Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1902-12-24

I'm sure he is rich, Fred" hintet
Scrooge's niece. "At least you Away
tell me so.''
What of that, my dear?" salt
Scrooge's nephew. His wealth is o
no use to him. He don't do any goot
with it. He don't make himself com
Portable with it. He hasn't the salts
faction of thinking-ha, ha, ha!-tha
he is ever going to benefit us with It.
Il have no patience with him., OBJ
served Scrooge's niece. Scrooge:
niece's sisters, and all the other ladies
expressed the same opinion.
ooh, have!" said Scrooge's nephew
Il am sorry for him; couldn't be angry
with him If 1 tried. Who suffers by hi:
i'll whims? Himself, always. Here, nj
takes 1t into his head to dislike us, ant
he won't come and dine with us. What:
the consequence? He don't lose muct
of q dinner"
Indeed think he loses very good
dinner" interrupted Scrooge's niece
Everybody else said the same. and they
must be allowed to have been compe-
tent judges, because they had just hae
dinner; and, with the dessert upon ths
table, were clustered round the fire. by
lamplight.
Well am very glad to hear 1T,
said Scrooge's nephew, because
haven't any great faith in these youns
housekeepers. What do you say, Top
PERI"
Topper had clearly got his eye upor
one of Scrooge's niece's sisters, for he
answered that bachelor was wretch
ed outcast, who had no right to express
an opinion on the subject. Wherea'
Scrooge's niece's sister-the plump one
with the lace tucker, not the one WITT
the roses-blushed.
do go on, Fred" said Scrooge's niece
clapping her hands. He never finishes
what he begins to say. He is such
ridiculous fellow"
Scrooge's nephew reveled In another
laugh, and as it was impossible to keel
the infection off, tho the plump sister
tried hard to do it with aromatic vine
gar his example was unanimously fol-
lowed.
Il was only going to say" said
Scrooges nephew, that the conse-
quence of his taking dislike to us, ano
not making merry with us, is, as think
that he loses some pleasant moments
which could do him no harm. ! an
sure he loses pleasanter companions
than he can find in his own thoughts
either in his mouldy old office or his
dusty chambers. / mean to give him
the same chance every year, whether
he likes it or not, for pity him. He
may rail at Christmas till he dies, but
he can't help me going there, in good
temper, year after year, and saying
Uncle Scrooge, how are you? Ii II
only puts him in the vein to leave his
poor clerk fifty pounds, that's some
thing; and think / shook him, yester-
day.
1t was their turn to laugh now, at the
notion of his shaking Scrooge. But be-
ing thoroughly good natured, and not
much caring what they laughed at. so
that they laughed at any rate, ne en-
couraged them in their merriment, and
passed the bottle, joyously.
After tea, they had some music. For
they were a musical family, and knew
what they were about, when they sung
g, glee or catch, I can assure you; es-
recially Topper, who could growl away
in the bass like a good one, and never
swell the large veins in his forehead,
or get red in the face over 1t. Serooge' $
niece played we'll upon the harp; ana
played, among other tunes, simple lit
tie abr Ca mere nothing; you might
learn to whistle it in two minutes)
which had been familiar to the child
who fetched Scrooge from the board
ing school, as he had been reminded by
the Ghost of Christmas past. When
this strain of music sounded, all the
things that Ghost had shown him came
more and thought that II he could have
listened to it often, years ago, he might
have cultivated the kindnesses of life
for his own happiness with his own
hands, without resorting to the sections
spade that buried Jacob Marley.
But they didn't devote the whole
evening to music. After while they
played at forfeits; for it is good to be
children sometimes, and never better
than at Christmas when its mighty
founder was child himself. Stop!
There was first a game at blind mans
buff OF course there was. And | no
more believe Topper was really blind
than I believe he had eyes in his boots.
My opinion is, that it was a done thing
between him Scrooges nephew; and
that the Ghost of Christmas present
knew 1t. The way ne went after the.
plump sister in the lace tucker was an
on the credulity of human ma,
ture. Knocking down the fire irons,
tumbling over the chairs, humping up
against the piano, smothering himself
the curtains, wherever she
went, there went he! He always knew
where the plump sister was. lie
wouldn't catch anybody else. If you
had fallen up against him Gas some OF
them did) on purpose, ne would nave
made a feint of endeavoring TO sieze
YOU which would have been an affront
to your understanding, and would In
stantly have sided off in the direction
of the plump sister. She often cried
out that 1t wasn't fair; and it really
was not. But when, at last, he caught
her; when, in spite of all her silken
rustlings, and her rapid fiutterings past
him, he got her into a corner whence
there was no escape, then his conduct
was the most execrable. For his pre-
tending not to know her; his pretend
ing that it was necessary to touch her
head dress, and further 20 assure him.
self of her identity by pressing GER
tain ring upon her finger, and certain
chain about her neck, was vile, mon
strous! No doubt she told him her
opinion of it, when, another blind man
being in Office, they We're so very con-
tidential together, behind the curtains.
Scrooge's niece was not one OF the
blind mans huff party, but was made
with large chair and