walls. So I could only return discomfited
to the Cove.

"There's no use trying," I said to Aleck. "All that old George will
promise is to come out to-morrow, and make your boat sail as well as the
'Fair Alice' herself: those are his words."

"He's not very likely to be able to do that," responded Aleck, dolefully
surveying our workmanship. "I've been trying to trim it with a stone
stuck securely on and tarred over; but look, even that has come off
again, and it will do nothing but turn over in that wretched way. If I
had been trying to construct a wreck now, I'm sure I couldn't have made
anything more like."

"And that's something, after all," I said, encouragingly. "It's not
every one that could have made a wreck."

But my cousin took little comfort from the suggestion; he stood looking
and pondering, until, at last, after some minutes' pause, he drew a long
breath and exclaimed, as if from depths of internal conviction, "I'll
tell you what; I must pull it all to pieces, and put it together quite
afresh--from the beginning."

"A strong-minded decision, and spoken out most heroically, Mr.
Shipbuilder!" said a voice from behind, and we started at finding my
father had come upon us so quietly that we had not perceived him. "You
two boys are just like a pair of doctors consulting over a bad case;
only you've come to what is happily rather an unusual conclusion,
namely, that the best plan is to kill the patient!"

"I think the patient's dead already," answered Aleck, tragically.

"And you're only going to dissect him--is that it?" asked my father
merrily, inspecting the boat, and listening with interest to the various
measures which had already been tried and had failed. "Well," he added,
"if my opinion as a consulting physician is to be taken, I should
recommend Groves as the best surgeon; his advice to be followed in every
particular, and all operations he may suggest to be duly performed."

"We've asked him," we both exclaimed, "and he said he was too busy to
come."

"But," I added, "he promises that to-morrow he will make Aleck's boat
sail as well as mine."

"His must be uncommonly clever fingers if they are equal to that task,"
said my father doubtingly; "but, as I said before, Surgeon Groves is the
man for your bad case. And now I should like to know which of you means
to stay at home to-morrow morning and learn the lessons which ought to
be prepared this afternoon, and which will not be ready unless we a