"I shall want to buy some things," she said.

Father Vedder lighted his pipe--"To keep my nose warm," he said.

Then they all went down to the canal and put on their skates.

"Kat and I are going to race to the first windmill," said Kit.

"I'll tell you when to start," said Father Vedder.

"And I'll get a cake for the one who wins," said the mother.

"One, two, three!" Away they flew like the wind! Father and Mother
Vedder came close behind.

Kit was so sure he would beat that he thought he would show off a
little. He went zigzag across the canal; once or twice he stopped to
skate in curves.

Kat didn't stop for anything. She kept her eyes on the windmill, and
she skated as hard as she could.

They were getting quite near the mill now. Kit stopped playing and
began to skate as fast as he could. But Kat had got the start of him.

"I'll soon get ahead of her," he thought. "She's a girl, and I'm a
boy." He struck out with great long sweeps, as long as such short legs
could make, but Kat kept ahead; and in another minute there she was at
the windmill, quite out of breath, and pointing her finger at Kit!

"I beat, I beat," she said.

"Well, I could have beaten if I wanted to," said Kit.

"I'll get the cake," said Kat.

"I don't care," said Kit. But Kat knew that he did.

"I'll give you a piece," she said.

Father and Mother Vedder came along then; and when Kit and Kat were
rested, they all skated for a long time without saying anything. Then
Father Vedder said proudly to his wife,

"They keep up as well as anybody! Were there ever such Twins!" And
Mother Vedder said,

"Never!"

By and by other people appeared on the canal--men and women and
children, all skating. They were going to the town to see the sights
too.

One woman skated by with her baby in her arms. One man was smoking a
long pipe, and his wife was carrying a basket of eggs. But the man and
woman were good skaters. They flew along, laughing; and no one could
get near enough to upset them.

As they came nearer to the town, Kit and Kat saw a tent near the place
where one canal opened into another. A man stood near the tent. He put
his hands together and shouted through them to the skaters,

"Come in, come in, and get a drink
Of warm sweet milk on your way to the Vink:"

"We must be getting quite near the Vink," Kat said. "I do wonder what
it looks like. Do you think it's alive?"

They passed another tent. There a man was shout