For this reason I hated him, and when we
were out of my aunts' hearing I used to pull his tail and his ears and
make the poor little thing howl sadly. My Aunt Penelope had a large
tabby cat, which I also hated and used ill. I remember once being sent
out of the dining-room to carry Shock his dinner, Shock being ill, and
laid on a cushion in my aunts' bedroom. As I was going upstairs I was
so unfortunate as to break the plate, which was fine blue china. I
gathered up the pieces, and running up into the room, set them before
Shock; after which I fetched the cat and shut her up in the room with
Shock. When my aunts came up after dinner and found the broken plate,
they were much surprised, and Mrs. Bridget, the favourite maid, was
called to beat the cat for breaking the plate. I was in my closet and
heard all that was said, and instead of being sorry, I was glad that
puss was beaten instead of me.

"Besides those things which I have told you, I did many other naughty
things. Whenever I was sent into the store-room, where the sugar and
sweetmeats were kept, I always stole some. I used very often at night,
when my aunts were gone out, and Mrs. Bridget also (for Mrs. Bridget
generally went out when her mistress did to see some of her
acquaintances in the town), to get up and go down into the kitchen,
where I used to sit upon the housemaid's knee and eat toasted cheese
and bread sopped in beer. Whenever my aunts found out any of my naughty
tricks, they used to talk to me of my wickedness, and to tell me that
if I went on in this manner I certainly should make God very angry.
When I heard them talk of God's anger I used to be frightened, and
resolved to do better; but I seldom kept any of my good resolutions.
From day to day I went on in the same way, getting worse, I think,
instead of better, until I was twelve years of age.

"One Saturday morning in the middle of summer my aunts called me to
them and said, 'My dear, we are going from home, and shall not return
till Monday morning. We cannot take you with us, as we could wish,
because you have not been invited. Bridget will go with us, therefore
there will be no person to keep you in order; but we hope, as you are
not now a little child, that you may be trusted a few days by
yourself.'

"Then they talked to me of the Commandments of God, and explained them
to me, and spoke of the very great sin and danger of breaking them; and
they talked to me till I really felt frightened