Daylight was in the room when Lavinia awoke. She slipped quietly out of
bed not wanting to disturb Hannah, but the latter was a light sleeper.
"Don't you get up," said Lavinia. "I can dress and let myself out
without bothering you."
"What, an' go into the early morning air wi'out a bite or sup inside
you? I'm not brute beast enough to let you do that."
And Hannah bounced out of bed bringing her feet down with a thump which
must have awakened Mrs. Fenton in the room below had the lady been in a
normal condition, which fortunately was not the case.
Within half an hour the two stole out of the house, and on reaching the
Ludgate Hill end of the Old Bailey turned eastwards. Their destination
was the Stocks Market occupying the site where the present Mansion House
stands. The Stocks Market was the principal market in London at that
time, Fleet Market was not in existence and Covent Garden, then mainly a
fashionable residential quarter, was only in its infancy as to the sale
of fruit and vegetables.
But the Stocks Market eastwards of St. Paul's was not in the direction
of Twickenham, or Twitenham as it was then called. Why then were Lavinia
and Hannah wending their way thither?
It was in this wise. Hannah was quick witted and fertile in resources.
Moreover she was a native of Mortlake, then surrounded by fruit growing
market gardens and especially celebrated for its plums, the fame of
which for flavour and colour and size has not quite died out in the
present day.
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