The golden straw

It all began with a straw hat, dyed in an elusive mixture of colours to produce a distinctive shade of pale gold. It was presented to Emily Pearson by her long-time friend and employer, Mabel Arkwright. And it was to Mabel that Emily owed not only the gift of The Golden Straw, as it had been named, but eventually Mabel's entire millinery business. After Mabel's death, exhausted by the extra work she had to shoulder, Emily tok herself off to the S...