ew days, the boys came to the place of meeting warmly
wrapped up, with fur-lined caps drawn down over their ears, padded
jackets, gloves and knitted mittens, and good strong shoes with thick
soles. Only little Wolff presented himself shivering in his thin
everyday clothes, and wearing on his feet socks and wooden shoes.

His naughty comrades tried to annoy him in every possible way, but
the orphan was so busy warming his hands by blowing on them, and was
suffering so much from chilblains, that he paid no heed to the taunts of
the others. Then the band of boys, marching two by two, started for the
parish church.

It was comfortable inside the church, which was brilliant with lighted
tapers. And the pupils, made lively by the gentle warmth, the sound of
the organ, and the singing of the choir, began to chatter in low tones.
They boasted of the midnight treats awaiting them at home. The son of
the Mayor had seen, before leaving the house, a monstrous goose larded
with truffles so that it looked like a black-spotted leopard. Another
boy told of the fir tree waiting for him, on the branches of which hung
oranges, sugar-plums, and punchinellos. Then they talked about what the
Christ Child would bring them, or what he would leave in their shoes
which they would certainly be careful to place before the fire when they
went to bed. And the eyes of the little rogues, lively as a crowd of
mice, sparkled with delight as they thought of the many gifts they
would find on waking,--the pink bags of burnt almonds, the bonbons, lead
soldiers standing in rows, menageries, and magnificent jumping-jacks,
dressed in purple and gold.

Little Wolff, alas! knew well that his miserly old aunt would send him
to bed without any supper; but as he had been good and industrious all
the year, he trusted that the Christ Child would not forget him, so he
meant that night to set his wooden shoes on the hearth.

The midnight mass was ended. The worshipers hurried away, anxious to
enjoy the treats awaiting them in their homes. The band of pupils, two
by two, following the schoolmaster, passed out of the church.

Now, under the porch, seated on a stone bench, in the shadow of an
arched niche, was a child asleep,--a little child dressed in a white
garment and with bare feet exposed to the cold. He was not a beggar, for
his dress was clean and new, and--beside him upon the ground, tied in a
cloth, were the tools of a carpenter's apprentice.

Under the li