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Then Marmaduke heard a whisper in his ear. He started, for the voice sounded like the Toyman’s, but it couldn’t have been, for the Toyman was still nowhere to be seen.

“Can’t you find something in that heap o’ things for little Johnny Cricket?” the voice asked.

Marmaduke turned round, to discover Santy whispering in his ear. And he looked hard, and, sure enough, over in the corner was a great big parcel, marked, “Johnny with a merry Christmas.” Santy undid it, and revealed a wagon with handles that could be worked by the arms. It looked very much like the Toyman’s invention. And it was just the thing for Johnny, who was so lame.

When he saw it he just clasped his hands, and this time the tears did really come, and they ran from the corners of his eyes and down his cheeks. But they were very happy tears.

“You’re all so good to me,” was all he said.

Marmaduke didn’t need Santy to remind him now, and he hunted hard again and found something for “Mrs. Cricket from her friends in the White House,”–a fine alpaca dress. There was something for Black-eyed Susan too. And all under that roof and around that tree were very happy. It was too bad the Toyman wasn’t there to enjoy it.

Now Santy stood up and looked at his watch. It was a great big one with a ship on its face and an anchor on the chain. It resembled the Toyman’s, and the children thought it odd that there were two such watches anywhere in the world.

“It’s getting late,” Santa was saying, “I’ve got a lot of places to visit, but before I go, I want you to sing a song–every man Jack.”

So together they sang “Peaceful Night, Holy Night,” and it sounded very sweet and pretty and made them all think of what Christmas meant, besides just the giving and receiving of presents.

“Now the youngest ones–all together now!” and Jehosophat, Marmaduke, Hepzebiah, and little Johnny Cricket sang, without the grownup people this time:

“Alone in the manger,
No crib for a bed,
The little Lord Jesus
Lay down his soft head.”

And that song sounded even prettier and sweeter than the other, with those little voices singing it around the tree and all its candles.

When they had finished, Santa said “Goodbye,” and, “Merry Christmas to one and all,” bowed, closed the door behind him, stamped his feet, and whistled to his reindeer. Then the sleighbells sounded, growing fainter until they faded quite away.

About ten minutes after he had gone, the Toyman appeared. It certainly was a shame he had to just miss him like that.

Marmaduke called,–

“Oh, Toyman, you missed him–Santy was here.”

“He was, was he?” the Toyman replied, “I am sorry, for I’d like to have paid my respects to the old fellow.”

The funny thing about it was that he didn’t seem half as disappointed as the children–that is, Marmaduke and Hepzebiah, particularly Hepzebiah. Jehosophat just smiled in a sort of superior way and said nothing, but perhaps that was because he was getting older and had lost some of his enthusiasm. As for Marmaduke, he hadn’t been so enthusiastic about seeing Santa Claus ever since Reddy Toms had told him something, but now, after seeing Santa alive and before him–why, he didn’t care what any “ole Reddy Toms” said.

He had seen Santy–and had shaken him by the hand.