Olive did not agree with the latter remark, although she made no audible comment. She was rather enjoying the novelty of the situation. Peter, on the other hand, had got over the glamour of desert islands. An exciting time upon a coral island in the North Pacific had cured him of that. It wasn't to be regretted from a retrospective point of view, but he did not hanker after a repetition.
By the aid of a tackle composed of the halliards and main-sheet blocks the boat was canted over and finally lowered keel uppermost. The full extent of the damage was then apparent. There was a jagged hole about nine inches in diameter through the garboard strake and the strake next to it on the port side about five feet from the stem. On the starboard hand was a smaller hole close to the bilge keel, while there was a slight fracture on the same side eighteen inches from the stern-post.
"Rather a lash-up, what?" exclaimed Peter, as he noted the damage. "Guess we'll be able to tackle that."
He first directed one of the lascars to trim the jagged holes with the axe. The next step was to smooth down the planking adjacent to the gaps by means of canvas and wet sand. This done, the boat was lifted on to her side and the bottom boards removed. A corner of the axe was then employed to remove the brass screws from the stern-sheet benches, while the gratings were sacrificed for the sake of the brass brads that secured them.
After lunch, work was resumed. Strips of painted canvas, smeared with a sticky substance smelling of turpentine, were laid over the holes and tacked down with the brads. Over this canvas the dismembered bottom-boards were firmly screwed. In less than an hour and a half this part of the work was completed.
The boat was then turned over on her keel, and the holes levelled flush with the inside planking by means of clay found in the bed of the little stream. Over this additional canvas was tacked and pressed into position by strips of wood from the bottom boards, struts being fixed between them and the under side of the thwarts to counteract the pressure of the water.
Well before sunset the task of making the boat water-tight was completed, and Peter surveyed the result with intense satisfaction.