The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1873-12-30
A CHR1sTmAs STORY.
!" BY yHE ADOPTION OF COB"

Scrcggs qua MoSSs gov euA' ""5 '--
great Surprise. ,.. 40
The kennel peighbors the grand LOUIS,
life was transacted IN TOUT stol.ss
Of stone; bIoggs's In two OF wood. ectossss
nmS naonle wbispered about its contents
mnd.r their breath. Moggs's wife and child
lived on salary of forty dollars month,
and IN holiday times were actually all astir
with excitement, secrets, and surprises, ana
intentions about gifts. THE miserable crea.
tures whose whole years income coulo not
have purchased Scroges's watch, we VIII say y
Scrorrs was in no excitement rs ne came
down The street, except that he haa l'lst
"Ciyen piece Of bis mind y TO neleunoi
whom he met loaded with holiday bundles,
and found 1t satisfactory. :.
"No, sir" he said. 81 do not believe IN
holidays. / found myself on scrosgs. i
consider that when Dickens drew tnat man
he had stumbled on q truly strong ana SEN
sible character. and, like many another man,
did not understand his own creation. an
the talk and sentiment about charity ana the
season is wash; and the experience OF these
latter DAYS is proving il such. The bread
that YOU put into one set Of mouths you
take out of another. The true way is to let
things alone. Then those who are ht to I'VE
will live. and those who are not will 90 the
best possible thing for them, and die"
"But, Mr.. Scroggs,"- neighbor much
shocked" don't you believe that the hoil-
la,s mean anything:" ,.
aMcan anything!" with sardonlc grin.
" Certainly ; they mean presents 10 my VIE,
children. and servants, that | must give 10
keep the peace. That is What they mean
for everybody. Ii there was any one whose
position entitled me to demand IT., Wouia
remind him of the existence OF tue holidays'
and he would understand me at once is an
other case Of what you can get. My gear
sir, what is the use Of mincinS matters
What you can get rules the world. IN oilc
shape or another what you can get rucs ''ie
world"
"Oh!v said the man Of bundles; and
thon ,ftcr an uncomfortable pause, GOOD
morning" He had spied turning, and 1t
would take him half mile out Of his way ];
but he made for it with an evident air OF
relief.
Scroces looked after him and chuckled.
l." 7 ave him Dose" he remarked approx
in0ly TO himself; and then the chuckle
ceased RI her suddenly. He was conscious
of such IA odd sensation all over him-a
irving out-a faintness. he clutched at
post--missed it; his knees bent; he fe4l in
a heap just by DIoggs's door.
His neIt consciousness was OF "a bed on
which he was lying in room rag.carpeted
and warmed by cooking =
room. But such jolly fire! And neat
woman was laying slices of ham in long
handled frying-pan. Some women have an
air of home in their very collars and the scr
of their skirts. This was one OF them, anu
| Morcs's wife. 4 man was mailing some
green boughs over door; that was Mog9s.
4 boy held the nails aud watched proceed
| iprs head on one side, and nightly IN
terested; that was their child. Mrs. hiogg>
was interested also, from her post by the
! stove.
| alt is like the woods" she suid, "nud
seems TO make out that everything is not all
bought and sold at the corner shop. like
it,"
Morgs put in another nail with the ait OF
| man far away in thought, and said, a!lhoSt
as if to himself:
Maggie, have you spent that five dollars
yetw
His wife laughed.
II waited tor you, Richard. There is thc
dinner to be decided about. Turkey sounds
| like holidays. but beei--tasteS---and then -
! "Wcll---then repeated AlosSs. The
| look on his face was very grave, quite dill
| fcrcnt from the smile that his wife turned
| toward him.
| DWELL. think" pursued Mrs. MogSs, III
tent on tlc ham, an. unobseryaEt Of her
| husband, "there is nothing quite so agra
yatiuv as a fye.doliar note-sometimes. We
| are tigli;.shoc people, and suppose we are
! ALWAYS to hobblc through life pinched and
smiling and ! am willing, when we have so
| mich happiness in besides. Only, once Ill ::
| while. as now, we all want thick shoes and
warm undcr-clothing. And there is Old Mi>s
| Felton-thiuk of her sitting al alone, With
out chick or child, over bread and Tea ut this
season. do so want TO ask her 10 dinner.
| T supDose it is natural, too, 10 want to make
Harry n prcseBt-what child goes Withou.
Now, how is one to do all that on. . tire-dol :
| lar note. | feel sometimes as il i could
| tear or pull the miserable bill, and make it
! ten times five at tho least
"Macgie, have you thought s-Noggs
Rrked lis thumb here toward the beG.
nThought- abo2t that man."
Mrs. Moggs was smiling nc longer.
NIou heard the doctor. The MAE has
| n ,ralysis. He is incapable even of gesture.
No one knows him. BE has 10 pociet-book
and no cards. The doctor has promis &c to
ascertain something if possible; but mean
while We"
Wel?" and there was look far FROM
pleasant in Mrs. Mogss's eyes as she looked
up iuquiringly.
&" lie has fallen at our door," pursued
now BY the adoption Of God. And the
medicines and beef tea and wine that the
doctor orders"
1--WE are to buy them? say MOI" ill.,
terrupted Mrs. Moggs, angrily. " If no one
knows him, send HIM to the pocr-house till
he is claimed"
"The doctor said that the removal would
be death you heard him."
swell, he has lived his life. He will only
be useless and helpless now; a burden Oh
others. Maybe the best thing he can do is
to die"
"Do unto others rs We would"
"That means," she cried, passionateiy.
give up our dinner on which we have
counted for months. Disappoint Harry,
who has talked. of his Christmas for mouths:
Make our holidays pinched and bleak ana
bare, like the rest Of our lives, when every
one else is rejoicing. And what ~ouio
Christmas be like then ?"
GAY! what would it be? n Christmas
without Christ. The day Eept, ane its
Lord despsed in the person of this stran
GER" returned Moggs, gently.
There was q little silence. Then mrs.
Moggs got up and kissed her HUSBAND.
Richard, you are an angel in shaoDy
coat. But why should he have fallen at our
door? The Lubecks ut the corner there are
rich. Now we have pinched ourselves lor
weeks. and. Do AZ you like, but it Is So"
A sob stopped her.
Then the man lying dumb on the bed was