The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1899-12-08
Roxy's Christmas Stocking.

The Rarstow children always hung up
their stockings on Christmas eve. They
had all done it ever since they were ba-
bies, and though Richard. the oldest,
was now big fellow of 10, and Roxy,
the baby. was really the only one young
enough to have real visits from Santa
Claus, the others all hung theirs up too,
just to keep her company, they said, but
really because they loved the sweet old
custom, and liked to get their presents i'll
that way.
This was only the seventh Christmas
that Roxy had ever known, and she was
very much excited about it,
Robert who from the manly height of
his eleven years. looked on her as quite
a baby, was inclined to laugh IL little,
until Paul, who was II and in his
turn called Robert 1.-The kid" reminded
him of the time when he had been quite
as excited and informed him more tlrm-
ly than kindly, that if he didn't leave
Roxy alone, he'd punch his head
Whereupon Robert subsidized, and Roxy
was left in peace to dream Of Christmas
all the night, and talk of it all the day.
At last the evening came. Roxy was
determined that all the stockings should
them, so at 1870 everybody, even father
and mother, gathered about the big old
fashioned fireplace in the dining room.
and the stockings We're hung. There were
seven of them. koXy's ut one end, near
the sofa where it would be very easy for
her to climb up and untasten it in the
morning; Roberts next, then PaulS, then
Amy's, richards and at the other end,
mothers and fathers, too.
1t made a goodly array of footwear.
and Robert laughed, and said something
about setting up IL stocking store, but
mother looked at them all proudly. She
was glad there were SO many, for she
Was a motherly little mother, and there
would have been room in her heart fo,
five dozen instead of five. -"
So at last everything was ready. and
Roxy, after one last parting look, packed
off to bed, where for ut least ten minutes
she lay tossing and twisting and declar-
ing that she never would go to sleep, and
her mother had better. let her get right
UP again, and then went sound asleep,
with q bit of ground pine stuck fast in
her chubby fingers
Three hours later everybody else was
asleep, too, the stockings were all filled to
overf1owing, and the house Was as quiet
as could be, except when Muggins, Paul's
fox terrier. had bad dreams, and growled
as he lay stretched out before the dying
fire in the dining room.
Of course the very first person in the
house to wake up the next morning was
Roxy. 1t wasn't quite 6 when she woke
up with bounce. rubbed her big blue
eyes until they were wide open, and
then jumped out of her little white bed,
and never waiting to put OH the double
gown and slippers her mother had laid
beside her, she battered quickly out into
the dining room.
Her mother had left just little bud of
gas burning, and by its light Roxy made
straight for the stockings.
She climbed up on the sofa and put out
her hand where her stocking ought to be-.
Then she felt along until she touched
Roberts, then back again. her lips begin
ming to tremble in sad little, way. and
then suddenly she just Topped down on
the sofa in* Il dismal little heap and
walled. Because, you see, there was no
stocking there.
In two minutes everybody in the house
was on the spot, and there was hunting
and hurrying, that surely should have
brought to light any article within seeing
There were all the toys that had been
too big to go in still standing about the
hearth, there was the funny ''browne'
jumping jack, which had been stuck in on
top, and would hardly hold because there
was so much under it, but the stocking
where was that!
Nobody could tell. The jumping jack
lay on the rug on the other side of the
fireplace, where it had evidently been
dropped from the overtlowing stocking,
but that was the only clue to the van
ished article.
Roxy cried, her mother comforted her,
and all the others hunted. They forgot
their own presents, and not a stocking
was opened. while they turned the house
upside down in their endeayors to find
the missing one. Roxy would not be
comforted by her other presents, al