Early in the morning, before it was light, and while the twilight
gleamed through the curtainless windows, Lettice was up, dressing
herself by the aid of the light which gleamed from the street lamp into
the window. She combed her hair with modest neatness, then opened the
draw with much precaution, lest she should disturb poor Myra, who still
slumbered on the hard mattress--drew out a shawl and began to fold it as
if to put it on.
"Alas!" said Lettice, "this will not do--it is threadbare, timeworn, and
has given way in two places." She turned it, and unfolded it, but it
would not do. It was so shabby that she was actually ashamed to be seen
with it in the street. She put it aside, and took the liberty of
borrowing Myra's, who was now asleep. She knew Myra would be awful cold
when she got up, and would need it. But she must go with the work that
morning. She thought first of preparing the fire, so that Myra, when she
arose, would only have to light the match; but as she went to the box
for coal she saw, with terror, how low the little store of fuel was, and
she said to herself, "we must have a bushel of coal to-day--better do
without meat than fire such weather as this." But she was cheered with
the reflection that she should receive a little more for her work that
day than what she had from other places. It had been ordered by a
benevolent lady who had been to some trouble in getting the poor women
supplied with needle work so that they should receive the full price.
She had worked for private customers before, and always received more
pay from them than from the shops in London, where they would beat down
the poor to the last penny.
Poor Lettice went to the old band-box and took out a shabby old
bonnet--she looked at it, and sighed, when she thought of the appearance
she must make; for she was going to Mrs. Danvers, and her work was some
very nice linen for a young lady about to be married.
Just at this moment she thought of the contrast, between all the fine
things which that young lady was to have, and her own destitution. But
her disposition was such as not to cause her to think hard of others who
had plenty while she was poor. She was contented to receive her pay from
the wealthy, for her daily needle work. She felt that what they had, was
not taken from her, and if she could gain in her little way by
receiving her just earnings from the general prosperity of others, she
would not complain. And as the thought of the increased pay came into
her mind, which she was to receive that day, she brightened up, shook
the bonnet, pulled out the ribbons and made it look as tidy as possible,
thinking to herself that after buying some fuel she might possibly buy a
bit of ribbon and make it look a little more spruce, when she got her
money.
Lettice now put on her bonnet, and Myra's shawl, and looking into the
little three-penny glass which hung on the wall she thought she might
look quite tidy after all. The young lady for whom she made the linen
lived about twenty miles from town, but she had come in about this time,
and was to set off home at nine o'clock that very morning. The linen was
to have been sent in the night before, but Lettice had found it
impossible to finish it. This was why she was obliged to start so early
in the morning. She now goes to the bed to tell Myra about the fire, and
that she had borrowed her shawl, but Myra was sound asleep, so she did
not disturb her, but stepped lightly over the floor and down stairs, for
it was getting late and she must be gone. Read the next story and you
will be deeply interested in the result.