A DOG OF FLANDERS. 149

for the stern old man was moved and
shaken to his heart’s depths.

It was Christmas Eve, and the
mill-house was filled with oak logs
and squares of turf, with cream and
honey, with meat and bread, and
the rafters were hung with wreaths
of evergreen, and the Calvary and
cuckoo clock looked out from a mass
of holly. There were little paper
lanterns too for Alois, and toys of
various fashions, and sweetmeats in
bright-pictured papers. There were
light and warmth and abundance
everywhere, and the child would fain
have made the dog a guest honored
and feasted.

But Patrasche would neither lie in
the warmth nor share in the cheer.