THE CHRISTMAS CAT’S PRESENT
The next morning when Kenneth and Rose awoke, it was bright and fair.
The storm had cleared away, and the whole world was white and wonderful
with spangled snow. Now the children could play out of doors as much
as they liked, and the time went so fast that they almost forgot to
wish Christmas would hurry up. Their cousin Charlie came over to play
with them, and they built snow forts and snowballed one another; they
made big statues of snow in the back yard and shoveled the sidewalks
and the front steps nicely. Before they knew it it was evening
again,--Christmas eve, and their mamma was inviting them to come and
see her secret in the library.
And what do you think the secret was? When the folding doors were
thrown open there was a glare of light and a smell of woodsy green,
and Kenneth and Rose and their cousin Charlie cried “Oh!” they were so
surprised. For there stood a beautiful Christmas tree, glittering with
spangles and icicles and silver balls and tiny candles.
Kenneth and Rose and Charlie danced around the tree, and they had a
beautiful time finding the little bags of candy which were hidden for
each of them among the green branches.
“It was a lovely, lovely secret,” whispered Rose in her mamma’s ear.
“And when I grow up I will make one just like it for my dolls.”
When all the candles had sputtered and gone out, Charlie’s papa came to
take him home. And after that it was time to go to bed. But first they
must hang up their stockings for Santa Claus to fill. They tied them up
over the fireplace in the library,--Kenneth’s long black stocking and
Rose’s shorter brown one. Then Kenneth said,--
“Oh, Mamma, we must hang up a stocking for Christine. I am sure Santa
will want to remember the poor little Christmas cat.”
“I know!” cried Rose. “I will hang up one of my little summer socks.
That will be just right for a little kitty-cat’s Christmas.”
So she brought one of her short white socks and they hung it up in
the chimney-place right between the other two stockings,--between
Kenneth’s and Rose’s. And Christine looked pleased. Then everybody said
good-night, and the children went to bed.
It was very, very early in the morning when Kenneth opened his eyes and
said out loud, “It is Christmas Day! Oh, at last it is Christmas Day!”
Then his eyes opened very wide indeed, and he said nothing at all. The
bedposts looked so queer!
Kenneth scrambled over and examined them. On each post at the foot
of the bed was a big yellow orange. These were the first signs of
Christmas, and they kept Kenneth busy for some minutes. But when he had
eaten one of the oranges he could not wait any longer.
He ran to Rose’s room and thumped on the door. “Merry Christmas, Rose!
Wake up!” he cried, poking in his head. But already Rose was wide
awake, and was sitting up in bed eating one of the oranges which had
grown on her bedposts, too, during the night.
“Merry Christmas yourself,” cried Rose, jumping out of bed. “Let us run
and wake up papa and mamma.”
So they trotted down the hall to mamma’s room and thumped on the door.
“Merry Christmas, Mamma! Merry Christmas, Papa!” they cried. “We are
going down to look at our stockings and see whether or not Santa really
did come last night.”
Papa and mamma sighed a little, for they were still very sleepy. But
mamma said, “Well, children, you may go down. But first you must put on
your clothes, so that you will not take cold. Papa and I will be there
in a little while.”
Kenneth was dressed first. He ran downstairs to the library, and sure
enough! there hung the three stockings, bulgy and knobby and queer. He
shouted up the stairs, “Oh, Rose! Hurry, hurry! He really came, Santa
Claus came, and he did not forget even Christine.”
In a minute down came Rose, with her shoes half buttoned and her curls
all tangled. She could not wait this morning to make everything just
right.
They seized their stockings and sat down on the floor to pull out the
“plums,” like little Jack Horner. In Kenneth’s stocking he found a big
red apple, and a bag of lovely marbles. Under these was a new game in
a box, and a horn of candy. Kenneth dived down lower and found a toy
cart, and a top, and a baby camera. At last he reached the toe of the
stocking, where there was just one thing left. “I think it is a stick
of candy,” said Kenneth. But when it came out, it was a jack-knife with
four blades. You can imagine how pleased Kenneth was.
As for Rose, what do you suppose she found in her stocking? She
had a red apple, too, and a horn of candy. Then there was a cunning
pocket-book, and a little coral necklace in a velvet box. There was a
red rubber ball and a harmonica, and away down in the little brown toe
of her stocking hid a tiny doll’s watch and chain. But the best gift of
all poked its head out of the top of her stocking and smiled at her the
very first thing. It was a lovely little doll, with yellow curls like
Rose’s own, and blue eyes, and a white dress with blue ribbons.
“Oh, you dear doll!” cried Rose, hugging her tightly. “I knew that
Santa would bring you to me! You are ever so much prettier than
Matilda, and I shall call you Alice.”
Now Papa and Mamma came down, and they were eager to see what was
in Christine’s stocking. “Let us take it down to the dining-room
where Christine is,” said Mamma. “Katie tells me that there are some
queer-looking bundles there for you, which Santa could not crowd into
your stockings.”
With a whoop of joy Kenneth ran down the stairs to the dining-room, and
Rose followed as fast as she could, carrying the little white sock with
the presents for the Christmas cat. She went up to the basket beside
the fire, where Christine lay just as they had left her the night
before.
“Oh, Kitty, see what Santa has brought you,” said Rose, holding out
the little bulgy stocking. Then she stared hard into the basket where
Christine lay. “Oh-h-h! Kenneth!” she cried. “Come here quick! See what
Santa has brought the Christmas cat!”
For there, cuddled close up against Christine’s black fur, were two
tiny round things mewing with baby voices; one little black kitten, and
one as yellow as Rose’s curls, both with their eyes shut tight.
“Well, well!” said papa. “Santa could not get those into Kitty’s
stocking, so he brought them here. Isn’t it a lovely present for a
little Christmas cat?”
[Illustration: “SEE WHAT SANTA HAS BROUGHT THE CHRISTMAS CAT”]
“Of course they both belong to Christine,” said Kenneth, “but may I
not call one of them mine, and the other one Rose’s?”
“I want the yellow one,” said Rose.
“I like the black one best,” said Kenneth, “so that is all right.”
But Christine licked both the kittens with her pink tongue and purred
happily.
“I like them both best, and they are both mine,” she seemed to say.
Then the children took out the presents from the little white sock.
There was a pretty collar and a bow of ribbon,--yellow, which was
Christine’s most becoming color. And there was a little bunch of catnip
instead of candy. Santa seemed to know just what a little cat would
best like. But nothing seemed to please Christine so much as the tiny
balls of black and yellow fur in her basket. And the children did not
blame her. For indeed, of all their Christmas gifts,--except Alice, the
new doll, and Kenneth’s jack-knife,--they each liked best the kitten
which they had chosen.
“I shall call my kitten Buff,” said Rose, touching the little yellow
ball gently.
“And mine shall be Fluff,” said Kenneth, who liked to make rhymes
sometimes. “Oh, I am so glad that we took Christine in out of the snow,
Rose! For if we hadn’t, perhaps Santa would never have thought of
leaving us these dear little kittens.”
And I shouldn’t wonder if Kenneth was right.