"His fall did not prevent his fellow-ruffians from advancing upon the skipper."—Page 216.
Instead of hitting as a pugilist should, Bissell reached out his long arm, and took the bully by the collar of his uniform, jerked him over once, and then tossed him upon the prostrate form of Jeff Monroe. Mad Twinker had bravely followed up the attack until he was in reach of the skipper's arm, and he was tumbled over in a heap.
But Bissell could not do duty with his long arms and steer at the same time; and the Silver Moon, now having a strong weather helm, came up into the wind, and, with her boom shaking in the midst of the combatants, began to roll as though she intended to pitch the ruffians overboard without any help from her owner. Jackson, Sumner and Douglas had retreated from the after part of the standing-room, and the motion of the boat, made more unsteady by the movements of the ruffians, pitched them all into the seats.
Buck Lamb and Mad Twinker rose to their feet as soon as they could, but Jeff Monroe was not yet in a condition to move. The skipper put the helm up, and the sloop filled away again. Paul had advanced a pace, and taken a seat near the skipper, but with the spare tiller ready to deal a blow as soon as a head came near enough to receive it.
The ruffians looked at the heavy tiller in the hand of Paul, and then they looked at the long arms of the skipper. While they were gazing there was a halt all along the line, which afforded an opportunity for reflection. Some of them cast their eyes about them for something in the shape of a weapon. The spare tiller seemed to be the only stick that would answer the purpose of a club, except the crutch used to support the boom when the sail was furled, and that was under the owner's seat.
Both Mad and Buck seemed to realize that they could do nothing without bringing that tiller down upon their heads, and its descent was almost sure to reduce them to the condition of Jeff Monroe, who was just beginning to show some signs of life. While they were thinking about it, the skipper came about, and headed the sloop towards the shore. When he had done so, he picked up the crutch, and placed it on the seat, by his side.
The Silver Moon was now headed in the direction of Sandy Point. The Beech Hill barges were some distance astern of her, and the Chesterfields at least a quarter of a mile farther to the westward.
"I don't think it is quite safe, Paul, to leave these fellows lying round loose in the standing-room," said Bissell, when he had the boat well in hand on the new tack. At the same time he drew out from the locker under him the ropes from which he had selected the reef pendant.
"What do you mean by that?" demanded Mad Twinker, before Paul had time to reply.
"I mean that I shall be under the disagreeable necessity of tying your arms behind you, just as you had Paul when you brought him on board," replied Bissell; but his tone and manner did not indicate that the duty was a very unpleasant one.
"But we won't stand it!" replied Mad angrily.
"Won't you?" continued Bissell, as he took the crutch in his hand.
"I protest against such an outrage!" exclaimed Ham Jackson.
"Oh, you protest, do you? And you really think it would be an outrage?" said Bissell, in a mocking tone.
"We are students in the Chesterfield Collegiate Institute, and we are the sons of gentlemen," returned Ham, with dignity. "Of course, it would be an outrage to put us in bonds, like common felons."
"Precisely so; then we will tie your hands behind you like uncommon felons. We won't quarrel about words, for you can beat me every time in that line. I suppose it was not an outrage for you to attack Paul Bristol, six to one, in the street, and tie his hands behind him," replied the skipper, with a very heavy sneer. "He don't happen to belong to the Institute, but he is a member of the Beech Hill School."
"We don't care what he is," interposed Mad Twinker. "We won't submit to be bound! We won't stand such an indignity!"
"You think you won't? I don't believe I shall have much trouble in tying the hands behind him of that fellow on the floor," continues Bissell. "It is for you to decide whether you will have your hands tied before or after you are knocked stiff. I will begin with you, Mr. Twinker."
"No, you won't!" cried Mad, as he sprang from his seat, and rushed madly upon the skipper.
Bissell was on his feet, and, reaching out his long arm, he took his assailant by the throat, in spite of the wild blows he aimed at him. This time he did not pitch him on the floor, but choked him till the ruffian began to feel weak, and to relax his struggles.
"You take the tiller, Paul, but don't let go the spare one. If one of them moves aft, knock him as you did the first fellow," said Bissell, as he picked up the reef pendant he had cut off.
Paul took the helm. He had steered a sailboat before, though he knew next to nothing about the general management of the craft, and kept her as she was. By this time Mad was decidedly faint, and the owner had no difficulty in tying his arms behind him. When he had done so, he picked up the crutch again, and stepped forward. His next victim was Buck Lamb; but as about all the vim had gone out of the bully, it was an easy job to secure him. The other four ruffians made no resistance worth mentioning, for the crutch in the hand of the skipper was an awful weapon; so was the spare tiller which Paul wielded. If the ruffians could have got hold of anything in the way of clubs, doubtless they would have held out longer.
As it was, they were completely vanquished. Bissell had ranged them three on a side as he bound them, and they had not been inclined to move. Possibly they thought they were in a bad condition to save themselves if the Silver Moon had taken it into her head to upset and spill them into the angry lake.
"We are all right now, Paul. Don't you say so?" said the skipper, as he seated himself on the weather side and took the helm.
"I should say that we were," replied the late prisoner heartily. "You have saved me, Mr. Bissell, from an awful pounding at the hands of Major Billcord and his son; and I owe you a thousand thanks. I shall never forget what you have done for me to-day."
"I think I got saved myself this forenoon," added the skipper; "and I guess I know how it feels. I think we should all have been drowned in the Silver Moon if it hadn't been for the Beech Hillers; and I don't feel as though I could ever do half enough for them. We are not square yet, Paul, and you did your share."
"I didn't do much; it was Dory Dornwood who did it all," answered Paul modestly.
"It cut me like a sharp razor to give in to a mere boy on sailing, but Dory knows more about a boat with his eyes shut than I do with mine wide open. He didn't put on any airs, either," continued Bissell, with enthusiasm.
"By the big wooden spoon, there comes the Sylph!" exclaimed Paul, as the steam yacht came out from behind Barber's Point. "Captain Gildrock is on board of her, and you may be sure he will put things to rights in double quick time."
"All right; I am glad he is coming, for I don't know what to do with these fellows, now that we have them where they can't set the lake on fire," added the skipper, as he glanced at the Sylph. "We will keep on as we are, for I suppose she is going over to Beaver River."
"I think you have carried this thing about far enough, Mr. Bissell," said Mad Twinker, after he had taken a glance at the steam yacht.
"Not quite, Mr. Twinker," replied the skipper, with a smile. "I shall carry it about as far as that steam yacht, and then I don't care a button what becomes of it."
"You mean by that to hand us over to the principal of the Beech Hill School?" inquired Ham Jackson.
"I reckon it amounts to that."
"If you settle the thing that way, you will have to answer to Colonel Buckmill," added Mad Twinker.
"I am ready to answer to him. Do you think the principal of the Chesterfield school will justify you in committing such an outrage as you have put on Paul Bristol?" demanded Bissell indignantly.
"Then why don't you hand us over to Colonel Buckmill?"
"So I would if he happened along here at about this time. Perhaps the other principal will pass you over to Colonel Buckmill," suggested the skipper, with a sort of chuckle, as though he had his doubts on the subject. "Six of you set upon Paul in the most cowardly manner, and—"
"Only two at a time," interposed Buck Lamb.
"How was it, Paul?" asked Bissell.
The intended victim of the ruffians told his story in full, not omitting to mention the punishment he had bestowed upon his assailants. Bissell expressed himself very emphatically in regard to the cowardly character of the assault, and was glad Paul had defended himself till he was overpowered by numbers. The faces of some of the ruffians bore the marks of his hard fists, and they were probably booked for mourning eyes by the next day.
By this time the Silver Moon was off Sandy Point. Paul had watched with interest the movements of the Sylph. When first seen she was headed for Scotch Bonnet, which was her direct course when homeward bound; but she soon shifted her helm, as though she was going up to Westport.
"She is going to make a landing at the town," said Paul, when he noticed the change of course.
"I am sorry for that, for I thought she was coming over this way," replied Bissell.
"Captain Gildrock must see all the barges, and I am sure he will run over here as soon as he makes them out," added Paul.
The words were hardly out of his mouth before the head of the steamer was turned in the direction of the Beech Hill barges, which were not half a mile astern of the Silver Moon. The skipper decided to come about, and stand back to the fleet. Before he could reach the boats, the Sylph had stopped her screw, and was hailing the Gildrock. Oscar Chester informed him that Paul Bristol had been taken a prisoner by six of the Chesterfields, and that the skipper of the sloop was conveying him to Sandy Point. This was all the commodore knew about the matter, but it was enough for the captain. He started the screw again, and in a few moments he had overhauled the Silver Moon.
From the pilot-house the principal could see the condition of things in the standing-room of the sloop. Again Captain Gildrock rang one bell, and then two. As the steamer lost her headway the Silver Moon rounded to under her lee side, where she had still water.
"I should like to hand these fellows over to you, Captain Gildrock," said Bissell, hailing the principal. "We have tied their hands behind them, and they won't set the lake on fire just yet."
"I should like to know something more about the case. Will you send Bristol on board to report to me?" replied Captain Gildrock. "Mr. Wolfenden, of Westport, is on board, and will join you in the boat."
"Wolfenden! Why, he is the deputy sheriff!" exclaimed Bissell. "I guess he is the very man we want."
"Mr. Bulfington is also on board," added the principal.
"Perhaps both of us had better go on board of the Silver Moon," said Mr. Wolfenden, for both he and Bulfington, who was a constable, were in the pilot-house.
"I should like to have one of you remain and hear the statement of Bristol, upon whom this outrage has been perpetrated," added Captain Gildrock. "As Bulfington is the constable, perhaps he had better remain."
The deputy sheriff was satisfied to let it be so, and he went on board of the sloop. The two officers had been down to Port Henry on official business, and, manifesting quite an interest in the Sylph, the principal had invited them to take passage to Westport in her. As the officer went on board of the sloop, Paul left her, and hastened to the pilot-house.
"Well, Bristol, it seems that you did not see the last of the trouble at Sandy Point yesterday," said the principal, bestowing a look of kindness and sympathy upon the new pupil. "Your face looks as though you had had a hard time of it to-day."
"The toughest time I have had yet, but not so tough as it would have been if Mr. Bissell had not stood by me, and got me out of the scrape. We did him a good turn this forenoon, and he did not forget it," replied Paul.
"I am glad to see you, Paul," added Mr. Bulfington, taking him by the hand. "It is about time the pranks of those students should come to an end; and I think the people of Westport have had about enough of them."
"What service did you render to Mr. Bissell?" asked Captain Gildrock.
"It is rather a long story, sir;" but Paul proceeded to relate it in full, and he soon found that both of his auditors were deeply interested in it.
"My daughter was one of the six girls," said Mr. Bulfington, when the spare hand had finished his narrative. "I am sure I owe the boys a debt of gratitude which I shall never expect to discharge."
Paul then gave the particulars of the assault upon him very minutely, and described the events which had followed his capture up to the present moment.
"It would have gone terribly hard with you, Paul, if Major Billcord had got you over to the point, for there is no more reason or mercy in him than there is in a fighting bulldog," added the constable. "He has got money enough to pay all damages, and he would not mind a thousand or two if he got his revenge in full."
"These boys must have been employed to capture Bristol," said the principal, whose face was flashed with indignation. "Mrs. Bristol this morning gave her son into my charge, and he shall not be abused while he is in my care."
"What do you intend to do about it, Captain Gildrock?" asked Mr. Bulfington.
"I shall prosecute the ruffians first; and if I can prove that Major Billcord employed them to assault my pupil, I will prosecute him," replied the captain.
The principal went to the side and had a brief talk with Bissell. It was arranged that the skipper should convey the boys to Westport, the constable going with him. Mr. Wolfenden returned to the steamer, and instructed the captain in the proper method of procedure in the court.
Bissell lost no time in getting under way. The ruffians were utterly crestfallen when they understood that they were to be prosecuted for the outrage upon Paul. Very likely Colonel Buckmill and the magnate would choose to regard it as a mere lark, a little wildness, on the part of the students, which ought to be passed over without any appeal to the courts.
Before this time the Beech Hill barges had come to the side of the Sylph. The Chesterfield barges had given the steamer a wide berth. They were close up to the shore, and were pulling in the direction of Sandy Point. Major Billcord could not help seeing his minions on board of the sailboat, and to suspect that they had come to grief; but he could not prevail on the coxswains to go near any of the craft from the other side of the lake.
Paul remained on board of the Sylph, for his evidence was needed in Westport in getting out the warrant for the arrest of the ruffians. The principal gave no orders of any kind to the commodore of the fleet, and he was left to do as he pleased. The students were consulted in regard to their wishes. Dory had gone on board of the Silver Moon as soon as the Marian came alongside of the steamer, and had obtained from Bissell all the details of the capture of Paul, and the subsequent events.
The Sylph stood over to the town, and the three boats locked together for a conference. The first thing was to hear Dory's account of Paul's adventures. Then they decided to wait until the Sylph started for home, for they were filled with curiosity to know what might be done with the ruffians.
Just then they discovered that the Chesterfield barges were lying on their oars off the southern arm of Sandy Point. They had some curiosity, and doubtless were more interested than their rivals. All the boats retained their positions for over an hour, when the Sylph was seen to leave the wharf. In a few minutes more she had crossed the bay, and stopped her screw near the Marian. The eight-oar barge was ordered to come alongside the steamer, and Paul was taken on board.
Of course they could not separate until the students had heard the news from Westport. In a few words the spare hand informed them that a warrant had been issued on the testimony of Paul and Bissell, and the six ruffians had been committed to the lockup. They were to be examined the next day, and the witnesses were duly summoned. In the presence of the magistrate Buck Lamb had broken down, and he declared that they had been employed by Major Billcord to capture Paul for the sum of twenty-five dollars. Two of the others indorsed this statement, and the principal had procured a warrant for his arrest, which was now in the hands of the constable. Captain Gildrock had procured the services of the best lawyer in the county of Essex to look after the business for him.
The news from Westport was very satisfactory, and the question seemed to be whether or not a man who had money enough to pay the bills could outrage a poor boy with impunity. Captain Gildrock's blood boiled, though it did not bubble, or otherwise manifest its condition.
The commodore gave the order for a start, and in a short time the barges came up with the Chesterfields, though they were a quarter of a mile farther out in the lake. The Sylph was hardly moving through the water, the principal doubtless holding her back to see that no trouble arose between the two schools. He took the precaution to run the steam yacht between the two parties, and soon found himself within hailing distance of the Dasher, with Major Billcord in the stern-sheets.
The two gentlemen were somewhat acquainted, and had occasionally met on the lake and at the bank in Burlington. As the Sylph went lazily along, the captain discovered a white handkerchief hoisted on a stick, and saw that the Dasher was pulling towards the steamer. He rang his bell to stop her, and she awaited the pleasure of the barge.
"Captain Gildrock, you and I have always been good neighbors, though we don't live on the same side of the lake," said Major Billcord, standing up in the stern-sheets of the barge. "I feel it my duty to give you a friendly warning. I learn that a young scoundrel by the name of Paul Bristol, whose family I have charitably harbored on my land without the payment of rent, came over to Westport to-day with the students of your school. He is a young villain, and I warn you not to trust him."
"I had come to the conclusion that he was a very good boy," replied the captain.
"You are utterly mistaken, sir!" protested the major. "He assaulted both my son and myself, for which I intend to punish him in the severest manner. His mother and sister live on the point here, in a cottage owned by the woman; and the boy lived here before he went to Genverres, if he has gone over there. I warned the woman to move her house at once. She has not done it, and I shall tumble the building into the lake. It will make some sport for our boys, and I thought yours might like to see the fun, and learn a good lesson in the administration of human justice. I should be happy to have your steamer and your barges take position near the point, where you can see the proceedings."
Captain Gildrock made no reply, and the Dasher pulled away without waiting for any. The two Chesterfield barges ran their bows into the sand in front of where the cottage had stood, and the Sylph, after whistling for the Beech Hill barges to approach, followed the Dasher. The barges from the other side pulled to the entrance of the bay, and lay upon their oars.
"Now is the time for the fun to begin, and we are invited to see it," said Dick Short to Paul, who sat by his side.
"I think there will be some fun, though it will not be what Major Billcord and his crowd came to see," added Dory.
On board of the Dasher, Jack Woodhorn had risen from his seat, after he had given the order for the oarsmen to boat their oars. All the students were busy attending to their blades. Woodhorn was evidently looking for the cottage; but he did not see it. Then the magnate stood up; then all the students in the two boats stood up, and then both barges were nearly upset by this folly, and the coxswains ordered their crews to be seated.
"Did I understand you to say there was a cottage here to be tumbled into the lake to illustrate the administration of human justice, Major Billcord?" called Captain Gildrock, who had placed the bow of the Sylph within a few feet of the stern of the Dasher.
"I don't understand this," replied the magnate. "The cottage was here yesterday, and it was quite impossible for the woman to move it. Send the young gentlemen ashore to see if they can find it."
The young gentlemen could not find it. The site where it had stood was smoothed over as nicely as though the building had never been there. The major said it was a great mystery.
"No human justice to-day, then?" queried the principal of the Beech Hill school. "Perhaps divine justice had got ahead of human justice in this instance, as it sometimes does."
"Do you know anything about it, sir?" demanded the major angrily.
"The cottage was removed to Genverres by the students of the Beech Hill Industrial School last night," replied the captain.
It is to be regretted that Major Billcord set a very bad example to the Chesterfield students by using profane language when the Beech Hill principal "let the cat out of the bag." At first he was not inclined to believe the statement, for it seemed incredible to him that any company of boys should have been able to put the cottage on a boat and convey it across the lake.
Captain Gildrock was obliged to explain how the work had been done, before he would accept the solution of the mystery. The principal offered to take him over to the school grounds and show him the cottage if he had any doubts on the subject.
"It was a shabby trick on your part, after all," said Major Billcord, when he had got the explanation through his head. "I don't interfere with your affairs on the other side of the lake, and I don't know of any reason why you should meddle with mine."
"As I understand the matter, major, you warned Mrs. Bristol to remove her cottage within twenty-four hours, or you would tumble it into the lake," replied the captain. "I simply allowed the students to assist the good woman in doing what you required her to do."
"You knew very well that this was a case of discipline on this side of the lake," replied the major, waxing exceedingly wrathy. "My son was attacked in the most brutal manner by that woman's cub, and she upheld the young villain, and would not allow him to be punished as he deserved. Of course, I knew the woman could not remove the cottage, and it would have been here now if you had not meddled with my business, like a very bad neighbor."
"I don't care to discuss the assault, as you call it, with you, but I think the boy and his mother were fully justified in their action," replied the principal, in firm but gentle tones.
"You do, do you?" demanded the major. "The young rascal abused my son. Look at his face," and he pointed at the interesting features of Walk, who sat in the boat listening to what his father said. "When I interfered to save my son from serious injury, he flew at me like a wildcat, and look at my eyes."
"Why didn't you prosecute the boy in the court, and have him properly punished?" suggested the captain, looking rather sarcastically at the magnate.
"I don't do business in that way," returned the major, boiling over with anger. "I shall punish the young rascal myself! I shall do it here at Sandy Point, where the outrage was committed. I have taken steps to have him brought here for that purpose."
"Then you expect Paul to be brought here, do you?" asked Captain Gildrock, astonished at the remarks of the magnate, for he had not a doubt that he had seen what had transpired while the sailboat was alongside the Sylph.
"I do expect him here very soon; and I shall tie him up to a tree and give him such a thrashing that he won't get off his bed for one month after it!" exclaimed Major Billcord, flourishing a rawhide in the air as he spoke.
"This strikes me as rather brutal," added the principal.
"Brutal? Look in Walker's face! Look in my face! Were the blows that made these marks brutal, or were they not? I shall have satisfaction for them!"
Captain Gildrock was trying to explain to himself how it happened that the magnate knew nothing of what had taken place alongside the steam yacht. As he thought the matter over he understood it better. The Sylph had been between the Silver Moon and the Chesterfield barges, so that they could not see what took place on the lee side of her.
While Paul was telling his story in the pilot-house, the Chesterfields, finding the Beech Hill boats gathering around the steamer, had pulled close up to the shore, and continued on their way to Sandy Point. Neither Major Billcord nor the students with him had been troubled with a doubt in regard to the fidelity of Bissell to their interests. Even if he was faithless, he had the six ruffians with him, and they would be more than a match for a single man.
However it had happened, it appeared that the magnate and the crews with him knew nothing at all about the capture of the ruffians. They had waited off the point till the Beech Hill fleet came up, and they concluded that the sloop was standing off towards Westport to avoid a meeting with the "tinkers."
The magnate wished the visitors from the other side to see the destruction of the cottage, and he had invited them to be spectators of the expected frolic. He had decided to attend of the cottage first, so that the Beech Hillers might see the fun, and to administer the punishment to Paul Bristol after they had gone, for he did not care to have them witness that spectacle.
"I am afraid you are laboring under a mistake, Major Billcord," continued Captain Gildrock. "Did I understand you to say that you expected Paul here to be punished for his brutality?"
"That is precisely what I do expect; and he will be here in the course of half an hour. But I need not detain you any longer, sir," replied the magnate, with very ill grace. "There is no mistake about it, you may depend upon it."
"If you will pardon me, there is some mistake, for Paul Bristol is here now," added the captain. "Marian, ahoy! Back down this way," he shouted to the barges, which were lying at the entrance to Sandy Bay.
The crews were lying on their oars, and Dick Short promptly gave the order, "Stern all," and the Marian soon put her stern very near the bow of the steamer.
"Stand up, Bristol, and show yourself," said the captain.
Paul stood up in the stern-sheets of the barge, and Major Billcord looked at him as though he had been a spectre from some neighboring graveyard. Then he had a moment's animated conversation with the coxswain at his side. It was another mystery, and possibly the magnate thought he was in the middle of the last chapter of a novel. How had it been possible for him to get out of the clutches of the six ruffians?
But the mystery suddenly paled, and the major threw himself into a towering passion. The object of his intended vengeance was before him. Jack Woodhorn, at the request of the magnate, summoned his crews from the shore. It looked as though the enraged major intended to attempt the capture of his victim under the very eyes of the Beech Hillers.
"That is Paul Bristol, as you may see for yourself, Major Billcord," said Captain Gildrock, when he observed the preparations on the part of the Chesterfields to do something. "He is now a student in the Beech Hill Industrial School; and to him, for the time being, I stand in the relation in loco parentis; I shall protect him to the fullest extent."
"Captain Gildrock, this is unfriendly to me, and—"
"But friendly to the boy and his mother, who need a friend more than you do," interposed the principal. "The six ruffians you hired to capture that poor boy have been arrested and committed to the lockup. Some of them admitted that they were employed by you to do this piece of villany, and there is a warrant out for your arrest. Doubtless, the facts will all come out at the examination to-morrow forenoon; and if it appears that I have done you any wrong, I shall be prepared to make you abundant reparation."
"A warrant for my arrest!" exclaimed Major Billcord, sinking down into his seat.
"I have employed the Hon. Richard Lawbrook to look after the case in my absence, and I hope justice will be done," added the captain as he rang two bells in the pilot-house.
At the same time the principal made a motion with his hand, in the direction of home, to the boats ahead of the steamer. The barges backed into position, and the commodore shouted the order to give way. In a minute more they were in line, pulling down the lake, but keeping near the shore.
Major Billcord did not utter a word to anyone. He was in deep thought. Very likely his impulsive nature had led him to organize the plan for the capture of Paul without any consideration of the possible consequences. He was by far the richest man in that region, and owned no end of shares in all the industrial and commercial enterprises of that part of the State. He was a man of large influence, and was not over-scrupulous in regard to the use of it. With such power, he was in the habit of having his own way, though there were a few people in the neighborhood who contrived to maintain their own independence, even at the risk of quarrelling with the magnate.
Among the latter was the Hon. Richard Lawbrook, a prominent lawyer in the county, who had been made a senator, though without pledges, in part by the influence of the major. But when the legislator was requested and pressed to promote by his eloquence a more than questionable enterprise, his conscience revolted, and he refused his aid. This had produced a bitter quarrel between himself and the magnate, though all the honest people believed that the senator was an upright and just man.
Doubtless, the mention of the senator's name had produced a decided effect upon the mind of the magnate. Mr. Lawbrook was a man of influence, who believed that the laws should be impartially executed upon the rich as well as the poor. The prospect ahead was not pleasant.
There was no "pile of fun" to be had at the point that day, and Commodore Woodhorn backed away from the beach as soon as his crews were in a condition to do so. Without asking the major any questions, he conveyed his distinguished passenger over to the town, and landed him at the steps. The procession was formed to escort him to his elegant mansion when Mr. Bulfington appeared, and respectfully announced that he had a warrant for the arrest of the object of the parade. The major was impatient when the officer presented himself, and told him to call at his house if he had any business with him.
The constable politely intimated that it was a criminal proceeding, and that he was under the necessity of taking his prisoner wherever he could find him. He treated the culprit just as though he had been a poor man, which was a new experience to the magnate. He was taken to the lockup, and confined in a cell. With the major behind the bars, Mr. Bulfington was complaisant enough to do anything he required. A couple of wealthy friends were sent for, and the major and the six ruffians were bailed out in the course of an hour.
There had been some earnest talk between Captain Gildrock and Mr. Lawbrook, for the former wished to know whether justice represented a substantial idea in the State of New York. The senator was confident that all men were equal before the law; and as he had more influence with the constable than any other person had, Mr. Bulfington was unwilling to assume any special responsibility in regard to his powerful prisoner.
The Beech Hill fleet went home, and not only the students, but the families at the mansion and at Hornet Point had enough to talk about for the rest of the day. The next morning, when all the students except Paul were at their studies in the school-room, the Sylph, with Mrs. Bristol and Lily on board with Paul, sailed for Westport.
Major Billcord had the services of a distinguished lawyer from Plattsburgh and of another from Elizabethtown to defend himself and the six ruffians. They almost made a "celebrated case" of it. They got the trial into the county court, and the six ruffians were sentenced to ten days confinement in the county prison, and the major himself to thirty days.
The assault and the conspiracy were too outrageous, in the opinion of the justice, to be punished with a simple fine. The workingmen and the farmers had got hold of the case and talked a great deal about it. Against the advice of the eminent legal gentlemen he employed, Paul Bristol was prosecuted for the first assault upon Walker Billcord, and this brought in the testimony of Lily and her mother, which the lawyers wanted to keep out. This evidence completed the history of the case by filling in the beginning of the trouble.
Paul was fully justified and acquitted, and the people praised him for his defence of his sister. Fathers and mothers were interested, for they looked to the law for the protection of their children. Every effort was made to save the magnate from the disgrace of being confined in a common prison, but public sentiment would have been indignant, and he had to serve out his time.
The farmers and mechanics were inclined to go as far the wrong way in one direction as the major and his friends were in the other. The magnate was a "soulless capitalist," a "bloated bondholder," and he suffered, especially among the mill hands, for this senseless reason. But the judge was even-handed between the two parties, and the major learned a lesson which was worth half his fortune to him—that before the law he was no more than the equal of the poor man.
Four of the six ruffians were taken from the institute by their parents, who had sent them there to be fitted for college, and they were sure that their sons had been led away by the influence of Major Billcord, and by the lack of proper discipline in the school. Three others were removed for the same reason. The loss of these pupils was a severe blow to Colonel Buckmill, who had condemned the conduct of the major from the first.
Though other students were soon obtained to take their places, and even to increase the number of pupils in the school, the colonel realized that he was not managing the institution on the right principle. The magnate had lost much of his influence in the vicinity, and the principal found that he could afford to be independent of him, for it would pay better.
On the day of the examination, Captain Gildrock called the students of Beech Hill together in the school-room in the afternoon, after the studies had been finished. The model to which he had alluded at the time of his lecture on shipbuilding was still on the table where it had been placed on that occasion. The students had examined it with a great deal of interest. They had read all they could find in the books in the library on the subject, and studied the three plans on the wall.
They were very impatient, as young men always are, to begin the actual work of building the boat. It was even more to their taste than erecting a house, though many of them were now competent to frame a building from the plans.
The subject of a name for the craft had engaged their attention, and they had given a great deal of thought to it. They were all ambitious to name the schooner, and a great variety of names was likely to be presented. They had all been handed in; and when the principal announced that the first business was to select one from them, Mr. Bentnick handed him the envelope which contained them.
"Lily," said the captain, laughing, as he took the first paper from the enclosure.
All the boys looked very good-natured, though something like embarrassment appeared upon the faces of not a few of them.
"Lily," continued the captain, reading the second suggestion.
The good-natured looks expanded into smiles.
"Lily," the principal said again, as he drew out the third paper. The smile became a little more intense.
"Lily," repeated the principal once more, and then he emptied all the slips of paper from the envelope, and began to sort them over.
Principal, instructors and students were all laughing merrily by this time. It was evident that the boys were very impressible fellows, and had been captivated by the beauty of Miss Bristol. Possibly some of them were disturbed because they found that others had made the same selection as their own.
"They are not all alike," said Captain Gildrock, when he had finished sorting the papers. "Only about two thirds of them are 'Lily.' It is certainly a very pretty name, and there is no flower more pure and beautiful than the lily. But the name is rather general and indefinite. We have the tiger lily, the lily of the valley, the pond lily, and other kinds. What do you say to calling the schooner the Pond Lily?"
"No, sir!" shouted a majority of the students, with one voice.
"The Tiger Lily, then?"
"No, sir," was the emphatic reply.
"Then Lily of the Valley?"
"No, sir!" again voted the majority.
"Perhaps I shall have to ask Miss Millweed for the names of other kinds of lilies," added the principal, with a very pleasant smile.
"None of them!" exclaimed the crowd, encouraged by the cheerful expression of the captain.
"None of them?"
"Lily Bristol!" called Luke Bennington. "I put in another name, but that is what the fellows mean."
"Yes, sir!" cried the majority.
Captain Gildrock improved this opportunity to say something about the influence of female society, and especially of young ladies. If Beech Hill were not a school of mechanic arts, he should be in favor of having as many young ladies as young gentlemen on its roll of pupils. He was in favor of co-education, whereat Mr. Bentnick shook his head, and seemed to be uneasy in his seat, though Mr. Darlingby showed a disposition to clap his hands. The captain was an old-fashioned man, he said, but he hoped he had modern and progressive ideas. He was not in favor of "pretty girls."
At this point about half a dozen of the students gave something like a suppressed groan. The principal paused, the dissentients wished they had said nothing; but he did not add a word. He seemed to feel that they had as much right to express themselves in this manner as to applaud, or express themselves in other ways.
"I don't believe in pretty girls as such," he continued, "because they monopolize the sole attention of young men, to the exclusion of others even more worthy who are personally less attractive. But I hardly expect young gentlemen to adopt my views on this subject before they have lived to be as old as I am. When you have an opportunity, boys, bestow some attention upon the 'wallflowers.'"
He had not intended to say so much on this part of the subject, and he resumed the general topic. Ladies should be treated with the utmost respect, whether attractive or not, and even if they did not conduct themselves like ladies. He did not prohibit the students from associating with the young ladies of Genverres and the neighboring towns, under proper circumstances, and thought female society was beneficial to them. But profound respect must be the basis of such relations. There should be nothing like undue familiarity with them, and a young lady, even if not more than fifteen, should not be addressed by her Christian name except by her relatives. It must always be "Miss Bristol," and not "Lily," or even "Miss Lily."
"Not Miss Lily?" said a puzzled student.
"That is a grade of familiarity between the surname and the given name, proper enough for persons who are intimate enough to use it, but not applicable in the present instance. Now, to return to the name of the schooner, from which the papers withdrew my attention. I am entirely willing that you should give her a name."
After what the principal had said about pretty girls, most of the students concluded that any attempt to give the name of one of that sisterhood to the craft would be vetoed. They were not quite satisfied to have their wishes disregarded. His last words, however, gave them a little encouragement. The principal picked up the slips of paper and counted them, or a portion of them.
"Twenty-three have given in the name of 'Lily,'" said he, taking up those which indicated some other name. "'Champlain,' 'Lake Bird,' 'Lake Gem,' 'Saranac,' and the names of most of the lakes and rivers in Vermont. Among them are 'Addison' (our county), 'Genverres,' either of which would be a very good, and a very appropriate name. I don't like the fancy names, such as 'Gem of the Lake,' as well as the more substantial ones. Now you may vote on the question, and the name among those I have read which has a majority shall be the one selected."
This announcement brought out some applause. Then the captain said it would be in order for any student who wished to recommend any particular name, to say what he pleased on the subject. This permission brought Luke Bennington to his feet.
"I don't believe there is a craft on the lake now called the 'Champlain.' There has been a large steamer, but she is no longer in existence," said the speaker, with considerable earnestness. "In my opinion—and I have seen the lakes of Scotland and Switzerland—Lake Champlain is the finest lake in the world."
"Oh! Oh! Oh!" murmured several listeners.
"Of course the size of the lake comes into the comparison, or Lake George might be nothing by the side of a little pond between a couple of hills. We have the Adirondacks on one side, and the Green Mountains on the other; and, taking everything into consideration, I vote for Lake Champlain as the finest. For this reason, and because it is the element on which the schooner is to figure, I hope its name will be given to her."
Another student spoke in favor of "Battenkill," but he proved to be the only one who had ever heard the name. He explained that it was a river which had its source in Vermont, though it soon wandered into New York. A third student spoke for "Addison," and a fourth for "Genverres." The advocates of "Lily" seemed to be conscious of their strength, and all of them were too bashful to make a speech in its favor.
Mr. Darlingby passed around the box, and all voted. The ballots were quickly counted by the instructors, who appeared to be quite as much interested as the boys, and the principal read the result. It was evident then that a few did not care a straw for the name, and voted for the fun of it.
"Tiger Lily, 1; Pond Lily, 1; Lake Gem, 1; Genverres, 1; Addison, 1; Battenkill, 1; Champlain, 2; Lily, 28," the principal read from the paper made out by Mr. Bentnick.
The vote was received with tremendous applause, and the students continued to clap their hands until the captain raised his linger as a signal for them to cease.
"The schooner will be called the 'Lily,'" added the principal.
While the boys were getting over the excitement attending the vote on the name of the unbuilt schooner, Captain Gildrock moved the table on which the model of the craft stood to the front of the platform, where all could see it. It was a very graceful form, and the nautical boys were sure that the schooner would be a fast sailer.
"I told you before," said the principal, "that this model was constructed on a new plan; but I have since learned that the idea is not as original as I supposed it was, and that boats have been built by this method. I supposed I should be the first to introduce it, but I find I am not, though the model-maker had never made one before.
"The plans are drawn and the model made on the scale of one inch to a foot. Whatever measures an inch in the plan or model measures a foot in the boat. Every stick in the craft will therefore be twelve times the size it is in this model. The Lily will have a beam of thirteen feet, which is a little more than one-third of the length.
"This model is made of soft pine and mahogany. The ribs are to be twenty-one inches from the centre of one to the centre of the next one. What looks to you like the space between the timbers, or ribs, is pine. The mahogany strips, which are comparatively narrow, represent the timbers. The pieces are transverse sections of the hull, made separately and put together.
"This is the stem," continued the principal, detaching the piece from the model. "A model of it is to be made of soft wood, enlarged to twelve times the size of this piece. Removing a piece of the pine, we come to a mahogany section. As the bow is round, these sections radiate from a shorter line on the keel than the horizontal line above it on the deck would be."
The captain held up one of these diagonal sections, the top or deck part of which was in the shape of a triangle with a very acute angle. The parts were in pairs, one belonging on each side of the bows.
"The outer edge of this half section gives the shape of the bow where this piece belongs. If you lay it on a smooth board, you can mark from it the exact curve of the timber which is to go where this piece is taken out. It must be enlarged to twelve times the size of the section. Of course the outer surface of the section only is of any use to you; but having obtained the exact shape of the outside, the rib may be made of any width and thickness we wish."
The principal removed several of the diagonal half sections, all of which were to be treated like the first one. At the widest part of the model he came to pieces which were of uniform thickness. These were also in pairs, separated on the vertical plane above the keel. The lines of the outer surface in these half sections were to be transferred and enlarged as before, and the mould or pattern was to be made from them.
In this manner the model was pulled to pieces, and from the edges of the transverse sections the shape of the craft was to be obtained. The stern-post, stern-knees and transoms were to be shaped in the same way. The captain stated that the model represented the craft after she was planked, and it would be necessary, in drafting the moulds, to allow for its thickness.
Mr. Jepson then took the platform and explained in what manner the outlines of the half sections were to be enlarged. To give all the details would take a whole volume, and doubtless it would be very dry reading to most young people. Only an idea of how the work was to be done can be given, and those who wish to build such a craft as the Lily, or even a boat or a canoe of a third of her length, need full drawings and very minute explanations.[A]
These lectures used up the rest of the afternoon. The next day was devoted to making the moulds. At the end of ten days the frame was ready to set up. The keel was laid down at an angle of three-quarters of an inch to the foot, so that it would readily slide off when the time came to launch it. The boys had been studying on the subject, and the principal had supplied the library with all the available works. They labored very hard because they were very deeply interested.
Setting up the frame was an exceedingly exciting labor with them; but when it was up they found the shape corresponded with the model. Some had done their work better than others, and here and there it was necessary to do considerable fitting. In another week the frame was ready for the planking. Captain Gildrock gave frequent lectures on the proper methods of doing the work, and explained the construction of larger vessels than the Lily.
A part of the Champlain mechanics, as they still called themselves, worked in the shop, and a part in the building-shed. There were a great many bolts of iron and copper, and a great many metal plates, braces and straps to be prepared, which gave abundant employment to the machinists, who had been instructed by the head of this department in forge-work, as well as filing and turning.
The carpenters had plenty to do in the shop, with abundant opportunity to learn many things which are not required in the ordinary experience of such mechanics. There was also room enough for the exercise of their inventive powers.
With so many enthusiastic workmen, who found abundant variety in their operations as the schooner advanced towards completion, the planking was soon finished. Then a dozen of the carpenters went to work upon it with the smoothing-planes, and the outer surface was made as smooth as a floor.
The hull rested in the cradle which had been erected for it, and the tops of the timbers were secured in their places by cross-stays. So far, little or nothing had been said about the interior of the hull, for the reason that the frame and planking had absorbed all the attention of the workmen. The next step was to put in the deck-beams, and secure the shelves on which they were to rest.
"Now, boys, we must decide upon the plan for the inside of the schooner," said the principal, when he had called the students together in the building-shed. "What accommodations shall we provide on board?"
"A cabin and a standing-room," replied Life Windham.
"Like the Goldwing," suggested Matt Randolph.
"The Goldwing contains a cabin, cook-room and standing-room. We can have all these on a larger scale in the Lily; and there will be space in the run for a store-room and ice-house, with a door into it from the cabin."
"Behind the steps at the companion-way," added Matt.
"There is no other way to reach it unless you put a scuttle in the floor of the standing-room, which is liable to leak," replied the principal. "The steps can be hung on hinges and turn up, but I think it is better to slip them back out of the way. How long will you have the cabin?" "How much clear space have we inboard?" asked Luke Bennington.
"About thirty feet, after allowing for the bend of the bows and the rake of the stern," answered the principal.
"Cabin fourteen feet, I should say," continued Luke. "That will leave eight feet besides the overhang for the standing-room, and the same for the cook-room."
"That was my calculation," replied Captain Gildrock. "Then we want a trunk fourteen feet long, which may be about nine feet wide on the main deck. This will make a very roomy apartment for a lake craft. On each side of it we must build up transoms, or divans, for seats or berths. As we have no centreboard in the middle of it, there will be nothing in our way." "Why didn't we build a centreboard boat?" asked Matt Randolph.
"I think a keel boat is safer and stiffer. In Lake Champlain we have plenty of water, though we shall draw about five feet aft. There are shoal places, but there isn't the least need of running over them."
"In a centreboard boat, if you get aground, there is a chance for you to work off when you cannot in a keel," said Matt.
"That is very true; but I think the stiffness of the keel craft more than compensates for the advantage of light draft in these waters."
The principal then made a drawing to illustrate the method of putting in the beams and the knees that were to support them. As only a portion of the beams could extend entirely across the boat, on account of the elevation of the trunk, it required careful work and planning to secure the necessary strength. But this problem had been solved by the instructors, and the descriptions of the timbers were obtained.
In a few days more the frame of the trunk and deck was in place. While a part of the workmen were planking the deck, the rest were putting down the floor of the cabin, and building the transoms. Before the 1st of July the work on the hull was completed. The boys had contrived a great many lockers in the cook-room and cabin, for the storage of dishes and cooking utensils, and for everything needed on board.
Inside and outside, all hands went over the work with sandpaper. A gang of calkers had already filled the seams with oakum. Tar, pitch, and putty had been used where they were needed, and no one considered it possible for the craft to leak a drop.
A thin coat of lead color was then put on the outside, and one of white inside. The boys had some skill in painting, for they had been called upon to do all kinds of work, from laying brick up to tinkering a watch. Several coats were given to the whole, but the last two on the outside were of black.
Captain Gildrock had decided to have an iron false keel added, partly to protect the wood and partly to serve as ballast. A pattern of the casting had been made and sent up to Port Henry to be cast. It was in one piece, and weighed over a ton. Of course, it had to be bolted on before the Lily was launched. It was too heavy and cumbrous to be transported on the Sylph; but Mr. Miker had to deliver a cargo of stone at Port Henry, and it could be brought down on the gundalow. It was nothing but fun for the students to tow the unwieldy craft about the lake, and the next Saturday holiday was to be used for this purpose.
At eight o'clock in the morning the Sylph, fully manned by the students this time, started out of the creek with her tow. Paul Bristol had been assigned to a place as a deck hand on board, and he had made several trips in the steamer. On the present occasion he had asked to be excused, in order to attend to some work for his mother.
For two weeks before, Lily had been at work for Mr. Bissell, taking the place of Susy Wellington, who had gone to visit her friends in Albany. She had written to her mother that she should like to spend Sunday at home. It was difficult and expensive to get from Westport to Genverres then, for the steamers did not go up Beaver River.
Paul thought he could manage it. As it was a still day on the lake, he was going after her in the flatboat, in the afternoon. It was a ten-mile pull, but he was good for that. He had hauled up the boat after dinner to put it in order, when he discovered a queer-looking craft coming down the creek.