The good miller answered that with all his heart he would do that much to oblige me, and a hundred times more than that; but some little thought and care were needful.

With the river so low as it was now, he could easily stop the back-water, and receive the whole of the current in his dam, and keep it from flowing down his wheel trough, and thus dry the lower channel for perhaps half an hour, which would be ample for my purpose.
Engineering difficulties there were none; but two or three other things must be heeded.

Miller Sims, a mile or so down river, must be settled with, to fill his dam well, and begin to discharge, when the upper water failed, so as not to dry the Moon all down the valley, which would have caused a commotion.

Miller Sims being own brother-in-law to Master Withypool, that could be arranged easily enough, after one day's notice.
But a harder thing to manage would be to do the business without rousing curiosity, and setting abroad a rumor which would be sure to reach my enemy.

And the hardest thing of all, said Master Withypool, smiling as he thought of what himself had once been, would be to keep those blessed boys away, who find out every thing, and go every where.