[Setting it down before her.] I wish I could do the work for you.
MOTHER HILSE
An' what would be the good o' that, father? There would I be, sittin' not knowin' what to do.
OLD HILSE
I'll give your fingers a wipe, then, so that they'll not grease the yarn.
[He wipes her hands with a rag.
LUISE
[At her tub.] If there's grease on her hands, it's not from what she's eaten.
OLD HILSE
If we've no butter, we can eat dry bread—when we've no bread, we can eat potatoes—when there's no potatoes left, we can eat bran.