No harm, she felt, could come to her or her hens, as long as Dick was about the house or garden.
She needed company and help too, so Huldah was to stay on, to keep the cottage tidy, and run the errands, and be at hand, in case Mrs.
Perry was ill again.
A tiny room, which was scarcely more than a cupboard or a 'lean-to' jutting out over the scullery, was transformed into a bedroom for Huldah.

A little iron bed was sent down from the vicarage, and sheets and blankets, a chair, and even a little square looking-glass to hang on the wall.

Huldah was in a perfect turmoil of glad excitement.

She thought her room perfectly beautiful, and from the little window she could look right over the back garden, and away to a great stretch of country beyond.
"I don't know what to do for a chest of drawers for you," said Mrs.
Perry, thoughtfully; "you ought to have something to put your clothes in." But Huldah pooh-poohed the idea.
"Oh, I shan't want anything," she said, cheerfully; "you see I haven't got any clothes." "Ah, but wait," said Mrs.Perry, knowingly, then stopped abruptly, and said no more.

Huldah did not understand.