They seemed purposely left projecting, as if to furnish a handle whereby to drag out the roots beneath.

After loosening the hard soil, by dint of much thumping and pounding, the Yankee jerked one of the roots this way and that, twisting it round and round, and then tugging at it horizontally.
"Come! lend us a hand!" he cried, at last; and running up, we all four strained away in concert.

The tough obstacle convulsed the surface with throes and spasms; but stuck fast, notwithstanding.
"Dumn it!" cried Zeke, "we'll have to get a rope; run to the house, Shorty, and fetch one." The end of this being attached, we took plenty of room, and strained away once more.
"Give us a song, Shorty," said the doctor; who was rather sociable, on a short acquaintance.

Where the work to be accomplished is any way difficult, this mode of enlivening toil is quite efficacious among sailors.

So willing to make everything as cheerful as possible, Shorty struck up, "Were you ever in Dumbarton ?" a marvellously inspiring, but somewhat indecorous windlass chorus.
At last, the Yankee cast a damper on his enthusiasm by exclaiming, in a pet, "Oh! dumn your singing! keep quiet, and pull away!" This we now did, in the most uninteresting silence; until, with a jerk that made every elbow hum, the root dragged out; and most inelegantly, we all landed upon the ground.