1
00:00:00,760 --> 00:00:07,639
Speaker 1: Christmas Trees a Christmas circular letter. The city had withdrawn

2
00:00:07,719 --> 00:00:11,919
into itself and left at last the country to the country,

3
00:00:13,080 --> 00:00:16,719
when between worlds of snow not come to lie, and

4
00:00:16,800 --> 00:00:21,239
worlds of foliage not yet laid there drove a stranger

5
00:00:21,280 --> 00:00:25,199
to our yard, who looked the city, yet did in

6
00:00:25,280 --> 00:00:29,640
country fashion in that There he sat and waited till

7
00:00:29,640 --> 00:00:33,200
he drew us out a buttoning coats to ask him

8
00:00:33,280 --> 00:00:36,840
who he was. He proved to be the city, come

9
00:00:36,920 --> 00:00:41,159
again to look for something it had left behind and

10
00:00:41,280 --> 00:00:45,679
could not do without and keep its Christmas. He asked

11
00:00:45,719 --> 00:00:49,439
if I could sell my Christmas trees, my woods, the

12
00:00:49,520 --> 00:00:54,119
young fir Balsams like a place where houses all were

13
00:00:54,240 --> 00:00:58,240
churches and have spires. I hadn't thought of them as

14
00:00:58,320 --> 00:01:01,600
Christmas trees. I doubt if I was tempted for a

15
00:01:01,640 --> 00:01:04,239
moment to sell them off their feet, to go in

16
00:01:04,400 --> 00:01:08,439
cars and leave the slope behind the house all bare,

17
00:01:09,120 --> 00:01:12,280
where the sun shines now no warmer than the moon,

18
00:01:13,439 --> 00:01:15,879
I'd hate to have them know it. If I was

19
00:01:17,280 --> 00:01:20,519
yet more, I'd hate to hold my trees, except as

20
00:01:20,640 --> 00:01:24,799
others hold theirs, or refuse for them beyond the time

21
00:01:24,959 --> 00:01:29,799
of profitable growth. The trial by market. Everything must come

22
00:01:29,840 --> 00:01:35,680
to I dallied so much with the thought of selling. Then,

23
00:01:35,959 --> 00:01:40,439
whether from mistaken courtesy and fear of seeming short of speech,

24
00:01:40,959 --> 00:01:44,120
or whether from hope of hearing good of what was mine,

25
00:01:44,760 --> 00:01:49,760
I said, there aren't enough to be worth while. I

26
00:01:49,799 --> 00:01:53,359
could soon tell how many they would cut you. Let

27
00:01:53,400 --> 00:01:58,280
me look them over. You could look, but don't expect

28
00:01:58,359 --> 00:02:02,840
I'm going to let you have them. Pasture. They spring in,

29
00:02:03,480 --> 00:02:06,799
some in clumps too close that lop each other of boughs,

30
00:02:07,400 --> 00:02:10,960
but not a few, quite solitary, and having equal bows

31
00:02:11,080 --> 00:02:15,560
all round and round the latter. He nodded, yes too,

32
00:02:16,159 --> 00:02:20,439
or paused to say, beneath some lovelier one with a

33
00:02:20,479 --> 00:02:26,280
buyer's moderation, that would do. I thought so too, but

34
00:02:26,680 --> 00:02:30,400
wasn't there to say so. We climbed the pasture on

35
00:02:30,439 --> 00:02:34,000
the south, crossed over, and came down to the north.

36
00:02:34,759 --> 00:02:41,080
He said, a thousand, a thousand Christmas trees. At what

37
00:02:41,240 --> 00:02:45,719
a piece. He felt some need of softening that to me,

38
00:02:47,039 --> 00:02:51,680
a thousand trees would come to thirty dollars. Then I

39
00:02:51,840 --> 00:02:54,879
was certain I had never meant to let him have them,

40
00:02:55,520 --> 00:03:01,319
never show surprise. But thirty dollars seemed so small beside

41
00:03:01,319 --> 00:03:05,680
the extent of pasture, I should strip three cents, for

42
00:03:05,840 --> 00:03:10,080
that was all they figured out a piece three cents

43
00:03:10,120 --> 00:03:13,639
so small besides the dollar friends I should be writing

44
00:03:13,680 --> 00:03:17,240
to within the hour would pay in cities for good

45
00:03:17,280 --> 00:03:22,520
trees like those regular vestry trees whole Sunday schools could

46
00:03:22,560 --> 00:03:27,039
hang enough on to pick off enough a thousand Christmas trees.

47
00:03:27,080 --> 00:03:30,840
I didn't know I had worth three cents more to

48
00:03:30,960 --> 00:03:34,759
give away than to sell, as many be shown by

49
00:03:34,759 --> 00:03:39,759
a simple calculation. Too bad I couldn't lay one in

50
00:03:39,840 --> 00:03:43,719
a letter. I can't help wishing I could send you

51
00:03:43,840 --> 00:03:48,039
one in wishing you herewith a merry Christmas