n all
our things, as if it were his interest instead of the others', to get us
out of the hotel and on to the boat, although he is such a lazy, erratic
young man, that he must have been quite upset by the surprise and
confusion.

Jonkheer Brederode had been down-stairs, paying our bills and settling
up with the landlady, who seemed to be the only person not at the
Kermess. As we all walked toward him, to show that we were ready to
start, I caught a few words which the landlady was saying. I am not yet
sure of getting things right in Dutch, but it did sound as if she said
in reply to some question or order of his, "Rely on me. No such
impertinent demand shall be answered."

A stuffy cab, which might have been fifty years old, had, it seemed,
been called by Mr. Starr, who was as sympathetic as usual in the
dilemmas of others. We squeezed in, anyhow, except Jonkheer Brederode,
who sat on the box to tell the driver how to go, his cap pulled over his
eyes, as if it were pouring with rain, instead of being the most
brilliant moonlight night; and Tibe sat on all our laps at once.

Hendrik and Toon sleep on "Mascotte" and "Waterspin," and they were on
board, true to duty, though if they had been anything but Dutchmen, they
would probably have sneaked slyly off to the Kermess. They are not the
sort of persons who show surprise at anything (Nell says that if the
motor burst under Hendrik's nose, he would simply rub it with a piece of
cotton waste--his nose or the motor, it would not much matter which--and
go on with what he had been doing before); so no time was lost, and in
ten minutes we were off, finding our way by the clear moonlight, as
easily as if it had been day.

We had not gone far, when I spied another motor-boat, larger than ours,
but not so smart, in harbor, and I stared with all my eyes, trying to
make out her name, for she had not been there when we came in; but
"Mascotte" flew by like a bird--much faster than she ever goes by day,
in the water-traffic, and I could not see it.

Everything was much too exciting for us to wish to sleep, though had we
stopped quietly in the hotel, we should have been in bed before this.
Jonkheer Brederode advised us to go below, as the air was chilly on the
water, and such a wind had come up that it blew away two cushions from
our deck-chairs. But we would not be persuaded.

Out of the narrow canal we slid, into a wide expanse of water, cold as
liquid steel under the moon, and