^
Q/ /
OcO/* S" I c > t|^ ,
NY PUBL C LIBRARY THE BRANCH LIBRARIES
3 3333 081195212
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
WE LAUGHED HEARTILY AT THE QUEER SPECTACLE WE MUST PRESENT
THE
WISS FA
ROB
IT V
AA-j A
BY
J. D. WYSS
EDITED BY G. E. MITTON
WITH FOUR ILLUSTRXTIONS IN COLOUR
BY HARRY ROUNTREE
NEW YORK
MACM1LLAN &' CO. LIMITED
Made in Great Britain
This Edition first published in 1907
Reprinted in 1910, 1912, 1917, and 1920
Reprinted and issued in Black's " Boys' Library," 1924
Reprinted in 1925, 1926, 1928, 1933, 1938, 1941, 1945 and 1948
Printed in Grea' Britain by
Billing ana Sons Ltd., Guildford Md Esher
F9404
OF THE F487139
CITY 01 NJ xv //
PREFACE
THE story of the Swiss Family Robinson, origin-
ally written by a Swiss pastor for the amusement
of his children, has been translated into many
languages and become a school-room classic in
many lands. The story was originally issued in two
parts, the popularity of the first drawing forth the
second. The present book is taken from the
earliest English editions of both. Some of the
archaic words have been eliminated and the clumsy
phrasing of the translator simplified. The long-
winded sermons and lectures of the pastor, mostly
irrelevant to the story, have been omitted, but the
homeliness, and the slight flavour of a more formal
manner of speech than our own, have been carefully
retained.
vi PREFACE
The ' humanity ' of the book in its essential
details, and the characters of the principal actors,
shine out all the more clearly for being seen in a
setting from which redundancy has been pruned
away.
G. E. MITTON.
CONTENTS
CHAPTER I
SHIPWRECK ... ... 1
CHAPTER II
LANDING ON THE DESERT ISLAND - 6
CHAPTER III
A VOYAGE OF DISCOVERS - - - . 19
CHAPTER IV
A NIGHT ALARM 31
CHAPTER V
FRITZ AND I VISIT THE WRECK - 43
CHAPTER VI
THE ANIMALS SWIM ASHORE - 51
CHAPTER VII
AN ADVENTURE WITH A SHARK - -66
CHAPTER VIII
WE MOVE TO THE FOREST - - - -77
Vli
CONTENTS
CHAPTER IX PAOI
OUR HOUSE IN THE GIANT TREE - - - .93
CHAPTER X
PRICKLY FIGS AND POTATOES . . 1 02
CHAPTER XI
ERNEST SHOOTS A KANGAROO - - - 112
CHAPTER XII
DRAWN BY A TURTLE . -122
CHAPTER XIII
WE GAIN A SAILING-BOAT - - - . -133
CHAPTER XIV
ADVENTURES AND EXCITEMENT - - - -144
CHAPTER XV
THE LAST OF THE WRECK - - - -152
CHAPTER XVI
THE TROOP OF BUFFALOES - - - . -157
CHAPTER XVII
THE TRAINING OF A WILD ASS - - . 1 67
CHAPTER XVIII
THE SHINING GROTTO - . - 175
CHAPTER XIX
NIP FINDS STRAWBERRIES - . -184
CONTENTS ix
CHAPTER XX "*
THE RAINY SEASON - ... 187
CHAPTER XXI
THE MONSTER WHALE ' 190
CHAPTER XXII
THE BOA-CONSTRICTOR'S VISIT 193
CHAPTER XXIII
OSTRICHES IN THE DESERT - 205
CHAPTER XXIV
BEARS ! BEARS ... 213
CHAPTER XXV
RIDING ON AN OSTRICH .... 222
CHAPTER XXVI
THE BOYS' EXCURSION ... 235
CHAPTER XXVII
FRITZ AND HIS CAJACK ... 239
CHAPTER XXVIII
I RECEIVE A LETTER ..... 247
CHAPTER XXIX
THE SHIPWRECKED SAILOR ON THE SMOKING ROCK - - 25C
CHAPTER XXX
ATTACKED BY LIONS - - 871
x CONTENTS
CHAPTER XXXI
A VISITOR - -281
CHAPTER XXXII
THE RETURN TO CLIFF HOUSE 290
CHAPTER XXXHI
AN ENGLISH SHIP - 296
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
BY HARRY ROUNTREE
WE LAUGHED HEARTILY AT THE gUEER SPECTACLE
WE MUST PRESENT ... Frontispiece
FACING FAO>
OVER THE RIDOE WE THREW SOME SAILCLOTH AND
FASTENED IT DOWN ON EACH SIDE - 10
EVERYONE WAS EAGER TO CLIMB TO THE NEW HUT - 9^
DANCING GAILY OVER THE WAVES - 242
THE
SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
CHAPTER I
SHIPWRECK
. . . ALREADY the storm had continued six days ;
on the seventh its fury seemed still increasing ; and
the morning dawned upon us without a prospect
of hope, for no one on board even knew where
we were. My four boys clung to me in their
fright, while my wife wiped the tears from her
cheeks.
At this moment a cry of ' Land, land !' was
heard through the roaring of the waves, and
instantly the vessel struck against a rock so
violently as to drive every one from his place ; a
tremendous cracking succeeded, as if the ship was
going to pieces.
* THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
I hurried on deck, and saw a terrible sight.
The crew had crowded into the boats till there
was no room for us, and even as I appeared they
cut the ropes to move off. I cried to them frantically
not to leave us, but in vain, for the roaring of
the sea prevented my being heard.
As all hope from this direction was over, I
examined the ship to see if she would hold together
for a little while, and was reassured. She was
wedged stern first between two rocks, and it did
not seem likely that the waves would drive her
off at present. Therefore, when I returned to the
cabin, which happened, fortunately, to be in the
high part, and out of reach of the water, I was
able to speak cheerfully of our position.
Comforted by this, my wife prepared something
to eat, and the four boys at least ate heartily, and
then the three youngest went to bed, and, tired out,
soon were sleeping soundly. Fritz, the eldest, sat
up with us.
' I have been thinking,' he said, * that if we had
some bladders or cork-jackets for mother and the
others, you and I, father, could perhaps swim to
land.'
I thought there was some sense in what he said,
so, in case the ship should break up in the night,
SHIPWRECK 3
he and I looked about for some small empty
barrels ; these we tied two and two together, and
fastened them under the arms of each child.
Fritz then lay down, and was soon asleep ; but
his mother and I kept watch throughout this awful
night. In the morning the sky was brighter, and
the wind had fallen.
The boys sprang up in capital spirits, and Fritz
advised that we should swim to land while the
sea was calm. Ernest, the second boy, protested,
not being able to swim himself, and suggested a
raft.
I sent them all to look about the ship, and bring
what things they could find that were likely to
be useful, while I and my wife discussed the
situation.
Presently they all rejoined me, bringing various
treasures. Fritz had two guns, some powder and
shot and bullets ; Ernest produced a lot of car-
penter's tools ; while Jack, the third boy, came up
laughing on the back of a huge dog, named
Turk, and followed by another called Flora The
poor creatures had almost knocked him down in
their eagerness when he had released them ; and
though at first I thought more of the food they
would eat than of their usefulness, I agreed they
4 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
might certainly assist us in hunting should we ever
get on shore.
Little Francis had found some fishing-hooks, at
which his brothers mocked, until I reminded them
it was likely we might have to depend for oui
food on fishing for some time to come.
My wife had found on board a cow and an ass,
two goats, six sheep and a sow, which she had fed.
All this was good so far as it went.
But now once more occurred to us the difficulty
of crossing the broad strip of water that separated
us from some kind of land, which we could just see
far off. Jack, who was generally ready with an
idea, cried out that he had often careered about on
a pond at home in a tub, and that, as there seemed
plenty of large barrels here, we might each have
one and try.
This was not quite so simple as it sounded, but
after some thinking I set to work, and, with the
help of the boys, sawed four of the great barrels in
half. This was tiring work, and took a long time,
and there was much else to do before we could
venture to trust ourselves on the water in them.
To make them more secure, we found a long
pliant plank, and placed the eight tubs upon it,
leaving a piece at each end reaching beyond the
SHIPWRECK 5
tubs. This being bent upward, like the keel of a
vessel, made the whole contrivance more like a
boat. We next nailed all the tubs to the plank,
and afterwards put two other planks, of the same
length as the first, on each side of the tubs.
When all this was finished, we found we had pro-
duced a kind of narrow boat, divided into eight
compartments. But then the difficulty was to
move this great boat at all, for its weight was
enormous. However, by putting rollers under it
and using all our strength, we launched it into the
sea. I had taken the precaution to attach a rope
to it first, so it rode tethered ; but, alas 1 in the first
moment, we saw that it leaned far over to one side
in a most alarming fashion. It soon occurred
to me that this was only because it was so buoyant
it danced up too far above the water, and after
throwing some heavy things into the tubs, we saw
it sink a little, and then float quite level.
However, all this had taken the whole day, and
we had worked so hard that we had only eaten a bit
of bread and taken a drink of milk occasionally, so
now we sat down to a regular supper, and then
went to bed, in high expectation of getting to the
land next morning.
CHAPTER II
LANDING ON THE DESERT ISLAND
BY break of day we were all awake and alert, and
I began to give orders to my little crew. First we
gave each animal on board a hearty meal, and then
put food and water enough for several days near
them, as we hoped to come back and fetch them
shortly. Our first cargo consisted of a barrel of
gunpowder, three guns, and three rifles with
ammunition, two pairs of pocket-pistols, a chest
containing cakes of portable soup, another full of
hard biscuits, an iron pot, a fishing-rod, a chest of
nails and another of carpenter's tools, and, lastly,
some sail-cloth to make a tent.
When all was ready we each stepped bravely
into a tub. At the moment of our departure the
cocks and hens, of which there were numbers on
board, began to cluck as if to protest against being
left behind. So we put some of them into one of
LANDING ON THE DESERT ISLAND 7
the tubs and covered it with planks, and left the
rest of the fowls to themselves in the hope that
they would follow us, the geese and the ducks by
water, and the pigeons in the air.
We were waiting for my wife, who joined us
loaded with a large bag, which she threw into the
tub that already contained little Francis. I
imagined that she intended it for him to sit upon,
so asked no questions.
In the first tub, at the boat's head, was my wife.
In the second was little Francis, a boy of six
years old, remarkable for his sweet disposition.
In the third, Fritz, the eldest, nearly sixteen, a
handsome lad, full of intelligence and vivacity.
In the fourth was the barrel of gunpowder, with
the cocks and hens and the sail-cloth.
In the fifth, the provisions of every kind.
In the sixth, Jack, my third son, a light-hearted,
bold, careless boy, about thirteen years old.
In the seventh, Ernest, the second in age, a boy
of fourteen, of a studious disposition, well read and
thoughtful, but inclined to be both lazy and greedy.
In the eighth was I myself, holding a pole by
which I steered, while I, as well as the others, was
provided with an oar to propel the boat. The boys
devoured with their eyes the blue land they saw
ft THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
at a distance. We rowed with all our strength to
reach it, but at first the boat only turned round
and round ; at length I managed to steer so that it
went in a straight line. As we started, the two
dogs, after whining and running up and down the
deck for a while, plunged into the sea and swam
after us. They were too large for us to think of
taking them in ; but they did not try to climb up
the sides of the boat, only rested their paws on the
edges of the planks when they were tired.
Thus we proceeded slowly ; but the nearer we
approached the land, the more gloomy and un-
promising it appeared. The coast was nothing but
barren rocks. However, the sea was calm, and we
could see casks, bales, chests, and other vestiges of
the shipwreck, floating round us. We managed to
get hold of two of these, and towed them after us
in the water. As we drew nearer to the land,
Fritz, who had keen eyes, saw some trees, and
exclaimed that they were palm-trees. Ernest ex-
pressed his joy that he should now get much larger
and better cocoa-nuts than those of Europe. Jack
drew a small telescope from his pocket and handed
it to me, so that by its aid I got a good idea of the
shore, and saw a little opening between the rocks,
near the mouth of a creek, towards which all our
LANDING ON THE DESERT ISLAND 9
geese and ducks were heading. I steered for it too,
and found it was the entrance to a little bay ; the
water was neither too deep nor too shallow to
receive our boat. So we entered it and ran
ashore.
The moment our unwieldy boat grated on the
shingle the elder boys leaped out, and even little
Francis, who had been wedged in his tub like a
potted herring, sprang forward. The dogs, who
had arrived first, greeted us with every demonstra-
tion of joy ; the geese kept up a loud cackling, and
the ducks contributed a deep quacking ; the cocks
and hens clucked ; and the boys chattered all
together. To this was added the disagreeable
scream of some penguins and flamingoes, which
flew over our heads or sat on the points of the rocks
at the entrance of the bay.
The first thing we did on finding ourselves safe
on dry land was to fall on our knees and utter
a short thanksgiving to God our Father.
We next unloaded the boat, and then looked
about for a convenient place to set up a tent under
the shade of the rocks. Having agreed upon a
place, we set to work, and drove one of our poles
firmly into a fissure of the rock ; this rested upon
another pole, which was driven perpendicularly into
10 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
the ground. Over the ridge we threw some sail-
cloth, and fastened it down on each side to the
ground with stakes. The next thing to be done
was to collect grass and moss, to be spread and
dried in the sun, to serve us for beds. While the
boys were doing this, I made near the tent a kind
of little kitchen.
A few flat stones served for a hearth, and with
some little twigs a brisk, cheering fire was soon
alight. We put some of the soup-cakes, with water,
into our iron pot over the flame. When Francis
saw the soup-cakes he mistook them for glue, and
asked with such an appearance of earnestness what
we were going to stick together that his mother
smiled as she explained that these cakes were made
of the juices of meat, pressed out and consolidated
to make them easy to pack.
In the meanwhile Fritz, taking one of the guns,
had wandered along the side of the river ; Ernest
had gone to the seashore ; and Jack took the
direction of a chain of rocks which jutted out
into the sea.
Presently I heard loud cries coming from Jack,
and, snatching up my hatchet, I ran to his help.
He was up to his knees in water, with a large sea
lobster hanging on to his leg by its claws. I
OVER THE RIDGE WE THREW SOME SAILCLOTH AND FASTENED IT DOWN
ON EACH SIDE
LANDING ON THE DESERT ISLAND 11
jumped into the water with such a splash that the
creature let go his hold ; but I caught him and
carried him off, followed by Jack, who, having
observed how 1 held the lobster by the back, laid
his own hand upon it in the same way ; but scarcely
had he grasped it than he received a violent blow
on the face from the lobster's tail, which made him
drop the animal on the ground. In his rage he
snatched up a stone, and killed it with a single
blow. Then, fearless of a dead enemy, he carried
it off triumphantly, crying :
4 Mother, mother, a sea lobster ! Ernest, a sea
lobster ! Where is Fritz? Take care, Francis; he
will bite you.'
In a moment all were round him, examining the
wonderful creature, and exclaiming at his enormous
size.
' Yes, yes,' said Jack, holding up one of the
claws ; ' you may well wonder at his size. This
was the frightful claw which seized my leg, but
I have taught him what it is to attack me ; I have
paid him well.
' Oh, oh, Mr. Boaster!' cried I, 'you give a pretty
account of the matter. Now mine would be that,
if I had not been near, the lobster would have
shown you another sort of game. Believe me
12 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
Jack, you have no great reason to boast of the
adventure.'
Ernest suggested that the lobster had better be
put into the soup ; but this his mother opposed,
observing that we must be more economical of our
provisions than that, for the lobster of itself would
furnish a dinner for the whole family.
I complimented Jack on his being the first to
find an animal that might serve for food, and
promised him, for his own share, the famous claw
which had nipped him so tightly.
' Ah 1 but I have seen something too that is
good to eat,' said Ernest ; ' and I should have got
it if it had not been in the water, so that I must
have wetted my feet '
' Oh, that is a famous story !' cried Jack. ' I can
tell you what he saw some nasty mussels. Why,
I would not eat one of them for the world. Think
of my lobster 1'
' That is not true, Jack, for they were oysters,
and not mussels, that I saw. I am sure of it, for
they stuck to the rock.'
' Well,' said I, addressing Ernest, ' go and fetch
some at once ; you will have to get used to wetting
your feet here, so the sooner you begin the better.'
* All right,' he answered : ' and at the same time I
LANDING ON THE DESERT ISLAND 13
will bring home some salt which I saw in the holes
of the rocks, where, I suppose, it had been left
when the sea- water evaporated.'
' If you had brought some back at first instead
of talking so much you would have done better,'
said I.
When he returned, however, we found that he
had still feared to get the oysters, and had
scraped up so much sand with the salt that it
appeared to be useless until my wife dissolved
it in water, and then strained it through a piece
of muslin, which left the sand and grit behind, so
that we could season our soup with the salt
water.
Then, when the soup was ready, we suddenly
looked at each other and laughed, for we had quite
forgotten to bring any sort of plates or spoons away
from the wreck, and it would be impossible for each
of us to raise the large boiling pot to his lips. It
was a little like the fox in the fable, when the stork
desires him to help himself from a vessel with a long
neck. Ernest remarked that if we could but get
some of the nice cocoa-nuts he often thought about,
we might empty them and use the pieces of the
shells for spoons.
' Yes, yes,' replied I, * if we could but get some.
14 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
If wishing were any good, we might as well wish at
once for a dozen silver spoons.'
* But at least,' said the boy, ' we can use some
oyster-shells for spoons.'
' Good !' I said. ' Run quickly and fetch some of
them.'
Jack ran first, and was up to his knees in the
water before Ernest could reach the place. He
threw the oysters to his brother, who put them
into his handkerchief having first secured in his
pocket one particularly large shell for his own
use.
Fritz not having yet returned, his mother was
beginning to be uneasy, when he suddenly appeared
holding his hands behind him, with a sort of would-
be melancholy air.
' What have you found ?' asked his brothers.
* Nothing,' he answered.
But Jack, running behind him, exclaimed :
' A sucking-pig ! a sucking-pig !'
Fritz thereupon proudly displayed his prize,
which I recognised as an agouti, a little animal
rather like a rabbit, and not a sucking-pig, as the
boys had supposed. He had shot it in the wood.
Questions were eagerly showered upon him by
his brothers, but I spoke seriously to him about the
LANDING ON THE DESERT ISLAND 15
evil habit of lying, even in jest, whereupon he
expressed his sorrow.
He then told us that he had passed over to the
other side of the river, and had found the shore
there quite low, and covered with casks, chests, and
planks, and different sorts of things washed up by
the sea.
I told him we would go there as soon as possible
to secure some of these things, but first we must go
back to the ship and try to fetch away the animals.
' If we had the cow we could soak our biscuit in
milk,' observed dainty Ernest.
Fritz told us also that he had not seen the
smallest trace of man, dead or alive, on land or water.
Our soup was now ready ; the boys thereupon
tried to open the oysters with their knives, but only
succeeded in cutting their own fingers. I showed
them how to place the shells near the fire, where-
upon they opened of themselves. Then I ex-
plained that the oysters were esteemed a great
delicacy, and were swallowed raw. They followed
my example in holding up the shells and letting
the oyster inside slip down their throats ; but they
made wry faces, and did not seem to appreciate the
delicious morsel, for, as they had lived very simply
at home, such things were new to them.
16 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
Having thus secured a ladle, we all dipped in the
pot, but as the shells had no handles, we only
succeeded in scalding our fingers, and a chorus of
groans followed. Ernest was the only one who
had been too cautious to burn himself; he quietly
took the shell he had kept for himself, which was
as large and deep as a small saucer, from his pocket,
and, carefully dipping it into the pot, drew it out
filled with as much soup as was his fair share, and
set it down till it should cool.
' You have taken good care of yourself,' said I.
' Didn't it occur to you that you might have saved
this prize for your mother instead of yourself ? As
a punishment, I bid you give your dish of soup to
the dogs, and yourself share with the rest of us.'
He was instantly ashamed of himself, and placed
the shell, filled with soup, upon the ground ; in a
moment the dogs had licked up every drop. A few
minutes elapsed, and while we were eagerly watch-
ing the pot we heard a snarl, and, looking round,
saw Turk and Flora tearing the agouti to pieces in
order to eat him. The boys all screamed together.
Fritz seized his gun and struck the dogs with it so
hard that he bent it, and his voice was raised so
high in his fury that it re-echoed from the rocks.
The dogs ran away terrified, and when Fritz had
LANDING ON THE DESERT ISLAND 17
calmed down a little I pointed out to him the folly
and unmanliness of this want of self-control. By
this time the soup was cool, and we at last made
our meal.
The sun began to sink into the west. The
fowls gathered round, pecking here and there at
the morsels of biscuit which had fallen on the
ground. Then my wife produced the bag she had
so mysteriously huddled into the tub, and drawing
from it handfuls of grain, scattered them upon the
ground for the ducks and hens. Seeing this, I
suggested that we should not use anything so
valuable so lavishly, but keep it as seed for a
future harvest, in which she agreed. Then the
pigeons sought a roosting-place among the rocks ;
the hens ranged themselves in a line along the ridge
of the tent ; and the geese and ducks betook them-
selves in a body, cackling and quacking as they
proceeded, to a marshy bit of ground near the sea,
where some thick bushes afforded them shelter.
A little later we began to follow their example
by preparing for bed. First, we loaded our guns
and pistols, and laid them carefully in the tent ;
next, we held evening prayer, and with the last
ray of the sun we entered our tent, and, after draw-
ing the sail-cloth over the hooks, to close the
18 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
entrance, we laid ourselves down on the grass and
moss we had previously collected.
The boys noticed with surprise that darkness
came down all at once without any twilight. This
fact made me suspect we were not far from the
equator, where day and night succeed each other
very suddenly. Though the day had been hot, the
night was quite cold ; but we were all so tired that
in spite of this we soon fell asleep, and found our
first night in the desert island very tolerably com-
fortable.
CHAPTER III
A VOYAGE OF DISCOVERY
WE were awakened in the morning by the crowing
of the cocks, and my wife and I, on talking matters
over, agreed that it would be best for me to take
Fritz and go in search of any traces of our late
shipmates along the shore, while the three younger
boys stayed with her for the day. She then laid
and lit the fire, and put some water on to boil,
while I awoke the rest of the party. When I
asked Jack for his lobster, he ran and fetched it
from a cleft in the rock, where he had hidden it
in case the dogs ate it as they had done Fritz's
agouti.
I praised his prudence, and asked if he would
give Fritz the great claw to carry with him for his
lunch on our journey.
' What journey ?' asked all the boys at once.
'We will go too. A journey! a journey 1' and
19
SO THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
they clapped their hands and jumped round me
like little kids.
' It is impossible for all of you to go,' I said.
' You three must stay at home to-day and take care
of your mother ; you shall keep Flora to guard you,
while we will take Turk with us. Make haste,
Fritz, and see that the guns are ready.'
Jack, who was of a generous spirit, cried out
that we should take the whole lobster with us, at
which Ernest protested.
' I cannot think why you should give it all
to them,' he said. 'You need not be uneasy
about their journey. Like Robinson Crusoe, they
will be sure to find some cocoa-nuts, which
they will like much better than your miserable
lobster ; only think, a fine round nut, Jack, as big
as my head, and with at least a teacupful of milk
m it !'
' Bring me one, father, will you ?' cried little
Francis.
We now prepared to set out. We took each a
bag for game, and a hatchet. I put a pair of
pistols in the leather band round Fritz's waist arid
took two myself, and we did not forget some
biscuit and a flask of fresh river water. At break-
fast, when we all attacked the lobster we found it
A VOYAGE OF DISCOVERY 21
so tough that we were allowed to pack what was
left for our journey without further regret from
anyone.
J?V*tz urged me to set out before it grew too hot,
in which be was quite right ; so, having seen that
the guns we left behind were loaded in case of
need, we said good-bye and started.
We found we had to go a good way up the river
before we could cross, as the banks were high and
steep. But at last we passed over on some large
rocks that formed stepping-stones, and then forced
our way through tall grass which was twined with
other plants, and, being half dried by the sun, made
the task very difficult.
When we had walked about a hundred paces, we
heard a loud noise behind us, and a rustling in
the grass, which was almost as tall as ourselves.
I thought it might be a serpent, a tiger, or some
other ferocious animal. But I was well satisfied
with Fritz, who, instead of being frightened and
running away, stood still and firm to face the
danger. Our alarm was, however, short ; for out
rushed, not an enemy, but our faithful Turk,
whom we had forgotten, but who had quickly
followed us.
This incident over, we resumed our walk. On
3
22 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
our left was the sea, and we kept on along the
shore, after having got clear of the tall grass ; but
though we looked in all directions, we could see no
trace of any of the shipwrecked sailors.
Fritz suggested firing his gun from time to time,
that, should they be near us, they might know we
were there.
But this I objected to, reminding him that the
sound might also bring down savages upon us, if
there were any in the island, and that it would be
as well not to fire unless it was necessary.
When we had gone about four miles, we turned
inland and threw ourselves on the ground, by the
side of a clear, running stream, and, taking out our
food, refreshed ourselves. Presently our attention
was attracted by strange noises made by birds in
the trees, and when we caught a glimpse of the birds,
we saw that their plumage was of brilliant colours.
Fritz also said that he had seen some animals like
apes among the bushes, and just then Turk began
to bark so loud that the wood resounded with the
noise. Fritz, bewildered by so many excitements,
sprang up, and as he did so stumbled on a small
round body which lay on the ground ; he handed it
to me, observing that it must be the aest of some
bird.
A VOYAGE OF DISCOVERY 23
'What makes you think that?' I asked. 'It
seems to me much more like a cocoa-nut.'
And when he persisted in his opinion, I told him
to split it open, in order that we might prove what
it was.
This he did, and found I was right ; but the nut,
alas ! from lying on the ground, had rotted, and
could not be eaten, and appeared merely like a bit
of dried skin.
Fritz was much amused at this.
* How I wish Ernest could have been here !' he
cried. ' He envied me the fine large cocoa-nuts I
was to find, and the whole teacupful of milk which
was to spring out from the inside !'
* Never mind,' I said, ' we will find a good one
before we go home, and take one to Ernest, too.'
After looking for some time we did really dis-
cover another, and on opening it, were delighted to
find it tolerably good. It was a little oily and
rancid, it is true, yet we enjoyed it, and then went on
with our exploration. We pushed our way across
the wood, being often obliged to cut a path through
the bushes, overrun by creeping plants, with our
hatchet. At last we reached a plain, which we
crossed before plunging again into a wood on the
right.
24 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
Here we soon noticed that some of the trees
were very curious. Fritz, whose sharp eyes were
always on the alert, examined them closely, and
was the first to find words to express their oddness.
' What odd trees !' he cried, ' with wens growing
all about their trunks !'
I told him that they were of the gourd-tree kind,
the trunks of which bear fruit.
Fritz had never heard of such a tree, but he
broke off one of the excrescences, and told me it
was exactly like a gourd, only the rind was thicker
and harder.
* This is a most useful discovery,' I said, ' for now
we can make dishes, basins, flasks.'
* Hurrah !' cried the boy gleefully ; ' we need not
scald our fingers any more by using those wretched
oyster-shells.'
* Negro savages set as much value on the rind of
this fruit as on gold,' I told him. ' These rinds
serve them as vessels for their food and drink, and
sometimes they are even used for cooking.'
' Oh, father ! that must be impossible, 'he argued,
' for the heat of fire would soon burn them up.'
' I did not say the rind was put upon the fire.'
'I don't see how they could do it any other
way.'
A VOYAGE OF DISCOVERY 25
' Well, I believe the method is as follows : Some
water is put into half of one of these rinds, and into
the water some fish, or a crab, or anything else
there is to be cooked. Then some red hot stones
are thrown in one by one, so that the water gets
hot and boils the food.'
Fritz was much interested, and very anxious to
try ; and, though it was hardly the time for this, I
told him that at any rate he should see me make
some plates and dishes. I tied a bit of string round
the middle of the gourd as tight as possible, striking
it pretty hard with the handle of my knife, and I
drew it tighter and tighter till the gourd fell apart,
forming two regular-shaped bowls or vessels.
Fritz was astonished and delighted.
* These are capital dishes,' he cried. * But I
cannot imagine, father, how you can make a flask
from a gourd.'
' That is more difficult,' I said, * and needs pre-
paration a long time beforehand. The negroes
bind a piece of string, linen, bark of a tree, or
anything they can get, round the part of a gourd
nearest the stalk while it is still very young and
growing, so that as the plant increases in size the
bandaged part remains small, and in this way
flasks or bottles of a very good shape are made.'
26 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
While we were talking, we had both been busy
splitting more gourds. These I filled with sand,
to prevent their shrinking, and left them for the
sun to dry them thoroughly. We intended to
pick them up on our way back.
After this we walked on for a long time until we
arrived at a spot where a strip of land stretched far
out into the sea, and on it was some high ground or
a hill. We made directly for this, and on reaching
the top we saw a scene of wild and solitary beauty,
stretching out in all directions ; but in vain we
used our telescopes : we could see no trace of man.
By this time the heat of the sun was very great,
and we felt we must again seek the shelter of trees,
or we could not endure it.
So when we descended the hill we made our way
to a wood of palms, and were glad to get into the
shade again. Our path was clothed with reeds and
entwined with other plants, which made progress
difficult, so we advanced slowly and cautiously,
fearing that snakes might be concealed, and we
made Turk go before, to give us notice of anything
dangerous. I also cut a reed-stalk for defence, but
I had not held it many minutes before I found my
hand covered with a sticky juice, which, when I
tasted it, proved to be very sweet, so that J realized
A VOYAGE OF DISCOVERY 27
we were actually walking in a grove of sugar-canes.
I did not tell Fritz, for I wanted him to find out
for himself ; so I simply called out to him to cut a
stick for himself as I had done. This he did, and
as he swung it in all directions, soon felt the sticky
juice upon his hands. And hardly a second after
the truth dawned upon him, and he cried out joy-
fully :
' Father, father 1 I have found some sugar 1 I
have a sugar-cane in my hand 1'
He kept sucking the juice of the single cane he
had cut with great joy, and, when he was satisfied,
expressed his intention of cutting a great bundle of
canes to carry home to the others.
' I have no objection,' I said ; ' but do not take
too heavy a load.'
Counsel was given in vain. He persisted in
cutting at least a dozen of the largest canes, tore off
their leaves, tied them together, and, putting them
under his arm, dragged them, as well as he was able,
to the end of the plantation. After this we returned
by a circuit to the first wood, where we had found
the cocoa-nuts, and here we settled down to rest a
little while. We had scarcely seated, however, whet
a number of large monkeys, terrified by the sight
of us and the barking of Turk, stole nimbly up the
28 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
palm-trees, and, fixing their eyes upon us, ground
their teeth and made horrible grimaces, screaming
at us all the time. Fritz prepared to shoot at them
instantly. He threw his burdens on the ground,
and it was with difficulty I could prevent him from
firing.
' Ah, father, why did not you let me fire ?
Monkeys are such malicious, mischievous animals 1
Look how they are grinning at us !'
I laughed at this and told him to stand aside, for
an idea had come into my head, and I meant to
put it to the test.
Accordingly I began to throw some stones at
the monkeys, and though I could not throw them
half high enough, they answered the purpose, for,
with their usual mimicry, the monkeys furiously
tore off all the cocoa-nuts within their reach and
hurled them down upon us, so that it was with
difficulty we avoided being hit by them. In a
short time all the ground around us was covered
with cocoa-nuts.
Fritz laughed heartily at the success of the
stratagem, and as the shower of cocoa-nuts began
to subside, we gathered them up, and having
first enjoyed the milk through the three small
holes, where we found it easy to insert the point of
A VOYAGE OF DISCOVERY 29
a knife, we opened the shells with a hatchet. The
milk of the cocoa-nut- has not a pleasant flavour,
but it is excellent for quenching thirst. What we
liked best was a kind of solid cream which adheres
to the shell, and which we scraped off. We mixed
with it a little of the sap of our sugar-canes, and
found this delicious.
These cocoa-nuts were certainly very superior to
the one that we had at first picked up, being fresh
and in fine condition. After this we gave poor
Turk the rest of the lobster and what biscuit we
had over, feeling we did not want it. He ate up
every scrap and intimated he would have liked
more, but we had nothing else to give him.
As we prepared to start once more, I tied all the
cocoa-nuts, which had stalks, together, and threw
them across my shoulder. Fritz resumed his
bundle of sugar-canes. We divided the rest of the
things between us, and continued our way towards
home.
CHAPTER IV
A NIGHT ALARM
FRITZ now began to show signs of weariness ; the
sugar-canes galled his shoulders, and he was obliged
to shift them often. At last he stopped to take
breath.
' I never could have thought,' he said, ' that a
few sugar-canes could be so heavy. I pity the
poor negroes who carry heavy loads of them ! Yet
I must go on, for I long to see mother and Ernest
eating them.'
After a while, noticing that I sucked the cane I
was carrying, he tried to do the same in order to
refresh himself. It was in vain, however ; scarcely
a drop of the sap reached his eager lips.
' Why,' said he, ' though the cane is full of
juice, I cannot get any.'
* Try to think for yourself,' I replied.
This he did, and presently announced that by
SO
A NIGHT ALARM SI
making a little hole in the cane above the knot he
could get at the juice by sucking the end.
I asked him to explain to me why this happened,
and after further thought, he answered correctly
that in sucking the juice the air in the mouth was
exhausted ; the external air, pressing at the same
time through the hole, filled this void ; the juice of
the cane formed an obstacle to this effort, and was
accordingly driven into the mouth.
I was pleased to find he could reason the thing
out for himself, and warned him not to carry out
the plan too effectually, or he might only have a
bundle of empty canes to present to those at home ;
however, as the juice of the sugar-cane is apt to
turn sour soon after cutting, especially in such
heat, this mattered the less.
* At least,' said Fritz, ' I will take the others
some of the cocoa-nut milk with which I filled my
flask.'
' In this, too, I think you will be disappointed.
You talk of milk, but the milk of the cocoa-nut,
when exposed to the air and heat, turns soon to
vinegar.'
* Oh, heavens, how provoking ! I must taste it
this very minute,' he cried anxiously.
The flask was lowered from his shoulder and the
33 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
stopper unscrewed ; then the contents of the bottle
burst upwards, hissing and frothing like champagne.
' Bravo, Mr. Fritz !' I cried. ' Your milk has
turned to wine ; don't let it make you tipsy.'
* Oh, taste it, father, taste it ! it is quite nice ; not
the least like vinegar ; it is rather like wine : its
taste is sweet, and it is so sparkling ! Don't you
think it is good ? If all the milk turns like this, it
will be even better than I thought.'
Soon after this we reached the place where we
had left our gourd dishes upon the sand ; we found
them perfectly dry and as hard as bone, so we
added them to our loads and trudged on.
Scarcely had we passed through the little wood
in which we had lunched when Turk dashed into
the middle of a troop of monkeys, and seized one
of them who held a young one in her arms.
Before we could stop him he had killed her.
Fritz flew to prevent the deed. He lost his hat,
and threw down all he was carrying, but he was too
late to save the monkey.
However, the young one, who was quite unhurt,
sprang nimbly on his shoulders, and fastened its
feet in his curly hair ; nor could the squalls of
^*
Fritz nor all the shaking he gave it make it let go
its hold.
A NIGHT ALARM 5$
I laughed heartily at the boy's face of dismay
under the sudden onslaught.
' Perhaps/ I said, * it adopts you for a, father,
having lost its mother.'
By this time Fritz had recovered from his
fright, and disengaged the little animal gently. It
was not larger than a kitten, and quite unable to
help itself.
' Father,' cried Fritz, ' do let me have it for my
own. I will take the greatest care of it ; I will
give it all my share of the milk of the cocoa-nuts
till we get our cows and goats.'
I agreed readily to this, for I was pleased with
his behaviour.
So we started once more, and I carried the
bundle of sugar-canes, while the little monkey sat
on Fritz's shoulder. Whenever Turk came near,
however, it trembled and shrunk closer up to its
new master.
Fritz was angry with the dog for having killed
the mother monkey, and finally decided that it
was only fair that he should carry the child ; so he
produced some string, and, making the monkey sit
on the the dog's back, tied it there with some
string. At first the monkey seemed frightened,
but after being petted and caressed it sat quite
34 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
quietly, and seemed perfectly comfortable. Turk
also made some objections, but, partly by scolding
and partly by caresses, we succeeded in quieting
him, and he consented to carry the little burden.
Fritz put another piece of string round Turk's
neck, by which he might lead him. All this caused
delay, for I must confess we had not hurried much,
and I knew that they would be eagerly expecting
our return at home. I smiled at the idea that we
should look like a couple of travelling showmen,
a notion that amused Fritz when I told it to
him.
' Jack is fond of making faces,' said he ; 'he can
learn a few more from my wee monkey.'
We had not time for much more anticipation
before we found ourselves on the bank of the river
not far from home. Flora from the other side
announced our approach by a violent barking, and
Turk replied so heartily that the little monkey in
its fright jumped the length of its string on to
Fritz's shoulder. Turk, being released, ran off to
greet his companion, and shortly after all the
family appeared in sight, showing their joy at our
safe return. They made their way along the river
on one side and we on the other, till we had
reached the place we crossed in the morning.
A NIGHT ALARM SS
Then we re-crossed, and heard their happy ex-
clamations.
' A monkey ! a live monkey 1 Oh, what fun i
How did you catch him ? What a droll face he
has!'
' He is very ugly,' said little Francis, half afraid
to touch him.
4 He is much prettier than you,' retorted Jack,
* only see, he is laughing ! I wish I could see him
eat.'
' Ah, if we had but some cocoa-nuts !' cried
Ernest. * Could you not find any ?'
' Have you brought me any cocoa-nut milk ?'
asked Francis.
Then, noticing the sugar-canes, cocoa-nuts, and
gourds, they broke forth again in a chorus, though
they had not the least idea what these things were.
Questions and exclamations succeeded each other
with such rapidity as to leave no time to answer
them.
At length, when all became a little quieter, I
answered that we had had a fortunate day and
made many wonderful discoveries, but had seen no
trace of our shipmates whom we had gone out to
seek.
Then the boys all hastened to relieve us of the
36 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
loads we carried. Jack took my gun, Ernest the
cocoa-nuts, Francis the gourd-rinds, and my wife
my game-bag. Fritz distributed the sugar-canes
and put his monkey on the back of Turk, to the
great amusement of the children, at the same time
begging Ernest to carry his gun. But Ernest, who
was always lazy, assured him that the large, heavy
bowls with which he was loaded were as much as
he had strength to carry. His mother, a little too
indulgent, at once took them herself, and thus
we walked to our tent.
Fritz whispered to me that if Ernest had known
what the large, heavy bowls were, he would not so
readily have parted with them. Then, turning to
his brother, he cried :
'Why, Ernest, do you know that these bowls
are cocoa-nuts your dear cocoa-nuts and full of
the milk you talked so much about ?'
' What ?' cried Ernest in astonishment. ' Oh,
give them to me, mother I will carry them ; and
I can carry the gun too.'
'No, no, Ernest,' answered his mother, 'you
shall not tease us with any more of your long-
drawn sighs about fatigue ; after a hundred yards
you would begin again.'
Ernest would willingly have asked her to give
A NIGHT ALARM S7
him the cocoa-nuts in exchange for the gun, but
this he was ashamed to do ; so, as he happened to
be carrying the sugar-canes too, an idea occurred
to him.
' I have only/ he said, * to get rid of these sticks,
then I can carry the gun in my hand.'
* I would advise you not to find the sticks heavy,
either,' said Fritz dryly ; ' you will be sorry if you
do, for, as it happens, they are sugar-canes !'
* Sugar-canes 1 sugar-canes !' exclaimed all the
boys at once, and, surrounding Fritz, made him
tell them exactly how to suck the juice out.
My wife also was quite astonished and much
interested, so I told her about all our treasures.
She was by far the most delighted with the
plates and dishes, because they were indispensably
necessary.
By this time we had reached our camp, and saw
with pleasure the preparations for a good supper.
On one side of the fire was a turnspit, which my
wife had made by driving two forked pieces of
wood into the ground and placing a long stick,
sharpened at one end, across them. By this inven-
tion she could roast fish or other food with the
help of little Francis, who was entrusted with the
care of turning it round from time to time. She
38 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
had prepared a bird that looked like a goose,
the fat of which ran down into some oyster-shells
placed there to serve as a dripping-pan. There was.
besides, a dish of fish, which the boys had caught ;
and the iron pot was upon the fire filled with
soup, which smelt excellent. Near at hand stood
one of the casks which we had recovered from the
sea ; this had been opened, and was full of Dutch
cheeses. All this was hardly what one would
expect to see on a desert island, and was very
acceptable to two tired explorers.
The bird I discovered was not a goose, but, as
Ernest assured me, a sort of penguin, which he
had knocked down with a stick.
* It is a very stupid bird,' he added, ' and so slow ;
it never tried to run away, and sits in one position
for hours together, as if it were thinking deeply, and
looks like a sack on end. I think it must be the
kind called the Stupid Penguin.'
I began asking further questions, in order to
draw out the boy's powers of observation, but my
wife interrupted me, asking that this discussion
might be postponed, in order that, instead of
talking about the bird, we could begin to eat him.
At this moment Jack broke in upon us, crying
out that he had tried to make the little monkey
A NIGHT ALARM 39
eat, offering it everything he could think of, but
that it would not touch anything. I suggested
that they should try it with some of the milk from
the cocoa-nuts. This they did, and each boy in
turn amused himself with making it suck the
corner of his pocket handkerchief dipped in the
milk of the cocoa-nut. The monkey seemed
pleased with this food, and I began to hope we
might rear it. We decided to call it Nip.
The boys were beginning to break some more of
the nuts with the hatchet, after having drawn out
the milk through the three little holes, when I told
them to stop and to bring me a saw. The thought
had struck me that, by dividing the nuts carefully,
the two halves, when scooped out, would make
teacups or basins, which would be very useful in
addition to our gourd-bowls. Jack, who was always
the quickest, brought me the saw. With this I
divided the nuts, and soon we each had a new cup ;
and I firmly believe that never did the most
magnificent service of china give half the pleasure
to its possessor that these rough cups and bowls,
which we had made ourselves from gourds and
cocoa-nuts, gave to us. Fritz suddenly remembered
the wine in his flask, but when he tasted it, he
made a wry face and said it was like vinegar.
40 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
' What ! vinegar ?' exclaimed my wife. ' How
lucky ! it will make sauce for our bird, mixed with
the fat which has fallen from it in roasting.'
No sooner said than done. This vinegar certainty
improved the rather fishy flavour of the penguin,
and our fish also. It amused me, meanwhile, to
hear the talk among the boys, for each one boasted
of what he had himself contributed to our meal.
It was Jack and Francis who had caught the fish
in one of the shallows, while Ernest, with very
little trouble to himself, secured his penguin. As
a matter of fact, my wife had done the hardest work
of all in rolling the cask of Dutch cheeses from the
shore and then breaking it open.
By the time we had finished the sun was nearly
setting, and, remembering how quickly the darkness
would fall, we hastened to get ready for bed. My
wife had collected a quantity of dry grass, which
she had spread in the tent, so that we had a
prospect of being much more comfortable than the
night before. The fowls went to roost as they had
done the preceding evening. We said our prayers,
and went into the tent, taking with us the young
monkey, who was a favourite with all. Fritz and
Jack, indeed, quarrelled as to which of them should
enjoy the honour of his company for the night,
A NIGHT ALARM 41
and it was at last decided that he should lie
between them. I fastened the sail-cloth in front of
the tent, and then, quite tired out by all I had
done, I lay down on the soft grass with the others,
and was soon sound asleep.
However, it was not long before I woke with a
violent start, hearing the fowls fluttering about on
the roof of the tent and the two dogs barking
loudly. I sprang to my feet, and, seizing a gun,
went to look out, followed by my wife and Fritz.
The dogs continued barking with the same
violence, and at intervals even howled. We had
hardly stepped out of the tent when, to our
surprise, we saw by the light of the moon a
terrible scene : at least a dozen jackals had set
upon our brave dogs, who defended themselves des-
perately. Already the dogs had disabled one or two,
and those that remained were snarling and whining.
1 was relieved to see it was nothing worse.
' We shall soon set these fellows at rest,' I said.
' Let us fire both together, my boy ; but take care
how you aim, for fear of killing the dogs.'
We fired, and one of the jackals instantly fell
dead upon the sand. The others, terrified by the
unexpected noise, scampered away. Turk and
Flora raced after them, and so the matter ended.
42 -THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
Fritz asked me to let him drag the dead jackal
towards the tent, that he might exhibit it the next
morning to his brothers. I thought, however, that
Turk and Flora might want to eat it, and advised
him to leave it. However, he was anxious to try to
keep it, and pulled it up near a rock by the entrance
to the tent.
Oddly enough, the younger boys slept so soundly
that they had not even been awakened by the
firing of the guns. So we lay down by their side
till day began to break.
CHAPTER V
FRITZ AND I VISIT THE WRECK
As soon as I woke in the morning, seeing that my
wife was already awake, I began to discuss with
her our plans for the day. Two things were abso-
lutely necessary, the first to fetch the live-stock
from the ship, which might at any moment break
up, and the second to build ourselves a better
sort of house.
Having agreed that the voyage to the ship was
the more important, I resolved to take Fritz with
me, as on the day before, leaving the other three
boys with their mother. When we had decided
this, springing to my feet, I cried out loudly :
' Get up, boys get up ! we have important work
to do to-day.'
At these words Fritz jumped up, and, running
out of the tent, found the dead jackal still un-
touched, but quite stiff. So, in the spirit of mischief,
43
44 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
he fixed him in the sand, right opposite the tent
door, as if he were taking a walk.
Jack was the first of the others to appear, with
the young monkey on his shoulder ; but when the
little creature saw the jackal, he sprang away in
terror, and hid himself in the corner of the tent,
pulling the dry grass over him, so as to hide himself
completely.
The younger boys gave vent to a chorus of
exclamations at the sight.
'It is a wolf 1' cried Francis, rather frightened.
' No, no,' said Jack, going near the jackal, and
taking one of his paws ; ' it is a yellow dog, and he
is dead.'
' It is neither a dog nor a wolf,' interrupted
Ernest in a conceited tone. ' Do you not see that
it is the golden fox ?'
Fritz burst out laughing.
' With all your reading,' Mr. Professor/ he said,
' you can't tell a jackal when you see one.'
' No one is wrong,' I interposed, to prevent a
quarrel, ' for a jackal is really very nearly akin to a
dog and a wolf as well as a fox.'
This settled the little dispute, and we all turned
eagerly to discuss the more important question of
breakfast. Alas 1 there was nothing but dry
FRITZ AND I VISIT THE WRECK 45
biscuit. Fritz asked for a piece of cheese to eat
with it, and Ernest looked eagerly at the second
cask we had pulled out of the sea to discover
whether it also contained Dutch cheeses. In a
minute he came up to us, joy sparkling in his
eyes.
' Father,' said he, * if we had a little butter spread
upon our biscuit, don't you think it would im-
prove it ?'
' That indeed it would ; but if if- - I asked
rather impatiently : ' What do you mean ?'
' Well,' he said triumphantly, ' this barrel is full
of salt butter. I made a little opening in it with a
knife, and see, I got out enough to spread upon a
piece of biscuit.'
'Your greediness is of some general use,' I
remarked. * Who will have some butter on his
biscuit ?'
The boys surrounded the cask in a moment,
while I was in some perplexity as to how to break
it open. Fritz was for taking off the topmost hoop,
and thus loosening one of the ends. But this I
objected to, knowing that the great heat of the sun
would melt the butter, which would then run out
and be wasted. The idea occurred to me that I
might make a hole in the "bottom of the cask large
46 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
enough to allow us to scoop out the butter, and 1
set about making a little wooden shovel to use for
the purpose. All this was very successful. I used
my wooden shovel as a scoop, and drew out
enough butter to fill half a cocoa-nut shell.
Then we toasted our biscuit, and while it was hot
spread the butter on it, and made a hearty break-
fast.
' One of the things we must not forget to look
for in the ship,' said Fritz, ' is a spiked collar for
our dogs, to protect them if they fight with wild
beasts.'
' Oh,' said Jack, ' I can make spiked collars if
mother will help me.'
She agreed readily ; but Jack would not tell us
his plan just then, saying it was a secret.
Then I told Fritz that he was to come with me
to the ship, and he ran down to get the boat ready.
While he was doing so I looked about for a pole, and
tied a piece of white linen to the end of it ; then 1
drove it into the ground, in a place where we could
see it from the ship, and I told my wife that, in
case of any accident, she must take down the
pole and fire a gun three times as a signal of dis-
tress. But I told her at the same time it was very
likely we should stay away all night if we were not
FRITZ AND I VISIT THE WRECK 47
summoned back, for we should have a great deal
to do.
We took nothing with us but our guns and
some powder and shot, knowing we should find
provisions on board ; yet I agreed to carry with us
the young monkey, so that we could give it some
milk from the cow or from a goat.
We set off in silence, watching the figures on
shore growing smaller and smaller. Fritz rowed
steadily, and I did my best to help him by rowing
from time to time with the oar which served me for
a rudder.
We had to rest at intervals, but at last we ran
into a current, made by the flow of the river into
the sea, and this carried us easily out. So
eventually we found ourselves safely at the side
of the ship, and could fasten our boat securely to
one of its timbers.
Fritz went at once, with his young monkey on
his arm, to the main deck, where he found all the
animals we had left on board assembled. They all
showed pleasure at our arrival, though they were
not hungry, having still some of the food and water
we had left them remaining. The first thing we
did was to put the young monkey to one of the
goats, that he might suck for himself ; and this he
48 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
did with such evident pleasure and such odd
grimaces that he afforded us much amusement.
Fritz and I then consulted what should be our
first occupation. To my surprise, he suggested that
we should put up a sail in our boat.
' What makes you think of such a thing just
now,' I asked, ' when we have so many things of
greater importance to arrange ?'
' True, father,' said Fritz ; * but I found it very
difficult to row for so long. I noticed, too, that,
though the wind blew strongly in my face, the
current still carried us on. Now, as the current
will be of no use on our way back, I was think-
ing that we might make the wind do the work.
Our boat will be very heavy when we have loaded
it with all the things we mean to take away, and I
am afraid I shall not be strong enough to row to
land ; so do you not think that a sail would be a
good thing ?'
I thought there was reason in this, and agreed to
try to make a sail.
We found a pole strong enough for a mast, and
another, not so thick, for a cross-piece. I then
went to the sail-room, and cut a large sail down to
a triangular shape ; I made holes along the edges,
and passed cords through them. We then got a
FRITZ AND I VISIT THE WRECK 49
pulley, and with this and some rope we fastened
the sail to the mast, which we rigged up by nail-
ing a board with a hole in it across one of the tubs
of our boat and so fixing it.
Fritz, after taking observations through a tele-
scope of what was passing on land, told me all
seemed well he could even see his mother walking
about.
But our work with the sail had taken us a long
time, and, with all we had yet to do, I saw we
should certainly have to pass the night on board, as
I had expected, and not join the others on shore
that day.
We employed the rest of the day in emptying
the tubs of the useless ballast of stones which we
had brought in them, and putting in their place
nails, pieces of cloth, and different kinds of utensils.
We also secured knives and forks and spoons, and
in the captain's cabin we found some services of
silver and a little chest filled with bottles of wine.
We next descended to the kitchen, which we
stripped of gridirons, kettles, and pots of all kinds,
including a small roasting-jack. Our last prize was
a chest of choice eatables, containing hams, sausages,
and other savoury food. I took good care not to
forget some little sacks of maize, of wheat, and
50 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
other grain, and some potatoes. We next added
such implements for gardening as we could find-
shovels, hoes, spades, and rakes. Fritz reminded
me that we had found sleeping on the ground both
cold and hard, so we took as well some hammocks
and blankets. He also brought a few books from
the captain's library, including some volumes on
Natural History and a Bible. The last articles
were a barrel of sulphur, a quantity of ropes, some
small string, and a large roll of sail-cloth. The
vessel appeared to us to be in so wretched a condi-
tion that the least wind must send her to pieces, so
we felt that we must make the most of our time.
Our cargo was so large that the tubs were filled
to the very brim, except the first and last, which we
kept for ourselves.
Night surprised us with its suddenness, and we
saw almost at once a large blazing fire on the shore,
which was the signal we had agreed upon if all was
well. We tied four lanterns to our mast-head in
answer, and then, after saying our prayers, settled
down to rest.
CHAPTER VI
THE ANIMALS SWIM ASHORE
ALMOST as soon as it was light I was looking eagerly
through the captain's telescope at the shore, and
had the satisfaction of seeing my wife come out of
the tent and walk down to the beach. Then, waking
Fritz, we soon settled down to a breakfast of biscuit
and ham.
* Now,' 1 said, when we had finished, * we shall
have to think how we can get these animals ashore.'
' Would it be possible to make a raft ?' asked
Fritz.
* But how could we induce a cow, a donkey,
and a sow to get upon a raft, or to remain quiet
on it ?'
' The sow is so fat, she would float,' he said ; ' and
I believe the others would swim with very little
trouble if we could give them swimming-belts.'
I laughed at the idea, but fixed a belt on one of
51
52 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
the lambs as a trial, and found that after the firsl
plunge into the water it floated very well.
I had taken the precaution of tying a string tc
the lamb, with which I now drew it back to the
ship.
We next got two small empty tubs, and nailed a
large piece of sail-cloth across from one to the
other, and added some leather straps. Then I fixed
this contrivance on the donkey, so that a tub was
on each side, the sail-cloth beneath him, and the
straps passed over him to hold it in place. This
seemed likely to do so well that I made the same
kind of harness for the cow.
It was now the turn of the smaller animals : of
these, the sow gave us the most trouble ; we were
first obliged to put a muzzle on her to prevent her
biting, and then we tied a large piece of cork under
her body. The sheep and goats were quieter, but
we had much hard work before we had fitted them
all with something which should support them in
the water. When every one was equipped, we tied
a cord to either the horns or the neck of each
animal, and to the other end of the cord a piece of
wood, so that we could take hold of the ropes and
draw the animals to us if it should be necessary.
We began our experiments with the donkey, by
THE ANIMALS SWIM ASHORE 53
taking him to the edge of the ship and then
suddenly shoving him off. He fell into the water,
and for a moment disappeared ; but we soon saw
him rise and begin to strike out.
Next came the cow's turn, and as she was
infinitely more valuable than the donkey, I was more
afraid of losing her. We pushed her overboard,
however, and she reached the water safely ; when
there, she did not sink so low, and she made her
way toward the land with gravity, and, if 1 may so
express it, a sort of dignified composure. So one
by one we threw all the animals into the water,
where by-and-by they appeared floating at their
ease, and seemingly quite happy. The sow was the
only exception. She became furious, set up a loud
squalling, and struggled with much violence in the
water. We had now not a moment to lose. We
sprang into our boat, and were soon in the midst of
our farmyard. We carefully gathered all the float-
ing bits of wood at the end of the strings, so soon as
we could reach them, and fastened them to the
stern of the boat. When everything was fixed, we
hoisted our sail, which luckily acted well enough,
and the wind, being in the right direction, blew us
along merrily.
We now saw how impossible it would have been
54 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
for us to row to such a distance without the aid of
a sail ; especially as the weight of so many animals
sank the boat very low in the water. We laughed
heartily, however, at the queer spectacle we must
present dragging after us such an odd team ; and
in high spirits we made an excellent dinner. After-
wards Fritz amused himself with the monkey,
while I was occupied in thinking of those I had
left on land, whom I now tried to see through my
telescope. While I was thus engaged a sudden ex-
clamation from Fritz filled me with alarm.
4 Oh, heavens !' he cried, ' we are lost ! a huge
fish is coming up to the boat. It must be a
shark !'
' And why lost ?' said I, half angry. * Be ready
with your gun, and the moment he is close upon
us we will fire.'
He had nearly reached the boat, and with the
rapidity of lightning had seized the foremost sheep.
At this instant we both fired, so that the shots hit
the head of the monster simultaneously. The
shark half turned round in the water, and hurried
off to sea, leaving the water red, which convinced
us he had been severely wounded.
As soon as this adventure was over, I resumed
the rudder, and as the wind drove us straight
THE ANIMALS SWIM ASHORE 55
towards the bay, I took down the sail, and con-
tinued rowing till we reached a convenient spot for
our cattle to land, which they did without difficulty.
I had already been surprised and uneasy at rind-
ing none of the family looking out for us on the
shore ; but now my wife and the boys were soon
with us, eager to greet us. When the first burst
of happiness at meeting had subsided, we all sat
down on the grass, and I ?ave them an account of
what we had done. My wife could find no words
to express her surprise and joy at seeing so many
useful animals round us, and this increased our
satisfaction.
I gave Fritz full credit for his help and sugges-
tions, and saw him flush with pleasure to be so
much praised.
Ernest and Jack now ran to the boat and shouted
their admiration of the mast and the sail. Then
we began to unpack our cargo, while Jack stole
aside and amused himself with the animals, taking
off the jackets from the sheep and goats, bursting
from time to time into shouts of laughter at the
ridiculous figure of the donkey, who stood before
them adorned with his two casks and his swim-
ming apparatus, and braying loud enough to make
us dea
56 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
By-and-by I noticed with surprise that Jack had
round his waist a belt of yellow skin, in which were
fixed two pistols. I asked him where he got it
from.
' I made it myself,' he replied. ' Look at the
dogs, too, and see what I made for them."
I did so, and saw that each of them had on a
collar similar to the belt round Jack's waist, with,
however, the exception that the collars were armed
with nails, the points of which were outwards and
looked very alarming. * And is it you, Jack,' cried
I, * who have invented and made these collars and
your belt ?'
' Yes, father, but mother helped me a little with
the sewing,' he answered.
' Where did you get the leather and the thread
and the needle ?'
' Fritz's jackal furnished the first,' answered my
wife ; ' and as to the last, have I not an enchanted
bag from which I can draw out such articles as I
want ? So if you have a particular fancy for any
thing, you have only to tell me.'
Fritz, meantime, was looking sulky at the fact
that Jack had cut the jackal's skin into strips, for
he considered it his own prize. He, however, con
cealed his ill-humour as well as he could; but
THE ANIMALS SWIM ASHORE 57
presently he called out suddenly, holding his nose
as he spoke, * What a filthy smell !'
' Yes,' said Jack quietly, ' it comes from my belt,
but it will be all right when it dries,' and he danced
about, not minding it in the least himself, until
even Fritz had to laugh and forget his ill-humour.
Being now very hungry, I told Fritz to bring us
the Westphalia ham.
' A ham !' cried they all. ' Oh, what a treat 1'
' You shall have an omelette to eat with it,' my
wife remarked, and showed us about a dozen
turtle's eggs, and then hurried away to cook them.
' I found them,' said Ernest. ' They are the
very same that Robinson Crusoe found in his
island ! They are like white balls, covered with a
skin like wetted parchment, and they were buried
in the sand upon the shore.'
It was now time to make a movement, so with
the help of the boys I unharnessed the remainder
of the animals and returned to the tent.
In the meanwhile my wife had prepared the
omelette, and spread a table-cloth on the end of
the cask of butter, upon which she had placed
some of the plates and silver spoons we had brought
from the ship. The ham was in the middle, and
the omelette and the cheese opposite to each other ;
58 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
altogether a royal supper for a desert island. By
and-by the two dogs, the fowls, the pigeons, the
sheep, and the goats had all assembled round us.
It did not please the geese and ducks to come too,
for they had found a marshy swamp where there
were little crabs in abundance ; these they ate
eagerly.
When we had finished our supper I told Fritz to
open a bottle of Canary wine, which we had brought
from the Captain's cabin, for dessert. The boys
now dispersed to attend to and pet the animals,
while my wife told us what had happened on the
island while we were away. She made us laugh by
her account of Jack's earnestness in the dirty task
of stripping the skin from the dead jackal, and of
Ernest's fastidiousness. She explained that Jack
had originated the idea of putting the large flat-
headed nails through the skin with the points out-
wards to form defensive collars for the dogs ; and
that at his request she had sewed a piece of sail-
cloth on the inner side of the collars as lining, both
to keep the nails in place and to prevent their head.s
from chafing the dogs' necks.
This was the first day. On the second day the
heat of the sun had been very trying, and she had
felt so great a longing to get out of its glare she
THE ANIMALS SWIM ASHORE 59
had decided to make a little expedition into the
woods across the river to see whether she could not
find some place more suitable for a camp than the
bare, rocky seashore. The boys were of course
delighted to go with her ; and the whole party
sallied out, Jack and Ernest carrying guns.
' I thought,' she said, ' how merciful it was that
you had taught the boys to use firearms from their
earliest years, for many boys of their age would
hardly know one end of a gun from the other, yet
now I must depend upon my two young sons of
thirteen and fourteen for protection in many
dangers. The river was difficult to cross, Ernest
hopped over on large stones, I carried little Francis
on my back and followed him, while Jack plunged
boldly in, seeming rather to enjoy the cold water
than not. The long grass on the other side was
very difficult to get through in places it was over
the dog's heads. I kept my eye upon them, how-
ever, and noticed that Jack was loitering a little
behind, and I turned to see what he was doing. I
saw him tearing up handnils of grass, and wiping
his clothes with them, and then shaking his pocket-
handkerchief and laying it on his shoulders to dry.
' " Oh, mother," said he, when he saw me looking,
" T believe all the water of the river has got into
60 THE swiss FAMILY ROBINSON
my pockets ; only see, everything I had in them is
wet pistols, everything."
* " Good gracious !" I interrupted, in great alarm,
" had you put your pistols in your pocket ? They
were not loaded, I hope ?"
' " I do not know, mother ; I only put them
there while my belt was drying, that I might
always have them about me."
' " They might have gone off and killed you !
I cried, thinking how a short time ago it was since
I had been congratulating myself on his being
accustomed to firearms.
' " There is nothing to fear this time," he said,
holding the pistols so as to let the water run out of
them ; and 1 saw, indeed, there was little danger
of their going off, for they had been most thoroughly
wet.
' While we were talking we were interrupted by
a sudden noise, and saw a large bird flying up from
the thickest part of the grass. Both boys prepared
to fire, but before they were ready the bird was
out of reach. Ernest was bitterly disappointed,
crying :
' " What a pity ! If the bird had not flown so
fast I should have killed him."
* " The mischief was, no doubt, that you did not
THE ANIMALS SWIM ASHORE 61
let him know beforehand that you wanted him to
wait till you were ready," I observed, laughing.
' " But, mother, how could I possibly suppose
that the bird could fly away in less than the
twinkling of an eye ? Ah, if one would but come
at this very moment 1"
'"A good sportsman, Ernest, always holds him-
self in readiness, for birds do not send messages to
give notice of their coming."
' " I wish I knew," said Jack, " what bird it was ;
I never saw any like it."
' " I am sure it was an eagle," said little
Francis, " for I have read in my book of fables,
that an eagle can carry off a sheep, and this bird
was terribly large."
' " Oh, yes !" said Ernest scoffingly, " as if all
large birds must be eagles ! Why, there are some
birds much larger even than eagles ! The ostrich,
for instance. But I must say I should like to have
examined this bird closely."
' " If you had had time to examine him, you
would have had time to kill him," said I ; " but
the opportunity is gone."
' As I spoke, a second bird, exactly like the first,
except that he was a little larger, rushed out with a
great noise and mounted high above their heads.
62 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
' The boys stared with round eyes and open
mouths, while I burst out laughing.
' " Oh ! what fine sportsmen !" cried I ; " they
will never let us be in want of game. ' Ah ! if one
would but come at this very moment I"
* Ernest was so mortified that he began to cry,
while Jack took off his hat, made a profound bow,
and roared out, as if for the bird to hear :
* " Have the goodness, Mr. Traveller, to indulge
me once more with a little visit, only for a single
minute ; you cannot imagine what good sort of
people we are. I entreat that we may have the
pleasure of seeing you once again."
' We now minutely examined the place from
which the birds had flown, and found a kind of
large nest formed of dry plants, of clumsy work-
manship. The nest was empty, with the exception
of some broken shells of eggs, showing that the
young had not been long hatched ; indeed, we
heard some rustling in the grass which told us they
were not far off, but we could not see them.
' We next reached a little wood, and I do not
think you can have been there, for the trees were
so enormous that you could not have helped
noticing and remarking on them. The odd part
about them was, what appeared to us at a distance
i!'HE ANIMALS SWIM ASHORE 69
to be a wood was only a group of about fourteen
of them, the trunks of which seemed to be supported
in their upright position by arches on each side,
these arches being formed by the roots of the tree.
' Jack climbed with considerable trouble upon
one of these arch-formed roots, and with a pack-
thread in his hand measured the actual circum-
ference of the tree itself. He found that it was about
thirty feet. It seemed to me that, if it could be
managed, a tent or camp of some sort in one of
these trees would be a safer and more comfortable
refuge than our present tent. The twigs of the
tree are strong and thick ; its leaves moderately
large in size, and rather like those of the hazel tree ;
but I was unable to discover that it bore any fruit.
Immediately under its branches grew in great
abundance a short thick kind of plant. It was so
shady under this great dome of leaves that I
resolved to go no further, but to enjoy its delicious
coolness till it should be time to return.
' A stream flowed at our feet. As it seemed just
the place for lunch, we opened the bags we had
brought, and enjoyed ourselves exceedingly. Our
dogs joined us, but to my great surprise they did
not ask for anything to eat, but lay down quietly,
and were soon asleep at our feet. When we were
64 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
quite rested we set out on our return, again keeping
close to the river, and eventually we came down to
the sea-shore.
' Our dogs immediately began to catch crabs,
which they drew with their paws to the shore as
the waves washed them up, and then ate with
every sign of pleasure. I now understood how it
was they had not been hungry at lunch-time, and
was pleased to think that they could provide for
themselves.
'Ernest, who had wandered ahead by himself,
now gave a shout, saying he had found some
"turtles' eggs."
' They were partly buried in the sand, but Flora
had directed his attention to them by scratching at
them. Altogether we collected about two dozen of
them, which we placed in our provision bags.
' Just then we saw your sail, and hurried on so as
to meet you when you landed.'
The thing which had particularly struck me in
this interesting account was the discovery of the
great trees.
' And you think we could set up a tent in one
of those giant trees at a great height from the
ground !' I cried. ' And how are we to get up
and down ?'
THE ANIMALS SWIM ASHORE 65
' Don't you remember,' my wife asked, ' the large
lime-tree in the public walk of our own town ; arid
the pretty little room which had been built among
its branches, and the flight of stairs which led to it ?
Why should we not make something of the same
kind ?'
I confessed that it might be possible, though
the difficulties of the undertaking seemed to me
enormous. However, darkness was falling fast,
and so, calling the boys, we prepared to spend
another night in our tent.
CHAPTER VII
AN ADVENTURE WITH A SHAKK
WHEN my wife and T woke next morning we
began at once talking about making a change of
abode.
Personally, I thought we were better where we
were, but she argued that the intense heat of the
sands was getting insupportable ; that by remaining
here we lost all hope of rinding fruits of any kind,
and must live on oysters, or on such wild birds as
came near us.
And when I pointed out we ought to remain
where we could most easily reach the ship, from
which we might still bring many things, she replied
that we might continue to go to and from the
the ship, if we wished, from another place as easily
as here, but for her part she should not be sorry if
we never went again, for she was in an agony of
anxiety the whole time we were away.
66
AN ADVENTURE WITH A SHARK 67
1 agreed, therefore, to think seriously of the
matter ; but said we must first contrive a store-
house among the rocks for our provisions and other
things, and next we must throw a bridge across
the river, if we were to pass it with all our family
and baggage.'
* A bridge !' exclaimed my wife ; ' if we stay
while you build a bridge, we may consider our-
selves as fixed for life. Why should we not cross
the river as we did before ? The ass and the cow
will carry all we possess upon their backs.'
I insisted, however, that a bridge was necessary
if we wished to keep our stores dry.
' Well, then, a bridge let there be,' said my wife,
' and you will leave our stock of gunpowder here, I
hope ; for I am never happy with it so near us : a
thunder-storm, or some thoughtless action of one
of the boys, might bring about a serious explosion.'
This I agreed was very sensible ; we need only
take what we wanted from time to time.
So when we woke the boys our plans were
already made. They were delighted to hear that a
bridge was to be built, and still more so that we
might in time go to live under the giant trees a
place which they at once christened * The Promised
Land.'
68 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
We now began to look about for breakfast, Fritz
taking care not to neglect his monkey, who sucked
one of the goats as contentedly as if she had been
its mother. My wife undertook to milk another,
and then the cow, and afterwards she gave some of
the milk to each of the children. The rest she
put into one of the flasks, so that we could take it
with us.
While this was going on I was getting the boat
ready for another journey to the ship, to bring away
planks and timbers for the bridge. After breakfast
we set out ; and this time I took Ernest as well as
Fritz, as we should need all available workers.
To Ernest our expedition afforded the highest
delight. We rowed till we reached the current
from the river, which soon sent us on beyond the
bay ; but scarcely had we passed a little islet, lying
to one side of us, than we saw a number of sea-gulls
and other birds, so we steered for the spot to see
what drew them together.
Fritz, for his part, did not for a moment take his
eyes from the islet where the birds were. Suddenly
he exclaimed :
; I see what it is ; the birds are all pecking at a
huge dead fish.'
We approached near enough to land, and after
AN ADVENTURE WITH A SHARK 69
anchoring the boat with a stone, we stole softly up
to the birds. So eagerly were they occupied with
their feast that not one of them attempted to fly
off; and we might have killed great numbers of
them with our sticks alone. Fritz did not cease to
express his wonder at the size of the fish they were
attacking, and asked me how it could have got
there ?
' I believe/ I answered, ' you were yourself the
means ; it is probably the very shark you wounded
yesterday.'
' Yes, yes, it is the very same,' he said joyously,
1 1 see the marks of the shot in his head.'
' It is hideous enough,' continued I, ' even when
dead it makes one shudder. See what a huge
mouth he has, and what a rough and prickly skin ;
and his length must be above twenty feet. Let us
take away with us some pieces of his skin, for it
may be useful to us.'
Ernest drew out the iron ramrod from his gun,
and by striking with it to right and left among the
birds, soon dispersed them. Fritz and I then cut
several long strips of the skin from the head of the
shark ; these we carried to our boat, but on the
way I noticed some planks and timbers which had
recently been cast by the sea on this little island.
6
70 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
On measuring the longest we found that they would
answer our purpose ; and after some difficulty we
got them into the boat, and thus spared ourselves
the trouble of going on to the ship. Some of them
we tied together like a raft, and this we fastened to
the end of the boat, so that we were ready to return
in four hours from the time we had started, and had
done a good day's work. I accordingly pushed
again for the current, which drove us out to
sea ; then I tacked about, and resumed the direct
route for the bay. All this succeeded well. I
unfurled my sail, and a brisk wind soon sent us to
our landing-place.
While we were sailing Fritz nailed the strips of
skin we had cut from the shark to the mast to dry,
and he presently noticed that they had taken a curve
in drying as when they were still on the shark, and
could not be made flat again.
' That was what I wanted,' I replied ; ' they will
be more useful to us round than flat ; you know
perhaps that it will be a kind of shagreen leather,
if we can rub off the sharp points and afterwards
polish it.'
' I thought,' said Ernest, ' that shagreen was
made of ass's skin.'
* That is correct/ I said, ' but very good shagreen
AN ADVENTURE WITH A SHARK 71
is also made from the skin of sea-fish, particularly
in France.'
Ernest asked his brother if he knew why the
mouth of the shark is not, as in other animals,
placed in the middle of the snout, but directly
under. Fritz confessed ignorance.
' I suppose,' Ernest went on, ' that the mouth of
the shark is thus placed to prevent him from de-
populating the sea. With such a voracious appetite
nothing would escape him if he could seize his
prey without turning his body ; but as it is, there
is time for a smaller animal to make his escape.'
' Well reasoned,' cried I ; for though Ernest's
conceit sometimes made him didactic, yet I knew
he had a genuine interest in natural history, and
did not wish to discourage him.
We once more landed safely on shore, but no
one of the family appeared. We called to them,
however, and were answered, and in a few minutes
my wife appeared between the two little boys.
Each carried a handkerchief, which appeared filled
with some new prize ; and little Francis had a small
fishing-net formed like a bag and strung upon a
stick, which he carried on his shoulder. No sooner
did they hear our voices than they hurried to meet
us, surprised at our quick return. Jack reached us
72 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
first, and opening the handkerchief he held, he
poured out some lobsters at our feet ; his mother
and little Francis produced each as many more,
and all alive, so that we were sure of excellent
dinners for some days at least. Some of the
lobsters began scuttling away in different directions,
and the boys were kept in full chase, sometimes
pleased and sometimes angry, sometimes laugh-
ing, sometimes scolding, for no sooner had they
seized on one than ten more had followed his
example.
* Isn't it lovely, papa ?' said little Francis. ' I
found them. Look, there are more than two
hundred of them ; and see how large they are, and
what fine claws they have !'
* Excellent,' I said, ' and these lobsters are of a
different kind from that which nipped Jack, and
will make much better eating. Tell me all
about it.'
' I'll tell you,' cried Jack. ' Francis and I were
down by the river, when he suddenly saw the dead
jackal, we threw away yesterday, all covered with
lobsters ; and legions more were coming in with the
stream. I ran to tell mamma, who quickly got
the net, and partly with that and partly with our
hands, we caught numbers in a very few minutes,
AN ADVENTURE WITH A SHARK 73
and we should have caught more if we had not
heard you call, for the river is quite full of
them.'
* You took enough for once, my boy, said I,
' and I'm sure we shall all enjoy them.'
After we had discussed the subject a little
further, my wife went back to the fire to begin
cooking, and Fritz and I untied the raft of timbers
and planks, and drew it inland. I then imitated
the example of the Laplanders, in harnessing rein-
deer to their sledges. I put a piece of rope, with a
running knot at the end, round the neck of the
donkey, and passed the other end between its legs ;
to this rope I tied a piece of wood. The cow was
harnessed in the same manner, and thus we made
the animals pull all the timber bit by bit to the
spot we had chosen for the bridge. It was a place
where the shore on each side was steep, and of
equal height ; there was also an old trunk of a tree
lying on the ground, which I foresaw would have
its use.
' Now then, boys,' said I, ' the first thing is to
see if our timbers are long enough to reach to the
other side ; measuring by my eye, I should think
they are.'
' Let us tie a stone to the end of a ball of string,
74 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
and throw it across,' suggested Ernest. ' Then we
shall know exactly.'
It was a good thought, and answered admirably.
By this method we found that the distance from
one side to the other was eighteen feet. Allowing
three feet more for the part of the planks that
was to rest on each bank, I reckoned we ought
to have planks twenty-four feet long, and I
found that many we had brought were about this
length.
There now remained the difficulty of carrying
one end across the stream ; but we determined to
discuss this while we had lunch, which had been
waiting for us more than an hour.
We therefore turned homewards and found that
my wife had prepared for us a large dish of
lobsters ; but before beginning she insisted we
should look at something she had made. It was
two sacks intended for the donkey ; these she had
sewed together with thread, so that they might act as
panniers or bags to hang on both sides of his back.
I was very glad to see them as they would be most
useful in transporting our household stuff when we
moved.
We hurried through our meal, being deeply
interested in the work we were about to undertake.
AN ADVENTURE WITH A SHARK 75
and the minute we had done hastened back to the
scene of our labours.
The first thing I did toward the building of the
bridge was to fasten one of the planks to the trunk
of the tree, of which I have already spoken, by a
strong cord ; I then fastened a second cord to the
other end of the plank, and tying a stone to it flung
it to the opposite bank. I next crossed the river,
taking with me a pulley, which I tied to a tree ; I
passed my second cord, that which had the stone
fastened to it, through the pulley, and recrossing
the river with this cord in my hand, I harnessed the
ass and cow to the end of it, then drove the animals
from the bank of the river. As they moved away
the cord ran through the pulley on the further
river bank and drew across the water the end of
the plank attached to it. Presently, to my great
joy, I saw it touch the other side. In a moment
Fritz and Jack leaped upon it and crossed the
stream upon this narrow but effective bridge.
The first timber being thus laid, a second and a
third were fixed with the greatest ease. Fritz and
I, standing on opposite sides of the river, placed
them at such distances from each other as was
necessary to form a broad and handsome bridge ;
what now remained to be done was to lay some
76 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
short planks across them quite close to each other,
which we did so quickly that the bridge was
finished in a much shorter time than I should
have thought possible.
Our work, however, had really been very hard,
and we were very tired, so that, as the evening was
beginning to set in, we returned to our camp,
where we ate an excellent supper, and went to bed.
CHAPTER VIII
WE MOVE TO THE FOREST
As soon as we were up and had breakfasted the
next morning, I directed my sons to gather together
our whole flock of animals, and to leave the ass and
the cow to me, that I might load them with the
sacks. I had filled these, putting in them all the
things we should stand most in need of for the two
or three first days working implements, kitchen
utensils, the captain's service of plate, and a small
provision of butter. I afterwards added our ham-
mocks, and we were about to start when my wife said :
' We must not leave our fowls behind, for fear
that the jackals should eat them. We must find a
place for them among the luggage, and also one for
little Francis, who cannot walk so far. Then
there is my enchanted bag,' she added, smiling,
k which must not be left behind ; for who can tell
what may yet pop out of it ?'
I therefore placed the child on the ass's back.
77
78 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
fixing the enchanted bag in such a way as to
support him.
In the meanwhile the other boys had been
running after the cocks and hens and pigeons, but
had not succeeded in catching one of them. Their
mother laughed at them, and, stepping into the
tent, brought out two handfuls of corn, which she
scattered. The fowls came at once to pick them
up. She then walked slowly before them, dropping
the grain all the way, till they had followed her
into the tent. When she saw them all inside,
busily employed in picking up the grain, she shut
the entrance, and caught one after the other with-
out difficulty. The fowls were tied by the feet and
wings, put into a basket covered with a net. and
placed in triumph on the top of our luggage.
We had packed and put in the tent everything
we meant to leave, and for greater security fastened
down the ends of the sail-cloth at the entrance by
driving stakes through them into the ground. Then
at last we set out, each of us, great and small,
carrying a gun upon his shoulder and a game-bag
at his back. My wife led the way with her eldest
son, the cow and the ass followed immediately
behind them ; the goat, conducted by Jack, came
next, with the little monkey seated on his back,
WE MOVE TO THE FOREST 79
making grimaces ; after this came Ernest, driving
the sheep ; while I brought up the rear, and the dogs
ran up and down. Our march was slow, and there
was something solemn and patriarchal about it ; I
fancied we were like our forefathers journeying in
the desert, accompanied by their families and
their possessions.
When we had advanced half-way across the
bridge the sow thought she would come too. At
the moment of our departure she had shown her-
self so restive that we had been compelled to leave
her behind ; but, seeing that we had all left the
place, she set out to overtake us.
In order that our animals should not stray among
the thick grass on the other side of the river I
directed our march toward the seashore. But
scarcely were we on the sands when our two dogs,
which had strayed behind among the grass, set up a
howl, as if they had been attacked by some formid-
able animal. Fritz in an instant raised his gun ready
to fire ; Ernest drew back to his mother's side ; Jack
ran bravely after Fritz with his gun upon his
shoulder ; while I followed. In spite of my
exhortations to proceed with caution, the boys
made but three jumps to the place from whence
the noise proceeded, and Jack cried out :
80 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
' Come quickly, father ; here is an enormous
porcupine.'
I soon reached the spot. The dogs were running
to and fro with bleeding noses, and when they went
too near the animal he made a noise, and darted his
quills so suddenly at them that a number stuck
into their coats, and made them howl violently.
While we were looking on, Jack took one of the
pistols which he carried in his belt, and fired it at
the head of the porcupine, so that he fell dead.
This success raised Jack to the height of joy and
vanity, while Fritz was so jealous he almost shed
tears.
' Is it right, Jack,' he said, ' that such a little boy
as you should fire like that ?'
Jack only laughed.
' Pop dead as a herring !' cried he gleefully.
' Don't you wish you had done it ?'
* Come, come, boys,' said I, ' no envious speeches
and no reproaches ; luck for one to-day, for another
to-morrow ; but all for the common good.'
We now all examined the porcupine, which was an
extraordinary animal. The boys tried to take hold
of it, but the quills pricked their hands, and made
them grimace. After some difficulty, however, we
wrapped it up in a piece of sail-cloth and slung it
WE MOVE TO THE FOREST 81
on to the back of the donkey behind Francis, for I
knew that porcupine's flesh was good to eat, and so
I did not like to waste so much valuable meat. A
rather ludicrous incident occurred, however, when
the donkey felt the prick of the spines through the
wrappings ; he flung up his heels, and would have
dashed off had not Fritz caught him. We there-
upon readjusted the bundle so that it should not
hurt him, and reassured Francis, who was a little
frightened at the unexpected friskiness of his steed.
After this incident we at length formed our pro-
cession again, and marched on to the giant trees.
These were indeed astonishing to me, who had not
seen them before, and I gratified my wife by my
loudly-expressed admiration of her cleverness in
judging how delightful a residence they would
make.
We first released our animals from their burdens
and tied their fore-legs loosely together with
a cord, that they might not go far away. We then
let out the cocks and hens from their basket, and
settled down to discuss how we could best pass
the night.
Meantime Fritz, who was longing to distinguish
himself as Jack had done, had slipped away, and
we now heard a shot, and a few minutes later saw
82 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
him running towards us, holding a dead animal of
uncommon beauty by the paws.
' Father, father, look, here is a tiger-cat,' said he,
proudly raising it in the air to show it to the best
advantage.
I congratulated him on having rid the world of
a beast that would have made short work of our
fowls.
' I saw it creeping along a branch,' he said, ' and
fired at it ; it fell to the ground furious and snarl-
ing, then I finished it off with another shot.'
' You were lucky to get off so easily,' I said. ' I
recognise the creature very well it is a kind of
wild cat called the margay, and though it is so
small, it is very savage, and might easily have
wounded you dangerously.'
'Its eyes glared fiercely,' he remarked. 'Look
at its lovely skin, all black and gold ! May 1 make
a belt of it ?'
I agreed readily, and after this I had no peace
until I had shown him how to flay the animal in
the best way, which I did by hanging up the porcu-
pine to the bough of a tree and skinning it, while
Fritz watched me intently, and afterwards applied
the same method to his wild cat. I then cut off
part of the flesh of the porcupine to be roasted, and
WE MOVE TO THE FOREST 8S
set aside the remainder to be smoked or salted for
future use.
Presently little Francis came running up to us,
with his mouth crammed full of something, and
called out : * Mamma, I have found a nice fruit to
eat, and I have brought you some of it !'
' You greedy boy !' replied his mother, quite
alarmed, ' What have you got there ? Do not put
into your mouth everything you find or you will be
poisoned.' She made him open his mouth, and
with some difficulty drew out the remains of a fig.
' A fig !' I exclaimed. * Where did you get it ?'
' I got it among the grass, papa ; and there are
a great many more. I thought it must be good to
eat, for the fowls and the pigeons, and even the
pig, ate up all they could find.'
' We are, then, in a grove of fig-trees,' I said.
' Not the dwarf figs we see in Europe, but a kind
called yellow mangoes, which I know do send down
their branches to take root in just this peculiar way.'
I took this opportunity to tell the boys never to
eat anything they found till they had seen it eaten
by birds and monkeys. At the word monkeys
they turned to look at our little monkey, who was
sitting on the root of a tree, examining with the
oddest grimaces the half-skinned tiger-cat which
84 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
lay near him. Francis offered him a fig, which he
first turned round and round, then smelt, and finally
ate with pleasure.
' Bravo Mr. Monkey !' exclaimed the boys,
clapping their hands.
My wife had made a fire by this time, and put
on the pot to prepare our dinner. The tiger-cat
was given to the dogs, who tore it to pieces.
While our dinner was being made ready, I
employed my time in making packing-needles
with some of the quills of the porcupine, which
I had pulled out. I heated a large nail red-
hot ; then pierced the thick end of the quills
with it, and soon had presented my wife with a
large packet of long, stout needles, which she was
delighted with, as she meant to make some better
harness for our animals. I recommended her to be
careful in the use of her packthread, for I saw we
should want it to make a ladder for ascending the
tree when we began to live there.
For this purpose I had chosen the highest fig-
tree ; and while we were waiting for dinner I made
the boys try how high they could throw a stick or
stone into it. I also tried myself ; but the lowest
branches were so far from the ground that none of
us could touch them. I saw, therefore, that we
WE MOVE TO THE FOREST 85
must think of some idea for fastening the end of
the ladder to them. Then Fritz asked me how he
could clean his new margay skin, and I showed him
how to spread it out in the bed of the stream, under
running water, fixed down by large stones. After
this we returned, and dined heartily on some slices
of ham and bread and cheese, under the shade of
our beautiful trees.
While we ate I was considering the difficulty of
getting up the tree, and at last I saw that we
should be obliged to pass the night on the ground.
So we began to sling our hammocks to some of the
arched roots of the trees, spreading over them a piece
of sail-cloth large enough to cover them, to keep off
the dew and the insects. I then went with the two
eldest boys to the seashore, to choose some pieces
of wood to make steps for the ladder. Ernest
discovered in a sort of bog some bamboo canes,
which were just the thing. I cut them with my
hatchet in pieces of four or five feet long, and the
boys bound them together to carry back. At the
same time I chose some of the straightest and most
slender of the stalks, with which to make arrows,
in case we might want them.
Seeing that the bamboos grew more thickly a
little way off, I went towards them, when suddenly
7
86 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
Flora, who had come with us, made several jumps,
and threw herself furiously into the middle of the
bushes ; at the same moment a flock of flamingoes
sprang out, and mounted into the air. Fritz fired,
and two of the birds fell. One of them was quite
dead ; the other was only slightly wounded in the
wing, and ran so fast towards the water that we
were afraid he would escape us. Fritz plunged
after him, up to his knees in the water ; and Flora,
coming to his help, caught hold of the flamingo
and held him by the wing, though the bird struggled
and flapped violently. When he had been dragged
out we found some difficulty in securing him, though
I tied his feet with my handkerchief, and held him
under my left arm.
The boys were delighted to have captured such
a fine bird alive, and spoke of being able to tame
him.
* He is a bird to be easily tamed,' 1 said, * for he
is of a tractable though timid disposition. '
' We will catch some little fish for him,' said
Ernest, who knew something of the habits of these
birds. Then he examined the prize more atten-
tively. ' What long legs he has !' he added. Are
all flamingoes like this of such a beautiful red
colour, with wings tinted with purple ? I think
WE MOVE TO THE FOREST 87
I have seen the flamingo in my Natural History,
and the colours were not like these.'
I believe that the plumage is differently coloured
according to the age of the birds,' I told him. * When
very young they are gray ; then they turn white ;
and it is only when they are full grown that they
are adorned with this beautiful tinted plumage.'
Talking like this, we returned to our camp laden
with bundles of canes of various sizes, and with the
dead and living birds. We were greeted with the
delight that a new discovery never failed to bring ;
only my wife, with her usual anxiety about ways
and means, asked where we should get food enough
for all the new animals we brought home ?
I told her I expected this acquisition would soon
be able to feed himself ; and I proceeded to examine
his wound. I found that only one wing was injured
by the shot, but that the other had also been slightly
hurt by the dog laying hold of him. I rubbed
some ointment on both, and this seemed to relieve
him. I next tied him by one of his legs with a
long string to a stake I had driven into the ground
quite near to the river, that he might go in and
wash himself when he liked.
Now I had begun to think seriously of the diflft
culty of getting a roue ladder to reach even the
88 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
lowest of the branches, for the nearest to the
ground were at a height of forty feet, and it would
be necessary to carry a rope over these before we
could fix it. I had an idea, however, and, sitting
down on the grass, I began to make some arrows
with the slenderest pieces of the bamboo that I had
so carefully chosen. As the arrows were hollow, I
filled them with the moist sand to give them a little
weight ; and, lastly, I tipped them with a bit of
feather from the flamingo, to make them fly
straight.
The boys watched me with interest, and soon
saw what I was doing. Laying the arrows aside
for a moment, I chose a flexible rod for a bow, and
making a niche at each end, soon fixed a piece of
string to draw it into a curve. Then I asked my
wife if she had such a thing as a ball of string,
which would unravel as I required it. She pro-
duced this with a laugh from what she called her
enchanted bag. I tied the end of the ball of string
to an arrow, and fixing it to the bow, I shot it off so
as to make the arrow pass over one of the largest
branches of the tree, and fall again to the ground ;
thus I had overcome the first difficulty. It was
now easy to tie a piece of rope to the end of the
string, and draw it upwards, till the knot reached
WE MOVE TO THii FOREST 89
the same branch. Then I knew that, when the
ladder was finished, we should at any rate be able
to pull it up to the bough.
So I turned my attention to the ladder itself, a
much more difficult job. The first thing was to
cut a length of about one hundred feet from our
stock of ropes ; this I divided into two equal
pieces, which I laid on the ground at the distance
of a foot from each other. I told Fritz to cut the
canes we had brought in pieces each two feet in
length. As he did this, Ernest handed them to
me one after another ; and I inserted them into
my ropes at the distance of twelve inches apart,
fixing them with knots in the rope. Jack, at the
same time, by my order, drove into each a long
nail at both ends to prevent their slipping out
again. Thus, in a very short time, we had made a
ladder of forty steps, firm and compact, which we
all regarded with joyful surprise. I now tied it
with strong knots to the end of the rope which
hung from the tree, and pulled it up till it reached
the branch, and rested so well upon it, that the
exclamations of the boys resounded from all sides
Everyone wished to be the first to ascend, but I
decided that it should be Jack, he being the
nimblest and the lightest among them. Accord-
90 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
ingly, I and his brothers held the ends of the rope,
and of the ladder, as well as we could, while he ran
easily up, and reached the branch without an
accident ; but, when he got there, I saw that he
had not strength enough to tie the ladder firmly to
the tree. So I sent Fritz up after him, not with-
out some little anxiety, as he was much heavier
than his brother. But it was not long before we
saw him side by side with Jack, forty feet above
our heads.
Fritz set to work to fasten the ladder by passing
the rope round and round the branch, and this he
did with so much sense, that 1 felt I might ascend
myself in safety. But first I tied a large pulley to
the end of the rope, and took it up with me.
When I was at the top, I fastened the pulley to a
branch, so that I might be able the next day to draw
up the planks and timbers for building the platform
of our hut. All this took so long that it was
finished by the light of the moon.
For the last few minutes I had been alone on the
branch, and concluded that Jack and Fritz had
descended, when I suddenly heard their voices
singing an evening hymn which seemed to come
from the clouds, I soon gathered that instead of
going down, they had gone up, and had climbed
WE MOVE TO THE FOREST 91
upwards from branch to branch, till they had
reached the very top. 1 called out to them to
take great care in coming down, for it was almost
night, and the light of the moon scarcely penetrated
the thick foliage. They soon appeared without
any accident, and then I told them to gather together
all our animals, and to get what dry wood we
should want for making fires, which we must keep
up through the night as a precaution against the
attacks of wild beasts.
My wife now showed me the work she had been
busy with throughout the day ; some harness for
the cow and the ass. Then we had our supper,
while all the animals stood round us. My wife
threw some grain to the fowls, and afterwards
the pigeons flew up to the top of the giant tree,
while the cocks and hens perched, cackling all the
time, upon the rounds of the ladder. The cow and
donkey we tied to the arched roots of the tree, quite
near to our hammocks. Our beautiful flamingo
was not forgotten. Fritz fed him with some
crumbs of biscuit soaked in milk, and afterwards,
putting his head under his right wing, and tucking
up one leg, he went quietly to sleep, too ignorant
of the ways of human beings to have any dread
of them.
92 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
Before retiring I made up the brushwood the
boys had gathered into heaps, and set fire to several
of them, and then threw myself contentedly upon
my hammock. The lads were already in theirs, but
we soon heard them grumbling at being obliged to
lie so close to each other. I called out mockingly,
that they were much better off than many sailors,
and that unless beds dropped from the clouds, they
must put up with it ; whereupon they ceased, and
being really tired by their long day in the open air,
they were soon asleep.
CHAPTER IX
OUR HOUSE IN THE GIANT TREE
As for myself, I had quite decided that T would
not go to sleep during this first night in the forest,
but without telling anyone would keep watch.
Every leaf that stirred gave me a thrill, making me
think that a tiger, or other ferocious beast, might
be creeping up to attack us. As soon as one of
the bonfires was consumed, I got up quietly and
lighted another ; but at length finding that no
animal appeared, I became reassured and fell into
a sound sleep.
The next morning, after breakfast, we all eagerly
set to work. My wife went off with Ernest, Jack,
and Francis, leading the donkey to the seashore to
collect more wood. In their absence 1 ascended
the tree with Fritz. I found that to place such a
platform as I intended would be a work of no great
difficulty, for the branches grew close to each other,
93
94 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
and on the same level. Some I cut off either with
a saw or hatchet, leaving none but those that would
be useful as a foundation for the floor. Above
these, at the height of forty-six feet, there were
others upon which we could hang our hammocks :
and higher still, there was a further set of branches,
admirable for supporting the roof of the hut, which
at present could be formed of nothing more than a
large piece of sail-cloth.
At first our work did not progress very fast. It
was necessary to raise certain heavy planks to this
height of forty feet. However, I fixed the pulley,
and Fritz and I managed to draw them up to the
branches one by one. When I had placed two of
them upon the branches, I fixed the other planks
upon them. I then built up a sort of wall of wood
like a park-paling, all round, for safety. These
operations, and a third journey to the seashore to
collect more wood, filled our morning so completely,
that not one of us had thought about eating. For
this once we contented ourselves with a bit of ham
and some milk as a light lunch ; and then returned
to finish our aerial palace, which began to look quite
interesting. We unhooked our hammocks from
their positions, and hoisted them up into the tree.
The sail-cloth roof was supported by the thick
OUR HOUSE IN THE GIANT TREE 95
branches above, and hung down on every side ; so
the idea occurred to me of nailing it to the paling,
thus getting not only a roof, but two walls also.
The immense trunk of the tree formed a third side,
while in the fourth was the entrance to our hut ;
through which we could see what was outside,
including the shore and the waves. The hammocks
were soon hung on the branches, and after a hard
afternoon's work we saw that we should be able to
sleep in our new hut. When this was finished there
was still a little daylight left, and noticing that all the
planks had not been used, I suggested to Fritz, who
had been a most hard-working and painstaking
assistant all day, that we should make a table on
which we could place our meals. It was not much
of a table, I must confess, for we were both tired,
but still, it was better than nothing, and when our
supper was spread upon it by the roots of the great
tree, it looked very nice. The three youngest boys
had meantime collected all the pieces of wood we
had thrown down from the tree, and a quantity of
small twigs to form a supply for a fire.
Exhausted by the work of the day, I threw
myself on the grass, and my wife having seated
herself near me, I reminded her that the next day
was Sunday, and suggested that as we had food to
96 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
eat, and a roof to shelter us, we should spend it as
a holy day.
She quite agreed, and having told the boys, we
sat down near the table for supper. My wife took
from the fire an earthen pot, and, raising the cover,
she drew out of it, with a fork, the flamingo which
Fritz had killed. She told us that she had preferred
cooking it in this way to roasting it, because Ernest
had said it was an old bird, which would be better
stewed. We chaffed our greedy boy a little at
this, and his brothers gave him the name of the
cook. However, we felt obliged to him all the
same, for the bird was excellent, and was eaten up
to the very bones.
While we were enjoying it, the live flamingo
stalked up to the place where we were sitting. He
was so tame that we had released him from the stake.
His fine plumage was most beautiful. He took his
walks gravely from place to place, and looked
seriously on life ; while, on the other hand, the
tricks and the grimaces of our monkey amused
us much. The little animal had become quite
familiar with us; jumped from shoulder to shoulder;
always caught adroitly what we threw to him, and
ate it so eagerly that we laughed heartily.
The boys now lighted one of the heaps of wood.
EVERYONE WAS EAGER TO CLIMB TO THE NEW HUT
OUR HOUSE IN THE GIANT TREE 97
Then we tied long ropes loosely round the necks of
our dogs, meaning to take the ends up the ladder
with us, so as to prevent them from straying away.
Every one was eager to climb to the new hut, and
the three eldest boys ran up like monkeys; then
came their mother's turn ; she took a little more
time, being rather uncomfortable on the thin sway-
ing ladder, but she arrived safely.
My own turn was last, and most difficult, for I
carried little Francis on my back ; and as I had
released the foot of the ladder so that I might
draw it up after me, it swung backwards and
forwards more than ever.
At last, however, I arrived at the top, and drew
the ladder up too. It seemed to the boys as if we
were in one of the strong castles of old times, in
which, when the drawbridge was raised, no enemy
could get in. Notwithstanding, I kept the guns
in readiness.
I was so tired with all 1 had done that I fell
asleep almost instantly, and we all slept so soundly
that it was broad daylight before any of us were
awake.
We were so accustomed to lovely weather here
in this beautiful climate that it was no surprise to us
to find, when we waked from a sound and refreshing
98 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
sleep, that another glorious day dawned upon us.
After breakfast we all drew together beneath the
trees, which, with their wide-spreading branches,
made a semblance of a cathedral aisle, and I held
a short service.
I could remember enough of the Church Service
to go through it tolerably well, and as the boys
knew several Psalms by heart, our service was
fairly complete.
The only thing I lacked was a Bible, and when
I mentioned this my wife produced one from her
' enchanted bag ' and gravely handed it to me.
Having read a few chapters I then, by way of a
sermon, told the boys an allegory I had made up
for them, and afterwards listened with pleasure to
their questions and comments on it.
When the service was finished, and we had had
our midday meal, I made no objection to the boys
wandering off to amuse themselves as they liked
best, knowing that the day was one for innocent
recreation, after due attention had been given to
things of the spirit. I only stipulated that no fire-
arms should be used, as we had sufficient food, and
any form of taking life without necessity was to be
avoided. As we were all thoroughly tired with
the hard work of the preceding week, however,
OUR HOUSE IN THE GIANT TREE 99
not one of the party went very far, and the rest of
the day passed peacefully without accident of any
kind.
It had occurred to me that our supply of ammu-
nition for the guns was not inexhaustible, and that
there might come a time when we should have to
rely chiefly on bows and arrows for our hunting.
It was well, therefore, to get all the practice with
these weapons that we could. So the next morn-
ing I set to work to make another bow, meaning
to teach the boys to use it when it should be
ready.
I spent most of the day in shaping and bending
new bows and in manufacturing arrows, though
the work was diversified by a lesson in tanning
which I gave to Fritz, when he took his wild cat's
skin out of the stream where he had left it to be
cleaned.
I told him how to get rid of the fat on the skin,
by rubbing it over with sand ; next to rub it with
soft butter, to make it supple, and then to stretch
it in different directions ; and also to make use of
some eggs if he could get them.
When he had cut off enough of the skin to make
himself a belt, he said he would like to make little
cases of the rest to hold a knife, fork, and spoon, so
100 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
that we could carry them with us on our expedi-
tions.
So I showed him how to cut certain small
cylinders of wood of the size and length required ;
then to stretch the softened skin upon 4 the surface
in such a way that it reached a little beyond the
wood, then when it dried it would fit to the wood
and stick to it tightly.
He was doing this when we heard the firing of a
gun, which seemed to come from our tent in the
tree, and several birds at the same time fell dead at
our feet. Looking up, we saw Ernest standing
outside the tent, with a gun in his hand, and heard
him triumphantly exclaiming :
' Catch them ! I have hit them.'
He climbed down joyfully, and ran with Francis
to pick up the fallen birds, while Fritz and Jack
instantly rushed up the ladder to try to shoot
birds too.
One of the dead birds was a sort of thrush, and
the others were a very small kind of pigeon, which
in the Antilles is called an ortolan, very fat, and of
a delicious taste. We noticed that these birds
were attracted by the wild figs, which were ripen-
ing. I gave the boys leave to kill as many as they
liked. I knew that, half roasted and put into
OUR HOUSE IN THE GIANT TREE 101
barrels with melted butter thrown over them, they
would keep for a long time, and might prove an
excellent resource. My wife set about stripping
off the feathers of the birds to cook them for our
dinner. I sat by her and went on with my work
of arrow-making.
The ortolans, which we ate at dinner-time, were
certainly excellent, but there were hardly enough
to go round, and there was not much on them.
However, we comforted ourselves by the thought
that we had an inexhaustible store to draw upon if
we were skilful enough to hit them.
8
CHAPTER X
PRICKLY FIGS AND POTATOES
WHILE we were eating I suggested to the boys
that we should name the different places on our
island, so that we could refer to them in conver-
sation.
They all agreed joyfully, and Ernest at once
began reciting the very longest names he could
think of, such as Monomotaqua, Zanzibar, Coro-
mandel, and many others.
I laughed at him, and pointed out we should
only give ourselves unnecessary trouble by acting
so foolishly, and proposed we should christen the
places according to something which had happened
to ourselves there. For instance, we might call the
bay where we landed Deliverance Bay.
' Oh no,' cried Jack ; ' let it be called Lobster
Bay, after the beast who caught hold of my leg.'
*We might call it Weeping Bay,' suggested
102
PRICKLY FIGS AND POTATOES 103
Fritz mischievously * in memory of the tears you
shed there.'
I interposed to prevent Jack's quick retort, and
we all agreed on Deliverance Bay. We went on
to call the place where we had lived the first few
days Tent House, and the island on which the
shark had died Shark Island.
Then followed Flamingo Marsh and Jackal
River, and finally, after rejecting such names as
Tree Castle and Fig Town for our present abode,
we agreed to call it Falcon's Nest.
These important points settled, Jack asked me
to help him to make a sort of protective harness for
the dogs from the porcupine skin, which he had
cleaned in the same way as Fritz had cleaned that
of the wild cat. It did not take long to fasten a
shield of it over the shoulders of the dogs. Turk
did not seem to object, but Flora was very angry
and rolled about scrubbing herself against the trees
to get rid of the encumbrance, so at last we took it
off. Of the rest of the skin Jack made himself a
sort of round cap which he wore with his usual air
of mischievous impudence.
During the afternoon I resumed my occupation
of making and shaping bows and arrows, and by
Jack's suggestion, used some of the soup cakes,
104 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
slightly melted, to serve as glue, such as little
Francis had imagined it to be, for fixing on the
feathers to the arrow-heads.
It was very hot all the afternoon, too hot to
wander from the shade, but as the evening ad-
vanced and the intense heat of the day cooled, I
thought we might all go off on an expedition of
some kind.
' Let us go to Tent House, father,' said Fritz,
' we are in want of powder and shot for the
ortolans.'
' I too vote for Tent House,' said my wife, * my
butter is nearly gone.'
' If we do go,' added Ernest, ' let us try to bring
away some of the geese and ducks with us ; they
will look very well swimming about in our stream
here by Falcon's Nest.'
* And I,' cried Francis, * will catch a handkerchief
full of lobsters in Jackal River, and we will put
them into Falcon Stream.'
So we set out. Fritz was adorned with his fine
belt of wild-cat skin. Jack had his belt in which
he carried two pistols, and wore his bristling cap of
porcupine skin. Each carried a gun and a game-
bag; even little Francis had a bow which I had
given him, and a quiver on his shoulder. Their
PRICKLY FIGS AND POTATOES 106
mother carried the large butter-pot, to fill it from
the storehouse. Turk marched before us with his
coat of porcupine spines.
Our way along the stream was at first extremelj
pleasant, being sheltered by the shade of large
trees, while the ground under our feet was covered
with a short and soft kind of grass.
The eldest boys ran on or made expeditions this
way and that, foraging. Presently they hurried
back full gallop, and this time, for a wonder, grave
Ernest was first. He reached me panting for
breath, and so full of joy and eagerness, that he
could not pronounce a word distinctly, but he held
out his hand, which contained three little balls of a
light green colour.
' We have found a prize indeed, father,' he cried,
when he had recovered his voice ; ' we have found
some potatoes.'
' What, potatoes !' I exclaimed, for I scarcely
dared believe in such good luck. ' This is indeed a
discovery.'
We all rushed to the place where the potatoes
had been found, and saw there a number of potato-
plants, many of them covered with lilac and yellow
flowers, more delightful to us than if they had been
fragrant roses. Jack bawled out, jumping for joy :
106 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
* They are really potatoes, and though I did
not discover them, at least I will dig them
up.'
Saying this, he knelt down and began to scratch
them up from the earth with his hands ; the rest of
us set to work also, and with our knives and sticks
we soon rooted out enough to fill our bags and our
pockets.
This happy discovery delayed us a little, but at
last we continued our journey. Ernest's discovery
of the potatoes was not to be the only one that day,
however.
All the way I had noted different kinds of grasses,
many of them of the thorn-leaved species, and
stronger than those cultivated in the greenhouses
of Europe. There were also in abundance the
Indian fig, with its large broad leaf; aloes of
different forms and colours ; the superb prickly
candle, or cactus, bearing straight stalks, taller than
a man, and crowned with long straight branches,
forming a sort of star. The broad plantain spread
along the rock, its innumerable twisted boughs
hanging down perpendicularly, and ornamented
with flowers, which grew in large tufts, and were
of the brightest rose-colour; but that which pleased
us best, and which we found in great abundance.
PRICKLY FIGS AND POTATOES 107
was the king of fruits, the pine-apple, which we
all feasted on with delight.
Soon after, I discovered among the multitude
of plants, which grew either at the foot or in the
clefts of the rock, the karata, many plants of which
were now in blossom. I pointed out to the boys
the immense size of its leaves, hollowed in the
middle like saucers, so that they hold the rain for
a long time, also its beautiful red flowers. I knew
that the pith of this plant is used as tinder by the
negroes, who also make a strong kind of thread
from the fibres of its leaves. Wishing to show how
useful it was, I asked Ernest to take out my flint
and steel.
Then breaking off a dried stalk of the plant, I
stripped off the bark, and showed inside a kind of
dry spongy substance, which I laid upon the flint ;
on striking it with steel, it instantly caught fire.
The boys looked on with astonishment, and soon
exclaimed :
' We'll call it the fire-tree !'
But this was not all. On turning up the leaves
I showed some red fibres, which could be pulled
off and were as strong as thread. Of course, they
were not long, being only the length of the leaf
itself, but none the less they would (l be very valuable.
108 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
It was difficult to detach them owing to the prickles
which grew thickly round them, but I knew that if
we put the leaves to dry, either in the sun or by a
gentle fire, the useless part of the leaf would separate
after being beaten, and the mass of thread would
remain.
My wife exclaimed with pleasure at this, having
been anxious as to how she could renew her stock
of thread when it was exhausted, and she remarked
to her boys how useful a thing it was to read and
remember, otherwise we should never have known
of the supply of good things by which we were
surrounded.
The next plant I noticed was the Indian fig,
or prickly pear, which grew upon the rocks,
and seemed to flourish the better the poorer the
soil.
There was growing on it a kind of fig, and I
showed the boys how to gather this prickly fruit
without hurting their fingers. As the figs were
growing at a considerable height, I threw up a
stone and brought one down, which I caught upon
my hat ; I cut off one end and held it on a knife
while I peeled off the skin, and then gave it to the
others to taste. They liked it, and very soon got
some for themselves. I saw Ernest holding- one
PRICKLY FIGS AND POTATOES 109
upon the end of his knife, turning it about in all
directions and looking at it curiously.
' I wish I could know,' he said at length, ' what
little animals these are in the fig, they are bright
scarlet.'
' Let me look,' I said ; ' I believe that it is the
insect called the cochineal, which is used in dyeing,
for nothing else produces so fine a scarlet. In
America they stretch cloths under the branches
and shake the tree, and when the insects have
fallen in great numbers they are sprinkled with
vinegar or cold water, and then dried and sent to
Europe.'
I explained to the boys, also, that the thorny
stalks of the prickly-pear are often used to form
stockades, which are particularly effective because
made with so little trouble, for if you plant only
one of the leaves in the ground it immediately
takes root, and grows with astonishing rapidity.
Jack, the thoughtless, here began to cut down
with his clasp-knife a pretty large plant, striking to
right and left with all his might, to show that he
would not be daunted by such a fence, when one of
the divided leaves fell with such violence against
his leg that the thorns struck into the flesh, and he
roared out piteously. We could not help laughing
110 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
at him, and congratulating him on the success of
his demonstration.
Ernest was anxious that we should there and
then make a thorn hedge around our banyan tree,
but I told him this would come all in good time.
We now left the beautiful strip of forest, rich in
many plants which are only to be found in Europe
in greenhouses and conservatories, and made our
way through the tall grass to Jackal River, which
we crossed by Family Bridge.
Soon after we arrived at Tent House, where we
found everything as we had left it. Fritz loaded
himself with powder and shot ; I and my wife and
Francis employed ourselves in filling the pot with
butter ; Ernest and Jack looked about for the
geese and ducks, but could not succeed in catching
one of them. Ernest then took a small bit of
cheese, and, tying it to the end of a piece of string,
he held it floating in the water. When the birds
swallowed it, he drew them gently towards him
one by one till he had caught them all, while we
watched, amused at his ingenuity.
We had meant to take back some salt, but as the
sacks were filled with potatoes, we could only
throw a little into one of them.
We then set out loaded on our return. The ducks
PRICKLY FIGS AND POTATOES 111
and geese, being packed in cloths and tied on our
backs with only their heads and necks out, looked
very odd, and we could not help laughing at each
other.
The laughter seemed to make the walk back
shorter, and we were soon again seated under our
tree at Falcon Stream. My wife at once put some
of the potatoes on the fire. She next milked the
cow and goats, and gave us each some milk to
drink, which we were glad of, as the walk had made
us thirsty.
When the potatoes were at last cooked they
turned out excellent, and we made a hearty supper
on them before climbing our ladder to rest in our
aerial castle.
CHAPTER XI
ERNEST SHOOTS A KANGAROO
1 HAD noticed on the shore many pieces of wood,
of which I thought I could make a kind of sledge,
so that we could drag our cask of butter and other
provisions from Tent House to Falcon Stream, and
so save ourselves the labour of future journeys.
I woke early next morning, meaning to set to
work before the others were awake, and I roused
Ernest to help me, thinking it better to leave Fritz
with the family, as he was the tallest and strongest.
Ernest got up willingly enough, and we descended
the ladder without disturbing the others. We
harnessed the donkey, and I made him draw some
large branches of a tree which I wanted.
We were not long in rinding the pieces of wood,
and set to work to cut them the proper length, and
then we laid them crossways on the branches, which
made for them a sledge of a sort. We added to
ERNEST SHOOTS A KANGAROO 113
the load a little chest, which we found half buried
in the sands, quite close to the waves, and then we
set out on our return to Falcon Stream. We found
the others up, and interested to hear where we had
been. The chest we had brought was soon opened
by a strong hatchet, for all were eager to see what
was inside. It contained, however, only some
sailors' clothes and some linen, which were wet
with the sea.
We then sat down to breakfast, and afterwards
Fritz and Jack showed me no less than fifty dead
ortolans and thrushes. I found that they had used
so large a quantity of powder and shot in this sport
that I stopped them, and taught them how to make
some snares of the thread of the karata, to be hung
from the branches of the fig-tree. The boys were
both interested and eager, and so clever at it that
Jack succeeded in his very first attempt. I left
Francis with him, and took Fritz and Ernest to
help me in making the sledge.
As we were hard at work a great noise was heard
among the fowls ; the cock crowed louder than the
rest, and the hens ran to and fro cackling. We all
hastened up, and Ernest, happening to look at the
monkey, noticed that he jumped quickly into a
hollow place under one of the roots of the tree and
114 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
hid himself. Ernest was at the place as soon as he,
and caught him with a new-laid egg in his paw,
which he was going to hide. The monkey sprang
away to another hole, and Ernest followed ; here
also he found some eggs, and brought them in his
hat to his mother. It was plain to see that the
monkey had seized the eggs as soon as the hens
had laid them. We inflicted no other punishment
upon him for this naughtiness than that of tying
him up when the hens were about to lay.
In the meanwhile Jack had got up into the tree,
and had arranged some of the snares in the
branches ; he came down again to tell us that our
pigeons had made a sort of nest there of some
dry grass, and that it already contained several
eggs.
During these arrangements the boys and I had
been busily employed, and now our work was com-
pleted, and we had made a rough kind of sledge for
the donkey to draw. On looking up, when we had
finished, I found that my wife had spitted the birds
which the boys had killed, and was roasting them
on an officer's sword which Fritz had brought from
the ship. I was inclined to blame her profusion in
cooking more birds at once than we could eat, but
she reminded me that I had myself advised her to
ERNEST SHOOTS A KANGAROO 116
half-roast the birds before putting them into
butter, to be preserved for future use. She said
also that, as I had now a sledge, I might go to
Tent House after dinner to fetch the cask of
butter. I had no objection to this, and determined
to go to Tent House the same day. I decided to
take Ernest with me this time, and was pleased to
see that Fritz displayed no jealousy at the proposal ;
in fact, at the moment of departure he presented
us with cases of his own workmanship, made from
his wild-cat skin, which were intended to hold
spoons and knives and forks, while room was left in
the middle for a little hatchet. We thanked him
for his gifts, which were really very well done.
We had harnessed the donkey and the cow to
our sledge ; we each took a piece of bamboo cane
in hand to serve as a whip ; and resting our guns
upon our shoulders, began our journey. Flora
was to come with us, and Turk to remain behind.
We took the road by the seashore, for the sledge
ran more easily here than in the thick wild grass.
We reached Family Bridge, on Jackal River, and
arrived at Tent House without adventure, and
unharnessed the animals to let them graze, while
we set to work to load the sledge with the cask of
butter, the cask of cheese, a small barrel of gun-
116 THE swiss FAMILY ROBINSON
powder, different instruments, and some ball and
shot. We were so busy that we forgot all about
the animals, until, looking up suddenly, we found
they had recrossed the bridge and wandered out of
sight. I told Ernest to go with Flora and bring
them back, and in the meantime went to look for a
place to bathe in on the other side of Tent House.
In a short time I found myself at Deliverance Bay,
which ended in a marsh producing some fine bul-
rushes ; and further on, a chain of steep rocks,
jutting into the sea, formed a set of little creeks
excellent for bathing. As Ernest had not returned,
I amused myself with cutting some of the rushes.
And when he did turn up, I told him to fill a small
bag with some of the salt there was here, and then
to empty it into the large one for the ass to carry.
' Meantime I will bathe, and then it will be
your turn, and mine to take care of the animals,'
I said.
I returned to the rocks, and enjoyed my dip, but
I did not stay long, and 1 had just dressed myself,
when I heard his voice calling out, ' Father, father,
a fish ! A fish of monstrous size 1 Run quickly ;
I can hardly hold him 1 He is eating up my line !'
I ran to the place and found Ernest lying along the
ground on his face, pulling in his line, to which a
ERNEST SHOOTS A KANGAROO 111
large fish was attached, struggling violently. I ran
hastily and snatched the rod out of his hand, for I
feared the weight of the fish might pull him into
the water. I played the fish, and then drew him
gently along into a shallow, from which he could
not escape, and thus we caught him. He was a
salmon, and must have weighed not less than fifteen
pounds, so that the capture was magnificent.
' You have worked hard,' I said to Ernest, ' and
you had better wipe the perspiration from your
face, and keep quiet for a short time before you go
into the water.'
' It was fortunate,' he remarked, ' that I thought
of bringing my fishing-rod.'
' Certainly it was. But how did you see this
large fish, and what made you think you could
catch it ?'
' I had noticed,' said Ernest, ' the fish about here,
and that made me think of bringing the rod with
me. On my way to the salt I saw a lot of little
crabs near the water's edge. I thought I would
try to bait my hook with one of them, but at first
I caught only a dozen little fish, which are there in
my handkerchief ; then I saw that they were chased
in the water by big fish, so I baited my hook with one
of the little ones ; but the hook was too small, and
9
118 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
my rod too weak. So I took one of the finest
of the bulrushes you had just gathered, and put a
larger hook on my line, and in a short time the
large fish there seized upon the bait. However, if
you had not come I should either have let go my
line, or have been dragged into the water, for he
was much stronger than I.'
We now examined the smaller fish, which were
mostly trout and herrings. I cut them all open,
and rubbed them inside with salt that they might
not go bad in the heat. While I was thus employed
Ernest went to the rocks and bathed, and I had
time to fill some more bags with salt before his
return. We then harnessed and loaded our animals,
and went back to Falcon Stream.
When we were about half way, Flora, who was
before us, suddenly sprang off, and began barking.
We soon after saw her chasing an animal, which
made the most extraordinary jumps. This creature
passed close to where I stood. I fired, but its
flight was so rapid that I did not hit it. Ernest,
who was behind, hearing the report of my gun, fired
the next minute, and his aim was so good that the
animal fell dead. I ran to look at it. It was as
large as a sheep, but the tail was like that of a
tiger ; its snout and hair were like those of a mouse,
ERNEST SHOOTS A KANGAROO 119
and its teeth were like a hare's, but much larger ;
the fore legs resembled those of the squirrel, and
were extremely short ; but to make up for this, its
hind legs were as long as a pair of stilts. We
examined the creature a long time in silence, and
1 did not pronounce its name, as I wanted to see if
Ernest would recognise it. For a moment he did
not, and then cried out joyously :
' A kangaroo ! I never thought I should see one
alive !'
We spent several minutes further in examining
with interest this rare animal, and then began
to consider the next difficulty, which was how
to get him home without spoiling his skin. We
managed this at last by tying the fore legs
together, and by means of two canes, we carried
him with considerable trouble to the sledge, upon
which he was securely fastened.
Having now nothing more to detain us, we
continued our road towards Falcon Stream, talking
with great animation about the strange beast we
had found.
When we arrived somewhat late, at Falcon
Stream, we heard shouts from the others, and
when the three boys ran to meet us it was our
turn to laugh ; one had on a sailor's shirt,
120 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
which trailed round him like the robe of a spectre ;
another was buried in a pair of trousers, which
were fastened round his neck, and reached to the
ground ; and the third had a long waistcoat, which
came down to his feet, and gave him the look of an
elongated sausage. They all tried to jump about,
but finding this impossible, from the length of their
garments, they strutted slowly to and fro. After
some hearty laughing, I asked what was the cause
of this masquerade. My wife told me that the three
boys had been bathing, and that she had taken
the opportunity to wash all their clothes ; but as
they had not dried so soon as she expected, the
boys had become impatient, and had taken from the
sailor's chest what they wanted.
' I preferred,' said she, ' that you should see
them in this odd sort of a disguise, rather than
quite naked, like little savages.'
It was now our turn to give an account of our
journey : and we showed her, one after another,
casks, bulrushes, salt, fish, and lastly, with infinite
triumph, our beautiful kangaroo. In a trice it was
surrounded, examined, and admired by all, and
such a number of questions asked, that Ernest and
I scarcely knew which to answer first.
Fritz was the only one who was a little silent
ERNEST SHOOTS A KANGAROO 121
I saw plainly what was passing in his mind. He
was jealous of his brother, but I also saw that he
was struggling manfully against so mean a passion.
In a short time he had succeeded so completely
that he joined frankly in our merriment. He came
near the kangaroo and examined it, then, turning
to his brother, he said cordially that he had had
good luck, and that he must be a good shot to have
killed the animal.
* But, father,' said he, ' when you go again to
Tent House, or on any other excursion, it will be my
turn to go with you. For here, at Falcon Stream,
there is nothing new, a few thrushes and some
pigeons, this is all we have from day to day.'
* I promise you certainly,' I said, ' for I know you
have fought against your jealousy. You shall go
with me in my very next excursion, which will
probably be to-morrow, and it will be another
journey to the ship.'
We made an excellent supper on our little fish,
to which we added some potatoes, and afterwards
I gave some salt to each of our animals, who were
heartily pleased with it. Then as we were all tired
we said our prayers at an early hour, mounted our
ladder, and were soon asleep.
CHAPTER XII
DRAWN BY A TURTLE
I ROSE with the first crowing of the cock, and
descended the ladder, intending to set about
skinning the kangaroo. I found, however, that
the dogs had made an onslaught on it already.
Luckily, as it hung by the hind feet, it was mostly
out of their reach, but they had managed to worry
the head ; so I gave them a good flogging to teach
them to leave such things alone in future.
My wife hearing their yelps came down, and
though she owned I was in the right, she patted
the dogs to console them. I now set about stripping
the kangaroo without injuring the skin ; but I got
on so slowly that the boys came about me protest-
ing they were starved before I had finished my
work. Having at last completed it, I went to the
river to wash myself thoroughly, and then to the
sailor's chest to change my coat.
122
DRAWN BY A TURTLE 123
Breakfast over, I ordered Fritz to get ready to
go to Tent House, where we had left the boat.
When we were leaving we could not find Jack
or Ernest anywhere, and had to go without seeing
them ; but on arriving at the bridge they burst upon
us out of the undergrowth with loud shouts,
begging to be allowed to go with us. This I could
not permit for a moment, both on account of their
mother's anxiety should they not return, and because
she would be left without any sort of protection.
To compensate them, however, for the disappoint-
ment so plainly shown on their faces, I told Fritz
to give his watch to Ernest, and promised to give
him another, as well as to bring one back for Jack
from the ship.
I then sent the younger boys back with a
message to their mother, which I had not had the
courage to tell her myself that we might be forced
to pass the night on board, and not return till the
evening of the next day.
We got into the boat, and gaining the current,
quickly cleared Deliverance Bay, and reached the
ship. When we had fastened our boat, our first
care was to select fit materials to construct a raft,
as Ernest had suggested.
I found a sufficient number of water-casks, and
124 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
having emptied them and replaced the bungs care-
fully, we threw the casks overboard, after securing
them with ropes, so as to keep them together : this
completed, we placed a number of planks upon them
to form a firm platform or deck. Thus we made a
useful raft, on which we could stow thrice as much
as in our boat. This laborious task had taken up
the whole day ; we had scarcely allowed ourselves
a minute to eat even the cold meat we had brought
with us.
In the evening, Fritz and I were so weary, that
it would have been impossible for us to row back
to land ; so we lay down in the captain's cabin, on
a good mattress, which made us sleep so soundly
that our intention of watching in turn, for fear of
accident, was forgotten, and we both slept heavily,
side by side, till broad daylight opened our eyes.
We rose, and actively set to work to load our raft.
We began with stripping the cabin of its doors
and windows ; next we secured several chests,
including the carpenter's and gunner's, containing
all their tools and implements. Those we could
remove with levers and rollers were put entire
upon the raft, and we took out of the others
all that made them too heavy. One of the
captain's chests was filled with costly articles.
DRAWN BY A TURTLE 125
which no doubt he meant to sell to the rich
planters of Port Jackson, or give to the savages.
In the collection were several gold and silver
watches, buckles, shirt-buttons, necklaces, rings,
as well as coin. I chose the two watches
already promised and took a purseful of coin as
a toy for Francis ; but it amused me to consider
of how little value these things were in our present
position. The discovery that delighted me most
was a chest containing some dozens of young plants
of every species of European fruits, which had been
carefully packed in moss for transportation. I
found pear, plum, almond, peach, apple, apricot,
chestnut trees, and vine shoots. In another place
were bars of iron, and large pigs of lead, grinding-
stones, cart-wheels ready for mounting, a complete
set of farrier's instruments, tongs, shovels, plough-
shares, rolls of iron and copper wire, sacks full of
maize, peas, oats, vetches, and even a little hand-
mill. The ship had been freighted with everything
likely to be useful in a distant colony. We found
a saw-mill, in separate parts, but each piece num-
bered, and so accurately fitted that it would be
quite easy to put it together for use.
I had now to consider which of all these treasures
I should take or leave. It was impossible to carry
126 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
with us in one trip such a mass of things, and yet
we could not bring ourselves to leave them in the
ship.
With difficulty and hard labour we made our
choice and finished our loading, having added a
large fishing-net, quite new, and the ship's great
compass. With the net, Fritz found two harpoons
and a rope-windlass, such as they use in the whale-
fishery. He asked me to let him place the har-
poons, tied to the end of the rope, over the bow of
our tub-boat, and I assented.
At last we stepped into the tub-boat, and with
some difficulty we pushed out for the current,
drawing our raft triumphantly after us with a stout
rope, which we had fastened securely to its head.
The wind was favourable, and briskly swelled
our sail. The sea was calm, and we advanced at a
considerable rate. Fritz had for some time fixed
his eyes on something of a large size which was
floating on the water, and he now asked me to take
the telescope and see what it could be. I soon
discovered that it was a turtle, which had fallen
asleep in the sun on the surface of the water. No
sooner had Fritz learned this, than he begged me to
steer softly to get near to it. I readily consented ;
but as his back was towards me, and the sail be-
DRAWN BY A TURTLE 127
tween us, 1 did not see what he was doing, till a
violent jerk of the boat, a sudden turning of the
windlass, and then a second jerk, accompanied by
a rapid motion of the boat, made me face round.
' What are you about, Fritz ?' I exclaimed, some-
what alarmed.
'I have caught him! I touched him!' cried
Fritz, without hearing. ' The turtle is ours ; it
cannot escape, father ! I have struck him in the
neck. Hooray !'
I saw that the harpoon had indeed caught the
animal in its only unprotected part, the neck ; and,
feeling itself wounded, it was trying to get away.
I quickly pulled down the sail, and, seizing a
hatchet, sprang forward ready to cut the rope, and
let the harpoon and the turtle go ; but Fritz caught
hold of my arm, begging me to wait a moment,
and not cut the rope until it was absolutely neces-
sary ; and to this 1 agreed.
So, drawn along by the turtle, we raced danger-
ously fast through the water. I soon noticed that the
creature was making for the sea ; I therefore again
hoisted the sail, and, as the wind was to the land
and very brisk, the turtle found resistance of no
avail. He accordingly fell into the track of the
current, and drew us straight towards our usual
128 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
place of landing. The state of the tide was such
as to throw us upon a sand-bank ; we were at this
time close to the shore ; the boat, though driven
with violence, remained upright in the sand. I
stepped into the water, which did not reach far
above my knees, and, seeing the turtle stretched
at the bottom of the water where it was shallow,
I cut off his head with the hatchet. Being now
near Tent House, Fritz gave a halloo, and fired
a gun to warn the others we had not only arrived,
but arrived in triumph. His mother and the three
boys soon appeared, running towards us. Our
story of the turtle was received with acclamation^
only my wife sparing a word of pity for the poor
creature so rudely awakened to pain and death.
I sent the younger boys for the sledge, and while
they were away made both boat and raft fast, so
that the tide should not float them away.
When the sledge arrived we placed the turtle
upon it, and also some mattresses, pieces of linen,
etc. As we walked up I gave Jack his watch, and
Francis his coins, with which he was delighted.
As he had lately expressed his intention of sowing
some gunpowder to produce a crop, I asked him
jestingly if he was going to sow the gold, to which
he replied, gravely, no, he should save it up for the
DRAWN BY A TURTLE
next fair, an answer that evoked peals of merriment
from his brothers.
Our first thought on reaching home was the
turtle, which we immediately turned on his back,
that we might strip off the shell, and make use of
some of the flesh while it was fresh. Taking my
hatchet, I separated the upper and under shell all
round. The upper shell is extremely convex ; the
under, on the contrary, is nearly flat. I cut away
as much of the flesh of the animal as was sufficient
for a meal, and laid the rest carefully on the under
shell, which served as a dish, recommending my
wife to cook what I had cut off, on the other shell,
with no other seasoning than a little salt. She
asked to be allowed to cut off the green fat adher-
ing all round, upon which I laughingly told her
that that was the greatest delicacy of all, and
esteemed at banquets in Europe food for kings. I
then rubbed salt on what we meant to keep, and
gave the rest to the dogs.
' Oh, dear papa,' cried Francis, ' do give me the
shell.'
' No, no,' cried out the others ; and one and all
claimed it.
I declared that it belonged entirely to Fritz ;
4 but,' I continued, ' I should like to ask what each
180 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
of you thought of doing with the shell, if you had
got it ?'
' I should turn it into a shield to defend myself
with, if the savages should come upon us,' said
Ernest.
' Pooh !' said Jack. * There are no savages here !
I should make a little boat of it. It would glide
along with the stream.'
' I thought,' said Francis in his turn, * I should
build a little house, papa, and the shell would makt
such a fine roof to it ?
I turned to Fritz :
' And now what use is the rightful owner going
to make of it ?' I asked.
' I thought,' he replied, ' of cleaning it thoroughly,
and fixing it by the side of our river, and keeping
it always full of pure water for mother's use, when
she has to wash the linen, or cook.'
' Excellent !' I cried, ' the pure water-tub ! This
is what I call thinking for the general good. And
we will do this as soon as we can find some clay, as
a solid foundation for its bottom.'
' Ha, ha !' cried Jack, ' I have got some clay.
This morning while I was out I came to a large
slope by the river, and it was so slippery, that I
could not keep upon my legs ; so I fell, and dirtied
DRAWN BY A TURTLE 181
myself all over ; on looking, I saw that the ground
was of clay, and almost liquid, so I made some of it
into balls, and brought them home.'
Ernest was not to be out-done, and declared he
too had made a discovery ; he had found some
roots rather like a horse-radish, which the sow had
eaten with relish
From his account, and further particulars I judged
them to be manioc, or tapioca, of which the natives
of the West Indies make a sort of bread or cake
which they call cassava; and I told him if this
were so his discovery was of considerable value.
We had now finished unloading the sledge, and I
bade the three eldest boys accompany me to fetch
another load before it should be dark. We left
Francis and his mother busy preparing supper.
Having reached the raft, we took from it as much
as the sledge could hold, or the animals draw along.
One object of my attention was to secure two
chests which contained our own clothes, as I well
knew this would please my wife. I reckoned also
on finding in one of the chests some books on
interesting subjects, and principally a large hand-
somely-printed Bible. I added to these, four cart-
wheels and a hand-mill for grinding; which, now
that we had discovered the manioc, I considered of
132 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
importance. These, and a few other articles, com-
pleted our present load.
On our return to Falcon's Nest, we found supper
ready. Before we began, however, my wife drew
me aside by the arm.
' Step this way,' she said, ' and see the work I
have done in your absence.'
She pointed to a large cask half sunk in the
ground, and covered over with branches of trees.
She then applied a small corkscrew to the side,
and filling the shell of a cocoa-nut with the
contents, gave it to me. I found it to be good
wine.
' How then,' I asked, * have you performed this
new miracle ?'
She explained to me it was a cask which she had
found on the shore, and which the boys had dragged
up on the sledge. She had taken this method of
keeping the contents cool.
The savoury smell of the turtle now claimed
our attention. We hastened back, and all ate
heartily of this novel and excellent meat. After-
wards we returned thanks to God, and speedily
retired to sleep soundly upon our new mattresses.
CHAPTER XIII
WE GAIN A SAILING-BOAT
I ROSE before day to go to the seaside, and look at
our boat and raft. I gently descended the ladder
without awaking the others. The dogs jumped
about me, the cock and the hens flapped their
wings and chuckled, and our goats shook their
long beards as they browsed. I quickly roused
and harnessed the ass, and the dogs followed. As
I approached the shore I soon saw that the boat
and raft had resisted the tide, though it had partially
heaved them up. I got quickly on the raft, took a
small loading, and returned to Falcon Stream in
time for breakfast. And as no one appeared, though
the sun was high above the horizon, I gave a shout
as loud as a war-whoop, which awoke my wife.
' Really,' she cried, ' there must be a magic charm
in the mattress you brought yesterday, that has
lulled us into so sound a sleep )'
133 10
134 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
Fritz, a little ashamed, was dressed first ; Jack
soon after him, and Francis next ; the ever-slothful
Ernest was the last.
Breakfast over, we returned to the seaside to
complete the unloading of the raft, that it might
be ready for sea on the ebbing of the tide. We
were not long in taking two cargoes to Falcon
Stream. At our last trip the water was nearly
up to our craft. I sent back my wife and the
boys, and remained with Fritz till we were quite
afloat, when, observing Jack still loitering near, I
guessed at his wish, and allowed him to come with
us. Shortly after, the tide was high enough for us
to row off. Instead of steering for Deliverance Bay
to moor our boats there, I was tempted by a fresh
sea-breeze to go out again to the wreck ; but it was
too late to undertake much, and I did not want to
pass another night on board. I therefore deter-
mined to bring away only what we could pick up
easily. Jack was up and down everywhere, and
presently he shouted that he had found a wheel-
barrow for carrying our potatoes.
But Fritz discovered behind the bulk-head amid-
ship a pinnace i.e., a small craft, the fore part of
which is square taken to pieces, and two small
guns for its defence. This delighted me, but I
WE GAIN A SAILING-BOAT 186
foresaw that to put it together and launch it would
be a Herculean task, so I left it for the time, and
collected various utensils, a copper boiler, some
plates of iron, tobacco-graters, two grinding-stones,
a small barrel of gunpowder, and another full of
flints, which I much valued. Jack's barrow was
not forgotten ; two more were afterwards found and
added. All these articles were hurried into the boat,
and we re-embarked with speed, to avoid the land-
wind that rises in the evening. As we were drawing
near to the shore we saw a row of small figures
ranged on the strand. They were dressed in
black, and all uniform, with white waistcoats and
full cravats, and looked like a regiment of pigmy
soldiers.
Jack suggested they were Lilliputians, such as
he had read of in ' Gulliver's Travels.'
But as we drew nearer, Fritz cried out that they
had beaks, and that their arms were small wings ;
and in an instant it dawned on us that what we
had mistaken for little soldiers were penguins.
While we were talking I steered gently towards
shore, and the very moment we got into shallow
water Jack leaped in up to his waist, and was
quickly on land, hitting right and left with his
stick among the penguins, so that half a dozen of
136 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
them were immediately laid flat ; the remainder
plunged into the sea, dived, and disappeared.
Arrived at Falcon Stream, my wife showed us
a good store of potatoes which she had dug up
during our absence, and some of the roots I had
taken for manioc or tapioca.
' But now,' I said, ' for supper, and if anyone
should be industriously inclined to-morrow I will
teach them a new trade.'
I waked the boys very early, reminding them
that I had promised to teach them a new trade.
' What is it ? What is it ?' they all exclaimed
at once, springing suddenly out of bed and hurrying
into their clothes.
' It is the art of the baker,' I answered. ' Hand
me those iron plates that we brought yesterday
from the ship, and the tobacco-graters also. Ernest,
bring the manioc-root ; and I want a small bag
made of a piece of strong cloth.'
My wife set to work to make one, but she first filled
a copper boiler with potatoes and put it on the fire,
that we might not be without something to eat at
dinner-time if my bread-making turned out a failure.
In the meanwhile, I spread a piece of coarse linen
on the ground, and, giving each of the boys a grater,
showed him how to grate the roots of manioc. In
WE GAIN A SAILING-BOAT 137
a short time we had produced a considerable heap
of shavings like those of horse-radish. They were
much amused, saying to each other :
' Will you eat a bit of nice cake made of grated
radishes ?'
By this time my wife had made the bag. I
filled it with the shavings, and she sewed up the
end. I now wanted a kind of press. So I cut a
long, stout branch from a neighbouring tree, and
stripped it of the bark, and placing the bag on our
table, put one end of the bough under an arch at
about the height of the table, bringing the bough
across the bag and pressing down the other end
with all my might. After a few seconds of this
pressure the sap from the manioc began to run
out across the table and drip on to the ground.
After we had wrung out all the sap possible, we
opened the bag, and took out a small quantity of
the tapioca, and, after stirring the rest about with
a stick, replaced it under the press. The next
thing was to fix one of our iron plates upon two
blocks of stone. Under this we lighted a large
fire, and when the iron plate was hot, I made
dough by moistening the tapioca flour with water,
and put some of it on the plate. As soon as
the cake began to be brown underneath, it was
138 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
turned, that the other side might be baked
also.
' Oh, how nice it smells !' cried Ernest eagerly.
As soon as the cake was cold, we broke some of
it into crumbs, and gave it to two of the fowls,
and a larger piece to the monkey, who nibbled it
delightedly, while the boys stood by envying him,
for I had decided they must wait a little while to
see that there were no ill-effects before tasting it
themselves. For dinner, therefore, we had potatoes,
and afterwards, finding that the monkey and the
fowls were perfectly well, we returned to the bag of
manioc.
A large fire was quickly lighted, and when at
last the cakes were baked everyone of us enjoyed
them very much.
The rest of the day was employed by the boys
in making several turns with their wheelbarrows,
and by myself in different arrangements in which
the ass and our raft had a principal share, both
being employed in drawing to Tent House the
remaining articles we had brought from the ship.
From the time of discovering the pinnace, my
desire to have it had been irresistible ; but I saw
I should have to take the three eldest boys to help
me in such a difficult job ; and it was some time
1VE GAIN A SAILING-BOAT 139
before I dared tell this to my wife. When I did,
however, she agreed on condition we returned the
same day. This we promised, and we started
cheerfully.
Ernest had not yet been to the ship at all, and
was delighted to go. We took with us ample
provision of boiled potatoes and the new bread,
which I called by the same name savages use for
it, namely, cassava. We reached the ship easily,
but on examining the pinnace were rather dis-
mayed to find the extreme difficulty of the task
before us.
The pieces, it is true, were all numbered, but
many of them were so heavy I did not see how we
were going to move them. We set to work, how-
ever, with great energy, in spite of which, when
evening came on, we seemed to have done but
little. On reaching Deliverance Bay, we found my
wife and little Francis there. They had been
making arrangements for our living at Tent House
as long as we went backwards and forwards to the
ship.
We passed a whole week in this difficult
work, going every morning and returning every
evening.
At length the pinnace was built up, and ready
HO THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
to be launched. But how could we manage this 1
She was an elegant little vessel, perfect in every
part. She had a small neat deck, and her masts
and sails were no less exact and perfect than those
of a little brig. We had pitched and caulked all
the seams. But in spite of the delight we felt at
seeing her thus, the great difficulty still remained.
The charming little vessel stood fast enclosed within
four walls, nor could I imagine how to get her out.
At last I thought, as everything else seemed hope-
less, we might blow up part of the ship with gun-
powder, and so release her. It was a dangerous thing
to try, but it seemed the only way. Accordingly, I
made a train and laid a charge of gunpowder
under the bulkhead, which blocked in the pinnace
on one side. When it w r as arranged, I set fire to
the train, which was long enough to give us time
to escape. Then I hurried on board the raft, into
which I had previously sent the boys, who had no
suspicion of what I had done.
On our arrival at Tent House, I put the raft in
order, that we might be able to return to the
wreck, when the noise of the explosion should tell
me that the scheme had succeeded. Suddenly it
came with such violence that my wife and the boys
were alarmed.
WE GAIN A SAILING-BOAT 141
' What can it be ? What is the matter ? What
can have happened ?' they all cried at once.
After a few minutes I explained the real cause,
and invited them to come back with me to see
what the effect had been. They sprang on board,
and we rowed out of the bay more rapidly
than ever before, We saw the ship was still
afloat, but on rowing round to the far side,
where the explosion had taken place, we found
that the greater part was shivered to pieces. In
the middle of the splinters there floated our pinnace,
quite untouched. We all exclaimed joyfully at
the complete success of the manoeuvre, and set to
work to clear away the wreckage in which she was
still entangled.
Two whole days more were spent in completely
equipping and loading her. When she was ready
for sailing, we decided to salute my wife as we
sailed home to Tent House, with two discharges
from the cannon, which formed part of the equip-
ment of the pinnace. These accordingly were
loaded, and the two young boys stood close to the
touch-holes, to be in readiness. Fritz was by the
mast to manage the ropes and cables, while I took
my station at the rudder. The wind was favourable,
and so brisk that we glided swiftly along the water in
142 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
a very different way from that we were used to on
our old tub-boat, which we now towed behind.
When we arrived within a certain distance of
the shore, cried Commander Fritz, ' Fire /' Ernest
and Jack obeyed, and the echoes from the rocks
majestically replied. Fritz at the same moment
had discharged his two pistols, and all joined in
three loud hurrahs.
' Welcome ! welcome !' cried the anxious mother,
almost breathless with astonishment and joy.
* Welcome !' cried little Francis, in imitation.
They ran to meet us, and when they had stepped
upon the deck the boys begged to fire off the
cannon again, and to christen the pinnace by the
name of their mother The Elizabeth a request
that I gladly granted.
When the excitement of our arrival had subsided,
we found that the two left on shore had done
hardly less than ourselves in the last week, for they
showed us a kitchen-garden, laid out properly in
beds and walks, and sown with the seed of useful
plants. One bed was for potatoes, one for manioc,
and other smaller ones for lettuces of various kinds,
and some plants of the sugar-cane. On the slope
of the rock were some plants of the ananas. Between
these were some melon seeds ; here was a plot
WE GAIN A SAILING-BOAT 143
allotted to peas and beans, and there another for all
sorts of cabbage. Round each bed or plot were
sown seeds of maize to serve as a border, to protect
the young plants from the heat of the sun. Need-
less to say, we were delighted by an idea so useful
and so well carried out, that it came only second
to our securing the pinnace.
Many other matters now required attention, for
we had obtained the greater part of the cargo of
the ship ; but almost all of it was at present in the
open air, and liable to injury from both sun and
rain. We therefore began to place the cargo safely
under shelter along with our other stores.
The pinnace was anchored on the shore, and
fastened with a rope, by her head, to a stake.
When all our stores were thus disposed of, we
began our journey to Falcon Stream, taking with
us everything that seemed to be absolutely wanted
for comfort, and we found that meant a good deal
to carry.
CHAPTER XIV
ADVENTURES AND EXCITEMENT
WHEN we had been once again settled at Falcon's
Nest for some days I suggested to the boys that
they should practise shooting with arrows ; also
running, jumping, getting up trees, both by
means of climbing up the trunk or by a suspended
rope, as sailors are obliged to do to get to the mast-
head.
We began at first by making knots in the rope,
at a foot's distance from each other ; then we re-
duced the number of knots, and before we left off
we managed without any. I next taught them a
new exercise, which was to throw two balls made of
lead, fastened to each end of a string about six feet in
length. This was in imitation of the Patagonians,
who become so clever by practice that they can
throw the balls and string so as to entangle the
legs of wild animals and bring them to the ground.
144
ADVENTURES AND EXCITEMENT 145
The boys were all delighted with the idea and
anxious to practise.
My first throws were quite successful, and the
string with the balls at the end knotted itself
round the little tree at which I had flung it. In a
short time Fritz, who was the cleverest at this kind
of thing, became quite expert in the art, and took
his balls with him wherever he went.
The next morning, as I was dressing, I noticed
that the sea was very rough and great waves were
rolling in. I stayed at the camp, therefore, all day
and made a minute examination of all our various
possessions at Falcon Stream. After this I planted
the young fruit-trees we had brought from the
ship, and the day passed quickly and pleasantly.
In the evening I proposed that we should start
early next morning, and go to the wood where the
gourds grew, as we were in want of more dishes.
By sunrise the next day all were on foot. The
donkey was harnessed to the sledge, on which we
placed provisions and some powder and shot. Turk
led the way as our advanced guard, next followed
the three eldest boys ; after them, their mother,
leading Francis ; and Flora brought up the rear,
with the monkey on her back.
We set out, full of good humour and high-spirits.
146 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
Turning round Flamingo Marsh we soon reached
the pleasant spot which had before so delighted us.
Fritz sent Turk into the tall grass and followed
himself. Presently we heard Turk barking loudly;
a large bird sprang up, and almost at the same
moment a shot from Fritz brought it down, but,
though wounded, it was not killed, and set off
quickly, not flying, but running. Turk followed,
and, seizing it, held it fast till Fritz came up.
The bird was large and strong, it kicked so
vigorously that Fritz dared not approach it.
I saw that it was a female bustard of the
largest size. I had long wished to tame a bird
of this kind for our poultry-yard ; so I threw
my pocket handkerchief over its head, and passed
a string with a running-knot over its legs ; this I
drew tight. Then, releasing its wing from Turk's
mouth, I tied it, with its fellow, close to the bird's
body.
Ernest and Jack, who had been behind, now ran
forward, shouting :
' Oh, what a handsome bird 1 and what a size !
What beautiful feathers !'
I put the bustard on the sledge, making it as
comfortable as I could ; and after this little delay
we went on our way.
ADVENTURES AND EXCITEMENT 147
We were compelled to fight our way through
thick bushes, till we arrived at the wood of gourds,
where we decided to rest a little.
Jack and Ernest collected dried branches and
flints, while their mother was occupied in attending
to the bustard. She thought that it was cruel
to keep it any longer blinded, with its legs tied
together. So, to please her, I loosened the string,
but still left it partly tied. Then I fastened the
bird by a long string to the trunk of a tree.
We now began our work. Some had to cut,
others to saw, scoop out, and model the gourds
into shape.
After working for some time with the rest,
Ernest, who was not fond of continuous work,
wandered into the wood. It was not long before
we heard him calling loudly to us, and saw him
running back.
* Run quick, father !' he cried ; ' here is a wild
boar a terrible beast !'
I cried out to the boys to call the dogs quickly.
But when we turned in chase the boar was gone,
and we saw nothing but a plot of potatoes in which
he had been rooting. The dogs tracked him, and
their yells soon told us he had been discovered.
As Fritz and I emerged with caution from the
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
undergrowth, holding our guns at full-cock, we
burst simultaneously into fits of laughter ; for the
terrific beast was not a boar at all, but our own
sow, which had run away and been so long lost 1
While we were still chaffing Ernest about the
incident, we noticed a kind of small apple,
which seemed to have fallen from the trees and
lay thickly in the grass. Our attention was at-
tracted to them by the way in which the sow ate
them ; and we collected some to take home to try
upon the monkey.
We now began to be extremely thirsty, and
scattered in search of water. Jack sprang off, and
sought among the rocks, hoping to find a stream ;
but scarcely had he left the wood than he shouted
to us that he had found a crocodile.
' A crocodile !' I cried, with a hearty laugh ;
' you have a fine imagination, my boy 1 Whoever
saw a crocodile on such scorching rocks as these,
with not a drop of water near ? Now, Jack, you
are surely dreaming '
1 Not so much of a dream as you may think,
father,' answered Jack, trying to speak in a low
voice ' Fortunately he is asleep ; he lies here on
a stone at his full length. Come here and look at
him ; he does not stir in the least.'
ADVENTURES AND EXCITEMENT 149
We stole softly to the place where the animal
lay ; but, instead of a crocodile, I saw before me
a sort of lizard, named by naturalists Leguana, or
Iguana, of an enormous size, about 8 feet in length,
including the tail. Fritz was already taking aim
with his gun, but I prevented him, wishing to try
an experiment.
I cut a stout stick from a bush, and, tying a
string with a running knot to the end of it, ap-
proached the creature with cautious steps. When
I was very near to him I began to whistle a lively
air, taking care to make the sounds low at first, and
to increase in loudness till the lizard was awaked.
He appeared entranced with pleasure, raising his
head eagerly and looking round on all sides. I
now advanced by a step at the time. At length
I was near enough to reach him with a switch,
with which I tickled him gently, still continuing to
whistle. The lizard stretched himself at full length,
made motions with his long tail, threw his head
about, raised it up, and disclosed a range of sharp-
pointed teeth. I seized the moment of his raising
his head to throw my noose over him. When this
was accomplished, it was the work of a moment to
draw it tight and strangle him at once. As his
flesh is good for eating, we had next to consider
11
150 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
the best way of transporting him to Falcon
Stream. The only way, it seemed, was to carry
him on my back, but he was so large that when
his fore-paws were on my shoulders his tail dragged
on the ground. Thus equipped, looking as if I
wore a royal mantle of green and gold, I returned
to where we had made a temporary camp.
While we were sitting by the others, recounting
this strange adventure, some of the little apples
fell from my pockets, and lay on the ground by my
side., Nip soon scented them ; he came slily up,
and, stealing several, began eating them with great
eagerness. I myself threw one or two to the
bustard, which also ate them without hesitation.
So I told the boys they might as well follow this
example, and we all ate them with much enjoy-
ment. I began to suspect that they were the sort
of fruit called guava.
We had scarcely finished before my wife asked
that we might begin our journey home, and as the
evening was so far advanced, she suggested that
we should leave the sledge, which was heavily
laden, to be fetched the following day. I agreed,
and loaded the donkey with the bags which con-
tained our new gourds ; the lizard, which I feared
might not keep fresh ; and little Francis, who
ADVENTURES AND EXCITEMENT 151
began to complain of being tired. As for the
bustard, she walked, led by a string.
Our course lay through a wood of majestic oaks,
and the ground was covered with acorns, upon
which numerous birds seemed to subsist. This we
gathered from the wild and discordant cries of
several sorts of jays and parrots, which were hop-
ping merrily among the foliage and the branches.
We arrived shortly at Falcon Stream, and
finished the exertions of the day with a good
supper, and after making a comfortable bed for
the bustard by the side of the flamingo, we
stretched our weary limbs upon our beds in the
giant tree.
CHAPTER XV
THE LAST OF THE WRECK
I HAD left the sledge behind for two reasons, not
only to save the tired donkey, but to give me an
excuse for going back into the woods with Fritz,
to explore a little further. So, taking Turk with
us, he and I started directly after breakfast the
next morning.
We soon arrived at the place where we had left
the sledge, which we found untouched. Then we
made our way to the line of cliff-like rocks
beyond which we had not yet penetrated.
On the way we went through a grove, the trees
of which were unknown to us. Their branches
were loaded with berries covered with sticky
wax. I knew of a sort of bush producing wax
that grows in America, and had no doubt that
this was the plant, which might prove very useful.
We set to work, therefore, and gathered as many
152
THE LAST OF THE WRECK 15S
of the berries as we could carry, for I told Fritz
I believed I could make candles from them.
Soon after we came upon some trees like the
wild fig-tree. Their height was from forty to sixty
feet, and a kind of gum oozed from the trunks.
Fritz collected some of this, and as we walked he
pulled it about like elastic or gutta-percha. Seeing
this it dawned upon me what the gum really was,
namely, indiarubber which might by a little
trouble be made very useful to us.
Our next discovery was of a tree called the sago
palm. One of these had been blown down by the
wind, so that I was able to examine it thoroughly.
I found that the trunk contained some mealy stuff,
therefore with my hatchet I cut it open longways
and cleared it of the contents ; and I found on
tasting it was exactly like the sago I had often
eaten. Thus we had made in a short time three
very remarkable and useful discoveries.
We now began to consider how much further
we would go ; the thick bushes of bamboo, through
which it was impossible to pass, seemed to put an
end to our exploration, so we turned to the left
towards Cape Disappointment, where were the
plantations of sugar-canes. We cut a large bundle
of the canes, which we threw across the donkey's
154 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
back, and then soon arrived on the seashore ; after
this we returned to the sledge, and harnessing the
donkey, turned homewards.
The next day the first thing that came into my
mind when I awoke was the promise to try my
hand at candle-making. After breakfast I asked
my wife to make some wicks of sail-cloth, and mean-
time I put some berries into a pan over the fire.
When I saw an oily matter rise to the top of the
pan, I carefully skimmed it off and put it aside,
still keeping it liquid and melted near the fire. I
continued this process till I had collected a consider-
able amount of wax. Then I dipped the wicks one
by one into it, and hung them on the bushes to
harden. In a short time I dipped them again, and
repeated the operation till the candles were the
proper size, when I put them aside to cool. We
were all eager to try them, and when we did so,
we found they gave quite a good light.
This success made me think of something else,
namely, to make butter of our cream. But we had
no churn. I remembered, however, something
I had read, and emptying a large gourd, I filled it
with cream, and placing it on a piece of sail-cloth
with four corners, I tied each corner to a stake,
and told the boys to stand beside it and shake it.
THE LAST OF THE WRECK 155
They sang and laughed ail the time, and in an hour
we found the cream really had turned to butter.
The next thing I had in my mind was to make a
cart, as we had some wheels. I cannot say that
this was a very brilliant performance, but still, after
considerable time and labour, we did succeed in
making something which was better than the
sledge.
In the next few days we went over to Tent
House, and planted a hedge of prickly pear round
it, and made it into a kind of fortress in case we
were ever attacked by savages.
At last it seemed to me it was about time to go
back to the ship, which still held together on the
rocks, so I took the three eldest boys with me and
made another trip. We secured some chests of
clothes, and whatever remained of powder, shot,
and even such pieces of cannon as we could remove.
It was necessary to spend several days in visits
to the ship, returning in the evening, bringing every-
thing likely to be useful ; in this we included
doors, windows, locks, bolts, so that the ship .was
now entirely emptied. Then I made up my mind
to blow up the wreck, so that the boards themselves
might drift on shore. This we performed success-
fully, and though we felt a little sad at seeing the
156 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
last of the dear old ship, we were satisfied we had
done rightly.
The morning after we found the shore strewn
with wreckage, and the drawing up and stowing
away of the planks, etc., was very hard work. When
we had put everything in order we returned to
Falcon's Nest
CHAPTER XVI
THE TROOP OF BUFFALOES
AFTER a little rest the desire for exploration came
once more strongly upon us. This time it was de-
cided all should go, and that we should take enough
requisites for staying away the night, in case we
required them.
We took the cart, though we had some difficulty
in getting it through the bushes down to the sea-
shore, and followed the same track by which Fritz
and I had returned the last time. When we
reached the india-rubber trees, I cut incisions in the
trunks at various heights, and placed beneath them
gourds, so that the milky juice dripping down,
might harden into gum.
When we arrived at the bay formed by
Cape Disappointment we decided to make a
temporary camp here. So we unharnessed the
animals, and left them to graze, and as it was
157
158 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
now evening, began to think about our own
supper.
Suddenly the stillness was broken by the loud
braying of the donkey, and we saw him throwing
his head in the air, and kicking and prancing about ;
then he set off at a full gallop. We began to fear
that some wild beast might be near, and I hurried
out with Fritz and the two dogs in the direction
the donkey had taken.
In spite of an anxious search, we could find
nothing, and returned to the camp vexed by the
loss of our valuable donkey. The boys had made
a pleasant hut with sail-cloth in the meantime, and
seated before it on the sand in the warm glow of
the fire we enjoyed our supper, and forgot our
annoyance.
The night passed safely, though I took care to get
up from time to time to make up the fires, so as to
scare away any wild animals, and in the morning,
after breakfasting on milk, boiled potatoes, and
Dutch cheese, we decided that one of the boys
and myself should seek the donkey. I chose Jack,
who was delighted to come on such an errand.
We soon reached the bamboo plantation, and
after some time we discovered the marks of the
donkey's hoofs. After spending a whole hour in
THE TROOP OF BUFFALOES 159
tracing them we arrived at the edge of the planta-
tion, saw the sea in the distance, and soon after
found ourselves in an open space, which bounded
the great bay. A river flowed into the sea at this
place, and we saw that the ridge of rocks ended in
a perpendicular precipice, leaving only a narrow
passage at the end, which during every tide must be
under water, but which at that moment was dry.
We went round this corner, and when we got to
the other side we found the mark of the donkey's
hoofs again on the sand. But we saw with
astonishment that they were not alone, but mingled
with many others larger, but very like them.
By climbing a hill we were able to see a long
way, and in the far distance discerned what seemed
to be a herd of animals. Drawing nearer we dis-
covered them to be buffaloes. By good luck the
dogs were far behind us, and though the buffaloes
saw us, they gave no sign of fear or of displeasure
at our approach ; they stood perfectly still, with
their large round eyes fixed upon us in vacant
surprise ; those which were lying down got up
slowly, but they did not seem fierce.
Unfortunately at that minute Turk and Flora
ran up to us, and the buffaloes instantly, and all
together, set up such a roar as to make us tremble ;
160 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
they struck their horns and their hoofs upon the
ground, which they tore up in pieces and scattered
in the air. Turk and Flora, fearless of danger, ran
right into the middle of them, and seizing the ears
of a young buffalo, dragged him towards us. With
a palpitating heart and trembling hands we fired
both at the same moment ; the buffaloes, terrified
by the sound and by the smoke, remained for an
instant motionless, as if struck by a thunderbolt,
and then rushed away, and were soon beyond the
reach of sight. Only one stayed behind, a female,
who was no doubt the mother of the young buffalo
which the dogs still kept a prisoner. She had been
wounded, and now rushed furiously at the dogs.
I aimed carefully and, luckily, killed her at the
first shot.
I was wondering what we could do with the
young buffalo, who bellowed and foamed with
rage, when Jack suddenly pulled out of his pocket
his string with balls at the ends, and throwing it
skilfully, entangled the buffalo's legs and brought
him to the ground.
But, by this action, the difficulty was only partly
solved. The question was now how we were to
get him home. I remembered a way practised
with bulls in Spain, which, though cruel, is effective>
THE TROOP OF BUFFALOES 161
and I decided to use it. I took from my pocket a
sharp-pointed knife, and, seizing his nose, I made a
hole in the nostril, into which I quickly inserted a
string ; this I immediately tied to a tree, so that
the animal was prevented from moving his head.
Then I called off the dogs, and, trying a few
minutes after, found that he was ready to follow the
pull of the cord, which hurt his nose. Having
settled this I left him tied up and turned to the
dead buffalo. I first cut out the tongue, next
took off the skin, and lastly, cut off some of the flesh,
and salted it, and left the rest to the dogs. I then
went to the river to wash myself, after which we sat
down under the shade of a large tree, and ate the
provisions we had brought with us.
When we were ready to go home, I untied the
young buffalo, and found that he followed me
withoutresistance. He was so quiet that when we
tied a bundle of large reeds, that we had cut, to his
back, he did not seem to mind. We repassed the
river in safety, and regained the narrow pass at the
turn of the rocks. On arriving at the camp,
question after question was showered upon us.
All agreed that our success with the buffalo was
most extraordinary ; and they were never tired of
examining him.
162 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
While we had been away, Fritz had caught a
young eagle that he thought he might train to
hunt like a falcon. I was doubtful of his being
able to accomplish this, and when he had finished
talking I made a fire and put a good deal of green
wood on it to make a thick smoke, over which 1
meant to hang the buffalo meat I had salted, to
preserve for our future use. The young buffalo
was beginning to browse, and we gave him some
milk and mashed potatoes, which he ate willingly.
Early next morning we were ready to return to
Falcon Stream. Our buffalo was yoked with the
cow, and was very tractable. It is true I led him
by the cord in his nose, and this kept him in
check. We returned the same way as we came,
and reached the wax and gum trees without any
accident. The elastic gum had not yielded as
much as I expected, but we got enough to make a
pair of waterproof boots as I had wished. On the
way back we had another alarm on account of our
old sow, who now appeared with a litter of seven
little ones, a sight I was pleased to see.
On arriving at Falcon Stream, Fritz in-
cautiously uncovered the eyes of his eaglet, which
became unmanageable, and would have been lost
altogether had not Ernest suggested stupifying
THE TROOP OF BUFFALOES 163
it by the fumes of tobacco-smoke, a method of
which he had read. This experiment pro\*ed so
successful that the monkey was given to him by
Fritz as a reward.
For a long time I had felt that the rope ladder,
which led to our home in the tree, was a difficult
and dangerous mode of ascent, and the idea of
cutting steps in the tree itself now occurred to me.
The boys had talked of a hollow in the trunk, from
which a swarm of bees issued, and so I determined to
see whether the hole extended to the roots. The
boys climbed up like squirrels to strike at the trunk
with axes ; but they soon paid dearly for their at-
tempt, the whole swarm of bees flew out, buzzing
with fury, and attacked them savagely. Jack struck
fiercely at them, and was more severely attacked
by them than the rest ; so badly was he stung, that
it was necessary to cover the whole of his face with
linen, and some hours elapsed before even the other
boys could open their eyes. The bees, in the mean-
time, were still buzzing furiously round the tree. I
determined to smoke them out, so, waiting until
they quieted down, and had returned to their home,
I stopped the passages with clay, leaving only one
hole. I then smoked into this with one of the clay
pipes we had brought from the ship. At first a
164 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
humming was heard in the hollow of the tree, and
a noise like a gathering tempest, but it died away
by degrees. When all was calm I withdrew my
pipe. We then began, with a chisel and a small
axe, to cut out of the tree, under the bees' hole of
entrance, a piece three feet square. This I took
out from the trunk like a window, and we saw
such a stock of wax and honey, that we were
astonished. The whole of the tree was lined with
fine honeycombs. I cut them off with care, and
put them in the gourds which the boys handed
to me.
When I had somewhat cleared the cavity, I
put the upper combs, in which the bees had
assembled in clusters and swarms, into the gourd
which was to serve as a hive. All this time the
bees remained quite motionless and stupefied. Then
I came down, bringing with me the rest of the
honeycombs, with which I filled a small cask,
which had been previously well washed in the
stream.
Having placed the gourds like hives on a plank,
I fumigated the inside of the tree thoroughly with
tobacco, to prevent the bees returning. This
answered perfectly. A.t first, when they recovered
from their stupor, they flew back to the tree, but
THE TROOP OF BUFFALOES 165
soon returned to their new hives, where the queen
was, and settled there.
Having now discovered that the tree was almost
entirely hollow, I intended to make my staircase
inside it. I first fixed in the centre the trunk of a
tree completely stripped of its branches, in order
to carry my winding staircase round it. On the
outside of this trunk and the inside of our own
tree, we cut niches to hold the boards which would
make steps. I made another hole to serve as a
window, and larger ones to form doors at the top
and bottom. I fixed the windows taken from the
captain's cabin in the smaller holes. But all this
took a long time, and many things happened
during its progress.
To the boys' delight Flora presented us with
two puppies. A few days later the two she-goats
gave us two kids, and our sheep five lambs, so that
now we had quite a 'flock.
Next to the winding stairs, my chief occupation
was the young buffalo, whose nose was now quite
healed, so that I could lead it at will with a cord
or stick. I preferred the stick, which answered
the purpose of a bit, and I resolved to break in
this spirited beast for riding as well as drawing.
It was already used to the shafts, and behaved very
12
166 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
well in them ; but I had more trouble in teaching
it to be a saddle-horse. I formed a sort of
saddle with sailcloth, and upon this I fixed a burden,
which I increased daily. The monkey was the first
rider, and he stuck so close to the saddle, that in
spite of the plunging and kicking of the buffalo,
he was not thrown. Francis was then tried, as the
lightest of the family, and managed very well.
Jack now showed impatience to mount, so I passed
the stick through the buffalo's nose, and tied strong
packthread to each end of it, and put this bridle
into his hands. For a time he kept on the saddle,
notwithstanding the wild antics of his steed ; but
at last he was thrown, without being hurt. He
was quite ready to try again, and then Fritz had
his turn ; so at last the buffalo got used to carrying
one or the other of us, and so strong was it, that
the three eldest boys could mount together, and it
hardly seemed to feel their weight.
Fritz, meantime, did not neglect his eagle. He
taught it to perch on his wrist whenever he called
or whistled to it ; but some time elapsed before he
could trust it to soar without holding it by a long
string to bring it back.
When I had completed the staircase, I turned my
attention to the making of a pair of rubber boots.
CHAPTER XVII
THE TRAINING OF A WILD ASS
WE were scarcely up one morning when we heard
strange noises that resembled the howlings of wild
beasts. Our dogs pricked up their ears, and we
loaded our guns and pistols, and looked at each
other anxiously.
The howlings were presently renewed much
closer to us. Fritz listened attentively, and then
burst out laughing, exclaiming :
* Father, it is our donkey. Listen ! do you not
hear his brayings ?'
1 listened, and a fresh roar, in sounds unques-
tionable, raised loud peals of laughter amongst us.
Shortly after we saw our old friend Grizzle moving
towards us, stopping now and then to browse ; but
to our surprise he was accompanied by one of his
own species, much more graceful than himself. I
knew it to be a fine onagra, or wild ass.
167
168 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
So I got ready at once a long cord with a running
knot, one end of which I tied fast to the root of a tree.
This I entrusted to Fritz, as he was more skilful in
throwing it than I was. The two animals drew
nearer and nearer to us. Fritz, holding in his hand
the open noose, moved softly on from behind the
tree where we were concealed. The onagra started
at first on seeing him. It sprang backward, then
stopped to examine the unknown form ; but as
Fritz now remained quite still, the animal resumed
its composure, and continued to browse. Soon
after he approached the donkey, and held out a
handful of oats.
Grizzle ran up to take his favourite food, and
the stranger drew near, raised its head, and
eventually came so close that Fritz, seizing the
opportunity, succeeded in throwing the rope round
its neck, but the motion so frightened the animal
that it instantly sprang off. It was soon checked
by the cord, which drew tight, and almost strangled
it. It could go no farther, and, after many exhaust-
ing efforts, it sank panting upon the ground. I
loosened the cord, and quickly threw our donkey's
halter over its head ; then I fixed in its nose a split
cane that I had previously got ready. This had the
effect of a pair of pincers I fastened the halter
THE TRAINING OF A WILD ASS 169
with two long ropes to two roots near us, and let
the animal recover itself.
In a few moments the onagra got up and kicked
wildly ; but the pain of its nose, which was grasped
and violently squeezed in the bamboo, forced it to
lie down again. Meantime we caught and tied up
Grizzle, fastening him near the wild ass, and put
before both plenty of good food.
For days, however, the onagra remained savage
and shy. I let the nippers remain on its nose, for
without them no one could have approached it. I
took them off, however, at times when 1 gave it
food, and I began, as with the buffalo, by placing a
bundle of sailcloth on its back. The children came
by turns to play with it and scratch its ears gently.
But for a long time we despaired of success ; the
onagra made furious starts and leaps when any of
us went near it, kicked with its hind feet, and even
attempted to bite those who touched it. This
obliged me to have recourse to a muzzle, which 1
managed to fix on. To avoid being kicked I tied
the fore feet and hind feet together. At length
it grew tamer, and was no longer in a rage when
we approached, but bore being handled and
stroked.
At last we ventured to free it by degrees from
170 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
its restraints, and to ride it as we had done with the
buffalo, still keeping the fore feet tied ; but, not-
withstanding this precaution, it proved as fierce and
unruly as ever. The monkey, who was first put on
its back, held on pretty well by clinging to its
mane, while the onagra furiously reared and
plunged, but it was impossible for any of the
boys to mount. When tied up the onagra seemed
tolerably quiet and gentle, but the moment it was
in any degree unshackled it became wholly ferocious
and unmanageable.
I was at length reduced to my last chance, and I
made up my mind that, if it did not answer, I
would set the animal at liberty. I tried to mount
the onagra, and, as it reared to prevent me, I seized
one of its long ears with my teeth, and bit it till it
bled. The onagra became motionless and as stiff
as a stake. Fritz seized the moment, and sprang
on its back ; Jack, with the help of his mother, did
the same, holding on by his brother. Then I let
go of the ear ; the onagra made a few springs, but,
checked by the cords on its feet, it gradually sub-
mitted, began to trot up and down more quietly,
and at last grew tractable.
I explained to the boys that I had heard of this
extraordinary mode of taming from a horse-breaker
THE TRAINING OF A WILD ASS 171
I met with by chance, who had found it sometimes
the only method when all others had failed.
During the training of our steed, which we
named Lightfoot, our hens had given us a crowd of
chickens ; forty of these, at least, were chirping
and hopping about us, to the great satisfaction of
my wife.
This reminded us of a project we had long
thought of, namely to build covered sheds for all
our animals. The rainy season, which is the winter
of these countries, was drawing near, so we could
not delay.
We had plenty of planks at our disposal, and
our experience of carpentering enabled us to
complete the work without any very great diffi-
culty, though it took some time.
In one of his rambles Ernest had picked some
long, flat leaves which he called sword-grass.
When I examined these I began to suspect that
here was a real treasure ; nothing less than flax,
from which we could make the thread of which my
wife had felt the need, and from which she could
eventually spin linen. The boys willingly returned
to the place where Ernest had made his find, and
brought back bundles of the precious plant.
But there was much to be done before we could
172 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
make use of the leaves. The first process was that
they had to be soaked. For this purpose we carried
them to Flamingo Marsh and left them there in
the water for a fortnight.
After this we took them out and spread them on
the grass in the sun. Occasional slight showers,
showing that the wet season was near, had already
come on. The temperature, which hitherto had
been warm and serene, became gloomy and variable ;
the sky was often darkened with clouds, the stormy
winds were heard.
It was necessary to lay in a stock of everything
we should want for the next few months. So we
dug up a supply of potatoes and yams for bread,
with plenty of cocoa-nuts, and some bags of sweet
acorns.
Our cart was incessantly in motion, conveying
home our winter stock. Time was so precious
that we did not even make regular meals, and
limited ourselves to bread, cheese, and fruits, in order
to shorten them, and to return quickly to our work,
and despatch it before the bad season should set in.
Unfortunately, the weather changed sooner than
we had expected. Before we had completed our
winter establishment the rain fell in heavy torrents.
The first thing to be done was to fix our resi-
THE TRAINING OF A WILD ASS 178
dence at the bottom of the tree, between the roots
and under the tarred roof I had erected ; for it was
no longer possible to remain above on account of
the furious winds. We took down our hammocks,
mattresses, and every article that could be injured
by the rain ; and most fortunate did we deem
ourselves in having made the winding stairs, which
served as a kind of lumber room. Our little sheds
between the roots, constructed for the poultry and
the cattle, could scarcely contain us all ; and the
first days we passed in them we were very uncomfort-
able, crowded all together, and hardly able to move.
We were half stifled with smoke whenever we
lit a fire, and drenched with rain when we opened
the doors. The staircase was, as I have said, very
useful. The upper part of it was filled with
numerous articles ; and as it was lighted and
sheltered by windows, my wife often worked there
seated on a stair, with little Francis at her feet.
As to the smoke, our only remedy was to open
the door to get rid of it ; and we lived on milk and
cheese as much as possible, never making a fire
but to bake our cakes, when we used the oppor-
tunity to boil enough potatoes and salt meat to
last us several days. A more serious difficulty was
our not having provided sufficient hay and leaves
174 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
for the cow, the ass, the sheep, and goats, so that
we had to give them our potatoes and sweet
acorns. Fortunately we had laid in a sufficient stock
of candles, and when darkness obliged us to light
up, we sat round the table, where a large taper
fixed on a gourd gave us a good light, so that my
wife could sew while I wrote up my journal, and
the boys amused themselves with the books we
had taken from the Captain's chest ; these proved
a great resource, and taught them many things
about the plants and birds they had lately seen.
Our diet was occasionally varied by a chicken,
pigeon, or duck, from our poultry-yard, or some
of the thrushes we had preserved in butter, and
every four or five days we made fresh butter, and
this, with honey spread on our manioc cakes, was
a pleasant treat.
Our last job for the winter, undertaken at my
wife's solicitation, was a machine called a beetle,
for the flax, and some carding combs. These I
made with some difficulty, but when finished the
drying, peeling, and spinning of the flax became
a source of pleasure to my wife.
CHAPTER XVIII
THE SHINING GROTTO
I CAN hardly describe our joy when, after many
tedious and gloomy weeks of rain, the sky began
to brighten and the wind to drop.
The vegetation of our trees was rapidly advanc-
ing ; the seed we had thrown into the ground was
sprouting in slender blades ; the earth was covered
with flowers. The song of birds was heard, and
they were seen joyfully fluttering from branch to
branch.
Our summer occupations began by arranging
and thoroughly cleaning Falcon's Nest, which the
rain and dead leaves blown by the wind had dis-
turbed ; the stairs were cleared, and the rooms
between the roots reoccupied. My wife lost not
a moment in busying herself with her flax, from
which she meant if possible to spin a piece of linen.
I carried the bundles of flax into the open air,
175
176 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
and made an oven to dry them well. The same
evening we all set to work to peel and afterwards
to beat the flax and strip off the bark ; and lastly,
to comb it with my carding machine. I took this
task on myself, and drew out distaffs full of long
soft flax ready for spinning ; my wife was de-
lighted, and wanted me to make her a wheel
without delay. It was no easy task, but at
last I succeeded, whereupon she fell so eagerly
to spinning that she had no time for anything
else.
On our first visit to Tent House we found the
ravages of winter considerable ; the tempest and
rain had beaten down the tent, and made havoc
amongst our provisions. Luckily our handsome
pinnace was safe, but our tub -boat was in too
shattered a state to be of any further use.
In looking over the stores we found the gun-
powder, of which I had left three barrels in the
tent, the most damaged. This gave me the idea
of searching for a cavern, in which we might store
the remainder more safely. After hunting care-
fully in all directions we found a hole which,
though not large in itself, seemed to form the
entrance to a mighty grotto. I despatched Jack
on the buffalo to Falcon Stream, to tell his
THE SHINING GROTTO 177
mother and brothers of our discovery, directing
him to return with them, and bring all the tapers
that were left, so that we might explore it.
When they arrived I immediately lighted some
of the tapers, and gave one to each, and thus we
entered the rock in solemn procession. We had
scarely advanced four paces within the cave when
we all exclaimed with admiration and surprise.
The most beautiful and magmncent spectacle pre-
sented itself. The sides of the cavern sparkled
like diamonds, the light from our six tapers was
reflected from all parts, and had the effect of a
grand illumination. Innumerable crystals hung
from the top of the vault, which, joining with
others at the sides, formed pillars, altars, and all
sorts of fantastic shapes. In some places all colours
of the rainbow shone from the angles of the crystals,
and gave them the appearance of the finest precious
stones.
Our astonishment was so great as to be almost
ludicrous ; we seemed in a kind of dumb stupor,
half imagining it was a dream. For my own part,
I had seen stalactites, and read the description of
famous grottoes, but I had never pictured anything
so marvellous. Jack cried out he was in a cathedral ;
Francis declared it to be a fairy palace, and his
178 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
mother named it the House of Diamonds. The
ground was level, covered with a white and very
fine sand. I broke off a bit of the nearest crystal,
and, tasting it, found it to be of pure salt.
As we advanced into the grotto, remarkable figures
showed on every side ; columns reached from the
bottom to the top of the vault ; here and there
undulating masses like lace shawls ; others appeared
like large open cupboards, benches, church orna-
ments, grotesque figures of men and animals ; some
like polished crystals or diamonds, others like blocks
of alabaster.
We viewed with delighted curiosity this strange
sight, and loud exclamations succeeded astonish-
ment. Many schemes were formed for converting
this magnificent grotto into a new home ; for
though there was no need for our immediate
removal there, it would be an invaluable store-
house, and make a snug retreat for the next rainy
season.
Partly by the use of gunpowder and partly by
hewing, we succeeded in a few weeks' time in
making doors and windows in the front wall. In
these we fixed the window-frames and doorways
we had brought from the ship, and inside we
divided the cavern by wooden partitions into
THE SHINING GROTTO 179
several rooms. I kept the finest of the pillars, and
the most beautiful pieces to decorate what would
be our winter drawing-room. The large ones
served us for chairs and tables ; their shining
crystals multiplied the reflection of the lights. We
divided the cave into two parts by a partition ;
the one on the right was to be our residence ; that
on the left was to contain the kitchen, stables, and
work-room. At the end of the second division,
where windows could not be placed, the cellar and
store-room were to be formed ; the whole separated
by partition -boards, with doors of communication.
The living-room was again subdivided into three :
the first, next the door, was the bedroom for my
wife and me ; the second a dining-room, and the
last a bedroom for the boys. As we had only
three windows, we put one in each sleeping-room ;
the third was fixed in the kitchen, where my wife
would often be. I made a good fireplace in the
kitchen, near the window ; also I pierced the rock a
little above, and the hole answered the purpose of
a chimney. Lastly came the stables, which were
divided into four compartments, and occupied all
the bottom of the cavern on one side ; on the- other
the cellar and magazine.
During the long stay we made at Tent House
180 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
we had several advantages. Immense turtles were
often seen on the shore, where they deposited their
eggs in the sand, and these we appropriated. Sea-
lobsters, oysters, and many other smaller fishes we
could catch in any number.
One morning at some distance from the shore
the water seemed in a state of commotion ; many
birds hovered over it, sometimes they darted along
the surface of the water, sometimes rose in the air,
flying in a circle, pursuing each other in every
direction. At first we were much puzzled by this,
but at last I guessed what it meant, and exclaimed
that it was a shoal of herrings about to enter
Deliverance Bay.
By this time the shoal of herrings were nearing
us. They made a loud rustling noise in the water,
leaping over each other, and displaying their silver
scales. We all rushed into the water ; the boys
used the largest gourds as pails, dipping them in
and bringing them out full of fish. These they
emptied into the shattered old tubs that had once
formed our boat. When we were all exhausted
with thf- hard work the shoal passed onward.
Then we had the disagreeable task of cleaning
and salting our catch before us. Luckily, we had
now plenty of salt, and, as we all joined in the
THE SHINING GROTTO 181
work, it was not long before we had several barrels
full of properly cured fish.
Scarcely had we finished our salting, when
another excitement claimed us. A number of
fish called sea-dogs, that had followed the herrings,
came into the bay and river. These fish were not
good for eating, but their skins, tanned and dressed,
make excellent leather. I was in great need of it
for straps and harness. Besides, I knew the fat
yielded good lamp oil, so we took pains to catch
them.
We were again successful, and in a short time
we had secured a sufficient number of them, and
carefully preserved the fat.
Pleased with the operations of the week, we set
out all together cheerfully for Falcon Stream, to
pass our Sunday there.
We found everything here in an equally good
condition. Our grain had sprung up with an
almost incredible rapidity and luxuriance, and was
now nearly ready for reaping. Barley, wheat, rye,
oats, peas, millet, lentils, were all growing only
a small quantity of each, it is true, but sufficient
to enable us to sow again plentifully at the proper
season. The plant that had yielded most was
maize a proof that it best loved the soil.
13
182 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
Our feathered colony had increased so much
since our arrival on the island that we thought
it would not be a bad thing to take one or two
of them on our next excursion, and leave them in
another part, so that in time they would be able to
replenish the whole island. We purposed in this
way to make a new farm colony at some distance
from Falcon Stream. This we could visit from
time to time, and the animals we left there would
learn to feed themselves.
We were not long in putting the project into
execution. I selected from among the pigs, sheep,
fowls, etc., those I deemed healthy, and we placed
them in the cart. We followed the usual route,
with little deviation, and the only incident that
occurred was the discovery of a grove of cotton-
plants a most useful acquisition. Little Francis
was the first to call our attention to it.
' Look, father,' cried he, ' here is a place full of
snow 1 Let me get down and make some snow-
balls !'
And, turning, I saw a number of low bushes,
covered with what appeared to be patches of snow.
Fritz darted forward on his onagra, and returned
with one hand filled with tufts of a most excellent
species of cotton. The pods had burst from ripe-
THE SHINING GROTTO 183
ness, and the winds had scattered around their
flaky contents ; the ground was strewed with them,
they had gathered in tufts on the bushes, and they
floated gently in the air.
After this, we soon reached the high ground
which we had been making for ; behind, a thick
forest gradually rose above us, which sheltered us
from the north wind ; it ended in a plain, clothed
luxuriantly with grass, shrubs, and plants, and
watered by a stream.
When we had refreshed ourselves with a meal,
we pitched our camp there for the night, and,
making up the bundles of cotton we had gathered
into pillows, went to bed earlier than usual.
CHAPTER XIX
NIP FINDS STRAWBERRIES
I HAD imagined it would take only a couple of
days to knock up a rough shed as a shelter for our
stock, but when we began we found we liked the
place so much that we added also a hut for our-
selves ; and this work took a whole week, so that
our food ran short before we had done. Accordingly
I sent Fritz and Jack to Falcon Stream, and to
Tent House, to fetch new supplies of cheese, ham,
potatoes, dried fish, cassava bread, and also to dis-
tribute fresh food to the numerous animals we had
left there.
They set off, one on the onagra and the other on
the buffalo a comical couple, delighted with them-
selves and their errand. While they were absent,
Ernest managed to shoot one or two birds, which
sufficed for our wants.
Nip also contributed to our board, for he found
184
NIP FINDS STRAWBERRIES 185
a bed of strawberries, of an extraordinary size and
delightful flavour. As they were fully ripe, these
made a great addition to our scanty larder.
The boys returned the next day, having per-
formed their errand well, and brought back
abundant supplies.
For some time I had had it in my mind to make
a light bark canoe, such as natives use, but I had as
yet seen no tree that would answer the purpose, for
I wanted a piece of bark no less than eighteen feet
by five. However, in the next few days I came
across a tree of sufficient size with just the sort of
bark I wanted. Accordingly, we made an incision
quite round the trunk in two places, and then cut
a perpendicular strip. Next we had to insert our
tools gently to separate the bark from the trunk
without breaking it. At length with joy we saw
it lying safely on the grass.
Our business was now to mould it to our pur-
pose. I saw we could not do much more with it
here, so resolved to take it back to Tent House for
further work. We put it on the cart with some
difficulty, and though it caused us great anxiety on
the journey, we conveyed it home safely.
Two days later, with benches, a small mast
and triangular sail, a rudder, and a thick coat of
186 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
pitch on the outside, we had a real watertight
boat.
We had still two months in prospect before the
rainy season, and we employed them in completing
our abode in the grotto, with the exception of such
ornaments as we might have time to think of during
the long days of winter.
We plastered over the walls of the principal
apartments on each side with the greatest care,
finishing them by pressure with a flat, smooth
board, and lastly a wash in the manner of the
plasters in Europe.
All we had suffered during this season in the
preceding year doubled the value of the comforts
and conveniences with which we were now sur-
rounded. We were never tired of admiring our
warm and well-arranged apartments, lighted with
windows, and well secured with doors from wind
and rain, and our granary filled with more than a
sufficient winter supply of food for ourselves and
for our cattle. Instead of dreading the winter, we
began to look forward to it.
CHAPTER XX
THE RAINY SEASON
ONE morning, having arisen earlier than the others,
I occupied myself by counting up the time that
had passed away since our shipwreck. I calculated
the dates, and found that the next day would be the
anniversary of that event. It was just two years
since we had landed on the island. I resolved,
therefore, to keep the day as a holiday, and to test
the boys in the various physical exercises they had
learnt since landing.
They were delighted with the idea, and com-
peted for the prizes I held out with energy and
skill. Fritz was the best shot, though with bow
and arrows, all, even Francis, did well. Ernest
won the long race, as he took it more coolly than
his brothers, and did not exhaust himself at the
start ; and in horsemanship none could equal J ack,
though Francis, who suddenly appeared on the
187
188 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
young bull, which he had tamed secretly and named
Storm,' ran him close.
In the evening we made a kind of throne for
their mother in the grotto, and she awarded the
prizes with her usual graciousness. They each
received something suitable, beginning with a new
rifle for Fritz and ending with a paint-box for
Francis.
Before the rainy season set in our cow gave birth
to a little calf, and the onagra delighted us by
presenting us with a dainty little foal. It was
obvious that we must take especial care of these
young things during the wet weather that was fast
approaching.
The rains had already commenced ; several times
we had been visited by heavy showers. By degrees
the horizon became covered with thick clouds, the
winds swept fearfully along the coast, the waves
rose, and for the space of fifteen days we were
witnesses of a scene of majesty and terrific gran-
deur. Nature seemed overturned, the trees bent
to the terrible blasts, the lightning and the thunder
were mingled with the wind and the rain. It
seemed to us that the storm of last year had been
nothing in comparison with it.
Nevertheless, the winds fell, the rain poured
THE RAINY SEASON 189
steadily, and we knew it would continue for twelve
weeks.
In spite of the great improvement in our quar-
ters upon those of last year, there were many
discomforts. There were but three openings in
the grotto, besides the door : one in the kitchen,
one in the work-room, and a third in my sleeping-
chamber. The boys' room, and all the rest of our
home, was in complete darkness.
To remedy this we planted a large bamboo
upright in the centre of the cave, and hung the
ship's lantern to the top of it, and as it was reflected
by the many stalactites, it gave enough light for
general purposes.
We took the opportunity for arranging our little
library on shelves ; and we made in the workroom
a turning-lathe and an anvil and forge, so that we
could turn out quite business-like articles. We
devoted some hours each day to the study of
foreign languages, an arrangement that did not
suit the restless Jack at all.
CHAPTER XXI
THE MONSTER WHALE
WITH these occupations we passed the time plea-
santly enough, and in spite of the rain we always
made a point of taking a run along the beach, or a
scramble about the cliffs, every day.
While we were out in this way we saw one day,
far along the beach, a dark mass, which we
imagined at first to be the hull of an upturned
boat, but on investigation it proved to be the body
of a dead whale drifted up by the waves. We put
some empty barrels in our boat, and, launching it,
sailed along, and landed near the monster, which
was between sixty and seventy feet long.
I set to work to get possession of the fat or
blubber, which I knew would be very useful to us,
but we found the task no pleasant one. Ernest
and I cut several feet deep into the fat which
covered the sides of the animal, while the others
190
THE MONSTER WHALE 191
carried the masses of blubber we handed out to the
boat ; we literally swam in grease, for walls of solid
fat rose on each side of us.
But we were not long the only claimants for the
whale. A multitude of birds surrounded us.
They flew round and round our heads, then,
gradually approaching, they were so bold as to
snatch pieces of fat from our hands. The birds
were very troublesome, until I knocked down some
with a club, and threw them into the boat. I took
from the back of the animal a long band of skin,
out of which I wanted to make a harness for the
ass and the two buffaloes. It was a difficult task,
the skin was so thick and so hard to cut ; but I
managed it after some difficulty. The tubs were
placed in the canoe, and we set out along the coast
with the new cargo we had acquired.
The next morning we again embarked in the
canoe. A fresh wind was blowing, and we soon
arrived at the island, which we found covered with
gulls and other birds, who, in spite of the canvas
with which the pieces that had been cut from the
whale were covered, had made a plentiful meal.
We fired right and left into them before we could
drive them away. Then, stripping off every article
of clothing excepting our pantaloons, we set to
192 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
work on our odious task. When at length evening
came we abandoned the rest of our prey to the
voracious birds ; and, after having loaded our boat
with a new cargo of whale blubber, we set sail for
home.
In spite of our precautions our clothes stank of
whale oil, and it was days before we could rid our-
selves of the odour, yet we thought that what we
had gained was worth a little personal incon-
venience.
We had brought back with us some large flat
pieces of whalebone, and with these I made a kind
of paddle, which I fixed to the end of the boat.
By turning a handle rapidly the flaps of whalebone
beat the water, and answered the purpose of a
propeUer, so that we had no need to row. The
boys were delighted with this new invention, and
eager to make an excursion by boat.
This we did the first fine day, for the rains had
now ceased. We coasted along and visited Fal-
con's Nest, and then went further to Prospect Hill,
where we landed, and saw the animals we had left
at the farm. The boat ran well, and the time
taken was surprisingly short. We found all in order,
though the sheep and goats had grown wild, and
ran away when they saw us.
CHAPTER XXII
THE BOA-CONSTRICTOR'S VISIT
ONE day, some time after, we were all sitting
basket-making, an art we had recently learnt, when
a shout from Fritz, who was generally on the alert,
roused us.
' There is some large animal,' said he, ' coming in
this direction. But it makes so much dust I can't
see what it is.'
' Probably two or three sheep, or, perhaps, our
sow, frolicking in the sand,' observed my wife.
' No, no,' replied Fritz, quickly, * it is some
curious animal. It rolls and unrolls itself alter-
nately. I can see the rings of which it is formed.
See, it is raising itself up, and looks like a huge
mast in the dust. It advances stops inarches on.
1 ran for the telescope, and directed it toward the
object.
' I can see it plainly,' said Fritz, ' it has a
198
194 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
greenish-coloured body. What do you think of
it?'
' That we must fly to the grotto,' I answered
gravely.
' What do you think it is ?'
'A serpent a huge serpent, advancing directly
towards us.'
' Shall I run for the guns ?' he cried.
'No, no,' I answered, 'run all of you to the
grotto. The serpent is too powerful to permit of
our attacking him, unless we are ourselves in a
place of safety.'
We hastened to gain the interior of the grotto,
and prepared to receive our enemy. And we
started none too soon, for he advanced so quickly,
we had only just time to escape. When he
reached the river bank we could see plainly that it
was a huge boa-constrictor, who writhed along
toward us.
He crossed the bridge, and directed his course
straight for the grotto. We had barricaded the
door and the windows as well as we were able, and
ascended into the dove-cot to which we had made
an interior entrance. We passed our guns through
the holes in the door, and waited silently.
The boa came on hesitatingly, until at last he
THE BOA-CONSTRICTOR'S VISIT 195
stopped, about thirty yards in front of our position.
Ernest, partly through nervousness, discharged his
gun, and Jack and Francis followed his example.
The monster raised his head ; but appeared to
have received no wound. Fritz and I then fired,
but without any effect, and the serpent glided
away with inconceivable rapidity toward the marsh
where our ducks and geese were, and disappeared
in the rushes.
Exclamations accompanied his disappearance.
Everyone was sure that they had hit him ; but all
agreed he was as yet unwounded. The boys
chattered in a frenzy of excitement about his
size and the colour of his scales.
I was in a state of great anxiety, for I could
think of no way to rid ourselves of him. Meantime,
I told everyone to remain in the grotto, and for-
bade them to open the door without my permission.
The fear of our terrible neighbour kept us shut
up three days in our retreat three long days of
anguish and alarm.
The monster had given us no signs of his
presence, and we would have supposed that he had
gone, if the agitation among the ducks had not
assured us of his presence. Every evening the
whole colony made for the bay, and swam away to
196 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
Whale Island, quacking loudly. Our food grew
less and no outlet for escape presented itself.
The fodder that we happened to have in the
grotto had also diminished ; it was necessary to
feed the cow, but I resolved to set the other
animals at liberty to do for themselves. The
donkey had grown very lively after his three days'
rest and good food, and he no sooner saw a ray
of light than he shot out of the door like an arrow,
and was away in the open plain before we could
stop him. It was a comical sight to see him kick-
ing his heels in the air. But our mirth changed
to horror when, suddenly, we saw the boa emerging
from the rushes 1 He raised his head ten feet
above the ground, darted out his forked tongue,
and raced toward the donkey. The poor fellow
saw his danger and began to run, braying with all
his might ; but neither his cries nor his legs could
save him from his terrible enemy, and in a moment
he was seized, enveloped, and crushed in the
monstrous rings that the serpent threw around
him.
We could hear his last bray, half stifled by
the pressure of the boa, and then the cracking
of his bones, for the boa, according to his nature,
wound himself in great coils round his prey,
THE BOA-CONSTRICTOR'S VISIT 197
and, in a few instants, crushed him to death.
The monster, to give himself more power, had
wound his tail about a piece of rock, which
gave it the force of a lever, and we saw him
kneading, like dough, the mass of flesh, among
which we could distinguish nothing but the head.
When the monster judged his preparation suffi-
cient, he began to swallow the meal he had pre-
pared. He placed before him the mass of flesh,
and, extending his immense length along the
ground, by a sudden effort distended his body
frightfully ; then, squirting a stream of saliva over
the carcase, he began. Seizing the ass by the hind
feet, by little and little we saw the whole body
disappear. We observed that, as he advanced,
the boa lost his strength ; and, when all had
been swallowed, he remained perfectly torpid and
insensible.
The operation had been long : at seven o'clock
it had begun, and at noon had just finished.
I saw that the time had arrived for action, and
exclaiming, ' Now the boa is in our power !' I ran
out from the grotto, carrying my loaded gun in my
hand ; Fritz followed close by my side ; Jack came
next, but the more timid Ernest lingered behind.
f thought it best to pay no attention to him until
14
198 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
all was over. Francis and his mother remained at
home.
When we came near to him the boa raised his
head, and, darting on me a look of powerless anger,
again let it fall.
Fritz and I fired together, and both our shots
entered the skull of the animal ; but they did
not produce death, and the eyes of the serpent
sparkled with rage. We advanced nearer, and,
firing our pistols directly through the eye, we
saw his rings contract, a slight quiver ran
through his body, and he lay dead upon the
sand before us, stretched out like the mast of
a ship.
We set up a shout of victory, and we huzzaed
so long and loud, that Ernest, Francis, and my
wife came running down toward us.
After the three days that we had spent in the
grotto, we felt the pleasure of being free again ;
it was a second deliverance, almost as great as that
from our shipwreck.
As I thought it best to finish immediately with
the boa, I sent Fritz and Jack to the grotto, with
injunctions to bring back the buffalo. I remained
with Ernest and Francis, to keep off the birds of
prey, which already hovered round the carcase, for
THE BOA-CONSTRICTOR'S VISIT 199
I wished to preserve the brilliant-coloured skin with
which it was covered.
I told Ernest meantime to make a verse that
would do as an epitaph for our poor donkey, and
after a few minutes thought he produced the
following lines :
* Here rests a faithful ass,
Who his master once disobey'd,
And was devoured by a snake at last,
Who of him a breakfast made." 1
' Wonderful ! wonderful 1' cried I, and drawing
a piece of red lead from my pocket, I scrawled the
verses, at his dictation, on the surface of the rock.
I had scarcely finished when Fritz and his
brother returned with the buffalo, and burst out
laughing derisively at the effusion.
We began our work by attaching the buffalo
to the head of the donkey, which yet projected from
the mouth of the boa. While we held the serpent
by the tail, he pulled from its stomach the dis-
figured remains of our unfortunate donkey. We
buried him in the earth near by, and piled some
pieces of rock over him for a monument.
The buffalo was then attached to the tail of the
monster, and we set out for the grotto, supporting
the head to prevent it from trailing on the ground.
200 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
' How shall we go to work to get the skin off ?
asked the boys, as we deposited our heavy burden
before the grotto.
' See if you cannot find a way yourselves/ said
I, good-humouredly.
' I have thought of a simple method,' cried
Ernest ; ' one I have often seen employed to skin
eels, and which will do for the boa too. It is this ;
to cut the skin around the neck, and, loosening the
first part, attach strong cords to it, fasten the cord
to the buffalo, and, taking care to secure the head
of the serpent strongly, drive the animal in the
opposite direction, and by that means draw off the
whole skin.'
' Very well,' I assented ; * to the work. I leave
the whole labour and the honour of the invention
to you alone. As for the preparation of the skin,
nothing can be easier : after you have cleaned the
head as well as possible, you can wash the skin
with salt water, sand, and ashes ; then you must
expose it to the sun's rays to dry, and, finally, fill
it with hay, cotton, and all sorts of light materials.'
Fritz assured me that he understood all that I
wished done, but that he was afraid they would
not succeed.
So they began. And when at length they
THE BOA-CONSTRICTOITS VISIT 201
got it off, the skin was washed, dried, and pre-
pared as I had directed ; and I could not help
laughing to see the strange method they adopted
in stuffing it. They hoisted the snake up to
the branch of a tree, and Jack, in his swimming
costume, jumped into the long hollow skin, and
trampled down the hay, moss, and cotton that
his brothers threw to him with their pitchforks.
When the skin was full, we saw him sticking his
head out of the hole, and hurrahing with all his
might.
When this work, which had occupied a whole
day, was finished, we mended the holes that our
shot had made in the skin ; and, with a piece of
cochineal, gave to the tongue that blood-red colour
of which death had deprived it ; then we elevated
it on a wooden stand, arranging its body as grace-
fully as possible around the pole, and fixing the
jaws half open. Our dogs began to bark as soon
as they saw it : and our animals recoiled from it
as if it were a living boa. So arranged, it was
solemnly installed in our library, where it took the
first rank among our curiosities ; at the same time
Ernest wrote over the door the following legend :
' Asses cannot enter here.'
We had nothing more to fear from the boa ; but
202 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
I was afraid it might have either left its mate
behind it, or else a nest of little ones, which in
time would spread terror through the land. I
resolved in consequence to undertake two expedi-
tions the one through the marsh, the other toward
Falcon's Nest, through the passage in the rock,
whence I supposed the boa had come. Ernest
and Jack begged me to allow them to stay at
home, for even the usually fearless Jack was
nervous.
* I shiver with fright,' said he, ' to think of
meeting one of those horrible serpents in the
rushes.'
I endeavoured to overcome this childishness, and
he succeeded in calming himself, and came with us.
We set out loaded with our guns. We carried
some boards, and the bladders of sea-dogs, to
sustain us on the water if necessary. The boards
we wanted for use in the marsh, for by placing one
before the other, and taking them up, we could
walk over the quagmire. We easily recognized
the traces of the boa ; the rushes were bent down
where he had passed through, and there were deep
spiral impressions in the wet ground where he had
rested his enormous rings. But we discovered
nothing to make us believe that he had had a com-
THE BOA-CONSTRICTOR'S VISIT 203
panion : we found neither eggs nor little jnes
nothing but a nest of dried rushes, and I did not
think that the boa had constructed even that.
Arrived at the end of the marsh, we made an
interesting discovery ; it was that of a new grotto,
which opened out of the rock, and from this
flowed a little stream that passed on among the
rushes of the marsh.
The floor was composed of an extremely fine
and white sort of earth, which, after examining it,
I recognized as being ' fullers' clay.' I immediately
gathered some handfuls, and carefully placed them
in my pocket-handkerchief.
' Here,' said I to the boys, who were regarding
me with astonishment, ' is a discovery that will
be very welcome to your mother, for this is what
soap is made of.'
' I thought,' said Ernest, * that soap was made
by men.'
' The soap that is ordinarily used is made of all
sorts of things,' I answered, ' but there is nothing
so good as this.'
As we came out of the grotto Jack, who had
stayed behind in the marsh, shouted to us that
he had killed a young boa. When we came to
examine it, however, we found it was only a large
204 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
eel, which brought forth a shout of laughter from
his brothers.
However, I praised him for his pluck, though
his enemy had not been so dangerous as he
imagined. When we returned home I presented to
my wife the ' fullers' clay,' and told her the
adventures and discoveries of the day.
CHAPTER XXIII
OSTRICHES IN THE DESERT
HOWEVER, I was not altogether satisfied that
another boa might not be lurking in the woods,
and I determined to go as far as possible through-
out our whole domain to set our fears at rest. We
stayed a day or two at Falcon's Nest to put things
straight, and then passed on to Prospect Hill.
We found nothing to alarm us on the way, and at
the farm our live-stock seemed very prosperous.
Having stayed here a night, we decided to go on
further the next day, and to explore what still
remained unknown to us of the island.
We began our march at daylight, and, after
having journeyed on for about two hours, I gave the
signal for a halt. We had arrived at a pleasant
spot, which commanded a far-reaching prospect,
and was defended, on one side, by a thick pine
forest, and on the other by the narrow defile
205
206 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
through which Jack and I had once before
passed.
* Here,' said Fritz, ' we can defend ourselves
against all enemies, and, if you take my advice,
father, you will establish a post here.'
Jack, who never attended to the conversation of
those around him, caught at the last words his
brother had spoken, and bellowed out :
' A post-office 1 Why, where can we send the
letters to ?'
' Australia and New Zealand,' replied I, as
gravely as possible, whereat there was a general
laugh.
The rest of the morning was devoted to the
fortification of our camp. We then dined ; but
the heat was so powerful that we were obliged to
postpone any extra labour until the next day.
Nothing troubled the repose of the night. We
were up at daylight, and in a few moments our
preparations for a further exploration were com-
plete. I took with me my three eldest sons,
leaving Francis with his mother.
We passed through the defile, and ventured into
a country where we had been but once before. Jack
recognized the place where we had taken the buffalo.
The river, which divided the plain, was bordered by
OSTRICHES IN THE DESERT 207
a rich line of vegetation. We followed its course
for some time ; but as we advanced, vegetation
disappeared, and we soon found ourselves in the
middle of an immense plain, only bounded by the
horizon. The sun beat right down on our heads, the
sand burned our feet in one word, it was a desert
a desert without a single tree a desert of sand, the
only green things being a few withered geraniums,
and some sort of grass that contrasted strangely
with the aridity of the soil. On crossing the river,
we had filled our gourds with fresh water, but the
sun had heated it so that we could not drink it,
and we were obliged to throw it away.
After two hours of painful journeying we arrived
at the foot of the hill, that we had perceived afar
off. It was a rock that gave us some shade, and
afforded us a refuge against the rays of the sun.
We were too fatigued to climb the rock and
reconnoitre the country ; we could scarcely stand
against the overpowering rays of the sun, and our
dogs were as tired as ourselves ; we were isolated
in the middle of the desert, though we could see
the river in the distance.
We had scarcely been seated five minutes when
Nip, who had accompanied us, suddenly disappeared
over the rock, having probably scented some brother
208 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
monkeys in the neighbourhood ; our dogs also
deserted us ; but we were too tired to call them
back.
I brought out some morsels of sugar-cane, and
distributed them among the boys, for our thirst
was terrible. This refreshment restored our appe-
tites, and some rounds of roast peccary revived our
spirits.
Suddenly Fritz cried out :
' There are two horsemen galloping up towards
us. There, a third has joined them perhaps they
are Arabs of the desert.'
I exclaimed with astonishment, and produced
the telescope. Fritz, whose sight was the best,
took it.
' Oh, I see now a number of waggons loaded
with hay ; but they are so distant 1 can scarcely
distinguish anything,' he cried.
' Let me have the glass,' cried Jack, impatiently ;
and he declared he saw a crowd of cavaliers who
carried little lances, with banners at the point.
' Come, give me the glass now,' said I ; and,
after having looked some time attentively :
' Well,' said I to Jack, ' your Arabs, your cava-
liers with lances, your hay-carts, what do you think
they have been transformed into ?'
OSTRICHES IN THE DESERT 309
' Camelopards, perhaps ?'
* No ; although not a bad idea, yet they are
ostriches, and chance has thrown a splendid chase
into our hands.'
1 Ostriches !' cried Jack and Fritz: * how grand !'
' However can we catch them ?' cried Ernest.
The ostriches were rapidly approaching ; I ordered
Fritz and Jack to go in search of the dogs, whilst
Ernest and I sought some shelter where we could
hide. We threw ourselves down behind some large
tufts of a plant that grew among the rocks.
Jack and Fritz now returned with the dogs, who,
from their wet coats, had evidently been taking a
bath somewhere.
The ostriches were now within eyesight, and I
could distinguish three females and a male, the last
easily recognized by the long white feathers of his
tail. We crouched closer to the ground, and held
our dogs close to our sides.
Luckily Fritz had brought his eagle, who was
now trained to do the work required of him, and I
began to see that our success would depend on his
obedience. I told Fritz to hold him in readiness
in case he should be needed.
The ostriches soon became aware of our presence
they appeared to hesitate in their march ; but, as
210 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
we remained immovable, they at last seemed re-
assured, and were advancing directly to us, when
our dogs, whom we could not keep quiet, suddenly
sprang out upon them. Away went the timid
birds, with a rapidity that can be compared to
nothing else but the wind driving before it a
bundle of feathers. Their feet did not appear to
touch the ground, their half-extended wings had
the appearance of sails, and the swiftest horse could
not have overtaken them. I ordered Fritz to
unhood his eagle ; he did so, and the noble bird
soon lit upon the head of the male ostrich, and,
attacking his eyes, brought him to the ground.
The dogs ran up, and when we arrived the bird
was just dying under the wounds that the animals
had inflicted.
We were greatly disappointed at this, but we
could not have helped it, and we looked with pity
at the magnificent bird extended before us. We
took some of the white plumes from his tail, so
that we could decorate our hats with them.
' What a pity,' said Fritz, as we examined the
gigantic proportions of our victim, ' to kill such a
fine bird ! We might have tamed it, and taught
it to know us.'
Jack and Ernest meantime had wandered away,
OSTRICHES IN THE DESERT 211
and we now saw them waving their plumed hats in
the air, and shouting to us to hurry.
' A nest !' they cried, ' an ostrich's nest 1 Quick
quick !'
We found the two boys standing over a large
ostrich-nest if we can dignify a hole dug in the
ground by the name of nest in which were
arranged from twenty-five to thirty eggs, each as
large as a child's head.
' Take care,' I said to them, ' don't touch them,
for if you do the female will desert her nest.'
However, the boys were so eager to take
some home, I allowed each of them to choose one,
leaving the rest untouched. They soon repented
of their wish, for the eggs were heavy, and they
changed their burden from hand to hand, with all
the signs of fatigue. I came to their assistance,
and advised them to cut some branches from a low
sort of pine that grew about the rocks, and make a
basket in which to carry their eggs.
My plan succeeded admirably, and the boys
began their march without the slightest complaint.
We then arrived at the borders of a swamp ;
here we could trace the marks of the dogs and the
monkey, and recognized this as the place where
they had wet themselves. We could see in the
912 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
distance troops of buffaloes, monkeys, and ante-
lopes, but so far from us that we took no further
notice of them ; nothing, however, indicated to us
the presence of a boa.
We halted at this marsh, and refreshed ourselves
with a drink, then filling our gourds with water,
prepared to depart, when we made a discovery. 1
saw a round object resembling a mass of moist
earth, and when I threw it into the water to clean
it, what was my astonishment to see it move ! I
took it out, and, on examining it, discovered it to
be a turtle of the smallest kind, scarcely as large as
an apple.
We soon noticed a dozen of the little turtles
crawling around us, some of which I picked up and
put in my knapsack.
CHAPTER XXIV
BEARS ! BEARS 1
THEN we quitted the borders of the swamp, and
followed a little stream of water that led us to a
rock. We found trees, grass in short, a little
oasis in the desert, and we named it * Green Valley.'
We soon, however, left its verdure far behind us,
and again we were in the desert ; but the heat was
not as violent as it had been, so we journeyed
tranquilly on, carrying our ostrich-eggs.
We were yet distant about half an hour's journey
from the large cave. Jack and Fritz had stopped a
moment to adjust their burdens, and I stopped with
them, while Ernest had marched forward.
4 The philosopher is in a hurry to get home,' said
Jack laughing, ' he runs that he may be rested
first.'
But scarcely had he finished his sentence, when
we heard a cry of distress from Ernest, followed by
213 15
214 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
two terrible howls, mingled with the barking of the
dogs. A moment after, the boy reappeared ; he was
running at full speed, his face deadly pale, and he
cried out in a voice stifled with fear :
* Bears 1 bears ! they are following me,' and fell
into my arms more dead than alive. I had not
time to reassure him, and I felt myself seized with
a sudden shiver, as an enormous bear appeared, im-
mediately followed by a second.
4 Courage, boys,' was all I could say. I seized
my gun, and prepared to receive the enemy. Fritz
did the same, and, with a courage and coolness far
above his years, he took his place by my side.
Jack also took his gun, but remained in the rear,
while Ernest, who had no arms for in his fright
he had let his gun fall took to his heels and ran
away.
But our dogs had already flown at the bears.
We fired together, and, although our shots did not
bring down the enemy, they nevertheless told well.
One of the bears had a jaw broken, the other a
shoulder fractured. Our faithful dogs did prodigies
of valour. They fought most desperately, rolling
in the dust with their enemies. We would have
fired again, but we were afraid that we should kill
the dogs. So we advanced nearer, and, at about
BEARS! BEARS! 215
four paces from the bears, we discharged our pistols
directly at their heads. The huge animals gave a
groan, and then fell back motionless on the sand.
We remained some time dumb with astonish-
ment. Our dogs, covered with wounds, were still
tearing the bears as if they were alive. Jack was
the first to sing out victory, and he brought back
poor Ernest, who still trembled all over. I asked him
how he had come across the bears. He answered,
with tears in his eyes, that he had run on before us
in order to frighten Jack, by imitating the growling
of bears, and his terror when he found his jest trans-
formed into a reality was overwhelming.
The moral was so obvious that I did not call
attention to it. A minute's silence followed, then
Jack remarked that the presence of bears in a
country so warm was rather extraordinary.
* I cannot explain it to you,' said I.
During this time the boys had approached the
two animals. They passed their hands over the
long line of sharp teeth, with which their jaws were
furnished, raised their huge paws armed with
terrible claws, and admired their shaggy coats.
We took the precaution before leaving, to draw
the two carcasses into the cave, and cover them with
thorn bushes, to keep off all carnivorous beasts
216 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
birds of prey. We also buried our ostrich-eggs in
the sand, so that we might fetch them the next
day.
The sun was set when we rejoined the others.
A good fire and a well-cooked supper awaited us.
My wife was so frightened at the account of the
bears, that she could not restrain her tears ; and,
although I assured her that the flesh of the bears
would make capital meat, and was well worth
having, she begged me not to return into the
desert.
We lighted a large fire to guard us through the
night, and our dogs, whose wounds my wife had
washed and dressed, lay down beside it. The next
morning it required a strong effort to tear us from
our beds, so wearied out had we been the preceding
day. We breakfasted in haste. The beasts were
harnessed to the cart, and, after a pleasant little
run, we arrived safe and sound at the cavern of the
bears.
On approaching, we found the entrance of the
cave filled by a troop of birds, whom, by their
ruffled necks and the colour of their feathers, we
should have taken to be turkey cocks, if a nearer
examination had not convinced us that they were
birds of prey, as we could see them flying out
BEARS! BEARS! S17
carrying away huge pieces of the flesh. I thought,
by the immense number of birds, that our work
was finished, and nothing would be left but the
bones, when suddenly we heard a flapping of wings
above us, and a black shadow passed along the
ground. We raised our eyes, and beheld a bird
of prodigious size, whose wings extended full
sixteen feet. As he came gradually sweeping
down toward us, Fritz fired his gun and the
formidable creature fell dead at our feet. It had
been shot in the heart.
The report of the gun had frightened the band of
marauders, and they flew away stunning our ears
with the horrible discord that they made. We
then entered the cavern, and found one of the
bears half devoured, and the other partly so. We
loaded our cart with the skins and the remaining
meat, and placing the immense bird, which we had
discovered to be a condor of the largest size, upon
the top, we set off for the camp.
We devoted a whole day to the preparation of
the bears' flesh. After having skinned the animals
with the utmost care and precaution, I cut off the
hams, and then divided the rest of the meat into
long strips, about an inch in thickness, and these
we exposed, with the hams, to a good current of
18 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
smoke. The grease was collected in bamboo
canes, and carefully preserved ; for, besides its use
in the kitchen, my wife said it was excellent on
bread instead of butter. We left the carcasses to
our dogs, and they, aided by the birds of prey, soon
picked the bones so clean, that there remained
nothing but two perfectly white, dry skeletons,
which we carried home with us for our museum.
As for the skins, they were carefully washed with
salt water, and rubbed with sand and ashes in
order to render them soft.
Our labours had been too peaceful for the rest-
less boys, and the next morning I proposed to
them to make an excursion alone in the desert ;
my proposition was joyfully received. Ernest
refused to go, but Fritz, Jack, and Francis were soon
in the saddle, and galloped off through the defile.
There was plenty for us who remained at home
to occupy ourselves with, among other things,
while examining a small cavern which we had
discovered near the tent, I found a block of talc,
nearly as transparent as glass, which I resolved to
make into window-panes.
It is not difficult to split this material into very
thin sheets, and though not so clear as glass,
it answers the purpose very well.
BEARS! BEARS! 219
As evening approached we gathered around our
hearth, where my wife was cooking two bear's
paws, which had been well soaked in brine, and the
smell of which promised us a capital supper. Not
long after the galloping of steeds was heard, and
hi another moment the boys were at our side.
Jack and Francis each carried a little kid on his
back, with the feet tied together, and Fritz's game-
bag appeared to me to be pretty full.
' A fine chase, papa !' cried Jack. * Storm '- -for
so he had named his buffalo ' carried me through
the desert like a flash of lightning. Fritz has two
Angora rabbits in his pouch, and also a cuckoo,
who led us to one of the finest hives I have
ever seen ; we shall be able to get plenty of
honey.'
'Jack has not told all,' said Fritz. 'We have
taken a whole troop of antelopes prisoners, and
have driven them into our domains, where we
can hunt them and tame them just when we
please.'
He then went on eagerly to tell me that, having
spied the herd of antelopes, they had cautiously
driven them into a defile, across the mouth of
which they had stretched a long string, to which
they had attached their handkerchiefs, ostrich
220 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
feathers, and everything else they could think of to
prevent the animals repassing.
' My turn !' cried Jack, when Fritz had stopped
for breath. ' His eagle swooped down on two
rabbits, which we rescued before he had hurt them.
Then we heard a cuckoo, which flew on before us
until it stopped over a bee's nest. Armed with
some sulphur matches that I found in my knap-
sack, I advanced and tried to suffocate the bees by
throwing the lighted matches down the hole, when
suddenly a rumbling noise was heard, and, in a
second, a swarm of bees emerged, attacking me on
all sides.
' I could scarcely believe,' said Jack, as he finished
his recital, ' that so small a creature could cause so
much pain, but I ought to have known, for it is not
my first experience.'
I had noticed while he was speaking that his face
was red and inflamed, but I had not had time to
get a word in edgeways. Now I told him to go to
his mother, and let her put something on his face
to allay the pain.'
I then made a basket of willows, covered with
canvas at the top, in which to put the rabbits and
the kids, so that they might be easily carried to
Cliff House, as we had named our new residence
BEARS! BEARS! 221
in the grotto. We were undetermined whether
we would keep them there, or leave them on one
of the islands of the coast.
Soon came the welcome call to supper. The
bear's paws formed the principal dish ; and we
found it was one of the most delicate we had ever
eaten, and my wife was loaded with praises for
her good cookery. After supper we lighted our
torches and fires, and lay down to enjoy our night's
rest.
CHAPTER XXV
RIDING ON AN OSTRICH
I WISHED to make another excursion into the
desert before returning home, to get some more
ostrich-eggs. Fritz gave up his wild ass to me, and
took the young colt, and Jack and Francis each
mounted their respective beasts. Ernest preferred
to remain at home ; he had succeeded Francis as
assistant in the kitchen.
We took the dogs with us, and accomplished the
first part of the journey without incident.
We had scarcely come in sight of the nest when
we saw four ostriches rise from the sand and
advance toward us. Fritz's first care was to pre-
pare his eagle for the conflict by muzzling it, so
that it could not strike the ostrich's eyes as before.
On the huge birds came, with half-extended wings,
gliding over the ground with inconceivable rapidity.
They seemed to think us inanimate objects, for they
222
RIDING ON AN OSTRICH 223
made directly for us until they had arrived within
pistol-shot ; there were three females and a male-
the last a little in advance, with his beautiful tail-
feathers floating behind him. The moment of
attack was come. I seized my string with balls,
and, calling up all my sleight-of-hand, I launched
it against the male ostrich. Unfortunately, how-
ever, instead of catching him around the legs, as I
intended, the balls of my string took a turn round
his body, and I only fastened his wings to his sides.
It diminished his speed somewhat, but the frightened
bird turned round, and, using his long legs, en-
deavoured to escape. Away we dashed after him,
I on the ass and Fritz on the colt. But we
were nearly exhausted, when, happily, Jack and
Francis rode up and cut off his farther retreat.
Fritz then unhooded his eagle, and, pointing out
the ostrich to him, he immediately pounced upon
his prey. And now commenced an arduous chase.
Jack and Francis on one side, and Fritz and I on
the other, tormented him and harassed him without
ceasing ; but the most useful combatant was the
eagle. The presence of this new enemy troubled the
ostrich greatly ; he felt him on his head, and heard
the flapping of his wings, while, on the other hand,
the eagle, furious at finding his beak strongly
224 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
fastened by cotton, was so violent that, by a
vigorous stroke of his wings, he fairly felled the
ostrich.
A cry of joy burst from the huntsmen, and Jack,
throwing his balls, caught the bird round the legs,
and sent him helpless to the ground at the very
moment he was about to recover and bound off.
He was very violent, and struggled so vigorously
that I hardly dared to approach him. But imagin-
ing that, by depriving him of light, I might
reduce his fury, I threw my vest and hand-
kerchief over his head. I had discovered the
secret. No sooner were his eyes covered than he
became as quiet as a lamb. I approached, passed
a large band of seadog-skin around his body, two
other bands were attached as reins to each side,
and his legs were fastened with strong cords, long
enough to allow him to walk, but confining him
sufficiently to prevent his escape.
'A fine prize, truly !' said Jack, when our work
was done. ' We have got the giant, but how shall
we tame him ?'
' I thought of that before,' replied I. ' We might
fasten him between the bull and the buffalo, for
example, and you two, each armed with a whip,
could teach him to march in a line with them.'
RIDING ON AN OSTRICH 225
Oh, that would be fine fun 1* they cried.
I accordingly attached our two coursers before
and behind the ostrich with strong cords, and, when
all was ready, my two cavaliers jumped into their
saddles, and I pulled the covering from the head
of the ostrich.
The bird remained some time immovable, as if
astonished at the return of light. It soon made a
start, but the ropes pulled it roughly back, and it
fell down on its knees ; again it made the attempt,
and again it was foiled. It tried to fly, but its
wings were tightly fastened by the band I had
passed around them ; its legs were also restrained.
It threw itself from side to side with the utmost
violence, but the patient buffaloes did not pay the
least attention to the pulling and hauling. At last
the bird appeared convinced of the inutility of its
efforts, and, submitting to its two companions, set
off with them at full gallop. They dashed gallantly
on for half an hour, until the buffalo and the bull,
less accustomed to the sands of the savanna than
the ostrich, forced it to abate its rapid pace, and
adopt a slower movement.
While this was going on, Fritz and I set out in
search of the ostrich-nest. As we approached, a
female bird rose up off the nest and fled rapidly
226 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
away into the desert. I had taken care to bring
with me a sack and a quantity of cotton. I now
took out six of the eggs, and, enveloping them as
carefully as possible in the cotton, placed them in
the sack, leaving the others in the nest, in hopes the
mother would not discover the theft. The sack
containing the eggs was carefully fastened on the
back of the ass, whom I led slowly along, while
Fritz mounted his colt.
We soon arrived at the tent, where Ernest and
his mother received us with an astonishment they
could not find words to express.
' What, in the name of patience,' cried my wife,
as she perceived the ostrich, * are you going to do
with that immense bird ?'
' A post-horse, mamma,' cried Jack * a post-
horse that I mean to name " Hurricane," for
nothing else can run so fast. Nobody else shall
ride him but me, and I will give you Storm,
Ernest, because you have no mount.'
On hearing this Francis cried out that the ostrich
belonged to him as much as to Jack.
* Very well,' said I, ' let us divide him. Fritz,
you may take the head, for it was your eagle that
stunned him ; I claim the body, for it was my
string and balls that caught that ; Jack, you own
RIDING ON AN OSTRICH 227
the legs your balls captured them ; and we will
give you, Francis, a feather from the tail, as it was
there, I believe, you kicked the bird to make it
stand up.'
At this they all laughed, and the question was
left undecided.
I fastened the ostrich securely between two trees,
where I left him for the night.
The next day we set off early. The ostrich took
his place between the bull and the buffalo, as
before. He was at first inclined to be refractory,
and threw himself from right to left, but all hi vain ;
his two conductors were like immovable masses,
against which all resistance was unavailing.
Fritz mounted the young colt Rapid, and I the
ass, while Ernest drove the cart, in which sat my
wife.
We halted at the entrance of the defile where my
sons had suspended the cord with the feathers
attached, to keep back the antelopes and gazelles.
In the place of the cord we erected a solid palisade
of bamboo, high enough to keep out all animals
that do not climb.
Our labours detained us a long time, and it was
night when we arrived at the cabin of the farm.
We lighted a fire, and atter supper extended
228 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
ourselves on our sacks of cotton and went to
sleep.
The next day we discovered a new treasure : our
hen-house had received an addition of twenty
chickens, the product of some eggs Jack had
brought home in his hat.
It was long after noon when our weary journey
was finished and we once more arrived at Cliff
House. We were worn out with fatigue ; the
sun's rays had been pouring down on our heads
all day, and our strength was so exhausted we
could scarcely give our animals their evening
food.
The day after our arrival my wife began a ' spring
cleaning.' Windows were opened, beds aired, and
all swept and garnished.
We had tied the ostrich at first under a tree,
and securely fastened his feet; but we changed his
situation, and now tied him to one of the strong
bamboo columns that supported the gallery.
We next looked at the eggs, and tried them
with warm water to see if we could still hatch
them. I found that a few had life in them, so I
constructed an oven, in which I placed them as if
it were an incubator.
We then installed our Angora rabbits on Shark
RIDING ON AN OSTRICH 229
Island, after constructing a burrow in the ground,
similar to those of Europe. Before putting them
in, we combed them, and removed all the super-
fluous hair, which I intended to manufacture into
hats.
Then we turned to the education of the ostrich,
which was more difficult than anything we had yet
attempted.
He began by flying into a terrible passion ; he
struggled, snapped at us with his beak, and cut all
sorts of capers ; and we could find no better remedy
for such conduct than to treat him as we had
treated Fritz's eagle that was, by burning tobacco
under his nose. This had the desired effect, and
we soon saw the majestic bird totter and fall
insensible to the ground. We had recourse to this
plan several times. Little by little we relaxed the
cord which fastened the bird to the bamboo post,
and gave him room to wander about the doorway.
A litter of rushes was provided for him ; calabashes
filled with sweet nuts, rice, maize, and guavas were
placed every day before him.
During three days all our cares were in vain : the
beautiful captive would not eat, and he carried his
obstinacy so far that I was seriously afraid of the
consequences. At last an idea occurred to us. It
16
230 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
was to poke down the throat of the bird, willy
nilly, balls of maize and butter. The ostrich made
horrible faces at first, but when he tasted the
balls, all trouble on that point was over, and the
delicacies we placed before him were quickly
devoured, the guavas being especially favoured.
The natural savageness of the ostrich disappeared
more and more every day ; he would let us ap-
proach him without striking at us, and after some
days we thought we could, without much risk,
unfasten him to take a short lesson in the art of
walking. We placed him between the buffalo and
the bull, and put him through all the exercises of
the stable to trot, to gallop, stop short, trot again,
walk, etc. I cannot say that the poor bird relished
his first lesson very much, but the tobacco pipe and
the whip were two admirable instructors, and when
he was disposed to become unruly a whiff of
tobacco would set all to rights.
At the end of the month his education was com-
plete. The next thing to be thought of was a bit ;
but how could 1 contrive a bit for a beak ? I had
remarked, however, that the absence of light had a
very direct influence upon the ostrich ; he would
stop short when blindfold, and could not be induced
to move until his eyes were uncovered. So 1
RIDING ON AN OSTRICH 231
made, with the skin of a sea-dog, a sort of hood,
which covered the head, being fastened about the
neck. I made two openings in the side of this
hood, one opposite each eye, and I covered each of
these holes with one of our little turtle-shells,
attached to a whale-bone spring, fixed in such a
manner that it would open and shut. Reins were
fastened to these eye-caps, so that we could open
or shut them, just as we pleased. When the two
shells were open, the ostrich galloped straight on ;
when one was opened he went in a direction
corresponding with the eye that received light,
and when both shells were shut, he would stop
short. The most fully trained horse could not
have obeyed better than our ostrich did, under his
novel head-dress.
The next thing was to teach him to carry some-
one on his back, but we had a great deal of
difficulty in making him submit to our wishes. 1
was not, however, discouraged, and at last we had
the satisfaction of seeing our new courser striding
swiftly along with one of the boys on his back.
After this the question of ownership came up
again, with all its difficulties. Jack would not give
up his pretensions, while Francis and Fritz pro-
tested loudly against his rights.
232 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
Jack was lighter and more agile than his two
elder brothers ; on the other hand he was stronger
than Francis. These two considerations decided
the matter in his favour, and he was adjudged to be
the owner of the animal, but on one condition : that
everybody should be allowed to ride him, and that
he should be more generally recognized as common
property than the other animals.
This decision gave Jack much joy, and he readily
agreed to the conditions.
Out of the six ostrich eggs, which we had put
in the incubator, three had hatched. The young
ostriches were the drollest looking animals that
could be imagined. They were like ducks,
mounted on long legs, and they tottered awk-
wardly about on their slender stilts. One died the
day after its birth, and we fed the others on maize,
acorns, boiled rice, milk, and cassava bread.
Our next care was to cure our bear skins, which
we had hitherto left in running water. I carefully
removed all particles of flesh that adhered to them,
rubbed them with vinegar several times, and then,
with a mixture of ashes and grease, worked at them
constantly until they had attained the desired
softness, and we thus obtained two superb, warm
coverings.
RIDING ON AN OSTRICH 233
When all our provisions were gathered in r and
we felt sure that we could get through the winter
without being starved, we began our manufacture
of hats.
I cut a wooden head, which we divided into two
parts, and on which we spread a thick layer of
soft paste, composed of rat skin and the glue of
fishes. We let it dry, and as it took the exact im-
press of the mould, we obtained a sort of cap.
' Is it a hat, a bonnet, or a cap ?' asked Ernest,
laughing.
4 Hat or cap,' said Fritz, ' it is of a most abomin-
able colour, and I vote that it should be dyed.'
* Yes,' replied Ernest ; ' Let it be red, it's the
poet's colour.'
Francis preferred gray, Jack green, as being the
favourite colour of the hunter, while Fritz the
prudent Fritz voted for white, as he had read that
this attracted less heat than any colour.
' Fritz's choice showed his judgment,' I said,
' Jack picked out his more for ornament than use ;
and as for Ernest, his it must be, as it is the only
one I can manage.'
I turned to the cochineal, and soon gave the hat
a brilliant red tint. I adorned it with a couple of
ostrich plumes, and my wife passed a ribbon round
234 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
it. Then I handed it to Francis, who had lost his
cap the day before.
Francis was a beautiful child, and he looked very
handsome in it. His auburn curls fell over his
forehead, and his fair complexion shone out beneath
the rich red hat. His brothers looked at him with
envy, and clamoured for a similar adornment.
But materials were wanting, and I engaged my
boys to procure as many rat skins as possible. I
began by making a lot of rat traps, similar to those
used in Europe, and armed with these, we set off
for the resort of the rats.
For bait I employed a sort of little fish that we
found in abundance in the marsh, and which the
rats appeared very fond of. My traps succeeded,
and we returned to the grotto with an ample
supply of rat skins.
Our hat - manufacturing occupied us about ten
days, and we were very successful.
CHAPTER XXVI
THE BOYS' EXCURSION
As Francis grew older his adventurous spirit
showed itself in his desire to accompany his
brothers everywhere, while Ernest was only too
glad to stay at home with his mother and me.
One day Fritz, Jack, and Francis had thus gone
off together, and toward evening, when we began
to grow anxious about their return, Jack appeared
in the distance. He arrived at a great pace on his
ostrich, having left his brothers far behind. He
brought nothing with him, pretending that his
courser would receive no other burden than him-
self. Fritz and Francis followed him, and each
carried before him a sack full of game, the products
of the chase, in which they had been extremely
fortunate ; they had brought back with them four
strange beasts whom they had christened 'beasts
with a bill,' one monkey, a kangaroo, and two
285
236 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
varieties of the musk-rat, which they had found
in the swamp.
The boys were very hungry, and we had an
admirable supper ready for them. First came
roast pork. By the side of the pig was placed
a plate of nice fresh salad ; opposite to that was
a dish of jelly ; for dessert we had a sort of fritters
made from guava apples ; sweetmeats, of cinnamon
preserved in sugar ; and these were all set out with
as much precision and nicety as if we had been in
Europe, instead of on a desert island.
They breathlessly related their adventures, sup-
plementing and contradicting one another freely
during the meal, and ended by begging me to skin
the kangaroo. I invented for that purpose a
machine, which caused a great deal of laughter
among the boys.
We had found on board the ship, in the
surgeon's case of instruments, a large syringe.
Without saying anything concerning it to my
sons, who stood watching me with astonishment,
I ordered them to suspend the kangaroo by the
hind legs, at such a height that the breast of the
animal would be about level with mine. When
this preparatory arrangement was concluded I
made an incision in the skin, and then took hold
THE BOYS' EXCURSION 257
of my syringe. I introduced the end of the
syringe into the incision I had made in the skin,
and worked the instrument. By little and little
the skin of the animal became inflated, and soon
it was but a shapeless mass.
' To work, to work 1' cried I to the astonished
boys ; ' beat this blown-up skin with your sticks,
and you will soon have it off.'
And really, after having made an incision the
length of the stomach, the skin peeled off easily.
I explained to them that the skins of some
animals are only fastened to the flesh by a tissue
of extremely tender and delicate fibres. By means
of the syringe I had injected between the flesh and
the skin a certain amount of air, which, distending
the skin, broke loose the small fibres, and thus
rendered the skinning of the animal a very easy
operation.
They were much interested, and, I could see,
looked upon me almost as a magician for having
thought of such a thing.
The next large operation that claimed our atten-
tion was to gather in and thresh the corn we had
sown, which had now sprung up to a good harvest.
We prepared a hard, dry floor of trodden earth,
and threw upon it the heads of the corn, which we
238 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
cut off in bunches and conveyed to the scene of
action in baskets. Then I told my three horsemen
to mount and ride their steeds up and down until
their feet had trodden the grain from the husk. It
was a curious sight.
The bull, the ass, and the ostrich rivalled
each other in swiftness. My wife, Ernest, and I,
each armed with a pitchfork, followed after them,
throwing the grain under the feet of the animals.
When the grain was all threshed, we set to work
to clear it of the straws and dirt that had become
mixed with it. This was the most difficult and
painful part of all the labour. But when we
had finished, we found we had sixty bushels of
barley, eighty of wheat, and more than a hundred
of maize enough, at all events, to insure us against
a flour famine.
When the land was all cleared I sowed it again,
but, in order not to exhaust the soil, I sowed wheat
and oats.
CHAPTER XXVII
FRITZ AND HIS CAJACK
THE rainy season was now rapidly approaching,
and we were soon obliged to give up our excursions.
The winds and the rain commenced ; the sky that
had so long been clear became dark with storm-
clouds ; tempests announced the approach of
winter ; and we closed the door of our grotto,
happy in having such a comfortable shelter.
The turning-wheel was continually in motion.
We improved the quality of our manufactures
more and more, and we made utensils that at the
outset we had despaired of ever possessing.
Of all the instruments at our disposal, the Eng-
lish turning-lathe was the most serviceable, and
my wife made such frequent appeals to its powers
that she finished by making me a capital workman.
Ernest found occupation enough in his books ;
but his brothers never entered the library un-
239
240 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
less driven by necessity. I felt the urgency of
providing some active occupation for them, and
Fritz came to my assistance.
He suggested that we should make a light canoe,
or cajack, as the Greenlanders call it, suitable for
one person.
The Greenlanders make theirs of walrus-skin,
but we had none of this, and I thought, perhaps,
the skin of dog-fish, of which we had plenty,
might do as well, so I caught at the suggestion.
Strips of whalebone, bamboo-cane, and rushes,
with some dog-fish skin, were accordingly the
materials that we employed. Two arched strips of
whalebone fastened at each end, and separated in
the middle by a piece of bamboo fixed transversely
across, formed the two sides of our canoe ; other
pieces of whalebone, woven in with rushes and
moss, well covered with pitch, formed the skeleton.
The first improvement on the cajack, was to arrange
it so that the rower could sit ; while, in the cajacks
of the Greenlander, he is obliged to remain with
the legs crossed, like a tailor, or else to lie down in
the bottom of the boat.
This boat of osiers, whalebone, and bam boo, was,
when finished, so light and elastic, that it would
rebound like a ball from the earth ; and when we
FRITZ AND HIS CAJACK
put it in the water, although heavily laden, it
scarcely drew two inches. We were engaged
upon our new work more than a month ; but
it succeeded so well that my sons were delighted
with it.
When the skeleton was finished, and the interior
covered with a coat of gum and moss, we began to
make an envelope. For this I took the two entire
skins of sea-calves, fastened one at each end of the
canoe, and then drew them down under it, where
they were strongly sewed together, and covered
with a gum elastic coat, to render them impervious
to water. Next I made oars of bamboo, and
fastened bladders to one end, so that they might
be useful in case of accident. I also constructed
in the bow a place to receive a sail.
Fritz, whose idea it was, was pronounced owner
of the cajack, Jack and Ernest being but little
tempted by so seemingly dangerous a construction.
My wife, in order to take her part, made a com-
plete swimming costume for Fritz.
A jacket of the skin of the whale's entrails, her-
metically sealed and sewed round the borders, so
that the air could not possibly escape, was furnished
with a flexible pipe, closed with a valve, so that it
could be inflated or exhausted at the pleasure of
242 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
its wearer. Thus, if any accident did happen to
him, he would be comparatively safe.
The winter had glided away ; reading, the study
of languages, and other literary pursuits had been
mingled with our domestic occupations, and helped
to make the gloomy days pass.
The wind calmed, the sea resumed its smoothness
the grass sprang up under our feet, and we revisited
Falcon's Nest, with its giant trees and its rich
harvest of springing grain.
The swimming costume was the last thing that
we had made, and Fritz was anxious to try it ;
consequently, one fine afternoon, dinner over, he
put on his jacket, which was drawn close round
his neck ; then his hood, with its pipe for air, was
fitted to the jacket, and two pieces of talc inserted
so that he could see. He looked so droll that we
all burst into a fit of laughter ; but he plunged
gravely into the water, and struck out for Shark
Island.
When he returned we found that his costume
was quite water-tight, and he might safely brave
a wetting anywhere.
The trial of the cajack was a grand holiday fete.
All were anxious to join in it, and when Fritz
appeared, clad in his odd costume, he was greeted
DANCING GAILY OVER THE WAVES
FRITZ AND HIS CAJACK 243
with applause. He seated himself with great
gravity, his brothers pushed him off down the
sandy beach, and the cajack glided into the
water with inconceivable rapidity. The surface of
the bay was calm, and soon the Greenlander was
dancing gaily over the waves ; then, like a skilful
actor, he began executing a series of evolutions.
Sometimes he would shoot off far out of our sight ;
then suddenly he would disappear in a cloud of
foam, to the great terror of his mother ; in another
moment we saw his head above the floods, and an
oar upraised to show his triumph.
At last he turned his frail bark toward Jackal
River, and attempted to mount the current,
but this proved too strong for him, and threw
him back so violently that he disappeared from
our sight. To jump into the canoe and fly to
his assistance was the work of a moment. Jack
and Ernest went with me, and we were growing
uneasy when, suddenly, in the direction of a rock
just visible through the foam, I saw a light cloud
of smoke, which was shortly followed by a report.
I fired my pistol, which was instantly answered
by another report in the same direction. After a
hard row we perceived Fritz, and in a quarter oi
an hour we reached him.
244 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
We found him on the rocks. Before him lay a
a walrus, or sea-cow, which he had killed with his
harpoon. He explained how he had harpooned it
twice, and at length shot it, and ended by saying
gleefully that its fine head, with two great tusks,
would make a capital ornament for the bow of his
canoe. I felt that he had run some risk, as the
animal turns when attacked, and was glad the
adventure had ended so happily.
When he had finished cutting off its head, I wished
to take him and his cajack into our canoe, but he
refused, and dashed on, saying he would announce
our return to his mother.
We arrived home safely, but only just in time,
for a terrific storm came on, the flood-gates of
heaven opened, and it was some time before we
could venture out from the cave to see the damage.
The rain had been so abundant that Jackal
River had overflowed its banks and damaged our
bridge, which demanded instant restoration.
While we were occupied in considering these
ravages chance caused us to make a new discovery ;
this was some small pears, about the size of plums,
with which the sand was strewn. They looked so
nice that the boys hastened to taste them, but they
had scarcely touched them with their teeth than
FRITZ AND HIS CAJACK 245
they threw them down in disgust. I wished to
know what kind of fruit it was, and, taking one
up, 1 recognised it as being the fruit of the
clove-tree, another addition to our stock of
spices.
We now employed ourselves in building protec-
tions against any other storms that might arise.
Among other things I had long contemplated the
erection of a drawbridge, and now appeared the
proper time for constructing it. To be sure, a
drawbridge was not a little thing to undertake, but
after all that we had already done, we could not
stop at the idea of constructing a bridge.
I understood the turning-bridges, but as I had
neither vice nor windlass, I was obliged to adopt
the simplest kind of drawbridge. I built between
two high stakes a sweep that could be easily moved,
and by the means of two ropes, a lever, and a
counterpoise, we had a bridge which could be
easily raised and lowered. It would only insure us
against the invasion of animals, the river being too
shallow to oppose any obstacle to a more serious
attack. Such as it was, for a few days the new
bridge was a great source of amusement to all
the boys.
But, like all new inventions, the interest of the
17
246 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
drawbridge quickly evaporated, and at the end o*
several days, if anyone climbed the stakes, it was
that they might have the pleasure of seeing the
antelopes and gazelles bounding over the plain near
Falcon's Nest.
CHAPTER XXVIII
I RECEIVE A LETTER
As we had not been an excursion for some time,
I suggested that the boys should make one now,
and in preparation for it I made them some
pemmican, or pounded and crushed meat, which
could be easily carried. For this purpose I used what
remained of the bears' flesh, and, though they
laughed at the idea of it at first, they were glad
enough to take it, as it only occupied a small space
in their bags.
The morning of departure arrived. Everyone
was awake before day, and Jack, without saying a
word to anybody, climbed up into the dovecot, and
took out several pairs of pigeons.
' How is this ?' said I, as I saw the youngster
placing his pigeons into a basket. ' They will be
pretty tough eating.'
He looked at me knowingly for a moment, but
did not answer
247
248 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
Ernest alone remained with his mother and me,
and we employed ourselves in constructing a sugar-
cane press, of which my wife had much need.
The boys, meantime, had galloped off and
passed over the tract of land that separated Family
Bridge from another farm-colony not far from
Prospect Hill, which we called the Hermitage,
where they intended to pass the day, when, on
approaching the farmhouse, they heard cries like
that of a person in distress. It was a sort of
wild, maniacal laugh, and the animals stopped
in terror ; the dogs barked and howled fearfully ;
and the ostrich, more frightened than the others,
fled hi the direction of the Lake of Swans with
such rapidity that all the efforts of its master could
not check it. The bull and the ass trembled so
violently that Fritz and his brother were obliged
to dismount.
Francis seized his gun, put two pistols in his
belt, called the two dogs, and calmly walked on
in the direction of the strange laugh. He had not
gone more than thirty paces when he saw, through
the bushes, an enormous hyena, which had killed one
of our sheep, and was devouring it, while ever and
anon that strange laugh of joy would echo from
its blood-stained lips.
I RECEIVE A LETTER 249
Francis placed himself behind a tree, and taking
good aim, he discharged both barrels of his gun
and broke the fore legs of the hyena. The dogs
then rushed on, their terror changed into rage.
The most terrible combat followed between them
and the furious monster.
Fritz, who had tied the ass and the bull
to a tree, now ran up. He and Francis would
have fired again, but the dogs were so close to the
hyena that they were afraid of hitting them, so
that they were obliged to wait. Turk took the
hyena by the throat and Flora by the muzzle,
and there they held him until he dropped down
dead.
Jack soon returned. He had not been able to
stop the ostrich until it had arrived at the middle
of the rice-field. Then they all admired the striped
beast that lay before them. They took some
trouble in dragging it to the farmhouse, where they
settled for the night.
The following day was given to skinning the
animal and preparing the hide.
In the meantime, we, who had been sitting
quietly talking at home saw one of the pigeons,
evidently coming from a distance, wheel round
and alight on the dovecot.
250 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
1 should not have noticed it, but Ernest, who
had sprung to his feet, only waited until it entered
the dovecot, when he pulled the trap shut, and
mysteriously disappeared. We took no notice of
what he was doing, until he came back with a
folded piece of paper in his hand, this he presented
to me, saying it had just come by the post. I
opened it and read :
* DEAR FATHER AND MOTHER,
' We arrived safely at the Hermitage, and
there found a hyena, which had devoured several of
our sheep. Francis has the honour of having
killed the monster, and he behaved very pluckily.
We have passed the whole day in preparing the
skin, which is very fine and will be very useful.
The pemmican is the most detestable stuff 1 ever
tasted.
* Good-bye ; much love from us all.
FRITZ.'
I saw now at once why Jack had taken the two
pigeons, trusting to their instinct to return home,
and we were delighted at his happy thought.
After dinner a new pigeon was seen to enter the
dovecot. Ernest, who had not remained quiet one
I RECEIVE A LETTER 251
moment during the day, rushed to capture it, and
handed us a second letter. It ran as follows :
' The night has been fine the weather beautiful
excursion in cajack on lake capture of some
black swans several new animals sudden flight
of an aquatic beast, entirely unknown to us
to-morrow at Prospect Hill.
* Be of good cheer.
' Your sons,
* FRITZ, JACK, AND FRANCIS.'
4 It is like a telegram,' said I, laughing. ' Our
huntsmen would rather fire a gun than write a
sentence ; nevertheless, I am glad to know they
are safe.'
However, our rejoicing did not last long, for the
very next day another pigeon arrived, with a letter
telling us that on the boys' arrival at Prospect Hill
they had found that the palisade, which we had
erected at the end of the defile to keep out intruders
from the desert, had been broken down, the sugar-
canes trampled and crushed, and that there were
large hoof-marks everywhere, like those made by the
feet of elephants. I resolved to go myself instantly
to join the lads, and, having saddled the young
252 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
colt, now almost as good a mount as its parent,
I set off the same morning, leaving Ernest and his
mother to follow later. When I arrived I found
that the message had given me but a faint idea of
the reality. The sugar-canes were irretrievably
lost ; they had been trampled down, and the leaves
torn off, by some animal that I was sure must have
been an elephant. All our trouble in erecting the
palisade had been wasted ; the stakes had been
torn up, the trees near by deprived of their bark,
the bamboos had been treated no better than the
sugar-canes, and every young shrub I had planted
had been trampled.
Ernest and his mother arrived several hours
after, bringing with them the waggon, drawn by
the buffalo, the cow, and all necessary utensils for
our encampment, which was likely to last a good
while.
We immediately began the construction of a
solid fortification across the defile, one that would
effectually keep out all intruders. And this tire-
some work occupied us constantly for more than
a month.
When at last it was complete, our next labour
was to build some sort of a fort to shelter us
whenever we might visit the defile.
I RECEIVE A LETTER 2S3
We chose four trees to answer the purpose,
and did not cut the branches off close, but left
them as rests for the beams of our platform.
We surrounded this platform when made with a
high and strong network of rushes and branches,
leaving an opening for entrance ; and we covered the
roof with the waterproof leaves of the Talipot palm.
These leaves grow so large that ten men can be
covered by one of them. Our fort was really rather
like Falcon's Nest,
To ascend the platform, we cut notches in a
beam which descended perpendicularly to the
ground, and which could be raised and lowered at
pleasure.
We did not, however, keep steadily to this
work, but went off on various small expeditions in
the meantime, and among our most important
discoveries were some ripe bananas, and some of
the great pods of the cocoa tree from which I
promised I would make cocoa.
Fritz was the most adventurous, for he went off
in his cajack the whole of one day, and following
the coast line, penetrated further than any of us
had ever done yet. He even went inland up
the mouth of a great river he had found. He
brought back a marvellous account of what he had
254 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
seen, such as majestic forests, in which lived
turkeys and peacocks, whose cries and screams
imparted an air of life to the sombre river. Farther
on, the scene had changed. There were enormous
elephants feeding along the banks, in troops of
twenty or thirty. Some were playing in the water,
and squirting the cooling fluid over the heated
bodies of their companions. Tigers and panthers,
too, lay sleeping in the sun, their magnificent fur
contrasting strangely with the green bank upon
which they reclined ; but not one of these animals
paid the least attention to him.
What had frightened him most had been the
sight of some great crocodiles, which had quickly
made him retreat.
Even with the protection of the new palisade, I
felt that this side of the island, near to all these
dangerous beasts, was not so safe as the other, so I
suggested we had been away from our fixed camp
long enough, and should return to Falcon's Nest.
This we did without any mishap.
It was some time after this but indeed, time
flowed so smoothly by, I forget exactly when that
Fritz, ever active, proposed we should make a fort
on Shark Island, to which we could retire, if ever
hard pressed by savage animals on land. I gave
1 RECEIVE A LETTER 255
my assent, and we took there the two cannon we
had brought from the ship. One can easily
conceive how great were the obstacles that a man
and four boys had to contend with, in order to con-
vey two cannons to the island, and raise them on a
platform more than fifty feet in height. It cost us
immense labour even to effect the transport of the
cannons. This work took us a whole day of hard
labour ; but at last they were landed on a plat-
form, and established with their mouths toward
the sea. We placed a long pole in the rock, with a
string and pulley, so that we could hoist up a flag
at any time. How glad we felt when our work
was done ; and how proud we were of our ingenuity !
When we had crowned this military construction
with a flag, even though I felt we must be
economical in our use of powder, we fired our
cannons six times, and the echo of the rocks
repeated the noise over the ocean.
CHAPTER XXIX
? HE SHIPWRECKED SAILOR ON THE SMOKING ROCK
As I have said, time glided away so fast, our days
were filled with such varied labours and resources,
that the wet seasons came and went with incon-
ceivable rapidity, and I was startled to find, on
reckoning up one day, that we had been ten years
on our island.
The ten years were years of conquest and estab-
lishment. We had constructed several homes,
built a solid wall across the defile, which would
secure us against invasion from the wild beasts
which infested the desert. The part of the country
in which we lived was defended by high mountains
on one side, and the ocean on the other ; we had
traversed the whole extent, and rested in perfect
surety that no enemy lurked within it.
Cliff House was a safe retreat for us during the
storms of winter, while Falcon's Nest was our
256
SHIPWRECKED SAILOR ON SMOKING ROCK 257
summer residence and country villa ; Prospect
Hill, and even our buildings at the Hermitage,
were like the quiet farmhouses that the traveller
finds in the mountains.
Of all our resources, the bees had prospered
most ; experience had taught me how to manage
them, and the only trouble that I had was to pro-
vide new hives each year for the increasing swarms ;
and, in truth, so great was the number of our hives
that they attracted a considerable flock of those
birds called bee-eaters, who are extremely fond of
these insects.
Our dovecot had also succeeded well ; and we
had suspended baskets on the adjoining trees,
where our pigeons might build their nests.
We also finished the gallery which extended
along the front of our grotto ; a roof was made to
the rock above it, and it rested on fourteen columns
of light bamboo, which gave it an elegant appear-
ance ; large pillars supported the gallery, around
which twined the aromatic vines of the vanilla and
the pepper, and each end of the gallery was termi-
nated by a little cabinet with an elevated roof,
having the appearance of a Chinese pavilion, sur-
rounded by flowers and foliage. Steps led up
into the gallery, which we had paved with a sort
258 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
of stone so soft when dug out as to be cut easily
with a chisel, but hardening rapidly in the sun.
The grounds of our home were pleasant ; our
plantations had succeeded, and between the grotto
and the bay was a grove of trees and shrubs.
Shark Island no longer was an arid bank of sand:
palm and pine-apple trees had been planted every-
where, and the earth was covered with a carpet of
vivid green. The scene around us was always
animated and gay ; the swans mingled with geese
white as the driven snow, and the heron royal with
his silvery crest, or the flamingo in his robe of rose-
colour, would stand by the marsh and capture the
frogs with which it abounded. Under the shade of
the beautiful trees our little troop of ostriches
reposed, unmindful of the clamour raised by the
flocks of cranes and turkeys that clustered around
them ; the Canada fowls and the heath-fowls,
joining together and disdaining the society of
their fellows, crossed to the other side of Family
Bridge.
One could not recogrize in this beautiful spot,
surrounded by so much that was grateful to the
eye and ear, the desert, sandy plain we had found
on our first coming. It had for boundaries, on the
right, Jackal River, which was bordered on our
SHIPWRECKED SAILOR ON SMOKING ROCK 259
side by a strong and impenetrable hedge of thorn-
palms, aloes, Indian figs, karatas, and other plants
of the same sort, all so close together that a mouse
could scarcely penetrate it ; on the left inaccessible
rocks, among which was the grotto of crystal.
Before us, as I have said, extended the blue sea,
losing itself in the distance. Behind us the mass
of rocks, in which our grotto was situated, was so
high and steep that I feared nothing from that
side.
The only outlet from our little elysium was
Family Bridge, for which we had made a draw-
bridge ; and that it might better be defended, we
built a parapet of stones before it, and mounted on
that two small six-pounder cannons, which could
sweep the whole bay, while two others armed our
ship of war, the celebrated pinnace.
A palisade of bamboos surrounded our garden,
and added to the number of our defences. All our
plantations were irrigated by tunnels of bamboo,
which conveyed their supply of water from the
river, and distributed it over the ground.
Our European trees had grown with a strength
and rapidity of vegetation almost incredible ; but
their fruits had lost their flavour ; and perhaps
because the soil or the air was unfavourable, the
260 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
apples and pears became black and withered, the
plums and apricots were nothing but hard kernels
surrounded by a tough skin ; on the other hand,
the indigenous productions multiplied a hundred-
fold : the bananas, the figs, the guavas, the oranges
and the citron, made our corner of the island a
paradise.
Our beautiful flowers also attracted numerous
guests : these were the humming-birds ; and it was
one of our greatest amusements to watch these
little birds flying around us, sparkling like precious
stones, and hardly perceptible, so quick were their
movements. They were passionate, choleric little
fellows, and would attack others twice their size,
and drive them away from their nests, and at other
times they would tear in pieces the unlucky flower
that had deceived their expectations of a feast.
The family of Turk and Flora had each year
been increased by a certain number of puppies, out
of which we had kept the healthiest, so that each
member of the family now called a particular dog
his own.
But the greatest changes of all were in my sons.
When I thought of what children they were when
I landed, I looked at them with thankfulness.
Fritz had become a strong and vigorous man ;
SHIPWRECKED SAILOR ON SMOKING ROCK
although not tall, yet he was well proportioned.
He was twenty-six years of age.
Ernest was twenty-four. He was not as strong
as his brother, and his long limbs were rather too
soft and rounded ; he had a dreamy, meditative
face.
Jack was lithe, light and supple, almost as much
of a boy at twenty-three as he had been at thirteen ;
his whereabouts could always be known by his
merry laugh.
Francis was sixteen. He promised to be even
taller than Ernest, and was decidedly the best-
looking of the four, with his clear, sun-tanned skin
and fair hair. He was not so merry as Jack, so
clever as Ernest, nor so capable as Fritz ; but he
was the best all-round man amongst them, and was
distinguished for his good temper.
They had all grown up well-disposed, straight-
forward, manly fellows, clean-hearted and fear-
less, and we had every reason to be proud of
them.
Of course, now that my sons were men, I did
not attempt to control them as I had formerly
done, but let them go off as they pleased on their
own expeditions. Sometimes they were away for
days together in different parts of the island.
18
262 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
On one occasion Fritz took with him some pro-
visions, and went to sea in his cajack. He had
set out before daylight, and when night was ap-
proaching nothing could be seen of him. My wife
was in a state of the greatest suspense ; and, to
comfort her, I launched the canoe, and we set out
for Shark Island. There, from the top of the flag-
staff, we displayed our flag and fired a cannon. A
few moments after we saw a black spot in the far
distance, and, by the aid of a telescope, we dis-
covered Fritz. He advanced slowly towards us,
beating the sea with his oars, as if his canoe were
charged with a double load.
As he came nearer we saw that his boat was
filled with different things ; and something heavy
and dark, which looked like the head of a large
animal, was being towed behind. He did not land,
so we joined him on the water, and kept him com-
pany to the shore. But it was not until we had all
arrived safely at Cliff House, that he told us
anything. He explained he had gone for a con-
siderable distance along the coast, and seen several
walruses, and penetrated into a vast cave in which
many little birds like swallows were flying about.
He thought they were of the kind whose nests are
eaten by the Chinese, being made of a sort of
SHIPWRECKED SAILOR ON SMOKING ROCK 263
gummy moss, so he had procured some, and
brought them back with him.
He had then gone on further until he had come
to a great bay.
' While I was coasting along the shores of the
bay,' he said, ' I saw at the bottom of the transparent
waters, beds of shells resembling large oysters. I
detached some with my hook, and threw them
on the sand without getting out of my canoe, and
set to work to obtain more. When I returned
with a new load, I found that the oysters I had
first deposited on the sand were opened, and the sun
had already begun to corrupt them. I took up
one or two ; but instead of finding the nice fat
oyster I expected, I found nothing but some gritty
meat. In trying to detach this from the shell, I
felt some little, round, hard stones, like peas,
under my knife. I took them out, and found
them so brilliant that I filled my pocket with
them. Don't you think that they are really
pearls ?'
4 See !' said his brothers, taking them in their
hands. ' How beautiful, how brilliant, how regular !'
* They are really pearls,' cried I, ' oriental pearls
of the greatest beauty. You have discovered a
treasure, which one day will be, I hope, of immense
264 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
value to us. We will pay a visit to this rich bay
as soon as possible.'
Fritz did not appear much excited ; jewels and
money did not seem to him to be so valuable as he
would once have thought them. He continued his
story :
' As I was leaving the bay I saw on all
sides, popping up out of the water, the heads
of marine animals, which appeared about the size
of a calf, and they plunged and frisked about
in such a manner that I was afraid they would
upset my cajack. So I secured it to a project-
ing rock, and, taking my eagle in my hand, I
stood ready to attack the first that came near me. I
then cast off my eagle, who soon seized on the largest
and best, and blinded him. I jumped on the rock,
and, catching hold of the animal with my boat-hook,
drew it to the shore. All the others fled. Numbers
of sea-birds clustered around me ; gulls, sea-
swallows, frigates, and half a dozen other kinds.
They came up so close that I whirled my staff
around to keep them off, and in doing so knocked
down a very large bird, an albatross, I think. I
fastened my sea-otter to the stern of my boat, and,
taking a sackful of oysters, returned home again.'
When he had finished, after talking a little of
SHIPWRECKED SAILOR ON SMOKING ROCK 265
what he had told us, the others dispersed, and Fritz
took the opportunity to tell me about something
still more strange that he had discovered.
' In examining the albatross which I had knocked
down,' he said, ' I saw a piece of linen around one
of its feet. I untied it, and read the following
words written upon it in good English : " Save the
poor shipwrecked sailor on the smoking rock." The
bird was only stunned so I wrote on a strip of my
handkerchief: " Have faith in God : help is near."
And if by any chance the bird goes back to the
place it came from, it may do good.'
I was, of course, much interested in this curious
fact, but knowing that the albatross travels im-
mense distances, I thought it hardly likely that the
man who sent the message was anywhere near us,
especially as the message itself might be years old.
After this we examined the sea-otter that Fritz
had brought back, and once again discussed the
subject of the pearls. The others were naturally
anxious to go and fish for some more themselves,
and this we decided to do.
Accordingly, we gathered together all the imple-
ments we thought likely to be of use in this strange
new fishery and prepared our provisions for the
voyage : two hams were cooked, cassava cakes,
266 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
barley-bread, rice, nuts, almonds, and dry fruits ;
and for drink we took a barrel of water, and one
of honey-syrup. These stores, with our tools and
fishing implements, loaded down the boat.
The next day a fresh and favourable breeze and
a slightly ruffled sea induced us to embark imme-
diately. Francis and his mother were left at home,
and we gaily put off, amid their prayers and wishes
for our safe return. We took with us young Nip,
the successor of our good old monkey, and two of
our dogs. Jack occupied a second seat in Fritz's
cajack. Ernest and I conducted the canoe loaded
with our provisions and animals.
The cajack led the way and we followed, steer-
ing our course through the shoals and rocks with
the greatest difficulty. We did not encounter any
marine monsters ; but the rocks were covered with
the whitened bones of walruses and sea-horses, and
Ernest made us stop several times, at the risk of
bruising our boat against the rocks, in order that he
might collect some of these remains for our
museum of natural history.
The sea was as calm and brilliant as a mirror,
and was covered with the little boats of the nautilus,
a sort of shell-fish which much resembles a minia-
ture gondola.
SHIPWRECKED SAILOR OiN SMOKING ROCK 1267
My sons could not behold these beautiful little
boats, dancing over the surface of the waves, with-
out wishing to capture some ; they threw out a
net, and we caught half a dozen fine ones.
We soon attained the promontory behind which,
Fritz said, was the Bay of Pearls. This promon-
tory was singular and imposing. Arch rose above
arch, column above column ; in a word, it resem-
bled the front of one of those old Gothic cathedrals,
covered with a thousand carvings. The only
difference was that, instead of a pavement of
marble, we had the blue sea, and the columns were
washed by the waves. We rowed into the great
cavern and sent the startled birds flying in all
directions.
When our eyes became habituated to the dark-
ness, we saw that every niche and corner was filled
with their nests. These nests resembled white
cups, were as transparent as horn, and filled, like
the nests of other birds, with feathers, and dry sticks
of some sort of perfumed wood.
I resolved to gather a considerable number ol
them, only taking care to leave those which con-
tained eggs or young ones. Fritz and Jack climbed
like cats along the rocks and detached the nests,
which they gave to Ernest and me, who placed
268 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
them in a large sack we had brought. Afterwards
I set Ernest to work to clear the nests of the
feathers and dirt.
When this was done, we passed on to the
beautiful bay Fritz had christened the Bay of
Pearls. The water was so calm and pure that we
could see the fish far below us. I recognised a sort
of white fish, the shining scales of which are used as
false pearls. I showed them to my sons ; but they
could not understand how a little stone would be
worth so much more than the fish-scales, when the
latter were quite as brilliant.
At last we arrived at the rocky bank where Fritz
had found the pearl oysters. The coast presented
a most beautiful prospect ; forests, which lost
themselves in the distance, and high mountains
covered with the rich vegetation of the tropics.
A majestic river flowed into the bay, and cut the
green prairies like a band of silver. We all landed
safely except the monkey, who could not make up
his mind to leap the narrow space which separated
him from the land. Twenty times he rose on his
hind legs, and twenty times he shrank back, as if he
had the ocean to cross. At length we took pity on
him, and threw him a rope, by which means he
landed safely.
SHIPWRECKED SAILOR ON SMOKING ROCR 269
The day was too far advanced to begin our pearl-
fishing, so we had our dinner consisting of some
slices of ham, fried potatoes, and cassava cakes ;
and. after having lighted fires along the coast,
to keep off wild beasts, we left the dogs on shore,
and went on board the canoe. We drew the sail
over our heads, and, wrapping ourselves in our
bear skins, were soon asleep. Nothing disturbed
us save a concert of jackals.
We rose at daylight, and after breakfast began
our labours in the pearl-fishery, and with the aid
of the rakes, hooks, nets, and poles, soon brought
in a large quantity of the precious oysters. We
heaped them all up in a pile on the shore, so
that the heat of the sun would cause them to
open.
Toward evening the coast appeared so beautiful,
and the vegetation so rich and glowing, that it was
impossible for us to resist the temptation of making
an excursion to a little wood, where we had heard
turkeys gobbling all day. Each took his own way.
But my discovery was the most important.
Seeing Nip gathering some large black tubercles,
with which the ground was covered, I picked up
two or three which I put in my game-bag ; and
when I examined them later, found they were
270 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
truffles, of a perfumed, delicate flesh, marbled with
white.
Here was another luxury which many a gour-
mand in Europe would have been delighted with.
When night came we lighted our watch fires, had
our dinner, and then retired to our canoe. The
dogs were again left on shore.
CHAPTER XXX
ATTACKED BY LIONS
THE next day Ernest and Jack, having been off
again, returned from the woods together, with a
fine boar which they had shot, and having heard
that boar's head was good eating, we resolved to
cook it with truffles, in the Otaheitan manner.
Consequently Fritz and Ernest set to work, and
dug a deep ditch, while I cleaned the head and
heated some stones. When these preparations
were finished, we placed the head, stuffed with
truffles, and seasoned with salt, pepper, and nutmeg,
in the ditch, and covered it with red-hot stones and
a thick layer of earth. While our supper was
cooking, we suspended the hams of the boar over
the smoke of the fire, and sat down to talk over the
events of the day, when, suddenly, a deep pro-
longed roar rang through the forest. It was the
first time we had ever heard such unearthly tones.
271
272 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
The rocks echoed it, and we felt seized with sudden
terror. The dogs and the jackals also started
howling horribly.
' What a diabolical concert !' said Fritz, jumping
up and seizing his gun. ' Build up the fire, and
while I try to discover the danger in my cajack,
you retreat to the boat.'
This plan appeared the best we could pursue,
and I adopted it. We threw on the fire all the
wood we could find ready cut, and, without losing
time, we reached the boat ; but it was tethered
to a great stone, and whether our hands were
trembling, or from whatever other cause, we
fumbled at the rope without undoing it. Fritz
jumped into the cajack, and was soon lost in the
darkness of the night, which was now closing in.
During all this time the roarings continued, and
they appeared to approach nearer to us, Our dogs
gathered around the fire, uttering plaintive moans.
Our poor little monkey seemed to be terrified.
I imagined that the wild beast which made this
hideous din must be a leopard or a panther, which
had been attracted by the remains of the wild boar
in the wood. My doubts did not last long, for we
soon discovered by the light of our fires, a terrible
lion, considerably larger and stronger than those
ATTACKED BY LIONS 273
I had seen in the menageries of Europe. In
two or three leaps he bounded over the space
which separated the wood from the shore. He
stood immovable for a moment, and then, lashing
his flanks with his tail, and roaring furiously,
crouched down as if to spring on us. Meantime I
felt wildly in my pockets for a knife, but could
find none. I could not understand why my sons
did not fire, but discovered afterwards that they,
like myself, had left their guns on shore. The
frightful pantomime did not last long. The lion's
flaming eyes were fixed directly on us. Suddenly
I heard a report. The animal bounded up, gave
a tremendous yell, and fell lifeless on the earth.
' 'Tis Fritz,' murmured Ernest, pale with terror.
' Yes,' I cried, * Fritz has saved us !'
We all sprang on shore, but our dogs, with an
admirable instinct, began to bark again. I did not
neglect this indication. We threw more wood on
the fire, and again jumped into the boat. It
was time ; for scarcely were we there, and had
managed to cast off, when a second enemy rushed
from the forest. It was not so large as the first,
but its roar was frightful. It was a lioness. She
was seeking her mate, and running straight up to
his body, she smelled it, and licked it ; and when
274 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
she found that he was dead she set up a howl
of rage, lashed her sides, and opened her mouth, as
if she would devour us all.
Again Fritz fired, and the shot, less fortunate
than the first, only broke the shoulder of the
animal. The wounded lioness rolled on the sand,
foaming with rage, but all three of our dogs rushed
upon her. I jumped from the boat, and, running
up to the animal who was held fast by the dogs, I
plunged my hunting-knife right into her heart, and
she rolled over dead in an instant. But the victory
had cost us dear, for there lay one of our dogs, a
second Flora, dying from the terrible wounds she
had received.
Fritz ran up, so did Ernest and Jack, and light-
ing some torches, we gazed at the lions majestically
extended on the sand.
4 What a terrible range of teeth !' said Ernest, as
he raised up the head of the lion.
' Yes, and what frightful claws !' said Jack.
' Wouldn't they make nice holes in your skin ?'
' Poor Flora !' said Fritz, as he detached the dead
body of our dog from that of the lioness ; ' she
has done for us to-day what our old ass did in the
case of the boa. Come, Ernest, see if you cannot
make an epitaph.'
ATTACKED BY LIONS 275
' I am not in the mood to make rhymes/ said
Ernest, who still looked much upset.
Flora the second received the honours of a funeral
by torchlight. We dug a grave, and silently placed
in it the remains of the devoted animal, with a flat
stone to mark her resting-place. Ernest wrote
above it :
HERE LIES
FLORA, A DOG
REMARKABLE FOR HER COURAGE AND DEVOTION.
SHE DIED UNDER THE CLAWS OF A LION,
ON WHOM SHE ALSO INFLICTED DEATH.
' It is only prose,' he said, * but it must do.'
Jack, who did not care much for poetry or prose,
remarked that we had better have something
to eat.
' I suppose,' said he, ' the boar's head must be
done by this time ; anyway, I mean to go and see.'
So saying he began to clear away the covering
of earth and cinders, while Ernest and I dressed the
wounds of the other dogs. But instead of the juicy
meat poor Jack expected, he found nothing but a
mass of bones and burned flesh. He was going to
throw it away in disgust, when I stopped him. and,
276 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
cutting off the burned part with my knife, we found
underneath some most delicious meat, saturated
with the perfume of the truffles in a manner that
every epicure knows how to appreciate.
When we had eaten, we tried to snatch a little
sleep, but were too excited to do more than doze
fitfully. At sunrise we were up, and our first care
was to take off the lions' skins. My syringe, which
I had brought with me, did the business effectually,
and we soon obtained two of the most splendid
skins that can be imagined. The fur was as soft as
silk, and of a most beautiful colour.
The heat of the sun had begun to corrupt the
oysters heaped upon the bank, and the effluvia
which they exhaled induced us to return to Cliff
House, for we meant to come back to get the pearls
when the sun and air had sufficiently dried the
oysters to make the task endurable.
Early next morning we set sail. Jack did not
feel much inclination to take his place again in
Fritz's cajack, so embarked with us in the boat.
Fritz set off before us, as if to serve as pilot ; but
when he had conducted us through the vault and
over the shoals, he rowed up to our boat, and,
handing me a letter, shot off again like an arrow.
I opened the paper quickly, and imagine my sur-
ATTACKED BY LIONS 277
prise when I found that, instead of having forgotten
the albatross and the smoking rock, he informed
me in the letter that he was going in search of the
unfortunate being. I had a thousand objections to
make to this project, but Fritz rowed so fast I could
barely halloo through the speaking-trumpet, * Return
soon, and be prudent,' before he was out of sight.
We gave to the cape where he left us the name of
the ' Adieu Cape.'
We arrived at Cliff House without accident, and
the different treasures we had brought were joyfully
received ; the truffles, the lion-skins, the pearls, the
birds'-nests, became the objects of a thousand
questions, but they could not drive away the
thoughts of Fritz, and my wife said she would
willingly give up all our cargo if she could be
sure of his safety.
I had not yet spoken to her concerning the
reason of Fritz's absence, as I had not wished to give
rise to hopes which were so unlikely to be realized ;
but now I thought I might, so I told her of his
quest.
Then we began the preparation of our lion-skins,
and carried them for that purpose to our tannery on
Whale Island, where, as I said before, our dirty
work was done. We also occupied ourselves in
19
278 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
storing our provisions, and with the necessary house-
hold duties.
Five days passed away, and still Fritz had not
returned, and his mother was so anxious and
worried that I proposed to launch the pinnace and
make a new excursion to the Bay of Pearls. This
time we took her and Francis with us, and she
received my proposition to that effect with pleasure,
for she thought that Fritz would return in that
direction, and that we should certainly meet him.
We lost no time ; the pinnace was prepared, and
early the next day we set out, and were in sight of
the promontory of the bay, when suddenly the
vessel ran against a black mass, and was nearly
thrown over by the shock. My wife uttered a cry,
but the boat soon righted, and I perceived that the
obstacle was not a rock, as I had thought, but a
whale. I instantly pointed the cannons of the
pinnace, and a discharge of artillery prevented him
from overturning us, which he certainly would have
done if the blow had not stunned him. We saw
with pleasure that the waves carried the enormous
body to a sandbank a little distance from the shore,
and there it lay like a stranded ship.
While we were talking about it, Ernest suddenly
uttered a loud cry.
ATTACKED BY LIONS 279
' A man ! a savage !' said he ; and he pointed out
to us in the distance a sort of canoe dancing over
the waves. The occupant seemed to have perceived
us, for he advanced, and then disappeared behind a
projecting point, as if to communicate his discovery
to his companions. I had not the slightest doubt
that we had fallen in with a band of savages, and
we began to fortify our boat against their arrows by
making a bulwark of the stalks of maize and corn
we had brought with us. We loaded our cannons,
guns, and pistols ; and, everything arranged, we
stood ready behind our rampart, resolved to defend
it as long as we were able. We dared not advance,
for there was the savage ; until Ernest, growing tired
of the pantomime, observed that, if we used the
speaking-trumpet, possibly our savage might under-
stand some words of the half-dozen languages we
were familiar with.
The advice appeared good. I took up the
speaking-trumpet and bellowed out with all my
force some words of Malay ; but still the canuc
remained immovable, as if its master had not
comprehended us.
' Instead of Malay,' said Jack, ' suppose we try
English.'
So saying, he caught up the trumpet, and in his
280 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
clear, loud tone pronounced some common sailor
phrases, well known to all who have ever been on
board ship. The device succeeded, and we saw the
savage advancing toward us, holding a green branch
in his hand. Nearer and nearer he came, and at
last we recognised in the painted savage our own
dear Fritz.
' Fritz 1 Tis Fritz 'tis Fritz! There is his
cajack and the walrus's head in front. It is Fritz
disguised like a savage,' exclaimed Jack.
We soon received him in astonishment. He was
naked to the waist, and painted white and black,
just like a Carribee Indian.
CHAPTER XXXI
A VISITOR
WE all laughed and talked together so much at
first we could hardly understand why he had be-
haved in this way ; but the first words I caught
clearly were : ' My quest has been successful.'
This he said in a low voice to me.
'As for my costume,' he continued aloud, 'as I
have been a considerable distance, I disguised myself
by painting the upper part of my body with powder,
soaked in water, in case I fell in with savages, who
would have killed a white man at sight. When I
saw you and knew you did not recognise me, I
could not resist teasing you a little.'
We all began to laugh over the farce ; and Fritz,
drawing me aside, said, in an eager, joyous tone :
' I have succeeded, I have found a poor ship-
wrecked girl for it was a woman that had written
those lines. Three years has she lived on that
281
282 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
smoking rock, all alone ! destitute of everything I
Can you believe it ? But the poor girl has begged
me not to betray her sex, except to you and my
mother, for she is dressed as a man, and is shy and
nervous, although I assured her that all of us
would welcome her gladly. I have brought her
with me ; she is near by, on a little island just
beyond the Bay of Pearls ; come and see her, but
do not say anything to the others ; I want to give
them a surprise.'
I agreed, and ordered them to hoist the sails,
weigh anchor, and make ready to depart. Fritz,
who had changed his dress and washed off his dis-
guise, flew about, hastening his less eager brothers ;
then, jumping into his cajack, he piloted us through
the shoals and reefs that were scattered along the
coast. After an hour's sailing he turned off, and
directed his course toward a shady island not far
from the Bay of Pearls ; we sailed close up to the
shore, and fastened the pinnace to the trunk of a
fallen tree. Fritz, however, was quicker than we,
and he was on shore, and had entered a little wood
in the middle of the island before we had yet
landed. We followed him into the wood, and soon
found ourselves near a hut, built like those of the
Hottentots, with a fire burning before it, on which
A VISITOR 283
some fish were being cooked in a large shell. Fritz
uttered a halloo, and what was our surprise to see,
descending from a large tree, a young and hand-
some sailor, who, turning his timid eyes on us,
stood still, as if he dared not approach !
It was such a long time since we had seen a man
ten years ! society had become so strange a
thing to us, that we remained stupefied.
The silence was broken by Fritz, who, taking the
young sailor by the hand, advanced toward us.
* Father, mother !' said he, in a voice brimming
over with excitement, ' here is a friend a brother,
a new companion in misfortune - - Sir Edward
Montrose, who, like ourselves, has been shipwrecked
on the coast.'
' He is welcome among us,' was the general cry ;
and, approaching the young sailor, whom I easily
recognised for a woman, I took her by the hand
and comforted and encouraged her.
Once the ice was broken, all joined in a hearty
greeting, and question after question poured upon
Fritz, who joyfully replied :
' I will tell you all afterward ; let us attend now
to our new brother.'
Supper was served, and my wife brought out a
bottle of her spiced hydromel to add to the feast.
284 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
Everybody spoke at once, and my sons addressed
their new companion with such vivacity as to em-
barrass the timid stranger ; my wife saw his distress,
and, as it was late, she gave the signal for a general
break-up, saying she was going to make up a bed
for our visitor on the pinnace, where he could
sleep comfortably. My sons and I stopped to
light and arrange our watch-fires.
The new-comer naturally became the subject of
conversation.
* I should like to know,' said Francis, addressing
himself to Fritz, ' where you found this man ?'
Fritz smiled without answering.
But after a few minutes he recounted to his
brothers the whole history of the albatross ; as he
spoke of his thoughts and actions, he became
so excited in his narration, that he forgot himself
and the secret that he had to keep, and he called
the young sailor ' Emily.'
' Emily ! Emily !' repeated his brothers, who
had begun to doubt the mystery, * Emily ! Fritz
has deceived us, and Sir Edward is a girl ! our
adopted brother turned into a sister I'
This discovery changed the conversation. Fritz
explained to his brothers that Emily, appearing in
a midshipman's dress, which she had habitually
A VISITOR 285
worn while alone, had been ashamed at first to say
she was a girl ; but the boys declared that nothing
pleased them better than to have a new sister, and
that this change would not lower Emily at all in
their esteem.
The next morning it was a a comic sight to see
the embarrassment and awkwardness with which
they approached one whom they had the day be-
fore greeted as a comrade. As for Emily, she was
very much astonished at the discovery the young
men had made, and she retreated to my wife; but
a moment after, recovering herself, she advanced,
and extending her hand to each of the boys, grace-
fully demanded for the sister the friendship they
had extended to the brother. This amiable frank-
ness dissipated the embarrassment of my three
sons ; they assured the young girl of their fraternal
regard, and begged that they might consider her as
a sister. Gaiety was re-established, and we sat
down to breakfast, which was composed of fruits,
cold meat, and chocolate of our own making a
great treat to my new daughter. Shortly after
breakfast she retired with my wife, who lent her
some of her own garments, so that she need no
longer feel the embarrassment of her clothes.
Then I proposed we should go back to the
286 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
island to get what we should find useful from the
stranded whale.
After staying a day or two longer here in order
to undertake this disagreeable task, we thought of
returning to Cliff House. We packed up every-
thing we had, including Emily's treasures, both
those she had saved from shipwreck and those she
had made herself. Fritz had given her a box which
held them all, and they really were very curious,
consisting of clothes, ornaments, domestic utensils,
and all sorts of articles which she had made in her
exile, out of the scanty material she had at her dis-
posal. There were fish-lines of the twisted hair of
her head, with fish-hooks attached, made of mother-
of-pearl ; some needles fashioned from fish-bones ;
piercers and bodkins, which had once been the
beaks of birds ; two beautiful needle-cases, one
made of a pelican's feather, the other of the bone
of a sea-calf. The skin of a young walrus sewed
together served for a bottle ; a lamp made of a shell,
with a wick of cotton drawn from her handkerchief;
over the lamp another shell served as boiler ; a
turtle-shell used for cooking food, by the throwing in
of hot stones ; some fish-bladders, shells of all sizes,
serving for glasses, spoons, dishes, etc. ; little sacks
full of seeds, a quantity of plants, such as the
A VISITOR 287
cochelaria, sorrel, celery, and cress, which grow
among the rocks.
For clothing she had a hat made of the downy
breast of the cormorant, which was stretched over
some feathers from the same bird, forming a com-
plete shelter for the head and neck against the rays
of the sun, a little waistcoat with sleeves, made
from the skin of the sea-calf, the skin of the fore
legs serving as sleeves ; some other garments of
bird-skin or walrus-skin ; and belts, stockings, and
shoes all of skin ; besides the midshipman's uniforms
which she had found in a stranded chest.
Emily's jewels were few in number, consisting of
a gold comb and a string of fine pearls, which she
happened to have on when shipwrecked ; she had
also some boxes made of turtle-shells, which con-
tained pieces of amber, and some pearls of a
beautiful red tint, which she had extracted from
some sort of shell-fish, and besides, some pencils
made of feathers and hair, with which she had
amused herself by writing. I must not forget to
mention a beautiful little purse made of sea-calf-
skin, and containing some rare shells which she had
gathered on the seashore.
The next day, when we were all ready to start.
Emily brought us another proof of her patience
288 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
and industry ; she ran into a little plot of shrubbery,
the branches of which dipped into the sea, and
brought out a large bird, tied by a cord, which she
presented to us, telling us it was a skilful fisher-
man a cormorant which she had trained and
taught, after the manner of the Chinese, to capture
fish.
We then left the bay which we named Happy
Bay, and set off, intending to call at the Bay of
Pearls on our way back.
Fritz, seated in his cajack, served as pilot to
assist us in penetrating safely through the rocks
and shoals, and we arrived there hi safety. Every-
thing was found just as we had left it the table
and benches yet standing, our fireplace undestroyed,
and what was more, the air was purified, and the
oysters, having all been dried up by the sun, had
lost their unpleasant odour. The dead bodies of
the lions and the wild boar were but heaps of
whitened bones, the birds of prey having com-
pletely stripped them of every particle of flesh.
All appeared tranquil, and we thought it safe to
stop long enough to extract the pearls from their
shells ; this operation, which was certainly not
very agreeable, did not long detain Emily, who
rsuu away.
A VISITOR 289
She took her cormorant under her arm, and
jumping into the cajack, in two strokes of the oars
was twenty paces from the shore ; she then passed
a large copper ring round the neck of the cor-
morant, so that he could not swallow the fish he
caught. Thus prepared, she placed him on the
edge of the boat, and remained perfectly still.
The fishing soon commenced, and it was a droll
sight to see the feathered fisherman, his neck
stretched out, his eye fixed steadily on the water.
Every now and then he gave a plunge and re-
appeared with a fine fish a trout, a silver-fish or
a salmon which he carried to his young mistress.
After he had caught enough, she took the ring off
his neck, gave him some of the fish as a reward, and
returned.
When our pearls were all extracted we counted
them and found four hundred, among which were
some extraordinarily large ones. There was nothing
for supper except Emily's fish ; my sons, therefore,
took their guns and game-bags, intending to go
and shoot some birds in the Wood of Truffles.
Emily went with them, and having killed a snipe
on the wing, elicited unbounded applause from my
sons, who, when they returned home, lauded her
performance to the skies.
CHAPTER XXXII
THE RETURN TO CLIFF HOUSE
ON our way to Cliff House I asked Emily to tell
us her own story, and give us some account of her
shipwreck. She was lively enough, and made no
difficulty. She told us that she was born in India,
of English parents, and that her father was a
colonel, named Sir Edward Montrose. He lost
his wife only three years after his marriage ; and
all his affections centred in their only child. He
was lucky enough to obtain a command in an
English colony, so that he need not be separated
from her. He educated her himself, teaching her
outdoor sports as well as book-work. At the age
of eighteen, she managed a rifle as well as a needle,
and was as much at home in the saddle as on her
feet.
Colonel Montrose was then ordered to return
with his regiment to England. This circumstance
290
THE RETURN TO CLIFF HOUSE 291
forced him to separate himself from his daughter
who could not travel on a troop-ship. It was
arranged, however, that she should sail the same
day that he did, in another ship.
The voyage at first was prosperous and agree-
able, but before many days a terrible storm arose.
The ship was thrown off her course, and a furious
wind drove her down upon our rocky coast ; two
boats were launched upon the angry waves. Emily
found a place in the smallest the captain was in
the other. The storm continuing, the boats were
soon separated, and the one that contained Emily
was broken in pieces, and she alone, of all the
crew, was fortunate enough to escape death. The
waves carried her, half-fainting, to the foot of the
rock where Fritz discovered her. She crawled
under the shade of a rock, and, sinking on the sand,
slept for four-and-twenty hours. There she passed
several days with no nourishment but some birds'
eggs, which she found on the rocks. At the end
of that time, the sun reappearing and the sea
growing calm, she thought of the crew in the other
boat, and in the hope that they might see her, she
established signals of distress.
In wandering about the rocks she came upon
much wreckage, which convinced her the ship
292 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
had completely broken up. Among other things
she found the midshipman's chest, and she accord-
ingly dressed herself in the uniform of a midship-
man, which she had worn ever since. Among
other things were some matches, still unspoilt by
damp, as the chest was closely fastened. So she
picked up some pieces of wood which the sea had
thrown on the sand, carried them to the summit
of the rock, and there kindled a fire, which she
never allowed to go out. Later, she built a hut,
fished, hunted, tamed birds among others the
cormorant and she lived alone for three long
dreary years.
As Emily stopped I saw Fritz's eyes meet hers,
which fell before them, and the dear girl blushed.
Then arose in me a hope, which my wife after-
wards assured me had been in her mind since the
first moment she saw them together.
When we came in sight of Prospect Hill I
proposed to stop and take a look at the farm-
house ; but Fritz and Francis, who were in the
cajack, said they would go straight on home, so
that they could have everything prepared for us.
All was in order at the farmhouse. Emily, who
for three years had not seen a human habitation,
could not restrain a cry of admiration. My wife
THE RETURN TO CLIFF HOUSE 293
showed her the colonies of fowls which she had
established, and which had prospered beyond our
hopes.
We again embarked in the pinnace, and from
Prospect Hill we sailed to Shark Island, where
we secured, in passing, a quantity of the soft
wool of the Angora rabbit. From Shark Island
we directed our course toward Cliff House, and
could just distinguish it, when a salute greeted
our ears.
We returned the polite salute, and soon after we
saw Fritz and Francis coming toward us in their
canoe. They received us at the entrance of the
bay, and followed us to the shore. They landed
before us, and the moment Emily's foot touched
the sand a hurrah resounded through the air, and
Fritz, springing forward, led her up to the grotto.
There a surprise awaited us. A table was spread
in the middle of the gallery, and loaded with all
the fruits that the country produced. Bananas,
figs, guavas, oranges, rose up in perfumed heaps
upon flat calabashes. All the vases of our making,
cocoa-nut cups and ostrich eggs mounted on turned
wooden pedestals, urns of painted porcelain all
were filled with hydromel and milk ; while a large
dish of fried fish, and a huge roast turkey, stuffed
20
294 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
with truffles, formed the solid part of the repast
A double festoon of flowers surrounded the canopy
above the table, and on it was a large medallion,
on which was inscribed, ' Welcome, fair Emily
Montrose !' It was a complete holiday, and as
grand a reception as our means would allow.
Emily sat down to table between my wife and
myself ; Ernest and Jack also took their places ;
while the two caterers of the feast, each with a
napkin on his arm, did the honours of the table.
Toasts were drunk, and Emily's name echoed from
every side.
We passed from the table to the grotto, and
she was delighted with all she saw. We led
her to the kitchen-garden ; we showed her our
orchard, our dovecot not a corner passed un-
noticed. Falcon's Nest next received a visit ; it
had fallen into decay from neglect, and we passed
a whole week in fitting it up. We then set out
for the Hermitage, to gather our rice and other
grains ; for the season was advancing, and some
violent showers already warned us to hasten our
preparations for the coming winter. Emily gave
proof, during these labours, of an intelligence and
good- will which rendered her assistance very valu-
able ; and she inspired everybody with such zeal
THE RETURN TO CLIFF HOUSE 295
and industry that when the winter set in we were
all prepared for it. Ten years had accustomed us
to the terrible winters, and we calmly listened to
the wind and storm as it raged furiously without.
We had reserved for the winter several occupa-
tions, in which our new companion proved her
skill and industry. She excelled in weaving and
plaiting straw and osiers, and under her directions,
we made some light straw hats for summer, some
baskets, and conveniently arranged game-bags.
My wife was delighted with her adopted daughter,
and Ernest found a companion who could talk to
him about literature and poetry. In fact, Emily
had become to my wife and myself a fifth child,
and to my sons a sister.
CHAPTER XXXIII
AN ENGLISH SHIP
IT was toward the end of the rainy season, the
wind had lost its violence, and a patch of blue sky
could now and then be seen ; our pigeons had
quitted the dovecot, and we ourselves ventured to
open the door of the grotto and taste the fresh air.
Our first care was for our gardens, which had
suffered injury ; we took account of the damage as
well as we were able, and then set out for our more
distant possessions. Fritz and Jack proposed to
make an excursion to Shark Island, to inspect our
fort and colony there. I consented, and they set
off in the cajack.
When they arrived they examined the interior
of the fort, and found that nothing of importance
was damaged. Then, wishing to see whether the
cannons were in good order, they fired one off.
What was their astonishment when, a moment
296
AN ENGLISH SHIP 297
after, they heard distinctly three reports of a
cannon in the distance ! They could not be mis-
taken, for a faint light toward the east preceded
each report. After an excited conversation as to
what should be done, they jumped into the canoe
and made for home to tell us the news.
We had heard the report of the cannon they had
fired, and we could not imagine why they were
hurrying back so fast. As soon as they came
within earshot I called out as loud as I could :
' Halloo, there ! what is the matter ?'
On they came, and jumping on shore, shouted
out : ' Did you not hear them ?'
' Hear what ?' said I. ' We have heard nothing
but the noise your waste of powder made.'
' You have not heard three other reports in the
distance ?'
'No.'
' Why, we heard them plainly and distinctly.'
' It was the echo,' said Ernest.
This remark nettled Jack a little, and he replied
rather sharply :
' No, Mr. Doctor, it wasn't the echo ; I think J
have fired cannon enough in my lifetime to know
whether that was an echo or not. We distinctly
heard three reports of a cannon, and we are
298 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
certain that some ship is sailing in this part of
the world.'
4 If there is really a ship on our coasts,' said I,
'who knows whether it is manned by Europeans
or by pirates ?'
Until we knew this we felt we should be on our
guard, so we took turns at watching, but the night
passed quietly away, and in the morning the rain
began again, and continued so violently during two
days that it was impossible for us to go out.
On the third day the sun reappeared. Fritz
and Jack, full of impatience, resolved to return to
Shark Island, and try a new signal. I consented ;
but instead of the cajack we took the canoe, and
I went with them. The others stayed at home.
On arriving at the fort we hoisted our flag, while
Jack, ever impatient, loaded a cannon and fired it ;
but scarcely had the report died away in the
distance, when we distinctly heard a louder
answering report in the direction of Cape Disap-
pointment or Prospect Bay.
Jack could not contain himself for joy.
' Men, men,' cried he, jumping in his excitement,
' are you sure of it now ?'
And his enthusiasm communicating itself to us,
we hoisted another and a larger flag on our flag
AN ENGLISH SHIP 299
stuff. Six other reports followed the first one we
had heard.
We felt it best to return to the shore, for from
the direction of the sound, the ship was probably
at anchor in Prospect Bay. The others had seen
our flags flying, and bombarded us with questions.
' Quick, tell us,' cried they, all at once, ' are they
Europeans ? English ? is it a merchant vessel ?
a steamer ?'
We could not answer ; we could only positively
say we were sure there was a ship of some kind.
My sons were half wild with joy ; and Emily
especially, giving rein to her imagination, assured
me that it was certainly her father come in search
of her.
As the shots had come from the direction of the
bay beyond Falcon's Nest, thither we all set out,
Fritz and I in the cajack, the rest by land.
Fritz and I went along fast, and when we
rounded the promontory we saw suddenly a fine
ship at anchor, with a long-boat at the side, and
an English flag floating at the masthead.
How can I describe what we felt ? After all
these years we were almost overcome at the idea
of again facing strangers. Fritz would have thrown
himself into sea and swum off to the ship ; but I
300 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
was afraid that, notwithstanding the English flag,
the vessel before us might be a pirate, which had
assumed false colours in order to deceive us. We
remained at a distance, not liking to venture nearer
until we were certain what ship it was. We could
see all that was going on. Two tents had been
raised on the shore, tables were laid for dinner,
meat was roasting before blazing fires, men were
running to and fro, and the whole scene had the
appearance of an organized encampment. Two
sentinels were on the deck of the vessel, and when
they perceived us they spoke to the officer on
duty who stood near, and who turned his telescope
toward us.
' They are Europeans, cried Fritz ; * you can
easily judge from the face of the officer.'
Fritz's remark was true ; but yet I did not
like to go too near. We remained in the bay,
manoeuvring our canoe, and I cried out through
my speaking-trumpet these three words, English-
men, good men / But no answer was returned ; our
cajack, and more than all, our home-made costumes,
I expect, made them take us for savages. Then the
officer made signs to us to approach, and held
up knives, scissors, and glass beads. This mis-
take made us laugh ; but we did not approach,
AN ENGLISH SHIP SOI
as we wished to present ourselves before him
better fitted out.
We hastened instead to land near Falcon's Nest,
where the others had already arrived. Every one
but myself and my wife was half mad with joy ;
they ran hither and thither, hardly knowing what
they did. As for myself, I scarcely wished to
renounce my life and my possessions, which had
cost me so much labour, and had become so dear
to me ; and neither my wife nor myself could
again consent to a sea voyage ; but all this was
merely a dream ; we as yet knew nothing about
the ship or its character.
We spent some time in preparing the pinnace,
and loading it with presents for the captain.
When we at last set off we sailed gallantly along,
Fritz preceding us as pilot. Ernest, Jack, and
Francis managed the boat, while I attended to
the tiller. As a precaution we loaded our
cannons and guns, and took with us all the
defensive arms that we could find, in case of
accidents.
When we drew near to the ship, a sensation of
joy was experienced by us all : my sons were
dumb with pleasure and eagerness.
'Hoist the English flag,' cried I, and a second
302 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
after, a flag similar to the one on the ship fluttered
from our masthead.
If we were filled with extraordinary emotions
on seeing a European ship, the English were not
less astonished to see a little boat with flowing sails
coming toward them. Guns were now fired from
the ship and answered from our pinnace, and join
ing Fritz in his cajack, we approached nearer.
The captain received us with that frankness and
cordiality that always distinguish sailors ; and I
went down with him to the cabin, where wine was
set out. He told us his name was Littelton.
I related to him as briefly as possible the history
of our shipwreck, and of our residence of ten years
on this coast. I spoke to him of Emily, and asked
him if he had ever heard of Sir Edward Mont rose.
The captain not only knew him, but said that it-
was a part of his instructions to explore these
latitudes, where, three years before, the ship Dorcas,
which had on board the daughter of Colonel
Montrose, was supposed to be wrecked, and to try
to discover whether anything concerning the vessel
or crew could be ascertained. He told me that a
storm lasting four days had thrown him off the
course, which he followed for Sydney and New
Holland ; and thus he had been driven on this
AN ENGLISH SHIP 303
coast, where he had renewed his wood and water.
1 It was then,' added he, ' that we heard the reports
of cannon, which we answered ; on the third day
new discharges convinced us that we were not
alone on the coast, and we resolved to wait until,
by some means or other, we discovered who were
our companions in misfortune. But we find an
organized colony and a maritime power, whose
alliance I solicit in the name of the sovereign of
Great Britain.'
We then went on deck, where he spoke kindly
to Emily, and told her that her father was alive
and well.
The captain had brought with him an English
family, consisting of Mr. Wolston, a distinguished
engineer, who had come in search of health, his
wife, and two daughters. They had all been much
upset during the storm, and gladly accepted our
invitation to spend the night with us at Cliff
House. The captain would have been pleased to
come too, but did not like to leave his ship.
It is difficult to express the astonishment which
was evinced by the Wolston family on seeing all
our arrangements. We showed them the giant-
tree of Falcon's Nest, and Cliff House, with its
rocky vault. We all had supper together in the
304 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
verandah at Cliff House, and then made up beds
for our guests.
The next morning Mr. Wolston came up to me,
and shaking my hand heartily, said, * I cannot
express all the admiration that I feel on seeing
what you have done. The hand of God has been
with you, and here you live happily, far away from
the strife of the world, alone with your family. I
came from England to seek rest : where can I find
it better than here ? I shall be the happiest of
men if you will allow me to establish myself in a
corner of your domains.'
I assured him that nothing would give me greater
pleasure.
He told his wife of my assent, and she was as
much pleased as he. But I was thinking of more
difficult problems. The ship was only the second
we had seen in ten years, and probably as long a
period might elapse before another appeared, should
we let Captain Littelton leave us, and not take
advantage of this opportunity to return to a
civilized country ?
My wife did not wish to go. I was myself too
much attached to my life to leave it, and we were
both at an age when hazards and dangers have no
attraction, and ambition has resolved itself into a
AN ENGLISH SHIP 305
desire for repose. But our children were young,
their life was just beginning, and I did not think it
right to deprive them of the advantages which
civilization and contact with the world presented ;
and then again, Emily, since she had heard that her
father was in England, naturally wanted to go to
him. So at last I decided to call everyone together,
and when they came I spoke to them of civilized
Europe, and I asked them if they wanted to go
with Captain Littelton, or would be content to pass
the remainder of their lives upon this coast.
Jack and Ernest declared that they would rather
stay. Ernest, the philosopher, had no need of the
world, and Jack, the hunter, found the domain of
Falcon's Nest large enough for his excursions.
Fritz was silent, but I saw by his face that he had
decided to go, so I asked him to say candidly.
He confessed that he had a great desire to return
to Europe, and Francis declared that he would
willingly go too.
At last, then, we were to be separated ; two of
our sons were about to leave us, and perhaps we
should never again see them. Elizabeth submitted
to the sad necessity ; she had a mother's objections,
but she studied the advantage of her sons.
Mr. Wolston was also separating from one of his
$06 THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON
daughters, who was going on to New Holland. All
this was very painful, and when we had made up
our minds, 1 hastened to tell Captain Littelton.
He readily consented to take three passengers.
* I am leaving three,' he said, ' Mr. and Mrs.
Wolston and one of their daughters ; so if I take
three more, it comes to the same thing.'
The Unicorn remained eight days at anchor, and
we employed them in preparing the cargo which
was to be the fortune of our boys on arriving in
Europe. All the riches that we had amassed
pearls, ivory, spices, furs, and all our rare produc-
tions were carefully packed and put on board the
ship, which we also furnished with meat and fruits.
On the eve of their departure I gave Fritz this
journal of our residence on the island, and told him
to have it published as soon after his arrival as he
possibly could.
We none of us slept much during the last night.
At the dawn of day the cannon of the ship an-
nounced the order to go on board. We went down
to the shore with our sons ; there they received
our last kissings and blessings.
The anchor has been weighed, and the flag run
up to the mast-head.
AN ENGLISH SHIP 307
I will not attempt to paint the grief of my dear
Elizabeth it is the grief of a mother, silent and
profound. Jack and Ernest are trying hard to
pretend they are not crying, though their eyes are
full of tears, and my own grief and heartfelt sorrow
is, I must confess, but badly concealed.
I finish these few lines whilst the ship's boat is
waiting. My sons will thus receive my last blessing,
May God ever be with them. Adieu I
THE END
