Nancy Hendred stood gazing into the toy shop, wide-eyed with admiration. How she should like to have a dress and a book or two for Christmas. Sister Alice would surely like a dolly and mittens and Baby Pug, as John was cal led because he had a little pug nose, needed a cap and would be perfectly satisfied with a toy car or a "choo-choo" train. But most of all, Nancy wished to give her mother the extra-small set of shelves with half dozen cups, saucers and plates. How deli ghted and suprised her mother would be. It was priced at two dollars and fifty cents.

Little Nancy's face fell as she remembered father away working in a camp and mother struggling at home to make ends meet. The little desolate figure presented a very pathetic picture as she stood in front of the bright toy shop. She unconsciously attracted much attention as any little girl of ten looking wistfully in a toy shop window would attract attention. Nancy was startled out of a reverie when a kind looking lady put her hand on her shoulder and asked her to take c are of the dearest little baby in a very pretty carriage while she, the mother, was shopping in the toy shop. She promised to give her a quarter for her trouble. Nancy's eyes fairly shone with anticipation. She would do that every day, only she wouldn' t wait for the people to ask her. She would go up to them and timidly say, "the store is so crowded today, mam, will you have me watch your baby while you are inside shopping".

Each day she would, as she told her mother, take Pug out for a little walk. Her real purpose for carrying Pug along was to appeal to the sympathy of her "customers". And it worked, for Nancy made as much as seventy-five ce nts one afternoon. So, by Christmas eve, she had almost a fortune. She counted her money and found out that she had eight dollars and thirty-five cents! Just think! Two weeks' work and $8.35. And how many babies had she cared for while their mothers were shopping? As far as she could count, it amounted to about thirty or forty babies.

On Christmas Eve, daddy came home and took Nancy and Alice with him to do the shopping. When Nancy confided to him what she had done, he was overjoyed. She had enough to buy nice gifts for all and on Christmas day, she ha d the pleasure of seeing all of her family visited by Santa Claus.