The Library of Work and Play: Mechanics, Indoors and Out

by Fred. T. Hodgson

"Now, Fred," said the father, "this cement walk should be commenced at once, so that it will be dry and hard before you go on with other work. I will employ a labouring man to help you, one who will do the heavy work, as I do not want you to over-exert yourself. You have a number of tools now in the shed, and, when I come home from the office this evening, we will make out a list of the other tools and materials you will require to finish the intended work. In the meantime you and George can be making a number of wooden stakes, about eighteen inches long and two inches square. Point them sharply at one end so that they may be driven into the ground their whole length. You will require thirty or forty of these. After getting them, take a clothes line, old halyard, or any rope or heavy string your mother can find for you, and stretch it from the house down to the river, at the point we decided upon. Drive in a stake near the river, tie one end of the rope to it, pull tightly, and stretch the rope from the river to the house. It will then show you where one edge of the walk is to be. After that is done, get another rope or string and, starting from the house end of the walk, measure off four feet for the proposed width. Drive in a stake at that point, and tie one end of the second rope to it; then go toward the river with the other end, making the rope extend the whole length of the path and drive in another stake which must be four feet from the first rope. To this stake tie the end of the rope and make it tight. Be sure to have the two ropes exactly four feet apart at each end, as well as along the whole length. You will find it to your advantage to get a straight strip of wood, say, one or two inches thick both ways, and cut it exactly four feet long. It can then be used as a measuring stick or gauge, for the distance between the ropes, which is to be the width of the walk, and by using it you will have a parallel and uniform path from start to finish."

Mr. Gregg had passed an examination in the Massachusetts School of Technology, and had won a position as civil engineer in New York which later he abandoned for the profession of law; hence his knowledge of practical mechanics and engineering.

After Jessie and George had gone to school, Fred started on his new undertaking with enthusiasm. He found quite a number of pieces of wood, out of which he made over forty stakes, and pointed them nicely with the large hatchet he always kept sharp and in good order. By tying several pieces together, it did not take him long to find cord enough to set out the whole walk. An old halyard that had been taken from the flag pole and replaced by a new one answered the purpose admirably. Driving a stake into the ground, near the house, he tied one end of his cord to that, and stretched it down to the river bank to the point chosen for the end of the walk, where another stake was driven in and the cord tied to it. The long stretch between the two stakes would not allow the cord to be tight enough to make a straight line between the two points, but Fred left it as it was, to be adjusted when his father came. With his rod he measured off four feet from the first stake, across the intended path, and drove in another stake to which he attached another cord. Then going down to the river he measured off the width of the walk from the long cord, and drove in another stake. He was now ready to have his father examine the work he had done, and to make suggestions or changes if such were deemed necessary.

Jessie and George arrived home from school, having run most of the way, "to help Fred make the walk," and were quite disappointed to be told there was nothing they could do until the work was further advanced.

"We might, perhaps, commence taking down the old buildings," said Fred, "and pile the lumber where it will be snug and dry."

"All right," said George; so the three of them went over to the poultry house and Fred began by taking out the two or three small windows, and removing the doors by unscrewing the hinges. George's desire to pull, tear, and smash the old material was held in check by Fred, who advised him to be careful, and not break or destroy anything that could be used. After the doors had been taken off and laid nicely away—"to be used on the boat house"—and the windows and frames placed in a dry spot, Fred began to remove the old siding, or clapboards. He found this a rather difficult job, as they were nailed on with old-fashioned wrought-iron nails which could not readily be drawn, and, in trying to get the boards loose, the ends kept breaking and splitting; so he stopped, went inside the building, and took off the lining there; this also was a little difficult to do, but, as the boards were an inch thick, he did not split many of them.

He then sawed off the boards alongside the studs, on the corners, and at the doorways to relieve the siding at the ends, and give him a good chance to wedge off the boards wherever they were nailed. With the help of George, he succeeded in getting most of them loose without serious damage. Of course, he had to begin tearing the boards off at the top of the wall, as they lapped over each other like the scales of a fish.

Mr. Gregg arrived, went over the ground, and was well pleased with the results of Fred's day's work. He assisted in straightening the long cords, and made a number of suggestions for the boys to follow. He had a strong-looking man with him, who he told Fred was to help him. He was an Italian, named Nicolo, called "Nick" for short, a kindly fellow, who could speak English fairly, for he had been employed in Newark, as a handy labouring man for years. He, Fred, and George soon became good companions, and even Jessie, though a little shy at first, soon became quite friendly toward him. When it was explained what was wanted of him, he was quite satisfied, and agreed to begin work in the morning.

Next day Fred and George were at work before their father was out, and soon Nick arrived, bringing a spade, a crowbar, and a pick. He was immediately set to work by Fred, digging a shallow trench for the pathway, a little over four feet wide and about eight inches deep. The stretched cord and the four-foot rod were the guides.