The things we do!

A little after the girl came in again with her mother, who was still
buttoning her clothes about her. _Godkvald!_ Shelter for the night?
Well, well, there wasn't that room in the place they could make me
properly comfortable, but I'd be welcome to the bedroom, such as it was.
And where would they sleep themselves?
Why, it was near day now, and the girl'd be sitting up anyhow for a bit
with her sewing.
What was she sewing to sit up for all night? A new dress?
No, only the skirt. She was to wear it to church in the morning, but
wouldn't hear of her mother helping.
I brought up my sewing-machine, and said jestingly that a skirt more or
less was a mere trifle for a thing like this. Wait, and I'd show them.
Was I a tailor, then?
No. But I sold sewing-machines.
I took out the printed directions and studied them to see how it worked.
The girl listened attentively; she was a mere child; her thin fingers were
all blue with the dye from the stuff. There was something so poor-looking
about those blue fingers; I brought out some wine and poured out for all
of us.


Pages:
134 135 136 137 138 139 140 141 142 143 144 145 146 147 148 149 150 151 152 153 154 155 156 157 158