[Dab Kinzer by William O. Stoddard]@TWC D-Link book
Dab Kinzer

CHAPTER VI
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That's why he beats us so badly.

They're a sight better'n clams, only you can't always get one.

I wonder where he picked up that one." "But how he does pull 'em in!" "We're doing well enough," began Dabney, when suddenly there came a shrill cry of pain from the black boy's punt.
"He's barefooted," shouted Dab, with, it must be confessed, something like a grin; "and one of the little pirates has pinned him with his nippers." That was the difficulty exactly, and there need not have been any very serious result of such an expression of a crab's bad temper.

But Dick Lee was more than ordinarily averse to any thing like physical pain, and the crab which now had him by the toe was a very muscular and vicious specimen of his quarrelsome race.
The first consequence of that vigorous nip was a momentary dance up and down in the punt, accompanied by exclamatory howls from Dick, but not by a word of any sort from the crab.
The next consequence was, that the crab let go; but so at the same instant, did the rotten board in the boat-bottom, upon which Dick Lee had so rashly danced.
It let go of the rest of the boat so suddenly that poor Dick had only time for one tremendous yell, as it let him right down through to his armpits.
The water was perfectly smooth; but the boat was full in an instant, and nearly a bushel of freshly-caught and ill-tempered crabs were manoeuvring in all directions around the woolly head, which was all their late captor could now keep in sight.
"Up with the grapnel, Ford," shouted Dab.

"Take an oar: we'll both row.
He can swim like a duck, but he might split his throat." "Or get scared to death." "Or those crabs might go for him, and eat him up." "How he does yell!".


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