Laval then, amused enough, let her maid cut out the sheets and pillowcases which Matilda desired to make; and for days thereafter Matilda's room looked like a workshop. She was delightfully busy. Her lessons took a good deal of time and were eagerly attended to; and then, at any hour of the day when she was free, Matilda might have been found sitting on a low seat and st.i.tching away at one end of a ma.s.s of coa.r.s.e unbleached cloth which lay on the floor. Mrs. Laval looked in at her and laughed at her; sometimes came and sat there with her. Matilda was in great state; with her workbox by her side, and her watch in her bosom warning her when it was time to leave off work and get ready to go downstairs.

She was busy as usual one afternoon, when she was summoned down to see company; and found with a strange delight that it was her two sisters.

Mrs. Laval had received them very kindly and now gave Matilda permission to take them up to her room, where, as she said, they could have a good talk and no interruption. So upstairs they all three went; Matilda had hardly spoken to them till they were in her room and the door shut. Then at first they sat down and used their eyes.

"What in the world are you doing?" said Anne. "Do they make you the seamstress of the family?"

"Seamstress? O Anne, I am doing this for myself."

"Do you sleep on sheets like that?" said Let.i.tia inquisitively. "_They_ don't, I'll be bound."

"Sheets? what do you mean? O Letty, I am not doing these for _myself_."

"You said you were."

"For myself--yes, in a way. I mean, I am doing this work for my own pleasure; not for my own bed. It is for some poor people."

"For some poor people," Letty repeated. "I think Mrs. Laval might have let one of her servants do it, if she wanted to be charitable, or hire it done, even; and not save a penny by setting you at it."

"She did not set me at it," said Matilda in despair. "O you don't understand. She has nothing to do with it at all."

"Are these yours, then?"

"Yes."

"_You_ bought them and paid for them?"

"Yes. At least, a friend bought them for me, but I am going to pay him the money back."

"Is it your own money?"

"Why yes, Anne; whose should it be?"

"So you have more than you want, and can actually throw it away?"

"Not throw it away, Anne; for these people, that these sheets are for, are miserably off. You would think so, if you saw them."

"I don't want to see anybody worse off than myself," said Let.i.tia.

"Why, what is that the child has got in her bosom, hanging to that ribband. What is it?--a watch, I declare! Gold? is it a gold watch really? Think of it, Anne!"

"It was one of my Christmas presents," said poor Matilda, hardly knowing what to say.

"How many other presents did you have?"

Matilda had to tell, though she had a feeling it would not be to the gratification of her sisters. They listened and looked, said little, but by degrees drew out from her all the history of the evening's entertainment.

"That's the way _she_ lives," said Let.i.tia to Anne. "That's the way she is going on; while you and I are making people's dresses."

"But aren't you getting on well?" asked their little sister, sorely bestead to make the conversation pleasant to them.

"We get work, and we do it," said Let.i.tia. "And so make out to have some bread and b.u.t.ter with our tea."

"But you have dinner, don't you?"

"I don't know what you'd call it," said Let.i.tia. "What do you have for dinner?"

"O the boys and Judy Bartholomew and I, we have our dinner at one o'

clock."

"Well, what do you _have?_" said Let.i.tia sharply. "What did you have to-day?"

"We had beefsteak."

"Not all alone, I suppose. What did you have with it?"

"We had oysters," said Matilda unwillingly, "and baked potatoes, and rice, and bananas and oranges."

"There!" exclaimed Let.i.tia. "That's what I call a dinner. What do you suppose Anne and I had?"

"Hush, Letty," said Anne. "Whatever we had, it was our own. We were beholden to n.o.body for it."

"Have you seen Maria since I have?" Matilda asked, trying to make a diversion.

"No. How should we see Maria? We cannot go jaunting about. We have our work to do."

"But it is nice work. I should think you would be very glad to have it," Matilda ventured.

"Yes, we are, of course," said Anne expressively. "People must live.

How much did your watch cost?"

Very unwillingly Matilda named the sum, which Norton had told her. The two sisters looked at each other and rose to depart.

"But you are not going?" cried Matilda. "You haven't said anything to me yet. And I have not seen you for ever so long."

"We could not say anything that would be interesting to you," Anne answered. "And we have to keep at our work, you know. We are busy."

"So am I busy," said Matilda; "very; with my lessons and my other things I have to do."

"And parties," added Let.i.tia, "and poor people. How were you dressed at the party, Matilda?"

"Yes, let us see your dress," said Anne sitting down again.

They scanned and measured and examined the dress, stuff and work, with business as well as with curious eyes; Matilda saw they were taking hints from it. That led to the display of her whole wardrobe. It was not agreeable to Matilda; she had a certain feeling that it was not improving her sisters' peculiar mood of feeling towards her; however, it seemed to be the one way in which she could afford them any the least pleasure. So silks and poplins and muslins, all her things, were brought out and turned over; the fashion and the work minutely examined and commented on; the price detailed where Matilda happened to know it.

"Well, I have got something from that," said Anne, when at last the show was done.

"Yes," echoed Let.i.tia; "I never could make out before, just how that sort of tr.i.m.m.i.n.g was managed. Now I have got it."

They pulled up their cloaks again and tied their scarfs. Matilda looked on sorrowfully.