SANTA CLAUS’ GARDEN.

For Eight Characters.

Santa Claus	⎫	Adults or Large Boys
Deeno, the Gardener	⎭	Adults or Large Boys
Jacks in the Box		Three Small Boys
French Dolls		Three Small Girls

DIRECTIONS AT CLOSE.

Santa. It is a fine day, a very fine day. I’ve been looking all over my toy garden and things are growing very well indeed. The bicycles are all in bloom and the velocipedes are full of buds. (Inspects the trumpet vines.) These trumpets are about ripe. (Calls.) Deeno! Hey there, Deeno!

Deeno (enters, touches hat, says). Here I am, sir. What is it, sir?

Santa. I think these trumpets are ripe, Deeno. Have them picked at once. If they get too ripe, you know, they’ve a bad sound to them and then they’re not popular. (Pulls one, blows it.) There! That has a fine tone to it. Nobody could object to that now, could they, Deeno?

Deeno. No, sir, indeed. I’m sure not, sir.

Santa. Ah, Deeno, you know a good thing when you hear it. You’re a sly rogue. (Shakes finger at Deeno.) But, Deeno, I don’t see those skate vines. You surely didn’t forget to plant them.

Deeno. Oh, no, sir. Indeed, sir! I planted ’em twice, sir; but the seed must have been bad, for not one of ’em grew, sir.

Santa (much excited). What! No skates for my boys this Christmas? Whatever shall I do? Why, Deeno! You should have told me before.

Deeno. Oh, sir; it’s all right, sir. I sent to the South Pole by a flying machine man, and spoke for their whole crop of skates, sir, and they got here this morning.

Santa. Good for you, Deeno! You have taken a load off my mind. You’ve never failed me yet. Let me see some of them.

Deeno. All right, sir. (Exits. Santa examines the drum tree.)

Santa. Doing well. Doing well. They’ll ripen in time for Christmas. Some are most ready now. (Taps various drum—examines buds—calls.) Hey, Deeno! (Deeno enters.) Oh! Here you are. (Deeno has wheelbarrow full of boxes wrapped, and two or three open, showing skates. Hands them to Santa, who examines them. Then he turns to the drum tree.) Where are all the sticks for these drums?

Deeno. Bless you, sir! They’re growing right along, rows and rows of ’em, sir. And when the wind blows ’em, sir, they act as if they were trying to drum. Yes, sir, they do.

Santa (smiling). They’ll have a chance to drum before long. I’ve selected boys for every pair of them. (Turns to skates again.) So these are the skates, hey? Pretty fair skates, but not quite up to your work. Hey, Deeno? (Deeno grins and touches hat.) But I think the boys who get them won’t grumble. (Takes up a pair of roller skates.) And these are the rollers. Are they all like these?

Deeno. Yes, sir. All alike, sir.

Santa. That’ll do. Take ’em in to Mrs. Santa Claus, and ask her to see to it that they are properly labeled. She’ll find the list of the boys and girls they’re going to in my desk.

Deeno. Yes, sir. All right, sir. (Goes off.)

Santa (bending down to examine them). These tea set plants are very slow growing this year. I’ll have them planted earlier next year. Just see how small these dishes are. Those on the east side of the garden are much larger than these. (Examines plants in pots, opens the buds, one after another, and shows the dolls within.) Oh, here you are, Miss Dolly! You are to go to a dear little girl, so you must hurry up and grow. And you (to another doll bud) will go into Annie’s stocking. And you (to another) will go to lame Mary. Oh, yes, I think dolls are one of the most satisfactory crops. (Turns to the French Dolls, who are covered by a frame of mosquito netting.) Now these big French dolls are very hard to grow. I see Deeno has them covered. (Calls.) Deeno! Oh, Deeno!

Deeno (hurries in). Yes, sir; I’m coming, sir.

Santa. Why are you sheltering these dolls again this year? Is it the wind?

Deeno. No, indeed, sir. The wind wouldn’t hurt ’em, sir. It’s the birds, sir.

Santa. Birds! I never heard of such a thing. Birds injure them when they have grown to that size?

Deeno. Oh, yes, indeed, sir. Why, they spoiled two long-rows of ’em last week, just after I transplanted ’em, sir.

Santa. How spoil them?

Deeno. Pick their eyes out, sir. That’s how they spoil ’em. Oh, yes, sir.

Santa. Let’s see them. (They lift off the netting.) Well, these are beauties, Deeno. They certainly are beauties. Any of ’em talk?

Deeno. This one, sir. (They wind her up. She says “Papa” and “Mamma.”)

Santa. I think these had better be picked.

Deeno. Perhaps so, sir. (They appear to loosen the doll, lift her from her leaves and set her out in the path. In the same way they set the other two out.)

Santa. We’ll take those in with us when we go. Better try those balls over there. (Pointing. Deeno goes to the ball tree and tries several of the balls.)

Deeno. We’ll pick these about next week, sir. They’re green yet.

Santa. How are these Jacks-in-the-box? Have any of them popped yet?

Deeno. Yes, sir. One or two of ’em, sir. They must be quite ready by now, sir.

Santa (opens a box, Jack springs up). Just see that! (Deeno opens a second box and Santa a third. The Jacks pop up.) And here’s another! I always did like a good Jack-in-the-box, and they nearly always make me jump a little. (To Jack.) Go in there again. (Shuts cover, opens it again.) Oh, there you are! (Tries each one two or three times. Leaves them standing.) Well, Deeno, set those dolls out of the way and bring up your wheelbarrow. (Deeno does so. They put one Jack into the barrow. Deeno wheels him away. Santa lifts and carries off one of the dolls, the curtain falls.)

DIRECTIONS.

Let the stage be set like the diagram. No. 1 is a trumpet vine, made of branches fastened to the rear wall or curtain, like a vine, with a few tin trumpets, and many to simulate them of cardboard, sticking out on the vines like blossoms.

No. 2 is a tree as large as is feasible, with large buds of green tissue paper, some closed, others parted and showing small drums in the center.

Directions

The leaves forming these buds should be a pointed oval in shape, and vary in size as they represent buds or open flowers. The drums hang down from the branches and the petals, when open, hang over and partly cover them. See Fig. 1.

Fig. 1.

No. 3 is another tree hung with bright-colored balls of tissue paper, representing candies.

Nos. 4 and 5 are clusters of branches arranged to look as if growing, and about three feet high, hung with balls of various kinds and colors.

Nos. 6, 7 and 8 are three little girls who are dressed to represent French dolls. They stand in a row facing the audience. At either end of the row is a frame to support the cheesecloth or mosquito netting which covers them all over, until Santa is ready for them. Their part, of course, is to stand stiffly, like dolls, not turning their heads, and with their arms held out in front like the small china dolls. One is to say “Papa” and “Mamma” when the signal is given her.

No. 12 is a row of flower pots or boxes, in which appear to be growing the doll plants. These are branches which stand about eighteen inches high, with buds made of tissue paper, like those on the drum trees. These buds conceal as many dolls as can be hung on the plants, some large, some smaller.

No. 13 is a similar row of plants similarly arranged, on which are fastened the various dishes of tea sets.

Nos. 9, 10 and 11 are boxes about two feet high and eighteen inches square (or of the size to accommodate small boys stooping). These boxes have paper leaves around them. The boys should be dressed like Jacks-in-the-box, with frizzly hair, grotesquely painted faces, etc. Their part is to remain hidden in the boxes till Santa opens them (they should be provided with stools to sit on or they cannot keep still.); then to spring up suddenly and remain standing until shut in again.

COSTUMES.

Santa Claus wears the traditional costume, and Deeno may be short and fat, or tall and very thin. He wears blue overalls and a broad-brimmed hat, and a fringe of white whiskers around his face.