A Christmas Play in One Scene.
Eight Characters; Three Adults, Two Little Boys and Three Little Girls.
| Mrs. Randy | The Mother | |
| Mrs. Van Dusen | ⎫ | Visitors |
| Mrs. Graham | ⎭ | |
| Mary | ⎫ | Mrs. R.’s Children |
| Susie | ⎪ | |
| Annie | ⎬ | |
| Teddy | ⎪ | |
| Johnnie | ⎭ |
Stage setting: A bare room with one pine table and two chairs. Mrs. R. is seated by the table darning stockings. Her work basket is on the table.
Mrs. Randy. Dear me! How late it’s a-gettin’. I just have got to finish this mendin’ before the children get home, ’cause they’ll distract me so I don’t know what I’m doin’.
This is the first day I’ve had at home in goodness knows when, ’ceptin’ Sundays, of course, and there’s enough needs doin’ here to keep a dozen busy.
Now let’s see. Tomorrow’s Christmas, and I ain’t got nothin’ to speak of ready for the children. I thought I’d ’a been able to save just a little by now; but that winder Teddy broke took all I’d laid by to pay for it; and the spankin’ he got didn’t pay it back neither.
So here I be, stockin’s most mended, but just about nothin’ to put in ’em. There’s those red apples Mrs. Jones gave me yesterday, and there’s that pair of white kid gloves I’ve been savin’ for most two years. I was goin’ to wait till Mary got a little bigger ’fore I gave ’em to her, but I guess she’ll have to be big enough now. She’ll be real proud to have a pair of white kid gloves, like what real ladies wear. I know these are genooine, for the lady what wore ’em gave ’em to me. Then I was plannin’ to buy a fine silk tie for Teddy, but now I can’t, so I’ll just see what I can do with that old one that used to be his father’s.
But there isn’t anything for the little ones, and now I can’t buy ’em anything. I must do something, but I surely don’t know what.