The Ketchum keystone. [volume] (Ketchum, Idaho) 1885-1899, 1888-12-15

BY and by mechanically she went about
and put the little room to rights, and hung
the chlldren's worn clothing over the chair
back, and took the meat for tho next days
dlnner and supper from its bag. The vege
tables lay upon the table, with the apples
These she wiped softly and then sat down
again, looking at them in q dream. Sud
denly she gave nervous little laugh, saying:
II will 1t will amuse them at any rate y
Then she took q knife and piece of kind
ling and in ittle while cut it in small
sticks, and these she counted until she had
the number she needed, and set to work
She found the two potatoes adapted to her
plan, which was to make horses of them by
sticking four legs, tail and two ears into
them. Treated the same way the two red
onions made rather awkward but pretty
colored cows, and the turnips became tiger
and the carrot an alligator.
These made quite little menagerie when
set upon the table in a position to attract the
children's attention the first thing in the
morning, and red apple was thrust into
each well darned stocking and they were hung
upon the board which served for mantel-
piece.
Thus out of nothing mother love devised
bit of Christmas for her little ones, and when
this was done, somehow her heart was
lighter and she blessed God for the inspira-
ton and that she had her children and
health: and thanked him while she lay down
beside the two pretty if pale children.
The noise of drums, trumpets and chill
dren's shouts in streets and hall walked the
children almost before daylight, and they
began to ask each other and their mother
what it was all about, and she told them that
it was Christmas, and lying then for once
idle during the daylight hours she told them
all the sweet story and then they began to
wonder if Santa Claus had been to them, and
they bounced out of bed to see.
The apples were very rare and beautiful to
them, but the menagerie of wonderful ami
mails surpassed anything they ever dreamed
of, and as the mother told them:
''You see, dears, they are nicer than any
wooden toy animals could be, for we can
play that they are real, truly animals and
we can kill them and dress them and cut
them all up into little bits and cook them by
and by just as the butchers do"
sob, yes!'' said Ruthie in ecstasy.
II don't want my ollumgater cut up" de
clared Robbie, stoutly. He WIS pactfed, and
the children played contentedly all the morn
ing with their animals, though it required the
constant service of mamma to replace broken
legs, horns and tails, and the children did
smell rather strong Of onions; still they were
happy and her heart ightened- But when
the time came for tho final pc~t ~ thair r'"~
robbie would not allow a single one Of hi.
precious "ammuls" to be sacrificed, and at
last he became so obstreperous that his
mother was obliged to punish him by shutting
him into a good sized closet which had
always stood between the chimney and the
gable window. Robbie did not enjoy his i'm
prisonment and kicked and cried until he
made the very rafters ring, but suddenly
after rather more violent outbreak than
usual there was q silence, and his mother
waited a while, surprised at this new freak,
and then she opened the door and looked in
There on the floor sat Robbie, with a piece
Of the Dashboard lying fiat, and disclosing
hole within which was tin box. This he
was trying to pull out, but it seemed too
heavy for him to move, and soon Mrs Hicks
had it out and was examining it. When she
had wiped of the dust she found painted
upon it in white letters "Owen Hardcastle.n
It needed no more to take every bit of
strength she had and make her sink white
md suffocating on the chair. This was her
name! What if this box con-
aimed the money he was supposed to have
hidden somewhere! It was heavy enough.
4 moments reflection convinced her that, as
he was the only living member of all the
amily, this box and its contents were hers,
md so with knife and piece of wood she
,ried it open and found even as she had
loped. The box was full Of gold, and also
several valuable diamonds, SO that
his woman, who had the night before been
N the verge of despair from poverty, and
Who had had to make a travesty of her |
neager dinner to give her fatherless babies a
title Of the joy that Christmas brings, was
flied above want again
But, though she had found this treasure, |
nd she knew it was her own in all right, she !
7as too sensible little woman to bruit the !
ews about, and SO they sat down to their |
christmas dinner of soup made out of
hole menagerie, and up to this day, though |
1e lives in different way now. the lawyers |
ever got wind Of her inheritance nor share |
1 it. Robbie and Ruthie have pretty toys, |
ut probably none of them have ever been
ute as dear to their little hearts as the
range animals their mothers breaking |
cart wrought out for their pleasure.
''1he people OF New YORK are not very