Poor and Proud by Oliver Optic — Read

Having recorded the steps by which Katy had carried forward her now / flourishing trade, from the dawn of the idea up to the height of its / prosperity, we may pass over a year with only a brief note of its / principal incidents.

My young readers may have supposed that Katy and her mother had / gathered a great deal of money in the candy trade. It was not so, for / as the business increased, and Katy's labors as a saleswoman were / withdrawn, the expenses increased, and the profits were proportionally / less. And then, neither Mrs. Redburn nor her daughter had a faculty for / saving up much money; so that, though they made considerable, their / prosperity permitted new demands to be made upon the purse. They hired / two more rooms; they replaced the clothing and furniture which had been / sacrificed under the pressure of actual want, and they lived better / than they had lived before; and Mrs. Redburn had availed herself of the / services of a distinguished physician, whose attendance had cost a / large sum. It is true they lived very well, much better than people in / their circumstances ought to have lived. Therefore, notwithstanding / their prosperity, they had saved but a small sum from the proceeds of / the year's business. They were not rich; they were simply in / comfortable circumstances, which, considering their situation when Katy / commenced business, was quite enough to render them very thankful to / the Giver of all good for the rich blessings He had bestowed upon them.