Harper's Young People, April 27, 1880 Part 2

"Is Grimes at home?" asked Will.

"No, sir, he's not; and I beg pardon for letting you come in. My was.h.i.+ng was half done when I was took down with a turn, and Grimes is looking now for some one to do what I am unable to do."

"Will he soon be in, do you think?"

"Yes, sir; have a chair; he'll be in presently."

"I will wait outside," said Will, glad of the excuse to get out. He waited in the dim light of a dirty window outside, and wished he had about a gallon of Cologne water at hand. Soon Grimes came, looking tired and cross. When he saw Will he grew pale, but asked him, in a smothered voice, what he wanted.

"I have come to speak about that check of Charlie Graham's," said Will.

Grimes grew red and angry, swore roundly that he knew nothing of it, and threatened to pitch Will down stairs.

Will very firmly replied that he had seen Grimes take it, and that unless he was willing to make reparation, his employers would have to be told of it.

At this the man wavered a little, but still stoutly denied the theft. At this moment the door, which was ajar, was pushed wider open, and the woman's head came peering out; then the children followed, but they were speedily sent down into the street.

Grimes retreated into the room; Will followed, not without some tremors, but that letter of his mother's was in his pocket.

"Sure and are ye found out?" said the woman, impetuously. "Didn't I tell you so? didn't I say no good could come of stalin', Grimes, my man?"

Grimes tried to hush her, but she would not listen to him. She had drawn a shawl about her, and was the picture of woe, with her pale face, her unkempt hair, and her glittering eyes. She took Will by the hand. "As you are a gintleman, and the son of a lady, have mercy on Grimes. If it's the bit of paper ye want, I have it; here it is;" and she drew it from the folds of her dress. "I knew no good could come of it, and I would not let him use it, miserable as we are. But spare him, and G.o.d will bless you."

"I have no wish to injure him," said Will, "and my mother thinks if this is a first offense, and he is at all sorry, I had better not make his dishonesty known."

Grimes was hanging his head in sullen silence, but at this he raised it eagerly. "Never in my life before have I taken anything--but you see our misery. I thought she would be the better for something this money could buy."

"Hus.h.!.+" said the woman. "I might better die than live by stalin'. You will forgive him, misther; I know you will; I see it in your kind eyes."

Will promised silence, except to Charlie Graham, to whom he should be obliged to reveal the theft, as well as to make rest.i.tution; and gladly turned away from this scene of misery.

Charlie and he had a long talk that night. They concluded to abide by Mrs. Benson's advice.

"It was very wrong as well as silly for me to leave that check where it could tempt a poor fellow; and if it wasn't for the Adirondacks I'd send the whole amount to Mrs. Grimes," said Charlie, generously.

"No, that would not be wise," said Will; "but I tell you what, let's club together and send her some decent food and clothing."

Their kindness was not thrown away. Grimes never repeated the wrong-doing. With better times came better health and strength for his wife, and when Will went home for a holiday he took to his mother a bit of Irish lace, which Mrs. Grimes had begged him to carry to her.

A CHEAP CANOE.

BY W. P. S.

The labor and ingenuity expended in one season by a boy who has any taste for the water in building rafts, and converting tubs and packing-boxes into sea-going vessels, would, if well directed, build a good-sized s.h.i.+p; but, from lack of knowledge and system, the results of such attempts are generally failures.

After some experience with rafts that _would_ sink, scows that _would_ leak, and other craft that showed a strong preference for floating with keels in the air, we found in the canvas canoe a boat at once handsome, speedy, and safe, and capable of a great variety of uses, while the small cost and easy construction place it within reach of all young s.h.i.+p-builders.

To produce a good canvas boat care and patience are more necessary than great skill with tools, though it is supposed that the young mechanic can use his rule correctly, saw to a line, and plane an edge reasonably straight.

The first proceeding in any building operation, after the plans are decided on, is to make out a "bill of materials" and an "estimate," and ours will read as follows:

Keel, oak, 1 in. square, by 15 ft. } long. } Sawed from an oak 10 rib-bands, oak, 1 x 1/4 in., by } board 15 ft. X 6 15 ft. long } in. = 7-1/2 ft. @ 5c.

2 gunwales, oak, 1 x 3/4 in., by } 15 ft. long } $0.38 Keelson, 3 x 1 in., 10 ft. long. } 10 in. pine board Bow, stern, coaming, and ridge pieces. } .35 Moulds. } 2 pine boards 12 x 1/2 in., 13 ft.

Floor boards, } long = 26 ft.,@ 3c. .78 Paddle, 1-1/4 in. spruce plank, 6-1/2 in. X 13 ft. .25 Canvas, 5 yds., 40 in., @ 45c. 2.25 Canvas deck, 5 yds., 28 in., @ 25c. 1.25 1 package 1 in. No. 7 iron screws. .30 Tacks, nails, and screws. .50 Rubber cloth for ap.r.o.n. .50 Sawing moulds and paddle. .50 Paint. 1.00 ----- $8.06

Having all our material ready, it will be best to mark out the different pieces, and have them all sawed at once by a steam-saw.

Beginning with the bow and stern, we will lay off on one corner of the ten-inch board a line two feet long, representing the dotted line _c_ _d_ in Fig. 1.

A line is drawn half an inch from the edge from the point 11 to 12, making a notch for the end of the keelson; and the two feet are divided into four parts, and perpendiculars drawn at each point.

Now measure off on the line _a_ _d_ nine and a half inches, giving the point _a_; on the others three and a quarter inches, an inch, and a quarter of an inch; then draw a line from _a_ to _c_ through all these points.

The shape of the inner line is not important, so it may be drawn by eye, making it thick enough for strength.

As the bow and stern are alike, two of these pieces are needed.

The keelson must be cut from the same board, being three inches wide at the centre, tapering to one inch at the ends.

To obtain the shapes of the moulds or sections we must enlarge Fig. 4 four times to its full size.

The horizontal lines in the drawing are one-fourth of an inch apart, so in our large drawing they will be one inch; then taking the line marked 2 (Nos. 1 and 13 require no moulds), we find the distance of the point _g_ to be one and seven-sixteenths inches from the centre line, so we make it four times as much, or five and three-fourths inches, and continue with the other points until we have enough to determine the line pretty closely, after which we join them with the line _g_ _h_, giving the shape of one-half of our first mould.

The lines on the right represent the half sections in the fore end of the boat, and those on the left the after end.

When all are drawn, they should be transferred to the half-inch board, each mould, however, being a whole and not a half section.

The outline of the paddle being drawn also, all may be taken to a saw-mill and sawn out, or else they may be sawn by hand with a compa.s.s-saw.

Having all cut out, we will first screw the bow and stern to the keelson, and secure the three pieces on a plank set upright, the upper edge being curved to fit the keelson, which is a little rockered.

Moulds Nos. 2, 3, 4, 5, 9, 10, 11, and 12 are next notched to fit the varying widths of the keelson, the first and last also fitting over the bow and stern; then they are put in place, and the gunwales notched into them, and also into the bow and stern.

The moulds for Nos. 6, 7, and 8 are sawn from three-quarter-inch oak or ash, each being in two pieces. The inner edge of No. 6 is shown by the dotted line K C, Fig. 4, and of Nos. 7 and 8 by _m_ _b_. They are put in place the same as the others.

Now the rib-bands are planed off and tacked in place, being s.p.a.ced amids.h.i.+ps as shown in Fig. 4; then the points where they cross the bow and stern and all the moulds are marked, and notches one inch by one-fourth of an inch cut to receive them, the edges of the bow and stern being tapered off at the same time to half an inch; then all the parts are placed in position again, and fastened with one-inch screws, except where the keelson joins the bow, stern, and moulds, where one inch and a half screws are used. Each screw is dipped in white lead before inserting, and the head afterward puttied over.

The highest point of the deck is at No. 6, where a deck beam is placed, the shape of it and of the deck at No. 9 being shown in Fig. 4.

The other moulds may be easily shaped by using these as guides; then pieces two inches wide and three-fourths of an inch thick are notched into each mould, down the centre of the deck, from No. 6 to the bow, and from No. 9 to the stern, making a ridge over which the canvas is stretched.

A piece of one-inch pine is next set in between Nos. 9 and 6, and screwed to each, as well as to Nos. 7 and 8 and the gunwales, and forming the sides of the well.

The frame is now carefully smoothed off, and painted with two coats; then a floor of half-inch pine is screwed to moulds Nos. 6, 7, and 8.