Now Harry, though he was by no means a miserly boy, had a fancy for saving all sorts of stray odds and ends, saying that they might be of use some day. This habit of his gave a great deal of amusement to Fred, and now he seemed much delighted when on Harry's paper were found the words, "For Master Save-all." At the top of the stocking was a packet of sugar-plums, below an old battered tin cup, some broken pieces of china, part of a knife-blade, and some scraps of paper. Harry rolled the paper into a ball and threw it at Fred's head.
"Now for number two," said the mischievous fellow, unpinning the paper from his stocking, which did not look as full as Harry's. "'The pattern boy of the house'—that's myself, of course,—'needs nothing but the reward of his own conscience, and the goodies whose sweetness is only equalled by his disposition.' Good for Santa Claus! He's a gentleman of sense."
"There's something else there," said Maggie.
Fred looked rather surprised, but plunging his hand down to the bottom of his stocking, pulled out a small square box. Opening it, he found two little parcels, one containing mustard, the other pepper, with the labels, "Like to like." He colored furiously, but laughed good-naturedly, saying, "All fair; give and take."
On Maggie's paper was written, "For the girl who would not peep." And besides sugar-plums, the stocking held a tiny log-cabin, a puzzle of Harry's which she had long wished to have, and two or three other small toys. Bessie's and Franky's held pretty much the same, except that in Bessie's, instead of the log-cabin, was a tiny doll dressed as a policeman; for since her adventure she had been very fond of talking of her friends, the policemen, and her stocking was ticketed, "For the girl who will not believe that Santa Claus really is."
But now nurse, coming in after her baby, looked first at her little sock, and to her great disgust, found nothing but a bundle of twigs tied on the outside.
"The old rascal!" she said; "does he mean to say my baby wants a whipping? The best baby that ever lived! I'll just lay this rod over his own shoulders."
"You'll have to catch him first," said Fred, "and you wont have a chance till next Christmas-eve."
"Wont I though?" said nurse, and she made a grasp at the laughing boy, who dived, and the next instant was off with nurse after him. But nurse was old and fat, Fred, young and active, and he vaulted over balusters, and took flying leaps down-stairs in a way which quite terrified her; so that she begged him to "stop and not risk his neck on this blessed Christmas morn."
"As well risk my neck as my shoulders," said Fred. "Will you promise not to visit the sins of Santa Claus on me if I consent not to kill myself?"