in advance of common wood;
so of course we selected always the best, the labour of shaping being
least, sometimes, where the best materials were used.

These various timbers and fastenings, put together as best we could
shape and join them, made a craft sufficiently strong and seaworthy to
withstand all the bufferings on the main upon which, in due course, she
was launched.

The hull being completed, by various other contrivances and makeshifts
in which, sometimes, the "wooden blacksmith" was called in to assist,
and the mother of invention also lending a hand, fixtures were made
which served as well on the voyage as though made in a dockyard and at
great cost.

My builders baulked at nothing, and on the 13th day of May, the day on
which the slaves of Brazil were set free, our craft was launched, and
was named _Liberdade_ (Liberty).

Her dimensions being--35 feet in length over all, 71/2 feet breadth of
beam, and 3 feet depth of hold. Who shall say that she was not large
enough?

Her model I got from my recollections of Cape Ann dories and from a
photo of a very elegant Japanese _sampan_ which I had before me on the
spot, so, as it might be expected, when finished she resembled both
types of vessel in some degree.

Her rig was the Chinese _sampan_ style, which is, I consider, the most
convenient boat rig in the whole world.

This was the boat, or canoe I prefer to call it, in which we purposed to
sail for North America and home. Each one had been busy during the
construction and past misfortunes had all been forgotten. Madam had made
the sails--and very good sails they were, too!

Victor, the carpenter, ropemaker, and general roustabout had performed
his part. Our little man, Garfield, too, had found employment in holding
the hammer to clinch the nails and giving much advice on the coming
voyage. All were busy, I say, and no one had given a thought of what we
were about to encounter from the port officials farther up the coast; it
was pretended by them that a passport could not be granted to so small a
craft to go on so long a voyage as the contemplated one to North
America.

Then fever returned to the writer and the constructor of the little
craft, and I was forced to go to bed, remaining there three days.
Finally, it came to my mind that in part of a medicine chest, which had
been saved from the wreck, was stored some _arsenicum_, I think it is
called. Of this I took several doses (small ones at first, you