"Of course!" said Garth. "Fogger and I nearly saw one once. That is, we were rowing up by Bird Rock one afternoon, and a mermaid was caught by her hair. Just as we came along, she got off. It looked rather like green sea-weed, but mermaids' hair is like that, you know."
"Certainly it was seaweed," said Joan, thrusting in hairpins.
"I don't think so, because I saw her scales glitter under the water as we rowed up. Fogger would have poked his oar down, but we were afraid of hurting her."
"Did your father think it was a mermaid, too?" asked Joan.
"Of course!" said Garth. "There used to be such lots of them before the Light was here. They used to play in the moonlight all over the Shoal. That's one reason why it's called Silver Shoal, you know, because their scales shone so in the moonlight. But the Light has frightened them all away. Are you going to stay out here long?"
"Not very long," Joan replied emphatically.
"I'm sorry," said Garth. "People don't come here very often. I'd like you to see all the nice things, Joan." He slid suddenly out
