d about his Christmas presents," replied the Patchwork
Woman.

"What did you have?" inquired the Mayor.

"Eight pairs of blue yarn stockings," answered Julia, rubbing his
eyes.

"And the year before?"

"Eight pairs of blue yarn stockings."

"And the year before that?"

"Eight pairs of blue yarn stockings."

"Didn't you ever have anything for Christmas presents but blue yarn
stockings?" asked the astonished Mayor.

"No, sir," said Julia meekly.

Then the whole story came out. Julia, by dint of questioning, told
some, and the other children told the rest; and finally, in the
afternoon, orders came to dress him in his own clothes, and send him
home. But when he got there, the Mayor and Chinese Ambassador had
been there before him, and there hung the eight pairs of blue yarn
stockings under the mantel-shelf, crammed full of the most beautiful
things--knives, balls, candy--everything he had ever wanted, and the
mantel-shelf piled high also.

A great many of the presents were of Chinese manufacture; for the
Ambassador considered them, of course, superior, and he wished to
express his gratitude to Julia as forcibly as he could. There was one
stocking entirely filled with curious Chinese tops. A little round
head, so much like the Ambassador's that it actually startled Julia,
peeped out of the stocking. But it was only a top in the shape of
a little man in a yellow silk gown, who could spin around very
successfully on one foot, for an astonishing length of time. There was
a Chinese lady-top too, who fanned herself coquettishly as she spun;
and a mandarin who nodded wisely. The tops were enough to turn a boy's
head.

There were equally curious things in the other stockings. Some of them
Julia had no use for, such as silk for dresses, China crape shawls and
fans, but they were just the things for his Grandmothers, who, after
this, sat beside the fireplace, very prim and fine, in stiff silk
gowns, with China crape shawls over their shoulders, and Chinese fans
in their hands, and queer shoes on their feet. Julia liked their
presents just as well as he did his own, and probably the Ambassador
knew that he would.

The Mayor had filled one stocking himself with bonbons, and Julia
picked out all the peppermints amongst them for his Grandmothers. They
were very fond of peppermints. Then he went to work to find their
spectacles, which had been lost ever since he had been away.

THE SQUIRE'S SIXPENCE.

Pat