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They got the turkey by missus Margaret
Etting. The shop of mister Ona Sander

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Golong looked that twenty fourth of December
like a bower. Two young cedar trees

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stood, one on each side of
the doorway. Long garlands of evergreen sprinkled

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with bright berries were festooed all over
the walls, and every turkey there,

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and there were lots of them,
hanging like some new kind of gigantic fruit

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from the mass of green that covered
the ceiling had a gay ribbon tied around

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its neck. And such a wonderful
picture in the way of freshness and color

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as the big window presented to the
passers by bunches of crisp, light green

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celery leaning up against heaps of brown, pink eyed potatoes and honest red onions,

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fiery looking peppers side by side with
golden oranges and yellow lemons, hard

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smooth, shining cranberries trying to look
as though they were sweet, great fat

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pumpkins, piles of green and piles
of rosy apples, bunches of fragrant thyme,

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and more turkeys, some with and
some without their feathered coats, but

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all, as I said before,
with gay ribbons around their necks. Dear

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me, if Santa Claus could have
only looked into that window and peeped into

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that shop, how pleased he would
have been, and how he would have

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laughed, And he certainly would have
taken mister Oner sandig Along for a long

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lost brother. For never before did
mortal man so strongly resemble the children's old

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Christmas friend, snow white hair,
long, snow white beard, twinkling blue

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eyes, round, fat, red, good natured face, a fur cap

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on his head, bunches of holly
berries pinned here and there on his shaggy

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jacket, and a laugh, good, gracious, such a loud, hearty,

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mirth provoking laugh that the very people
on the street hearing it, began

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to smile and feel that Christmas was
here. Indeed, and I tell you,

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mister Oner sander Goalong was busy that
day, and so were all the

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men and boys employed by him.
Turkeys and other things that had been ordered

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the evening before, Turkeys and other
things that had been ordered early that morning,

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and turkeys and other things being ordered
all the time were to be packed

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away in huge baskets and sent to
their respective destinations. But he wasn't so

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busy, but that he stopped a
moment from his work to give a piece

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of meat to a poor dog that
had trotted hopefully into the shop, having

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evidently translated the name Golong over the
door into come in, and was asked

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for it with his eyes. And
as he rose from patting the dog,

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he saw two children standing before him, also asking for something with their eyes.

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They were poorly dressed children, but
the girl had a sweet, bright

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face, and the boy was as
jolly looking a little fellow as you could

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find anywhere. His cheeks were as
round, if not as red, as

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mister Golong's, and his merry black
eyes actually danced in his head. Now,

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if there was one place in mister
Onosander Golong's heart softer than the rest,

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it was the place he kept four
children. And so when he saw

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these two looking up in his face, the boy with boyish boldness and the

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girl with girlish shyness, he said, in the cheeriest, kindest manner,

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Well, small people, what can
I do for you? We would like

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to tell you a story, answered
the boy in a frank, pleasant voice.

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Tell me a story, repeated mister
Golong in a tone of great surprise.

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Yes, sir, please a Christmas
story, was the reply. Bless

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my heart, What a queer idea, said mister Golong, and he laughed,

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a silent laugh that half closed his
eyes and wrinkled his nose in the

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funniest way. Wouldn't you like to
hear, one, asked the girl,

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coaxingly. Of course I would.
I'm very fond of stories. But I

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don't see how I can spare the
time. We're so busy just now and

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likely to be until night, said
mister Golong. It's only a short one,

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said the boy. A very short
one, added the girl. Well

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go ahead, said the good natured
old fellow, and he sat down on

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a barrel of potatoes, and his
young visitors placed themselves, one on each

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side of him. One Christmas time, the boy began. There was a

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big tenement house in this city,
and ten families lived in it. And

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every one of these families set one
knew they were going to have turkey for

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their Christmas dinner. They knew it's
shore the day before Christmas, all set

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This one, the family that wasn't
sure the day before Christmas morning, lived

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on the top floor, and it
was it was missus Todd Neil Tod,

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Hetty Tod, and Puppy Tod prompted
the girl. Yes it was them,

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said the boy, and went on
with his story again. Missus Todd was

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Neil's and Hetty's mother. They hadn't
any father. He died three years ago,

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and Puppy was their dog. Missus
Todd is one of the best mothers

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ever lived. And she sews button
holes on boy's jackets for a big store.

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And Hetty cleans up the house and
gets the supper and such things.

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And I I mean Neil runs errands
for folks when he can get a chance

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after school. His mother wants him
to go to school till he's fourteen,

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anyhow, because a boy that has
some education can get along better than a

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boy that don't know anything. And
this family, though they were very poor,

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had always managed to have a turkey
dinner till the Christmas I'm telling about.

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And Missus Todd she loved turkey,
didn't Hetty and Kneel asked mister Golong,

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closing his eyes and wrinkling his nose
again, And he hurried away to

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wait on a stout lady, all
covered with glittering jet ornaments and bugles.

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Who must have been a very particular
customer. She talks so loud and so

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much, didn't Hetty and kneel,
he repeated when he came back. Oh

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my, I guess they did,
said the girl, her eyes sparkling.

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They'd a been funny fellows if they
didn't, added the boy. But upon

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their words and honors, they wanted
it more for their mother. She's such

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a good mother and has so few
good things to eat than they did for

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themselves. And it made them feel
awful bad when she came home and cried

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cause some wicked thief had stolen her
pocket book with half a week's earnings in

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it, and the two dollar bill
that the boss had given her to buy

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a Christmas dinner with. Besides,
and so the boy kneil. He's kind

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of a nice chap, ain't he? Hetty? Awful nice, replied Hetty

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with a mischievous little giggle. And
he says to his sister, she's awful

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nice, ain't she? Hetty?
Kind of nice? Said Hetty with another

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little giggle. He says to his
sister, continued the boy, don't say

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anything to mother, but put on
your hat and bring a basket, and

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we'll make a try for a merry
Christmas dinner, turkey and all. And

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they went round the corner to a
beautiful market kept by a gentleman who looked

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exactly like Santa Claus. Mister Ona
Sander Galong laughed aloud this time and flew

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to wait on another particular customer.
So he looked like Santa Claus, he

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said with a chuckle. When he
sat down on the barrel of potatoes again

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the very image of him, said
the girl, with great emphasis. The

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boy began. The boy once more
had run errands for him two or three

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times, and each time had got
two apples or oranges besides the regular pay.

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And he was good to cats and
dogs. So this chap went to

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this gentleman. He took his sister
along because he thought mister Golong would like

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to see her. And they told
him their story, and the boy says,

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when it was done, if you
would only trust us for a turk,

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I mean a turkey and a few
other things, I'll work for you

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all holiday week and another eat too
after school. My name's Neil Todd,

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and my mother as a real nice
woman, and I love her just as

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you used to love your mother when
you was a little boy, And the

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gentleman says, he, being as
its Christmas time, and I look so

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much like Santa Claus, I'll do
it. And he did, And that's

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all mister Ona sandiglong burst out a
laughing, And oh how he laughed.

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He laughed until the tears ran down
his cheeks. He laughed until he nearly

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fell off the borel. He laughed
until everybody far and near who heard him

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laughed too. And the very roosters
in the poultry shop over the way joined

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in and crowed with all their might
and main, and they got the turkey.

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And of they got the turkey.
By missus Margaret Etting