The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1900-12-25
An improved Santa Claus.

r
/ Is peering through the darkness befOs .
| turning to make sure there was no 20
/ liccman in sight The deED-toned rex err
| beration of q bell from The church q
block or two away fell on his ears.
Listen TO it" said Stun. talking 10
himself Listen to it, Christmas bells.
/ That's wOt. Christmas trees, Christ
! mus turkey. Dat is, for &c swell
/ blokes ut wot do I gets? Nothin'. Not
/ a look in. Not a peep - I goes by. De
Z frozen NIT. OATS for me De little
! kids Rs0t belongs to De swell guys gets
/ de red sleds and de che0in' gum and lie
. candy. Wot do STUFF Carmichaefs kids
/ get? Nothin'. Christmas eve, 100. But
nothin doin''
STUFF stepped into a marrow alley to
| conceal himself from the gaze OF a po-
/ l.ceman who came slowly stroiling down
/ the opposite side of the street. The po-
I nceman passed and Stuff continued his
solloauv
Well who's ter blame? Jest me
\ Can't show myself and get money fer
/ de kids. Cause wy.
cause de cops are a-layin' fer me.
Want ter get me fer thet lob on the
drive. Dey says did it. Well bleeve
/ that meself. But. wot2 Wot 1 wants
now is somethin' fer Christmas fer the
: kid might slug some sucker and make
/ 'er little honest money but mightSsnOt
/ get nothin' and de police wud get me dis
time, sure. But 1 wants some Chrust-
mus fer de kids. Dant's wot."
/ Stuff stepped out again into the street
! and walked back 10 the avenue and
| strolled slowly along. keeping well in the
1 shadows ard stepping hastily out OF
/ sight whenever he saw a figure that re-
mOtely resenlIbled that of a policeman.
! Finally he found himself in front of
! house that was brilliantly Hlumina el.
! He stepped carefully over the low fence
( into the yard and prowled along to one
/ side Of the mansion, where, from a point
! Of vantage in the shadow Of an ever
| green tree, he could feast his eyes on a
/ Christmas tree that stood on a table in
! the center of the room. The tree was
hung about with flowers and gay fes-
! toons of papers and little branches, az
/ though the two women in the room had
! not yet lit many of the tapers, prOba-
! bly, waiting until the children for whom
/. the tree was being prepared should 'be
/ admitted to the room. Hanging from
| the boughs of the little Christmas tree
were boxes of candy, books, skates, toys,
/ and waxen dolls with golden hair.
'iSay. it's beaut'," said Stuff, under
! his breath. Say, if my kids cud see
| that they would have fits. I wouldn' t
want ter rob kids, went on Stuff, apOl-
| ogetlcally, to himself "but. say, deg got
| dead loads of stuff besides wots on de
/ tree OATS jest ter be pretty fer to look
at. Deres stuff fer de kids piled all
! over two tables in dere. Anyhow. the
| ole man wud thaw out fer another tree
! if ris one got swiped Say. I've jest got
| ter collar dat Christmas tree"
Stuff Carmichael was not the man who
! is said to have run away with a redhot
| stove at one time. Nor was he the thief
! who kidnapped a canal boat down on
/ the Illinois and Michigan canal at one
! time. 1t was said of Stuff, however.
! that he stole a bedstead one night and
/ went back the next night after the mat
| tress and the bed clothes, so that it can
! be understood that he did not regard
/ the purloining of q Christmas tree as an
! insurm ountable task. Stuff stood look
| ing in at the window and saw one of
! the women who had been fixing the tree
! go over ana open the front door to cool
| off the house.
| Stuff sided around so that he could
! look in at the door He watched the wo-
men for awhile and decided that they
| were housemaids. His attention was
suddenly attracted to the house next
| door from the one in front Of which n
( stood. There seemed to be many people
/ in the other house and apparently a par
! ty was in progress, as he heard the
| music of an orchestra and saw the shad-
! ows Of people dancing swaying back and
forth on the drawn curtains Stuff cog
/ itated for some time and finally decided
! that the Christmas tree ne had Just seen
was part Of the entertainment for the
party next door, and that either IT was
to be carried over there at the right
time or else the children and younger
guests Of the party were to be brought
over to the house in which the tree stood
and their part Of the entertainment to
| be given there.
Stuff sided I'D to the door, and step
| ped cautiously into the hall and looked
through the folding doors at the tree
/ Only one woman was in the room. the
! other having gone upstairs as STUFF en-
tered the hall. Stuff fell on his knees,
and reaching into the hall caut ouslv
| caught hold Of the skin Of a tiger that
/ lay as a mat on the floor. He could
/ barely clutch the end Of the tail. but he
got a good hold on that and drew the
skin towards him Finally he had the
robe in his hands. He threw It about h
/ shoulders so that It fell partially over
/ his head and around his face. Then he
walked brazenly into the parlor. and CUP
/ to the table on which the tree was
standing. The old woman who stood
/ across the table looked up and smiled
Santa Claus to get the Christmas
/ tree?" she asked.
Yes" said Stuff want TO take a.
over there"
He nodded his head towards the next
/ house.
Stuff turned when he reached the
! ground, and ran ss hard as he could
/ through the yard until he reached the
narrow street which ran into the ave
/ nue. at right angles. He ran along This
street until he reached the alley. and
turned down that and lodged along I'm
I the darkness. being conscious as he ran
Of a shouting and haUoing behind HIN.
He ran from the alley AZ its far end.
I and lodged down a long. narrow street
and then into another yard and into q
second alley. In FIVE minutes more the
sounds Of pursuit had died away stuff
began making his way to the remote cor
ner Of the city. where his family lived
/ The tree grew as heavy as lead IN his
arms and often he stumbled, and twice
he slipped on the ice and fell down Fe
had 70 sit down four or five tim &c.
rest. and once he had to beat a hastv
retreat 20 a dark stairway and remain
( policemen were gossiping st the patrol
box on the next corner
"I've got 70 BE careful" STUFF said 10
himselt ''Every copper on de Wort
side VIII be q layin' fer d. guv what
sWiped Christmas tree. but dey don
hef ne show me. I'm on"
s stun continued his taHsome Journey
most IF the time through ALLEYS but
sometimes down streets which looked in
vitreIy dark But it was towards
O'Clock iu the morning before he e-affr
stood outside of his Own door Fa sta1-
ped carefully in and nropDed the tree
un against a chair. Then he struck
match and carefully 1it the wax tare-v
'Te chat you Stuff called 1ts wf
from the bedroom
s'Nit" sats STUFF ''ft's Gle sffeter
saute- Claus"
go stun ston veur sokinE" said he