She could go home any time afterwards; for their own tea-hour was not till half past six.
"I'll walk along with you a little way, Lina, and think it over." It was true Mrs.Parlin did not approve of Mandoline or any of her family; but Dotty thought she would forget that, just for once.
"O, dear! I keep thinking how my mamma said, 'I do not wish you to play with Lina Rosenberg!' Now I can 'most always forget easy enough; but when I TRY to forget, it says itself over and over--and I remember just as hard!" As they turned another corner they met Susy, who had been sent to the dye-house.
"Why, Dotty," said she, "what are you doing on that street ?" Lina spoke up very boldly,-- "She's going to the doctor's with me, Susy Parlin, to get a plaster for my mother." At this wicked speech Dotty's heart almost sank into her boots; for she had never known before that Lina would tell a deliberate lie.
Lina lived in a little grocery store.

Her father was gone away to-day,> and her mother had just served a customer with a pound of damp brown sugar, saying, as she clipped the string,-- "It's very cheap sweetening at that price; we are going to rise on it to-morrow." After that she stood a minute in front of the store, and shook her head at Jacob, a little boy, some three years old, who was trying to balance a patent washboard against a tree which grew out of the brick pavement.

It was a large, scrawny tree, which looked as if it was obliged to live there, but didn't want to, and had tried in vain to get burnt up in the Portland fire.

From the lower branches of the tree depended a couple of dun-colored hams, and a painted board, with the words, "Good Family Butter." "Come in, Jacob, you naughty boy!" said Mrs.Rosenberg, this time shaking him, because she was afraid he would injure the patent wash-board.

Then Jacob, who had been waiting for the shaking, and would not stir without it, went in at the side door crying; for the family lived in one end of the store.
Mrs.Rosenberg had a great many children, and was obliged to work very hard at various employments.