Then she answered: "Sax months, mum." I learned afterwards that she had arrived only three days before.
"Can you cook ?" I enquired.
"Och, yis! Ony thing, from a rib of bafe down till a parate." "You're sure of that, Alice ?" "Och! sure, mum." "Can you give me a reference ?" "I've got a char_ac_ter from Mrs.Jordan, where I lived in New York.
I've only been here a few days.

Biddy Jones knows me." And she produced a written testification of ability, signed "Mary Jones, No .-- William street, New York." There was a suspicious look about this "char_ac_ter;" but of course I had no means of deciding whether it were a true or false document.
After some debate with myself, I finally decided to give Alice a trial.
It so happened that on the very day she came, an old lady friend of my mother's, accompanied by her two daughters, both married and housekeepers, called to spend the afternoon and take tea.

As they lived at some distance, I had tea quite early, not waiting for Mr.
Smith, whose business kept him away pretty late.
During the afternoon, my "butter man" came.

Occasionally he brings some very nice country sausages, and I always make it a point to secure a few pounds when he does so.

He had some on this occasion.
"Alice," said I, as I entered the kitchen about four o'clock, "I want you to hurry and get tea ready as quickly as you can." "Yes, mum," was the ready reply.
"And Alice," I added, "we'll have some of these sausages with the tea.