Year: 1878

full on Christmas day if they knew
enough; for it was the Lord Christ
o had manger for his cradle, and
on whom the large-eyed cattle looked
wonderingly before ever the sheph-
erds worshipped Him, who has taught
his disciples to be merciful and kind
to s'man and bird, and beast"


ssMerry Christmas, Grunter and
Greaseri'' shouted Tom again, as he
looked over the side of the pigpen,
with basket Of corn in his hand.
Greaser and Grunter were of Dicks
min,i they wanted their breakfast,
and no nonsense and they put their
forefeet up on the side of the pen,
and said so in the plainest hog Latin.
Tom gave it to them, and by this
time the prince or pasha, or high
cockolorun., or whatever you call
him, OF the hen-house, was on hend
Will Lio Jus


"Merry Christmas to you, old roos-
teri" said Tom; whereupon that
worthy stood moment on one leg,
cooked his head first on one side and
then on the other, and then few up
to the top of the pie-pen, tapped his
wings and answered.


But you know what he said much
better than l can tell you. 1t SCUM
ded to Tom a little like "Ditto to
youu' At any rate the funny way
the old rooster said it made Tom
laugh heartily, and he went in to
breakfast in the best of humor.


After breakfast the days program
me was carried oAt just rs Tom had
arranged it. Taking his hatchet and
rope. he loaded the little children
on his sled and went to the woods for
the Christmas tree. The one he pick
cd out was a trim little spruce about
six feet in height; and after. he had
chopped it down, he fastened it to
his sled with the rope he had brought,
and started for the house. From the
woods to the garden gate was one
long hill, and Tom had no need to
draw the sled home, with Dick be-
fore and Sue behind, his sled skim
med swiftly over the crust, and little
Dick screamed with delight to see the
Christmas tree come sweeping after.
Tom said 1t all looked like a green
comet WITH three heads.


After the tree was brought into the
woodshed Tom sawed off the trunk,
nailed on block for standard, and,
after whipping off the snow, set it
aside for the evening. All this work
the little folks watched with eager
eye. Then the corn was popped,
and then came the fun that Sue and
Dick had been waiting for all the
morning-the cOasting on the crust
of the little hill behind the house.
Jolly day it was for coasting, too.
The crust was as solid as Il floor, and
as smooth as ice; anything would go,
whether it had runners or not. Tom
and Sue put the sled through all it's
PAGES. They rode front-face, side
saddle filibuster Cor some such
worD; they rode backwards, they
got barrel slaves and put a board
across them and went down on them
famously; they tied streamers to
sticks and waved them as they went
and shouted and screamed till they
were tired. Little Dick was not neg
lected. He rode till he was weary
and then went afoot. He fell down
any number of times, but it didn't
hurt him any; once he rolled half
way down the hill, but he picked him.
self up at the bottom and only want
ed to know what made the ''fensh 60
wound" After all this fun the chill
dren were ready for their good Christ
mas dinner that grandmother had
prepared for them, and the little ones
were content to stay in the house
while Tom went over to Holmes Hill
for his afternoons sport with the
boys.


just above Mr.. Holmes house the
road to Brookville turned to the left,
going round the corner of his yard,
while the direct road was the road to
Millbury. The boys with single sleds
started on the Millhury road, only
above the house, and went to the bot
tom oil the hill, about n quarter of a
mile below but Bill Harrison and his
crew of eight large boys, with their
double-ripper, went round the corner
and up the Broolhville road more than
| bstii al AIiiC auOfc tuc mouse. he
road was smooth and icy and the rip
per came down like the wind Bill
said that they had made the three
quarters of mile in a little less than
a minute and half. The small bows
all watched out for this dangerous
craft and never started when il was
due at the corner.


Tom had made the short trip two
or three times On his good ..Blue
Streak,'' that wouldn't take the dust
of any small sled, and was waiting
with half a dozen other boys at the
top of the hill on the straight road,
for the ripper to come down the 9TH
er road. The warning cry of the
/ crew had been heard and tba,1 ,,,~.,l,