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The Parent's Assistant by Maria Edgeworth
Book, page 151 / 462


mine; and I know what she thought by her look at the time. I heard her
say something to my mother."

"Yes," said Laura, smiling; "she whispered so loud that I could not help
hearing her too. She said I was a little miser."

"But did not you hear her say that I was very GENEROUS? and she'll see
that she was not mistaken. I hope she'll be by when I give my basket to
Bell--won't it be beautiful? There is to be a wreath of myrtle, you
know, round the handle, and a frost ground, and then the medallions--"

"Stay," interrupted her sister, for Rosamond, anticipating the glories of
her work-basket, talked and walked so fast that she had passed, without
perceiving it, the shop where the filigree-paper was to be bought. They
turned back. Now it happened that the shop was the corner house of a
street, and one of the windows looked out into a narrow lane. A coach
full of ladies stopped at the door, just before they went in, so that no
one had time immediately to think of Rosamond and her filigree-paper, and
she went to the window where she saw her sister Laura looking earnestly
at something that was passing in the lane.

Opposite to the window, at the door of a poor-looking house, there was
sitting a little girl weaving lace. Her bobbins moved as quick as
lightning, and she never once looked up from her work. "Is not she very
industrious?" said Laura; "and very honest, too?" added she in a minute
afterwards; for just then a baker with a basket of rolls on his head
passed, and by accident one of the rolls fell close to the little girl.
She took it up eagerly, looked at it as if she was very hungry, then put
aside her work, and ran after the baker to return it to him. Whilst she
was gone, a footman in a livery, laced with silver, who belonged to the
coach that stood at the shop door, as he was lounging with one of his
companions, chanced to spy the weaving pillow, which she had left upon a
stone before the door. To divert himself (for idle people do mischief
often to divert themselves) he took up the pillow, and entangled all the
bobbins. The little girl came back out of breath to her work; but what
was her surprise and sorrow to find it spoiled. She twisted and
untwisted, placed and replaced, the bobbins, while the footman stood
laughing at her distress. She got up gently, and was retiring into the
house, when the silver laced footman stopped her, saying, insolently,
"Sit still, child."

 
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