Mary quietly and gently prepared for a
happy evening, by attending to the kind of happiness for which every one
wished.

While Mary had thus been busy preparing for a happy evening, Bessy had
been spending part of the afternoon at a Mrs. Foster's, a neighbour of
her mother's, and a very tidy, industrious old widow. Mrs. Foster earned
part of her livelihood by working for the shops where knitted work of
all kinds is to be sold; and Bessy's attention was caught, almost as
soon as she went in, by a very gay piece of wool-knitting, in a new
stitch, that was to be used as a warm covering for the feet. After
admiring its pretty looks, Bessy thought how useful it might be to her
mother; and when Mrs. Foster heard this, she offered to teach Bessy how
to do it. But where were the wools to come from? Those which Mrs. Foster
used were provided her by the shop; and she was a very poor woman--too
poor to make presents, though rich enough (as we all are) to give help
of many other kinds, and willing too to do what she could (which some of
us are not).

The two sat perplexed. "How much did you say it would cost?" said Bessy
at last; as if the article was likely to have become cheaper, since she
asked the question before.

"Well! it's sure to be more than two shillings if it's German wool. You
might get it for eighteenpence if you could be content with English."

"But I've not got eighteenpence," said Bessy, gloomily.

"I could lend it you," said Mrs. Foster, "if I was sure of having it
back before Monday. But it's part of my rent-money. Could you make sure,
do you think?"

"Oh, yes!" said Bessy, eagerly. "At least I'd try. But perhaps I had
better not take it, for after all I don't know where I could get it.
What Tom and Jem earn is little enough for the house, now that mother's
washing is cut off."

"They are good, dutiful lads, to give it to their mother," said Mrs.
Foster, sighing: for she thought of her own boys, that had left her in
her old age to toil on, with faded eyesight and weakened strength.

"Oh! but mother makes them each keep a shilling out of it for
themselves," said Bessy, in a complaining tone, for she wanted money,
and was inclined to envy any one who possessed it.

"That's right enough," said Mrs. Foster. "They that earn it should have
some of the power over it."

"But about this wool; this eighteenpence! I wish I was a boy and could
earn money. I wish mother would have let me go to work in the factory.