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The old man led the way out into the yard; and there, indeed, amid an indescribable litter of timber wreckwood in balks and boards, worthless lengths of deck-planking, knees, and transoms, stem-pieces and stern-posts, and other odds and ends of bygone craft, condemned spars, barrel-staves, packing-cases a boat reposed on the stocks; but such a boat as might make a sane man doubt his eyesight.
"If he ever balks again as he did to-day, I shall be tempted to shoot him." "Oh, dear!" said Amy, a little petulantly, "I'd rather hear about Italian bees than balky horses. Has my swarm of bees any connection with those that Virgil wrote about, Webb?" "They may be direct descendants," he replied. "Then call them May-bees," laughed Burt.
Its window opened on to a balcony which, supported on thick oak balks, stood over the causeway of the street; its door was in a passage leading from one wing of the house to the other, and in the passage were three leaded lattice-windows of greenish glass, plentifully sprinkled with blobs and nodes, giving on the long inn-yard.
The depot presented a scene of desolation that war alone exhibits corn-meal and corn in huge burning piles, broken wagons, abandoned caissons, two thirty-two-pounder rifled-guns with carriages burned, pieces of pontoons, balks and chesses, etc., destined doubtless for the famous invasion of Kentucky, and all manner of things, burning and broken.
My father would give the word of command, "Line out!" and point out the direction in which we were to go, and we spread out over the stubble fields and meadows, whistling and winding about along the lee side of the steep balks, beating all the bushes with our hunting-crops, and gazing keenly at every spot or mark on the earth. Something white would appear ahead.
Considerable flurry, temporary blindness, needless hurry, and neglect of symptoms and precautions, must be imputed to poor Schmettau; whose troubles began from this moment, and went on increasing. The Austrians are already besetting Elbe Bridge, rooting up the herring-bone balks; and approaching our Block-house, sooner than was expected. But that is nothing.
But you have to use a whip for some horses, don't you, Cousin Harry?" "Yes, Laura. There are many vicious horses that can't be controlled otherwise, and then with many horses one requires a whip in case of necessity for urging them forward. "I suppose Fleetfoot never balks," said Miss Laura. "No," replied Mr. Harry; "Dutchman sometimes does, and we have two cures for him, both equally good.
They could not move until Mr. Jordan, of the first class, gave the order. And Jordan? With one hand hanging at his side, the other resting against the small of his back, he stood gazing absently out over the Hudson. "Mr. Jordan!" called Dick, hastening back over the planking. "Sir!" answered the surly cadet, facing him. "Hurry up the balks, if you please, sir."
True, I had found the wood I required; but what I needed was thin planks, not heavy balks of timber such as one might be able to hew out of a tree trunk with an axe; and how was I to obtain those planks?
The yearlings under him, made of vastly better material, sprang forward with their balks, laying them in record time across the top of the next pontoon. The lashers then fell upon their work of securing the balks as though they loved labor. "Chess!" called Dick, remaining on shore this time, and the yearlings with the planks hastened forward, each carrying a plank.
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