e soft lowing of a cow, or the
splash of a fish leaping in the river, disturbed her from her thoughts
and startled her. And once, when all was very dark and very silent,
she heard the regular pulse of oars, and the clanking of chains, and
the creaking of wood, and subdued voices; and she imagined robbers.
But all became quiet again; and at last, at last, her ideas grew
confused, and she fell asleep.

CHAPTER V.

ON THE RIVER

HOW wonderful the country seemed to the London child! Everything was
strange and beautiful. And though Juliet would not confess how
surprised she felt, yet by little looks and words her aunt and cousins
knew that she was taking in fresh ideas every minute.

They asked her how she slept. She replied that she could not sleep
well because it was so dreadfully quiet; if it had not been for the
noise of the "buses" a long way off, and those folks that came home
late and creaked their door, she would not have been able to go to
sleep at all. "My ears was all stretched like," said Juliet, "and
wanted something to work on."

When they told how the distant _buses_ was the roar of the weir, and
the late-comers a party of gentlemen managing the lock for themselves,
she tried to appear as if she quite understood, but she did not
succeed.

"Some of them stay out late and let themselves through at 2 A.M., and
some of them get up early and let themselves through at 3 A.M., but it
is none of my business to get out of bed for pleasure-boats." Thus
said Mr. Rowles.

"Who are _they_?" asked Juliet.

"Oh, the folks on the river. You'll see plenty of them if you stay
here long enough."

Juliet was not much the wiser; she had heard of mermaids, and thought
at first that the folks on the river must be of that race of beings.
But she waited to see.

Then Mrs. Rowles said that Juliet must make herself useful, and might
begin by fetching some water from the well.

Juliet did not know what a well might be; but she took up a jug and
went out to the riverside. There was a boat pulled up to the bank on
the side of the island away from the towing-path, and as all she
thought about was the fact that she was to bring water, she climbed
into the boat, over the thwarts, and up to the stern. As she crept
along she saw in the shadowed water at the side of the boat a vast
number of little fish playing together, and, like any other child, she
wanted to catch some of them. She dipped the jug down among them, as
s