"We can sing some hymn tunes together, company and all, and we'll get Sally and Alfred to speak the stylish pieces, as you might say, and maybe they'll do what Nora and Dora did the last day of school, and speak a Christmas catalogue together."
"Oh, ma," corrected Hannah, "you mean a dialogue."
"Take that," continued Mrs. Mulvaney, boxing Hannah's ears, "and don't be so free with your book learning as to forget your manners to your ma. Nora and Dora, they can speak their old catalogue," this with a severe look at Hannah, who was rubbing her ears, "and Stubbins can speak his piece, and Mike and Johnnie can learn new ones to keep 'em out of mischief."
"Aw," began Mike, but he went no further as the loose slipper showed signs of dropping off his mother's foot.
"And you said, as I remember it," went on Mrs. Mulvaney, "that a church man did some speechifying in front of the tree. Mr. Hodgkins, he's the man that can do that, and when he gets to the end of it we'll all clap our hands."
"Will Thanta Clauth come netht?" inquired Stubbins, resting his chin in both hands with his elbows upon his knees.
"Aren't you ashamed," replied Mrs. Mulvaney. "Now don't you s'pose Santa Claus knows we can take care of ourselves this year? He better go where they's poor folks. Moses Aaron, I'm ashamed of you."
"Well, but thay, ma, how about Chrithmuth prethenth?"
"That's where the real fun of Christmas comes in," explained Mrs. Mulvaney; "we make presents for each other. When I was a girl at home my sisters and I used to begin making Christmas presents for our mother and father and aunts and uncles and cousins and for each other, way back in the summer, and then we hid 'em till the time came."
At this point Chinky winked at his mother and nodded his head as much as to say, "You and I know a thing or two."