“You can feel him giving it little jerks and tugs,” said Cousin Tom.  “Or, if the water is clear, you can see him as he takes hold of the chunk of meat.  Then you want to pull up on your string, very, very gently, so as not to scare the crab and make him let go.  If you know how to do it you can lift your string up with one hand, and scoop the net under the crab with the other.  But when you children have a bite, your Daddy or I will use the net for you.”

“Oh, it’s going to be lots of fun,” cried Violet.  “I like this kind of fishing.”

“And there aren’t any sharp hooks to hurt the crab,” added Rose.

“No, it doesn’t hurt a crab to catch him this way,” said Daddy Bunker.  “And crabs are very good to eat after they are cooked.  I like them better than fish.”

“Is a crab a fish?” asked Laddie, who was holding a little stick down in the water, watching the ripples it made as the boat was rowed along.

“A crab is a sort of fish,” said Cousin Tom.  “Why did you ask?”

“Oh, I am trying to make up a riddle about a crab and a fish,” said Laddie.  “But I don’t guess I can if they are pretty near the same.  I guess I’ll make up a riddle about a boat.  I have one ’most thought up.  It goes like this:  When a boat goes in the water why doesn’t the water go in the boat?”

“It does, sometimes, if the boat leaks,” replied Cousin Tom with a laugh.  “I hope your riddle doesn’t come true this trip, Laddie!”

“Oh, well, I haven’t got the riddle all made up yet,” was the answer.  “I can’t think of a good answer.  Maybe I can after I catch some crabs.”

“Why doesn’t our boat sink?” asked Violet.

“’Cause it’s wood, and that floats,” said Russ.

“Well, once you made a little wooden boat, and it sunk when we put a lot of stones on it,” said Vi.  “And my doll—­a little one—­was on the boat, and she got all wet.”

“Well, if a boat is made of wood, an’ it’s big enough, it won’t sink, will it, Daddy?” asked Russ.

“No, I don’t believe it will, if it doesn’t get a hole through it so the water can get in.  But sit still now, children.  I think we are at the place where Cousin Tom is going to let us catch crabs.  Aren’t we, Tom?” asked Mr. Bunker of his nephew.

“Yes,” said Cousin Tom, “this is a good place.  There is plenty of seaweed on the bottom of the inlet here, and the crabs like to hide in that—­especially the soft-shelled crabs.”

“Are there two kinds?” Russ inquired.

“Yes, hard and soft,” was his cousin’s answer.

“Like eggs,” said Russ with a laugh.  “There are hard and soft boiled eggs.  Isn’t that so, Cousin Tom?

“Yes,” said Cousin Tom with a smile.  “But the funny part of it is that sometimes the same crab is soft-shelled, and again it is hard-shelled.  An egg can’t be that way.  Once it is boiled hard it never can be boiled soft again.”

“What makes soft crabs?” Rose wanted to know.