The Dickinson press., 1884-12-20
d, crept away Is stealthily Is a

Smith, tho landlads came up to turn
off the gas. "Well, upon my word, !
here's fine doings, to be surel" she said, |
when she saw the state OF the upper !
hall. "Now I would not have thought
it OF Miss Kent, she is such agiddy girl,
nor of Mr.. Chrome, he is so busy with
his own affairs. I meant to give those
children each q cake tomorrow, they
are such good little things. I'll run
down and get them now, as my contri-
button to this fine set out"
Away trotted Mrs. Smith to her pan
try, and picked out a couple of tempt
ing cakes, shaped like hearts and filled
with plums. There was q goodly array
of pies on the shelves, and she took two
of them, saying as she climbed the
stairs again: "They remembered the
children, so I'll remember them, and
have my share of the fun"
So up went the pies, for Mrs. Smith
had not much to give. and her spirit was
generous, though her pastry was not Of
the best. 1t looked very droll to see
pies sitting about on the threshold of
closed doors, but the cakes we're quite
elegant, and filed up the corners Of the
towels handsomely, for the apron lay in
the middle, with the oranges right and
left, like two sentinels in yellow uni
forms.
1t was very late when the flicker of q
candle came up stairs, and q pale lady,
with a sad face, appeared bringing a
pair of blue mittens for her Dolly and
Polly. Poor Mrs. Blake did have q
hard tine, for she stood all day IN a
great store that she might earn bread
for the poor children who stayed at
home and took care of one another.
Her heart was very heavy that night,
because it was the first Christmas she
had ever known without gifts and
festivity of some sort. But Pitkin, the
youngest child, had been ill, times we're
very hard, the little mouths gaped for
food like the bills of hungry birds, and
there was no tender mate to fill them.
If any elves had been lowering about
the dingy hall just then they would
have seer the mothers tired face bright
en- beautifully when she received the
gifts, and found that her little girls had
been SO kindly remembered. Some
thing more brilliant than the mock dia-
monds in Miss Kent's best earrings fell
and gllttered on the dusty floor as Mrs.
Blake added the mittens to the other
things and went to her lonely room
again, smiling as she thought how she
could thank them all in q sweet and
simple way.
Her windows were full of flowers,
for the delicate tastes of the poor lady
found great comfort in their beauty.
II have nothing else to give, and these
will show how how grateful I am" she
said, as she rejoiced that the scarlet ger
aniums were so full of gay clusters, the
white chrysanthemum stars were oil out,
and the pink roses at their lovliest.
They slept now, dreaming of q sunny
morrow as they sat safely sheltered from
the bitter cold. But that night was
their last, for a gentle hand cut them
all, and soon three pretty nosegays
stood in a glass, waiting for dawn, to
be laid at three doors, with o few CRATE.
full words which would surprise and de-
light the receivers, for flowers were
rare in those Woodworking lives, and
kind deeds often come back to the Civ
ers in fairer shapes than they go.
Now II would thi1. k that there had
been gifts enough, and no more
could possibly arrive, since all had ad-
ded his or her mite except Betsey, the
maid, who was off on q holiday, and the
babies fast asleep in their rrundle- bed,
with nothing to give but love and kiss
es. Nobody dreamed that the old cat
would take it into her head that her
kittens were in danger, because Mrs.
Smith had said she thought they were
nearly old enough to be given away.
But she must have understood, for when
all was dark and still the anxious moth
er went patting up stairs to the chill
dren's door, meaning to hide her babies
under their bed, sure they would save
them from destruction. Mrs. Blake had
shut the door,, however, SO poor Puss
was disappointed; but finding y soft,
clean spot among q variety of curious
articles, she laid her kits there, and
kept them warn gil night, with
her head pillowed on Che blue mittens.
In the cold morning Dolly and Polly
got up and scrambled into their clothes,
not with joyful haste to see what their
stockings held, for they had none, but
because they had the little ones to dress
while mother got the breakfast.
Dolly opened the door, and started
back with a cry of establishment at the
lovely spectacle before her. The other
people had taken in their gifts, so moth
ing destroyed the magnificent effect of
the treasures so collected in the night.
Puss had left her kits asleep and gone
down to get her own breakfast, and
there in the middle of the rutfled apron,
as if in a dainty cradle, lay the two
Maltese darlings, with white bib and
boots on, the white tips to the tiny tails
curled round their little noses in the
sweetest way.
Polly and Dolly could only clasp
their hands and look in rapturous 81
lence for a minute; then they went
down on their knees and reveled in the
unexpected richness before them.
II do believe there is q Santa Claus,
and that he heard us. for here is every
thing we wanted" said Dolly, holding
the carnelian heart in one hand and the
plummy one in the other.
cit must have been some kind of a
fairy, for we didn't mention kittens,
but we wanted one, and here are two
darlings," cried Polly, almost purring
with delight as the downy punches I'M
rolled and gaped till their bits of pink
tongues were visible.
Mrs. Smith was one fairy, I guess,
I'D Miss Kent was another, for that is
her apron. I shouldn't wonder if Mr..
Chrome gave us the oranges and the
money; men always have lots, and his
name is on this bit of paper" said Dol