The Bottineau pioneer. (Bottineau, N.D.) 1885-1895, 1889-12-21

hoped and jumped along at his side, hug.
glng her faded but warm shawl more closely
about her, and wishing there were a few less
holes in her small shoes, which were week
day and Sunday shoes, too.
AS for Bobby's coat. it was jacket and coat
all in one, and though it might have been
worse. yet it might with impunity have been
much better and warmer.
Still, both shawl and coat were presents to
the children from a kind lady for whom now
and then their mother did some fine sewing,
and they were thankful to be a few degrees
better off than the many little beggars they
had seen that very day.
II do hope mamma hasn't been coughing
all the blessed time we have been out" said
Sis, putting the shop-window at last out Of
her mind.
Sand I do hope she'll let me buy a lot Of
wood out of this money the lady gave us,
and build a rOarer of a fire for once to keep
that old rickety room warm" added Bobby,
jingling in his pocket, where every hole had
been carefully sewed, some loose pieces of
silver, and thinking how nice it would sound
to have a duet of the same kind of music, if
only there could be an equal amount of sill
yer in his other pocket. After a moments
pause, he spoke again:
III say, Sis. I do wish the lady had said,
Here, now, Christmas is coming, and here's
some extra money for you, my DEAR
Whouldn't it have been jolly, though! But
some folks don't seem to think bout such
things"
"No, they don't. Seems as if I would,
though. Wouldn't you, B%obby-if you were
rich, I mean" replied Sis, blowing on her
little blue fingers to keep them warm.
"Just you believe I would" answered the
boy, COMPRISING his lips and looking very
determined.
just then they were at the door of the
shabby tenement building where they called
one room "home," and where their mother
was even now waiting for them, and won
dering why her darlings were not at home.
Up the stairs the children ran, the creak-
ing steps grooming as if giants, instead of
two small, thin children, were passing over
them.
At the top la%nding-the very "toppest," as
they used to say, of all the landings-they
were received by the dear mother, whose ears
had caught and recognized the sound Of the
little feet she loved so well.
ooh, WE'LL" cried Bobby, hngging the pale
woman, and kissing her cheek and lips with
a world Of love in his kisses-"oh, well, l
don't care so much that we don't nave any
Christmas, so long as we've got the bestest
and sweetest mother in the worldr And
little Sis. nowise behind in her embraces.
fully agreed with him.
The money was delivered to it's rightful
owner; part of it was returned to Bobby, who
soon left it on the grocer's counter, and took
instead some small packages of wood, with
which and a few cinders he made a fire and
warpooH tho nicoYohlo Y.0op, ,;rbk xx,o1
sidering the wide cracks in doors and window
easements.
But all the evening, and all the night, the
widow coughed and coughed, and it was evil
dent a fresh cold had been taken to make the
old one get more troublesome and alarming.
And soon, very soon. alas! poor mamma was
too sick to leave her bed, and could not even
finish some sewing for which she hoped to
have enough money to make a little-a very
little Christmas for her children.
Meanwhile, Christmas was approaching.
Only one week remained before its grand ar
amid the ringing Of merry bells. Bobby
and Sis grew more and more sad, and though
the little boy tried to earn money by errands
here and there, yet how slowly the pennies
came in.
And one night, afteJ mamma had fallen
asleep, the boy and girl huddled close beside
the small fire, and Sis listened wonderingly
while Bobby told her Of a plan he had de-
cided upon for the very next morning.
And before he and Sis went to bed he had
written in a scrawlly way-half- print and
half-penmanship-a letter which was to be
mailed very early the next day.
And sure enough, when Letter-collector
Brown came along in the gray dawn of the
morning to collect letters from the lamp-post
box at the corner Of Bleak street, who should
meet but two small, shivering little people
standing there hand in hand, while the boy
was just dropping a letter inside the box.
They were of like deer before he could
speak to them, but it was not difficult for the
collector to decide which letter the fellow had
dropped in when he found amongst the batch