of her present agony.

Later, as she lay limp and white on the slippery haircloth sofa in
Mrs. Slater's musty parlor she heard them discussing her situation.

"There was a lot of Fresh-Air children over at Mis' Simms's," her
hostess explained, "and they 'most all of 'em said the milk was too
strong--did you ever! Two or three of 'em was sick, like this one, but
they got to love it in a little while. She will, too."

Ardelia shook her head feebly. In a few minutes she was asleep. When
she awoke all was dusk and shadow. She felt scared and lonely. Now that
her stomach was filled and her nerves refreshed by her long sleep, she
was in a condition to realize that aside from all bodily discomfort
she was sad--very sad. A new, unknown depression weighed her down.
It grew steadily, something was happening, something constant and
mournful--what? Suddenly she knew. It was a steady, recurrent noise, a
buzzing, monotonous click. Now it rose, now it fell, accentuating the
silence dense about it.

"Zig-a-zig! Zig-a-zig!" then a rest.

"Zig-a-zig! Ziz-a-zig-a-zig!"

"Wha's 'at?" she said.

"That? Oh, those are katydids. I s'pose you never heard 'em, that's a
fact. Kind o' cozy, I think. Don't you like 'em?"

"Naw."

Another long silence intervened. Mr. Slater snored, William smoked, and
the monotonous clamor was uninterrupted.

"Zig-a-zig! Zig-zig! Zig-a-zig-a-zig!"

Slowly, against the background of this machine-like clicking, there grew
other sounds, weird, unhappy, far away.

"Wheep, wheep, wheep!"

This was a high, thin crying.

"Burrom! Burrom! Brown!"

This was low and resonant and solemn. Ardelia scowled.

"Wha's 'at?" she asked again.

"That's the frogs. Bull-frogs and peepers. Never heard them, either, did
ye? Well, that's what they are."

William took his pipe out of his mouth.

"Come here, sissy, 'n I'll tell y' a story," he said, lazily.

Ardelia obeyed, and glancing timorously at the shadows, slipped around
to his side.

"Onc't they was an' ol' feller comin' 'long crosslots, late at night,
an' he come to a pond, an' he kinder stopped up an' says to himself,
'Wonder how deep the ol' pond is, anyhow?' He was just a leetle--well,
he'd had a drop too much, y' see--"

"Had a what?" interrupted Ardelia.

"He was sort o' rollin' 'round--he didn't know just what he was doin'--"

"Oh! Jagged!" said Ardelia, comprehendingly.

"I guess so. An' he heard a voice singin' out, 'Knee deep! Knee deep!
Kn