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[Illustration: THE HOUSE WITH SIXTY CLOSETS

BY FRANK SAMUEL CHILD

WITH ILLUSTRATIONS BY J. RANDOLPH BROWN]


[Illustration: THE CHILDREN TAKE POSSESSION OF THE HOUSE. Page 13.]


THE HOUSE WITH SIXTY CLOSETS

A Christmas Story for Young Folks and Old Children

by

FRANK SAMUEL CHILD

Author of "An Old New England Town" "The Colonial Parson
of New England" "A Colonial Witch"
"A Puritan Wooing" etc.

With Illustrations by J. Randolph Brown







Boston
Lee and Shepard Publishers
1899

Copyright, 1899, by Lee and Shepard

All rights reserved

THE HOUSE WITH SIXTY CLOSETS




    To
      Frank
          and
            Bess
                and
                  Arthur
                      and
                        Theodora
                            and
                              Grace
                                  and
                                    Ruth
                                      and
                                         Amy
                                           and
      the "Little Judge"
              and
                  All
                        Their
                              Merry
                                     Friends




ALL ABOUT IT


  A

        PAGE
  HOUSE, PEOPLE, THINGS                                       11


  B

  THE HOUSE THAT THE JUDGE BUILT                              15


  C

  THE PEOPLE WHO LIVE IN THE HOUSE THAT THE JUDGE BUILT       33


  D

  THE THINGS THAT HAPPENED
  TO THE PEOPLE WHO LIVE
  IN THE HOUSE THAT THE JUDGE BUILT                           53


  I

  PORTRAITS WALK AND TALK                                     57


  II

  CLOSETS TALK AND WALK                                       85


  III

  THE PROCESSION OF GOAT, DOG, CAT, BICYCLES, PORTRAITS,
      CLOSETS, RUTH, AND THE "LITTLE JUDGE"                  113


  IV

  THE PARTY WITH SUPPER FOR SEVENTEEN, AND TOASTS WITH
      A TOASTING-FORK                                        141


  V

  STOCKINGS FILLED WITH MUSIC, RAINBOWS, SENSE,
      BACKBONE, SUNSETS, IMPULSES, GOLD SPOON, IDEALS,
      SUNSHINE, STAR, MANTLE, FLOWERS,--AND THE LIKE
      QUEER STUFF                                            185


  E

  HAPPY DAY                                                  215




LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.


                                                           PAGE
  THE CHILDREN TAKING POSSESSION OF THE HOUSE    _Frontispiece._

  INITIAL O                                                  15

  MRS. "JUDGE" PLANNING THE CLOSETS                          19

  MRS. "JUDGE'S" LIVING-ROOM                                 24

  CANDLESTICK AND BIBLE                                      29

  INITIAL I                                                  33

  NAILING FLAG TO CHIMNEY                                    41

  THE CHILDREN TAKING A RIDE                                 44

  INITIAL I                                                  57

  RUTH SEES FIGURES IN THE FIRE                              59

  STEPPING OUT OF THE FRAMES                                 61

  SUSIE AND LITTLE JUDGE                                     67

  ENTERING THE CLOCK                                         80

  INITIAL T                                                  85

  PLAYING TAG                                                87

  CHAMPAIGN COMPLAINING                                      93

  THE CLOSETS TALK AND WALK                                 103

  THE JUDGE SITTING ON THE COG-WHEEL                        105

  INITIAL I                                                 113

  BILLY EATING FUNERAL CLOTH AND WREATH                     114

  THE PROCESSION STARTS                                     121

  BILLY, SATAN, AND TURK TAKING A RIDE                      126

  MRS. "JUDGE" AND MAN IN MOON                              132

  RETURNING FROM THE CHURCH                                 135

  INITIAL W                                                 141

  THE WALK AROUND                                           163

  THERE WAS THE GREATEST CONFUSION                          180

  INITIAL R                                                 185

  RUTH AND SATAN                                            186

  THE ROOM WAS A BLAZE OF GLORY                             187

  THE ROOM STUDDED WITH TWINKLING, RADIANT STARS            211




A

HOUSE, PEOPLE, THINGS




      _I will first describe the house._

      _Then I will tell something about the people that live
          in it._

      _After that I will speak of the very strange things
          which happened there the night before Christmas._




B

THE HOUSE THAT THE JUDGE BUILT




B.

THE HOUSE THAT THE JUDGE BUILT.


ONCE upon a time there lived a good Judge in an old New England town.
People said the reason that he was so good was because his father was a
minister. But he may have gotten his goodness from his mother. I don't
know. Or he may have had it from his uncle who took him into his family
and sent him to college. For the minister was poor, and like many of his
brethren he had a big family; so his brother who was a rich lawyer and a
statesman helped his nephew get his education.

Now, this son of a minister and nephew of a great man studied law and
became a Judge. He was liked by every one who knew him. People felt that
he was an honest, noble man who had mastered all the law books, and
showed more common sense than any other person in the State. So they
made him Judge. This man who started poor and had to make his own way in
the world earned a great deal of money. People came to him from all
parts of the country, and sought his advice. They put into his hands the
most important law cases. Only sometimes he would not have anything to
do with the cases that he was asked to manage because he thought them
wrong.

As years went by he saved his money, and the time came when he was ready
to build a house. The Judge had become the most honored and the best
known man in the State. He had many friends among the great people of
the land. He enjoyed company, and was a famous host. So it seemed well
to him and his wife that they build a house which should be large enough
to hold their friends, and fine enough to satisfy the taste of the
society in which they moved.

The Judge was not moved by pride or a wish to make a show. He wished to
do the right thing. Everybody said that he ought to have the largest and
the finest house in town. He was not only a lawyer and rich, but he was
deacon in the church and the leading man in society. He was likewise a
great scholar; and many people said that he was the most eloquent
speaker of his State. Such a person must live in a generous way. So the
Judge built this house.

Now, when it came to drawing plans the wife had a good deal to say about
it; for the house was to be her home just as much as his; and he always
tried to do what he knew was for the pleasure of his wife. "I think,"
said she when they began to talk about building, "that it should have a
great many closets." Had you been a friend of Mrs. "Judge" you would
have seen why she said this. She was not only a woman who liked to have
all her friends come to visit her, but she was also very liberal and
kind. She was always doing some nice thing for people, and always giving
presents.

She was able to do this because she had the things to give away. I know
men and women who would make a great many presents if they had the money
to buy them--at least they say that they would. Such people like to tell
how they would act if they had all the money that some neighbor has
saved. They are great on giving away things that do not belong to them.

Now, the Judge's wife was the best giver in town; and she gave to her
friends, and the poor, and everybody that was in need, all sorts of
things. But in order to do this she must buy the gifts that she
scattered so freely; and when she bought things she wanted a place to
keep them until the time came for her to give them away. This was why
she spoke to the Judge about the closets.

[Illustration]

"Well, my dear," said the Judge (he was always kind and polite), "you
may have just as many closets as you wish." So she began her plans of
the house by drawing the closets. I don't know exactly how she managed
to arrange it on paper. Very likely she said to herself, "I shall want
thirty closets." And then she would divide the number into four parts
and say, "Let me see, I suppose that four will be enough for the
cellar. Then I shall need ten on the first floor, and twelve on the
second floor, and six in the attic. That makes--why, that makes
thirty-two. Dear me! I wonder if that will be enough?" And as she thinks
over the various uses to which she will put her closets, and the many
things she will store in them, she says, on the next day, "Well, I
believe that I must have five or six more closets." So she starts her
drawing by marking down thirty-eight closets. After she has settled it
that the main floor shall have thirteen of them, she puts upon the paper
some dots showing the size of each little room; then she draws the other
rooms about them, and so she gets one story arranged.

But no sooner does she begin the plans for the next floor, than she
thinks of one or two more closets which she needs for the first, and so
goes back to her work of yesterday, and does it all over again, making
several changes. And so very likely the weeks are spent in making paper
closets, and drawing the halls and parlors and bedrooms and other rooms
about them, until she puts her plans by the side of the Judge's plans;
then they get an architect; and then she asks for four more closets,
which makes forty-four.

After a time the men begin to build; and she sends for the builder, and
tells him of course that she finds she will certainly need five more
closets,--one in the cellar, two on the first story, and three on the
second. He is a pleasant man; and the changes are made. But ere the
house is half built other needs appear, and Mrs. "Judge" insists upon
three new closets, which make fifty-two. And without doubt on the very
week that the carpenters leave the handsome mansion, she asks them for
several changes and three closets more. And will you believe it, they
move into the new house, get nicely settled, and everything running in
good order, when the generous housewife finds that the carpenter must
come, for she still wishes five new closets, which added to the others
make sixty. And so you have the house with sixty closets. It seems to
me that I have made it clear how there came to be so many of these
curious rooms and spaces in the Judge's house. At least you know all
that I know about it; and I do not believe that ever another house was
built in such a way.

But I must tell you how the house was divided. A plan of each story will
be the best means of fixing this in the mind; and then you can turn back
to it whenever you lose your way in the house, and wish to get what are
called "your bearings." We must begin at the bottom and work toward the
top. The cellar was really three cellars,--a big one, a fair-sized one,
and the wine cellar. There was a small closet in this deep, dark place
where they kept certain kinds of liquor. The main cellar was divided
lengthwise through the middle, and there were two closets for provisions
on each side.

The main floor had twenty-seven closets. For my own part, I think that
woman is a remarkable person who can invent and arrange such a number
of little nooks and rooms. But if this is a mark of genius, what shall
we say when it comes to keeping track of all the closets and their
contents? Why, I should be obliged to carry a plan of the whole house
with me, and every few minutes I should pull it out and study it. The
Judge's wife was a most wonderful woman. She built her closets, and then
she filled them, and then she remembered all about them and their
contents. Here is the plan of the first floor. A hall through the
middle. On the left as you enter is the library. There was one closet
connected with this room, and a door opened into it from the northeast
corner. Back of the library was the dining-room. It had three closets
connected with it; doors leading to them from three corners of the room.
To the left of the dining-room you passed into a side entry. Three doors
opened into three large closets. The kitchen adjoined the dining-room.
There was one closet in it, and two closets out of it to the right, and
these two latter had one closet and two closets respectively.

[Illustration]

On the right of the hall was the parlor. It had one closet. A large
window reaching to the floor gave entrance to this room near the
northeast corner. Back of the parlor was a long, dark closet which made
a passage-way from the hall to the schoolroom. Back of this closet was a
first-floor chamber with three closets. The third of these closets
opened into the chamber from the north. It was formerly Mrs. "Judge's"
store-room. Another large closet was connected with it, and these two
large closets contained two small closets. To the east of this chamber
was the schoolroom (formerly the Judge's library). This room had two
closets in it, and two closets out of it. The room to the north of the
schoolroom was the annex to the Judge's library, and it held his books
bequeathed to the minister. It also held two closets. And now my first
story is ended.

The short hall on the second floor opens at the rear into a long, narrow
hall. There are five chambers in this part of the house. The front room
on the right as you look toward the street is the "Study," and it has
two closets, one on each side of the big chimney. The two chambers back
and to the left as you face the chimney are without a single closet; but
the lack is made up when you pass to the other side of the house. The
front chamber has two closets, one on each side of the chimney. As you
pass into the one on the right (you face the chimney, remember) a door
opens to the right and leads you into another large closet with a window
in it. Going across this closet to the right another door opens into a
big, dark closet; turning to the street and stepping back three paces
you open a door into another closet; passing into this one (there is a
small window in it) you open a door into the linen closet. Withdrawing
from this series of small rooms, you get into the Betsey-Bartram room,
and there you find on the south side two doors leading into two large
closets. North of this room is another bedroom. One closet lies in the
southeast corner, and one opens to you from the west side of the room.
The thirteenth closet on this floor is at the end of the back hall, and
the fourteenth is by the side of the chimney in the room above the
down-stairs chamber. The attic was one big room with five closets
scattered around the chimneys. They hung hams in the larger one. It was
a fine place to smoke meat. There was always a greasy, smothered flavor
to the air in that place.

Now, if you have kept track of the closets you will see that we number
only fifty-one. There had been three neat, retired little closets under
the stairs in the first-floor hall. When the hall was enlarged these
poor things were taken out. It was on this occasion that Samuel said:
"See how rich we are; for we have closets to burn." And still there are
six closets missing. Well, the closet with the skeleton in it is a
mystery, and I do not like to speak of it. Three closets were found one
day carefully tucked away in a corner of the attic. The other two
missing ones have simply grown up and become big rooms with windows in
them. They put on a good deal of style, and look down upon the other
closets.

What a lovely time the Judge's wife had in furnishing her new home. I
have been reading the bills, yellow-stained and time-worn. She had a
taste for handsome things. As the house was a colonial building, the
grandest in that part of the country, she tried to get furniture that
matched.

There were mahogany chairs and tables, sofas and bedsteads, cabinets
and stands. She paid $155 in gold for her gilt-framed looking-glass,
which stood between the front windows in the parlor, and $125 for her
Grecian sofa with cushions. There were twelve fancy-chairs and two
arm-chairs. Her rocker cost $25. Then she had another little work-table,
for which they paid $20.75.

Her parlor carpet was made in England. The Judge had it made to order;
so you may believe it was uncommonly fine. The curtains were yellow
damask, lined with chintz. During the summer these curtains were stored
away on long shelves in one of the closets, and lace curtains hung in
their places.

Every large room in the house had a fireplace, and the supply of
andirons was enormous. Some of them cost $19 and $20. Then there were
venetian blinds in the parlor; and on the centre table stood an astral
bronzed lamp worth $18, and on the mantle, high silver candlesticks. A
plated pair cost them $18, and the snuffers and tray $8 more. There
were the best Brussels carpets, the most fashionable china and silver,
the richest linen for the table,--a vast amount of things needed to make
a house pleasant and comfortable.

[Illustration]




C.

THE PEOPLE WHO LIVE IN THE HOUSE THAT THE JUDGE BUILT.




C.

THE PEOPLE WHO LIVE IN THE HOUSE THAT THE JUDGE BUILT.


IT was on this wise that the present family came to live in the
parsonage. The church had been without a pastor for several months, and
the people were tired of hearing Tom, Dick, and Harry in the pulpit. But
what was to be done? They had found no man that suited them. One
minister was too young, and another too old. The first candidate had a
very long neck, a sort of crane neck, and it made some of the ladies
nervous. The last candidate was fat, and everybody said he must be lazy.
Several were so anxious to come that the congregation turned against
them. There was always some reason why each man was not liked. So it
began to look as if they might never get another minister.

The society finally asked the ladies their views upon the subject. It
was one afternoon when the Dorcas Daughters were sewing for the poor.
The president of the little band had been reading a missionary letter.
"Well," she said, "I have heard so much about filling the pulpit that I
am sick of it. I think it's about time that we filled the parsonage.
Just see what kind of ministers we have had for the last thirty years.
Two bachelors, and one married man without a chick or a child. I say
that it's time for us to call a man to fill the parsonage."

"Why, that's what I think!" remarked one of the mothers present. "It is
a shame to have that great house given over to the rats and mice. And I
know that not a minister has been in it for all these years that used
more'n half or two-thirds of the room. But, dear me, it would take a
pretty big family to fill the parsonage! Let me see; there are
twenty-seven rooms and sixty closets, aren't there?"

"So they say," replied the president. "I never counted them. But that
would just suit some folks."

"Where is that letter that you read us at the last meeting?" inquired
one of the sisters. "How many children did that man say he had? I
remember that we never sent another box like it to a home missionary in
all the history of this church." "I've got the letter right here in my
hand," said the president, "and I've had that man in mind for a week.
He's got fifteen children,--eight of his own, and seven of his deceased
sister. I shouldn't wonder if he was the very one we want." One of the
younger women nodded. She was thinking of playmates for her boys and
girls. "And then if they overflowed the house," continued the president,
"there is the little building in the yard. They might start a cottage
system. You know that is the way they do in schools these days. Divide
up the young folks, and set them in small companies. The minister might
do it; and if the family expanded we might build two or three extra
cottages."

"Now, Mrs. President," said one of the ladies, "I fear you are making
fun. But I think that letter from the missionary with fifteen children
in the family was the best we ever had. A man that could write such a
letter must be very much of a man."

"He is," replied the president. "I have looked him up in the Year Book,
and I have written to the secretary of the Missionary Society. He's a
very good man. Nobody has done better work in that frontier country."

So the ladies said that they would ask the church to call this parson
with the big family. When the meeting was held and everybody was
talking, one gentleman arose, and told the people that the ladies had a
candidate. His name being proposed, the president of the Dorcas Society
explained how she felt, that they ought to have a man to fill the
parsonage, and this man whom they named was the one to do it; therefore
the meeting voted unanimously to call him.

"I think we had better charter a train to bring them from the West,"
said one of the deacons. But it was finally decided to engage a car; so
everything was arranged, and in four weeks they came.

When the train stopped at the station, the church committee was on hand
with three carryalls. It reminded one of an orphanage, or a company of
Fresh-air children. But a hearty welcome was given; they were hurried
into the carriages, and soon the whole family was in the parsonage.

A nice dinner had been prepared by the ladies of the parish. After the
travellers had washed and made some slight changes, they all sat down to
the feast.

It was a happy thing that the church and the Judge furnished the
parsonage. This poor, large-hearted missionary brought nothing with him
but books and children; his library was really a very fine one, and it
had filled the small house in the West. His own family of children had
been increased by the seven orphans left when his sister and her husband
died. There was nothing for him to do but adopt them; so they had been
packed into the little home until one was reminded of a box of sardines.
But this sort of kindness was like the good man. He was ready to share
the last crust with any one who needed it.

"Why, what a big house it is!" exclaimed Grace. "Just see; I guess we
could put the whole of our Western house right here in the parlor." And
I think they could if they had only brought it along with them. When
dinner was over the children scattered all through the mansion and the
grounds.

What a delightful sense of freedom and importance they had. Could it be
possible that all these things belonged to them? Were the ten acres of
lawn, garden, orchard, field, and pasture really for their use and
pleasure? As parents and children wandered through the big rooms, and
peered into the sixty closets, and looked out of the numerous windows,
it seemed to them like a dream. And yet the dreamy sensation soon
passed; for the parson and his wife, happening to look out of a front
window, were struck with the expression of alarm, amusement, or interest
shown by several people going along the street. It was caused by the way
in which the family was showing its presence and possession. There were
three children on the front piazza standing in a row gazing at the sea;
four of the younger ones were climbing in and out of the windows on the
second floor, running along the tin roof of the piazza; two boys had
already climbed a tree looking for birds' nests; three children had
hurried through the attic to the roof, and leaned against the big
chimneys that towered over the house. With curious interest they were
taking a general survey of the town and country, quite unconscious that
their rashness attracted any attention. The other youngsters were
having a frolic in the yard, walking along the top of the picket-fence,
jumping from one gate-post to another, shouting with healthful lungs,
and making the very welkin ring.

Had a pack of wild Indians swooped down upon the house, they could not
have made themselves more