he flood's in the orchard. Look!'
She swung her lantern to show a front rank of old apple-trees reflected
in still, out-lying waters beyond the half-drowned hedge. They could
hear above the thud-thud of the gorged floodgates, shrieks in two keys
as monotonous as a steam-organ.
'The high one's the pig.' Miss Sperrit laughed.
'All right! I'll get _her_ out. You stay where you are, and I'll see you
home afterwards.'
'But the water's only just over the road,' she objected.
'Never mind. Don't you move. Promise?'
'All right. You take my stick, then, and feel for holes in case
anything's washed out anywhere. This _is_ a lark!'
Midmore took it, and stepped into the water that moved sluggishly as yet
across the farm road which ran to Sidney's front door from the raised
and metalled public road. It was half way up to his knees when he
knocked. As he looked back Miss Sperrit's lantern seemed to float in
mid-ocean.
'You can't come in or the water'll come with you. I've bunged up all the
cracks,' Mr. Sidney shouted from within. 'Who be ye?'
'Take me out! Take me out!' the woman shrieked, and the pig from his
sty behind the house urgently seconded the motion.
'I'm Midmore! Coxen's old mill-dam is likely to go, they say. Come out!'
'I told 'em it would when they made a fish-pond of it. 'Twasn't ever
puddled proper. But it's a middlin' wide valley. She's got room to
spread.... Keep still, or I'll take and duck you in the cellar!... You
go 'ome, Mus' Midmore, an' take the law o' Mus' Lotten soon's you've
changed your socks.'
'Confound you, aren't you coming out?'
'To catch my death o' cold? I'm all right where I be. I've seen it
before. But you can take _her_. She's no sort o' use or sense.... Climb
out through the window. Didn't I tell you I'd plugged the door-cracks,
you fool's daughter?' The parlour window opened, and the woman flung
herself into Midmore's arms, nearly knocking him down. Mr. Sidney leaned
out of the window, pipe in mouth.
'Take her 'ome,' he said, and added oracularly:
'Two women in one house,
Two cats an' one mouse,
Two dogs an' one bone--
Which I will leave alone.
I've seen it before.' Then he shut and fastened the window.
'A trap! A trap! You had ought to have brought a trap for me. I'll be
drowned in this wet,' the woman cried.
'Hold up! You can't be any wetter than you are. Come along!' Midmore
did not at all like the feel of the water over his boot-top
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