m in position to
support the frame above, which was to bear the weight of the piano
during the process of loading it upon the wagon. I then placed a couple
of hewn sticks across the attic floor, after removing the boards. Two
stout ropes were then passed around the piano and over these sticks,
drawn tight. The piano-case was protected from chafing by a couple of
blankets.

Kit and I then went into the attic, and with a lot of wedges I had
made, proceeded to raise the two hewn timbers, over which the rope
passed. We drove the wedges between the sticks and the timbers of the
frame. As fast as we gained an inch, we put a board under, upon which
we drove another series of wedges. The process was slow but it was
sure, and in time the piano below hung suspended clear of the floor.

"That's all very good, so far, Phil Farringford," laughed Mr. Gracewood.

"Is it clear of the floor, sir?" I asked.

"Yes, all clear."

"Then we will take off the legs."

When this task was accomplished, we took up the floor and joists under
the instrument, and removed the sill on the end of the house. Of course
we had to take out the studs below the plate; but the posts I had put
in were amply sufficient to support the frame. We levelled down the
banking so as to form a smooth road to the ground beneath the piano. I
then carefully measured the distance from the bottom of the piano to
the earth. It was four feet and one inch, while the body of the wagon,
which I intended to back under the instrument, was only two feet and a
half high. We laid down some logs crosswise, upon which we placed a
track of boards for the wheels of the wagon. The vehicle was then
backed beneath the piano, with the box upon the platform. The oil-cloth
was placed in the case, so that we could cover the instrument after it
had been deposited in the box.

Kit and I had hewn four timbers of the length of the wagon, on opposite
sides, like a railroad sleeper. Raising the vehicle with levers, we
placed these sticks under the wheels. As we lifted up the wagon, the
box was elevated so as to enclose the instrument. The timbers under the
wheels were each about six inches thick, and when we had them in
position, the bottom of the piano was not an inch from the bottom of
the case. We then drove our wedges between the two timbers, on each of
which rested two of the wheels, securely blocked. The wagon rose till
the ropes which supported the piano were slackened, and we untied and