id, and
everything was at our service. The trainmen caught the infection, too,
and all hands finally went back to the coach with such a load of stuff
as you never saw before. We filled the socks and two seats besides with
it. The grateful mother was simply dazed.

As we all stood about, gleefully surveying our handiwork including the
bulging socks, the engineer remarked:

"We've got to get some kind of a Christmas tree."

So two of us ploughed off on the prairie--it had stopped snowing and
was bright moon-light--and wandered around until we found a good-sized
piece of sage-brush, which we brought back and solemnly installed and
the woman decorated it with bunches of tissue paper from the notion
stock and clean waste from the engine. We hung the train lanterns around
it.

We were so excited that we actually could not sleep. The contagion of
the season was strong upon us, and I know not which were the more
delighted the next morning, the children or the amateur Santa Clauses,
when they saw what the cow-boy called the "layout."

Great goodness! Those children never did have, and probably never will
have, such a Christmas again. And to see the thin face of that mother
flush with unusual colour when we handed her one of those monstrous red
plush albums which we had purchased jointly and in which we had all
written our names in lieu of our photographs, and between the leaves of
which the cattle-man had generously slipped a hundred dollar bill, was
worth being blockaded for a dozen Christmases. Her eyes filled with
tears and she fairly sobbed before us.

During the morning we had a little service in the car, in accordance
with the custom of the Church, and I am sure no more heartfelt body of
worshippers ever poured forth their thanks for the Incarnation than
those men, that woman, and the little children. The woman sang "Jesus
Lover of my Soul" from memory in her poor little voice and that small
but reverent congregation--cow-boy, drummer, cattle-man, trainmen, and
parson--solemnly joined in.

"It feels just like church," said the cow-boy gravely to the cattle-man.
"Say I'm all broke up; let's go in the other car and try your flask
ag'in." It was his unfailing resource for "onsettled feelin's."

The train-hand who had gone on to division headquarters returned with
the snow-plough early in the afternoon, but what was more to the purpose
he brought a whole cooked turkey with him, so the children had turkey, a
Christmas