“Why, Taff,” he cried, “this chap’s going fishing.”
“I wish you wouldn’t call me out of my name before this sort of people,” said his brother, flushing and speaking in a low voice.
“All right, old chap, I won’t, if you’ll go back to the inn and take off those old brush-me-ups. You look as if you’d come out of a glass case.”
The other was about to retort angrily and walk away, but his curiosity got the better of him, for just then the boy in the flannels exclaimed in a brisk way:
“I say: going fishing?”
“Yes,” said Will, looking up, with the smile at the corner of his lips deepening; and as the eyes of the two lads met they seemed to approve of each other at once.
“May I come aboard?”
“Yes, if you like,” said Will; and the boy leaped down in an instant, greatly to his brother’s disgust, for he wanted to go on board as well, but held aloof, and whisked his cane about viciously, listening to all that was going on.
“How are you?” said the second lad, nodding in a friendly way to Josh.
“Hearty, thanky,” said the latter in his sing-song way; “and how may you be?”