by Bob Brooks
Morris and Burton visited the trees Stoddard had found and selected the best seven white oaks. Over the next week, the beavers cut down the trees. Bartholomew measured and marked them. With the help of the ducks, logs were cut and towed to the cove.
Meanwhile, Bartholomew and the squirrels built a simple hoist system over the cove. A stout rope with a sliding hook was suspended between two trees. Using pulleys and a handle, the hook could be raised and lowered. Now, they were able to move logs and parts of the boat around.
With the hoist in place and the wood delivered, they could construct the dock. Morris and the beavers brought their saws and other tools to the cove. They sawed thirty boards for the dock. Those pieces were attached to two side rails on either side of the cove. It took only three days to complete the dock, and it was just six inches above the water as planned.
Morris stood on the new dock, looked out over the pond and thought about the boat: A few days ago there was nothing here, and now I’m standing on a dock. In a few weeks there’ll be a boat sitting in the water. One of us could never do this alone. Working together, however, is there any limit to what we can do, he wondered.
Over the next few weeks, the parts for the hull and deck were cut and assembled on the dock. Bartholomew did the measuring. He marked and checked each piece to ensure it was correct. Then, he checked again. The main sections included the hull frame, the hull cladding, the rudder, and the deck. The white oak trees were being transformed into a boat.
When the hull sections were complete, the many joints needed to be sealed against water. Morris made a glue from pine sap, sawdust, and a secret ingredient. The glue was forced into every joint from the inside of the boat until it oozed to the outside. After it dried, the surfaces were sanded smooth. Hopefully, they now had a nice water-tight vessel.
Next they painted the boat inside and out in accordance with the colors shown in the book. The hull was made a shiny black. The deck and mast were a light shade of mahogany. Using gold paint, Bartholomew lettered its name on the stern — HMS Ballymore. Even though it wasn’t finished, the boat was already impressive and beautiful.
The animals were very happy with what they had accomplished so far. However, much remained to be done before the boat’s presentation on Midsummer’s Eve.
CHAPTER THREE
Mrs. Porcupine's Garden
Mrs. Petunia Porcupine has lived in Ballymore for ten years. She arrived with her husband, Peter, when they heard that Ballymore needed a bakery. Both she and Peter were excellent bakers, and the residents happily welcomed them. Unfortunately, Peter passed away five years ago, which left Petunia alone. She was not alone for long, though, as the residents provided much support and friendship. With the help of the squirrels and others, she kept the bakery open, which was good for everyone.
Mrs. Porcupine’s garden and orchard were the largest in Ballymore. She supplied the residents’ needs in these regards, also.
Petunia’s cottage sat on the northwest corner of the pond. As with most of the homes, the beavers built it with stones from the creek just to the southeast of Ballymore. How the stones were moved to the building site is a story for another time.
The cottage had a parlor, bedroom, guest room, and large kitchen. The parlor was used frequently as she had many visitors. She needed a large kitchen in which to bake all of the pies, breads, and cookies. As mentioned above, her bakery products were well loved. She rarely had anything left at the end of the day. Her specialty was lemon meringue pie. Unfortunately, she could not offer it as often as she would have liked because lemons were not always available. She had fruit trees in her orchard but not a lemon among them. The lemons must be located by the swans and flown into Ballymore. It was not clear how or where the swans obtained them. Actually, it was not clear how or where the swans obtained anything for the residents.
Petunia was a very neat housekeeper and had the cleanest cottage in Ballymore. Every morning after breakfast she swept and washed the floor, cleaned the kitchen, and polished her shoes, which she rarely wore. All of that took her only about an hour.
This morning, when Petunia walked into her kitchen, she was shocked to see two parallel trails of ants winding from her cupboard to under the back door. One trail was incoming and one outgoing. The outgoing ants were transferring her sesame seeds to who knows where. Her resulting scream was probably heard on the other side of the pond. In any event, she quickly shooed the ants out the door with her broom. This was only a temporary solution as everyone knows that ants don’t give up easily.
Mrs. Porcupine was a kind soul and knew that the ants needed food like everyone else, so she had to think of a better answer than the broom. A compromise was needed. She decided to place a small amount of sesame seeds on the back porch that evening. The seeds would be covered by an overturned dish so that only the ants could reach them.
Having dealt with that unexpected matter, she could finally have breakfast and do her cleaning. Afterwards, she decided to take a short rest prior to beginning the daily tending of the garden. She also needed to rest because she had not yet settled down from the ant invasion.
It was a beautiful late May morning. Petunia strolled to a small field behind her cottage. Tufts of grass blanketed the uneven turf. Dandelions poked their bright yellow heads everywhere above the slender green blades. The delicate, white petals of daisies with small, yellow centers were generously scattered throughout. Ever so slightly, the flowers stirred in the gentle breeze. Sunlight, out of a cloudless, blue sky, glistened off dew drops and illuminated the scene into a living painting.
This serenity was exactly what she needed, and Petunia sat on her favorite rock for several minutes until her peace was interrupted by someone approaching.
She turned to see Finnilly (Finn) Frog coming through the field. He was dressed in his usual pullover jeans. Finn lived on the other side of the pond. He was a “Tom Sawyer” kind of frog, if you know what I mean. He loved adventures and thought there might be one brewing when he heard what sounded like a scream come from across the pond. He came to investigate or just be nosy, whichever you prefer.
“Hi, Mrs. Porcupine,” Finn said. “A little while ago, I thought I heard a scream from over this way. I came over to see if everything was all right. Did you hear anything?”
“Hello, Finn,” said Petunia. “No. I mean yes.”
She corrected herself as she remembered her initial reaction to the ants. Then, she told Finn about the ant encounter and her planned peace offering. That interested Finn greatly, and it sounded like a good adventure with which to get involved. Petunia knew Finn well and knew exactly what he was thinking. His involvement would not be good for the situation that required some delicacy.
Changing the subject, Petunia asked, “Would you help me bring some water from the pond to the garden, please?”
That was not the kind of adventure for which Finn had been looking but, being a helpful frog, he willingly obliged.
The trip from the pond to the garden was about a hundred and fifty feet and slightly uphill. Petunia always used two small pails and a cart to transport the water. The pails were emptied into a trough next to the kitchen. From there the water would be distributed as needed. The amount of water required varied depending upon how much it had rained and how much baking had to be done. Today, she needed ten trips worth of water.
Usually, Sofie or Seely Squirrel helped her cart water, but neither were there yet. The two squirrels have been helping Petunia since Peter passed. They mostly handled distribution of the bake goods but also worked in the kitchen and garden.
As Finn helped haul the water, he was trying to figure out an easier way to bring water to the garden. A scheme popped into his head.
“Mrs. Porcupine, I have an idea about the water,” Finn said with great enthusiasm.
“What is that?” she asked. She was glad he was thinking about water and not ants.
“We could dig a ditch from the pond to the garden, and the water would flow
automatically to where you want it. It would save a lot of carting.”
She thought about the idea for a while. Finally, she said, “I certainly like the idea of having the water come to the garden, but I don’t like the idea of having a trench in my yard. Someone might trip in it.”
Finn said, “Hmmm. Okay. There must be a better way.”
“I’ve got it," he said excitedly. “We can dig UNDER the pond.”
“What! Whatever do you mean?” she blurted.
“First, we dig a hole near the garden. Near the bottom of the hole, we can dig another hole that will run to the pond. Water would flow through the hole to the garden. Then, you could scoop the water out and use it as needed. Hurrah!”
Finn was almost jumping out of his jeans with excitement.
“Your idea certainly sounds interesting but complicated. Who would dig these holes?” she asked.
Finn answered instantly, “THE MOLES.”
“Let me think about it a little longer,” said Petunia. “It will work! It will work!” said the frog, repeating himself. Now, he was excited! This was the kind of adventure he liked. “I’m going to talk to the moles right now.”
Off he hopped as fast as he could.
Petunia thought of getting Bartholomew’s opinion on the project, but she knew he was very busy with building the new boat. She smiled and wondered what would become of all this.
It was only about a five minute hop south from Mrs. Porcupine’s cottage to the moles’ cottage.
The moles’ cottage had only one room. That is, it had only one room above ground. That was the parlor and was for receiving guests. In the floor was a lockable trap door that opened to a narrow passage, which sloped downward, and led to the rest of the rooms. Not many other animals were small enough to use that passageway.
You will not be surprised to hear that the moles’ primary occupation was tunneling. The children, Merwin and Melrose, were still learning the trade.
When Finn arrived, the brothers were out in the front yard digging a hole. The three had played together for years and were good friends.
“Hi, guys,” he said.
“Hi, Finn,” they replied in unison.
Finn told them of his water project, and the moles were very interested. They had never done a project on their own. This was an opportunity to prove themselves to their parents. From that point of view, it was obvious that they would agree to get involved and they did. Finn and the moles headed towards Mrs. Porcupine’s cottage to study the situation in more detail. On the way they took a detour so that the moles could show Finn the family’s latest tunnel project. It was a very complicated job and needed the full attention of their parents.
Shortly after Finn left, Sofie Squirrel came to open the bakery counter, and Petunia began her gardening.
Petunia’s garden and orchard were extensive, covering almost three acres. The garden was closest to the cottage. She grew lettuce, corn, beans, cucumbers, onions, tomatoes, strawberries, and more. The orchard had apple, plum, and cherry trees. It also had one very old and very large oak tree. The first time she saw it, ten years ago, she named the tree “Old Seth”. It was her favorite.
The day was just right for gardening, mild with a light breeze. She concentrated on the never ending task of weeding and debugging. Weeds were predictable. They popped up at regular intervals almost everywhere in the garden. The soil was well cared for and quite soft, so the weeds were easy to remove.
Bugs were another matter altogether. They attacked in waves at unpredictable intervals. She picked them, stomped them, shooed them, and sometimes bribed them away. It was a battle of wits. Petunia won most of the time, but the bugs gobbled their share of fruits and vegetables. The garden and orchard were large enough so that there were plenty left for the Ballymore residents.
It was lunchtime when Finn returned with the moles. Their timing was good as everyone knew that Petunia Porcupine served the best lunch in Ballymore. They had spinach salad with Russian dressing, egg salad on hot rolls, and vegetable soup. For dessert there was strawberry shortcake with whipped cream.
It would have been very tempting to nap after such a wonderful large lunch, but Finn’s excitement about HIS project eliminated that option. Everyone but Sofie went out to the garden.
Finn explained his idea in detail to the moles and Mrs. Porcupine. “We can dig a hole here,” he explained.
He was standing at the edge of the garden near the cottage.
“It would be about five feet deep and one foot wide. About four feet down, there would be a small tunnel that runs to the pond. After the tunnel is dug, water from the pond would flow into it. The water would fill the hole to the same level as the pond. Mrs. Porcupine, then you could raise water from the hole with your bucket.”
Finn was quite pleased with himself, but the group thought of some comments and questions.
“We would have to make sure that the tunnel runs straight to the pond. Tunnel directioning can be tricky,” said Merwin.
“If I put the bucket in the hole, it will float and not fill with water. I’ll have to push it down with a stick,” said Petunia.
“If we dig the tunnel to the pond, the water will come in and flood us while we’re digging,” added Melrose.
Finn didn’t want to admit that he hadn’t considered these points, and he thought quickly.
“Mrs. Porcupine, you’re right, but it’s still a lot easier than carrying water from the pond,” he said.
“Very true,” she agreed.
He looked at Melrose and said, “We won’t dig the tunnel all the way to the pond. We’ll stop when we get close. The hole can be finished from the pond side by Birch. He has no problem with water,” Finn said.
Birch is a beaver, whom we will meet shortly.
Finn didn’t have a good answer for Merwin’s tunnel direction comment. Happily, for him, Merwin supplied the answer.
“If the tunnel isn’t too deep, our father puts rods down into the ground and uses them to line up our digging,” he said.
“Great,” Finn said. “Does anyone have any more comments or questions?”
No one did.
“We could start tomorrow if it’s okay with you, Mrs. Porcupine?” asked Finn.
Petunia was not 100% convinced, but it sounded like a pretty good plan, and she agreed to proceed.
“Hurrah!” said Finn. “Hurrah! Hurrah!” said Merwin and Melrose in unison.
The next morning, Petunia rushed to the back porch as soon as she was dressed. The seeds she left for the ants were gone, and the dish was turned right-side up. There were no ants in the kitchen. There were no ants anywhere. That was very interesting. Had they accepted her offer? It seemed that they had. She would leave more seeds tonight.
Finn awoke early and went to the moles’ cottage. Melrose and Merwin were already up and had gathered the rods they needed to keep the tunnel running straight. The group left for the project site and arrived at 10 bongs.
Mrs. Porcupine welcomed them with fresh donuts and tea. After that treat they were ready to begin.
She selected a location for the vertical hole, and the digging commenced. As the moles dug, Finn moved the dirt out of the way. The soil was soft, so they made good progress. Within two hours the vertical hole was finished.
Now, Melrose took the rods and carefully pushed them into the ground. He made sure that they formed a straight line all of the way to the pond. The row of rods was very professional looking. The first rod was at the edge of the hole and extended about four feet down. Merwin started digging at that point and headed in the direction of the second rod, which was only two feet away. He had no trouble locating it and continued.
The moles dug dirt, and Finn moved dirt. Dig/move. Dig/move. Dig/move. They worked hard, and time passed quickly. Lunchtime came and went. Before they knew it, Mrs. Porcupine was calling them for dinner.
I don’t think you’ll ever see dirtier animals. Well, maybe. Mrs. Porcupine made it clear that they could n
ot enter the cottage until they cleaned up. Down to the pond they went. Into the pond they went. After ten minutes they were pretty clean and felt refreshed.
Petunia served a casual dinner of potato salad, vegetable lasagna, hot bread, and custard. They loved it. As they were eating, Mrs. Porcupine asked Finn how the project was going.
“Excellent,” answered Finn. “We’re ahead of schedule.”
Except that there was no schedule, which was just as well.
“We are more than half done with the tunnel. There will be water flowing tomorrow,” he said confidently.
Petunia was pleased and said so.
The team decided that it would be more convenient to sleep at the project site rather than go home. Using the bluebirds’ messenger service, they informed their parents of their plans. After dinner Finn and the moles walked through the garden to Old Seth. The sun had set a while ago, and the day’s colors were fading to shades of grey. There was no wind, and it was silent in the woods and fields around Ballymore. Mrs. Porcupine gave each of them a large blanket that they spread on the grass under the tree. They lay down and wrapped themselves in the soft warmth. Stars were just beginning to fill the night sky.
