1978 JOHNSON 115 HELP

[phx5kegsman]

Hi, My question is about these two holes at top of the midsection, just below the cover. What is their function? Yesterday I noticed that water ( a lot of it) was coming out these two holes while running at WOT, but at idle or low speed there was not. Water still streamed steady out of the tell tale. Is this normal??
Note: I don't have a temp gauge, but do have the horn, which did not sound at all. Could/Should I add a temp gauge? Thanks!

 

[racerone]

Those holes are behaving exactly as designed.----Test your hot horn.----Inspect the 2 thermostats.----Replace impeller if you do not know how old it is.----Do a compression test for future reference.---Post your numbers.

 

[phx5kegsman]

This was the first run on the water since replacing T-stats and impeller. Compression numbers are are between 102 and 107. I know that is rather low, which is why I want to make sure to keep the motor cool. For now, at least, it's running good enough. Gets my little ranger bass boat up on plane and up to 40mph (w/ 2 people+ gear) in no time!
I've also got a 1982 Evinrude 115 sitting on a stand in my garage that I was planning to rebuild. Then I found out that the rebuild kits cost $900 right now!