Scene; and now in front
of the fire-place is the great big table that Mother Goose told you
about. The table cloth on it is so big that it hangs all the way down
to the floor. At one end of the table sits Father; then next to him,
back of the table facing you, is Grandfather, then Gertrude, then
Walter, then Grandmother and at the other end of the table, next to
Grandmother, Mother is seated. The children have on those
bright-colored paper caps that the house-fairies made. MOTHER, who
is helping the pudding, is the first to speak and this is what she
says:

There's the first plateful of our Christmas pudding, and that goes to
Gertrude, of course. She hands it to Grandmother, who passes it on to
Walter.

Um! says WALTER, holding it for a moment under his nose. That
smells good! He passes it to Gertrude.

GERTRUDE asks, Shall I wait till everybody else is served, before I
begin?

No, not today, says FATHER. Begin at once. We all want to know how
it tastes.

Gertrude tastes it. Oh, it is good, she says.

Mother meanwhile has helped another plateful, and passed it to
GRANDMOTHER, who says, Walter, here is yours. And she hands it to
him. He tastes it.

Is it good, Walter? asks GRANDFATHER.

WALTER with his mouth very full can only say, Um!

Pass this down to Father, says MOTHER, and she starts to hand
another plateful of pudding to Grandmother.

Oh, Mother, exclaims GERTRUDE, aren't you younger than Father?

Yes, just by two months, answers MOTHER, keeping the plateful of
pudding in her hand. You think I ought to be helped next? All right;
we'll keep strictly to the rules, and I'll set this aside for myself,
while I help the others. She helps another plateful. This is for you
James, she says to Father, and passes it along. And Grandmother,
she says, this is for you. She hands a plateful of pudding to
Grandmother.

Grandfather, here is yours last of all, because you are the oldest of
us, MOTHER says, and starts the last plateful of pudding on its way
to Grandfather.

Suddenly FATHER, who has been eating some of his pudding,
exclaims, Here's something new. You never put nuts in the plum
pudding before, Mary.

Nuts? says MOTHER, very much surprised, There aren't any nuts in
the pudding.

But, indeed there are, FATHER insists, I've just eaten one.

And so have I, adds GRANDMOTHER.

And here is another one, declares GRANDFATHER, and he holds it up
in his spoon. It's a hazel nut, he says, and puts it into