Level The Gift of the Magi ae Rater tot ees The Gift of the Magi ae ~,ne dollar and eighty-seven cents. That was all. /And sixty cents of it was in pennies. These pennies were saved by Della, bargaining with the grocer and butcher until she blushed, Three times a day Della counted it, One dollar and eighty-seven cents. And the next day would be Christmas. ‘There was clearly nothing to do but flop down on the shabby brown couch, Della sobbed, but eventually her sobbing subsided. She looked around at their apartment 4 fumished flat for eight dollar a week. It was not cexaclly a pauper's flat, but it came close. There was a Tetterbox into which no letter would go, and a doorbell that made no sound, (On the door was a sign, “Mr. James Dillingham Young.” But whenever Mr, James Dillingham Young came home, he was called Jim and hugged by Mrs. James Dillingham Young, already introduced to you as Della Della finished crying. Tomorrow would be Christmas Day and she only had a dollar and eighty-seven cents with which to buy Jim a present. She had been saving, every penny she could for months. Twenty dollars a ‘week doesn't go far, and living expenses had been greater than she had calculated.Della stared at herself in the long glass windows. Suddenly she whirled around, Her eyes were shining, ‘but her face had lost its color in twenty seconds. Rapidly she let down her hai Della’s beautiful hair rippled and shined like a cascade of brown waters It reached below her knee. Della had an idea. Maybe she could afford a Christmas present Now there were two things that Jim and Della Dillingham Young adored. One was Jim’s gold watch, that had been his father’s and his grandfather's. The other was Della’s ait, Della put her hair up quickly and nervously. She put on her old brown jacket and her old brown hat. With a whirl of her skist and the brilliant sparkle in her eyes, she fluttered out the door and down the stairs to the street. Della walked downtown and stopped outside a shop whose sign said, “Mrs. Sofronie. Hair Goods of All Kiinds.” She took a deep breath and went inside. “Will, you buy my hair?" Della asked a large lady at the counter “Take off your hat and let's have a look at it” the Indy said.She was Mrs. Softonie, the shopkeeper The cascade rippled down. “Twenty dollars,” said Mrs. Soffonie, lifting the mass of hair witha practiced hand. “Give itto me quick,” said Della, Della spent the next two hours Tooking in stores for Jim's present, She found it at last. It surely had been. ‘made for im and no one else. There was nothing lke it in any of the stores, and she had turned all of them. inside out. Tt was a platinum fob chain with a simple design. It ‘was not gaudy oF too omamental, but its simplicity and style demonstrated its quality. As soon as she saw i, she knew that it must be Jim's. Twenty-one dollars it cost, and she hurried home with the eighty-seven cents. ‘With the fob chain on his watch, Jim could check the time in anyone's company. Grand as the watch was, sometimes Jim checked it secretly because he was, ashamed of the old leather strap that he used in the place of a chain, ‘When Della reached home, she got out her curling irons it the gas and went to work on her now very short hain Within fory minutes her bead was covered with tiny, close-lying curls that made her look like a schoolboy.She looked at her reflection in the mirror carefully and critically “Jim will say I look like a Coney Island. chorus girl! But what could I do? What could I buy with dollar and eighty-seven cents?” At seven o'clock the coffee was made and the frying- pan was on the back of the stove and ready t0 cook the chops. Jim was never late. Della doubled the fob chain in her hand and sat on the comer of the table near the door that he always entered. ‘Then Della heard Jim’ steps on the stairs. She turned white for a moment, Della had a habit of saying alittle silent prayer about the simplest everyday things. Now she whispered, “Please, God, make him think that I am sill pretty” “The door opened, and Jim stepped in and closed it. He looked thin and serious. Poor fellow, he was only ‘twenty-two, He needed a new overcoat and he had no loves. Jim’s eyes fixed upon Della, and there was an expression in them she could not read, and it terified her I was not anger, nor surprise, nor disapproval, nor horror, nor any of the sentiments she had been prepared. fon. He simply stared at her with a peculiar expression ‘on his face. Della jumped off the table and went to him, “Jim.darling,” she cried. “Don’t look at me that way T cut my bir off because I couldn't have lived through another CChuistmas without giving you a present. It will grow again, You don't mind, do you? Say Memry Christmas, Jim, and lets be happy!” Jim’s strange expression had not changed. Della pleaded with him, “Come on, Jim. I bought you such a beautiful gift” “You've cut off your bait” said Jim slowly. as if it ‘was taking him a long time to understand this simple fact. “I cut it off and sold it. But I'm still the same without amy hal “Where do you say your har is gone?” he said, “Ltold you, I sold Jim suxkdenly blinked his eyes and shook his head. ‘Then he drew a package from his overcoat pocket and threw it upon the table. “Don't make any mistake, Dell,” Jim said “There's no way I can love you any less. No haircut or shampoo cean change the way I feel about you. But if you unwrap that package you'll see why I've been acting strange these past five minutes.” Dell's nimble fingers tore at the sting and paper. oy, y ‘ Vi ' a i 5 i i i ' a ~ e I ner SITEITERPRSE NATE | j 10‘There was an ecstatic scream of joy and then there was a wailing of tears. Upon the table there was a set of hair ccomls—beautiful combs made fom real tortoise shells, with jewels on the rims—just the shade to wear in her nonexistent hai Dell knew they were expensive hair combs, She had ‘wished for them but thought she would never own such beautfil things. And now they were hers, but she had 1p hair to Wear them in! But she hugged them to her chest, and she looked up with a smile and said, “My bair grows so fast, Jim!” im had not yet seen his beautiful present. Della held ‘out the fob chain eagerly upon her open palm. “Isnt it smart, Jim? I hunted all over town to find it. You'll have to check the time a hundred times a day now. Give me ‘your watch, I want to see how it looks. I know it will, Took a hundred times nicer than that old leather strap!” Instead of obeying, Jim flopped down onto the couch and put his hands under the back of his head and smile. “Dell,” he said, “let's put our Christmas presents away and keep them for a while, They're too nice to use Just now I sold the watch to get the money to buy your combs. Let’ have some dinner” ‘The Magi were three wise men who brought valuable " Raifts to baby Jesus in the manger. Perhaps the Magi ‘were the fist people to ever give Christmas presents. In this story, Christmas gifts were very important. Della and Jim loved each other so much that they were willing to sacrifice the greatest treasures in their hhouse—Della’s hair and Jim’s watch. They did't have a lot of money. but they had a lot of love. Perhaps they ‘were foolish, but Della and Jim understood about special gifts and could enjoy Christmas together,