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At the Back of the North Wind by George MacDonald
page 321 of 360 (89%)

Joseph assented heartily, smiling to himself at the idea of
pushing Diamond. After doing everything that fell to his share,
the boy had a wealth of time at his disposal. And a happy,
sometimes a merry time it was. Only for two months or so,
he neither saw nor heard anything of North Wind.



CHAPTER XXXV

I MAKE DIAMOND'S ACQUAINTANCE


MR. RAYMOND'S house was called The Mound, because it stood upon
a little steep knoll, so smooth and symmetrical that it showed
itself at once to be artificial. It had, beyond doubt, been built
for Queen Elizabeth as a hunting tower--a place, namely, from the
top of which you could see the country for miles on all sides,
and so be able to follow with your eyes the flying deer and the
pursuing hounds and horsemen. The mound had been cast up to give
a good basement-advantage over the neighbouring heights and woods.
There was a great quarry-hole not far off, brim-full of water,
from which, as the current legend stated, the materials forming
the heart of the mound--a kind of stone unfit for building--
had been dug. The house itself was of brick, and they said the
foundations were first laid in the natural level, and then the
stones and earth of the mound were heaped about and between them,
so that its great height should be well buttressed.

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