which the
sound of the cow bell had come.

Ole scrambled up again, stamped the ground with rage, and started after
her.

Lisbeth and Peter were already on the way. They shouted and screamed as
they ran, and threatened Crookhorn with all sorts of punishments if she
did not stop; but Crookhorn acted as if she did not understand. She
ran, and they after her. The boys became more and more angry. It had
never happened before that they had been unable to capture a goat; and
besides, each boy was eager to get ahead of the other. So they ran
faster and faster. Although Lisbeth Longfrock was light-footed,
especially with her birch-bark shoes[13] on, she lagged behind. It was
like wading in deep water to try to run in that long frock of hers,
which, in the hasty start of the morning, she had forgotten to tuck up
in her belt as usual.

[13] Lisbeth's ordinary shoes were clumsy wooden ones.

Soon she caught a last glimpse of the boys as they disappeared over a
hill on the other side of the marsh. Peter was ahead (she believed he
really was the faster runner of the two). But she herself was only in
the middle of the marsh.

So she stopped. Certainly the best thing that she could do was to go
back and get the animals together; otherwise all three flocks were
likely to stray away.

She turned back, recrossed the marsh, and had climbed the hill a little
way when she heard a rumbling and thudding noise, which grew constantly
louder and louder, while the ground seemed to roll in waves under her
feet. What could it be? Around the foot of the hill came a big herd of
horses[14]--oh, what a big herd! There were horses old and young, and
foals running beside their mothers; horses brown, dun-colored, black,
and white; and all of them were so bright and shiny and fat and
skittish! They trotted and ran, with heads tossing,--those ahead being
passed by others, then those behind getting ahead again,--making a
noise almost like the booming of thunder.

[14] Horses, as well as other animals, are sent up on the
mountains to graze during the summer. They roam about at will,
and sometimes go home of their own accord at the end of the
season, if no one has been sent to fetch them.

Lisbeth stood still and watched them, half afraid. She had never seen
so big a herd before. They noticed her, too, but they did not run at
her at all. Only two or three stopped, pricked up their ears, and gazed
at her, trying to make o