ng her to call on a
Mrs. O'Connor, who had a house off Harcourt Street. This, of course,
meant a day's work--it also meant a new client.

Mrs. Makebelieve's clients were always new. She could not remain for
any length of time in people's employment without being troubled by
the fact that these folk had houses of their own and were actually
employing her in a menial capacity. She sometimes looked at their
black silk aprons in a way which they never failed to observe with
anger, and on their attempting (as they always termed it) to put her
in her proper place, she would discuss their appearance and morals
with such power that they at once dismissed her from their employment
and incited their husbands to assault her.

Mrs. Makebelieve's mind was exercised in finding out who had
recommended her to this new lady, and in what terms of encomium such
recommendation had been framed. She also debated as to whether it
would be wise to ask for one shilling and ninepence per day instead of
the customary one shilling and sixpence. If the house was a big one
she might be required by this new customer oftener than once a week,
and, perhaps, there were others in the house besides the lady who
would find small jobs for her to do--needlework or messages, or some
such which would bring in a little extra money; for she professed her
willingness and ability to undertake with success any form of work in
which a woman could be eminent. In a house where she had worked she
had once been asked by a gentleman who lodged there to order in two
dozen bottles of stout, and, on returning with the stout, the
gentleman had thanked her and given her a shilling. Incidents parallel
to this had kept her faith in humanity green. There must be plenty of
these open-handed gentlemen in houses such as she worked in, and,
perhaps, in Mrs. O'Connor's house there might be more than one such
person. There were stingy people enough, heaven knew, people who would
get one to run messages and almost expect to be paid themselves for
allowing one to work for them. Mrs. Makebelieve anathematized such
skinflints with a vocabulary which was quite equal to the detailing
of their misdeeds; but she refused to dwell on them: they were not
really important in a world where the sun was shining. In the
nighttime she would again believe in their horrible existences, but
until then the world must be peopled with kind-hearted folk. She
instanced many whom she knew, people who had adv