"That isn't my pinny?" said Lucie.
"Oh no, if you please'm; that's a damask table-cloth belonging to Jenny
Wren; look how it's stained with currant wine! It's very bad to wash!"
said Mrs. Tiggy-winkle.
[Illustration]
Mrs. Tiggy-winkle's nose went sniffle, sniffle, snuffle, and her eyes went
twinkle, twinkle; and she fetched another hot iron from the fire.
[Illustration]
"There's one of my pocket-handkins!" cried Lucie--"and there's my pinny!"
Mrs. Tiggy-winkle ironed it, and goffered it, and shook out the frills.
"Oh that _is_ lovely!" said Lucie.
[Illustration]
"And what are those long yellow things with fingers like gloves?"
"Oh, that's a pair of stockings belonging to Sally Henny-penny--look how
she's worn the heels out with scratching in the yard! She'll very soon go
barefoot!" said Mrs. Tiggy-winkle.
[Illustration]
"Why, there's another handkersniff--but it isn't mine; it's red?"
"Oh no, if you please'm; that one belongs to old Mrs. Rabbit; and it _did_
so smell of onions! I've had to wash it separately, I can't get out the
smell."
"There's another one of mine," said Lucie.
[Illustration]
"What are those funny little white things?"
"That's a pair of mittens belonging to Tabby Kitten; I only have to iron
them; she washes them herself."
"There's my last pocket-handkin!" said Lucie.
[Illustration]
"And what are you dipping into the basin of starch?"
"They're little dicky shirt-fronts belonging to Tom Titmouse--most
terrible particular!" said Mrs. Tiggy-winkle. "Now I've finished my
ironing; I'm going to air some clothes."
[Illustration]
"What are these dear soft fluffy things?" said Lucie.
"Oh those are woolly coats belonging to the little lambs at Skelghyl."
"Will their jackets take off?" asked Lucie.
"Oh yes, if you please'm; look at the sheep-mark on the shoulder. And
here's one marked for Gatesgarth, and three that come from Little-town.
They're _always_ marked at washing!" said Mrs. Tiggy-winkle.
[Illustration]
And she hung up all sorts and sizes of clothes--small brown coats of mice;
and one velvety black moleskin waist-coat; and a red tailcoat with no tail
belonging to Squirrel Nutkin; and a very much shrunk blue jacket belonging
to Peter Rabbit; and a petticoat, not marked, that had gone lost in the
washing--and at last the basket was empty!
[Illustration]
"Then Mrs. Tiggy-winkle made tea--a cup for herself and a cup for Lucie.
They sat before the fire on a bench and looked sideways at one another.
Mrs. Tiggy-winkle's hand, holding the tea-cup, was very very brown, and
very very wrinkly with the soap-suds; and all through her gown and her
cap, there were _hair-pins_ sticking wrong end out; so that Lucie didn't
like to sit too near her.
[Illustration]
When they had finished tea, they tied up the clothes in bundles; and
Lucie's pocket-handkerchiefs were folded up inside her clean pinny, and
fastened with a silver safety-pin.
And then they made up the fire with turf, and came out and locked the
door, and hid the key under the door-sill.
[Illustration]
Then away down the hill trotted Lucie and Mrs. Tiggy-winkle with the
bundles of clothes!
All the way down the path little animals came out of the fern to meet
them; the very first that they met were Peter Rabbit and Benjamin Bunny!
[Illustration]
And she gave them their nice clean clothes; and all the little animals and
birds were so very much obliged to dear Mrs. Tiggy-winkle.
[Illustration]
So that at the bottom of the hill when they came to the stile, there was
nothing left to carry except Lucie's one little bundle.
[Illustration]
Lucie scrambled up the stile with the bundle in her hand; and then she
turned to say "Good-night," and to thank the washer-woman--But what a
_very_ odd thing! Mrs. Tiggy-winkle had not waited either for thanks or
for the washing bill!
She was running running running up the hill--and where was her white
frilled cap? and her shawl? and her gown--and her petticoat?
[Illustration]
And _how_ small she had grown--and _how_ brown--and covered with PRICKLES!
Why! Mrs. Tiggy-winkle was nothing but a HEDGEHOG.
* * * * *
(Now some people say that little Lucie had been asleep upon the
stile--but then how could she have found three clean
pocket-handkins and a pinny, pinned with a silver safety-pin?
And besides--_I_ have seen that door into the back of the hill
called Cat Bells--and besides _I_ am very well acquainted with
dear Mrs. Tiggy-winkle!)