It was afternoon recess at No. 4 District School, in Warner. There was a heavy snow-storm; so every one was in the warm school-room, except a few adventurous spirits who were tumbling about in the snow-drifts out in the yard, getting their clothes wet and preparing themselves for chidings at home. Their shrill cries and shouts of laughter floated into the school-room, but the small group near the stove did not heed them at all. There were five or six little girls and one boy. The girls, with the exception of Jenny Brown, were trim and sweet in their winter dresses and neat school-aprons; they perched on the desks and the arms of the settee with careless grace, like birds. Some of them had their arms linked. The one boy lounged against the blackboard. His dark, straight-profiled face was all aglow as he talked. His big brown eyes gazed now soberly and impressively at Jenny, then gave a gay dance in the direction of the other girls.

PORTLAND, Ore. — As December approaches, it may be Christmas tree prices that get trimmed instead of the trees themselves, as supply outstrips demand this holiday season.

It takes 5 to 10 years before trees are large enough for the living room, and record-high prices in the early part of this decade persuaded farmers to invest in Christmas trees.

That means many of those plants are reaching maturity at a time when consumers are tight-fisted and enticed away by artificial trees.

As a result, a 7-foot-tall noble fir that sold wholesale for $25-$39 a few years ago will fetch maybe half that this Christmas season.

A conservative pro-family group is urging Christians to boycott Gap, Old Navy and Banana Republic from now until December 25 for “censoring” the word Christmas in its ad commercials and promotions.

The American Family Association said that despite “tens of thousands of consumer requests to recognize Christmas” and requests by the organization, San Francisco-based Gap Inc. has refused to use the word.

“Christmas is special because of Jesus,” maintains AFA in its e-mail newsletter. “It’s not just a ‘winter holiday.’ For millions of Americans the giving and receiving of gifts is in honor of the One who gave Himself.