And there's all that junk down in the hold to pass out and cart away." Cleggett personally supervised this removal, standing on the deck by the hatchway and scanning everything that was handed up.

The character of this junk has already been described.

Every barrel or cask that was placed upon the deck was stove in with an ax before Cleggett's eyes; he satisfied himself that every bottle was empty; he turned over the broken boxes and beer cases with his foot to see that they contained nothing.
But the work was three-quarters done before he found what he was looking for.

From under a heap of debris, which had completely hidden it, towards the forward part of the vessel, the workmen unearthed an unpainted oblong box, almost seven feet in length.

It was of substantial material and looked newer than any of the other stuff.
Cleggett had it placed on one side of the hatchway and sat down on it.
It was tightly nailed up; all of its surfaces were sound.