“Oh, a quarter of a pound.”
“Just right,” said Tony. “Now, which arm will get tired first, the one you are holding the mallet with, or the one you’re using for the iron?”
“Which do you think, George?” asked the skipper, with caution.
“Why, the mallet arm,” suggested George promptly. “That thing weighs about ten times as much as the iron.”
“That’s my guess too,” said Jack.
“Well, well, we’ll see,” said Tony, the smile having developed into a broad grin as he sauntered off to his own work in the near-by boat-yard.
For a while the boys were too intent on their occupation to carry on much conversation. They worked side by side, each taking a separate seam, and each glancing occasionally at the work of the other.
“Have you ever done any calking before?” Jack asked when they had been plugging at it for some time.
“Not a calk!” replied the youthful mate.