perforce, had to listen.

All this time Mrs. Pepper had been pretty busy in her way. And now she
came into the kitchen and set down her candle on the table. "Children,"
she said. Everybody turned and looked at her--her tone was so strange;
and when they saw her dark eyes shining with such a new light, little
Davie skipped right out into the middle of the room. "What's the matter,
mammy?"

"You may all come into the Provision Room," said she.

"What for?" shouted Joel, in amazement; while the others jumped to their
feet, and stood staring.

Polly flew around like a general, arranging her forces. "Let's march
there," said she; "Phronsie, you take hold of Davie's hand, and go
first."

"I'm goin' first," announced Joel, squeezing up past Polly. "No,
you mustn't, Joe," said Polly decidedly; "Phronsie and David are the
youngest."

"They're always the youngest," said Joel, falling back with Polly to the
rear.

"Forward! MARCH!" sang Polly. "Follow mamsie!"

Down the stairs they went with military step, and into the Provision
Room. And then, with one wild look, the little battalion broke ranks,
and tumbling one over the other in decidedly unmilitary style, presented
a very queer appearance!

And Captain Polly was the queerest of all; for she just gave one gaze at
the tree, and then sat right down on the floor, and said, "Oh! OH!"

Mrs. Pepper was flying around delightedly, and saying, "Please to come
right in," and "How do you do?"

And before anybody knew it, there were the laughing faces of Mrs.
Henderson and the Parson himself, Doctor Fisher and old Grandma Bascom;
while the two Henderson boys, unwilling to be defrauded of any of the
fun, were squeezing themselves in between everybody else, and coming up
to Polly every third minute, and saying, "There--aren't you surprised?"

"It's Fairyland!" cried little Davie, out of his wits with joy; "Oh!
aren't we in Fairyland, ma?"

The whole room was in one buzz of chatter and fun; and everybody beamed
on everybody else; and nobody knew what they said, till Mrs. Pepper
called, "Hush! Santa Claus is coming!"

A rattle at the little old window made everybody look there, just as a
great snow-white head popped up over the sill.

"Oh!" screamed Joel, "'tis Santy!"

"He's a-comin' in!" cried Davie in chorus, which sent Phronsie flying
to Polly. In jumped a little old man, quite spry for his years; with
a jolly, red face and a pack on his back, and flew into their mids