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Page 53
His mother smiled quite cheerfully. "Well," said she, "do the best you
can."
Their father was away that evening. He was generally away evenings,
because most of the neighbors had cozier firesides than his, besides
apples, and sometimes cider; and so he passed many a pleasant hour in
gossip and farm-talk, while his own little family shivered gloomily at
home.
By Saturday morning Jack had ten quails. The four traps had not been as
fruitful as they ought to have been, perhaps, but this was doing very
well, and he trudged joyfully to town with his game hanging on a stick
over his shoulder. The meat-man did indeed give two cents apiece for
quails, and he invited Jack to bring as many more as he could get.
The next Saturday was only two days before Christmas, and how beautiful
were all the stores on the village street! Even the groceries had
Christmas toys and Christmas trees. A good many boys and girls stood
around the store windows pointing out the things they most admired, and
wondering what Santa Claus would bring them. Jack had fifteen quails,
which brought him thirty cents; so he was now the owner of half a
dollar, which was more money than he had ever possessed in all his life
before. But when two dolls were bought, and they weren't very fine
dolls either, there were only twenty cents left. Jack _did_ mean to buy
something for his mother too, but he had to give that up, and after
looking over the bright colored toy-books in the show-case, he selected
two little primers, one with a pink cover and one with a blue one, and
with a big ache in his throat, parted with his last ten cents for
candy. How very, very little he was buying after all, and not one thing
for his dear mother who had sat up till two o'clock the night before,
mending his ragged clothes for him.
Jack's heart was very heavy as he walked out of the gay store with such
a little package, but it sank still lower when his father's tall form
loomed up suddenly before him right in front of the door.
"What you doing here?" he asked, sternly.
"Been buying a few things," said Jack.
"Let me see 'em," said his father.
[Illustration: "'LET ME SEE 'EM,' SAID HIS FATHER."]
Jack tremblingly opened his package.
"Where'd you get the money?"
"With quails," said Jack, meekly.
His father fumbled over the things with his big, mittened hand, and
said quite gently: "For the girls, I s'pose."
"Yes, sir," answered Jack, beginning to feel relieved.
"Well, run along home."
Jack was only too happy to do so. There wasn't much sympathy between
him and his father, nor, indeed, between his father and any of the
family--that is, there didn't seem to be; but I guess the stream was
frozen over, and only needed a few gleams of sunshine to make it bubble
on, laughing and gurgling as in the best of hearts.
Jack related his adventures to his mother in whispers, and hid the
Christmas articles in the wash-boiler until such time as they should be
wanted for certain small stockings. He told his mother how sorry he was
not to have a present for her, and that little speech went a long way
toward making her happy. That night she sat up--I wouldn't dare tell
you how late--making cookies,--something that hadn't been in the house
before that winter. She cut them out in all manner of shapes that
feminine ingenuity and a case-knife could compass, not forgetting a
bird for Janey, with a remarkably plump bill, and a little girl for
Mary, with the toes turned out. She also made some balls of brown sugar
(the Boyds never thought of such a luxury as white sugar), to make
believe candy, for she didn't know Jack had bought any candy.
Now I am going to tell what Mr. Boyd did after he met Jack by the
toy-store. He had gone to the village to have a "good time." That
didn't mean, as it does with some men, to get tipsy; but it meant he
was going to Munger's grocery, where he could meet people, and talk and
joke, and keep warm.
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