CHAPTER III
SANTA CLAUS
They had just finished a hearty breakfast, of which home-made pineapple jam and the crisp, crusty rolls that grow on a certain palm had formed a part, when Baby Jane suddenly remarked:
'I do believe it's Christmas Eve!'
The creatures had no idea what that meant, but they knew when she spoke in that way there was more fun coming, and they eagerly crowded round her to hear about it.
'And now,' she went on, 'as it is Christmas Eve, to-night we must all hang up our stockings, and Santa Claus will come and fill them with presents.'
The creatures set up a shout of delight, and catching one another round the waist danced a wild polka round Baby Jane.
All of a sudden they stopped as if turned into statues; a chilly silence fell upon them, and they looked aghast into each other's eyes. Then the Light-Horse, looking in her horror-stricken paleness more like a night-mare, whispered to Baby Jane, 'But we don't wear stockings!'