Santa Claus Is
Coming To Town
No one knows where Santa Claus came from, or who his parents were. But everyone
knows that he lives at the North Pole, and gives presents to all good boys and girls every
year at Christmas.
He didn't always live at the North
Pole, though, and he didn't always have a long white beard and a big round belly!
Once, a very long time ago, he was a little child just like you!
So how did he grow up, and how did
he start his magical Elves' Workshop up at the icy North Pole?
Well, I'll tell you about it right
now!
It all started on one cold, wintery
night, when the winds from the Whispering Mountains were blowing snow and ice through the
air! Someone left a tiny baby on the Mayor's doorstep! And--yes, you guessed
it--that tiny baby would someday grow up to be the Santa Claus we all know and love!
But the Mayor of SomberTown was an
angry man, and he didn't want to raise a baby. "Take him away and give him to
someone else!" he told his soldiers.
The soldiers tried to obey.
They tucked the baby into a little sleigh, and started taking him to an orphanage,
where he'd be cared for. But the wind grabbed that sleigh and carried it up into
the air. Up, up it sailed, right up into the heart of the Whispering Mountains!
The Whispering Mountains were no
place for a helpless little baby! An evil wizard lived there, casting spells and
killing anyone who came too near to his home!
The forest animals knew that the
Winter Warlock would kill the baby, unless they could hide him. So they pulled his
little sleigh through the woods, until they came to a cozy house near a river. Then
they rang the doorbell, and ran back into the forest.
A family of elves lived in the
house. And they were happy to adopt the little baby, and raise him.
The elves' names were Ringle
Kringle, Dingle Kringle, Zingle Kringle, Tingle Kringle, and Wingle Kringle. They
took the baby to Tanta Kringle, the wise elf-woman who cared for them. She found a
tag around the baby's neck that said "Claus." But that was too strange a
name for them, so they named the baby Kris.
Kris Kringle grew up with the elves
in their cozy cottage. They taught him how to read and write, and count the stars up
in the sky. And they taught him how to make wonderful toys, because the elves were
the best toymakers in the entire world.
Life was good for Kris. The
forest animals taught him how to run through the forest, and how to swim. The seals
taught him how to play and have fun, and how to laugh.
But inside, he was still sad,
because he knew that no one would ever play with the toys he and his family were
making. SomberTown was on the other side of the Whispering Mountains... and
the Winter Warlock would not let anyone cross those snowy hills!
"Someday," he promised
Tanta Kringle, "when I am a man, I will take the toys across the mountain, and give
them to the children in the village! The Winter Warlock won't stop me!"
Well, Kris kept growing taller and
taller, until he had to bend over just to fit in the cottage doorways. And finally
the day came when he knew that he was ready. "Tomorrow night, I will take our
toys down to SomberTown," he told Tanta.
Before he left, the elves gave him
a special present--a red suit just like the ones they wore. Kris was very proud to
be wearing a red Kringle elf-suit! He gathered together a big bag of toys, and set
out into the snow.
He hadn't gone very far when he
found a little penguin that was lost in the woods. He named the penguin Topper, and
took it with him.
But the Winter Warlock knew he was
coming. "Go back!" he roared from the top of the mountain. "Go
back, or you will be doomed!"
Kris wasn't about to turn back, not
when Tanta and the Kringle elves were counting on him to deliver all those toys!
"Come on, Topper!" he said. "That Winter Warlock's not going to stop
me!" And he kept right on going.
The Winter Warlock admired his
courage, and let him pass. "But I'll get him when he comes back!" he said
with an evil laugh. "He'll have to cross my mountain again to go home...and
then, no more Mister Nice Guy!"
Kris was very happy when he saw
SomberTown in the valley below him. "Now we'll be able to give the children our
special toys!" he told Topper the penguin. "Come on, let's hurry!"
But Kris didn't know that the mean
old Mayor of SomberTown hated toys. He had passed a law making all toys illegal.
Anyone found with a toy would be put in jail!
Everyone in SomberTown avoided Kris
when he walked through the street with his big bag of Kringle toys. And they didn't
like his bright red elf suit. That's when he saw that they were all wearing drab
colors, like brown and gray and black. There were no happy colors anywhere!
And the children were all very sad
as they did their chores. "We have to wash our stockings every day, and hang
them by the fire to dry overnight," they told him. "We're not allowed to
laugh or play anymore."
Kris thought it was wrong to make
little children work all the time, and never have fun. So he tried to give them some
of his special toys.
"You can't give the children
any toys," Miss Jessica told him. "If the Mayor catches you, he'll put you
in jail!"
Miss Jessica was the school
teacher, and she was very pretty. Kris fell in love with her. He gave her a
little china doll, and made her see that the Mayor's law was very silly.
When the Mayor found out that the
children had toys again, he was very angry. He tried to arrest them and put them in
jail.
"Don't arrest those little
children!" Kris said. "I gave them the toys!"
The Mayor's soldiers chased him
through SomberTown, but he and Topper escaped into the woods. He didn't know that he
was back on the evil Winter Warlock's land again...until suddenly one of the trees grabbed
him and wouldn't let him go!
"Now I have you!" the
Winter Warlock laughed. "And I'm going to kill you!"
Kris thought very fast, because he
knew that the icy wizard really meant what he said. "Before you do that,"
he said, "I'd like to give you something. A special toy that I saved just for
you!"
The Winter Warlock was shocked.
"For me? No one's ever given me a present before!"
Kris gave him a special toy
train...and something wonderful happened. The Winter Warlock's cold heart melted
away! "I feel so happy now!" he cried. "Thank you, Kris
Kringle, for being my friend! I promise I won't be mean anymore!"
The Winter Warlock decided to help
Kris. He gave him a magical snowball, so that Kris could watch over the boys and
girls in SomberTown wherever he went.
Kris was surprised when he found
Miss Jessica looking for him in the woods. She had brought him some letters from the
children. The Mayor had thrown away all their toys, and they wanted new ones.
Kris promised to bring more toys to
the children that night, after the Mayor was asleep. So he hurried home and got more
toys from the Kringle elves, then went back to SomberTown again.
The elves were so happy that they
packed up their house and their toy shop, and moved in with the Winter Warlock. That
way, they were closer to the children in SomberTown.
The Mayor was furious when he saw
more toys in SomberTown! He swore to catch Kris and throw him in jail forever!
Every time the Mayor found toys, he
threw them away. But Kris loved those children very much, so he kept bringing more
and more toys. Miss Jessica helped by sending him the childrens' letters.
At first, Kris snuck into each
child's house through the front door, while everyone was asleep. But the Mayor made
a law that all doors and windows had to be locked at night. So Kris started climbing
down the chimneys. He was glad that the animals had taught him so well, or he might
have gotten stuck!
No matter how hard the Mayor tried,
he couldn't stop Kris from bringing toys to the children. Finally the Mayor broke
into the childrens' homes before dawn, trying to find those toys...so Kris started hiding
them in the stockings drying by the fire!
The Mayor was furious! He set
a trap for Kris. Jessica tried to warn him, but it was too late. The soldiers
captured Kris as he was sliding down someone's chimney. And they even arrested the
Winter Warlock and Kris's family, the Kringle elves.
Only Jessica managed to escape.
She begged the Mayor to release Kris and his friends, but he wouldn't listen.
So because she loved Kris, she helped him break out of jail.
The Winter Warlock had lost most of
his magic when he stopped being evil, but he still had one magic trick left. A
handful of magical corn was in his pocket. Jessica gathered Kris's reindeer friends
together, and let them eat it.
Suddenly the reindeer could fly!
Jessica brought the flying reindeer
to the prison, and Kris and his friends escaped into the night. Jessica went with
them, because she wanted to stay with Kris forever.
The Mayor had burned their pretty
home, so Kris and the elves had to find a new place to live. Kris changed his name
back to "Claus," so that Jessica and his elf family would not be in danger.
Then he married Jessica on Christmas Eve, in a lovely grove of pine trees.
The elves made the trees beautiful
by putting pretty lights and little toys on them...and the Winter Warlock used the last of
his magic to create a beautiful glowing star on top of the tallest tree. And so the
first Christmas tree was made.
Kris took his family north, so far
away that the Mayor couldn't follow and hurt them. They built a big castle up at the
North Pole. And the Kringle elves started making toys again.
As the years went by, people all
over the world heard of Kris and his wonderful toys. All the children began writing
letters to Kris. He got so many letters asking for toys that finally he had to pick
just one night to deliver all of them. So he picked Christmas Eve, which is the most
special night of the whole year.
Kris grew a long beard, like the
Kringle elves, that slowly turned white. But the Winter Warlock had finally learned
how to make good magic, so he made sure that Kris and his family of elves would never get
old.
The Mayor of SomberTown wasn't so
lucky, and after a while he died of old age. The people forgot that toys had been
illegal. New laws were passed, so the children were able to laugh and play again.
Kris liked to slide down chimneys
and leave toys in the childrens' stockings at night, while they were asleep. That
way, they'd have a special surprise waiting for them on Christmas morning, when they woke
up.
So that's what he kept doing.
And pretty soon, he was delivering toys to every good little boy and girl in the
entire world!
Kris still has that magical
snowball, and he looks into it every year to find out who's been bad and who's been good.
Then he makes up a big list, and checks it twice to make sure he hasn't forgotten
anyone.
And on Christmas Eve, the elves
pack up a huge bag of toys, and put it in his sleigh. Then he flies all around the
world with his magical flying reindeer, and brings those toys to all the girls and boys on
his long list!
So if you want Kris to come to your
house this Christmas Eve, you'd better be good. And you'd better not cry or pout.
Because Kris Kringle knows if you've been naughty or nice.
And by the way, don't forget to
leave some milk and cookies by the fireplace, just for him. Delivering all those
toys is a lot of hard work! And isn't that a nice way to tell him you love him, too,
just as much as he loves you?
Have a very Merry Christmas, and a
Happy New Year!
Adaptation by: Jo Grant |
