Away in a Manger

by Rhys Bowen

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  To my family, who make the holidays so special

  One

  New York City, Wednesday, December 13, 1905

  “Tis the Season to be jolly,” sang the carolers outside Grace Church, while across Broadway the brass band of the Salvation Army thumped out “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen,” in competition. It seemed as if the whole of New York City was suddenly caught up in the Christmas spirit. I maneuvered Liam’s buggy along the crowded sidewalk, checking to make sure that Bridie was walking close beside me. In such a crowd one couldn’t be too careful. Everyone seemed to be laden with packages and baskets of food items needed for holiday baking. It had been a year of optimism, with President Roosevelt elected for his first full term of office and the Wright brothers showing the world that airplanes really could stay up in the sky for more than a few seconds. We were definitely in the age of progress.

  I pulled Bridie back from the edge of the street as an automobile drove past, sending up a spray of slush and mud. So much for the age of progress, I thought, as some of it splashed onto my skirt. It had snowed the night before, the first snow of the season, creating an air of excitement, until the sun had come out and started to melt it, making the sidewalks slippery, dirty, and difficult to navigate. As we reached the corner of Tenth Street the young crossing sweepers were busy at work, clearing a pathway through the slush so that we ladies didn’t get the hems of our skirts dirty.

  “Merry Christmas. God bless you, lady,” they called out, holding out raw little hands covered in chilblains. I felt guilty that I hadn’t a penny or two ready for them, but the truth was that there were so many of them. How could I possibly choose one? And it was not only the crossing sweepers with their hands out. There were beggars of various sorts every few yards along Broadway, from hunched old women to pitiful children. Then there were those, like the crossing sweepers, one step up from beggars—the newsboys, the flower sellers with their tiny sprigs of mistletoe and holly. There were just too many of them. It hadn’t been a year of progress for all of New York, that was clear enough. Immigrants were still arriving in their thousands, cramming into the already jam-packed Lower East Side and trying to support their families any way they could—many by selling a few eggs, roasted corn, bootlaces from a pushcart. I passed a baked potato stand with its enticing aroma. Several young boys stood around it, holding out their hands to the glowing charcoal until the owner drove them away.

  As we moved away from the choir of carol singers, who were warmly wrapped in scarves and cloaks against the cold, I became aware of another voice—small, high, and beautiful.

  “Away in a manger, no crib for a bed,” it sang. “The little Lord Jesus laid down his sweet head.”

  Bridie heard it too and tugged at my sleeve. “Look, over there,” she said.

  I looked. A small girl was sitting in a doorway of Daniell’s Haberdashery Store, huddled against the cold in a thin coat. She held out a tin cup as she sang, but people passed her without noticing her.

  “Do you think she’s an angel, come down for Christmas?” Bridie whispered to me.

  She certainly looked like one. She had almost white-blonde hair and big blue eyes in a little heart-shaped face and her voice was so pure and sweet that it brought tears to my eyes.

  “We have to give her something,” Bridie said firmly, but I was already reaching into my purse.

  “Go and give her that,” I said, handing over a quarter.

  She looked at it critically as if she thought it ought to be more, then took it and darted through the crowd to drop it in the girl’s tin mug. The child looked up and gave Bridie an angelic smile. Her gaze fell on me and I had a strange feeling of connection.

  Bridie made her way back to hang on to the buggy. “She looks so cold,” she said. “Couldn’t we give her some of my things? I know they’d be too big for her but at least they’d help her stay warm. Perhaps her mommy could make them into the right size for her.”

  I looked back. “She probably doesn’t have a mommy,” I said. “No mother would let her little child stay out begging in this weather. She’s almost certainly an orphan.”

  “How sad,” Bridie said. “To have nobody in the world to look after her. That’s not fair.”

  “I’m afraid life isn’t very fair,” I said. I glanced back at the girl and saw that one of the crossing sweeper boys was now standing beside her. In all likelihood he’d take the money we’d just given her. It was very much a dog-eat-dog world in the lower levels of New York society. Then my gaze turned to Bridie, who had now blossomed into a sturdy eleven-year-old with the promise of becoming a beauty one day, and it occurred to me that she might well be an orphan herself now. I had brought her across the Atlantic from Ireland when her own mother was dying, and then Daniel’s mother had taken her in when her father and brother had gone down to Panama to help dig the new canal. That had been a year ago, and we’d heard nothing from them since. And the news that had come from that hellhole had not been good—men dying like flies of yellow fever and other tropical diseases. So it might well be that we were all the family Bridie had in the world.

  Of course she’d been well looked after by Daniel’s mother, who had recently sent her to stay with me in the city, so that she could have a more normal education with girls her own age. It was also suggested that she could help me take care of Liam until I could find a proper hired girl to take the place of Aggie, who had died when our house was bombed. I would have taken Bridie in anyway, as I was now the closest thing she had to a mother, and I was glad when Daniel agreed to the arrangement. It was working very well. She was proving to be a willing little helper and good company.

  “We’ll look through your things and see what we can find for the little girl,” I said. “And I’ll buy you some yarn so that you can knit her a scarf. Mrs. Sullivan says you’re a grand little knitter now.”

  Bridie beamed with pride. “I like knitting,” she said. “And I like being here with you, taking care of Liam. I hope you don’t find a new mother’s helper too soon.”

  “I don’t want you thinking that you’re only here as my helper, Bridie,” I said. “It’s important that you get proper schooling, and my mother-in-law wants to turn you into a young lady.”

  She moved closer to my side. “But I like being with you best,” she said. “You’re the only mother I’ve got in the world.”

  I felt a lump come into my throat. There was nothing I’d like better than to keep her with me, but I knew that eventually Mrs. Sullivan would want to educate her and then introduce her into society better than I could. Daniel had also been urging me to find a properly trained servant to help me around the house and with Liam. I saw his point. In his position with the NYPD, status mattered. We should be entertaining more, and a husband who could not provide his wife with the luxury of a servant would be frowned upon. Nonetheless I was in no rush—having grown up in a cottage on the West Coast of Ireland, I was used to hard wo
rk and found it easy enough to keep our small house clean. And for all Daniel’s urging, I could never see myself giving tea parties.

  “The cattle are lowing, the baby awakes,” I heard the sweet voice still singing. “But little Lord Jesus no crying he makes.”

  I turned to look back, puzzled. There was something about the song, or the way she was singing it, that didn’t seem right, didn’t fit. Something significant. Then I shook my head, not wanting to admit that Bridie had rattled me with her talk of angels. Where I came from in Ireland we were all too ready to believe in the miraculous. But this was New York and things that happened here were all too real.

  We crossed Broadway, bumping the buggy over clumps of frozen mud and trolley lines, weaving between brewer’s drays and cabs and watching out for more speeding automobiles. My son, Liam, slept on blissfully the way that only babies can, his long dark eyelashes brushing his cheek. I gazed at him now, thinking how chubby and healthy he looked, in contrast to that little …

  “Do you think she really might be an angel?” Bridie asked suddenly. “Perhaps she’s been sent down specially for Christmas to remind people to be good. We ought to give her more money. I’ve got two dollars saved up. She can have those.”

  I looked down at her tenderly. “I thought they were to buy Christmas presents with,” I said.

  “That girl needs the money more,” she said. “I still have time to make Christmas gifts.”

  “You’re a very kind person,” I said, “but I’m afraid the world isn’t quite as simple as you think. If we give the girl more money she probably won’t be allowed to keep it. You saw that bigger boy. He’s probably her minder and the money will end up with an even bigger boy or even an adult in charge of a gang. They put out pretty children to beg because they are more likely to touch people’s heartstrings.”

  “That’s terrible.” Bridie was frowning. “That girl looks as if she never gets enough to eat. Let’s at least make her a pie or something next time we come this way. No boy could take that away from her if she eats it quickly.”

  “We’ll do that,” I agreed, “and we’ll see if you have any warm clothes that are too small for you now.”

  Bridie gave me a satisfied smile, then tugged at my sleeve again. “And one more thing.”

  “Yes?” I asked, expecting another charitable thought.

  “Could we go and look at Macy’s department store one day? They say their windows are all done up to look like magic.”

  “We can certainly do that,” I said. “Liam might be old enough to enjoy seeing them too. So might I.” And I grinned at her.

  Two

  As soon as we got home Bridie rushed up to her room and took out all her clothes. Most of them had been made for her by my mother-in-law and were quite unsuitable for a beggar child—fine fabrics with lots of lace and embroidery. But we did come up with a woolen chemise and some woolen stockings. Bridie wanted to add a fine knitted shawl but I shook my head.

  “Mrs. Sullivan will expect to see you wearing that when she comes for Christmas. She went to a lot of trouble to make that for you. It wouldn’t be right to give it away. Besides, you might need it yourself if it gets any colder.” I put my arm around her, noting that she was growing so fast she would soon be up to my shoulder. “We’ll go to the dry goods store tomorrow and you can choose some yarn to knit her a scarf and mittens, all right?”

  She nodded, smiling.

  “Now we need to put all this away and get to work. Liam needs to be changed and fed, and I need to put Captain Sullivan’s dinner in the oven.”

  I said the last with satisfaction. For once Daniel had no major case keeping him out late at police headquarters. He had been able to eat dinner with us most evenings and even had some time to play with his son. I just prayed that nobody committed a murder or any other dastardly crime before Christmas, so that we could celebrate the holiday together.

  I was particularly looking forward to Christmas this year. It would be the first one that Liam could actually enjoy with us, now that he was fifteen months and walking on his solid little legs. I pictured his excitement as he unwrapped a package with a toy inside. And we’d have a tree with glass ornaments and turkey and plum pudding. I sighed with contentment. We’d been through a lot this year. It was about time our life ran smoothly for a while.

  I put a shepherd’s pie in the oven, and was in the middle of feeding Liam his mashed carrots and milk pudding when the front door opened, sending a blast of icy air down the passage toward us.

  “Papa’s home,” Daniel called. “Where’s that boy of mine?”

  Liam squealed in delight, squirmed, and tried to stand up in his high chair, luckily prevented by the straps. Daniel came into the kitchen, his cheeks bright red from the cold. “Brrr, it’s chilly out there tonight,” he said. “If it snows again it will stick this time. That wind off the Hudson cuts through like a knife. Don’t tell my mother but I’m really glad for that scarf she knitted me.”

  He grinned as he came around the table to kiss me, then turned his attention to Liam.

  “What’s that you’re eating?” he said. “Milk pudding? My favorite. I think I’ll eat it all up.” And he pretended to put his face down toward Liam’s plate.

  “No. Mine,” Liam said clearly, making us both laugh.

  “And how was your day, Miss Bridie?” Daniel asked as she brought a wet washcloth to clean up Liam’s face.

  “We met an angel,” Bridie said. “At least she looked as if she could be an angel. She was singing very sweetly.”

  Daniel looked across at me and raised an eyebrow.

  “We saw a beggar child on Broadway,” I said. “She was singing ‘Away in a Manger.’ She really did have a sweet voice, poor little thing. We’ve looked for some of Bridie’s outgrown clothes to give her, and Bridie’s going to knit her a scarf.”

  Daniel frowned. “You want to be careful getting involved with people like that,” he said.

  “Daniel, she was a little child. She was shivering in the cold and singing.”

  “I’m sure she looked quite adorable,” he said. “That’s the whole point. We’re having all sorts of trouble with pickpockets this season. More than usual. Anywhere there’s a crowd. We suspect that one or more of the bigger gangs is involved. And a little child is exactly what the more sophisticated of the gangs would use.”

  “How could she pick pockets when she’s sitting in a doorway?” I demanded, feeling my hackles rising now.

  “She’s the diversion, Molly. Don’t you see?” he said patiently. “People hear her singing. They look across and see a sweet little girl and feel sorry for her. Some even put a penny or two in her cup. And while they are distracted a slick operator is taking their purse or going through their pockets.”

  “Oh, dear,” I said. “I never thought of that. I suppose you may be right. How sad to use a child like that.”

  “She may even have a home and proper clothes when she’s not working,” Daniel said. “The beggar child in rags may be all part of the act.”

  I didn’t want to think it but I realized it could well be true. There were plenty of slick criminals in New York City. Plenty of evil minds who would give no second thought to using a child for their schemes. But at that moment Bridie said angrily, “She wasn’t a bad person. She wasn’t. You could see it from her face. She looked like an angel. In fact I believe she is an angel, come down for Christmas.”

  Daniel ruffled her hair. “Perhaps she is,” he said gently. “And she may well be a thoroughly nice child who has no choice about what she’s being made to do. Anyway, let’s talk of more cheerful things, shall we? I have the day off tomorrow—barring any major crimes overnight. So I thought we might take a trip uptown.”

  “Uptown?” I asked.

  “I want to show Liam FAO Schwarz. You know,” he went on when I looked puzzled, “the big fancy toy store on Fifth Avenue? I hear they have life-size toy soldiers outside and a fantastic train set running right across their windows.
”

  “How lovely.” I beamed at him. “And Bridie just asked today if we could visit Macy’s store on Thirty-fourth. She’s heard the windows there are all decorated for Christmas.”

  “We can do that too,” Daniel said.

  “But I have to go to school tomorrow,” Bridie said. “We don’t break up for Christmas until the day after tomorrow.”

  “I think they won’t mind if you skip a day or so of school,” Daniel said. “You’ve worked hard at your lessons. Besides, shopping uptown is educational.” He winked at me. “And we need to buy a tree sometime soon. We’ll need you to help choose.”

  “Oh, yes.” Bridie’s eyes lit up. “Can it be a big one? Will we put it in the front parlor window?”

  “It can and we will,” Daniel said. “Now I think we’d better take that young man out of his seat before he explodes with frustration.”

  He unstrapped Liam and threw him up in the air, making the boy squeal with delight again.

  “Careful. He’s just eaten,” I warned. “It may come back all over you if you do that.”

  Daniel rapidly handed him back to me and I passed him to Bridie. “If you change him and put on his nightclothes he can come down and play with his daddy before dinner,” I said.

  As she went upstairs with the baby I turned to Daniel. “She has grown into such a helpful girl,” I said. “She handles him so confidently. And he adores her.”

  “That’s as maybe, but we still need a proper servant, Molly. You must see that,” Daniel said. “You can’t keep putting it off forever, just because of what happened. I know you have bad memories. But there are plenty of competent young women in New York City. And Bridie has to concentrate on her schooling and get an education with girls her own age. That was the understanding when my mother left her with us.”

  I nodded. “You’re right. It’s just that I like having her around. She’s been like a daughter to me, Daniel.”