This valley , in past ages , when the world was new , had probably been the bed of a lake . There , fishes had glided to and fro in the depths , and water-weeds had grown along the margin , and trees and hills had seen their reflected images in the broad , and peaceful mirror . But , as the waters subsided , men had cultivated the soil , and built houses on it , so that it was now a fertile spot , and bore no traces of the ancient lake , except a very small brook , which meandered through the midst of the village , and supplied the inhabitants with water . The valley had been dry land so long , that oaks had sprung up , and grown great and high , and perished with old age , and been succeeded by others ; as tall and stately as the first . Never was there a prettier or more fruitful valley . The very sight of the plenty around them should have made the inhabitants kind and gentle , and ready to show their gratitude to Providence by doing good to their fellow-creatures . But , we are sorry to say , the people of this lovely village were not worthy to dwell in a spot on which Heaven had smiled so beneficently . They were a very selfish and hard-hearted people , and had no pity for the poor , nor sympathy with the homeless . They would only have laughed , had anybody told them that human beings owe a debt of love to one another , because there is no other method of paying the debt of love and care which all of us owe to Providence . You will hardly believe what I am going to tell you . These naughty people taught their children to be no better than themselves , and used to clap their hands , by way of encouragement , when they saw the little boys and girls run after some poor stranger , shouting at his heels , and pelting hum with stones . They kept large and fierce dogs , and whenever a traveller ventured to show himself in the village street , this pack of disagreeable curs scampered to meet him , barking , snarling , and showing their teeth . Then they would seize him by his leg , or by his clothes , just as it happened ; and if he were ragged when he came , he was generally a pitiable object before he had time to run away . This was a very terrible thing to poor travellers , as you may suppose , especially when they chanced to be sick , or feeble , or lame , or old . Such persons -LRB- if they once knew how badly these unkind people , and their unkind children and curs , were in the habit of behaving -RRB- would go miles and miles out of their way , rather than try to pass through the village again . What made the matter seem worse , if possible , was that when rich persons came in their chariots , or riding on beautiful horses , with their servants in rich liveries attending on them , nobody could be more civil and obsequious than the inhabitants of the village . They would take off their hats , and make the humblest bows you ever saw . If the children were rude , they were pretty certain to get their ears boxed ; and as for the dogs , if a single cur in the pack presumed to yelp , his master instantly beat him with a club , and tied him up without any supper . This would have been all very well , only it proved that the villagers cared much about the money that a stranger had in his pocket , and nothing whatever for the human soul , which lives equally in the beggar and the prince . So now you can understand why old Philemon spoke so sorrowfully , when he heard the shouts of the children and the barking of the dogs , at the farther extremity of the village street .
There was a confused din , which lasted a good while , and seemed to pass quite through the breadth XXXXX the valley .
along around at by if of on than to with