"The man who ran
it up from the freight depot for me gave me a few 'pointers,' as he
called them."
She stepped into the trim craft and affectionately patted the
shining engine.
"'It is much simpler to run than a car, and besides, there isn't so
much to get in your way on the water," Cora went on.
"My!" exclaimed Bess as she stepped in after her hostess. "This is
really--scrumptious!"
"You take the seat in the stern, Belle, and Bess, you may sit here
near me," said Cora, "as I suppose you will be interested in seeing
how it works. Oh! There is the steamer from the train. Hurry!
Perhaps there are folks aboard we know. Let us act at home, and
pretend we have been running motor boats all our lives."
Cora took her place at the engine and before Bess or Belle had
really gotten seated she was turning on the gasoline.
"You see this is the little pipe that feeds the 'gas' from the tank
to the carburetor," she explained. "Now, I just throw in the
switch: that makes the electrical connection: then I have to give
this fly wheel--it's stiff--but I have to swing it around so!
There!" and the wheel "flew" around twice slowly and then began to
revolve very rapidly. "Now we are ready," and the engine started
its regular chug chug.
"How do you steer?" asked Bess anxiously, for the big steamer with
its cargo of summer folks seemed rather near.
"I can steer here," and Cora turned a wheel amidships, "or one may
steer at the bow.
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