that they kep' her hands lookin' a kinder bloated and swelled all
the time, and must have been dretful painful. And her waist --
it wuz drawed in so at the bottom, that to tell the livin' truth
it wuzn't much bigger'n a pipe's tail. It beat all to see the
size immegatly above and below, why it looked perfectly
meraculous. She couldn't get her hands up to her head to save
her life; if she felt her head a tottlin' off her shoulders she
couldn't have lifted her hands to have stiddied it, and, of
course, she couldn't get a long breath, or short ones with any
comfort.

Mebby that worried her, and then ag'in, mebby it wuz dogs. I
know it would wear me out to take such stiddy care on one, day
and night. I never seemed to feel no drawin's to take care of
animals, wash 'em, and bathe 'em, and exercise 'em, etc., etc.,
never havin' been in the menagery line and Josiah always keepin'
a boy to take care of the animals when he wuzn't well. Mebby it
wuz dogs. Anyway she took splendid care of hern, jest wore
herself out a doin' for it stiddy day and night and bein'
trampled on, and barked at almost all the time she wuz a bringin'
on it up.

Yes, she took perfectly wonderful care on't, for a woman in her
health. She never had been able to take any care of her
children, bein' VERY delicate. Never had been well enough to
have any of 'em in the room with her nights, or in the day time
either. They tired her so, and she wuz one of the wimmen who
felt it wuz her DUTY to preserve her health for her family's
sake. Though WHEN they wuz a goin' to get the benefit of her
health I don't know.