over the fire.

After she had brushed up the hearth again, and put all the things she
had used away, she sat down in her arm-chair by the fire, and took her
spectacles out of her pocket and put them on her nose, and began to knit
the big blue woollen stocking.

She knit eight times round the stocking, and then she said to herself,
"I wonder if the dumpling is done?" So she laid down her knitting, and
took a steel fork from the mantelpiece, and lifted the lid of the pot
and looked in.

As she was looking in, her spectacles tumbled off her nose, and fell
into the pot.

"Oh, dear! oh, dear!--that's bad! that's bad!" said the old woman.

She got the bright tongs, and fished up her spectacles, and wiped them
with the corner of her apron, and put them on her nose again, and then
she stuck the fork into the apple dumpling.

The apples were hard. "No, no, no," she said; "it is not done yet."

So she put on the lid of the pot, and laid the fork on the mantelpiece,
and sat down in her arm-chair, and began to knit again on the big blue
woollen stocking.

She knit six times round the stocking, and then she said to herself, "I
wonder if the dumpling is done?"

So she put her knitting down, and took the fork from the mantelpiece,
and lifted the lid of the pot and looked in.

As she was looking in, her spectacles tumbled off her nose, and fell
into the pot.

"Oh, dear! oh, dear!--that's bad! that's bad!" said the old woman.

She got the bright tongs and fished up her spectacles, and wiped them
with the corner of her apron, and put them on her nose again, and took
the fork and stuck it into the dumpling. The apples were just beginning
to get soft.

"No, no, no; it is not quite done yet," said the old woman.

So she put on the lid of the pot, and laid the fork on the mantelpiece,
and sat down in her arm-chair, and began to knit again on the big blue
woollen stocking.

She knit twice round the stocking, and then she said to herself, "I
wonder if the dumpling is done?"

So she laid down her knitting, and took the fork from the mantelpiece,
and lifted the lid of the pot, and looked in.

As she was looking in, her spectacles tumbled off her nose, and fell
into the pot.

"Oh, dear! oh, dear!--that's bad! that's bad!" said the old woman.

She got the bright tongs and fished up her spectacles, and wiped them
with the corner of her apron, and put them on her nose again, and took
the fork and stuck it into the dumpling.