| Nicholas
laughed silently to himself, a kind tender laugh, then
reached down into his bag and filled the lonely little
stocking up to the top, and then with a snap of his whip
and the jingle of sleighbells he was off to the next
house on his rounds. When Frederick opened the door on Christmas morning, he and his little brother found not one, nor two but three toys each. Right down in the toe of the stocking he found five large coins, enough to keep the whole family all through the winter. The boys shouted with joy, while their father almost sat up in his bed with the excitement. Their mother’s eyes although always bright, were filled with happy tears as she watched Frederick and his brother hugging close to their hearts, the first Christmas stocking. . . . . . . . . . . . page18 |
10b |
The next week the village buzzed
with excitement. Something was happening up on the hill.
The old miser had ripped the boards off the windows and
doors. He had bought a horse and cart and had been down
to the village to buy huge quantities of food. He had
also spoken to the school teacher and within a few days
Kathy and her grandfather were seen on the road leading
to the school, the little girl’s face beaming up at
the old man, her feet skipping along to keep up with him
and her warm little hand tucked into his fist. All this
because Nicholas had climbed down a chimney to fill ONE
stocking! . . . . . . . . . . .
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