“My! Vashti is most terrible cherked up in her dress,” said Mrs. Ranger to Mrs. Winder.
“Yes, that gownd must have cost a lot, but they say ’tis by the preacher’s wish.”
“Who said that?” asked Mrs. Simpson.
“Well,” said Mrs. Ranger volubly, “I heard that too; it was Sally, up at the preacher’s, that told young Mary Shinar, and Mary Shinar told Tom, and Tom had it over to our Ab at Brixton a week come Saturday, that the preacher draws the patternings for Vashti’s gownds, and colours them himself, and measures Vashti with a tape line, and sends the hull thing off to somewheres in Bosting, and Sally up at the preacher’s says that when they come from Bosting the sleeves and the waist is all filled full of silk paper to hold ’em in shape, and that it’s like a body in a coffing when the lid is taken off, and—yes, my turkeys has been laying for a week now,” concluded Mrs. Ranger with an abrupt change of subject and tone, for Vashti at that moment entered the room. Now Vashti herself had ere now switched off her conversation to a side track, and when she heard Mrs. Ranger answering a question which had not been asked, she smiled in a manner to make even Mrs. Ranger uncomfortable.
Vashti had hardly taken her place before Temperance entered, and presently the twenty or thirty women were busy with their needles upon the somewhat formless garments which are supposed to conduce to the salvation of the heathen, and whilst their needles were busy their tongues kept pace.
There were many things of importance to be discussed, the health of Vashti’s father (who had had another stroke), the setting of hens, the finding of turkeys’ nests, house cleaning and garden making—the springtime in the country is always a busy time—and above and beyond all these things there was a most exciting subject, the downfall of a certain Ann Serrup; of this the matrons whispered together.
“Has Mr. Martin been over yet?” asked Mrs. Winder of Vashti, after trying in several indirect ways to find out.
“No,” said Vashti, “I don’t think he has heard of it. I didn’t tell him and I don’t think anyone has.”