Page:Emma Speed Sampson--The shorn lamb.djvu/125

Rh I was back in the studio and Daddy was alive and would come to me."

"You mean my son, Tom?" hoarsely.

"No, no! He was Father. Daddy was the last stepfather I had. But listen a minute and you can hear the noise that scared me so."

Rebecca was still trembling, but her sobs had ceased.

"Why, my dear, that is nothing but katydids and tree frogs and all the night creatures. Did you never hear them before?"

"No, sir! They dont do that way in New York. It sounds like a giant's deep breathing to me. And listen, only listen to his heart beats!"

"And that is the hydraulic ram that pumps the water up from the branch to the tank out there behind the house. That is the kind of waterworks we have at Mill House. You can go to see it to-morrow. It is nothing but a simple little machine that the water makes go and it works the pump."

"Oh! I guess you think I'm more of a nuisance than ever. I'm so sorry, but I did not know. If the little child had not screamed out I would not have let go."

"Little child?" Major Taylor could not help laughing, although he held Rebecca closer