MAIN STREET, WESTLER — The snip of shears, the whirl of a spinning wheel, and a running commentary on everybody's hems. Bolts of cloth lean in every corner, pins live dangerously on every surface, and it smells of new wool and chalk dust.
Behind the Counter
Mrs. Alice Lipskum — quick hands, quicker opinions. Her high shrill voice could curl your nose hairs, but she is so good at her job that people think it's worth the punishment. She's dressed Westler's finest for weddings and its poorest for winters, and she charges the one accordingly so she can go easy on the other — though she'd never admit it.
On the Racks
- The Sunday-best dress — the famous one. Made-to-measure, and worth every fitting you'll stand still for.
- Work shirts and britches built for real work — crick walking included
- Mending and patchwork — she can rework a patchwork shirt so fine it looks meant
- Winter coats, let out and taken in as children insist on growing
Current Special
The winter coat visit: last year's coat let out, patched, and re-buttoned for a fraction of new — because children sprout like weeds and coats do not.
On the Notice Board
Ducket Stories on the Counter
Mrs. Lipskum mends a great many shirts, but she never got her hands on this one. In Charlie Warlie, young Charlie turns to follow the farmhands and – RIP! – finds he has nailed his own shirt to the post, and the post is not about to give it back. Matta is sent running to the house for one of Pa’s old shirts, while the rest of the barn is no help at all.
Charlie Warlie$1.98Parts 1 & 2, the whole story