Page 32 - Devil's Arithmetic by Jane Yolen

for just then the bearded man marched into the house,
having dropped his hoe somewhere outside. He grabbed
Hannah before she could protest and spun her around.
"Hallo, little niece. Give your almost-married Uncle
Shmuel a hug!"
Hannah knew she had no Uncle Shmuel, certainly
no one as big and bearded as this man, who smelled of
sweat and grass and horses. But his joy was contagious.
She gave him a hug.
"Put her down, Shmuel!" the woman scolded. "She's
still recovering from her illness. You know how easily
she gets upset and forgets things. And go wash yourself.
I wonder that Fayge ever accepted the shadchan's offer
for your hand in marriage. You are so much of a prize
you can kiss women without bathing?" She held out a
large flowered bowl filled with water.
"Not such a prize?" asked Shmuel, as he dipped his
hands into the bowl, slopping water over the side. "I
have all my teeth and all my hair, two fine workhorses,
a four-room house, and twenty acres of land beside. I
work hard and I do not smell all that bad, eh, little
Chaya?" Without waiting for her answer, he lifted the
water to his face and continued washing noisily.
"What.is the child going to say, Shmuel? She adores
you. But it will be very crowded in this house with
another woman if you do not bathe regularly. Even
though the new woman is that jewel Fayge."
Shmuel reached out and pinched his sister on the
cheek. "Do you adore me, too, Gitl?" he asked, laugh-
ing fondly.
Annoyed, she drew back from his touch and a pin

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