all the verdure becoming to her
tender years, upon her aunt telling her that she ought not to expect
many gifts that season, as it was such stormy weather that poor
Kriss-Kinkle could scarcely venture out, replied: "But, Aunty! could he
not take grandma's carriage--he would not get wet then!"

If the merry old soul really came down the chimney at the Grange, he
shewed great discernment in the gifts he bestowed, for each found in
the stocking some article that had been ardently desired. Ellen, who was
deeply interested in the study of Italian, found a beautiful copy of
Dante's "Divina Commedia;" Mary, who possessed a fine talent for
drawing, and frequently sketched from nature, discovered that a complete
set of artist's colors and brushes had fallen to her lot; George, who
was devoted to skating, found a pair of skates, "real beauties," as he
said, appended to his stocking; all plainly saw that their individual
tastes and peculiarities had been consulted in a very gratifying manner.
Of course they did not neglect to express their pleasure and gratitude
to their kind friends, requesting them to inform that very worthy old
gentleman, Mr. Kriss-Kinkle, of their delight at his selection. Nor were
Uncle John and Aunt Lucy forgotten: their nephews and nieces had all
provided some little gifts, as expressions of love. Mrs. Wyndham
declared that she was quite set up in crochet bags and purses, for a
year to come; and tastefully worked book-markers, with appropriate
sentiments, were very plentiful. Tom Green made himself exceedingly
agreeable to the whole party, by presenting to each some pretty little
box, thimble-case, or other ingenious trifle, which he had made at his
leisure with the aid of his turning-lathe; whereupon Charlie Bolton
assumed an irresistibly ludicrous air of dejection, and asserted that he
felt quite crushed by Tom's superior gallantry. "Really, a fellow is not
much thought of now-a-days, unless he can do something in the pretty
line. I must get a turning-lathe at once, or else learn to carve
brooches out of marbles, and rings out of peach-stones, and baskets out
of cherry and apricot stones. If I can't get up that much artistic
talent, I might as well resign myself to complete insignificance all my
life." Cornelia Wyndham highly approved of his intentions, and told him
that when he had come to perfection in the fancy business, she hoped he
would remember her devoted and perfectly disinterested friendship; he