een took this year."

"Ay, ay!" shouted Will. Then taking one oar he rowed hard, and in a few
minutes they were at the harbour, the pier being covered with the fisher
folk.

"Best take this year," sang Josh in answer to a storm of inquiries; and
then Will sprang up the steps, to run home with a shield of good news to
ward off the angry points that Aunt Ruth was waiting to discharge at him
for not coming home to his meals in time.

The first faces Dick saw on the pier were those of his father and
Arthur.

"I am so sorry, father!" began Dick.

"You've not kept me waiting, my boy," said Mr Temple kindly. "I've
been watching the fishing from the cliff."

"You might have told me that you were going to see some seine-fishing,"
said Arthur in an ill-used tone, as they entered the inn parlour, where
breakfast was waiting.

"Didn't know myself," cried Dick. "Why, it's ten o'clock! Oh! I am so
hungry!"

CHAPTER NINETEEN.

"A GASHLY GREAT FISH IN THE NET."

There was quite enough interesting business to see after breakfast to
make Mr Temple disposed to go out to the great seine, so that when,
about eleven, Will came to the inn to say that he was just going out to
the men, if Master Dick or Master Arthur would like to come, their
father readily accepted the invitation for all three. So they were
rowed out, to find the men very busy at work in boats beside the great
circle of corks, shooting a smaller seine inside the big one; and this
being at last completed, the small seine was drawn close, the lower rope
contracted, and the fish huddled together so closely that a small boat
was at work amongst them, the men literally dipping the struggling fish
out of the water with huge landing-nets and baskets, the water flying,
and the silvery, pearly fish sparkling in the sun.

It was a most animated scene, for as a boat was loaded she went ashore,
and the fish were rapidly counted, thrust into small stout hampers, tied
down, and loaded on to carts waiting for their freight, and then off and
away to the railway-station almost before the fish were dead.

Josh and Will stood high in the good graces of the seine men for their
help that morning, so that there was quite a welcome for the party in
the boat as the corked line was pressed down, and Josh took the boat
right into the charmed circle where the fish were darting to and fro in
wild efforts to escape through the frail yielding wall of net that held
them so securely