Nobody's Girl

  CHAPTER XII

  NEW SHOES

  A dozen times during the day she had asked herself how she couldpossibly sleep in that room where she had been almost suffocated. Shewas sure that she would not be able to sleep any better that night, orthe next, or the next.

  And if she could not find rest after a hard day's work, whatever wouldhappen to her?

  In her little mind she weighed all the consequences of this terriblequestion. If she had not the strength to do her work she would be sentaway from the factory, and that would be the end of all her hopes. Shewould be ill and there would be no one to help her, and she would haveto lie down at the foot of a tree and die.

  It is true that unless she wished she was not obliged to occupy the bedthat she had paid for, but where would she find another, and what wouldshe say to Rosalie? How could she say in a nice way that what was goodfor others was not good for her, and when they knew how disgusted shehad been, how would they treat her? She might create such ill feelingthat she would be forced to leave the factory.

  The day had passed without her having come to a decision.

  But now that Rosalie had hurt her hand the situation was changed. PoorRosalie would probably have to stay in bed for several days, and shewould not know what happened in the house at the end of the yard. Shewould not know who slept in the room or who did not; consequently sheneed fear no questions. And, on the other hand, as none of the girls inthe room knew who the new lodger for the night had been, neither wouldthey bother about her; it might very well be someone who had decided tofind a lodging elsewhere.

  Reasoning thus, she decided quickly that she would go and sleep in hernew little home. How good it would be to sleep there--nothing to fearfrom anyone, a roof to cover her head, without counting the enjoyment ofliving in a house of one's own.

  The matter was quite decided, and after having been to the baker's tobuy another half a pound of bread for her supper, instead of returningto Mother Francoise's she again took the road that she had taken earlythat morning.

  She slipped behind the hedge as the factory hands who lived outsideMaraucourt came tramping along the road on their way home. She did notwish to be seen by them. While she waited for them to pass she gathereda quantity of rushes and ferns and made a broom. Her new home was cleanand comfortable, but with a little attention it could be made more so,and she would pick a lot of dried ferns and make a good soft bed to lieupon.

  Forgetting her fatigue, she quickly tied the broom together with somewisps of straw and fastened it to a stick. No less quickly a bunch offerns was arranged in a mass so that she could easily carry them to herhut.

  The road was now deserted as far as she could see. Hoisting the bed offerns on her back and taking the broom in her hands, she ran down thehill and across the road. When she came to the narrow path she had toslacken her speed, for the ferns caught in the branches and she couldnot pass without going down on her knees.

  Upon arriving at the island, she began at once to do her housework. Shethrew away the old ferns, then commenced to sweep everywhere, the roof,the walls and the ground.

  As she looked out over the pond and saw the reeds growing thickly, abright idea came to her. She needed some shoes. One does not go about adeserted island in leather shoes. She knew how to plait, and she wouldmake a pair of soles with the reeds and get a little canvas for the topsand tie them on with ribbon.

  As soon as she had finished her sweeping she ran out to the pond andpicked a quantity of the most flexible reeds and carried them back tothe door of her hut and commenced to work. But after she had made aplait of reeds about a yard long she found that this sole that she wasmaking would be too light; because it was too hollow, there would be nosolidity, and that before plaiting the reeds they would have to undergoa preparation which in crushing the fibres would transform them intocoarse strings.

  However, this did not stop her. Now she needed a hammer, of course shecould not find one, but what she did find was a big round stone, whichserved her purpose very well indeed. Then she commenced to beat thereeds. Night came on while she was still at work, and she went to sleepdreaming of the beautiful sandals tied with blue ribbons which she wouldhave, for she did not doubt but that she would succeed with what she hadundertaken ... if not the first time, well, then the second or the third... or the tenth.

  By the next evening she had plaited enough to begin the soles, and thefollowing day, having bought a curved awl for the price of one sou, somethread for one sou, a piece of ribbon for the same price, a small pieceof rough canvas for four sous, in all seven sous, which was all that shecould spend if she did not wish to go without bread on the Saturday, shetried to make a sole like those worn on shoes. The first one that shemade was almost round. This was not exactly the shape of the foot. Thesecond one, to which she gave much more attention, seemed to resemblenothing at all; the third was a little better, but finally the fourth,which, with some practice, she had managed to tighten in the center anddraw in at the heel, could pass for a sole.

  Once more she had proved that with a little perseverance, a little will,one can do what one wants, even if at first it seems impossible. And shehad done this with scarcely anything, a few sous, with no tools, withhardly anything at her command. She was really very happy and sheconsidered that her work was very successful.

  Now what she needed most to finish her sandals were scissors. They wouldcost so much to buy she would have to manage without them. Fortunatelyshe had her knife, and with the help of a stone to sharpen the point shecould make it fine enough to trim the canvas.

  But the cutting of the pieces of canvas she found quite a difficultmatter. Finally she accomplished it, and on the following Saturdaymorning she had the satisfaction of going forth shod in a nice pair ofgray canvas shoes, tied with blue ribbons crossed over her stockings.

  While she had been working on her shoes (the work had taken fourevenings and three mornings beginning at the break of day), she hadwondered what she should do with her leather shoes while she was awayfrom the hut. She had no fear that they would be stolen by anyone, forno one came to the place, but then the rats might eat them. So as toprevent this she would put them in a place where the rats could not getat them.

  This was a rather difficult matter, for the rats seemed to beeverywhere. She had no closet, no box to put them away in. Finally shetied them to the roof with some wisps of straw.