{"product_id":"2940013740716","title":"The Convict Laundress","description":"It was a bright, clear day--how bright, how blue, and how clear, none\u003cbr\u003ebut those who have been out of the British isles can understand. It\u003cbr\u003ewas Christmas day; but instead of frost and snow, and cold, and\u003cbr\u003eleafless trees, and blazing fires, there was intense heat, and the\u003cbr\u003etrees looked, as they always do in Australia, a dingy blueish tint,\u003cbr\u003ebut still full of leaf and blossom: and here and there, where marks of\u003cbr\u003ecultivation peeped through the interminable forest or bush, there were\u003cbr\u003estrips of the brightest green maize, refreshing indeed to the eye, and\u003cbr\u003econtrasting pleasantly with the brown grass, and the tall white trunks\u003cbr\u003eof the gums. The house, or rather weather-boarded cottage, was four or\u003cbr\u003efive miles from the settlement, where there was a wooden church.\u003cbr\u003eThither the family had repaired on this morning. There was but one\u003cbr\u003eservice, for the clergyman proceeded to another congregatation eight\u003cbr\u003emiles beyond. There had been beef and plum pudding for dinner, the\u003cbr\u003egovernment men, or convicts, partaking in the Christmas fare; and\u003cbr\u003ethere were thoughts of those far away, and many a lingering regret for\u003cbr\u003ethe old associations of the season. Yet as the evening breeze sprung\u003cbr\u003eup, and stirred the gums and acacias, and breathing through the\u003cbr\u003ecottage refreshingly cool, the spirits of all rose, and with one\u003cbr\u003eaccord they went out into the forest at the back of the house. The\u003cbr\u003emerry voices were echoed round and round, and I could see the farm-\u003cbr\u003eservants and working men as they strolled under the trees. Every one\u003cbr\u003ebeing out, I went to the back, to see that all was safe. There was a\u003cbr\u003elarge waste piece of ground with the men's huts, the stables and barn,\u003cbr\u003eand nearer the house stood the kitchens and store. Two or three dogs\u003cbr\u003elay about, the poultry were busy picking up their food, and a pet\u003cbr\u003ecockatoo came jumping up to my side, begging for a bone in its\u003cbr\u003epeculiarly unharmonious voice. As I stood, feeling rather lonely, I\u003cbr\u003eheard a dull, melancholy noise; it came from the kitchen. I thought\u003cbr\u003eevery one had been out: I listened again. Yes, it was from the\u003cbr\u003ekitchen, and it was certainly some one in grief: heavy sobs and a low\u003cbr\u003emoaning formed a strange contrast to the distant sounds of mirth and\u003cbr\u003emerriment!\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eOn approaching the kitchen I found one of the servants, a convict,\u003cbr\u003eleaning on the table--a solitary, heart-broken creature! Hour after\u003cbr\u003ehour, day after day, did that woman work, and often till late at\u003cbr\u003enight, and never was there more faithful or more devoted service than\u003cbr\u003ehers. Was there a trouble, or an ailment, or an extra job, it was, 'Go\u003cbr\u003eto Grace Allen.' Did the children want a string, or a stick, or a\u003cbr\u003ecake, or a kind word--Grace was there. Early and late she was at her\u003cbr\u003ewashing-tub, or bestowing dainty care on all the old clothes that came\u003cbr\u003efrom England, because she said she knew 'the Missis set more value on\u003cbr\u003ethem than on any thing new.' There was the poultry which throve doubly\u003cbr\u003eafter they were given into her charge. Early in the morning, with\u003cbr\u003elight and gentle step, did she stand with a cup of coffee, made with\u003cbr\u003ethe utmost care, because she knew 'the Missis was used to it at home.'\u003cbr\u003eLate at night she was there to see if all was right; and after an\u003cbr\u003eabsence from home, Grace was sure to be the first to spy the horses,\u003cbr\u003eand to fly to the slip-rail with 'You're kindly welcome back, your\u003cbr\u003ereverence; you're kindly welcome home, ma'am, and the children are\u003cbr\u003ewell, the jewels!'\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eSlight of figure and of graceful form was Grace, and there was every\u003cbr\u003emark to show how pretty she once had been. There was a refined and\u003cbr\u003egraceful turn in every feature and limb; but she was no longer young,\u003cbr\u003eher hair was growing grey, her eyes were hollow, and her cheeks\u003cbr\u003esunken; and now, as she raised her pale face on hearing steps, what a\u003cbr\u003ewithered, crushed expression was there! She had been glad to let them\u003cbr\u003eall go out, and leave her to weep alone. Nor was it only the thoughts\u003cbr\u003eof her kindred, her children, her old home, which oppressed her heart;\u003cbr\u003eGrace was under a deadly bondage, worse than that of being a convict;","brand":"WDS Publishing","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47070245814512,"sku":"2940013740716","price":2.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/2940013740716_p0.jpg?v=1763589620","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/2940013740716","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}