Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1889-02-09

| iiietihStANt reverence, ne Dent MS mead,
and heard the sweet, small voice saying:
] Dear Gott, my mamma is 10 Heaven
gone. She cannot give me one Christmas
tree. My mamma can tell you l need one
VERY bad. My papa comes not more.
Please, dear Gott send to me my papa and
one Christmas tree. ask and no one will
give to me. Please dear Gott, remem-
Der me. Good night, dear Gott."
Then she laid her head on the pillow
with sigh Of content.
The mother and children were regard
ing old Sandy with anxious eyes, dreading
a stern reproof but he raised his hand
reverently and said: sAmen. Lord, 70
be it ~
After supper he smoked his evening
| pipe in silent thought A last he spoke:
"1on child" pointing over his shoulder
with his thumb, lyon child. am per-
suaded, is one of the Lords elect. And it
IS not for me to say nay to a wish OF her
heart"
A knock came at the door. Mrs. Nc
Queen opened it and there stood Mr..
jacob and Peter.
Come in, come in, neighbor, aud sit
down." said Sandy.
MIR. jacob sat down with some embar-
rassment.
al hat come to say some, you will think,
strange words. But my only Peter, he is
not a reasonable little boy and when he
will not eat, he is pale: you see? and cry in
the night-Oh, madam! what can do a
widow man? He cannot say the no, when
so foolish as Christmas tree he want"
"And Peter, too?"
Not for himself = oh, no, we are
| Hal. p,,f
he lof so we'll, he will for her hat tree.
poor What you think, sir? and you
MADAME"
"The Scotch, sir" said Mr.. Mcqueen,
'doesna care for foolish ways O ary sort.
Mr.. q Brien says it's no Catholic and no
Irish, and surely Jew has no taste for
Christmas trees; but will follow your
lead, and we'll all lend hand for the sake
of the child that has no mither"
Mr.. OBrien was at the door escorted
| by the children, and heard the final words.
Pm right glad We have sent the ball
rollin'," said he. ''Tm a poor mon, but
know it's bad luck to be crossin' a orphan.
| have known the fairies in Ireland to sind
rot Of the tatoes and rim the cows dry for
no worse than that"
1t was agree to divide the expense, Mr..
jacob to buy the tree.
Sir" SAID he, off you would be so
good as to take the tree second-handed, |
can get him for not one cent Day after
the Christmas they throw one out of the
big church. A man must cart it off,
Then" said Mr.. OBrien, "we must
take a secondhand Christmas-the day
after"
"And why not" said Mr. jacob eager
ly, "when he is Just as good as new, and
all SO cheapw So it was settled.
In the hard work-a-day lives they had
so seldom known the luxury of giving.
The excitement grew day by day. Every
one was planning a surprise for some one
else. Never were the neighbors so neigh
borly, SO full of kindly interest, so willing
to help each other
Mr.. jacob kept a sharp watch of the
church when the Christmas tree appeared
in. due time. The morning after the par
ty, he was wise enough to take Lischen
and Peter with him. They waited at the
church door for the ladies who would
come to dispose of the remains of the
school feast.
Ladies" he said, hat in hand, and
bowling low, will you hat me to carry
away the treeT
What will you charger"
Oh, if you sell me those things what
is left, l take him very sheap-some
candles, some ornaments, some cake, some
to eat, any kind, | pay you what is
worth ?"
| We don't sell these things; we give
them to the poor"
Madame, | tell you true. If you gif
me-. it is for one poor Christian little
maid !"
He is Jew" said one lady softly to
another.
Jew, am I? True, madame. And
what is tree for me? bunch of green
| leaves, and wood to be burned. Come"
he said, calling Peter and Lischeu into the
room.
The little girl let her shawl fall from
her head, and came to them, wistful, vet
not afraid. Fair as any Swede, in her
clean white apron, and her tidy flaxen
braids tied with blue ribbon.
Madame, see, this is my only Peter,
but she, she is not of my people. And
Jew begs not Say you that this is no
Christian childr'
mo! no. My mamma, she say You
must not be orphanp No. And when
go to bed in the night, she make me that
| tell Gott that | cannot pc a orphan.
And | telled Him. and she raised her
head triumphantly.
The ehildren-six O'Briens, two Nc
Queens and little Peter, the son Of the
Jew-stood around listening eagerly, when
| Billy Mcqueen, an enterprising young
newsboy, appeared at the door.
The ladies looked at each other in
doubt; but they questioned Lischen, and
she told them her baby story-of the
mamma TO heaven gone, the fader who
came not more, of the Jew who fed her,
the kind women who took care of her.
"And you want Christmas treeg
ooh, ! need one VERY bad |" said she.
When to bed 60, do tell Gott many
| times"
"'Out Of the mouths of babies,'', said
one, and the ladies looked at each other
with tears in their eyes. So the Christ
mas tree, with the candles and ornaments,
was freely given to the Jew for the little
Christian child and the incest of the sup
per dishes added
At last the evening came. Mr.. jacob
had cleared away as much of his stock in
trade as possible. The tree was as fine as
a tree could be, and full of brilliant sur
prises. Mrs. Mcqueen had worked won
ders with her knitting needles in the shape
of red mittens for the children, and wrist
ers for the men. Mr.. O'Brien had five
dollars in his pocket, but ne spent three of
them like prince buying gilt trinkets for
'the ladies" and the girls, while Sandy be-
slowed some glittering. shawl pins with
Scotch peddle heads.
When Mrs OBrien brought out the
work of her own honest hands, fine
frosted cake with bouquet of artificial
flowers in the middle and presented it to
Mr.. jacob in the name of the children,
the contagion of giving quite overcame
him, and at the last minute he produced
from the shop drawers boxes of marbles
and strings of gay beads for the
children and some thimbles for ''the
ladies'" which, if not silver, were well
washed and as bright.
Billy and Molly and Peter had spent
their secret stores carefully, but old and
young, every one gave to Lischen. The
eager, flushing face, the laughing voice,
the quick delight over every little gift, re-
warded the givers a thousandfold