My wife had bought her red calico not long
before, and there must be some to be had somewhere. I ought to have
asked her where she bought it, but I thought a simple little thing like
that could be procured anywhere.

I went into another large dry-goods store. As I entered the door a
sudden tremor seized me. I could not bear to take out that piece of
red calico. If I had had any other kind of a rag about me--a pen-wiper
or anything of the sort--I think I would have asked them if they could
match that.

But I stepped up to a young woman and presented my sample, with the
usual question.

"Back room, counter on the left," she said.

I went there.

"Have you any red calico like this?" I asked of the lady behind the
counter.

"No, sir," she said, "but we have it in Turkey red."

Turkey red again! I surrendered.

"All right," I said. "Give me Turkey red."

"How much, sir?" she asked.

"I don't know--say five yards."

The lady looked at me rather strangely, but measured off five yards of
Turkey red calico. Then she rapped on the counter and called out,
"Cash!" A little girl, with yellow hair in two long plaits, came
slowly up. The lady wrote the number of yards; the name of the goods;
her own number; the price; the amount of the bank-note I handed her;
and some other matters--probably the color of my eyes and the direction
and velocity of the wind--on a slip of paper. She then copied all this
in a little book which she kept by her. Then she handed the slip of
paper, the money, and the Turkey red to the yellow-haired girl. This
young girl copied the slip in a little book she carried, and then she
went away with the calico, the paper slip, and the money.

After a very long time--during which the little girl probably took the
goods, the money, and the slip to some central desk, where the note was
received, its amount and number entered in a book; change given to the
girl; a copy of the slip made and entered; girl's entry examined and
approved; goods wrapped up; girl registered; plaits counted and entered
on a slip of paper and copied by the girl in her book; girl taken to a
hydrant and washed; number of towel entered on a paper slip and copied
by the girl in her book; value of my note and amount of change branded
somewhere on the child, and said process noted on a slip of paper and
copied in her book--the girl came to me, bringing my change and the
package of Turkey red calico.

I had time for but v