"At sunrise the doors and gates were opened, and every body was awake
and stirring, from the queen in her palace to the servants who brought
in the meals and kept things tidy about the houses; and then, in
accordance with a good old custom handed down from generation to
generation, the first thing every body did on getting out of bed was to
take a bath. Such a washing and scrubbing and sponging off and rubbing
down as went on in every house, you can imagine. It made no difference
what kind of work one was going about,--plastering, brick-laying, or
digging of ditches,--like a sensible fellow, he went fresh and clean to
it every day.
"Of course the queen-mother and the little princes and princesses, with
a palace full of servants to wait on them, had all these offices of the
toilet performed for them; but what do you think of common working
folks going about from house to house to help each other wash up for the
day? Fancy having a neighbor step in bright and early to wash your face
and hands for you, or give you a sponge-bath, or a nice dry rub!
"After the wash came milking-time. Now, all the cows were pastured
outside the city, and the servants who had the care of them hurried off
as fast as they could, because the milk was needed for breakfast,
especially for the babies.
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