" Her dress was low-necked and short-sleeved, like Hannah
Maria's, but her neck and arms were very fair and chubby.
Mehitable drew her big china doll in a doll's carriage. Hannah Maria
eyed her with seeming disdain and secret longing. She herself had given
up playing with dolls, her mother thought her too big; but they had
still a fascination for her, and the old love had not quite died out of
her breast.
"Mother said I might come over and stay an hour and a half," said
Mehitable.
Hannah Maria smiled hospitably. "I'm keepin' house," said she. "Mother's
gone to Lawrence."
Mehitable took her doll out of the carriage with a motherly air, and
sat down on the door-step with it in her lap.
"How much longer you goin' to play with dolls?" inquired Hannah Maria.
"I don't know," replied Mehitable, with a little shamed droop of her
eyelids.
"You can't when you get a little bigger, anyhow. Is that a new dress
she's got on?"
"Yes; Aunt Susy made it out of a piece of her blue silk."
"It's handsome, isn't it? Let me take her a minute." Hannah Maria took
the doll and cuddled it up against her shoulder as she had used to do
with her own. She examined the blue silk dress. "My doll had a real
handsome plaid silk one," said she, and she spoke as if the doll were
dead. She sighed.
"Have you given her away?" inquired Mehitable, in a solemn tone.
"No; she's packed away.
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