months since. They were then bare and not very clean. Her husband had seemed
bent on indulging her so far as his limited means permitted. He had declared
that his income was so modest that he could afford nothing better than these
cheap rooms in an obscure street, but she had been abundantly content, for she
had known even the extremity of poverty.

Alida Ostrom had passed beyond the period of girlhood, with its superficial
desires and ambitions. When her husband first met her, she was a woman of
thirty, and had been chastened by deep sorrows and some bitter experiences.
Years before, she and her mother had come to this town from a New England city
in the hope of bettering their circumstances. They had no weapons other than
their needles with which to fight life's battle, but they were industrious and
frugal--characteristic traits which won the confidence of the shopkeepers for
whom they worked. All went as well, perhaps, as they could expect, for two or
three years, their secluded lives passing uneventfully and, to a certain
extent, happily. They had time to read some good books obtained at a public
library; they enjoyed an occasional holiday in the country; and they went to
church twice every Sunday when it was not stormy. The mother usually dozed in
the obscure seat near the door which they occupied, for she was getting old,
and the toil of the long week wearied her.--Alida, on the contrary, was
closely attentive. Her mind seemed to crave all the sustenance it could get
from every source, and her reverential manner indicated that the hopes
inspired by her faith were dear and cherished. Although they lived such quiet
lives and kept themselves apart from their neighbors, there was no mystery
about them which awakened surmises. "They've seen better days," was the common
remark when they were spoken of; and this was true. While they had no desire
to be social with the people among whom they lived, they did not awaken
prejudices by the assertion of superiority. Indeed, it was seen that the two
women had all they could do to earn their livelihood, and they were left to do
this in peace.