ough. Jacob had always chosen Nordrum Farm,--probably because he
had heard Farmer Nordrum spoken of as the big man of the community;
while Lisbeth had always thought that it would be pleasanter at Hoel
Farm because it was owned by a woman.

When autumn came Farmer Nordrum had concluded that he would have use
for such a boy as Jacob during the winter also, and so Jacob had stayed
on. This last Christmas, however, he had gone home for the whole day
and had taken with him a Christmas present for his sister from a little
girl at Nordrum. The present was a gray woolen frock,--a very nice one.

Jacob had grown extremely pleasant and full of fun while at Nordrum,
Lisbeth thought. When she tried the frock on and it reached way down to
the ground before and behind, he called her "Lisbeth Longfrock" and
Lisbeth Longfrock she had remained from that day.

After Christmas, times had been somewhat harder at Peerout Castle.
Bliros, who generally gave milk the whole year round, had become dry,
and would not give milk for several months. She was to have a calf in
the early summer. During the last few weeks there had not been milk
enough even for Randi's and Lisbeth's coffee.

To go to Svehaugen,[4] the nearest farm, for milk was no short trip;
and milk was scarce there too, as Randi well knew. Besides, she could
not spare the time to go. She had to finish spinning Kjersti Hoel's
wool. When she once got that off her hands, they could have plenty of
milk for their coffee, and other good things besides. What a relief it
would be when that time came!

[4] Sva-howg-en.

So Randi worked steadily at her spinning, Lisbeth being now big enough
to help in carding the wool. For a week she spun almost without
ceasing, scarcely taking time for meals, but drinking a good deal of
strong black coffee. Not until very late one evening was Kjersti Hoel's
wool all spun and ready. By that time Randi was far from well. Whether
or not her illness was caused, as she thought, by drinking so much
black coffee, certain it is that when Kjersti Hoel's wool was all spun
Randi felt a tightness in her chest, and when she got up the next
morning and tried to get ready to go to Hoel with the spinning, she was
seized with such a sudden dizziness that she had to go back to bed
again. She was too weak for anything else.

Now it was the custom in Norway for the spinning woman to take back to
the different farms the wool she had spun, and for the farmers' wives