This page has been validated.
A Dress Parade.
317

to see how many she had, for chair, sofa, bed, and bureau were covered, and still Maud, who was burrowing in the closets, kept crying, "Here's another."

"There's a discouraging heap of rubbish for you!"said Fan, as she added a faded muslin to the last pile.

"Now, to me your 'rubbish' looks very encouraging, because there is good material there, and not much worn-out finery,—that's my detestation, for you can't do anything with it. Let me see, five bonnets. Put the winter ones away till autumn, rip up the summer ones, and out of three old ones we'll get a pretty new one, if my eyes don't deceive me."

"I'll rip, and then do let me see you make a bonnet, it must be so interesting," said Maud, whipping out her scissors, and eagerly beginning to reduce a shabby little bonnet to its original elements.

"Now the dresses," continued Polly, who had rapidly sorted out the piles.

"Will you have the goodness to look at this?" said Fan, holding up a gray street suit, faded past cure. Polly whisked it wrong side out, and showing the clean, bright fabric, said, with a triumphant wave,—

"Behold your new suit; fresh trimming and less of it will finish you off as smart as ever."

"I never wore a turned dress in my life; do you suppose people will know it?" said Fan, doubtfully.

"What if they do, it won't hurt you. Not one in a hundred will ever think anything about your dress, except that it is pretty. I've worn turned and dyed gowns all my days, and it don't seem to have alienated my friends, or injured my constitution."