6 lines · 91 words · 0:26 read aloud
The Sweet Shop That Invented Crackers
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That snap at Christmas dinner started in a London sweet shop.
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In the 1840s, a confectioner named Tom Smith saw sugared almonds wrapped in twists of paper in Paris.
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He copied the idea back home and tucked little love notes inside the wrappers.
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Sales were slow, until he added a strip that popped when you pulled it apart.
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Later came paper hats, tiny toys and jokes so bad they became part of the fun.
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So this year, when the cracker snaps and the joke is terrible, you know who to thank.
