"To take flax and linen from the mills of Holland to make dresses
for little girls in other countries," said Grandfather.
"Is that all?" asked Kit.
"They take cheese and herring, bulbs and butter, and lots of
other things besides, and bring back to us wheat and meat and all
sorts of good things from the lands across the sea."
"I think I'll be a sea captain when I'm big," said Kit.
"So will I," said Kat.
"Girls can't," said Kit.
But Grandfather shook his head and said:
"You can't tell what a girl may be by the time she's four feet
and a half high and is called Katrina. There's no telling what
girls will do anyway. But, children, if we stay here we shall not
catch any fish."
So they went down the other side of the dyke and cut onto a
little pier that ran from the sandy beach into the water.
Grandfather showed them how to bait their hooker. Kit baited
Kat's for her, because Kat said it made her all wriggly inside to
do it. She did not like it. Neither did the worm!
They all sat down on the end of the pier, Grandfather sat on the
very end and let his wooden shoes hang down over the water; but
he made Kit and Kat sit with their feet stuck straight out in
front of them, so they just reached to the edge, "So you can't
fall in," said Grandfather.
They dropped their hooks into the water and sat very still,
waiting for a bite. The sun climbed higher and higher in the sky,
and it grew hotter and hotter on the pier. The flies tickled
Kat's nose and made her sneeze.
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