little while
before the fish were all cleaned, and the boys, sitting on a rock,
skipping pebbles, and watching for Perry Kent's father, who was coming
in his boat to take the fish up to the hotel.

Perry's father was always called Cap'n Kent. He kept a kind of floating
restaurant. One end of his boat was boarded over into a closet, with
shelves filled with a supply of fresh fruit and berries in the season,
cider, cakes, pies, root-beer, lemons, crackers, etc. His customers
were chiefly the "hands" on board sloops becalmed opposite the landing,
or passing barges and canal-boats, slowly trailed in the wake of a
panting propeller, or escorted by dingy little "tugs," struggling along
like lively black beetles.

The "Cap'n" was a very tall man, and his arms were so long that, as he
rowed, he sat quite upright, only stretching his arms back and forth,
scarcely bending his body at all. This gave great dignity to his
appearance in a boat. His feet were very long too, and when he walked
he lifted the whole foot at once, and put it down flat. Of course he
could not walk very fast; but so important a person as the "Cap'n"
could never be in a hurry.

As he held his boat against a rock while Perry lifted in the basket of
fish, he saw the wistful faces of the children standing on the beach.
Now, the "Cap'n" considered himself a very good-natured man, and
good-natured men are always fond of children. So he called out in a
loud voice:

"Whose little folks are you?"

"Bub and Mandy Lewis," Mandy answered quickly.

Bub nudged her with his elbow.

"He spoke to _me_, Mandy!"

"Want to take a little row up to the hotel? Let's see--your folks live
by the old fishin' dock, don't they? Wal, I can leave ye there comin'
back. You can tell your Pa that Cap'n Kent took ye out rowin'."

"I'd like to go, if you please," said Bub, who was ready with an answer
this time; "but Mandy, she's got to tend to the baby."

"The baby! What baby?" said the "Cap'n," while Mandy whispered,
crossly, "Bub, I think you're real mean!"

"Oh, sir, baby's fast asleep up on the dryin'-ground, where the nets
are! I could go as far as that, if you'd let me get out there,--if it
wouldn't be too much trouble, sir."

"Course it would!" said Bub, emphatically.

But the "Cap'n," who was not so good-natured that he liked to have
small boys answer for him, gravely considered the matter while he
settled his oars in the rowlocks.

"Wal, it's some trouble, perhaps