"What do you think, anyway?" whispered Chinky when the children were gathered in Hannah's room at bed-time. "What ails ma?"
Hannah shook her head gloomily. "Does anybody know?" she asked.
"Not me," declared Mike. "How'll we ever get such a whoppering tree in the house? She won't even go to look at it."
"Nope," added Johnnie, "ma said first thing that if Mr. Hodgkins thought it was right, it was right, and since he's been over here to talk to her about it you dassn't hardly say tree."
"She—she's getting a new dress made," offered Nora.
"Yes," agreed Dora, "and she says this—this Christmas party is something we won't never forget."
"I bet we won't, if we have that tree," grumbled Chinky. "We might as well begin chopping holes through the floor and the roof, and I don't know but we'll have to cut a little chunk out of the clouds to make room for our Christmas tree."
"Oh, thay," put in Stubbins, "make the hole in the floor big, Chinky, tho we can look down and thee Thanta Clauth."
"That shows how much little kids know," explained Chinky. "You'll have to get out on the roof, Stubbins, to see Santa Claus, because I suppose when he catches sight of so much tree sticking through the roof he'll think it's the whole thing and he'll hang all the presents up on top of the house."
This speech was greeted by laughter so loud Mrs. Mulvaney opened the stair door and spoke.