Sentence:  The departure was not unduly prolonged....Within the door Mrs. Spoker hastily imparted to Mrs. Love a few final sentiments on the subject of Divine Intention in the disposition of buckets; farewells and last commiserations; a deep, guttural instigation to the horse; and the wheels of the waggonette <WSD>crunched</WSD> heavily away into obscurity. 
Meaning of the word marked with <WSD> tags:  To grind or press with violence and noise.