"In 1897, on the advice of her father, eight-year-old Virginia O’Hanlon wrote a short, inquisitive letter to the editor of New York’s since-defunct newspaper, The Sun, in which she sought confirmation of Santa Claus’ existence. The paper’s editor, Francis P. Church, soon replied to Virginia’s letter by way of an editorial, titled Is There a Santa Claus?, which went on to become, and in fact remains to this day, the most reprinted English-language editorial in history, and which has since spawned numerous adaptations." - Shaun Usher
"Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus. He exists as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist, and you know that they abound and give to your life its highest beauty and joy. Alas! how dreary would be the world if there were no Santa Claus. It would be as dreary as if there were no VIRGINIAS. There would be no childlike faith then, no poetry, no romance to make tolerable this existence. We should have no enjoyment, except in sense and sight. The eternal light with which childhood fills the world would be extinguished." - Francis P. Church
Article: Yes, Virginia, There is a Santa Claus.
|
|
