"She's as handsome as a picture," thought Mrs. Polly in her secret
heart. A good many people said that Ann resembled Mrs. Polly in her
youth, and that may have added force to her admiration.
Her new gown was very fine for those days; but fine as she was, and
adopted daughter though she was, Ann did not omit her thrifty ways
for once. This identical morning Mrs. Polly and she carried their
best shoes under their arms, and wore their old ones, till within a
short distance from the meeting-house. Then the old shoes were tucked
away under a stone wall for safety, and the best ones put on. Stone
walls, very likely, sheltered a good many well-worn little shoes, of
a Puritan Sabbath, that their prudent owners might appear in the
House of God trimly shod. Ah! these beautiful, new peaked-toed,
high-heeled shoes of Ann's--what would she have said to walking in
them _all_ the way to meeting!
If that Sunday was an eventful one to Ann Wales, so was the week
following. The next Tuesday, right after dinner, she was up in a
little unfinished chamber over the kitchen, where they did such work
when the weather permitted, carding wool.
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