Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1885-12-24
/ JOLLY SANTA CLAUS.
BY ALLAN FORMAN.

It was Christmas Eve. and we chill
dren had been hustled unceremoni-
ously off into the back parlor, while
Uncle Jack, our sailor uncle, super
insended the carrying upstairs of a
certain MISUNDERSTANDING basket
ca refully wrapped in horse blanket,
We did not mind this SO much, for
we were used to being hurried out Of
the way Just before Christmas-time !;
but the group in our little back parlor
was by no means SO jolly as 1t had
been in former years. Papa looked
troubled, and poor mother seemed
Just completely worried and tired out
AS we were pushed into the room by
Uncle Jack, who had been entertain
ing us in the little library on the other
side of the hall, papa made an effort
to look cheerful, and said: "Well, I
seppose there is no use worrying about
it. IF it is gone, it is gone; but it
seems hard, for I know Of so many
things we could have done with it."
eyes," sighed mother; "but don't
worry; perhaps it may come yet "
Gomez repeated papa, almost
petulantly; chow can It come when
we've looked everywhere for it? It's
lost, and we must make the best of
it."
We hardly understood the import =
auCe OF the cit" which had been
spoken of as lost We knew that
papa had received from grandpa a
letter containing q crisp new bill,
which papa had said was his Christ
mas present. The fact that if was a
five hundred dollar bill did not great
~ impf ess us as it was no bigger or
prettier than a one. In fact had 1t
been dollar, 7 believe the loss would
have affected us more acutely, as to
us dollar represented q large amount
Of candy and other good things; but
five hundred dollars, that was beyond
the stretch of our imagination, so we
did not bother our heads about it; in
deed, little HiIda, the baby, had
climbed up on papa's knee, and pat
ting his cheek with her soft, little
palm, had llsped sympatheticallv,
did 90 lose the nice g'een picter "
But the rest Of US were too busy Ia
surmising what was in Uscle Jack
basket to pay much attention to any
thing else. 1t was the custom III our
family to distribute the presents-with
the exception of few bonbons and
trifas that Santa Claus left ia the
stockings of the younger ones after
breakfast on Christmas mornlDg. but
for some reason this package of Uncle
Jacks excited our curiosity more Than
any other Of the packages we had
seen brought into the house for the
past month. Perhaps because Uncle
Jack always knew just what we
wanted, and generally got it for US
perhaps because there was an unde-
Unable feeling, as we saw the man
bring it in, that 1t contained some
thing alive.
You may be sure that we did not
sleep much that night, for, III add
ton TO the wakefulness occasioned by
our curiosity, there were certain mys-
terious sounds as of gnawing and
breaking OF wicker-work proceeding
from the little hall bedroom where
Uncle jacks box had been placed.
But, like all things, the night at last
came to an end, and We were up bright
and early to ruiz cur dIgestions and
pass away the time before breakfast in
eating the candy we would find in our
stockings. But imagine our surprise
when we went to the chimney In the
nursery and found our stockings gone
There were few candies scattered on
the hearth stone; knife, some scraps
of paper, and an orange or two lay on
the floor; but the stockings were NC
where to be seen. We wondered
somewhat at that, but we older ones
supposed that papa or mamma had for
some good reason taken them away,
while little Huda contented herself
with an exclamation of her own
Santa Claus looked 'em up CHM
ney to fill 'em hetter," and shortly
after she ran off to nurse to get
dressed, being always the first of the
family downstairs. But this morn
ing she did not have much the start
of US, and before long we were all
down in the dining-room waiting inn
patiently for the elders to come to