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Greetings The publishers of the Milford Chronicle, your friends have made the Milford Chronicle what it is newspaper, extend In all sincerity, the wish to its today, _ ' _J readers and friends that this may be the happiest of all glad Christmas seasons, and that your cup may be filled to overflowing is only one-hundredth part of the good things hoped for you on this occasion. It has been our privilege and pleasure to pro duce for you the best paper we knew how; to give to the people of Milford and lower Delaware a news paper of which you might justly be proud. Our efforts have been directed to furnishing the best to befitting that we should express our appreciation in be had in local news, and it is with an unselfish view this manner, of the situation that we are hoping for your verdict We owe what success we have accomplished to our friends, and subscribers—to you. who in the past have shown such friendliness, such generosity and such staunch support. The publishers deeply appreciate the friends the Milford Chronicle has made. At this time, when the spirit of Christmas pre vails, when the gladsome period of gift-giving is uppermost in the minds of the people, it is only We wish for you and yours the happiest Christ that we have accomplished this task. The helpful*» mas ol^your lives» and in so doing» we say it is from ness and many acts of kindness on the part of our the bottom of our heart. ROW Sermon in Korea Cited The Real Gift of Christmas  group of 60 or more Americans gathered un obtrusively in a hut of a prisoner of war camp in Korea on Christmas Day, 1962. Lieutenant Robert J. O'Shea, a Marine, was chosen by his fellow prisoners to give the ser mon. Rather let us stop and think about the best Christ mas present of all. The grift that we, and all man kind, received on that first Christmas almost 2,000 years ago. The eternal gift of the Infant Jesus, the gift of the perpetual help of Jesus Christ on earth. "We can have a very merry Christmas today if we remember that as Christians. No matter where we are and no matter what circumstance we are living under, we are commemorating the best poss ible Christmas gift We are remembering that we Christians are the most fortunate of men, because we have the presence of Jesus 'Christ. So today, let us put aside all thoughts of our personal discomforts. Let us forget for today our loneliness, the absence of those dear to us. And let's spend the day glorifying God and singing His praises, and we will have a happy Christmas re membering and enjoying the presence of Jesus Christ Who is with us always—even unto the end of the world." This is what the 28-year-old Marine said: "Today is the feast of the Nativity; the anni versary of the birth of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ Today, possibly for the first time in our lives we will celebrate Christmas properly—because here, to this North Korean prison camp, apart from the tinsel and commercialism that we usually associate with Christmas we can see the true meaning, the spiritual meaning of Christmas. ; Christmas is the beginning of an era. It marks the bèginning of the Christian • era on earth. The birth of Christ was the fulfilment of the promise made to Moses by God the Father when He said that He would send His Son to earth to save the world. And Christmas is the living proof of the existence of God and of the Divinity of Jesus Christ. I • I I O'Shea, a Marine observer, was captured in July, 1951, after his plane crashed. The story of the service, and his "sermon" were told by O'Shea's 'I say the 'living proof' because Jesus Christ is father-in-law, James H. Allen. living. He is alive today. He is with us today. He Is with us right now. Allen said that the 60 to 75 Americans in Camp No. 2 at Obul, North Korea had decided to hold the Christmas service. Their Communist captors, after first turning down a request for permission to sing Latin hymns, granted permission for the service and O'Shea as the senior officer was designated to conduct it. A Catholic, without any special theological training, O'Shea wrote out his thoughts on strips of paper he had been hoarding to roll into ciga rettes. . "We in this group are more keenly aware of the presence of Jesus Christ on earth than ordinary men—because we have been alone with Him. At the time of our capture and during the events lead ing up to our capture we weye, alone with Him. "Our parents could not help us at that time, as much as they would have liked to. They were not present. Our friends in battle, our companions In action, were too busy with their own fighting, their own dying if you please, to help in our hour of need. "But there was one Friend Who was there and could help us. That Friend was Jesus Christ And • He did not let us down; He came through for us. I felt His presence at that time. And I'm sure that all of us had much the same experience. "Today let us not concern ourselves with the material presents that are lacking this Christmas. i i On Christmas Day the group went to the hut, sang a hymn or two, listened to O'Shea, then went back to their barracks. On Christmas Day, 1953, O'Shea was with his wife abd their twin sons, who were born three weeks before his capture, at the home of his par ents, Brigadiër General and Mrs. George J. O'Shea, of Fort Lauderdale, Florida. O'Shea is now a captain. I I * Those Old-Fashioned Winters * There's no denying that winter Isn't what it used to be. Grandfather insists upon it, and grand father is more right than even he thinks he is. He thinks largely in terms of weather. And whether there is a change in the climate is a matter still under debate; but there is no question about cer tain other matters. Particularly out beyond the urban centers, out where grandfather spent the early years and still has ^is memories rooted. flitch^ in the pantry, mixed buckwheat batter, cooked breakfast. By the light from a kerosene lamp. Af terward she washed the dishes in a dishpan, with soap she had made from grease and ashes back iq October. Then she had to clean and polish the lamp globes, tfim the wicks, fill the lamps with kero sene, clean and fill the lanterns, and start dinner. Her feet were cold. The windows were steamed and frosted. By keeping a roaring fire in the cook stove and the chunk stove in the other room she could, on most^days, raise the house temperature to a point where she couldn't quite see her own breath. Grand father is full of stories about winter, them are rather cold accounts, if we ex amine them even casually. There was the morning —a good many mornings, in fact—when he went out on the front porch and found that the thermometer registered below zero. Whereupon he got into his felt boots, his two pairs of pants, his heaviest woolen shirt, his muffler, his sheep-lined coat, his mittens fifteen minutes. Till his hands were half frozen, till and went out to the barn. He had to hack a hole In the ice at the watering trough. He milked by hand. He carried the milk to the house. He brought In firewood by the armload. By that time grand mother had a kettle of boiling water, so he took it out to the pump, .thawed the pump, drew enough water to last the* household through the day. Then he ate breakfast A winter day had begun. Mott Grandfather had his fun, of course. He could go to the pond or river andtcut Ice, and haul It to the ice house and pack It In sawdust or straw. A Joyful occupation, full of shouts and laughter—for about somebody fell in, till one of the horses slipped on the ice. Or he could shovel snow. Or roll the snow on the road to the highway, so he could get out the bobsled or cutter and go to town for salt and sugar and coffee. Or haul hay. Or hitch the horse to the grinder and grind more feed for the cattle. ' Or batcher a hog. Or, a few times each season, go hunting. And between times he could watch the thermometer. Grandmother, of course, could knit, or piece a quilt, or churn butter, or braid rags for a new rug. But shortly after dinner she had to start supper, and put the bricks to heat to warm the beds that night Grandmother hadn't much time to mope or think she was underprivileged. Nowadays, out where grandfather's remembrance is rooted, winters aren't the same. The countryside is laced with electric power lines. There is a gaso line tank with its own pump on the farm, and a fuel oil tank beside the house. The water pump runs by electricity. The watering trough has its own heating unit, and no ice. The ice house is a relic. There's mechanical refrigerator in the kitchen, and a deep freeze full of vegetables and vitamins. There's furnace and a sink and a water heater and a bath room. There are lights obedient to a thumb switch, in the barn as well as thé house. There's an electric milker, a mechanical feed conveyor, a mechanical barn cleaner. There's a tractor with a snowplow clear the barnyard, and a truck and a car which can, and usually do, go to town every day. The car has its own heater and radio. There's a radio in the barn as well as one in the bouse, often .a television in the living room. There may be an electric blanket on the bed. Grandfather's memories are largely accurate. He recites them with a fondness that amounts nostalgia. He lived those days and he knows that winter should have its hardships. Where are those hardships today? Gone with the winters of the past. They call it hardship today when the Snowplow two hours late or an electric line comes down. Grandfather is right, of course; but he ignores a thing or two. Winter never did consist entirely weather. Whether temperatures have eased or not, or snowfall diminishted, winter has changed. For winter always has and always will be compounded many matters, and most of those matters hare been reVised since grandfather looked at that thermom eter and whistled admiringly at his own hardihood. Grandmother is not without her memories, too. She got up to a frigid house, dressed in the cold, her teeth chattering, went down to the kitchen, built a fire in the cook stove, and started breakfast The kitchen water pail was frozen almost solid. She thawed ice, backed strips of bacon from a frozen MILFORD CHRONICLE ESTABLISHED OCTOBER 4. 187« HEO TOWNSEND Editor and Proprietor from 1878 to 1810 MILFORD CHRONICLE PUBLISHING COMPANY w TO M apura WEST FROin*fcTR*rr MILFORD, DELAWARE PUBUSHXHS O. Marshall Townsend Virginia 'S. Townsend. Theodore Townsend.... .President .Vice-President Secretary-Treasurer Q. Marshal! Robert H. Yerkea Townsend. .Editor Managing Editor Exclusive National Advertising Representative Greater Weeklies New York - Chicago - Detroit - Philadelphia Subscription Terms Br Mall—In Dataware, «S.M a Tsar OotsMs of Delaware, »}.eo a Tsar Copied. Six Cents P—ONE—MILFORD 4521 Address all communications to the Milford Chronicle . Publishing Company, Milford, Delaware post ofTlo* it Mtlfocd, D»l.. under Set of March 3 , in» DELAWARE'S JADING WEEKLY NEWSPAPER * . Chronicle 1« Delaware's largest weekly W "umber of pages printed, volume of news carried, and lineage of advertising pre sented each Issue. AH advertising is sold on a basis of a guaranteed circulation of over 7,000 copies eac h Issue. MEMBER OP THE ASSOCIATED PRESS The Associated Press Is entitled exclusively to the use tor republication of all the local news printed in this newspaper, as well as all AP news dispatches. FRIDAY, DECEMBER 24, 1954 a is of the as we of to É \ 7Ä IS? £ ;; pc* V if f* A Merry Xmas To All ms This is the wish of every member of the staff of the [V £ 4 f ' MILFORD CHRONICLE I iA\ t The Nativity St. Luke 2 : 1-19 1. And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that all the world should be taxed. 2. (And this taxing was first made when Cyre nius was governor of Syria.) 3. And all went to be taxed, every one into his own city. 4. And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city 6f Nazareth, into Judaea, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehêm ; (because he was of the house and lineage of David:) 5. To be taxed with Mary his espoused wife, being great with child. • 6. And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered. 7. And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes', and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn. 8. And there were in the same country shep herds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. 11. For unto you is born this day in the city of David, a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. 12. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. 13. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, 14. Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men. 15. And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another. Let us go now even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us. 16. And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger. 17. And when they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying which was told them con cerning this child. x 18. And all they that heard it wondered at those things which were told them by the shep herds. And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them, and they were sore afraid. 10. And the angel said unto them, Fear not: 9. 19. But Mary kept all these things, and pond ered them in her heart. it Is Christmas: 'Let Nothing You Dismay!' God rest you merry, gentlemen, Let nothing you dismay . . . On Christmas Day, there is no room for such a quaking emotion as dismay. From the pre-dawn ing when the house is firmly awakened by the youngest toddler clamoring for the Big Day to begin, until pleasant exhaustion sets in hour later, fears and apprehensions have no place. It is a soul bracing day, a day to take courage, a day to look around and find our trampled world not so bad a place to live in after all. Christmas is joy and faith and loving kindness. It is hope rising on a Star. It is good will to men. It is a wish to make others happy. One look at a child's Christmas morning eyes ought to be enough to banish gloom for at least an other year. Who can feel the weight of the world on his back as he watches a little boy, poised on a stairway as on the brink of some majestic mystery, treasuring the revealed wonders of his first Christ mas tree? Is there excitement anywhere to equal that of children opening with hands and eyes their Christmas packages? The dismay that the carolers reject is sure ly missing at the family reunions and feasting that are as much a part of Christmas els holly wreaths and the scent of spruce in the living room. - , Whether the table is heavy-laden, or the por tions are less than sumptuous, are matters of no importance. It is Christmas, and every mouthful is a delight and every smile and speech are festive. The cares and threats of life outside have no change of denting the family circle on Christmas Day. And where is the joyous spirit of the day more manifest than in family worship of the Babe Who gives all meaning to the feast? Whether in the church of our choice, or in the family group at home, or in the privacy of our own hearts, there is given exultant glory to God in prayers and hymns and thanksgiving. No dismay, no despair, no worldly disillusion ment. But above all, faith in salvation, and thanks to God for His gift of Christmas. , ... Remember, Christ our Saviour Was born this Christmas Day. a is of of Merry Christmas! Peace And Goodwill Our imperfect calendar confuses things a bit, but the fact remains that in our northern climes, Christiap or pagan, the holiday we celebrate tomor row marks the beginning of a new life. The sun, which rules the world, has reached its nadir. From now on it begins to climb. No wonder we rejoice. Moreover, it is fitting that the day be devoted first and foremost to children. This is true not only because of the happy convention which places the birth of the Infant Jesus at this time but also be cause all children symbolize the miracle of life renewed. The Wise Men from the East did not know, perhaps, the whole significance of the Star they followed, but they knew it was a Child they sought and appropriately they brought-gifts to lay before Him. Our Christmas celebration is and in its very nature ought to be primarily our Festival of Peace. It commemorates the birth of the Prince of Peace. The first Christmas greeting, delivered to the shep herds by the "multitude of the heavenly host," was "Peace on earth, goodwill toward men." At first glance, therefore, it may seem strange that our mode of celebration centers so largely around the act of giving. One would think that the Peace Birthday would be contemplative rather than exuberantly expressive, as it usually is. Meditation and reflection would seem more in order than the "merry" exchange of greetings and gifts. Such a view would, however, disregard the deep er meanings of peace itself. In troubled times such as these it is only natural to think of peace in a negative sense—as the mere absence of strife. In this way we speak of an "uneasy" peace; that is, a peace that may at any moment be shattered. We speak of "safeguards" for peace, in the sense of pro hibitions and interdictions. One of the wonders of the day is the manner in which all the tales—those which have the sanc tion of Christian faith and those which have absorbed and assimilated all the pagan and apochryphal leg ends—fit together Into so beautiful a pattern. Even the remnants of the Roman saturalia (which some But true peàce Is not a mechanical or legal thing profess to find in our addiction to feasting at this in the proper sense. It is a human thing. It is not time of year) have somehow been dives'ted of their merely the absence of overt hostility. It is rather grosser aspects and brought into conformity with an attitude of human beings toward one another, our more comely beliefs. Fraser's "Golden Bough,'' It is made up,>not of mandates and proscriptions, but with its overtones of N grisly sacrifice, has been mira- of trust and hope and joy. culously transformed into a glittering symbol of It is this aspect of peace that our acts of giving generous life, laden with gifts for everyone, espe- can symbolize. They add warmth and tenderness to dally the young. 0 ur relations with each other. They express the Let us grant that peril stalks abroad in the desire to share In good things and to have satisfac world. Let us grant that evil possesses the mind and souls of many men and that there are those who are so~blind that they do not understand the upsurge of hope which is crystalized into such beautiful ^orms on this Day of Days. We of this faith and this civilization can pity them for they know not of what they deprive themselves. Let us rather rejoice in the Christmas tradition which is our birthright No people in all history has greater reason to under stand the significance of this day. tlon In them together. This need. In no sense, crowd out the contemplation and reflection. It can, indeed, give that reflection an even broader ground. The very desire to give, of one's substance and of one's self, is the expression of an unconscious understanding that if we are to have peace and joy we must have It through our relations to others. For peace Is a positive thing, and it was no accident that the angels in that first greeting coupiied it with goodwill toward our fellow men. The True Christmas The brightness of Christmas is mysterious brightness, as its joy something distinct from all other of the year. This uniqueness Christmas is something to be savored and appreciated as its su preme quality. We sometimes hear people say: "If only the Christmas spirit could extend through every day!" But isn't that a little like wishing that the àtar at the top of tree were a real star, and that each gift were as rare and costly its wrappings make it seem to Something fanciful—in the deepest sense something miracu lous-makes Christmas what it is; we surely celebrate it most fittingly when we yield to the idea of its being apart from everything else in our experi ence. The Christmas story is full of beautiful surprise. On the surface see an ordinary tale unfold— just as any child, this very morning could have seemed to be getting out an ordinary bed and going down an ordinary living room. Yet In fact everything is changed and new. The stable where the Christ was born becomes unlike any other sta that ever existed in the world; very stars are out of their courses, and the men who find their way to Bethlehem are transformed the journey. Wisdom is made humble, which is no less remark able than that meanness (as in Dic kens' great tale) should be made kind. The lesson of all this' is not that an end has come to the fund of the world's failures and short-com ings, but that one birth, one day— perhaps one great conviction or re solve—can strike through every thing that is commonplace and make It shine with light. The light fades, reality returns; but this does not make the glory any the less profound. To have once known what life at its best can be is to move henceforth with a hew certainty. Those who had seen the Infant Christ went away as men with a secret in the heart; and so every child today, and everf person who in some part of him re tains a child's faculty for wonder and surprise, is armored against shocks or disappointments that may come after. The Christmas spirit is not a sentimental cheerful ness of a day or season; it is the awareness of having experienced a transcendent emotion—of having seen a star or knelt before a mang er, or in the house where one lives of having seen a tree lit with unim aginable glow. This apprehension of beauty is the true Christmas; this quick piercing joy is what makes the day unforgettable in so many lives and lands. it Faith Is The Substance . n Across the cold, roseate dawn the Yuletide which to pagans be tokened a new day and to Chris tians a new freedom from fear, doubt and disillusionment and cyn icism cast their shadows today. We wonder what Christ would say were He to walk amongst us as all too many pay only lip service to His teachings? There is default in those whose minds have failed to grasp that public office is a public trust and there is lack of ethics among those who should make private enter prise a challenge to all other sys tems. In bribery, as in a kiss, it takes two to consummate the deal. These unsavory situations have marked the tumultuous and expand ing growth of our democracy, al most since its birth, and no politi cal party has ever escaped con tamination. What should encourage us is that now an alert press and slowly awakened public con sciousness guarantees correction. Beyond this domestic problem | there is the world situation in I which we are forced to assume | leadership for all nations which are I still free. Destiny has marked this 1 trail for us and we would be recrc- 1 ant to those leaders who founded our democracy and those who have guided it through dark days of despair, if we allowed ourselves to become obsessed with fear of ag gressors and suspicious of one an other. We have been overslow in taking counsel of our own capacity to defend our ideals and it is high time we learned anew that God made man to walk erect Life is short, honor is long. At this season when we think of one another with love and the impulses of all are warmed by the beauty that is in the Spirit of Christmas, let us try to banish those thoughts which weaken our better selves and ^bove all renew our faith in our own high purpose and the strength of our nation. T The Christmas Legend One of the joys of Christmas Eve stars, seeing this from above, gent —even though some men may gruf- ly descended from the heavens and fly attempt to deny it—is the task rested themselves on its boughs as of decorating the tree. The home is center of happy confusion during this operation, especially if th are young children about, trying to be helpful. Difiicult moments are bound to occur when the tree re fuses to fit properly into the stand and when the set of lights purchas ed new last year cannot be found. But eventually these minor obsta cles are overcomes and the family night is Christmas Eve. stands back to admire its produc tion, just as the artist stands at arm's length to view the beauteous effect of his seascape. The use of the Christmas tree is attributed by some to the ancient belief that trees blossomed on the night of the Na tivity, while others relate the leg end of St. Joseph of Arimathea, which tells that when the saint an offering. This, the. legend re lates, pleased the Christ Child geratly and was the origin of the first Christmas tree. In another week the family Christmas tree will begin to sag slightly and withered needles will sprinkle upon the liv ing room rug. but tonight it will be the center of attraction in all its sparkling, colorful glory. For to ere And beneath the tree, gifts. The older members of the family may be inclined to accept their presents with feigned surprise developed by too many Christmases. But not so the children. This is the time they have impatiently awaited. They will go to bed tonight wity the sup pressed excitement that can never . be recaptured by those who have settled at Glastonbury in England, outgrown that wonderland of chlld he planted his staff in the earth and hood . Meanwhile, in the cellar, or it put forth leaves, blooming on the garage, the man of the bouse is Christmas Eve. completing his annual struggle with the bicycles and carriages and doll houses to be assembled. The toys are put together, finally, with a little improvising, and placed be neath the tree. Now the stage is set and before many hours> the sun will rise on Christmas morning. It was worth a year of waiting. But perhaps the most beautiful legend of all relates that when Christ was born an olive tree, a date palm and a pine tree stood about the manger. To honor the child, the olive gave its fruit and the palm its dates as offerings, but the pine had nothing to give. Some Peace There is one strange and forever heartening factor in the thought and aspirations of mankind. It is repre sented by the one word, peace, which exists in all languages. So we come to solemn celebration this week of One whose very name comes down to us through the cen turies as the Great Advocate of Peace. We celebrate His birth, as we have celebrated it for centuries. We remember, with awe and rever ence, the storied song from the heavens which echoed on the night of His birth: On earth peace, good will toward men. We celebrate, with light and gaiety and gift and prayer; and we echo the words: On earth peace. You can count on the fingers of one hand those persons well re member so long, to hold in such en during reverence, is one of the most satisfying attributes of our race. Other philosophies come and go, and back we turn time and time again to that one which dwelt upon the dignity of the individual and the sanctity of the soul. For there lies the heart of our belief, the core of our undying aspiration. There, in the deep and abiding love which is the very foundation of peace. They come and go, the kings, the captains, t^ie conquerors, and still we venerate the name of Jesus and the teachings In His name. His is at once one of the simplest and, over the generations, one of the most difficult to abide by. Yet we cling to it. and we try to live by it. And so we celebrate and membered over two thousand years remember and rededlcate our whose life and doctrine could be | selves, hoping and working and be summed up in those words. To re- I lieving. Rootin'-Tootin' Christmas \ Judging by the displays in the stores and the demands of the kid dles, repeated with that nerve-shat tering insistence that is a mark of childhood, this is going to be a gun totin', hard-ridin*, rootin's-tootin' Christmas. The Wild West haïs taken over— wilder and woollier than It ever was in real life. Thanks to those westerns on TV and the radio, the kiddies wouldn't be found dead with ordinary toys, much less the sugar plums they're supposed to dream about They want guns, holsters, chaps, high-heeled boots and all the rest of it, so that they can emulate their current heroes. Unfortunately, it doesn't end there. It's getting so that it's hard to buy a junior-sized tooth-brush or comb without a picture of a cowboy displaying that combination of ruth lessness, ruggedness and purity of heart that seems to impress the kids. So Christmas morning won't be a time for traditional childish squeals of pleasure at getting a set of building blocks or a drum. It will be a time when the air is rent with cries of "reach!" followed by light ning-swift draws from^ those hols ters Santa Claus has left. For Santa knows what is good for him, and if he can't lick this trend, which is obvious, the best he can do is to join i(. Burden Or Blessing That eavesdroppers hear no good memories. Perhaps the season of themselves is a well established means to them nothing more than a fact It was Christmas that an un- fairly even exchange of material gifts. Our wish for them is that this year they may discover what Christmas is. , I Many more of us need to remind * ourselves that Christmas is a time of gifts because of thé great gift that made the first Christmas. The wise men brought their gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrhs Some measure of wisdom will be ours when we realize that "It is more blessed to gîte than lo receive. intentional eavesdropper heard no good of, in a v local store last Sat urday. They appeared to be house wives, those two who spoke of Christmas as a burden and a bore, who agreed they would be glad when it was all over. We feel sorry for them, those two complaining housewives. They miss something very precious who do not know the "wonder" of Christmas. Perhaps they have no Christmas * » s