most skilled of the women and girls were employed in laying the narrow
strips of papyrus crosswise over each other, and gumming them together,
she had recovered strength enough to pull her veil over her face which
she held down. Arsinoe, and she herself, in order to remain unrecognized
had always been accustomed to walk through these rooms closely veiled,
and not to lay their wraps aside till they reached the little room where
they sat with about twenty other women to glue the sheets together.

Every one looked at her with curious enquiry. Her foot certainly hurt
her, the cut in her head was burning, and she felt altogether intensely
miserable; still there was room and to spare in her soul for the false
pride that she inherited from her father, and for the humiliating
consciousness that she was regarded by these people as one of themselves.

In the room in which she worked, none but free women were employed, but
more than a thousand slaves worked in the factory and she would as soon
have eaten with beasts without plate or spoon, as have shared a meal with
them. At one time, when every thing in their house seemed going to ruin,
it was her own father who had suggested the papyrus factory to her
attention, by telling her, with indignation, that the daughter of an
impoverished citizen had degraded herself and her whole class by devoting
herself to working in the papyrus factory to earn money. She was pretty
well paid, to be sure, and in answer to Selene's enquiry, he had stated
the amount she earned and mentioned the name of the rich manufacturer to
whom she had sold her social standing for gold.

Soon after this Selene had gone alone to the factory, had discussed all
that was necessary with the manager, and had then begun, with Arsinoe, to
work regularly in the factory where they now for two years had spent some
hours of every day in gumming the papyrus-leaves together.