ded her of
Mrs. Jellyby's closet, full to overflowing with every conceivable and
inconceivable thing. The floor was strewn with coats, dresses and hats
while the shoes were neatly hung on a row of hooks. Very pretty,
well-shaped shoes they were, too, as it seemed Jo's feet were her one
vanity.

"I never make up my bed, but just kick the covers over the dash board
and let it air all day. Much more sanitary than tucking the germs in,
giving them chance to multiply. You can make it up if you want to,
though, since we are by the way of giving a party. Yes, hang up the
dresses if you think it will improve the looks of things. I keep my
shoes on the hooks so they can dry well and not be losing themselves all
the time. I don't often need the dresses as I usually wear these
painting togs. By Jove, speaking of dresses, I fancy I ought to put on
one this afternoon! I wonder if your mother would think I was not
showing her proper respect if I just put on a clean blouse and didn't
try to get into one of those pesky dresses."

"Oh, don't dress up for mother, please! She would feel bad if she
thought her coming would make any trouble for you, and besides, you
hardly have time to do much; it is after five now," laughed Molly.

So Jo pulled off her workman's blouse and donned a clean one.

"Please tell me what makes you wipe your paint brushes on your back and
how you manage it," asked Molly.

"What a question!" roared the amused Jo. "I wipe the brushes on the
front of my blouses until it gets too gummy, and then I turn it hind
part before. You and your mother must have thought I was some
contortionist yesterday," and she extracted a hair brush from one of the
shoes hanging on a hook and gave her tousled hair a vigorous punishment.

"Shall I put this tub out of sight?" asked Molly, picking up a great
English hat tub.

"No, indeed, leave it there. I always put it where Polly Perkins can see
it to shame him. You see he is as tidy as I am careless, but he leads an
unhealthy, uncleanly life in spite of all of his pernickity ways, and I
am really very sanitary and healthy in spite of all of my untidiness. In
the first place, I take a cold bath every morning of my life and sleep
in a hurricane of fresh air; and if my bed is in a mess, you notice my
sheets are clean; while Polly is one of these once-a-weekers as to
baths, and he is afraid of opening windows and letting in dust, and he
makes up his bed the minute he gets out of it, ani