But suddenly, as she approached a turn in the corduroy
road, her ear was smitten by a sound that she knew very well
indeed.
It was a man's voice, and it was not a pleasant one. It caused
Nan to halt and look about for some place to hide until the owner
of the voice went by. She feared him because of his harsh tones,
though she did not, at the moment, suspect who it was.
Then suddenly she heard plainly a single phrase: "I'd give money,
I tell ye, to see Hen Sherwood git his!"
Chapter XXI
IN THE TAMARACK SWAMP
The harsh tone of the unseen man terrified Nan Sherwood; but the
words he spoke about her Uncle Henry inspired her to creep nearer
that she might see who it was, and hear more. The fact that she
was eavesdropping did not deter the girl.
She believed her uncle's life to be in peril!
The dampness between the logs of the roadway oozed up in little
pools and steamed in the hot blaze of the afternoon sun. Insects
buzzed and hummed, so innumerable that the chorus of their voices
was like the rumble of a great church-organ.
Nan stepped from the road and pushed aside the thick underbrush
to find a dry spot to place her foot. The gnats danced before
her and buzzed in her ears. She brushed them aside and so pushed
on until she could see the road again.
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