I was never tired of
exploring the various spheres, and the nameless spaces
between them. I was never tired of talking with the
laborers. All of us, indeed, became skilful bricklayers;
and on a pleasant afternoon you might see Alice and
Bertha, and George and me, all laying brick together,--
Polly sitting in the shade of some wall which had been
built high enough, and reading to us from Jean Ingelow or
Monte-Cristo or Jane Austen, while little Clara brought
to us our mortar. Happily and lightly went by that
summer. Haliburton and his wife made us a visit; Ben
Brannan brought up his wife and children; Mrs. Haliburton
herself put in the keystone to the central chamber, which
had always been named G on the plans; and at her
suggestion, it was named Grace now, because her mother's
name was Hannah. Before winter we had passed the
diameter of I, J, and K, the three uppermost cells of
all; and the surrounding shell was closing in upon them.
On the whole, the funds had held out amazingly well.
The wages had been rather higher than we meant; but the
men had no chances at liquor or dissipation, and had
worked faster than we expected; and, with our new brick-
machines, we made brick inconceivably fast, while their
quality was so good that dear George said there was never
so little waste. We celebrated Thanksgiving of that year
together,--my family and his family.
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