There were plenty of little odds and ends of silks, and stuffs, and velvets, and muslins, which Ellen had already collected, and which her aunt had told her she might have; and with these they knew they could make me a beautiful dress. They finished their dinner as fast as possible, and ran upstairs again, in order to be alone for this pleasant work.

They accordingly began by carefully measuring me round the waist and round the shoulders; and then across the back down to the waist, measuring from the right shoulder crossing down to the middle of the left side, and from the left shoulder across to the middle of the right side. Their little fingers were busy about me in all directions; they did so tickle me!

Then they measured my arms; first from the top of the shoulder to the elbow when bent, and next from the tip of the elbow to the wrist. Lastly, they measured me from the back of my neck down to the middle of the waist, just where there is, or ought to be, the most bend in a doll’s back; and from this they measured for the skirt right down below my knees, and for the trousers they measured down as low as my ankles.

But how were these two little girls to find time to do all this work for me? The whole day they were engaged, from six o’clock in the morning till bedtime. So, as it was now summer, and quite light at five o’clock, Ellen and Nanny both determined to get up at that time, and thus have an hour every morning to themselves, in order to make me a frock and trousers. And they calculated that by doing this for a week, they could easily finish the task they had set themselves.

But the poor little girls had to work so hard for more than thirteen hours every day, that neither of them could awake in time. After several mornings, however, Ellen did manage to wake up enough to speak, and call Nanny; and Nanny woke up enough just to answer. After which down sunk their cheeks upon the pillow, and they were fast asleep in a moment.

The next morning Nanny Bell called Ellen at about half-past five o’clock, and Ellen made a great effort, and sat up in bed with her eyes shut. At last she half opened one eye, and then she saw poor Nanny as fast asleep again as if she had never called her. So back fell Ellen upon her pillow.

Now, for several nights, they both made great resolutions before they went to sleep; but when the morning came they could not keep them, though they tried very much to do so; and one morning Ellen, directly Nanny called her, rolled herself out of bed upon the floor. But there she lay, and when the other girls were going past the door to their work at six o’clock, and came in to see if Ellen and Nanny were dressed, there they found Ellen fast asleep upon the floor in her night-gown.

Something, however, happened in consequence of this. Ellen had caught a bad cold and sore throat with sleeping upon the floor, and the doctor said she must remain in bed for two days to get rid of it. Ellen was, therefore, sent to bed again soon after dinner, and as it was necessary that somebody should be with her to give her medicine or barley water to drink, Nanny Bell was chosen by her own request. Here was a chance! Now was the time to work at my frock and trousers.

But there was something to be done first. There was physic to be taken. It was brought by Aunt Sharpshins in a teacup, and it had a dark red and yellow color, and oh, such a strong smell! Poor Ellen looked at her aunt so pitifully, as much as to say, ‘Must I really take this nasty physic?’—then she looked into the teacup, and made a face—then she looked round the room making the same face, only sadder—then she gave a little frown as much as to say, ‘Why should I be afraid? I know it is good for me—I am determined to take it!’ then she shut her eyes—put the teacup to her lips—and down went the physic!

As soon as Mrs. Sharpshins left them, Nanny produced some sugar-plums out of a little paper for Ellen to take after her medicine; and as they ate the sugar-plums, Nanny laughed at the horrid faces my mamma had made before she took her physic and just after it was down, and then they both laughed very much.

Ellen now sat up in bed, and Nanny helped her to prop herself up with pillows at her back, and covered her shoulders with a large shawl. Nanny then brought all the bits of muslin, and silk, and stuffs, and velvet, together with a pair of scissors, and needles and thread, and spread them out upon the quilt before Ellen. I was placed on the bed beside her with my head raised high, so that I might see them working. When all was ready, Nanny got upon the bed and sat down opposite to Ellen, and to work they both went.

The measurements had already been made, and the slips of paper with the marks were laid upon the quilt. Then they began cutting out. First they cut out my under-clothes, and these were all of cambric muslin, which they said was necessary, in order to be soft to the skin of such a little creature as I was. I could not help laughing to myself when I heard them say this, because I was made all of wood, and my skin was only the fine, hard, polished varnish of the celebrated Mr. Sprat. I was not quite so tender as they fancied. They next cut me out a small under-bodice of white jean instead of stays. Then came the trousers, which were cut long and full, and were of soft white muslin trimmed with open work. They then cut out a petticoat of fine cambric muslin, the body quite tight and the skirt very full all round. My frock was made to fit nicely to the shape, but not too tight. It was of fine lemon-colored merino, with a sash of violet-colored velvet, and very full in the skirt, and they said it must have some stiff muslin inside the hem to make it set out, and not hang too loosely in the folds.

When all was cut out and arranged, my mamma and Nanny both went to work with their needles, and they worked all the day as long as they could see. The under-clothes and the trousers were all quite finished, and the body and one sleeve of the frock was begun.

The next morning, after my mamma had taken her medicine and made the same horrid face as before, only not quite so bad this time, they went to work again. But this second morning the weather was not so warm as the day before; so Nanny went to the bed of one of the other girls and took off the top sheet, and tied up a bit of it in the middle with a long and strong tape in a strong knot, and then with a chair upon the bed she managed to tie the other end to a nail in the wall just over the head of the bed; she then spread out all the sheet that hung down so as to cover them both in, like a little tent. And in this pleasant manner they worked all the second day, by which time my frock was quite finished.

Besides this they had made me a pair of silk stockings, which were sewed upon my legs to make them fit better; and as I was naturally from my birth rather stiff in the ankles and instep, they made the stockings without feet, but sewed black satin over both my feet in the shape of the prettiest boots possible, with stitches of cross-work in front. When all was done, and everything put upon me, nothing would do but they must take me out for a walk round the room.

Out we all got from the tent; my mamma in her night-gown and shawl, with a bit of flannel round her throat, and list shoes, and I walking between the two little girls, each holding me by the hand. But we had hardly walked twice round the room, talking like ladies who are out in the park, when suddenly we heard Aunt Sharpshins coming upstairs! In a moment we were all upon the bed—down came the tent—underneath the bed it was thrown—into the bed we all three got as quickly as possible—and when Mrs. Sharpshins came into the room we all seemed fast asleep!

She stood at the foot of the bed, looking at us. After a minute or two she went down again.

‘How you laughed and shook the bed,’ said my mamma to Nanny. ‘I thought she would have found us out, and somehow I wished she had. I don’t like to have pretended to be asleep.’

‘But,’ answered Nanny, ‘she would have been so unkind if she had seen us walking in the park.’

‘I wish people would not be unkind,’ sighed my mamma; and then she added, ‘How dear and kind you are, Nanny; and how you have worked for me, and nursed me all these two days.’

At this they threw their arms round each other’s necks, and so we all three went to sleep in reality, quite forgetting the tent which had been thrown under the bed. But it was a good-natured, merry girl that it belonged to, and she only gave my mamma and Nanny a good tickling when she found it, after a long search, at bedtime.