thpotth. What fine houthekeeping."

"Men are lazy housekeepers," laughed Miss Elting. "I shall have to write
to Bert and tell him what we think of his housekeeping."

As soon as the water was heated, Jane produced some full length gingham
aprons, which she tossed to her companions. Arrayed in these, the girls
took up scrub brushes and soap and got to work on the inside of the
cabin. Their skirts were pinned up, their sleeves rolled back to the
shoulders and they looked like veritable scrub women.

"Let's all work on the same side of the boat," called Jane. "I want one
side to get dry so we can begin to paint it." The slap, slap of the
painters' brushes already was heard on the outside. The remaining boards
over the windows had been torn off and carefully laid aside for other
uses.

Two hours later Jane got the painters to open the cans of white paint
and stir up the contents. The men put in plenty of drier so the paint
would dry quickly and began their work. Tommy could not resist trying to
paint too. Seizing a brush she began laying about her, sending the paint
into her hair, over her clothes and spattering her companions until they
threatened to throw her overboard if she did not desist. Tommy's impish
face already was decorated with polka dots of white paint.

"I would suggest that Tommy go out and use some red paint," said Harriet
laughingly. "Some red dots would make you look perfectly lovely, dear."

"Yes and some blue," added Jane. "She'd be red, white and blue then, and
we could hang her over the stern. That would save getting a flag."