STRANGE HOUSEKEEPING
Although she was very proud of her shoes, she was rather anxious as to
how she would conduct herself while wearing them at work. While she
loaded her truck or pushed it along she was continually looking down at
her feet.
By doing so she would probably attract the attention of the other girls.
This is exactly what did happen. Several of her comrades noticed them
and complimented her.
"Where did you buy those shoes?" one asked.
"They are not shoes; they are sandals," corrected Perrine.
"No, they are not; they are shoes," said the girl; "but whatever they
are they sure are pretty. Where did you buy them?"
"I made them myself with plaited reeds and four cents worth of canvas,"
replied Perrine.
"They _are_ beautiful."
The success she had made of her shoes decided her to undertake another
task. She had thought several times of doing it, but it was much more
difficult, or so she thought, and might mean too much expense. She
wanted to make a chemise to replace the only one which she possessed.
For it was very inconvenient to take off this only garment to wash it
and then wait until it was dry to put it on again. She needed two yards
of calico, and she wondered how much it would cost. And how would she
cut the goods when she had them? These were very difficult questions to
answer. She certainly had something to think about.
She wondered if it would not be wiser to begin by making a print dress
to replace her waist and skirt, which was worn more than ever now, as
she had to sleep in it. It could last a very little while longer. When
it was finished, how would she go out? For her daily bread, as much as
for the success of her future plans, she must continue to be admitted to
the factory.
Yet on the Saturday evening when she had the three francs in her hand
which she had earned for the week's work, she could not resist the
temptation of a chemise. She still considered a waist and skirt of the
utmost utility, but then a chemise also was indispensable, and besides
there were many arguments in favor of the chemise--cleanliness in which
she had been brought up, self-respect. Finally the chemise won the day.
She would mend her waist and skirt; as the material had formerly been
very strong, it would still hold a few more darns.
Every day at the luncheon hour she went to Mother Francoise's house to
ask news of Rosalie. Sometimes news was given to her, sometimes not,
according to whether it was the grandmother or the aunt whom she saw.
On her way to inquire for Rosalie she passed a little store which was
divided into two sections. On one side newspapers, pictures and songs
were sold, and on the other linens, calicos and prints. Perrine had
often looked in this store. How nice it would be to go in and have them
cut off as much material as she wished! Sometimes, when she had been
looking in the window, pretending to look at the newspapers or a song,
she had seen girls from the factory enter and come out shortly after
with parcels carefully wrapped up, which they held clasped tightly to
them. She had thought then that such pleasure was not for her ... at
least not then.
Now she could enter the store if she wished, for she had three silver
coins in her hand. She went in.
"What is it you want, mademoiselle?" asked a little old woman politely,
with a pleasant smile.
"Will you please tell me what is the price of calico the yard ... the
cheapest?" asked Perrine timidly.
"I have it at forty centimes the yard," said the old woman.
Perrine gave a sigh of relief.
"Will you cut me two yards, please?" she said.
"It won't wear very well ... but the sixty centimes...."
"The forty centime one will do, thank you," said little Perrine.
"As you like," said the old woman. "I wouldn't like you to come back
after and say...."
"Oh, I wouldn't do that," interrupted Perrine hastily.
[Illustration: SHE HAD SOME TIME AGO DECIDED ON THE SHAPE.]
The old woman cut off two yards, and Perrine noticed that it was not
white nor shiny like the one she had admired in the window.
"Any more?" asked the shopkeeper when she had torn the calico with a
sharp, dry rip.
"I want some thread also," said Perrine; "a spool of white, number
forty."
Now it was Perrine's turn to leave the store with her little newspaper
parcel hugged tightly to her heart. Out of her three francs (sixty
centimes) she had spent eighteen, so there still remained forty-two
until the following Saturday. She would have to spend twenty sous for
bread, so that left her fourteen sous for extras.
She ran back all the way to her little island. When she reached her
cabin she was out of breath, but that did not prevent her from beginning
her work at once. She had some time ago decided upon the shape she would
give her chemise. She would make it quite straight, first, because that
was the simplest and the easiest way for one who had never cut out
anything before and who had no scissors, and secondly, because she could
use the string that was in her old one for this new one.
Everything went very well; to begin with, there was no cutting in the
straight piece. Perhaps there was nothing to admire in her work but at
any rate she did not have to do it over again. But when the time came
for shaping the openings for the head and arms then she experienced
difficulties! She had only a knife to do the cutting and she was so
afraid that she would tear the calico. With a trembling hand she took
the risk. At last it was finished, and on Tuesday morning she would be
able to go to the factory wearing a chemise earned by her own work, cut
and sewn by her own hands.
That day when she went to Mother Francoise's; it was Rosalie who came to
meet her with her arm in a sling.
"Are you better?" asked Perrine.
"No, but they let me get up and they said that I could come out in the
yard," replied Rosalie.
Perrine was very pleased to see her friend again and asked all kinds of
questions, but Rosalie seemed rather reserved. Perrine could not
understand this attitude.
"Where are you living now?" asked Rosalie.
Fearing to say where, Perrine evaded a direct answer to this question.
"It was too expensive for me here," she said, "and I had so little money
left for food and other things."
"Well, did you find anything cheaper elsewhere?"
"I don't have to pay."
"Oh!..."
She looked narrowly at Perrine, then her curiosity got the better of
her.
"Who are you with?" she asked.
Again Perrine could not give a direct answer.
"I'll tell you that later," she said.
"Oh, when you like," replied Rosalie carelessly, "only let me tell you
this, if you see Aunt Zenobie in the yard or at the door you had better
not come in. She doesn't want to see you here. If you come it is better
to come in the evening, then she ... she is busy."
Perrine went to the factory very saddened by this welcome. What had she
done that she could not go into the house? All day long she remained
under the impression that she had offended them. When evening came and
she found herself alone in the cabin having nothing to do for the first
time in eight days, she was even more depressed. Then she thought that
she would go and walk in the fields that surrounded her little island,
for she had not yet had time to do this.
It was a beautiful evening. She wandered around the pond, walking in the
high grass that had not been trodden by anyone. She looked across the
water at her little home which seemed almost hidden amongst the trees.
The birds and beasts could not suspect that it was the work of man
behind which he could lie in ambush with his gun.
At that moment she heard a noise at her feet which frightened her and a
water hen jumped into the water, terrified. Then looking about her she
saw a nest made of grass and feathers in which were ten white eggs,
dirty little eggs with small dark spots.
Instead of being placed on the ground amongst the grass the nest was
floating on the water. She examined it but without touching it, and
noticed that it was made in a way to go up and down according to the
flow of the water, and was so surrounded with reeds that neither the
current nor the wind could carry it away.
The mother hen, anxious, took up her position at a distance and stayed
there. Perrine hid herself in the high grass and waited to see if she
would come back to her nest.
As she did not return, she went on with her walk, and again and again
the rustling of her dress frightened other birds. The water hens, so
lissom in their escape, ran to the floating leaves of the water lilies
without going under. She saw birds everywhere.
When an hour later she returned to her little home the hut was hidden
half in the shadows of night. It was so quiet and pretty she thought,
and how pleased she was that she had shown as much intelligence as these
birds ... to make her nest here.
With Perrine, as with many little children, it was the events of the day
which shaped her dreams by night. The unhappiness through which she had
passed the last few months had often colored her dreams, and many times
since her troubles had commenced, she had awakened in the night with the
perspiration pouring off her. Her sleep was disturbed with nightmares
caused by the miseries she had experienced in the day.
Now since she had been at Maraucourt and had new hopes and was at work,
the nightmares had been less frequent and so she was not so sad.
Now she thought of what she was going to do at the factory the next day,
of the skirt and waist that she would make, of her underwear.
Now on this particular evening after she had wandered over the fields
surrounding her home and had entered her little nest to go to sleep,
strange visions passed before her sleepy eyes. She thought that she was
walking about the field exploring, and came upon a great big kitchen, a
wonderful kitchen like in castles, and there were a number of little
dwarfs of the most diabolical shapes, sitting around a big table before
a blazing fire; some of them were breaking eggs, others were beating
them up until they were white and frothy; and some of these eggs were as
large as melons and others were as small as a little pea, and the dwarfs
made the most extraordinary dishes from them. They seemed to know the
every kind of dish that could be made with eggs,--boiled eggs with
cheese and butter; with tomatoes; poached; fried eggs; various omelettes
with ham and kidney, jam or rum; the rum set afire and flaming with
sparkling lights. And then there were more important dishes still which
only the head cooks were handling ... pastries and delicious creams.
Now and again she half woke and she tried to banish the stupid dream
but it came again and the elfs still went on doing their fantastic work,
so that when the factory whistle sounded she was still watching them
prepare some chocolate creams which she could almost taste in her mouth.
Then she knew that what had impressed her most during her walk was not
the beauty of the night but simply those eggs which she had seen in the
nest, which had told her stomach that for fourteen days she had eaten
only bread and water. These eggs had made her dream of the elfs and all
those delicious things that they were making; she was hungry for good
things and she had found it out through her dream.
Why had she not taken those eggs, or at least some of them, they did not
belong to anyone for the duck was wild? Of course as she had no saucepan
or frying pan or any kitchen utensils whatever, she could not prepare
any of the dishes that she had seen made before her dream eyes. But
there, that was the best about eggs, they could be used without any very
skillful preparation; a lighted match put to a little heap of dry wood
and then she could cook them hard or soft, how she liked, in the hot
ashes. And she would buy a saucepan or a pan as soon as possible.
Several times this idea came to her while she was at work that day until
finally she decided to buy a box of matches and a cent's worth of salt.
As soon as she had made her purchases she ran back to her hut.
She had been too interested in the place where she had discovered the
nest not to be able to find it again. The mother was not occupying the
nest but she had been there during the day because Perrine saw now that
instead of ten eggs there were eleven, which proved that she had not
finished laying.
Here was a good chance for her to help herself. In the first place the
eggs were fresh, and then if she only took five or six, the duck, who
did not know how to count, would not notice that any one had been there.
A short time ago Perrine would not have had any scruples and she would
have quickly emptied the nest, without a thought, but the sorrows that
she had experienced had made her very thoughtful for the griefs of
others; in this same manner her love for Palikare had made her feel an
affection for all animals that she had not known in her early childhood.
After she had taken the eggs she wondered where she could cook them;
naturally this could not be done in the cabin for the slightest wreath
of smoke which would emerge from it would indicate to anyone who saw it
that someone was living there.
There was a gypsy camp quite near which she passed by to get to her
island, and a little smoke coming from there would attract no attention.
She quickly got together some wood and lighted it; soon she had a fire
in the ashes of which she cooked one of her eggs. She lacked an egg cup
but what did that matter? A little hole made in a piece of bread could
hold the egg. In a few minutes she had the satisfaction of dipping a
piece of bread in her egg, which was cooked to perfection. It seemed to
her as she took the first mouthful that she had never eaten anything so
good.
When she had finished her supper she wondered how she should use the
remainder of her eggs. She would have to use them sparingly for she
might not be able to get any more for a long time. A hot soup with an
egg broken into it would be very good.
As the idea of having some soup came into her head, it was almost
immediately followed by the regret that she could not have it. The
success of her canvas shoes and her underwear had inspired her with a
certain amount of confidence. She had proved that one can do a great
deal if one perseveres, but she had not enough confidence to imagine
that she could ever make a saucepan for her soup or a metal or wooden
spoon, and if she waited until she had the money required to buy these
utensils, she would have to content herself with the smell of the soup
that came to her as she passed by the open doors.
She was telling herself this as she went to work, but just before she
reached the village she saw a heap of rubbish by the side of the road
and amongst the debris she noticed some tin cans which had been used for
potted meat, fish and vegetables. There were different shapes, some
large, some small, some high, some low.
Noticing how shiny they were on the surface, she instinctively stopped;
she had not a moment's hesitation. The saucepans, dishes, forks, spoons
which she lacked were all here; she could have a whole array of kitchen
utensils; she had only to make her choice. With a bound she was across
the road; quickly picking out four cans she ran back and hid them behind
a hedge so that when evening came she would be able to find them.
When evening came she found her treasures and made for her home.
She did not wish to make a noise on her island any more than she wished
smoke to be seen, so at the end of her day's work she went to her
gypsy's camp hoping that she might find a tool or something that would
serve her for a hammer with which to flatten the tins that were to be
used for plates, saucepans, spoons, etc.
She found that it was a very difficult task to make a spoon. It took her
no less than three days to do so, and when it was done, she was not at
all sure that if she had shown it to anyone, he would have recognized it
for a spoon. But she had made something that served her purpose, that
was enough; besides, she ate alone and there would be no one to notice
her utensils.
Now for the soup for which she longed! All she wanted was butter and
sorrel. She would have to buy butter and naturally as she couldn't make
milk she would have to buy that also.
The sorrel she would find wild in the fields and she could also find
wild carrots and oyster plants. They were not so good as the cultivated
vegetables but they would suit her very well indeed.
She not only had eggs and vegetables for her dinner, and her pots and
pans, but there were fish in the pond and if she were sharp enough to
catch them she would have fish too.
She needed a line and some worms. She had a long piece of string left over
from the piece she had bought for her shoes and she had only to spend one
sou for some hooks, then with a piece of horse hair she could pick up
outside the blacksmith's door, she would have a line good enough to catch
several kinds of fish; if the best in the pond passed disdainfully before
her simple bait then she would have to be satisfied with little ones.