"The furniture is homely, certainly," acknowledged Jane. "But it is new and clean. That is a most comfortable sofa. The bedrooms are above." The old lady said she would see them, and they proceeded upstairs. Dobbs put her head into one room, and withdrew it with a shriek. "This room has no bedside carpets." "I am sorry to say that I have no bedside carpets at present," said Jane, feeling all the discouragement of the avowal. "I will get some as soon as I possibly can, if any one taking the rooms will kindly do without them for a little while." "Perhaps we might, Dobbs," suggested the old lady, who appeared to be of an accommodating, easy nature; readily satisfied. "Begging your pardon, ma'am, you'll do nothing of the sort," returned Dobbs. "We should have you doubled up with cramp, if you clapped your feet on to a cold floor. _I_ am not going to do it." "I never do have cramp, Dobbs." "Which is no reason, ma'am, why you never should," authoritatively returned Dobbs. "What a lovely view from these back windows!" exclaimed the old lady. "Dobbs, do you see the Malvern Hills?" "We don't eat and drink views," testily responded Dobbs. "They are pleasant to look at though," said her mistress. "I like these rooms. Is there a closet, ma'am, or small apartment that we could have for our trunks, if we came?" "We are not coming," interrupted Dobbs, before Jane could answer. "Carpetless floors won't suit us, ma'am." "There is a closet here, over the entrance," said Jane to the old lady, as she opened the door. "Our own boxes are in it now, but I can have them moved upstairs." "So there's a cock-loft, is there?" put in Dobbs. "A what?" cried Jane, who had never heard the word. "There is nothing upstairs but an attic. A garret, as it is called here." "Yes," burst forth Dobbs, "it is called a garret by them that want to be fine. Cock-loft is good enough for us decent folk: we've never called it anything else. Who sleeps up there?" she summarily demanded. "My little boys. This was their room, but I have put them upstairs that I may let this one." "There ma'am!" said Dobbs, triumphantly, as she turned to her mistress. "You'll believe me another time, I hope! I told you I knew there was a pack of children. One of 'em opened the door to us." "Perhaps they are quiet children," said the old lady, who had been so long used to the grumbling and domineering of Dobbs, that she took it as a matter of course. "They are, indeed," said Jane, "quiet, good children. I will answer for it that they will not disturb you in any way." "I should like to see the kitchen, ma'am," said the old lady. "We only want the use of it," snapped Dobbs. "Our kitchen fire goes out after dinner, and I boil the kettle for tea in the parlour." "Would attendance be required?" asked Jane of the old lady. "No, it wouldn't," answered Dobbs, in the same tart tone. "I wait upon my missis, and I wait upon myself, and we have a woman in to do the cleaning, and the washing goes out."