The work was slow, and two or three of the strips of iron were at first broken, by the too great eagerness of their holders; but when it was found that, by using them lightly, the edges gradually cut their way into the wood, the work went on regularly.  The Pluto had been hurriedly constructed, and any timbers that were available in the emergency were utilized.  Consequently much soft wood, that at other times would never have been found in the state dockyards, was put into her.  The beam at which they were working was of soft timber, and a fine dust fell steadily, as the rough iron was sawed backward and forward upon it.

Two cuts were made under each bolt, wide at the base and converging towards it.  The saws were kept going the whole day, and although the progress was slow, it was fast enough to encourage them; and just as the light, that came through the scuttle, faded away; three of the young men hung their weight upon one of the bolts, and the wood beneath it, already almost severed, gave; and a suppressed cry of satisfaction announced that one bolt was free.

The pieces of iron were two feet long, and were intended for some other purpose, but had been driven in when, on loading the ship, some strong pegs on which to hang carcasses were required.  They were driven about three inches into the beam, and could have been cut out with an ordinary saw in two or three minutes.

“Try the others,” Francis said.  “As many of you get hold of them as can put your hands on.”

The effort was made, and the other two bolts were got out.  They had been roughly sharpened at the end, and were fully an inch across.

“They do not make bad weapons,” Matteo said.

“It is not as weapons that we want them, Matteo.  They will be more useful to us than any weapons, except, indeed, a good axe.  We shall want at least three more.  Therefore, I propose that we continue our work at once.  We will divide into watches now.  It will be twelve hours before we get our allowance of bread again, therefore that will give three hours’ work, and nine hours’ sleep to each.  They will be just setting the first watch on deck, and, as we shall hear them changed, it will give us a good idea how the time is passing.”

“I am ready to work all night, myself,” Matteo said.  “At first I had not much faith in what we were doing; but now that we have got three of these irons out, I am ready to go on working until I drop.”

“You will find, Matteo, that your arms will ache, so that you cannot hold them up, before the end of the three hours.  Sawing like that, with your arms above your head, is most fatiguing; and even the short spells of work we have been having made my arms ache.  However, each must do as much as he can in his three hours; and as we are working in the dark, we must work slowly and carefully, or we shall break our tools.”

“Fortunately, we can get more hoops off now if we want them,” Matteo said.  “With these irons we can wrench them off the sound casks, if necessary.”