[ After a short period of domestic service when Minnie Frisby was thirteen, she lived with and worked for her widowed sister who ran a tavern. The author trained as a dressmaker and took dancing lessons at this time. These memories are repeated, pp. II:20-21]

Well Rose, that was my sister’s name, made much of me, as I was quite a smart girl now, and she wanted me to learn all I could; she sent me to music lessons, and bought me a piano for a present, which was sent home and stood in the little parlour. 

There were two pianos at the Cattle Market [Tavern], one in the smoke room and another in the sitting room upstairs, (which used to be a bagetelle [sic] room). 

[…]

Well during these few years of gaity and pleasure there was always in the background of my mind an inclining to religion, and I always attended a place of worship;  as I have told you I went to learn Music, and very soon I was able to play anything at first sight—that was another thing my sister was proud of, and she would often try to get me to play for friends ; however I would never play for customers as I considered that was lowering to my dignity; the only time I would play was on a Sunday evening, then I would play hymn tunes; ah, those Sunday evenings, they soon got very popular, and that little smoke room would be full of friends all singing hymns.