The Yacht Club; or, The Young Boat-Builder by Oliver Optic (important books to read txt) 📗

throwing away such large sums, unnecessarily large, to accomplish his object. The Lincolnville outrage was the only possible solution; but if he were the ruffian, he would not have been on Long Island when he had a fair wind to run home, and Sykes and his wife both agreed that he had left the house on the morning that Donald had seen him. It was not possible, therefore, that the captain was guilty of the outrage. Laud had paid him seven fifty dollar bills, and he had over four hundred dollars in his pocket. He did not know what to do with it, and feeling that he had come honestly by it, he was vexed at the necessity of concealing it from his mother; but he was determined to pay it out, as occasion required, for stock and hardware for[137] the yacht he was building. When he went to his chamber, he concealed three hundred and fifty dollars of the money in a secret place in the pine bureau in which his clothes were kept.

The next morning Kennedy appeared with the man he was authorized to employ, and the chips flew briskly in the shop all that day. At noon Donald went to the wharf where he had bought his stock, and paid the bill for it. The lumber dealer commended his promptness, and offered to give him credit for any lumber he might need; but Donald proudly declared that he should pay cash for all he bought, and he wanted the lowest cash prices. On his return to the shop, he entered, in the account-book his father had kept, the amount he had expended. The work went bravely on, for his two journeymen were interested in his success. They were glad to get employment, and desired that the young boat-builder should not only build a fine yacht, but should make money by the job. The stem-piece and stern-post were set up, and gradually the frame began to assume the shape of a vessel. Donald watched the forming of the yacht very carefully, and saw that everything was done according to the model and the scale.[138]

On Saturday morning Mr. Rodman, accompanied by a friend who was a ship-builder, visited the shop to inspect the work. The frame, so far as it had been set up, was carefully examined, and the expert cordially approved all that had been done, declaring that he had never seen a better job in his life. Of course Donald was proud of this partial success.

"I have had some doubts, Don John," laughed Mr. Rodman; "but I am entirely satisfied now."

"Thank you, sir. I have had no doubts; I could see that frame in my mind as plainly before a stick had been touched as I do now."

"You have done well, and I am quite sure that you will make a yacht of it. Now, if you will give me a receipt for one hundred dollars, I will let you have so much towards the price of the Maud, for I suppose you want to pay your men off to-night."

"I have money enough, sir, to pay my men, and I don't ask you for any money yet," replied the young boat-builder.

"But I prefer to pay you as the work progresses."

Donald did not object, and wrote the receipt.[139] He was a minor, and his mother, who was the administratrix of her husband's estate, was the responsible party in the transaction of business; but he did not like to sign his mother's name to a receipt, and thus wholly ignore himself, and, adopting a common fiction in trade, he wrote, "Ramsay and son," which he determined should be the style of the firm. Ramsay might mean his father or his mother, and he had already arranged this matter with her. Mr. Rodman laughed at the signature, but did not object to it, and Donald put the money in his pocket, after crediting it on the book.

This was the day appointed for the first regatta of the Yacht Club. The coming event had been talked about in the city during the whole week, not only among the boys, but among the men who were interested in yachting. About a dozen yachts had been entered for the race, though only four of them belonged to the club; those that were not enrolled being nominally in charge of members, in order to conform to the regulations. Donald had measured all these boats, and made a schedule of them, in which appeared the captain's name, the length of the craft, with the correction[140] to be subtracted from the sailing time in order to reduce it to standard time. There were columns in the table for the starting time, the return time, and the sailing time. The "correction" was virtually the allowance which a large yacht made to a smaller one for the difference in length.

The club had adopted the regulation of the Dorchester Yacht Club, which contained a "table of allowance per mile." In this table, a yacht one hundred and ten feet six inches long, is taken as the standard for length. The Skylark was just thirty feet long on the water-line, and her allowance by the table was two minutes forty-three and four tenths seconds for every mile sailed in a regatta. The Sea Foam's length was three inches less, and her allowance was one and three tenths seconds more. Donald had his table all ready for the use of the judges, of whom he had been appointed the chairman. Mr. Montague's large yacht had been anchored in the bay, gayly dressed with flags and streamers, to be used as the judges' boat. The yachts were to start at ten o'clock.

"I don't want to leave my work a bit," said Donald, as he took off his apron. "I may have to lose a whole day in the race, and I can't afford it."[141]

"Now, I think you can," replied Kennedy.

"It looks too much like boys' play."

"No matter what it is. If you are going to make a business of building yachts and sail-boats, it is for your interest to encourage this sort of thing all you can," added Kennedy.

"I think you are right there," answered Donald, who had not before taken this view.

"Besides, you ought to see how the boats work. You will get some ideas that will be of use to you. You should observe every movement of the boats with the utmost care. I think you will make more money attending the regattas, if there was one every week, than by working in the shop."

"You are right, Kennedy, and I am glad you expressed your opinions, for I shall feel that I am not wasting my time."

"Your father has been to Newport and New York on purpose to attend regattas, and I am sure, if he were here now, he would not miss this race for a fifty-dollar bill," continued the workman.

Donald was entirely satisfied, and went into the house to dress for the occasion. He was soon[142] ready, and walked down the beach towards the skiff he used to go off to the sail-boat. The sky was overcast, and the wind blew a smashing breeze, promising a lively race. The Juno had been entered for the regatta, but she was still at her moorings off the shop, and Donald wondered where Laud was, for he had been very enthusiastic over the event. Before he could embark, the new proprietor of the Juno appeared. He was dressed in a suit of new clothes, wore a new round-top hat, and sported a cane in his hand. His mustache had been freshly colored, and every hair was carefully placed. He did not look like a yachtman; more like a first-class swell.

"I have been all the morning looking for some fellows to sail with me," said Laud. "I can't find a single one. Won't you go with me, Don John?"

"Thank you; I am one of the judges, and I can't go," replied Donald, who, if he had not been engaged, would have preferred to sail with some more skilful and agreeable skipper than Laud Cavendish.

"Won't your men go with me?"

"I don't know; you can ask them."[143]

"I am entitled to carry five, and I want some live weights to-day, for it is blowing fresh," added Laud, as he walked towards the shop.

Neither of Donald's men was willing to lose his time, and as Laud came out of the shop, he discovered a young lady walking up the beach towards the city. A gust of wind blew her hat away at this moment, and Mr. Cavendish gallantly ran after, and recovered it, as Donald would have done if he had not been anticipated, for he recognized the young lady as soon as he saw her. Even as it was, he was disposed to run after that hat, and dispute the possession of it with Mr. Laud Cavendish, for the owner thereof was Miss Nellie Patterdale.

"Allow me to return your truant hat, Miss Patterdale," said Laud.

"Thank you, Mr. Cavendish," replied Nellie, rather coldly, as she resumed her walk towards the place where Donald stood, a few rods farther up the beach.

"We have a fine breeze for the race, Miss Patterdale," added Laud, smirking and jerking, as though he intended to improve the glorious opportunity, for the young lady was not only be[144]witchingly pretty, but her father was a nabob, with only two children.

"Very fine, I should think," she answered; and her tones and manner were anything but encouraging to the aspirant.

"I hope you are going to honor the gallant yachtmen with your presence, Miss Patterdale."

"I shall certainly see the race.—Good morning, Don John," said she, when she came within speaking distance of Donald.

"Good morning, Nellie," replied he, blushing, as he felt the full force of her glance and her smile—a glance and a smile for which Laud would have sacrificed all he held dear in the world, even to his cherished mustache. "Don't you attend the race?"

"Yes, I want to attend now. Ned invited me to go on board of the judge's boat; but the sun was out then, and mother would not let me go. Father said the day would be cloudy, and I decided to go; but Ned had gone. I came down here to see if I couldn't hail him. Won't you take me off to the Penobscot in your boat?"

"Certainly I will, with the greatest pleasure," replied Donald, with enthusiasm.[145]

"I beg your pardon, Miss Patterdale," interposed Laud. "I am going off in the Juno; allow me to tender her for your use. I can take you off, Don John, at the same time."

"It's quite rough; as you see, Nellie, and the Juno is much larger than my boat. You can go in her more comfortably than in mine," added Donald.

"Thank you; just as you please, Don John," she answered.

"Bring her up to the wharf, Mr. Cavendish," continued Donald.

Laud leaped into his skiff, and pulled off to the Juno, while Nellie and Donald walked around to the wharf. In a few moments the boat was ready, and came up to the pier, though her clumsy skipper was so excited at the prospect of having the nabob's pretty daughter in his boat, that he had nearly smashed her against the timbers. The gallant skipper bowed, and smirked, and smiled, as he assisted Miss Patterdale to a place in the standing-room. Donald shoved off the bow, and the Juno filled her mainsail, and went off flying towards the Penobscot.[146]

"It's a smashing breeze," said Donald, as the boat heeled down.

"Glorious!" exclaimed Laud. "Are you fond of sailing, Miss Patterdale?"

"I am very fond of it."

"Perhaps you would like to sail around the course in one of the yachts?" suggested the skipper.

"I should be delighted to do so," she replied, eagerly; and she glanced at Donald, as if to ascertain if such a thing were possible.

"I should be pleased to have you sail in the Juno," added Laud, with an extra smirk.

"Thank you, Mr. Cavendish; you are very kind; but perhaps I had better not go."

"I should be delighted to have you go with me."

"I don't think you would enjoy it, Nellie," said Donald. "It blows fresh, and the Juno is rather wet in a heavy sea."

Laud looked at him with an angry expression, and when Nellie turned away from him, he made significant gestures to induce Donald to unsay what he had said, and persuade her to go with him.[147]

"I am sure you will be delighted with the sail, Miss Patterdale. You will be perfectly dry where you are sitting; or, if not, I have a rubber coat, which will protect you."

"I think I will not go," she replied, so coldly that her tones would have frozen any one but a simpleton like Laud.

The passage was of brief duration, and Donald assisted Nellie up the accommodation steps of the Penobscot, stepping forward in season to deprive Laud of this pleasant office.

"I am much obliged to you, Mr. Cavendish," said she, walking away from the steps.

"That was mean of you, Don John," muttered Laud, as Donald came down the steps to assist in shoving off the Juno.

"What was mean?"

"Why, to