“There’s nothing to be done around the house, so I counted on studying the Regulations for a while.”
“It won’t do you any harm to drop that kind of work for a spell; you already know more of that precious book than any of us, except it may be Tom Downey, an’ there’s danger you’ll grow too wise in the work of life-saving. What do you say to havin’ a look at the wreckers? They are gettin’ well along with their job, an’ I allow the tugs will make a try at pullin’ the steamer off when this tide rises.”
“I’d like to go if it would be all right to leave,” Benny said thoughtfully, as he looked inquiringly at the cook, and the latter replied to the unspoken question:
“There’s no reason why you shouldn’t have an outin’, lad. It’ll do you solid good, for you’ve been shut up here too long. What about Fluff C. Foster?”
“I wouldn’t like to take him with me, for it’s too cold on the rocks, and where there are so many men at work he might get hurt.”
“Very well, leave him behind, an’ I’ll answer for it that he comes to no harm. Maje has given over all ideas of botherin’ him, and, besides, if you say the word, he sha’n’t be allowed to poke his pink nose out of doors.”
Benny put on the pea-jacket which was large enough to serve him as an overcoat, pulled the flaps of the sou’-wester over his ears, and, just as the sun was coming up from behind the restless expanse of water, the two set out, walking at full speed, for the cold was too intense to admit of any pleasant lingering by the way.
When they arrived at the scene of the wrecking operations it appeared very much to No. 8 as if Joe Cushing had made a mistake when he declared that the steamer might be saved. To the lad she looked like a hopeless wreck.
The sea had thrown her on her beam ends, and then forced her so high up on the shoal that nearly half the bottom was exposed to view. The bridge, a greater portion of both rails, and nearly everything on deck was missing, while the wreckage along shore explained where the top-hammer had gone.
“Been used rather rough, eh?” Hardy said as he and Benny stood on the cliff where a full view of the wreck could be had.