village for
Monsieur Ciseaux, and then turned her attention to Jules.

"To think," said Clotilde, coming into the room, "that the last thing
the poor little lamb did was to show me his Christmas tree that he was
making ready for his uncle!" She pointed to the corner where it stood,
decked by awkward boyish hands in its pitiful collection of scraps.

"Poor little fellow!" said madame, with tears in her own eyes. "He has
done the best he could. Put it in the closet, Clotilde. Jules would not
want it to be seen before Christmas."

Madame stayed until the doctor had made his visit; then the report that
she carried home was that Jules had regained consciousness, and that,
as far as could be discovered, his only injury was a broken leg.

Joyce took refuge in the pear-tree. It was not alone because Jules was
hurt that she wanted to cry, but because they must have the Noel fete
without him. She knew how bitterly he would be disappointed.

CHAPTER IX.

A GREAT DISCOVERY.

"Only two more nights till Christmas eve, two more nights, two more
nights," sang Joyce to Jules in a sort of chant. She was sitting beside
his bed with a box in her lap, full of little dolls, which she was
dressing. Every day since his accident she had been allowed to make him
two visits,--one in the morning, and one in the afternoon. They helped
wonderfully in shortening the long, tedious days for Jules. True, Madame
Greville came often with broths and jellies, Cousin Kate made flying
visits to leave rare hothouse grapes and big bunches of violets;
Clotilde hung over him with motherly tenderness, and his uncle looked
into the room many times a day to see that he wanted nothing.

Jules's famished little heart drank in all this unusual kindness and
attention as greedily as the parched earth drinks in the rain. Still,
he would have passed many a long, restless hour, had it not been for
Joyce's visits.

She brought over a photograph of the house at home, with the family
seated in a group on the front porch. Jules held it close while she
introduced each one of them. By the time he had heard all about
Holland's getting lost the day the circus came to town, and Jack's
taking the prize in a skating contest, and Mary's setting her apron on
fire, and the baby's sweet little ways when he said his prayers, or
played peek-a-boo, he felt very well acquainted with the entire Ware
family. Afterward, when Joyce had gone, he felt his loneliness more than
ever. H