at of a thick woollen
material, a short bed-gown of striped cotton, confined round the
waist by the strings of a snow-white apron, a close-fitting, modest
cap, underneath the plaited border of which appeared her glossy hair,
neatly braided over her low, broad forehead; add to this a pair of
well-knit stockings, which the shortness of her petticoats afforded
ample opportunity of admiring, with heavy wooden shoes, and you have
a complete picture of Dutch Anna's costume. At the time I speak of,
the prejudice entertained by the mass of the people against
foreigners was much greater than in the present day, when the means
of communication between different countries are so much improved,
and the general diffusion of knowledge has shown the unreasonableness
of regarding with distrust and contempt those of our fellow-creatures
who have been born in a different climate, and trained in different
customs to our own. It may therefore be readily imagined that Anna
was for a time regarded with suspicion and jealousy, for the very
reason which ought to have commanded the sympathy and good-will of
her neighbours--'that she was a stranger in the land.' Her mode of
life perhaps increased the prejudice against her. Respecting the
reason of her voluntary exile, she preserved a studied silence;
though I afterwards learned that the persecution she endured from her
own family on the subject of religion was the principal cause. Our
village adjoined a populous manufacturing district, and Anna, having
been accustomed to such occupation, soon obtained employment. Being a
person of a peculiarly reserved and serious turn of mind, she could
not endure the thought of living in lodgings; and as she was not able
to furnish or pay the rent of a cottage, she hired for a trifling sum
an old lonely barn belonging to my father, who was a small farmer,
and, with the labour of her own hands, managed to put it into a
habitable condition. The furniture of this rude dwelling was simple
enough, consisting of a bed of clean straw, a round deal table, and
two three-legged stools. The whitewashed walls were ornamented with
coloured prints on Scripture subjects, framed and glazed; and a small
looking-glass, placed in a position to secure the best light afforded
by the little window, completed the decorations. Various were the
conjectures formed by the villagers respecting this inoffensive
though singular woman; and many were the stories circulated, all
tending to ke