"W"WHO is going to hang up a stocking to-night?" asked Fred, as the children watched their father and uncle while they dressed the room with greens on Christmas-eve.

"I shall," said Harry.

"And I," said Maggie.

"I don't know about it," said Bessie; "maybe Santa Claus will think we are greedy, if we hang up our stockings when we are going to have a Christmas-tree."

"No, pet," said Harry; "he's a generous old fellow, and, besides, he'll know that we don't expect much in our stockings. We'll leave a little note, telling him we only do it for the fun of the thing."

"He'll scorch his old legs coming down the chimney to-night," laughed Fred; "there's a roaring big fire in mamma's grate."

"Oh, he's used to it," said Harry; "he minds neither heat nor cold."

"Maggie," said Fred, "if you hear a scrambling and pawing in mamma's chimney to-night, you can jump up and take a look at him through the crack of the door."

"We wouldn't be so mean," answered Maggie. "If he meant us to see him, he would come in the day-time when we are up; and if he knew we did it, perhaps he'd just go whisking up the chimney, and not leave us a single thing."

"Hurrah for honest Maggie!" said Fred. "I hope Santa Claus is around somewhere, and heard you say that. He'll give you a reward for it."

"Children," said Bessie, "you talk as if Santa Claus yeally was."

"You don't mean to say he really is not!" said Fred. "Now, if he has heard you, Bess, he'll be affronted, and punish you, as he will reward Midget."

"I know who Santa Claus is," said Bessie, gravely, "and I wonder if it's yight to talk so earnest about him."

"Mamma said it was not wrong," said Maggie, "'cause every one knew it was only a joke, and no one meant to deceive; but it's fun to think about him and talk about him, so I am going to do it."

"I wonder how this notion of Santa Claus ever came about?" said Harry. "Let us ask papa."

But Mr. Bradford was too busy just then to attend to them, and said he would tell them at another time.

When Maggie and Bessie went up-stairs, their brothers went with them to assist in hanging up the stockings, and when nurse found what they were doing, she came too, bringing Franky's stocking and a tiny worsted sock.

"Holloa," said Fred, "you are not going to hang up that apology for a stocking, nursey? Why, Santa Claus will never see it! and if he did, he'll have nothing small enough in his pack to put in it."

"I'll trust to his forgetting my pet," said the old woman. "If he overlooks any one, it will be the one of the family that's always in mischief and up to some saucy prank; and maybe he'll just put a rod in that one's stocking."

"Poor mammy!" said Fred, "do you really think Santa Claus will serve you such a shabby trick as that, and not bring you a single thing? If he does, I'll save all my pocket-money for a month, and buy you something nice."

Nursey shook her head at the roguish fellow, whom she dearly loved in spite of all his mischief and teasing, and having fastened up the little sock, she carried Maggie and Bessie away to undress them.

If the little girls had been awake an hour later, when their brothers stopped in mamma's room on their way up to bed, they might have said that Santa Claus had a great deal of laughing and whispering to do; but they were sound asleep, and heard nothing till the next morning, when nurse, according to promise, came to wake them at an earlier hour than usual; for nurse and Patrick had been taken into the secret, and the latter had promised not to ring the rising-bell for this morning, but to let the children wake their parents in their own way. Harry had procured half a dozen bells of different tones, and had taught his brother and sisters to ring them in tune, producing what they called "Christmas Chimes." I cannot say that they sounded much like chimes, or that the tune was very easily distinguished; but since the children were satisfied with their own performance, it answered all the purpose. And certainly had not papa and mamma been already awake, they could not have slept one moment after all this din was raised at their door. Mr. Bradford, however, was up and nearly dressed, for Miss Baby had chosen to wake at an early hour, and looking around for something with which to amuse herself, had discovered two new playthings in her father's nose and hair. These she chose to consider her own proper Christmas gifts, and had ever since been making good use of them. Papa tired of the fun sooner than she did, and had been forced to take the new toys beyond the reach of the little hands. Both he and mamma laughed heartily at their Christmas greeting; but soon came sweeter sounds, for when the chimes were over, the four clear young voices rose in the beautiful hymn:—

No music ever sounded more delightful in the ears of Mr. and Mrs. Bradford, and when the hymn was finished, papa waited to be sure that no more was to follow. But now came shouts of "Merry Christmas!" and as he opened the door, the whole happy, laughing flock rushed in, with Flossy barking joyously at their heels.

"Now for the stockings!" said Fred, when all loving wishes had been exchanged. "One at a time. You begin, Hal."

There hung the stockings all in a row as they had been left last night; but now they were full instead of empty, and to the top of each was pinned a piece of paper with some words written in a large, sprawling hand.

Now Harry, though he was by no means a miserly boy, had a fancy for saving all sorts of stray odds and ends, saying that they might be of use some day. This habit of his gave a great deal of amusement to Fred, and now he seemed much delighted when on Harry's paper were found the words, "For Master Save-all." At the top of the stocking was a packet of sugar-plums, below an old battered tin cup, some broken pieces of china, part of a knife-blade, and some scraps of paper. Harry rolled the paper into a ball and threw it at Fred's head.

"Now for number two," said the mischievous fellow, unpinning the paper from his stocking, which did not look as full as Harry's. "'The pattern boy of the house'—that's myself, of course,—'needs nothing but the reward of his own conscience, and the goodies whose sweetness is only equalled by his disposition.' Good for Santa Claus! He's a gentleman of sense."

"There's something else there," said Maggie.

Fred looked rather surprised, but plunging his hand down to the bottom of his stocking, pulled out a small square box. Opening it, he found two little parcels, one containing mustard, the other pepper, with the labels, "Like to like." He colored furiously, but laughed good-naturedly, saying, "All fair; give and take."

On Maggie's paper was written, "For the girl who would not peep." And besides sugar-plums, the stocking held a tiny log-cabin, a puzzle of Harry's which she had long wished to have, and two or three other small toys. Bessie's and Franky's held pretty much the same, except that in Bessie's, instead of the log-cabin, was a tiny doll dressed as a policeman; for since her adventure she had been very fond of talking of her friends, the policemen, and her stocking was ticketed, "For the girl who will not believe that Santa Claus really is."

But now nurse, coming in after her baby, looked first at her little sock, and to her great disgust, found nothing but a bundle of twigs tied on the outside.

"The old rascal!" she said; "does he mean to say my baby wants a whipping? The best baby that ever lived! I'll just lay this rod over his own shoulders."

"You'll have to catch him first," said Fred, "and you wont have a chance till next Christmas-eve."

"Wont I though?" said nurse, and she made a grasp at the laughing boy, who dived, and the next instant was off with nurse after him. But nurse was old and fat, Fred, young and active, and he vaulted over balusters, and took flying leaps down-stairs in a way which quite terrified her; so that she begged him to "stop and not risk his neck on this blessed Christmas morn."

"As well risk my neck as my shoulders," said Fred. "Will you promise not to visit the sins of Santa Claus on me if I consent not to kill myself?"

Nurse promised, and went back for her baby, whom she carried off to the nursery, covering it with kisses, and talking to it as though she thought it very badly treated.

"It's rather droll, is it not, that Santa Claus' handwriting should be so much like that of our Fred?" said Mr. Bradford.

"Not at all, sir, for he took lessons of me when he was young," answered the rogue, with a comical look at his father.

"Papa," said Harry, at the breakfast-table, "can you tell us now about Santa Claus?"

"I will tell you all I know, but that is not much," said his father. "Santa Claus is Dutch or German for St. Nicholas. Many hundred years ago, there lived far away in the East a good old bishop, named Nicholas, who gave up his life to acts of charity and mercy. He was said to have a great love for children, and many stories are told of his kindness to them; hence, he came to be regarded as their special friend. After his death, the Romish Church, to which he belonged, made him a saint; and as his feast day, or the day which particularly belonged to him, happened to be near Christmas, he was supposed to take a great share in the rejoicings of that day."

"But why is he said to come down the chimney and fill stockings?" asked Fred.

"I do not know," said Mr. Bradford, "and though I have questioned several people who know a great deal about old customs, I have never been able to find out how this idea arose. In some parts of Europe, he is supposed to be a child angel, not an old man; and in France the children call him Noel, and put their shoes on the hearth to be filled. Perhaps the custom of giving presents at this time arose from the gifts which the wise men of the East brought to the infant Saviour; perhaps it was only intended to remind us of the greatest and most precious of all gifts which we received on this day. My Bessie can tell what that was; can she not?"

"God's Jesus, who came to save us, so his Father could take us to heaven," said the little girl.

"Right, my darling; and can Maggie tell what was the song the angels sang on this happy morning?"

"Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men," said Maggie.

"And every Christmas-day since the song has been repeated by men and angels. Is it not a pleasant thought that all over the world, in every land where Christ is known, millions of happy voices ring forth the glad tidings, 'For unto us is born this day a Saviour, who is Christ the Lord;' that millions of young children are singing praises to him who became a little child that he might bring to us the one priceless gift without which all others are worthless? For from this flows every good thing; without the peace, comfort, and safety which this has brought, there would be nothing but misery and unhappiness, even for those who do not love and bless the holy child Jesus, or trust to his salvation. Every prayer which we offer, not only on this day but on all days of the year, finds its way to the Father's ear only through his name; every joy is made brighter, every sorrow lighter, by the thought of the one great blessing the birthday of our Saviour brought."

And now there were down-stairs several poor people to be attended to before church-time; for on this day, of all others, Mr. and Mrs. Bradford would not forget those who had not as many good gifts as themselves. There was Mary Bent, who had risen long before daylight that she might be in the city at an early hour. Very cold and tired she looked, but she cheerfully answered the children's "Merry Christmas;" and when she had eaten the good breakfast Mrs. Bradford ordered for her, the color came into her pale cheeks, and she quite agreed with Maggie and Bessie that this was the happiest day in all the year.

"Mrs. Duncan ordered our Christmas dinner sent from Riverside, ma'am," she said, courtesying to Mrs. Bradford; "and old Mr. Duncan sent a puzzle to Jemmy; so there's nothing more to be wished for."

"Still," said the lady, "I suppose you will not refuse the present which the children have for you."

No fear of that, as the sparkle of Mary's eyes showed when Maggie and Bessie came with the warm sack which they had bought for her. It was tried on at once, and found to fit pretty well, leaving, it is true, some room for Mary to grow, but that was a fault on the right side. Mrs. Bradford gave her a hood for herself, and a book for Jemmy, with a parcel of cakes and candies, and some tea and sugar for her mother, and the little radish-girl went home with a light, happy heart.

There was an old negro man nearly a hundred years of age, but who still managed to hobble about with a stick and pay a Christmas visit to his kind friends, and who, when Mrs. Bradford gave him money and a hat, said, "Dear honey, I didn't spect nothin'; I jest came for a sight of your pooty face." But, nevertheless, old Jack would have been sadly disappointed to go away empty-handed; indeed, I think it quite doubtful if he would have gone away at all until he had received something.

There were several others to be made happy, but it would take too long to tell who they all were. Every one, however, went from Mr. Bradford's door blessing the kind hearts who could not be content unless they shared with others the many good gifts God had bestowed upon them. Then to church to praise the Lord for all the mercies of the day; after which, Maggie and Bessie were taken to a large room, where the children of the Church Mission School were to have a Christmas dinner. Roast beef and turkey, with other good things, had been furnished for the little ones, many of whom, perhaps, never had a comfortable meal save on this day of the year.

Mrs. Bradford brought her children away before the dinner was quite over, for she feared Bessie would be too tired, and when they reached home, told her she must take a little rest. Bessie thought it a pity to lose a moment of Christmas-day in sleep; but, like the obedient child she was, lay down on mamma's sofa. But after lying quite still for about ten minutes with her eyes closed, she said, "Mamma, I have kept my eyes tight shut for a great many hours, and the sleep will not come."

Her mother laughed, and said she might get up, since the time seemed so long, and sent her to the nursery to be dressed for dinner.

And now came grandmamma and Aunt Annie, Grandpapa Duncan, Aunt Helen, and Uncle John with Baby Nellie, and afterwards, Colonel and Mrs. Rush. What a long dinner-table that was, and what a circle of bright, happy faces about it! Maggie and Bessie, and perhaps Fred and Harry, too, had thought it rather foolish to think of dinner when there was the Christmas-tree waiting in the library; but, somehow, they all contrived to enjoy the merry meal very much. Fred declared he wished his father kept a hotel, it was so jolly to sit down to dinner with such a lot of people.

Soon came Tom, Lily, and Eddy Norris, with Gracie Howard, to share in the grand event of the day. Papa and Uncle John disappeared for a few moments, then the servants were called, the library-door thrown open, and there stood the Christmas-tree in all its splendor. On the topmost bough was a figure of old Santa Claus, with his pack upon his back; around him burned a row of wax tapers, and on every little twig hung flags, spangles, bright-colored balls, and bonbons; while the larger and stouter branches and the green tub were covered with the heavier gifts. Such shouts of delight as came from the little ones! Baby, in mamma's arms, seemed to think the whole show was for her amusement, and crowed and laughed and stretched out her dimpled hands towards the pretty things, which she would soon have destroyed, had she been allowed to grasp them.

When the tree had been sufficiently admired, Mr. Bradford stepped forward, and, taking down one after another of the gifts, handed them to the persons for whom they were intended. One of the first things was a sweet picture in a black walnut frame, which he gave to mamma. Great was her delight when she saw the faces of her two little daughters, so prettily painted by her sister.

"Now may we see, Aunt Helen?" said Maggie, and receiving permission, she and Bessie ran eagerly forward. "Oh, how sweet Bessie and Flossy look! And there's another pretty little girl standing by—Why, that's me!"

Every one laughed, but Maggie was so pleased she did not think about that, but thanked Aunt Helen for putting her in the picture. Bessie was even more surprised, and could not understand how her aunt could paint a picture without her knowing it.

Now papa called Maggie, for there was a beautiful little bed for her doll; and next came one for Bessie. Never was there a tree that bore such various and delightful fruit,—fruit suited to large and small, from Grandpapa Duncan down to the dear baby; and never were richer or happier children than our Maggie and Bessie. There seemed to be presents from every one to every one, and happy voices and merry laughter filled the room. The Colonel and Mrs. Rush were very much pleased with the book-marks, "I love you, Sir," and "Remember me, Ma'am;" that is, if smiles and kisses were to be taken as signs, and promised to keep them as long as they lived.

Nor were papa and mamma less delighted with the paper-weight and picture and the markers worked with "To my dear father," and "To my dear mother." Mamma did not in the least care that Maggie, trying to do hers by herself, had put the o and the m, quite close together, making it read "Tomy dear mother," a mistake which mischievous Aunt Annie, enjoying the joke, had not corrected. Of all the gifts which Mr. and Mrs. Bradford received that evening, none pleased them more than those which the fingers of their own little daughters had manufactured.

As for nurse, she scarcely had eyes or thoughts for her own presents, so occupied was she with the treasures which showed that the youngest darling of the flock had not been forgotten.

"Well, mammy," said Fred, shaking in the old woman's ears the silver and coral rattle which had been grandmamma's gift to baby, "will you forgive the trick which Santa Claus served you last night?"

"I will," answered nurse, "and I wish he may never turn out a worse fellow than the rogue who played his part."

The excitement and gayety was calming down a little, when Harry suddenly said, "See there, papa. There must be a fire," and he pointed towards the window.

Mr. Bradford hastily drew back the curtain, and as a crimson glare was seen upon the snow, it did indeed seem for a moment as if Harry's words were true.

But directly Mr. Bradford said, "It is no fire, but a splendid aurora; let us go up-stairs, where we may have a better view;" and taking Bessie in his arms, he carried her to an upper room, whither they were followed by all the rest. It was indeed a magnificent sight which met their eyes. Far down in the northern sky appeared a dark purple arch; above it a second of the brightest gold, while from the latter shot long rays or streamers of every brilliant color, changing each instant, and overhead glowed the steadier crimson light, which, throwing its reflection on the pure white snow, had caused Harry to think it was a large fire.

For a moment Maggie and Bessie stood speechless with delight, for they had never seen anything like this before. Then Bessie exclaimed, joyously, "Papa, papa, have the angels opened the gates of heaven to let the glory shine out 'cause it's Christmas night?"

No one smiled at the pretty idea, though all were pleased; for sweet as was the thought, it yet was solemn, and as they watched the flashing play of those beautiful northern lights, it did indeed seem almost as if there were reason in the little darling's words, and as if the hosts of heaven in their rejoicing over man's salvation might be giving them some glimpse of the glory purchased for them on this blessed night.

But Mr. Bradford whispered softly as he drew her closer to him, "No, my darling. Our eyes may never behold the beauty of heaven till our Father takes us to himself. This is the work of his hand, and lovely it is; but it is as nothing to the glory of the great white throne whereon he sits."

And so ended this happy Christmas which our Maggie and Bessie will both remember as long as they shall live.