there are three
little dresses with the doll, aren't they cute? All cut out and ready to
stitch together."

"Oh, how perfectly lovely!" exclaimed Mrs. Brown. "I think the mauve one
would suit the doll best, don't you, with such golden hair? Only don't
you think it would make it much nicer to turn back the collar, so, and
to put a little band--so?"

"_What_ a good idea!" said Mrs. Jones. "Do let's try it. Just wait, I'll
get a needle in a minute. I'll tell Clarisse that Santa Claus sewed it
himself. The child believes in Santa Claus absolutely."

And half an hour later Mrs. Jones and Mrs. Brown were so busy stitching
dolls' clothes that they could not hear the roaring of the little train
up and down the dining table, and had no idea what the four children
were doing.

Nor did the children miss their mothers.

"Dandy, aren't they?" Edwin Jones was saying to little Willie Brown, as
they sat in Edwin's bedroom. "A hundred in a box, with cork tips, and
see, an amber mouthpiece that fits into a little case at the side. Good
present for Dad, eh?"

"Fine!" said Willie appreciatively. "I'm giving Father cigars."

"I know, I thought of cigars too. Men always like cigars and cigarettes.
You can't go wrong on them. Say, would you like to try one or two of
these cigarettes? We can take them from the bottom. You'll like them,
they're Russian--away ahead of Egyptian."

"Thanks," answered Willie. "I'd like one immensely. I only started
smoking last spring--on my twelfth birthday. I think a feller's a fool
to begin smoking cigarettes too soon, don't you? It stunts him. I waited
till I was twelve."

"Me too," said Edwin, as they lighted their cigarettes. "In fact, I
wouldn't buy them now if it weren't for Dad. I simply _had_ to give him
something from Santa Claus. He believes in Santa Claus absolutely, you
know."

And, while this was going on, Clarisse was showing little Ulvina the
absolutely lovely little bridge set that she got for her mother.

"Aren't these markers perfectly charming?" said Ulvina. "And don't you
love this little Dutch design--or is it Flemish, darling?"

"Dutch," said Clarisse. "Isn't it quaint? And aren't these the dearest
little things, for putting the money in when you play. I needn't have
got them with it--they'd have sold the rest separately--but I think it's
too utterly slow playing without money, don't you?"

"Oh, abominable," shuddered Ulvina. "But your mamma never plays for
money, does she?