fast some part of the door, and so with hammer and nails and
pieces of wood going from spot to spot, mending or clearing away
wherever work of the kind was needed. Heidi followed him step by
step, her eyes attentively taking in all that he did, and
everything that she saw was a fresh source of pleasure to her.

And so the time passed happily on till evening. Then the wind
began to roar louder than ever through the old fir trees; Heidi
listened with delight to the sound, and it filled her heart so
full of gladness that she skipped and danced round the old
trees, as if some unheard of joy had come to her. The grandfather
stood and watched her from the shed.

Suddenly a shrill whistle was heard. Heidi paused in her
dancing, and the grandfather came out. Down from the heights
above the goats came springing one after another, with Peter in
their midst. Heidi sprang forward with a cry of joy and rushed
among the flock, greeting first one and then another of her old
friends of the morning. As they neared the hut the goats stood
still, and then two of their number, two beautiful slender
animals, one white and one brown, ran forward to where the
grandfather was standing and began licking his hands, for he was
holding a little salt which he always had ready for his goats on
their return home. Peter disappeared with the remainder of his
flock. Heidi tenderly stroked the two goats in turn, running
first to one side of them and then the other, and jumping about
in her glee at the pretty little animals. "Are they ours,
grandfather? Are they both ours? Are you going to put them in the
shed? Will they always stay with us?"