dren's clothing to wash, and
after starting this work she was left to herself for a long time.

XVIII

It was a dark house. The windows were all withered away behind stiff
curtains, and the light that labored between these was chastened to
the last degree of respectability. The doors skulked behind heavy
plush hangings. The floors hid themselves decently under thick red and
black carpets, and the margins which were uncarpeted were disguised by
beeswax, so that no one knew they were there at all. The narrow hall
was steeped in shadow, for there two black velvet portieres, at
distances of six feet apart, depended from rods in the ceiling.
Similar palls flopped on each landing of the staircase, and no sound
was heard in the house at all, except dim voices that droned from
somewhere, muffled and sepulchral and bodyless.

At ten o'clock, having finished the washing, Mary was visited by Mrs.
O'Connor, whom she knew at once by the signs she had been warned of.
The lady subjected each article that had been washed to a particular
scrutiny, and, with the shadowy gallop of a smile that dashed into and
out of sight in an instant, said they would do. She then conducted
Mary to the kitchen and, pointing to a cup of tea and two slices of
bread, invited her to breakfast, and left her for six minutes, when
she reappeared with the suddenness of a marionette and directed her to
wash her cup and saucer, and then to wash the kitchen, and these
things also Mary did.

She got weary very soon, but not dispirited, because there were many
things to look at in the kitchen. There were pots of various sizes and
metals, saucepans little and big, jugs of all shapes, and a regiment
of tea things were ranged on the dresser; on the walls were hung great
pot lids like the shields of barbarous warriors which she had seen in
a story book. Under the kitchen table there was a row of boots all
wrinkled by usage, and each wearing a human and almost intelligent
aspect--a well-wrinkled boot has often an appearance of mad humanity
which can chain and almost hypnotize the observer. As she lifted the
boots out of her way she named each by its face. There was Grubtoes,
Sloucher, Thump-thump, Hoppit, Twitter, Hide-away, and Fairybell.

While she was working a young girl came into the kitchen and took up
the boots called Fairybell. Mary just tossed a look at her as she
entered and bent again to her washing. Then with an extreme
perturbation she stole ano