The boys exchanged glances again, their eyes twinkling with mirth, and then they burst out laughing merrily once more.
“A big basketful, boys?” And the speaker rubbed his hands.
“No, fa,” cried the first boy. “We haven’t caught one.”
“What! Why, where did you go?”
“To the upper pool, sir,” said the second boy, “and there wasn’t a fish.”
“Then why didn’t you try the river?”
“There is no river now, fa.”
“No river?”
“No, fa; it was all turned into pools when we were there a fortnight ago, and now there’s only a muddy spot here and there; all the rest have dried-up.”
“Tut, tut, tut! What a place it is!”