The Argosy, Volume XLIV — page 224: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

220 fessor took pounded stone and smoothed it. It worked fairly well, con- sidering our handicaps. We had reserved our own ropes, the ropes we had taken from the yacht, for the sail. This sail was finished now, and we bent it to a yard, and raised 1t. lt was a square-sail simply, about twenty feet high by twenty wide. Ross had another period of mania when he saw this, but we promptly called him down. “The next thing is to devise a way to steer this thing,” I said. “ We need a rudder, but certainly such a_ boat would never heed the ordinary rudder.” “We can rig one up that will keep her in her course,” said Foster. “ Take a pole and set it in a fork. Then lash a square piece to the end.” We sent Ross out to find a fork of hard wood, and set to work to trim the pole. Ross returned with a fork of a tree that-served admirably. Then we rigged the rudder and lashed the tiller in place to prevent its loss. We were now ready to sail. The only duty that now remained was to provis- ion the craft for a cruise. “ But look here,” said Ross, during a discussion. “ In all cases when a ship is finished, it is christened. Now, this is really the most remarkable craft afloat. It deserves a good name. Shall we call it the Marv?” “Oh, no!” cried Miss Donaldson, who was admiring it from the shore. “Tt. would spoil all to give it so un- romantic a name. I would suggest a name that was appropriate.” Ross whistled and looked the raft over. “Well, is there any one here with brain enough to think of an appropriate name for this? ” he asked. “ Well, how would the Flatboat do?” asked Foster. “ Tudge!” “Call it the Kavbee,” I suggested. “The professor protests. I see it in his face. The kaybee is too graceful a bird to be abused by giving its name to a raft.” “This is not a raft,” said the profes- sor, “and I think I see a way out of vour difficulty. The suggestion of Miss Donaldson is admirable. We want a THE ARGOSY. name that is a name. Now, we have built this craft in the face of many diffi- culties, so I propose that we call it the Handicap.” The name seemed to satisfy every- body. Mary was chosen to do the christ- ening. CHAPTER NI. THE CAPTURE OF THE KAYBEES. AT last we had our stores on board the Handicap and were ready to start. After all, 16 was with some feeling of regret that Mr. Donaldson left the island. As for Mary, she wept. It was her home, the only home she had ever known, and she was going forth into a world of which she had heard so many things that she was afraid. “ Had you gentlemen been different,” she said, “ had you been rough or un- kind, I would rather have remained on the island. But if there are people like you in the world, it cannot be unplefs- ant.” “Thanks,” said Ross. “ That’s the finest compliment I’ve ever had offered to me personally. Of course it was my presence that kept them straight, Miss Donaldson.” It was not without some fluttering of our hearts that we who wished to go clambered aboard for the last time. At the suggestion of Ross I was elected captain, and I appointed him mate. He objected to that, saving that he pre- ferred the duties of managing the tiller. “There is a fascination about that tiller that haunts me,” he said. “ It is so graceful, so evidently cut out for the very purpose to which it has been put, that I can’t kecp my eyes off it.” So Foster was made mate, dnd Ross the “ captain of the tiller watch,” as he called himself. The professor watched us rather sus- piciously as we sailed out of the bay, and as the big raft gathered headway we all let out a ringing cheer. It was a success, there was no doubt of that. In demonstrating, however, the facil- itv with which she could be managed with the tiller, Ross sent the raft up on a rock and nearly wrecked the thing. It took us two hours to get off, and we awa a (GO) ElLOOO (GO) awa