an to their father at once.
They began to tell him that they wanted to go fishing right away before
the sun went down but their mouths were so full they couldn't get the
words out!
"Mm-m-m-m," Menie began, chewing with all his might!
Then Monnie did a shocking thing! She swallowed her meat whole, she was
in such hurry! It made a great lump going down her throat! It almost
choked her. But she shut her eyes, jerked her head forward, and got it
down!
"Will you make two holes in the ice for us to fish through?" she said.
She got the words out first! Then she took another bite of meat.
"Have you got your lines ready, and anything for bait?" asked their
father.
By this time Menie had swallowed his mouthful too. He said, "We can
take a piece of bear's meat for bait. The lines and hooks are ready."
Kesshoo looked at the lines. The rods were very short. They were made
of driftwood with a piece of bone bound to the end by tough thongs.
There was a hole in the end of the bone, and through this hole the line
was threaded. The line was made of braided reindeer thongs. On the end
of the line was a hook carved out of bone.
"Your lines are all right," said Kesshoo. "Come along."
He led the way down to the beach. The twins came tumbling after him,
and I am sorry to tell you they gobbled their meat all the way! After
the twins came Nip and Tup. The ice was very thick. Kesshoo and the
twins and the pups walked out on it quite a distance from the shore.
Kesshoo cut two round holes in the ice. One was for Menie and one for
Monnie. The holes were not big enough for them to fall into.
By this time the twins had eaten all their meat except some small
pieces which they saved for bait. They each put a piece of meat on the
hook. Then they squatted down on their heels and dropped the hooks into
the holes.
Kesshoo went back to the village, and left them there. "Don't stay out
too long," he called back to them.
IV.
The twins sat perfectly still for a long time. Nip sat beside Menie,
and Tup sat beside Monnie. It grew colder and colder. The sun began to
drop down toward the sea again. At last it rested like a great round
red wheel right on the Edge of the World!
Slowly, slowly it sank until only a little bit of the red rim showed;
then that too was gone. Great splashes of red color came up in the sky
over the place where it had been.
Still the twins sat patiently by their holes. It grew darker and
darker. The co
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