Burgess, Thornton W. (Thornton Waldo), 1874-1965 / 2008-07-30 00:00:00

He did this all along the front of the dam and on top of
it, too, wherever he thought it was needed. Of course this made
it harder for the water to work through, and the little pond
above the dam began to grow faster. It wasn't a great while
before it was nearly to the top of the dam, which at first was
very low. Then Paddy brought more sticks. This was easier now,
because he could float them down from where he was cutting. He
would put them in place on the top of the dam, then hurry for
more. Wherever it was needed, he would put in mud. He even rolled
a few stones in to help hold the mass.
So the dam grew and grew, and so did the pond above the dam. Of
course, it took a good many days to build so big a dam, and a lot
of hard work! Every morning the little people of the Green Forest
and the Green Meadow would visit it, and every morning they would
find that it had grown a great deal in the night, for that is
when Paddy likes best to work.
By this time, the Laughing Brook had stopped laughing, and down
in the Smiling Pool there was hardly water enough for the minnows
to feel safe a minute. Billy Mink had stopped making fun of the
dam, and all the little people who live in the Laughing Brook and
Smiling Pool were terribly worried.
To be sure, Paddy had warned them of what he was going to do, and
had promised that as soon as his pond was big enough, the water
would once more run in the Laughing Brook.
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