Memoirs of a London Doll
March 16, 2009
Chapter Synopsis
Memoirs of a London Doll
March 16, 2009
Chapter 13: The City
Poor Maria. Just when things were going well with Mary Hope, we now find her in another distressing situation. While on her way to the British Museum, the coach was stopped by a big crowd assembled for a Punch and Judy show. In the mayhem, Maria gets tossed from the coach window and is picked up by a man in the crowd and given to Mr. Punch. She was so confused and dazed she doesn’t even remember the rest of the performance. All she can remember is being thrown headlong into a small box among some dirty old wooden dolls dressed in rags. Mr. Punch was then tossed into the box on top of her and the lid closed. Maria soon felt wretchedly uncomfortable. It was close and hot and she had a bad headache, as something was pressed hard upon her head.
When the master of the show removed the dolls from the box for a morning’s performance, he saw Maria and realizes she must have gotten here when all the commotion erupted when Punch tossed his child into the street. Since Maria is too big to perform in the show and much too good to throw away, he will sell her.
After a half hour of bartering, he sells Maria to a clothesman who stuffs her into a worsted stocking and places her into a hat in a bag filled with old clothes and other items. Maria recognizes the hat. She knows, from the strong scent of otto of rose, that this is the same hat that she fell into at the Opera.
That evening the clothesman dumped the contents of his bag on the floor of his lodgings. He was pleased with the doll, but he really fancied the gold bracelet Maria was wearing. He took off the bracelet, and in its place fastened a piece of tin upon which he scratched “Maria Poppet” with the point of a broken fork. Maria felt like crying bitterly but was able to restrain herself. She felt he would soon sell her; and the very next day, he did sell her to an Italian organ boy.
The boy’s organ monkey had died and he had brought the dead monkey to sell to the clothesman. The clothesman showed Maria to the boy and suggested an exchange for the monkey. The boy hesitated, but his sister begged him to take Maria, and so the exchange was made. Marco put the monkey’s red jacket on Maria, stuck her on top of the organ and off they went. They played through many streets getting many pennies and halfpennies.
When they arrived at home and counted their money, they found they had made one shilling and sevenpence in the course of the day.
Marco’s lodgings consisted of a little room behind the back kitchen of a cobbler’s house in the neighborhood of London Bridge. Brigitta placed Maria on a straw mattress while she and Marco had supper. Marco, being so tired, went right to sleep, but Brigitta took out a bundle of several pieces of bright scarlet and made Maria a very pretty dress. Maria was glad because she didn’t like being dressed like a monkey. Brigitta was a very pretty girl of about nine years, with a dark brown complexion and red lips, with large black eyes and long, black, glossy curling hair.
Maria spent several weeks with this merry little mamma and saw a great deal of London because Marco knew a great many houses where the children liked to hear the organ.
DISCUSSION:
Poor Maria. To wind up with the Punch and Judy dolls and then bartered to a clothesman. Fortunately, she ends up with Marco and little Brigitta. She is happy with them as Marco is a nice fellow and Brigitta is a very good and happy little mamma. Maria saw lots and lots of the city from one end to the other while Marco and Brigitta would travel around with their organ entertaining the crowds. Maria is much like Hitty in that she does enjoy traveling around and seeing new things.
Maria reminded me a bit of Sevashteen when it came to wearing the monkey cap and jacket. She did not like being dressed like a monkey at all. Can you just see Sevashteen wearing that outfit and sitting on top of an organ? Hrumphffff.
I wonder how much one shilling and sevenpence would add up to in American money.
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5 pence is worth $.10 in American money.