ay; all but Joe. I wish I had something for Joe."

"I got something for Joe," said Sammy unexpectedly.

The face of the pale little cripple lighted.

"What is it?" he asked eagerly. "Oh, what is it? A real Christmas present
for me?"

"Naw! It ain't a Christmas present," said Sam.

"We don't care anything about Christmas," volunteered Ikey with a grin.

Sam looked at him with a frown of rebuke.

"It's just a _present_," he said. "And it didn't cost a cent. I didn't buy
it. I--we found it!"

"Found it in the street?" Joe's eyes shone.

"Yah!" the boys nodded.

"Oh, it _is_ a Christmas present!" cried Joe. "Santa Claus must have
dropped it there for me, because he knew we hadn't any chimney in this
house, and he sent you kind, kind boys to bring it to me."

The two urchins looked sideways at each other, but said nothing. Presently
Sam drew out the box from his pocket and tried to thrust it into Ike's
hand. "You give it to 'um," he said. "You're the biggest."

"Naw! You give it. You found it," protested Ike.

"Ah, g'wan!"

"Big fool!"

There was a tussle, and it almost seemed as if the past unpleasantness was
to be repeated from an opposite cause. But Joe's voice settled the dispute.

"Oh, Sammy, please!" he cried. "I can't wait another minute. Do please give
it to me now!"

At these words Sam stepped forward without further argument and laid the
box on the bed in front of the little cripple. The babies crowded about.
The mother left her machine and stood smiling faintly at the foot of the
bed.

Joe pressed the spring. _Ping!_ Out sprang the Jack-in-the-box, with the
same red nose, the same leer, the same roguish eyes which had surprised the
children of fifty years ago.

[Illustration: _PING!_ OUT SPRANG THE JACK-IN-THE-BOX]

Jack was always sure of his audience. My! How they screamed and begged Joe
to "do it again." And as for Joe, he lay back on his pillow and laughed and
laughed as though he would never stop. It was the first Jack any of them
had seen.

Tears stood in the mother's eyes. "Well," she said, "it's as good as a play
to see him. Joe hasn't laughed like that for months. You boys have done him
lots of good. I wouldn't wonder if it helped him get well! If you was
Christians I'd say you showed the real Christmas spirit. But Lord--perhaps
ye do, all the same! I dunno!"

Sam and Ike were so busy playing with the children that they did not hear.

* * * * *