Here Comes Santa Claus ~ excerpts from CHRISTMAS IN ONTARIO*
In Ontario, the tradition of visiting Santa at a store goes back to the late 1800's. In some cases, he was an invisible presence ~ one Toronto bookstore billed itself as Santa's depository for gifts. But stores that featured a real live Santa had a definite edge, especially if his arrival was marked by a special event.
The most special event of all was Eaton's annual Santa Claus parade, which started in 1905. Prior to that time, Santa was enthroned in the Toronto department store's Toyland.

"This compilation brings to life the very best holiday stories from across Ontario." ~ Cheryl MacDonald

Cheryl has been writing about Canadian history for nearly thirty years. A long-time resident of Nanticoke, she is a full-time writer and historian.

*Available in The Neat Little Bookshop $9.95

"A composer friend, visiting Heine, found the poet at his desk gloomily surveying a blank page. Asked what the trouble was, Heine replied, "Well, I just met X in the street, I stopped for a moment to exchange ideas, and now I feel like a complete idiot."

~ Heinrich Heine (1797 - 1856), After 1831 he lived in Paris, where he was involved in radical political journalism, wrote essays on French and German culture, and composed satirical verse.
THE LITTLE, BROWN BOOK OF Anecdotes, Clifton Fadiman, 1985