ery close to
Ffob Oothout. He told his tale with a broken heart.

"My man," exclaimed the rough sailor, in his kindest tone, but still
very rough, "take this advice from me: Whatever thou believest, tell
it not. Where thy head is weak, hold thy teeth tight. Then thou canst
still have faith in many things, and make no grief."

The next day the Blue Cock sailed into the roadstead and the fort
thundered a salute. Fort and vessel dipped the tricolor flag of the
States-General and the municipal banner of Amsterdam. Beeckman
surrendered all the country on South River to Hinoyossa, who came
ashore very drunk and very haughty, and threatened to set up an empire
for himself and fit out privateers against the world.

"Let him lose no time," muttered Ffob Oothout; "the English have
doomed these Western Netherlands!"

Amidst the festivity Nanking was in a condition of despair. He had
seen Elsje on the street and she turned up her nose at him. Christmas
was only one day off, and Santa Claus, the Swede boys insisted, never
came to the sorrowing shores of New Amstel.

"My uncle Gerrit was right," thought Nanking. "I had better drown
myself. Yes; I will watch on Christmas eve for Santa Claus. I will
give him plenty of time to come. He is the patron saint of children,
and if he neglects poor, simple boys in this needful place, there is
no truth in any thing. On Christmas morning I will fall into the river
without any noise. My mother will cry, perhaps, but nobody else, and
they will all say, 'It was better that the big idiot should be
drowned; he had not sense enough to keep out of the water.'"

Nanking spent half the day watching the chimneys of his mother's
house. Both chimneys were precisely alike in form and capacity, and
the largest in the place. But the chimney next the river did not
retain the dark, smoky, red color of the chimney on the land side.

"No wonder," thought Nanking, "for no fire nor smoke has been made in
that river chimney for years. It almost seems that the bricks therein
are oozing out their color and growing pale and streaked."

Night fell while he was watching. Nanking hid himself upon the roof of
the house, determined to see if Saint Nicholas ever came to bless
children any more by descending into chimneys, or was only a myth.

It was a little cold, and under the moonlight the frost was forming on
the marshes and fields. The broad, remorseless river flowed past with
nothing on its tide except the two