Page:Folk-lore - A Quarterly Review. Volume 1, 1890.djvu/302

 296 “No, we don’t,” says they.

“I haint nowhere to go,” says she, “and I’d ask no wages, and do any sort o’ work,” says she.

“Well,” says they, “if you like to wash the pots and scrape the saucepans you may stay,” says they.

So she stayed there and washed the pots and scraped the saucepans and did all the dirty work. And because she gave no name they called her “Cap o’ Rushes”.

Well, one day there was to be a great dance a little way off, and the servants was let to go and look at the grand people. Cap o’ Rushes said she was too tired to go, so she stayed at home.

But when they was gone she offed her cap o’ rushes, and cleaned herself, and went to the dance. And no one there was so finely dressed as her.

Well, who should be there but her master’s son, and what should he do but fall in love with her the minute he set eyes on her. He wouldn’t dance with anyone else.

But before the dance was done Cap o’ Rushes she slipt off, and away she went home. And when the other maids was back she was framin’ to be asleep with her cap o’ rushes on.

Well, next morning they says to her, “You did miss a sight, Cap o’ Rushes!”

“What was that?” says she.

“Why, the beautifullest lady you ever see, dressed right gay and ga’. The young master, he never took his eyes off of her.”

“Well, I should ha’ liked to have seen her,” says Cap o’ Rushes.

“Well, there’s to be another dance this evening, and perhaps she’ll be there.”

But, come the evening, Cap o’ Rushes said she was too tired to go with them. Howsumdever, when they was gone, she offed with her cap o’ rushes and cleaned herself, and away she went to the dance.

The master’s son had been reckoning on seeing her, and