Summary

After the wedding, Jurgis works harder to make a life for his new wife. Jurgis makes Ona take the streetcar to work, but she is too shy to speak to the conductor and a misunderstanding over a transfer causes her to have to walk a distance in the rain. This causes Ona to get sick, an illness she never fully recovers from. At the same time, the children at home are sick constantly because there is no sewer for the house, and the waste collects under the house. Antanas, too, develops a worrisome cough from the wetness associated with his job. The chemicals in the water also cause him to develop sores in his feet that never heal.

Winter comes. The weather is very cold, and there is often several feet of snow on the ground. It becomes difficult for the Rudkus’s...