'The coat of arms of the City of Den Briel is carved on the taffrail, there, opposite that of Amsterdam,' Eliza said, pointing up at the stern. D'Avaux turned to look, and so did Jacques and Jean-Baptiste; and in the same moment Eliza heard behind her a weird sighing, whistling noise, like a bagpipe running out of wind, and was jostled by a passing boer headed for the gangplank. As this rustic clambered up onto the kaag she saw his oddly familiar hump-backed profile, and caught her breath for a moment. D'Avaux turned to peer at her. Something told Eliza that this would be an awkward time to make a fuss, and so she let her mouth run: 'She carries more sail than the usual canal-barge – presumably for crossing the Haarlemmermeer. She is a slender vessel, made to pass through that narrow lock between Leiden and the Hague. And yet she's too flimsy to traverse Zeeland's currents and tides – she could never afford the insurance.'