There was an old hogshead under the walnut tree, very high and old. When she had anything very important to think about she liked to climb up and sit on the top of the hogshead. She never allowed anybody to sit there with her. She climbed up on the hogshead and sat very still, thinking how to manage about the new clothes.
Suddenly she had a pleasant thought; she believed she had a thought that would answer. She jumped up and down so suddenly and so hard that the hogshead tried to move its head out of the way. It was scarcely polite for 'Lisbeth to jump so hard on its head. It did move its head—or a part of it—and 'Lisbeth sat inside the hogshead instead of outside of it.
The mother found her there when she came home. Had 'Lisbeth picked the beans, as mother had told her to do, instead of trying to think about doing something else, she would not have been obliged to sit in the hogshead's mouth, nor to have eaten her porridge without beans.
CHAPTER V.
'Lisbeth was awake bright and early next day; she had business to attend to.
Mother told her to be a good girl and take care of Trotty. 'Lisbeth said she would. I suppose she thought she would, but she forgot Trotty very soon, for she saw neighbor Gilham across the hill driving his sheep.
Away she went running and skipping. She could scarcely wait to get to neighbor Gilham; but she was obliged to wait, for the path across the field and up to the hill was quite winding; she was obliged to follow the path.
"Good morning," said 'Lisbeth, at length coming near neighbor Gilham.
"Good morning," said he; "what brought you so far from home?"