THE MERMAIDS

CHAPTER 2





The next morning, as soon as Trot had helped wipe the breakfast
dishes and put them away in the cupboard, the little girl and Cap'n
Bill started out toward the bluff. The air was soft and warm and the
sun turned the edges of the waves into sparkling diamonds. Across
the bay the last of the fisherboats was speeding away out to sea,
for well the fishermen knew this was an ideal day to catch rockbass,
barracuda and yellowtail.

The old man and the young girl stood on the bluff and watched all
this with interest. Here was their world. "It isn't a bit rough this
morning. Let's have a boat ride, Cap'n Bill," said the child.

"Suits me to a T," declared the sailor. So they found the winding
path that led down the face of the cliff to the narrow beach below
and cautiously began the descent. Trot never minded the steep path
or the loose rocks at all, but Cap'n Bill's wooden leg was not so