"Do you know Mr. Nelson, over at Pointville? I suppose you don't. Well, he is a great oil man; he has got some oil-wells down on the St. Johns River. He is getting together all the barrels and hogsheads he can find, to send down to his works. He has as many as a hundred at his place in Pointville. I'm going to borrow a lot of these casks, if I can, and raise the Woodville with them."
"How are you going to manage with them?" asked Ethan, deeply interested in the plan.
"Sink them round the boat, and fasten them to her hull, till there is enough to float her."
"But how are you going to sink them?"
"There's some one to go over the ferry," replied Lawry, as a blast of the tin horn was heard. "If you will go over with me, I will tell you all about it, and we will call and see Mr. Nelson while we are at Pointville."
Ethan embarked with his friend, and when the boat started the subject was resumed.
CHAPTER VIII
RAISING THE "WOODVILLE"
Ethan French, during the two years he had been a resident of the State of New York, had been an earnest and diligent student. His mind was even more improved than his manners. His taste for mechanics had prompted him to study the various subjects included in this science, and as he stood by his companion, the pilot, he talked quite learnedly about the specific gravity of wood and iron, about displacement, buoyancy, and similar topics.
"The hull of the steamer—that is, the woodwork—will not float itself, but it will sustain considerable additional weight," said he.