The sun., 1900-12-22

MN, most enngntenmg gioDe, wnicn
endeavored to make stupid little Aure
acquainted with all of the movements of
the earth and winds and tides. 1t was
certainly kind of his people to give him
these things. Azure thought. He wonder
cd why he was not happier. Perhaps it
was because he was naughty child
Strange words floated to his ears from
that part of the room where the discus
sion was going on--"The Myth of Dion
ysius," "The Nativity" "Staurolatry,"
"Justinius Martyr" and a hundred more
peculiar names and phrases which meant
nothing at all to Azure, but which seemed
for some mysterious reason to affect him
disagreeably, especially as the men were
cross with each other. He thought he
heard young Professor Babcock mention
ing his (Aure's) name n couple of times,
but that could hardly have been possible.
The little children over the way in the
fiat building were having Christmas
tree, and soon as ever the dusk began to
come Azure could see the mother lighting
the tapcrs. From the way she shook
her head every now and then and seemed
to be calling out to some one he could not
see it was evident that her children were
impatient to get in. Azure crept up into
the window seat and darkened the pane
with the curtain so that he could see bet
ter. He hardly breathed while he waited
for the mother to finish her work aud
open the door. That would be the glori-
Gus moment when the door was opened
and the children came rushing in. But
just as it was about to happen some one
touched him on the arm. He turned ap-
prehensively. Probably his father had
come to forbid him even to look at a
| Christmas tree.
But it proved not to be his father. 1t
was Hulda, and her eyes were shining,
and she had holly in her white cap and
| holly in the bib of her big rulfied apron.
| With her black frock and golden braids
| and bright blue eyes she made the sweet
est, kindest human picture Azure had ever
| seen, and somehow all the ache of his
throat went away as il by magic. He
| took her hand and slipped from the room
| with her. She tiptoed along the passage
as if she were approaching some mys-
terry, and Azure did the same. They tip
toed through the dining room and through
The kitchen and past the waiter who had
come in to help for the day and who
looked at them curiously and ON to HUI
da's room.
The door stood open, and as they went
along the little hallway that led to it a
| beautiful glow came out of it, and mo-
ment more the two stood before slen-
der Christmas tree with a star highest
among the branches and tapers burning
everywhere in memory of the Light of
the World and gay little festoons of
| glittering stuff making the branches mys-
terious to the chld's eyes. ETulda and the
child stood and looked and looked in a ST.
lent, curious way. Perhaps they were
giving the sacred symbols chance to lift
them up from the recollection of their
lonely lives. And then, after a time,
Hulda began to sing a song about the
| Christ. 1t was in her own language, but
it was none the less impressive to Azure
because of that. 1t was beautiful song.
and it coaXed the colored walters out OF
the kitchen-there were two of them
and they came and pceked i'll the door
and smiled and chuckled, and when HUI
da was through they began to sing in
big, rich voices Hear Dem Bells
a-ltingin" and number of other songs
all with unexpected harmonies and mild
minor turns of the voice.
| Huda had some gifts on the tree, too
and she found some for the walters, and
she and the colored boys made much OF
Azure, and one of them talked to him
about the day, so that it seemed diff.
ferent to him from what it had when he
heard the learned men quarreling about