; then some- thing seemed to snap in his brain. He was no longer in the hospital, sur- rounded by sick and suffering com- rades. He was away ' back in his boyhood home in old Ontario, ram- bling through the woods with bis Airedale at his heels. th the | | _ ; | The Spell of Music. i The little creek was bubbling and | singing as it ran through the wood, { the cardinal was whistling its love- | | song, and the blue-finch piping cheer- | ily. era] orioles were talking and chir ing at once. The crows were caw- {Ing in the trees as he stole through | | the underbrush and reached the old | swimming hole, He was no longer { Bill Smith, the steadiest soldier in his company, but he was just 'little Billy," carried back to the old farm {in the backwoods, a wild, restless.lad | with a longing for the freedom and wildness of nature. Suddenly the music stopped, Bill came back to reality to see Meg smiling and bowing to the clamour- ing audience of boys in hospital bl { Half standing in his invalid chair, in {spite of the pain of his wounds, he stretched out his hands and pleaded. | of heaven, | 'More, for the love more," But Meg had finished her playing. The strain had been great and the spell was broken, but from that mo- { ment there seemed to Bill to be a new world. The girl had noticed his tense face and h pathetic appeal, | and she came and sat down beside him | "I'm so sorry," she said, "But I | couldnt play another note, It was | too much for me to think of all you boys had suffered." And her voice | was to Bill just as soft and sweet as | the singing he had heard in the | woods of his fancy. | Madam," he re- | > took me back | Ontario, and 1 "That's all right plied, "but that m to my old home in my dream." It was only natural then that he {should tell her all about that old Ontario home, and of his life there. To the girl there was something so big and comforting about the way the man talked that made her want to listen for ever, and as he went on to tell of the comrades he had lost and of the brave men who were still fight- | ing over there, her heart filled with la feeling of sympathetic friendship {for the wounded soldier. nm cma. nm, -- [El HE DAILY BR Meg was in her most | music The robins were 'warbling, and | | away back near the farmhouse sev- | and | didn*t want to wake up again from ITISH -h {back in his ch a | closely as, speaking s ly, she told him of h now lay "over the mother in a lone shieling i hill and | struggles He that she had was as violin was t had carried d before he an to fight land where friends twe friends leisure » of her old ta lisides, she loped rapidly. s were spent more and more by side, and even the violin was ne ted At last, {in the spring, Bill was able to walk around, and together they walked by the side of the Dee or sat hours by the seashore and ! to waves lapping on the beach. Their weekly afternoons together when Meg was free were the biggest inci= Me mor istened nothing else. But finally Bill becan He spent a few days cent home near by, and then orders came that he was to return to his training depot in the south of Eng land. The evening before his de parture he walked with Meg along | | the seashore until they came to their favorite spot on the sands. Then they sat down, but words did not come { easily. Each was thinking of the parting on the morrow, so they sat in the silence which comes to lovers | at such moments, But when hearts | are young and love new, hopes are high, so he placed the seal of his love on her finger, and went south the next day with an understanding that they were to be married as soon as he could get leave to come north again. Leave came sooner than expected, tand with a significance which had never entered the s of the two lovers. Men were scarce on the fir- ing line. Bill's. old battalion had been sadly depleted in the battle of Vimy and the struggles which suc- iceeded, and in a few days time Bill | was warned that he would have to prepare for another spell in the trenches. He was granted six days | | leave. A hearty letter was despatch- i ed to Meg, who read it with joy and with trembling ¢ they w on the § Meg's 1 i again. | asconvales- | is yét later church where Bill's days' leave sj full of a new found poignant farewell to as kiss, and back he went to hi epot. | days later he crossed to | ce, his heart heavy, but filled | with hope of' the new life that lay |ahead of him when returned to his beloved Canada when the war had been won. His comrades welcomed to their ranks with open ms, al- though few of the old crowd remain- | ed. Many had found graves in the | cemetery at Leivin and on the slopes | of Hill Seventy. Then came the { slaughter, mud and water of Pa { schendade, and Bill again played his part nobly. Time and time again he {took part in hand-to-hand tussels { with the enemy, and his spirit was | dauntless. His crowning effort came | ¥ 3, a last. he he 1 back Bill lay i when he discovered an officer of an- | ed. the | { { The {army, classified as perfectly fit, and | lated to | servi | fore | threaten | of diss - | loving care and encouragement of his { back | from {the rough spots of humanity in his | search for work ate its way intd Bill's | Bill, -WHIG. --T---------- ST {other battalion, wounded and in Tg view Of the enemy, and brought hil back to a dressing station. He wap awarded the military medal-and r¢g- commended Jor promotion, but' the motion never came, for he was' 2riously wounded and once more went to Blighty. He lay in the hospital for mont with his bride ever near him Byt his great constitution again served its useful purpose, so 'that, a lew weeks after the armistice was signed, he was discharged from hospital and to Kimmel Camp to wait for transportation to Canada. The events of the winter can be passed over, but | Bill through them ail lived like a | new man. His wife Meg secured | rooms near -the camp, and many were | the happy evenings they spent to- | gether in the pretty Welsh hills. Late in the spring his turn came Bill, with his Scottish { bride by his side, smiled westward to u ¢ as; sent {to go, and | their new home in the west. dents in Bill's life, and he lived i Chap. Il.--~Home Again. arrived in her new Canadian home. country delighted her. The summer glory of the parks and the lake near the city filled her heart with pleasure, and once again her violin sang as it did of yore. Bill] had quickly been discharged from the with the back pay which had accumu- his credit he furnished a| little home close to the suburban dis- | trict of the city. Fora time all went well, Bill secured a position which | promised to bring him a good weekly wage, for with his payments of war | gratuity coming in regularly | for the first six months, their home | gradually became a place of beauty | and comfort. Their first e winter in their new {'home came, and then the fate which { had dogged the footsteps of Bill be- went him. luck came which he war again came to | The first stroke of | when the company was working failed he to bad with | and went out of business in the mid- dle of the winter. { out of his job, and the first little rifts Bill was thrown in the lute occurred. Day after day he went out jn _gearch of employment, to return with always the same tale appointment and bad luck. His ed idleness and the knowledge > Was not earning any money told on his nerves, and in spite of the devoted Meg, gradually drifted towards his old habits of driv- ing always in his own way. At times Meg would woo him back a fit of despondency and ill- temper by playing her violin to him, | but gradually his daily contact with he | heart, until he was the old bellicose ready to pick a quarrel with anyone who dared oppose his will. Work was farther off than ever when the spring came. Bill secured several positions, but they did not ast for long. A quarrel with his oreman, a fit of restlessness which would make him go off for a long Meg was a happy girl when she | i were upon him, and he earnestly and | were | ment or some financial reward. | the Chri | solitary ten cent piece, his soul rose tramp into the country, a fight with some of the other men on the job; these helped to make him join time | and again the ky of the unemploy- Gradually Meg's little store of ~ mt | which "the dwindled. Bill was earning one. week's wages in every 1d although he returned home each night to spend the. evening reproaches to himself, things did not Mmprove. Fate Against Bill. Poor Meg became almost desperate | would | t *n she realized that there be another for which to provide, she urged Bill by every means in her power to make a real effort to { br tle down to work a ing that first summer of their 1 together in their new home. But as things grew worse, Bill became more unmanageable. Little by little | Meg was forced to sell various art- | icles of furniture to supply the daily | bread for the house, Ss he had done du fe [ tive part of the city, where they had ia small house which was but a sha- | dow of the home to which Bill had brought her when they settled down | after his discharge. Fall came, and with it the period of depression. Bill had done very little work all summer. There was no reserve in the bank, the future looked black, and there was the com- | ing third member of the family to Bill began to get desper- | to a realiza- which think of ate. At last he awoke tion of the responsibijiti ceasélessly sought a job. But the result was the same everywhere. Business conditions were bad. Men being paid off everywhere. There was talk of bread lines and hard times. Their home gradually became denuded of its furnishings, and Meg struggled along, fighting bravely to keep her spirits up for the | sake of what was coming, but often | weak and discouraged by the thought of the long winter ahead. | Thus it was that, on this Christmas | evening. Bill was well-nigh despérate | as he trudged the streets in search of | anything that might promise employ- ! steps led into the wealthier section | of the city. He walked along the | residéntial streets, where each house | was brightly lit. Through the win- | dow screens he could see men, wo- | | men and. children at their games, en- Joying to the full the good things of nas season. As he thought v larder at home, and the contained not even a of the e purse which Why should he, who had fought to protect these very homes, have to suffer? Why should his wife, waiting at home in want and pain, have to go without food and clothing while these people had more than they would ever require. In these few moments Bill came nearer to being a Bolshevist than he had ever been. He began to see red, and a plan formed itself in his mind These people were having their | in "rebellion. | Christmas dinners while his wife had | nothing at all. Their pantries were filled with good things, while his own was empty. Gradually his plan took shape. Chasing away the murmur- ings of conscience, Bill stole around to the rear of one of the houses in | front rooms were filled | with a happy, laughing party. ly there would be something in the | shape of provisions in the kitchen, | PUBLIC UTILITIES "Where You Pay Your Elec tric; Gas and Water Accounts" 268 PRINCESS STREET Hydro Irons--6 lbs.--sepa WATCH FOR THE SIGN "HYDRO™ Everything Electrical Sole Agents in this City for: -- 1900 Cataract Washing Machine, with Swinging Wringer. 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Again | opened, and he Sure tree SATURDAY, DECEMBER 18, 1920. ox Tier CLR was the thought stealthily climbed the steps leading to the rear entrance. The kitchen was lit, and through window he saw on thé table ah array of good things, all ready to be taken to the | people who were revelling in their i in.the front of the house. drove him on. The Meg at home drove the of conscience out of his le opened the Kitchen the enjoymen last shred | mind, and | door. | iy | Chap. Il1.--Santa Claus, | With his ears cocked and his eyes | glancing furtively und, Bill crept inside. The table was but a few feet lay such a display of good! cheer of the s Three steps more, that huge goose would be his, { and that pudding. hat would be | enough. One step he took, then ans |cther, and then a cheery burst of | laughter came from the door at the | other end 'of the kitchen, and a man | burst intg the room. He was a young { man, bright with the exertion of the | evening, but Bill noticed at once an | empty coat sleeve which hung loose~ | ly at his side, and the button which he wore in the lapel of his coat, The young man rushed forward, and with his one arm seized Bill by shoulder. Bill turned as if to him, but the syoung fellow son "By Jove, I thought you were never coming, The kids have been | howling for an hour for Santa Claus, and here you have just arrived. Come on upstairs and get dressed up and let's get the fun started." He dragged Bill up the back stairs to a bedroom on the floor above. Bill followed in a daze. What did it all mean? Who did the fellow think he was? He realized that he was ex pected to act the part of Santa Claus, but that was all. Bill's mind works ed quickly, with all the old crafti- ness which had filled it when he faced the Huns in no-man's land, and he made up his mind at once that he | would Carry on He would act the part of Santa Claus. It would be time for explanations when the man whose place he was filling arrived on the scene, or after the party was over. { Then perhaps he might be allowed to take home some of the good things for Meg, in falling into the hands of this young man who seemed to take it for grants {ed that he was the right Santa Claus, In a moment he was left alone in the room, with a Santa Claus outfit laid out all ready for him. ally he put it on, and had just ad- justed his beard whén a knock came at the door. The same young man { opened it and entered. "Fine," he said, when he saw Bill "The children will go crazy with de- Come along this way, and we Bill followed, and went around to the front of the mansion. A window tepped in. The Christmas Tree. His breath almost choked him as he looked around on the splendour of the scene. In one corner of the splen= did room was the largest Christmas 1e had ever seen. It was laden with candies, streamers of red, green (Continued on Page 14.) c pecial quality of High Grade Tungsten Lamps, 10, gen Gas Filled Lamps, Frosted or Clear. Drying Machine, Hot and Cold Massage Machines, E. J. HARTRICK, Representative. How fortunate he had been" in his mind as he's s Mechanie- |