"Life in the Iron Mills" begins in the house where Hugh Wolfe and Deborah once lived. The house was a boarding house in those days but is now a single family home. The narrator stares out the window on a cloudy day, thinking how dark and gloomy an iron mill town always is, even when the sun is shining. The narrator begins her story with Deb, who has just returned to the house after working in the cotton mill all day. The other ladies from the mill want Deb to go out drinking with them, but Deb does not drink. Instead, Deb goes down into the basement rooms Hugh Wolfe shares with his father and a young girl named Janey. Deb begins to eat a dinner of boiled potatoes when Janey wakes and tells her that Hugh is working the night shift at the iron mill. Deb quickly puts together a meal for Hugh and rushes to the mill. (read more)