Blake,
so the children would have something new to think about, and not feel
sorry about Roly.

"Fishing through the ice?" cried Hal. "How can we do that? Aren't the
fish frozen in the winter?"

"I saw some frozen ones down at the fish store," Mab said.

"Well, I don't mean that kind," laughed Daddy Blake. "There are live
fish in the waters of the lakes, rivers and ponds, down under the ice.
You can not catch all kinds of fish through the ice in winter, but you
may some sorts--pickeral for instance."

"Oh, Daddy, and will you take us fishing?" asked Mab.

"I think I will, some day soon, if the cold keeps up," he said.

And, surely enough he did.

The weather was still very cold, and the ice froze harder and thicker.
Several times Daddy Blake took the children down to the pond, and
taught them about skating. They were doing very well.

Then, one Saturday, when there was no school, Daddy Blake called out:

"Now we'll go fishing through the ice. We'll go over to the big lake,
so wrap up well, as it is quite cold. We'll take along some lunch, and
we'll build a fire on the shore and make hot chocolate."

"Hurray!" cried Hal.

"Oh, how lovely!" exclaimed Mab.

Well wrapped up, and carrying with them their fishing things, as well
as lunch, while Mr. Blake had a small axe, the little party set off
for a large lake, about two miles away.

When they reached it, Hal wondered how they could ever get any fish,
as the water was covered with a thick sheet of ice. But Daddy Blake
chopped several holes in the frozen surface, so Hal and Mab could see
the dark water underneath. The holes however, were not large enough
for the children to fall through.

"Now we'll fish through the ice!" said Daddy Blake.

"Oh, I see how it's done!" exclaimed Hal with a laugh.

CHAPTER VII

LEARNING TO SKATE

"Now we'll bait our hooks," said Mr. Blake, when he had put the lunch,
which they had brought along, safely away in a sheltered place. "And
after that we will have a little skate practice to get warmed up, for
it is colder than I thought."

"But if we bait our hooks, and leave them in the water, won't the fish
run away with our lines if we are not here to watch them?" asked Mab.

"We'll fix the lines so the fish that bite will ring a little bell, to
tell us to come and take them off the hook!" replied Daddy Blake with
a laugh.

"Oh, now I know you're fooling us!" said Hal.

"No, really I am not," replied his father,