“Is anybody at home?”
Then a child appeared, a little girl of about ten, dressed in a chemise and a linen petticoat, with dirty, bare legs and a timid and cunning look. She remained standing in the doorway, as if to prevent any one going in.
“What do you want?” she asked.
“Is your father in?”
“No.”
“Where is he?”
“I don’t know.”
“And your mother?”
“Gone after the cows.”
“Will she be back soon?”