"Goodness, such a Santy Claus!" she exclaimed with a final sigh of
pleasure. "Such a Christmas present from Santy Claus! No wonder he is
so fat yet when he eats ten chickens in one night already. But I
don't kick. I like me that Santy Claus all right. I believes in him
purty good after this, I bet!"

She went at once to tell Mrs. Flannery, and Mrs. Flannery was far more
excited about it than Mrs. Gratz had been. She said it was the Hand of
Retribution paying back the chicken thief, and the Hand of Justice
repaying Mrs. Gratz for sending toys to the little Flannerys, and Pure
Luck giving Mrs. Gratz what she always got, and a number of other
things.

"'Tis the luck of ye, Mrs. Gratz, ma'am," she said, "and often I do be
sayin' it is the Dutch for luck, meanin' no disrespect to ye, and the
fatter the luckier, as I often told me old man, rest his soul, and him
so thin! And Christmas mornin' at that, ma'am, which is nothin' at all
but th' judgment of hivin on th' dirty chicken thief, pickin' such a
day for his thievin', when there's plenty other days in th' year for
him. Keep th' money, ma'am, for 't is yours by good rights, and I knew
there would some good come till ye th' minute ye handed me th'
prisints for the kids. The good folks sure all gits ther reward in
this world, only some don't, an' I'm only sorry mine is a pig instid
of chickens, but not wishin' ye hadn't th' money yersilf, at all, but
who would come to steal a pig, and them such loud squealers? And who
do you suspicion it was, Mrs. Gratz, ma'am?"

"I think mebby I got me a present from Santy Claus, yes?" said Mrs.
Gratz.