Democratic Sentinel, Volume 7, Number 14, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 4 May 1883 — What a Boy Can Do. [ARTICLE]

What a Boy Can Do.

In 1881 Bussell Wallace McKee, of Willoughby avenue, Brooklyn, then but 15 years of age, designed and modeled the schooner Ella. •In the roomy depths of a cellar her keel was laid. Each and every timber, steamed and bent by his own hands, was put into place, and slowly but surely the work progressed, till, despite its dimensions, the cellar could no longer contain the growing vessel The stable yard was next resorted to, and matter how inclement the weather every day saw the boy resolutely laboring. The ribs all in place, the heavy planking of oak required more than one small pair of hands to manage, and assistance had to be sought. All through the spring and sweltering summer months which succeeded he labored on alone. The fall of ’B2 had almost passed away when it became necessary to remove her again, this time to the waterside. A truck was engaged, jacks and hoisting tackles set in motion and, in the dead of night, modestly avoiding public gaze, the nearly-completed Ella was conveyed to the ship-yard and took her place among the most costly experiments in naval architecture of the day. Winter came again, but he who had given up all his summer holidays’ outing was not to be daunted. For the heavy work of raising and stepping the masts assistance was again invoked, but aside from that his own hands accomplished it all. To-day she rises from the sea, Venus-like, shapely and complete. Her dimensions are as follows: Length over all, 32 feet; length on water line and keel, 30 feet; beam, 10 feet 9 inches; draught, 4 feet. The interior of the cabin is nicely paneled with alternate California redwood and selected spruce. She has, forward of the cabin, a small state-room on the port side and closet, on the starboard hand, with basin and running water. The main saloon presents, with its paneling of hard woods and red cushioned transoms, a very cozy appearance. She will carry Jib, flying jib, jibtopsail, foresail, mainsail and their respective topsails; has four and a half tons pig and scrap iron ballast and is rated at 8 25-100 tons, new measurement. In general appearance the Ella is not handsome ; her lines are calculated more for safety than speed. She will fully accomplish this desire, however, and will, therefore, differ considerably from .the many yachts designed for speed, which finally accomplish nothing except their builder’s chagrin and their owner’s disgust.—Brooklyn Eagle.