Ben had seen Mr. Meijer walk towards the beach as the coble pulled into the harbour. Luckily theirs was one of the first boats to return and they didn't have to wait long to land their catch. As soon as it had been weighed and sold, it was time for a break, and Ben left Matt to smoke his pipe and chat with some other fisherman, and Will to play with some of the other lads. Ben had been meaning to speak to the teacher, and he hoped to be able to catch him still.

When he reached the beach - breathing heavily, for the hurried walk proved almost too much after pulling in the heavy lines and rowing the coble back into the harbour - he stopped for a moment and looked around. Then he spotted the teacher smoking a pipe and staring out across the water. "Mr. Meijer!" he shouted, walking over and taking his own pipe and tobacco from his pocket.