Before the astonished trio could utter a word, Stena had given a little gasp and, for once forgetful of manners, had made a wild dash into the kitchen and returned in a moment, dragging a very dirty and very much surprised little chimney-sweep behind her. Before he could show any shyness at his strange surroundings, she had pushed him close to the photograph and pointed at the pictured faces with her forefinger.
Then the little sweep did a strange thing, for, heedless of his sooty fingers, he grasped the photograph in both his dirty hands while tears ran from his bright eyes, making white furrows down his black cheeks. Stena, too, careless of her clean room, caught him by the hands and they danced together in their excitement.
“What does this mean?” It was Professor Edgecombe who asked the question as he came in from the hall. “Perhaps you know enough Swedish to find out,” replied his wife. “We don’t.”
In a few minutes, however, they had discovered that Stena was own cousin to their Freda and that she had recognized her photograph instantly. Her first thought had been to show it to the little chimney-sweep, for he was Freda’s little brother, only a little chap when she had left home, but now big enough to add his share to the family income.
The family had never allowed him to forget Freda and his greatest ambition was to earn money enough to pay his passage to America, when he should be old enough to go and join his big sister.
He hated to give up the photograph and loosened his hold reluctantly when Stena, at last, made him understand that the American lady had promised Freda to give it to his mother with her own hands and he must wait until she found a time to do so.
“But when can I? Where do they live?” asked Mrs. Edgecombe.
Stena replied that her aunt and cousins lived on a tiny farm about ten miles out of the city. “Could we drive there?” asked Mrs. Edgecombe of her husband. But Dorothy cried out, before he could answer.
“Oh, Mother, I’ve such a beautiful plan. You know the Bjerkanders have asked us to spend Christmas Eve and Christmas day with them, so that we cannot possibly have a tree of our own. But Helmer says that they keep the tree for many days and that often, on New Year’s day, they light it up again and have a party for some poor children.