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Speaker 1: Old father Christmas. Can you fancy, young people, said Godfather Garble,

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winking his prominent eyes, and moving his feet backwards and

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forwards in his square shoes, so that you could hear

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the squeakler the half a room off? Can you fancy

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my having been a very little boy and having a godmother?

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But I had, and she sent me presents on my

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birthdays too, And young people did not get presents when

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I was a child as they get them now. Rumph.

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We had not half so many toys as you have,

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but we kept them twice as long. I think we

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were fonder of them too, though they were neither so

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handsome nor so expensive as these new fangled affairs you

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were always breaking about the house. Humph. You see, middle

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class folk were more saving then. My mother turned and

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died her dresses, and when she had done with them,

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the servant was very glad to have them. But bless me,

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your mother's maids dress so much finer than their mistress.

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I do not think they would say thank you for

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her best Sunday silk. The bustle's the wrong shape, humph.

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What's that you are laughing at? Little miss? It's pannier,

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is it? Well? Well, bustle or pannier. Call it what

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you like, but only donkeys wore panniers in my young days,

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and many's the ride I've had in them now. As

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I say, my relations and friends thought twice before they

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pulled out five shillings in a toy shop, but they

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didn't forget me all the same. On my eighth birthday,

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my mother gave me a bright blue comforter of her

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own knitting. My little sister gave me a ball. My

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mother had cut out the divisions from various bits in

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the rag bag, and my sister had done some of

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the seeming. It was stuffed with bran and had a

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cork inside which had broken from old age and could

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no longer fit the pickle jar it belonged to. This

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made the ball bound when we played Prisoner's Bass. My

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father gave me the broken driving whip that had lost

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the lash and an old pair of his gloves to

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play coachman with. These I had longed wished for, since

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next to sailing in a ship in my ideas came

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the honor and glory of driving a coach. My whole soul,

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I must tell you, was set upon being a sailor.

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In those tuesdays. I had rather put to sea once

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on Farmer Fodder's duck pond than ride twice at top

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of his hay wagon. And between the smell of the

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hay and the softness of it, and the height you

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are up above other folk, and the danger of tumbling

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off if you don't look out for hay is elastic

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as well as soft. You don't easily beat a ride

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on a hay wagon for pleasure. But as I say,

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I'd rather put to sea on the duck pond, though

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the best craft I could borrow was the pigstie door

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and a pole to punt with, and the village boys

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jeering when I got aground, which was most of the time,

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besides the duck pond never having a wave on it

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worth the name punt as you would, and so shallow

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you could not have got drowned in it to save

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your life. You're laughing now, little master, are you, But

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let me tell you that drowning's the death for a sailor,

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whatever you may think. So I've always maintained and have

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given every navigable sea in the known world a chance,

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though here I am, after all, laid up in arm

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chairs and feather beds to a wait for bronchitis or

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some other slow poison. Rumph, Well, we must all go

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as we're called sailors or lundsman. And as I was saying,

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if I was never to sailor ship, I would have

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liked to drive a coach, a mail coach, serving his majesty,

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her majesty. Now, God bless her, carrying the royal arms,

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and bound to go rough weather and fair. Many's the

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time I've done it in play, you understand, With that

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whip and those gloves, dear, dear, the pains I took

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to teach my sister Patty to be a highwayman and

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jump out on me from the drying ground, hedge in

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the dusk with a stand and deliver which she couldn't

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get out of her throat for fright. Ann wouldn't jump

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hard enough for fear of hurting me. The whip and

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the gloves gave me joy, I can tell you. But

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there was more to come. Kitty the servant gave me

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a shell that she had had by her for years.

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How I had coveted that shell. It had this remarkable property.

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When you put it to your ear, you could hear

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the roaring of the sea. I had never seen the sea,

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but Kitty was born in a fisherman's cottage, and many

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an hour have I sat by the kitchen fire whilst

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she told me strange stories of the mighty ocean and

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ever and anon. She would snatch the shell from the

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mantelpiece and clap it to my ear, crying, there, child,

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you couldn't hear it plainer than that, it's the very moral.

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When Kitty gave me that shell for my very own,

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I felt that life had little more to offer. I

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held it to every ear in the house, including the cats,

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and seeing Dick, the sexton son, go by with an

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armful of straw to stuff guy Fawkes, I ran out, and,

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in my anxiety to make him share the treat and

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learn what the sea is like, I clapped the shell

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to his ear so smartly and unexpectedly that he, thinking

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me to have struck him, knocked me down there and

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then with his bundle of straw. When he understood the

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rights of the case, he begged my pardon handsomely and

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gave me two whole treacle sticks and part of a

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third out of his breeches pocket in return, for which

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I forgave him freely and promised to let him hear

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the sea raw on every Saturday half holiday till further notice.

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And speaking of Dick and the straw reminds me that

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my birthday falls on the fifth of November. From this

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it came about that I had always to bear a

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good many jokes about being burnt as guy Fawkes. But

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on the other hand I was allowed to make a

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small bonfire of my own, and to have eight potatoes

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to roast therein, and eight pennace of crackers to let

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off in the evening. A potato and a pennace of

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crackers for every year of my life. On this eighth birthday,

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having got all the above name gifts, I cried in

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the fullness of my heart. There never was such a day,

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And yet there was more to come. For the evening

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coach brought me a parcel, and the parcel was my

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godmother's picture book. My godmother was a gentlewoman of small means,

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but she was accomplished. She could make very spirited sketches

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and knew how to color them after they were outlined

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and shaded in Indian ink. She had a pleasant talent

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for versifying. She was very industrious. I have it from

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her own lips that she copied the figures in my

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picture book from prints in several different houses at which

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she visited. They were fancy portraits of characters, most of

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which were familiar to my mind. There were Guy Fawkes,

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Punch his then Majesty, the King Bogie, the man in

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the Moon, the clerk of the weather Office, a Dunce,

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and old Father Christmas. Beneath each sketch was a stanza

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of my godmother's own composing. My godmother was very ingenious.

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She had been mainly guided in her choice of these

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characters by the prince she happened to meet with, as

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she did not trust herself to design a figure. But

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if she could not get exactly what she wanted, she

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had a clever knack of tracing an outline of the

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attitude from some engraving, and altering the figure to suit

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her purpose. In the finished sketch, she was the soul

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of truthfulness. The note she added to the index of

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contents in my picture book spoke at once for her

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honesty in avowing obligations and her ingenuity in availing herself

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of opportunities. They ran thus number one Guy Fawkes, outlined

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from a figure of a warehouseman rolling a sherry cask

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into mister Rudd's wine vaults. I added the hat, cloak

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and boots in the finished drawing. Number two punch, I

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sketched him from the life. Number three, His most Gracious Majesty,

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The King on a court jug bought in cheapside. Number four.

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Bogie with bad boys in the bag on his back,

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outlined from a Christian bending under his burden in my

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mother's old copy of The Pilgrim's Progress. The face from

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Giant Despair. Number five and number six, the Man in

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the Moon and the Clerk of the Weather Office from

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a book of caricatures belonging to Doctor James. Number seven,

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a dunce from a steal engraving framed in rosewood that

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hangs in my uncle Wilkinson's parlor. Number eight Old Father

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Christmas from a German book at Lady Littleham's. My sister

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Patty was six years old. We loved each other dearly.

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The picture book was almost as much hers as mine.

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We sat so long together on one big footstool by

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the fire, with our arms round each other and the

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book resting on our knees that Kitty called down blessings

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on my godmother's head for having sent a volume that

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kept us both so long out of mischief. If books

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was Alice as useful as that they do for me,

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said she. And though this speech did not mean much,

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it was a great deal for Kitty to say, since,

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not being herself an educated person, she naturally thought that

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little enough good comes of learning. Patty and I had

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our favorites amongst the pictures. Bogey now was a character

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one did not care to think about too near bedtime.

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I was tired of guy Fawkes, and thought that he

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looked more natural made of straw as Dick did him.

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The dance was a little too personal. But old Father

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Christmas took our hearts by storm. We had never seen

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anything like him, though nowadays you may get up plaster

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figure of him in any toy shop at Christmas time,

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with hair and beard like cotton wool, and a Chrism

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in his hand. The custom of Christmas trees came from Germany.

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I can remember when they were first introduced into England,

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and what wonderful things we sought them. Now every village

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school has its tree, and the scholars openly discuss whether

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the presents have been good or mean as compared with

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other trees of former years. The first one that I

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ever saw I believed to have come from the Good

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Father Christmas himself. But little boys have grown too wise

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now to be taken in for their own amusement. They

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are not excited by secret and mysterious preparations in the

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back drawing room. They hardly confess to the thrill which

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I feel to this day. When the folding doors are

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thrown open, and amid the blaze of tapers, Mama life,

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like her fate, advances with her scissors to give every

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one what falls to his lot. Well, young people, when

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I was eight years old, I had not seen a

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Christmas tree, and the first picture of one I ever

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saw was the picture of that held by old Father

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Christmas in my godmother's picture book. What are those things

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on the tree, I asked, Candles, said my father. No, Father,

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not the candles. The other things those are toys, my son.

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Are they ever taken off? Yes, they are taken off

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and given to the children who stand round the tree.

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Patty and I grasped each other by the hand, and

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with one voice murmured, how kind of Old Father Christmas.

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By and by I asked how old this old Father Christmas.

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My father laughed and said, one thousand, eight hundred and

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thirty years child, which was then the year of our Lord,

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and thus one thousand, eight hundred and thirty years since

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the first great Christmas Day. He looks very old, whispered Patty.

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And I, who was for my age what Kitty called

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bible learned, said thoughtfully, and with some puzzledness of mind,

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then he's older than Methuselah. But my father had left

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the room and did not hear my difficulty. November and

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December went by, and still the picture book kept all

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its charm for Patty and me, and we pondered on

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and loved Old Father Christmas, as children can love and

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realize a fancy friend to those who remember the fancies

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of their childhood. I need say no more. Christmas week came,

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Christmas Eve came. My father and mother were mysteriously and

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unaccountably busy in the parlor. We only had one parlor,

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and Patty and I were not allowed to go in.

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We went into the kitchen, but even here was no

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place of rest for us. Kitty was all over the place,

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as she phrased it, and cakes, mince pies and puddings

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were with her, as she justly observed, there was no

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place there for children and books to sit with their

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toes in the fire, when our body wanted to be

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at the oven all along. Their cat was enough for

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her temper, she added, as to Puss, who obstinately refused

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to take a hint, which drove her out into the

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Christmas frost. She returned again and again with soft steps

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and a stupidity that was I think affected to the

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warm hearth, only to fly at intervals like a football

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before Kitty's hasty slipper. We have more sense or less courage,

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We bowed to Kitty's behests and went to the back door.

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Patty and I were hardy children and accustomed to run

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out in all weathers without much extra wrapping up. We

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put Kitty's shawl over our two heads and went outside.

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I rather hope to see something of Dick, for it

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was holiday time, but no Dick passed. He was busy

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helping his father to bore holes in the carved seats

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of the church, which were to hold sprigs of holly

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for the morrow that was the idea of church decoration.

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In my young days, you have improved on your elders there,

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young people, and I am candid enough to allow it. Still,

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the sprigs of red and green were better than nothing,

241
00:18:17,400 --> 00:18:22,160
And like your lovely wreaths and pious devices, they made

242
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one feel as if the old blackwood were bursting into

243
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life and leaf again for very Christmas joy. And if

244
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one only knelt carefully, they did not scratch his nose,

245
00:18:36,680 --> 00:18:40,720
added Godfather Garble, chuckling and rubbing his own, which was

246
00:18:41,079 --> 00:18:48,400
large and rather red. Well, he continued, Dick was busy

247
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and not to be seen. We ran across the little

248
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yard and looked over the wall at the end to

249
00:18:55,519 --> 00:18:59,680
see if we could see anything or anybody. From this

250
00:18:59,799 --> 00:19:04,440
part there was a pleasant meadow field sloping prettily away

251
00:19:04,480 --> 00:19:09,519
to a little hill about three quarters of a mile distance, which,

252
00:19:09,759 --> 00:19:13,960
catching some fine breezes from the moors beyond, was held

253
00:19:14,000 --> 00:19:16,720
to be a place of cure for whooping cough or

254
00:19:17,160 --> 00:19:21,519
kink koff, as it was vulgarly called up to the

255
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top of this. Kitty had dragged me and carried Patty

256
00:19:26,119 --> 00:19:30,200
when we were recovering from the complaint. As I well remember,

257
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it was the only change of air we could afford,

258
00:19:35,079 --> 00:19:37,559
and I dare say it did as well as if

259
00:19:37,640 --> 00:19:42,400
we had gone into badly drained lodgings at the sea side.

260
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This hill was now covered with snow and stood off

261
00:19:46,799 --> 00:19:51,559
against the gray sky. The white fields looked vast and

262
00:19:51,759 --> 00:19:55,599
dreary in the dusk. The only gay things to be

263
00:19:55,720 --> 00:19:58,640
seen were the red berries on the holly hedge in

264
00:19:58,720 --> 00:20:02,799
the little lane which running by the end of our

265
00:20:02,839 --> 00:20:06,400
back yard led up to the hall, and a fat

266
00:20:06,559 --> 00:20:10,880
robin redbreast, who was staring at me. I was watching

267
00:20:10,920 --> 00:20:15,119
the robin when Patty, who had been peering out of

268
00:20:15,240 --> 00:20:19,039
the corner of Kitty's shawl, gave a great jump that

269
00:20:19,279 --> 00:20:24,880
dragged the shawl from her heads and cried. Look. I looked.

270
00:20:25,599 --> 00:20:29,640
An old man was coming along the lane. His hair

271
00:20:29,839 --> 00:20:34,039
and beard were white as cotton wool. He had a

272
00:20:34,160 --> 00:20:37,400
face like the sort of apple that keeps well in winter.

273
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His coat was old and brown. There was snow about

274
00:20:42,680 --> 00:20:47,680
him in patches, and he carried a small fir tree.

275
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The same conviction seized upon us both with one breath.

276
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We exclaimed, it's o, Father Christmas. I know now that

277
00:21:00,200 --> 00:21:02,480
it was only an old man of the place, with

278
00:21:02,599 --> 00:21:05,880
whom we did not happen to be acquainted, and that

279
00:21:05,920 --> 00:21:09,000
he was taking a little fir tree up to the

280
00:21:09,119 --> 00:21:12,680
hall to be made into a Christmas tree. He was

281
00:21:12,720 --> 00:21:17,200
a very good humored old fellow, and rather deaf, for

282
00:21:17,279 --> 00:21:20,319
which he made up by smiling and nodding his head

283
00:21:20,319 --> 00:21:24,279
a good deal and saying aye aye, to be sure

284
00:21:24,799 --> 00:21:29,200
at likely intervals. As he passed us and met our

285
00:21:29,319 --> 00:21:33,759
earnest gaze, he smiled and nodded so affably that I

286
00:21:33,920 --> 00:21:39,400
was bold enough to cry Good evening, Father Christmas, Same

287
00:21:39,480 --> 00:21:43,559
to you, said he in a high pitched voice. Then

288
00:21:43,880 --> 00:21:49,359
you are Father Christmas, said Patty. Under Happy New Year

289
00:21:50,359 --> 00:21:54,440
was Father Christmas's reply, which rather put me out, But

290
00:21:54,799 --> 00:21:58,759
he smiled in such a satisfactory manner that Patty went on,

291
00:21:59,640 --> 00:22:04,039
you'll very old, aren't you? So I be? Miss so

292
00:22:04,319 --> 00:22:10,480
I be, said Father Christmas. Nodding. Father says you're eight

293
00:22:10,599 --> 00:22:15,240
hundred and thirty years old. I muttered, aye aye, to

294
00:22:15,319 --> 00:22:20,799
be sure, said Father Christmas. I'm a long age, a

295
00:22:20,960 --> 00:22:25,400
very long age, thought I, and I added, you're nearly

296
00:22:25,519 --> 00:22:29,440
twice as old as Methuselah, you know, thinking that this

297
00:22:29,640 --> 00:22:34,319
might not have struck him. Aye aye, said Father Christmas,

298
00:22:34,799 --> 00:22:37,039
but he did not seem to think anything of it.

299
00:22:38,359 --> 00:22:41,039
After a pause, he held up the tree and cried,

300
00:22:41,920 --> 00:22:46,160
do you know what this is, little miss ah Christmas Tree,

301
00:22:46,559 --> 00:22:51,799
said Patty, and the old man smiled and nodded. I

302
00:22:51,920 --> 00:22:54,640
leant over the wall and shouted, But there are no

303
00:22:54,960 --> 00:23:00,559
candles by and by, said Father Christmas, nodding as before.

304
00:23:01,559 --> 00:23:04,920
When it's dark, they'll all be lighted up. I'd'll be

305
00:23:05,000 --> 00:23:10,559
a fine sight. Toys too, they'll be, won't there, screamed Patty.

306
00:23:11,920 --> 00:23:18,640
Father Christmas nodded his head. And sweeties, he added expressively.

307
00:23:20,200 --> 00:23:24,000
I could feel Patty trembling and my own heart beat fast.

308
00:23:24,480 --> 00:23:29,519
The thought which agitated us both was this was Father

309
00:23:29,720 --> 00:23:35,160
Christmas bringing the tree to us. But very anxiety and

310
00:23:35,480 --> 00:23:42,279
some modesty also kept us from asking outright. Only when

311
00:23:42,319 --> 00:23:45,839
the old man shouldered his tree and prepared to move on,

312
00:23:46,359 --> 00:23:51,880
I cried in despair, Oh are you going? I'm coming

313
00:23:52,000 --> 00:23:56,119
back by and by, said he. How soon, cried Patty.

314
00:23:57,079 --> 00:24:01,400
About four o'clock, said the old man, smiling, I'm only

315
00:24:01,440 --> 00:24:06,160
going up yonder, and nodding and smiling as he went.

316
00:24:06,960 --> 00:24:13,039
He passed away down the lane up yonder. This puzzled

317
00:24:13,160 --> 00:24:18,240
us Father Christmas had pointed, but so indefinitely that he

318
00:24:18,359 --> 00:24:21,519
might have been pointing to the sky, or the fields,

319
00:24:21,559 --> 00:24:24,599
or the little wood at the end of the squire's grounds.

320
00:24:25,559 --> 00:24:29,480
I thought the latter, and suggested to Patty that perhaps

321
00:24:29,480 --> 00:24:34,119
he had some place underground, like Aladdin's cave where he

322
00:24:34,200 --> 00:24:37,759
got the candles and all the pretty things for the tree.

323
00:24:38,720 --> 00:24:42,720
This idea pleased us both, and we amused ourselves by

324
00:24:42,759 --> 00:24:46,599
wondering what Old Father Christmas would choose for us from

325
00:24:46,599 --> 00:24:50,200
his stores in that wonderful hole where he dressed his

326
00:24:50,359 --> 00:24:56,519
Christmas trees. I wonder, Patty said, I why there's no

327
00:24:56,759 --> 00:25:01,799
picture of Father Christmas's dog in the book. For at

328
00:25:01,839 --> 00:25:05,480
the old man's heels in the lane there crept a

329
00:25:05,559 --> 00:25:09,759
little brown and white spaniel, looking very dirty in the snow.

330
00:25:11,000 --> 00:25:14,119
Perhaps it's a new dog that he's got to take

331
00:25:14,160 --> 00:25:19,440
care of his cave, said Patty. When we went indoors,

332
00:25:19,519 --> 00:25:22,720
we examined the picture afresh by the dim light from

333
00:25:22,799 --> 00:25:27,920
the passage window, but there was no dog there. My

334
00:25:28,200 --> 00:25:31,400
father passed us at this moment and patted my head.

335
00:25:32,119 --> 00:25:36,480
Father said, I I don't know, but I do think

336
00:25:36,559 --> 00:25:39,720
Old Father Christmas is going to bring us a Christmas

337
00:25:39,720 --> 00:25:44,119
tree to night. Who's been telling you? That? Said my father,

338
00:25:45,240 --> 00:25:48,519
But he passed on before I could explain that we

339
00:25:48,599 --> 00:25:52,799
had seen Father Christmas himself and had had his word

340
00:25:52,920 --> 00:25:56,880
for it that he would return at four o'clock, and

341
00:25:56,920 --> 00:25:59,759
that the candles on his tree would be lighted as

342
00:25:59,799 --> 00:26:05,079
soon as it was dark. We hovered on the outskirts

343
00:26:05,079 --> 00:26:08,920
of the room till four o'clock came. We sat on

344
00:26:09,000 --> 00:26:12,759
the stairs and watched the big clock, which I was

345
00:26:12,960 --> 00:26:17,599
just learning to read, and Patty made herself giddy with

346
00:26:17,839 --> 00:26:22,839
constantly looking up and counting the four strokes towards which

347
00:26:22,920 --> 00:26:27,599
the hour hands slowly moved. We put our noses into

348
00:26:27,640 --> 00:26:30,720
the kitchen now and then to smell the cakes and

349
00:26:30,839 --> 00:26:35,079
get warm and anon. We hung about the parlor door

350
00:26:35,559 --> 00:26:40,640
and were most unjustly accused of trying to peep. What

351
00:26:40,759 --> 00:26:43,799
did we care what our mother was doing in the parlor,

352
00:26:44,200 --> 00:26:48,599
We who had seen old Father Christmas himself and were

353
00:26:48,680 --> 00:26:54,720
expecting him back again every moment. At last, the church

354
00:26:54,799 --> 00:27:00,039
clock struck. The sounds boomed heavily through the frost, and

355
00:27:00,160 --> 00:27:04,799
Patty thought that there were four of them. Then, after

356
00:27:05,119 --> 00:27:09,200
dew choking and wearing our own clock struck and we

357
00:27:09,319 --> 00:27:16,799
counted the strokes quite clearly, one, two, three, four. Then

358
00:27:17,279 --> 00:27:21,640
we got Kitty's shawl once more and stole out into

359
00:27:21,680 --> 00:27:25,519
the back yard. We ran to our old place and peeped,

360
00:27:25,960 --> 00:27:30,359
but could see nothing. We better get up onto the wall,

361
00:27:30,400 --> 00:27:35,319
I said, And with some difficulty and distress from rubbing

362
00:27:35,359 --> 00:27:38,559
her bare knees against the cold stones and getting the

363
00:27:38,640 --> 00:27:42,000
snow up her sleeves, Patty got on the coping of

364
00:27:42,039 --> 00:27:46,519
the little wall. I was just struggling after her, when

365
00:27:46,599 --> 00:27:50,839
something warm and something cold, coming suddenly against the bare

366
00:27:50,880 --> 00:27:55,640
calves of my legs, made me shriek with fright. I

367
00:27:55,720 --> 00:27:59,920
came down with a run and bruised my knees, my elbows,

368
00:28:00,079 --> 00:28:03,839
and my chin, and the snow that hadn't gone at

369
00:28:03,880 --> 00:28:08,799
Patty's sleeves went down my neck. Then I found that

370
00:28:08,880 --> 00:28:12,519
the cold thing was a dog's nose, and the warm

371
00:28:12,599 --> 00:28:16,440
thing was his tongue. And Patty cried from her post

372
00:28:16,440 --> 00:28:22,720
of observation, it's Father Christmas's dog, and he's licking your legs.

373
00:28:23,759 --> 00:28:27,160
It really was the dirty little brown and white spaniel,

374
00:28:27,799 --> 00:28:31,119
and he persisted in licking me and jumping on me

375
00:28:31,480 --> 00:28:35,839
and making curious little noises that must have meant something

376
00:28:35,880 --> 00:28:39,880
if one had known his language. I was rather harassed

377
00:28:39,920 --> 00:28:43,519
at the moment. My legs were sore. I was a

378
00:28:43,599 --> 00:28:47,240
little afraid of the dog, and Patty was very much

379
00:28:47,279 --> 00:28:50,960
afraid of sitting on the wall without me. You won't fall,

380
00:28:51,119 --> 00:28:54,160
I said to her. Get down, will you? I said

381
00:28:54,200 --> 00:28:58,160
to the dog. Humpty dumpty fell off a wall, said Patty.

382
00:28:59,200 --> 00:29:03,640
Bow wow, said the dog. I pulled Patty down, and

383
00:29:03,799 --> 00:29:07,039
the dog tried to pull me down. But when my

384
00:29:07,160 --> 00:29:10,480
little sister was on her feet, to my relief, he

385
00:29:10,599 --> 00:29:14,759
transferred his attentions to her. When he had jumped at

386
00:29:14,799 --> 00:29:18,880
her and licked her several times, he turned round and

387
00:29:19,160 --> 00:29:24,720
ran away. He's gone, I said, I'm so glad. But

388
00:29:25,039 --> 00:29:28,400
even as I spoke, he was back again, crouching at

389
00:29:28,480 --> 00:29:32,279
Patty's feet and glaring at her with eyes the color

390
00:29:32,359 --> 00:29:36,599
of his ears. Now Patty was very fond of animals,

391
00:29:37,079 --> 00:29:40,640
and when the dog looked at her, she looked at

392
00:29:40,680 --> 00:29:45,240
the dog, and then she said to me, he wants

393
00:29:45,319 --> 00:29:50,000
us to go with him on which, as if he

394
00:29:50,160 --> 00:29:54,519
understood our language, although we were ignorant of his, the

395
00:29:54,640 --> 00:29:58,759
spaniel sprang away and went off as hard as he could,

396
00:29:59,480 --> 00:30:03,119
and Patty and I went after him, a dim hope

397
00:30:03,160 --> 00:30:08,119
crossing my mind. Perhaps Father Christmas has sent him for us.

398
00:30:09,119 --> 00:30:12,440
This idea was rather favored by the fact that the

399
00:30:12,559 --> 00:30:16,279
dog led us up the lane only a little way.

400
00:30:16,960 --> 00:30:21,519
Then he stopped by something lying in the ditch, and

401
00:30:21,599 --> 00:30:25,240
once more we cried in the same breath. It's old

402
00:30:25,400 --> 00:30:31,079
Father Christmas, returning from the hall. The old man had

403
00:30:31,200 --> 00:30:33,599
slipped upon a bit of ice and lay stunned in

404
00:30:33,720 --> 00:30:38,960
the snow. Patty began to cry. I think he's dead,

405
00:30:39,359 --> 00:30:44,319
she sobbed. He's so very old. I don't wonder, I murmured,

406
00:30:44,839 --> 00:30:50,000
but perhaps he's not. I'll fetch father. My father and

407
00:30:50,200 --> 00:30:53,960
Kitty were soon on the spot. Kitty was as strong

408
00:30:54,000 --> 00:30:57,559
as a man, and they carried Father Christmas between them

409
00:30:57,599 --> 00:31:03,079
into the kitchen. There he quickly revived, I must do

410
00:31:03,240 --> 00:31:06,200
Kitty the justice to say that she did not utter

411
00:31:06,279 --> 00:31:09,880
a word of complaint at this disturbance of her labors,

412
00:31:10,480 --> 00:31:13,400
and that she drew the old man's chair close up

413
00:31:13,400 --> 00:31:16,799
to the oven with her own hand. She was so

414
00:31:16,920 --> 00:31:20,279
much affected by the behavior of his dog that she

415
00:31:20,359 --> 00:31:24,960
admitted him even to the hearth, on which Puss, being

416
00:31:25,039 --> 00:31:28,599
acute enough to see how matters stood, lay down with

417
00:31:28,720 --> 00:31:32,319
her back so close to the spaniels that Kitty could

418
00:31:32,319 --> 00:31:37,279
not expel one without kicking both. For our parts, we

419
00:31:37,400 --> 00:31:41,440
felt slightly anxious about the tree. Otherwise we could have

420
00:31:41,519 --> 00:31:45,039
wished for no better treat than to sit at Kitty's

421
00:31:45,079 --> 00:31:50,759
round table taking tea with Father Christmas. Our usual fare

422
00:31:50,839 --> 00:31:54,839
of thick bread and treacle was to night exchanged for

423
00:31:54,960 --> 00:31:59,000
a delicious variety of cakes, which one none the worse

424
00:31:59,039 --> 00:32:03,400
to us for being tasters, and waters, that is, little

425
00:32:03,400 --> 00:32:06,640
bits of dough or short bread put in to try

426
00:32:06,680 --> 00:32:09,799
the state of the oven, and certain cakes that had

427
00:32:09,839 --> 00:32:15,480
got broken or burnt in the baking well. There we sat,

428
00:32:15,839 --> 00:32:19,920
helping old Father Christmas to tea and cake, and wondering

429
00:32:20,039 --> 00:32:23,759
in our hearts what could have become of the tree.

430
00:32:24,240 --> 00:32:28,039
But you see, young people, when I was a child,

431
00:32:28,440 --> 00:32:33,200
parents were stricter than they are now. Even before Kitty died,

432
00:32:33,440 --> 00:32:36,000
and she has been dead many a long year, there

433
00:32:36,079 --> 00:32:40,240
was a change, and she said that children got to

434
00:32:40,319 --> 00:32:44,759
think anything became them. I think we were talk more

435
00:32:44,839 --> 00:32:48,359
honest shame about certain things than I often see a

436
00:32:48,440 --> 00:32:52,319
little boys and girls now. We were ashamed of boasting

437
00:32:52,440 --> 00:32:56,720
or being greedy or selfish. We were ashamed of asking

438
00:32:56,759 --> 00:33:00,160
for anything that was not offered to us, and of

439
00:33:00,200 --> 00:33:05,839
interrupting grown up people or talking about ourselves. Why papa's

440
00:33:05,839 --> 00:33:10,240
and mammas nowadays seem quite proud to let their friends

441
00:33:10,279 --> 00:33:14,720
see how bold and greedy and talkative their children can be.

442
00:33:15,680 --> 00:33:19,559
A lady said to me the other day, you wouldn't believe,

443
00:33:19,799 --> 00:33:24,680
mister Garble, how forward dear little Harry is for his age.

444
00:33:25,160 --> 00:33:28,000
He has his word in everything and is not a

445
00:33:28,079 --> 00:33:32,359
bit shy. And his papa never comes home from town,

446
00:33:32,440 --> 00:33:35,480
but Harry runs to ask if he's brought him a present.

447
00:33:36,640 --> 00:33:41,279
Papa says, he'll be the ruin of him. Madam said, I,

448
00:33:41,799 --> 00:33:45,359
even without your word for it, I am quite aware

449
00:33:45,480 --> 00:33:49,240
that your child is forward. He is forward and greedy

450
00:33:49,279 --> 00:33:53,480
and intrusive, as you justly point out, and I wish

451
00:33:53,519 --> 00:33:57,240
you joy of him when those qualities are fully developed.

452
00:33:57,960 --> 00:34:04,160
I think his father's fears are well founded. But bless

453
00:34:04,279 --> 00:34:08,159
me nowadays it's come and tell missus Smith what a

454
00:34:08,239 --> 00:34:11,000
fine boy you are and how many houses you can

455
00:34:11,000 --> 00:34:15,599
build with your bricks. Or the dear child wants everything

456
00:34:15,679 --> 00:34:20,800
he sees, or little pet never lets mamma alone for

457
00:34:20,880 --> 00:34:24,639
a minute, does she love? But to my young days.

458
00:34:24,679 --> 00:34:29,760
It was self praises, no recommendation, as Kitty used to

459
00:34:29,800 --> 00:34:33,719
tell me, or you're knocking too hard at number one,

460
00:34:34,559 --> 00:34:38,360
as my father said when we talked about ourselves, or

461
00:34:39,239 --> 00:34:43,360
little boys should be seen but not heard as a

462
00:34:43,440 --> 00:34:48,280
rule of conduct in company, or don't ask for what

463
00:34:48,360 --> 00:34:52,119
you want, but take what's given you and be grateful.

464
00:34:53,800 --> 00:34:58,119
And so you see, young people, Patty and I felt

465
00:34:58,159 --> 00:35:02,079
a delicacy in asking old Father Christmas about the tree.

466
00:35:03,280 --> 00:35:06,800
It was not until we had had tea three times

467
00:35:06,880 --> 00:35:11,079
round with tasters and wasters to match that Patty said,

468
00:35:11,480 --> 00:35:17,199
very gently, it's quite dark now, and then she heaved

469
00:35:17,239 --> 00:35:23,000
a great sigh. Burning anxiety overcame me. I leant towards

470
00:35:23,000 --> 00:35:27,199
Father Christmas and shouted. I had found out that it

471
00:35:27,320 --> 00:35:30,880
was needful to shout. I suppose the candles are on

472
00:35:31,079 --> 00:35:36,360
the tree now, just about putting of em on, said

473
00:35:36,360 --> 00:35:42,440
Father Christmas. And the presents too, said Petty. Aye Aye,

474
00:35:42,559 --> 00:35:47,079
to be sure, said Father Christmas, and he smiled delightfully.

475
00:35:48,880 --> 00:35:52,480
I was thinking what further questions I might venture upon

476
00:35:53,119 --> 00:35:57,000
when he pushed his cup towards Patty, saying, since you

477
00:35:57,079 --> 00:36:02,360
are so pressing, miss, I'll take another dish, and Kitty,

478
00:36:03,000 --> 00:36:07,199
swooping on us from the oven, cried, make yourself at home, sir,

479
00:36:07,519 --> 00:36:10,639
there's more where these came from. Make a long arm,

480
00:36:10,719 --> 00:36:15,000
miss Patty, and hand them cakes. So we had to

481
00:36:15,039 --> 00:36:18,960
devote ourselves to the duties of the table, and Patty,

482
00:36:19,519 --> 00:36:22,760
holding the lid with one hand and pouring with the other,

483
00:36:23,440 --> 00:36:29,480
supplied Father Christmas's wants with a heavy heart. At last

484
00:36:29,480 --> 00:36:34,320
he was satisfied. I said grace, during which he stood,

485
00:36:34,880 --> 00:36:37,320
and indeed he stood for some time afterwards with his

486
00:36:37,400 --> 00:36:41,119
eyes shut. I fancy under the impression that I was

487
00:36:41,159 --> 00:36:47,079
still speaking. He had just said a fervent amen, and

488
00:36:47,280 --> 00:36:51,639
re seated himself. When my father put his head into

489
00:36:51,639 --> 00:36:57,440
the kitchen and made this remarkable statement, Old Father Christmases

490
00:36:57,480 --> 00:37:01,519
sent a tree to the young people. Patty and I

491
00:37:01,719 --> 00:37:06,480
uttered a cry of delight, and we forthwith danced around

492
00:37:06,480 --> 00:37:10,199
the old man, saying, oh, how nice, oh, how kind

493
00:37:10,239 --> 00:37:14,199
of you, which I think must have bewildered him, But

494
00:37:14,280 --> 00:37:18,920
he only smiled and nodded. Come along, said my father,

495
00:37:19,360 --> 00:37:23,920
Come children, Come Reuben, come Kitty, and he went into

496
00:37:23,960 --> 00:37:30,079
the parlor, and we all followed him. My Godmother's picture

497
00:37:30,119 --> 00:37:34,079
of a Christmas tree was very pretty, and the flames

498
00:37:34,119 --> 00:37:37,280
of the candles were so naturally done in red and

499
00:37:37,400 --> 00:37:41,079
yellow that I always wondered that they did not shine

500
00:37:41,119 --> 00:37:45,639
at night. But the picture was nothing to the reality.

501
00:37:47,000 --> 00:37:50,960
We have been sitting almost in the dark, for as

502
00:37:51,039 --> 00:37:56,360
Kitty said, firelight was quite enough to burn at meal times.

503
00:37:56,760 --> 00:38:00,159
And when the parlor door was thrown open, and the

504
00:38:00,280 --> 00:38:04,440
tree with lighted tapers and all the branches burst upon

505
00:38:04,519 --> 00:38:09,519
our view, the blaze was dazzling and threw such a glory.

506
00:38:09,639 --> 00:38:13,320
Ran the little gifts, and the bags of colored muslin

507
00:38:13,480 --> 00:38:18,000
with acid drops and pink rose drops, and comforts inside.

508
00:38:18,519 --> 00:38:23,559
As I shall never forget, we all got something, and

509
00:38:23,719 --> 00:38:27,519
Patty and I at any rate believed that the things

510
00:38:27,599 --> 00:38:31,920
came from the stores of old Father Christmas. We were

511
00:38:31,960 --> 00:38:36,440
not undeceived, even by his gratefully accepting a bundle of

512
00:38:36,480 --> 00:38:40,239
old clothes which had been hastily put together to form

513
00:38:40,320 --> 00:38:46,519
his present. We were all very happy, even Kitty, I think,

514
00:38:46,880 --> 00:38:50,199
though she kept her sleeves rolled up and seemed rather

515
00:38:50,360 --> 00:38:56,159
to grudge enjoying herself a weak point in some energetic characters.

516
00:38:57,000 --> 00:38:59,920
She went back to her and before the lights were out,

517
00:39:00,320 --> 00:39:03,039
and the angel on the top of the tree was

518
00:39:03,079 --> 00:39:07,920
taken down. She locked up our present a little work

519
00:39:07,960 --> 00:39:13,559
box at once. She often showed it off afterwards, but

520
00:39:13,679 --> 00:39:16,400
it was kept in the same bit of tissue paper

521
00:39:16,440 --> 00:39:20,920
till she died. Our presence certainly did not last so long.

522
00:39:22,480 --> 00:39:25,840
The old Man died about a week afterwards, so we

523
00:39:25,920 --> 00:39:29,599
never made his acquaintance as a common personage. When he

524
00:39:29,719 --> 00:39:32,840
was buried, his little dog came to us. I suppose

525
00:39:32,920 --> 00:39:37,639
he remembered the hospitality he had received. Patty adopted him,

526
00:39:37,880 --> 00:39:41,840
and he was very faithful. Puss always looked on him

527
00:39:41,840 --> 00:39:46,239
with favor. I hoped, during our rambles together in the

528
00:39:46,239 --> 00:39:49,639
following summer that he would lead us at last to

529
00:39:49,719 --> 00:39:53,119
the cave where the Christmas trees are dressed, but he

530
00:39:53,199 --> 00:39:58,679
never did. Our parents often spoke of his late master

531
00:39:58,920 --> 00:40:04,559
as Old Reuben. But children are not easily disabused of

532
00:40:04,599 --> 00:40:09,840
a favorite fancy. And in Patty's thoughts and in mine,

533
00:40:10,280 --> 00:40:17,199
the old Man was long gratefully remembered as Old Father Christmas.

534
00:40:19,079 --> 00:40:23,239
End of Old Father Christmas by J. H. Ewing