Chapter Eleven

The Last Stocking

The years passed and Nicholas was now a very rich man even though he shared all he had with his friends in the village. Every Christmas morning the children would wake to find their stockings filled with toys and sweets. The poorer families would also find food... such things as chickens, vegetables and hams and often bundles of clothing would be left on their doorsteps.

But as you would expect, each year he would be a little feebler and the villagers who loved and respected him began to worry. Each Christmas morning as the children excitedly took the gifts from their stockings, the fearful thought in every parent’s heart was "Maybe next Christmas he won’t be with us."

A few days before one Christmas, a number of villagers called on Nicholas with a suggestion. "We thought Nicholas," said one man a little hesitantly, "we thought that you must get so cold filling the stockings outside the door, especially when there are five or six in the family, that it would be better if the children left their stockings inside by the fire."

"Then you could come in and sit by the fire and take your time about it," added one woman kindly.

Old Nicholas looked up from the work he was doing and smiled. He placed his hand on the man’s shoulder. "Ho, ho, ho. Fancy you coming here to tell me how to do my work." he joked. "Why I remember filling an embroidered bag for you

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      "Nicholas, you’ll enter won’t you? That’s not a bad sled you have, even though you..."

      "Hush Jan." whispered another. "It’s not nice to remind Nicholas that he built his own sled, just because our fathers had ours made for us."

      But Nicholas was not listening to the conversation. He was thinking swiftly.Finally he turned to the others and asked, "What time does the race begin?"

      "Nine o’clock sharp on Christmas morning." was the reply.

      Nicholas shook his head doubtfully.

      "I don’t know if I can make it." he said slowly. He was thinking of the chest full of toys which he had planned to deliver to all the children on Christmas morning, especially the one for Elsa the wood cutter’s daughter, as she lived outside the village.

      "Perhaps if I get up very early and really hurried," Nicholas said to himself, then suddenly he realized that the race would pass right by Else’s cottage. The doll could be dropped off in a few seconds, allowing him to continue without loosing any time at all.

      "I’ll be there! I’ll be there! At nine o’clock sharp and you had better watch out for that prize!" he shouted gleefully. Christmas morning was bright and sunny, with fresh crisp snow. Nicholas had been up long before the sun, and as usual had left toys in

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