$1.87 that was all and next week was Christmas. These were the pennies saved by bargaining with the grocer, butcher and vegetable man. Three times Della counted it and cried, as this will be insufficient to buy any present for her husband, Jim. This made her sad and she started sobbing.

While she looked around the house which the couple had rented for $8 a week, she could not find anything valuable. Mr. James Dillingham Young also known as Jim worked at a nearby Grocery Store and used to earn $30 a week, now this has shrunk to $20 a week. This was too low for the couple to live comfortably & barely fulfilled their needs. She wanted to buys a Christmas gift for Jim but money was a constraint.