San Marcos free press. [volume] (San Marcos, Tex.) 1877-1892, 1882-12-21
AUNT JUDITH'S STOCKING.
A Boys Christmas story.
BY Mrs. NJ. l.. Rayne.

there ever will come q Christmas tina
we boys won't laugh when we thin
of what Aunt Judith got in her stock
ing?
You see, though she was mother
sister, she wasn't bit like her-well
should say not. She was just puck
cred up with meanness, and hated boy
worse than poison and gave us no enc
of racket. Why, if We left on
shoes in the middle of the floor, she'C
till them full of sand, and hide on
caps when we forgot to hang them up
and sweep our marbles away, anc
make lasses candy when we werent
home, and we didn't have any peace
of mind under our own fathers roof
and she was held up to us all the time
like kind of saint: Your dear Aunt
Judith" Your poor Aunt Judith
and she marching over us like gren'
nydeer, and making our lives misera'
bic. She wasn't afraid of anything
either, and made us go down cellel
in the dark, and said, We'll, if | was
boy!" Humph! if she had a been,
what a precious good licking she d
want to give herself. g t
Yes; she was afraid of something,
too-that's what I'm a getting at
afraider than we would have been of a
real live bear, or band of pirates,
and when we found that out, we just
laid low and waited to drop on her,
Tommy, he's a little shaver-he said
it was kind of mean to do it at Christ
mas, but we all lowed that if we did
not spoil her fun, she'd spoil ours,
and that was the year Santa Claus
dropped Tommy. Of course we know
pooh! Ishould say we did but Tommy,
he got a letter from Santa, telling him
he would not come down chimney any
more-there was too many little ones,
and it was too hard on the muledeer
and the little goose believed every
word!
So we concluded" as Aunt Judith
says, to hang up stockings all around,
and mother was to be Santa Claus
for us, and we were to be Santa Claus
for her, and Aunt Judith and Tommy
came near telling all about it, and let
ting the cat out of the bag-no, i mean
letting the-wel, never mind, see
further on, as Oliver Alltalk says.
1 guess you'd have thought we were
having fun if you had heard us! We
staid up till II, and had whole can
die to see by, and locked the door, and
oh, such fun as we had, chasing it
round and round, not the stocking,
but the-there, 1 nearly toldl
Aunt Judith's stocking was Just like
herself, long, lanky cotton-and-w wool
lind of mixed thing, and it seemed
is if we never would get it filed, it
vas 50 empty. and we didn't dare to
put in anything very heavy for fear-
we'll We put in a new pair of gloves
'orm mother and a silk handkerchief
rom father, and hymn book from
Tommy-she was great on hymns
md then a new pen handle from me
md a scent buttle from Bob and then
We hung it on the door handle and
t swung round and round. as if it
vas never going to stop, and then We
,neaked into bed and in two minutes
We were all fast sleep, and it was
broad daylight when We woke up.
There was the stocking though, and
before we got ours off the door-knob |
Aunt J8dith stalked out in a red
Iuilt, and her hair tied into little
mot on the top of her head, and be-
gan taking her presents out in the sit
ing-room; when she got down to the
oe of the stockins, she grabbed it,and
hen she gave a yell like VIII ole band
If Injun savages, and father and (
mother run to see what was up-we
idn't dare TO, and we only peeped,
md there she was up ina chair scream
ng at the top of her voice, 'Oh, take |
t off! Oh, take it away! Oh, l shall
lie l know SHALT" And she couldn't
get her hand out cause the stocking
vas narrer, and she danced and hol- !
cred! Oh, cracky! it was as good as
/ play! And then father jerked the
stocking away and turnedit inside out,
md little bit of a mouse full out.
leader than a door-naill
Then father was mad.
Il should think YOU might have
some sense, jude" he said, and he
lind of grinned, and then we knew it
vas all right, but we had to ask her
pardon. ali the same; but We had the
un, and she never has sat down on
is since she squeezed that mouse to
leath. 1t was mean, but We made it
-, tho ,,nxt Hbri str,1aE