Chapter XXX · LAUNCHING THE BOAT.

The Sylph, with the gundalow, did not arrive till it was nearly dark. The shoe was not done when the scow was ready to take it on board, and they had to wait for the workmen to drill the holes for the bolts. The ship's company had seen the Undine when she passed Port Henry, but no one there knew to whom she belonged, or anything whatever in regard to her. They saw that she was the counterpart of the Sylph, and knew that she was one of the celebrated class to which she belonged.

Some of the students thought there might be a chance for a race between her and the Beech Hill steamer; but Dory was sure enough that Captain Gildrock would not permit the Sylph to race with anything that went by steam.

The principal had returned from Burlington in the afternoon, and when he saw the four-oar boat, with the Dragon in tow, moving up to Hornet Point, he walked over to the cottage. He was a spectator of the affecting interview between Mrs. Bristol and her husband, even before the Dragon was hauled up to the shore.

Tom Topover was very much battered in the conflict with Paul. He was sure of two very black eyes, and he could hardly walk when he was helped out of the flatboat. The principal thought he had been punished enough for the present; and as he seemed to be very humble, for him, he was allowed to limp home, after a strong admonition from the captain.

The principal had been so good a friend to the family, that Mrs. Bristol begged him to stay and hear her husband's story, and listen to the adventures of Paul since he left in the afternoon. The moving of the cottage had to be related by Paul. The prolonged conversation was interrupted only by the arrival of the Sylph. After the shoe was landed at the boat-shed, and the gundalow towed to the stone quarry, the students learned all about the new steamer, in which they were very much interested, though they were sorry to learn that Major Billcord was her owner.

On Monday afternoon, the shoe was bolted to the keel of the Lily, and the inside work, which had been left unfinished for this job, was completed. The following Saturday was appointed for the launch of the boat, for this day would complete the school year of the institution. Invitations had been sent to the gentlemen who had served as examiners the preceding year, and on Friday afternoon the Sylph, fully manned, and dressed in gay colors, brought up Mr. Bridges, Mr. Ritchie, and Mr. Plint. They were hospitably entertained at the mansion.

In the forenoon a sort of public exhibition took place in the great hall of the boat-house, which delighted the spectators, and gave them a very high idea of the progress of the students in the mechanic arts, as well as in the book studies. After this show, the visitors went through the shops, and inspected the Lily as she stood on the stocks. A brass band played a portion of the time, and in the middle of the day a choice collation was served on the green.

About all the young ladies in Genverres, and not a few from Burlington and Westport, were present. Possibly there was some heavy flirting done, for again the students in their uniform were lions of the first order.

But the great event of the day was to be the launch of the Lily. She had been fully prepared in the morning for the exciting occasion, and two jury-masts had been put up on board, and she was covered with flags and streamers. The boat was to move from the ways at four, and an hour before that time the students and the principal were not a little astonished to see the two Chesterfield barges pull into the Beechwater, and take positions near the farther side of the lake.

Captain Gildrock sent Mr. Bentnick, the principal instructor, to invite them on shore to partake of a collation. Colonel Buckmill sat in the stern-sheets of the Dasher, but he politely declined the invitation, with profuse thanks. His young gentlemen desired to see the launch, but he would not give the principal any trouble on such a busy day.

The captain was sorry for this refusal, but he seemed to insist that the hospitality of Beech Hill should not suffer in the estimation of the students from the other side, and he sent a boat loaded with ice-cream, cake, and lemonade to the unwonted visitors, which were accepted with more thanks.

At a few minutes before four, the principal and a small party, including not more than half a dozen of the students, went on board of the Lily. A little later, the gallant captain of the Sylph escorted Miss Lily Bristol to the deck of the boat. Her appearance was the occasion of the most tremendous applause on the part of the students and the crowd assembled on shore. It was observed that the Chesterfields joined in this demonstration, with a vigor which astonished their former foes.

Captain Gildrock gave certain orders, which were followed by the sound of hammers as the hands knocked away the wedges. The principal raised his hand, which was followed by one discharge of a cannon. At this instant the hull began to move very slowly. Assisted by Captain Dornwood, Lily Bristol ascended to the heel of the bowsprit with a bottle in her hand.

What this bottle contained no one but the captain knew. According to tradition and custom, it ought to be filled with wine; but the principal was a very strong, practical temperance man. However, as the contents of the bottle were to be dashed into the lake, it did not much matter what they were.

The velocity of the moving hull increased as she descended the inclined plane; and as soon as she was under full headway, Lily broke the bottle over the bow of the schooner.

"I give to this vessel the name of Lily, and may she be prosperous on the element to which she belongs," said she.

Then the band struck up "Hail to the Chief," and all the students and everybody else yelled and applauded with all their might. The ladies waved their handkerchiefs, and a salvo of artillery followed. The Lily struck the water, and ploughed her way nearly to the other side of the lake, where she was brought up by the lines attached to her. She rested on the water as gracefully as a swan, and as soon as she was fairly afloat, another series of ringing cheers saluted her.

The Sylph, under the charge of the first officer, immediately fastened to her, and she was towed to her berth at the wharf, where she was to remain until the next school year began, in September. But the visitors were eager to examine her, and an arrangement was made by which all who desired could pass on board, make the circuit of her deck and then leave without causing an uncomfortable crowd. Through the cabin doors and the opening for the skylight they could see something of the cabin, while the fore-scuttle gave a partial view of the cook-room.

The young officers and crew of the Sylph told their friends they should see her after she was rigged, her sails bent on, and the cabin and cook-room were furnished. There could be no doubt, so far as the students were concerned, that the young ladies who gushed so prettily over the craft would be invited to sail in her.

With this great event ended the second school year of the Beech Hill Industrial School. The students were certainly satisfied with the experience they had had there, and, notwithstanding the sharpness of the discipline, they had only pleasant memories of the past. Those who had been there two years were well prepared to earn their own living. Though none of the machinists or carpenters could be called finished workmen, they were skilled enough to obtain moderate wages. It would require more years of study and practice to make them into first-class mechanics.

None of them had yet completed the course of instruction, though the needs of their parents compelled seven of them to leave the school and assist in supporting families. By this time the reputation of the school had been established, and there were applications for three times as many young men to work as engineers, carpenters, and machinists. Good places were secured for those who were obliged to leave.

Three of them were to run stationary engines, one was to work as a carpenter, and three more were to learn trades for which their education had fitted them to a considerable degree. The principal had given them a lecture on the subject of wages, in which he bluntly told them that they could not expect full wages, for they were not competent to earn them. They were not yet physically able to do the work of a man, and they were not competent to do all that would be required of them in their several trades and callings. They had learned a great deal, and had acquired considerable dexterity; but if they were judged by what they did not know, they would stand as weak vessels. No man ever learned out in his trade, and the time never came when there was nothing more to learn.

A certain very wise man, as men are measured, declared that he had only learned enough to realize what a fool he was. The principal told the graduates that one of their greatest perils was that of knowing too much. Modesty in regard to the measurement of their own skill and knowledge was essential to them. It was better that others should find out how much they knew rather than themselves.

On Monday morning the Sylph went up the lake with the examiners and others who were to spend their vacations at home. In the afternoon she went down the lake with those who were going in that direction, and the ship's company was considerably smaller when the steamer returned to Beech Hill.

Mr. Bristol went on the afternoon trip, for Corny Minkfield and John Brattle, the engineers, were to be left at Burlington. Mr. Jepson was privately instructed by the principal to test his qualifications. It appeared that while he had but little scientific knowledge, he was as competent to run an engine as the majority of those who were employed in this capacity.

"I confess, Mr. Bristol, that I am very much interested in your family, and I shall be glad to retain you at the school," said Captain Gildrock. "I find that Mr. Jepson's duty in connection with the running of the engines in the shops interferes with his usefulness as an instructor. I shall relieve him entirely of the laborious task he has hitherto performed in the most faithful manner, for he is too valuable as a teacher to have any of his time wasted. I shall appoint you as engineer of the shops, though you are to serve in the steamer when required."

"I thank you, sir, with all my heart," replied Mr. Bristol. "You have done so much for my family, that I already owe you a debt of gratitude I could never repay."

"What I have done has afforded me as much pleasure as it has the members of the family," added the principal.

"The moving of the cottage was the greatest and the most timely thing that ever was done. But, Captain Gildrock, I saved considerable money, for a poor man, and I should like to buy a lot of land for my wife's cottage, and put a cellar under it."

"How do you like its present location?" asked the captain.

"Paradise has no finer spot, sir."

"Then I will give you a deed of the lot on which the house stands, without any money, for it will be a great protection to my estate to have your family in just that locality."

Mr. Bristol was overwhelmed at this generous offer, and he accepted it with a heart full of gratitude. During the vacation the house was raised somewhat and a cellar put under it. The Topovers, who had troubled the captain for years by their incursions, ceased to come in by the road to the stone-quarries.

Though it was vacation at Beech Hill, and only a very few of the boys, who had no homes, remained during the summer months, there were some lively times there. The instructors were all gone, but plenty of company came from the cities. Almost every day there was some kind of an excursion, and Mr. Bristol was available as engineer, so that the Sylph was constantly in use.

Captain Gildrock had another idea come into his fertile brain. The Lily was so great a success that he decided to build a steam yacht about half the length of the Sylph, and to have the engine constructed in the shops by the students. He found they enjoyed their work more when they were doing something which they could use when it was completed. However, he did not say much about it.

Dory Dornwood, though his uncle suggested a trip to New York, Niagara, or Montreal, found more pleasure in staying at home, strange as it may seem. Paul made himself useful as fireman or deck hand on board of the steam yacht, or as a foremast hand in the Goldwing. Mrs. Bristol and Lily were almost always passengers when either craft made an excursion, and so were Mrs. Dornwood and Marian.

The young captain of the Sylph spent a good deal of time at the cottage on Hornet Point, possibly because he had conducted the enterprise of transporting the structure from Sandy Point to its present locality. The captain and Dory's mother laughed a great deal about his constant visits, but as he never called the young lady anything but "Miss Bristol," the visits were not regarded as dangerous for the present.

Major Billcord and Walk sailed the Undine all over the lake, but she was apt to give the Sylph a wide berth. The testimony of Tom Topover was not considered sufficient to convict Walk of bribing him to capture Paul. Certainly, Tom got the worst of it, and the magnate was content to let the punishment of the son of toil go by default.

The third school year opened as prosperously as either of its predecessors, and the next volume of the series will doubtless contain as many of the adventures of the students on the lake and elsewhere as the former ones, as well as complete the unfinished work on the Lily; and, of course, the reader will find everything "All Taut" about the schooner after they have finished "Rigging the Boat."