First, there was a big wax doll in a doll carriage.

It was such a pretty doll, with a blue coat and white hood, all ready to take out to ride!

Then there were some picture books and another doll,—­a big one that could open and shut her eyes.

[Illustration]

But what was this in the bottom of the basket?  It was very soft and white and had curly hair.

Little Sister picked it up carefully.  “Put it on your head,” said Boy Blue.  So Sister put it on.  It was a fur cap.

Then she found a fur collar, and last of all, a dear little fur muff.

When she had them all on, she ran up to her mother.

“See my muff, Mamma!” she cried.

Then she ran to every one, saying:—­“Muff!  Muff!  See my little muff!”

“What a dear little Miss Muffet you are!” said Uncle Jack.

“Oh.” said Boy Blue, “we shall call you ’Miss Muffet’!”

“Merry Christmas, Miss Muffet!”

  Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall;
  Humpty Dumpty had a great fall;
    All the king’s horses,
    And all the king’s men,
  Couldn’t put Humpty Dumpty together again.

HUMPTY DUMPTY

Tommy Tucker had lived on the farm with Grandma and Grandpa Hall a long time.

He and Rags were very happy in their new home.

Rags was getting fat now, and every Saturday he had a fine bath.

At least Tommy said it was a fine bath, but Rags did not seem to agree with him.

“Bow-wow,” he would say, when he saw the big tub full of water, “I must run and hide.”

But Tommy always found him, and Rags always had his bath.

When school began in September, Grandma Hall took Tommy to school.

He had a new suit of clothes, a new pair of boots, and a pretty cap to match his suit.

The school was two miles from the farm, so that the first morning he rode in the carriage with Grandma Hall because she could not walk so far.

Every day after that Tommy walked to school in the morning and home again at night.

He carried his dinner in a new pail, and he always found something very good in that pail when he opened it at noon.

All the rest of the children brought their dinner, too, and if I should tell you all the things those children did at noon, it would fill a book.

When the nuts were ripe, they went into the woods and gathered big baskets full.

They found pretty flowers and autumn leaves and made their school-room bright with them.

They played ball, and hide and seek.

Oh, there were such beautiful places to hide,—­behind the wood-pile, in the wood-box, behind trees and fences, and in the woods!

Tommy had never had such a good time in his life.

He did not play all the time, because he was working very hard to catch up with the other boys.