The Adventures of Nicholas Read Free Page A

horse. After that, instead of leaving the toys piled up in the doorway, he put them in the little bags. He now had a long list of children to remember, for he made a point of noticing which families had new babies and of finding out about newcomers who came to the village.
    So it was that he knew all about Jon and Peter. Their mother and father were even poorer than most of the other families. The father had been strong and able before his boat was smashed in a storm and he was so badly injured that he had to lie in bed or be propped up in a chair in the cottage.
    The neighbors gave the family as much as they could spare, and the mother worked whenever she was needed in the Squire’s house on the hill. But there were many days when the children had only a bowl of thin porridge to eat, and the mother and father went without anything at all.
    Jon was now the man of the family, although he was only eight years old. He built the fire, shoveled snow from the cottage doorway, and took care of his little brother while his mother was out working. One of his chores was going into the forest and helping the woodcutter, a kind man, who paid him with enough wood to keep the family from freezing during the long bitter winter.
    One cold winter afternoon, as Jon was returning from the forest with his sled piled high with wood, he met a group of boys who were building a snow fort close by Nicholas’ cottage.
    “Jon!” called out one of the boys, “want to be on our side?”
    “I guess not,” he answered, “I have to get this wood home before dark.”
    “We’ll help you with your sled if you stay a while,” the boys promised.
    Jon hesitated, then dropped the rope to his sled and joined the group. It was a long time since he had played in the snow, and he braved the icy sting of the snowballs and finally climbed the slippery walls of the fort, pelting snowballs down on those trying to defend it.
    Suddenly a glad shout rose from both sides as Nicholas appeared, his blue eyes twinkling at the sight of everyone having such a good time.
    “Help us, Nicholas,” pleaded the boys who were trying to take the fort.
    Nicholas quickly gathered up a handful of snow, packing and shaping it in his hands, and taking aim at the tallest boy, knocked his hat clean off. The boys rushed forward, and with Nicholas shouting them on, they captured the fort!
    Jon looked at the tall man shyly. Of course he knew who Nicholas was; he had heard about the woodcarver ever since they had moved into the village last summer.
    As the group started to break up and the boys gathered around Jon’s heavy sled, Nicholas looked down and smiled. “Is this a new boy in the village?”
    “Yes, his name is Jon and he has a little brother, Peter…and his father is paralyzed and can’t work,” a young boy called out. Jon’s face turned white, and with a desperate tug at the heavy sled he hurried down the snowy path.
    One of the older boys cried, “Now you’ve done it! You’ve hurt his feelings by talking out like
    that. I’m going after him…”
    They ran after Jon, leaving Nicholas smiling with sympathy and understanding.
    When the boys caught up with Jon, they tried to make him forget the thoughtless remark by talking about the man they had just left. “Every Christmas since I can remember,” one boy began, “Nicholas has left gifts at every door in the village.”
    “Not every door,” corrected another. “He only leaves toys at the doors where he sees an embroidered bag. We put oats in it for his horse, and it shows Nicholas that children live there.”
    How jolly and kind Nicholas had looked, Jon thought. It would be wonderful for his little brother Peter to have a gift on Christmas Day. He didn’t care about himself, but for Peter’s sake he must do his best to try to find a bag.
    That night Jon spoke to his mother. “Do you suppose we have a bag in the house?” he asked.
    “What kind of bag, child?” she asked in surprise.
    “Well, it should be