"OUR RUDDER'S GONE!" 103 



edge, where we had brought up a large flat scow on 

 which to take the rudder to the schooner. The Uttle 

 hand cart collapsed under the weight just as we reached 

 the shore, but a dozen stout men carried the rudder on 

 the scow. We towed the scow to our ship, ropes were 

 made fast and the rudder pried overboard with levers, so 

 that it hung under water at the "Abler's" stern. A thin, 

 strong wire rope led down through the rudder port and 

 was made fast to the head of the rudder stock so that 

 with a tackle it could be pulled up through the hole until 

 the head of the stock showed above deck. If now there 

 were play enough in the sleeve to let the rudder be drawn 

 up at one side of the heavy iron strap which projected 

 out from the keel and formed the lower socket, we could 

 drop the rudder straight down again so that the pintle, 

 in the lower end of the stock, would fit into the hole in 

 the skeg. The only question remaining now was whether 

 we could do this. At first, the lower end of the rudder 

 jammed against the skeg, and the upper end of the stock 

 was pressed into the soft lead lining of the rudder port. 

 But several hours' hewing at the latter enlarged the 

 opening enough, and finally the monster settled itself 

 properly in all respects. The rest was easy — putting on 

 the tiller, rigging the chains and setting a heavy collar 

 so that the rudder could not shp up again. By supper 

 time the "Abler" was once more seaworthy. 



We retm-ned all borrowed tools to the generous men 

 of the ''Alaska" who had given freely what they were 

 taking for a desperate three years in the Arctic, replaced 

 the few which we had used from the "Kotzebue's" shop 

 and left for Captain Ballinger of the "Bear" what we 

 had not used of the stores obtained from him. Now we 

 were all ready to start north again. 



