Show V fh 1 la sober man an did smile D MARTHA IL D THOMAS 1 bogran house kotwas WAS christmas al ma at 1 I chrisom party M mrs arx cum ou nimbi had a V very gs boarding heppy ewt ending house la in fr ertho two the interval be tween two string ask beans miss MIBS bit dl tf linro observed to lend an a H the o 0 reet mat of tho the din dla should be en an era ors that it was nice I 1 ahl h jr gua w to bave have friends ands at this season no ono one healed denied it it of the seven places at the table one was vacant that belonging to vesta blanno v axx blaine contin continued ved alias miss cum fains wings a little wistfully always has ling v ah a time nt at holiday she hae has so many pleasant acquaintances 1 4 abd and of course w ehe she hesitated to give emphasis to what was coming ehe olsbo Is 4 s a good deal of attention from A that young man no one had bad any comments to make 01 bat bt a serious faced man at the other ead end of the table seemed to bo very grave indeed be he bent a concentrated regard upon his plate as though the contents yield some secret which be lie hunted A real christmas evel chanted ak 0 Vest aBlaine eyes were like stars T r her cheeks bright with color she 0 f looked uke a flower rower set down in a vegetable carden orden the other boarders were a bit older a bit more tired a bit k r they drank drunk their sun 1 shine from the exuberant girl and won dered how she abe could come home at I 1 i sight still 1 bubbling with high spirits aad and fua run we its continued veeta vesta darting a smile at the sober man who apparently was wax not aware of his good fortune fer tufie for he never looked op up that soft alft sift of feathers that comes down like like eho sho hunted far an 21 A adequate alullo ake prayers of the angels afif fels I 1 only prayers are supposed to go 0 o up arent they I 1 she laughed at her owa own conceit con celt the trees are like dreams behind white veils and the street lamps are ranee orange moons I 1 I 1 love it do pass ine the butter somebody rm hungry enough to eat tat shredded hairpins ill 1 everybody did their beet best to make vesta comfortable even the scrap of a maid mald nho waited on the table miss ulan bialke offered her pepper and salt suit twice and tho the landlady asked if she preferred her roast beet beef well or medium dono done rm going to aparto a tonight 1 an bounced veeta vesta after a few mouth fujs to fortify her wants the very beet beat party ever over perpetrated miss ings smiled her interest and asked where ob oh not very far from here and she paused looking around the table vil vesta rianne went to the front door opened it with a u curious glance youre all invited 1 thata by its the best party because its cot tho the nicest folks corn com ing inc to it I 1 what a hubbub there was then I 1 everybody asked five fire questions at once and none found out tho answer ilee miss billings quivered with excitement mrs mm waved tho the carving knife and nearly took off oft a slice from the sober mans nose Ir finally lually veeta vesta stood up commanded silence tapped importantly on the table with a silver spoon and began ladles and gentlemen you are am earnestly va aw requested cord cordially laUy invited and definitely ordered to clothe yourself in malant raiment after dinner and f then wait for me in the tho hall no one shall be allowed to say 0 no o penalty for disobedience Is so horrible I 1 cant even mention idill it 1 and ready they wore were aa an coon soon aa as they could jump into their best beat and assemble in the ball the sober man was the last to appear be looked as though he did not daro dare stay away the best beat that could be said about him hinl but the rest were laughing and talking la in happy expectation veeta verta maine went to the front door opened it made strange algne with her haade and in there trai aped a it big bluA ering giant of a fellow wow dressed like santa clous claus he had a nobby pack oa on his back aad and app appeared earea to bave have every intention of unloading it at mrs mm Jogs board boarding las hosea this way mid vesta veste and led hira him into the parlor the ne reet rest followed for berwa 1 skir makes I 1 muff A Orti gracious clous mel breathed aire mr cum wings she did wd hot not know her own parlor and no wonder thera was a b bac christmas tree standing in the middle it reached to the ceiling and blazed with small electric aulbi more than that there were seven soven single suspended in a row from the mantle everybody squealed when they discovered their own santa heaved down hie his pack and out tumbled a bushel of gifts each wrapped op up la in paper and marked with it name cach each person pick up eoven seven parcel parcels and put them mem in tho the stockings ond find the tho names to corre correspond dondl called out vesta maine no lagging A fine for being the last onel that parlor full of boarders boar dere re ambled a small army of squirrels grambling Bc rambling about in a heap of nut nuts everybody got in everybody way everybody laughed men the sober man inan was wax guilty of a beppy hop look around ills ids eyes at last tho eoven seven blocking stockings were bulging bulking with gifts sift they swayed beatly back and forth in all the energy of their recent filling select your own stockings I 1 shouted vesta maine like a general ordering hie his troops into battle and open your present presents I 1 it just happened by the merest chanco chance that vesta and the sober man r 41 did anyone know I 1 wanted that book were seated on the sofa together they ahlex out abir stockings into a at mutual heap ond and began to untie the strings and rip off the seals look here eald said the sober man sternly how old did anyone know I 1 wanted that book and he be held out a it this thin leather bound volume toward vesta you eald add you did once last sum mer 10 answered vesta a attle shyly caesars caesara Cae sars ghost ho he whistled and you yes nodded vesta this aMr affirmation mation seemed to concern the sober man very tery much chyr he asked after a moments consideration oh replied the girl 1 I juat just wanted a you to have what you wanted to havel bavel this afforded the sober man more food for thought t 1 I even know you were aware of fay ray existence I 1 used to bet with myself that if it came to a pinch and ou had bad to me you could not tell my name youre so popular and that sort of thing thin that I 1 thought he was unable to finish vesta made a posture gesture as if bhe jibe threw caution to the winds listen to me she sald youre the most interesting person here hero I 1 hated not ever having a word with you about books one reason I 1 bad had this party I 1 hyped talk to me a little you always looked so borod bored when I 1 came in and I 1 was sorry rw not so frivolous as I 1 my bly father the man playing santa daus claus Is owner of the london book shop here im working there just to icam learn so something ethling of the business its dad really back of the party I 1 just did the tho suggesting hes iles a perfect old dear I 1 wanted to try being a regular shop girt girl so I 1 came hero to board and its we been the great est cat fun I 1 did not mean to deceive people too much but real really lylo here ab she 6 permitted herself a tiny gurgle of mirth miss billings got so frightfully interested in a man who was paying mo me such ruch attention and of course it was no one but dad who our came now and then to 0 give me come some pleasure at the theater or a concert 11 she stopped from lack of breath the sober man beamed you would never believe that an in expression could change tho way his did it was like a dawning a new light spread upon his face fam what happened after this Is almost too confusing for description santa smita un unmasked unasked asked and was introduced to everybody such a thanking than kinC and explaining I 1 such a happy laughing group 1 miss billings discovered she could play the piano and mr blaine swung out first with mrs UM cumming who fluttered like a girl at her first party the rest whirled in with great fervor if anyone had ben been looking sharply far or th happiest apt couple I 1 think thin vesta and d the sober man would have been selected what he said to her bar Is no business nor what she an and yet they seemed to have settled something very happily ck AL UK vioa F |