but Mr. Blake could not
keep the funny twinkle out of his eyes, and Hal was sure there was
some joke.

From a small satchel, in which he had put the things for fishing, Mr.
Blake took several pieces of wire. On the ends were some bits of
red cloth, and also, on each wire, a little brass bell, that went
"tinkle-tinkle."

"Oh, they are really bells!" cried Mab, as she heard them jingle.

"Of course they are" said her father. "Now I'll tell you what we'll
do. We'll bait our hook, and lower it into the water through a hole in
the ice. Then, close to the hole, we'll fasten one of these pieces of
wire each one of which has, on the upper end, a bell and a bit of red
cloth.

"When the wires are stuck in the ice we'll fasten our lines to them,
and then, when the fish, down in the cold water, pulls on the baited
hook he will make the piece of red cloth flutter, and he will also
ring the bell."

"Oh, now I see!" cried Hal. "And if we are off skating we can look
over here, and if we see the red rag fluttering we'll know we have a
bite, and can come and pull up the fish."

"That's it," said Daddy Blake, smiling.

"And if we don't happen to see the red rag fluttering, we will hear
the bell ring," added Mab, clapping her hands. "How nice it is to fish
this way!"

The hooks were soon baited, and lowered into the water through the
holes in the ice Then the other end of each fish line was made fast
to a wire sticking up, with its bit of red rag, and the little brass
bell.

"Now we'll go skating," said Daddy Blake. "The fish themselves will
tell us when they are caught. Come along."

Hal and Mab had, by this time, learned to put on their own skates,
though of course Hal helped his sister with the straps.

"You must begin to learn to skate by yourselves," said Daddy Blake,
after he had held the hands of the children for a time. "Don't be
afraid, strike out for yourselves."

"But s'pose we fall?" asked Mab.

"That won't hurt you very much," her father said. "Be careful, of
course, not to double your legs up under you, and when you tumble
don't hit your head on your own skates, or any one's else. But when
you feel that you are going to fall, just let yourself go naturally.
If you strain, and try not to fall, you may sprain and hurt yourself
more than if you fall easily. Now strike out!"

Hal and Mab tried it. At first they were timid, and only took little
strokes, but, after a while, they grew bolder, and did very well.