“Why, we thought, from what Captain Corbet said, that by this time she would be sunk so deep that she would be half buried in the mud, and half full of it.”
“Nonsense! The mud just here on this slope isn’t very deep. Six or eight inches of mud is about all she’d sink in. Two or three hours’ work will clear all that away, and then all that is left for us to do is to get her right side up, and I’ll rig the tackle for that.”
“I must say, Captain Pratt,” said Bart, “it’s un commonly good in you to take so much time and trouble.”
“O, as for that,” said Captain Pratt, “neighbors must be neighborly, and seafarin men most so. Besides, I hain’t got anything in particular to do to-morrow, and I’d like very well to turn a hand to this. But I don’t see yet why Corbet should go and be such a precious old goose. The vessel ain’t worth much, but she’s worth settin right side up; that I’ll maintain.”
The captain then proceeded to explain his plan of action to the boys more minutely, so that at last they perceived how very simple and feasible it was, and wondered now that Captain Corbet should have given up his vessel so readily, without making any effort, where an effort would have been so very easy.
“I understand now, I think,” said Bart, “why Captain Corbet gave up the vessel. It was the babby. He wanted to be able to devote himself altogether to his domestic cares.”
After spending some further time the boys took their departure, with the understanding that they were to return on the following day after school, with all the boys that they could muster.
By seven o’clock on the following morning, Captain Pratt was at work at the Antelope. The tide had retreated far enough to allow of an investigation of her condition, though the water which had filled her at the last tide had not run out of her. His first work was to bore a few auger holes along the lower part of her deck, to let all the water run out. The Antelope was not, after all, so very deep in the mud as had been supposed by the boys. It had covered her taffrail some inches, but this could be shovelled away without any very severe exertion; and it was to this that Captain Pratt and his men first directed their energies. Two hours’ work sufficed for them to clear away all this, after which they turned their attention to other things. First of all, as the water had now run out, Captain Pratt stopped up the auger holes tightly, and then prepared to close the hatchways. This was a work of extreme difficulty. The hatches which belonged to the schooner had floated away long ago, and it was necessary to make new ones. This was at length done by working up some stuff that was on board Captain Pratt’s vessel, which they then proceeded to fasten to the hatchways of the Antelope. The position in which the schooner lay made it excessively difficult. She was on her side on a slope in such a way that her deck overhung them somewhat as they worked, so that they labored at a great disadvantage; however, they persevered, and at length had the satisfaction of seeing that the new hatches were fastened in with sufficient firmness to suit their purposes, and were judged to be sufficiently water-tight for the present emergency.
The work thus far, important though it was, had been essentially preliminary; and now the machinery had to be arranged for the immediate work of raising the fallen vessel to her proper position. Captain Pratt and his men took a number of spars from their schooner, and selecting three of them, bound their ends together, and stood these three like a tripod, as near to the schooner as possible, and close by the foremast. Three more bound together in a similar way were placed near the mainmast. From the top of each of these a tackle-block was suspended, and a line also was passed from each, and run around a tree which stood about a dozen yards away from the edge of the bank. Another line passed from each tackle-block, and was fastened around each mast of the schooner.
Captain Pratt’s design was now evident.