Slowly at first, and then in a rush, more people came to settle here and bought with them new ways and new sounds, some very beautiful and some less so. But everyone was so busy with the things that had to be don that they scarcely had time to listen at all. And, as you know, a sound which is not heard disappears forever and is not to be found again. People laughed less and grumbled more, sang less and shouted more, and the sounds they made grew louder and uglier. It became difficult to hear even the birds or the breeze, and soon everyone stopped listening for them.