light whatever in Dolman's; but they were early people.
The house and lawn slept peacefully in the night: the windows were
now shining, now dark, for small fleecy clouds kept drifting at short
intervals across the crescent moon.

Ransome pushed on across the open ground, and for a mile or two saw
few signs of life, except here and there a flickering light in some
water-wheel, for now one picturesque dam and wheel succeeded another
as rapidly as Nature permitted; and indeed the size of these dams, now
shining in the fitful moonlight, seemed remarkable, compared with the
mere thread of water which fed them, and connected them together for
miles like pearls on a silver string.

Ransome pushed rapidly on, up hill and down dale, till he reached the
high hill, at whose foot lay the hamlet of Damflask, distant two miles
from Ousely Reservoir.

He looked down and saw a few lights in this hamlet, some stationary, but
two moving.

"Hum," thought Ransome, "they don't seem to be quite so easy in their
minds up here."

He dashed into the place, and drew up at the house where several persons
were collected.

As he came up, a singular group issued forth: a man with a pig-whip,
driving four children--the eldest not above seven years old--and
carrying an infant in his arms. The little imps were clad in shoes,
night-gowns, night-caps, and a blanket apiece, and were shivering and
whining at being turned out of bed into the night air.

Ransome asked the man what was the matter

One of the by-standers laughed, and said, satirically, Ousely dam was to
burst that night, so all the pigs and children were making for the hill.

The man himself, whose name was Joseph Galton, explained more fully.

"Sir," said he, "my wife is groaning, and I am bound to obey her. She
had a dream last night she was in a flood, and had to cross a plank
or summut. I quieted her till supper; but then landlord came round and
warned all of us of a crack or summut up at dam. And so now I am taking
this little lot up to my brother's. It's the foolishest job I ever done:
but needs must when the devil drives, and it is better so than to have
my old gal sour her milk, and pine her suckling, and maybe fret herself
to death into the bargain."

Ransome seized on the information, and rode on directly to the village
inn. He called the landlord out, and asked him what he had been telling
the villagers. Was there any thing seriously amiss up at the reservoir?

"Nay,