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SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON;
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THE ADVENTURES OF A FATHER AND HIS FOUR SOVE
ON A DESERT ISLAND.
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NEW YORK
LOVELL, CORYELL & COMPANY
310-318 SIXTH AVENUE
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Regent Loh, Hustard
11-4-1924
17
A SWISS PASTOR who had lost nearly his all in the Revolution
of 1798, had determined to emigrate to a newly discovered region
in the Southern Ocean, which has since been named Australia.
He contrived to save as much from the wreck of his property
as purchased some cattle and seeds to take out with him.
After a prosperous voyage to the Pacific Ocean, a violent storm
drove his vessel from its course, and finally wrecked it on an
uninhabited island near the coast of New Guinea. The SWISS
FAMILY ROBINSON is the journal kept by the good Pastor.
1

CHAPTER
CONTENTS.
L THE SHIPWRECK,
II. FIRST DAY ON LAND,
III. VOYAGE OF DISCOVERY.
IV. EXPEDITION TO THE VESSEL,
V. WHAT HAD HAPPENED DURING OUR ABSENCE,
VI. CHANGE OF RESIDENCE,
VII. THE REMOVAL,
VIII. CONSTRUCTION OF OUR HOUSE,
•
IX. A HOLIDAY,
X. THE SLEDGE,
XI. SECOND VOYAGE TO THE VESSEL,
XII. THIRD VOYAGE TO THE VESSEL,
XIII. BAKING,
XIV. THE PINNACE,
XV. THE CROCODILE,
XVI. THE HEATH-COOK,
XVII. LAST VOYAGE TO THE VESSEL,
XVIII. TRAINING OF ANIMALS,
.
•
XIX. THE WILD ASS,
XX. THE DRY SEASON,
XXI. THE COTTON PLANT,
XXII. THE ANNIVERSARY,
XXIII. ADVENTURES OF JACK,
XXIV. THE LOOM.
.
.
eise
.
.
PAGE
17
7
20
42
53
63
71
89
93
104
113
120
124
127
132
140
145
156
169
177
189
197
205
218
iv
CONTENTS.
CHAPTER
XXV. THE Ass,
XXVI. THE EXCURSION,
XXVII. THE VOYAGE TO THE HERMITAGE,
XXVIII. SUGAR MEADOW,
XXIX. WALK IN THE SAVANNAHS,
XXX. EXCURSION,
XXXI. AN OSTRICH,
XXXII. RETURN OF THE RAINY SEASON,
XXXIII. THE WILD BOAR,
XXXIV. DISAPPEARANCE OF FRITZ,
XXXV. HYENA, .
XXXVI. ELEPHANTS,
XXXVII. AFTER TEN YEARS,
XXXVIII. FRITZ'S VOYAGE,
XXXIX. THE ENGLISHWOMAN,
XL. FRITZ'S EXPEDITION,
XLI. THE CASTAWAY,
XLII. JENNY'S HISTORY,
XLIII. CONCLUSION.
PAGE
225
227
231
235
236
240
244
252
256
262
269
82763
282
290
292
296
305
814
818
THE
SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
CHAPTER I.
THE SHIPWRECK.
THE storm had lasted six days, and, far from
subsiding, seemed doubly furious. We
were driven so far to the south-west, out of our
route, that it was impossible to discover in what
latitude we were. The ship had lost her masts,
and was drawing water on all sides. We each
commended our souls to God, praying Him in
mercy to show us a way of escape.
(C
Children," said I to my four sons, who
gathered, weeping, round their mother, "God
can still save us, if such is His will, but if He de-
cide otherwise let us be resigned. At the worst,
we leave this world only to be re-united in a
better."
My wife, drying her tears, and forcing herself
to appear calm, tried to inspire the children with
courage and resignation. We knelt down and
prayed fervently.
All at once, above the roar of the wind and
2
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
waves, I heard, with a thrill of delight, the joy-
ful cry,
"Land! land!" At the same moment
we felt a shock, followed by a frightful crash; and
I knew, from the fixedness of the vessel, and the
dead sound of the waves breaking against her,
that we had been thrown upon the rocks.
"We are lost-lower the boats !" cried a voice
which I recognised as the captain's.
"Lost!" repeated the children, looking towards
me with terror.
"Take heart," said I; "do not despair. I
will go and see what can be done to secure our
safety."
I left the cabin and went on deck. Struck,
blinded, thrown down by the waves, it was
some time before I could distinguish anything.
When at last I had gained the higher part of the
vessel, I saw the boats had been launched, and
were already overloaded with the crew and pas-
sengers, who had eagerly crowded into them. A
sailor was just cutting the last rope! They had
forgotten us! I shouted to them; but my voice
was lost in the noise of the tempest, and I saw,
with horror, that we were abandoned with the
wreck. At the same time I discovered that the
vessel had been cast so high that the stern, in
which our cabin was situated, could not be
reached by the waves; and notwithstanding the
thick rain which fell, I could perceive, at some
distance, a shore, which, in spite of its bare and
LOST COMPANIONS.
desolate aspect, awoke some hopes of safety.
I returned to my wife and children, and affec-
ting a calmness I was far from feeling, said to
them :-
"Take courage; part of the vessel is, thanks
to God, firmly fixed. To-morrow the wind and
the sea will be calmer, and we may then gain the
land."
The children, with the confiding disposition of
their age, brightened up at my words; and their
mother, as the evening drew on, hastily prepared
a slight repast, of which they partook with a good
appetite, and having gone to bed, were soon fast
asleep. My wife and I continued all night watch-
ing, and passed most of our time in prayer.
Towards the morning I began to be conscious
that the storm was subsiding. As soon as day
dawned I went on deck. The wind was much
fallen, the sea was quieter, and the horizon was
glowing with the rosy tints of sunrise. Cheered
by the changed aspect of the sky, I called my
wife and sons. The latter were very much as-
tonished to find that we were the sole occupants
of the vessel.
"Where are the sailors?" they cried; "why
did they not take us with them? What is to
become of us?"
"My children," I answered, "our companions
have acted rashly. They crowded into the boats,
and pushed off without giving us a thought; and
4
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
I am afraid they have been drowned in the night.
However, the sky is now clear, and land is not
very far off; we may yet live to thank God that
we were left behind; let us, without delay, take
means to secure our safety."
"Father," said Fritz, "I have been thinking
how we could get to the land. If we had some
cork or bladders, we might make floats for my
mother and brothers; you and I could swim
without any help.”
"That is a good idea, my boy," I answered,
"only there are neither corks nor bladders in the
ship, I fear. We must see if we cannot find
some barrels, which will do as well."
""
Ernest, my second son, an intelligent, but a
timid and indolent boy of about twelve, was
alarmed at the idea of so precarious a voyage,
and suggested that we would be safer on a raft.
Well, let us make a raft with barrels," I said.
"I have no doubt there are plenty in the hold, if
we can but reach them." With some difficulty,
I succeeded in drawing four of them up to the
lower deck, which was nearly on a level with the
water. They were made of good strong wood,
and clasped with iron hoops. I began our work
by sawing them in two, with Fritz's help.
We arranged side by side the eight little tubs
thus obtained, leaving sufficient space between
them for seats; and finding a few slight planks
long enough to join them together, we nailed
THE RAFT.
10
them firmly down and fastened them by bolts.
We also nailed two planks along the entire length
on both sides, bending them at the ends. This
accomplished, we found ourselves in possession
of a boat, which, at least on a calm sea, would
be tolerably secure. We next tried to launch it,
but it was so heavy that our united efforts failed
to move it.
I called for a lever; and Fritz, who remem-
bered having seen one, went, with his two
brothers, to fetch it. With this instrument, I
raised our unwieldy contrivance, and when Fritz
had placed rollers under it, it was easily moved.
The children were amazed at the power of the
lever; and I promised to explain to them how it
worked at our first leisure hour, if we were spared.
In a few moments afterwards our boat slid from
the deck into the sea, and darted away so swiftly,
that we should have lost it, had I not taken care
to secure it by a strong cable to one of the pins
of the vessel. The children, when they saw it
afloat, shouted for joy. The raft rested on the
water, but in an unstable position for want of
ballast. Seeing this, I felt a momentary disap-
pointment, but soon provided a remedy.
I went myself to where I knew the provisions
were kept, to take some of them ashore with us
for immediate use, and put them in one of the
barrels. Fritz, by my directions, went to the am-
munition store, from which he brought rifles,
6
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
pistols, powder, balls, and shot. Ernest ran
sacked the carpenter's cabin, and came back
loaded with tools and nails. Little Francis, my
youngest child, anxious to make himself as useful
as the others, produced a box of fish-hooks. Fritz
and Ernest laughed at this trophy; but I told
them it was not to be despised; it might yet be
our only means of support. All these except the
last we stowed away in the barrels. As to Jack,
my third son, a lively frolicsome boy of ten, he
appeared leading by the ears two enormous dogs,
which had been shut up in the captain's cabin,
and were quite tamed by hunger. My wife re-
minded me that there was a cow, an ass, two
goats, and a pig on board; but these we were
unable to take with us. The only discovery
which struck me as being of little use was Jack's.
"You have brought us," I told him,
"two
enormous eaters, which will cost much, and be of
little service."
Father," he answered, "I thought they would
help us to hunt when we got ashore.”
"You are right," said I, "but we are not yet
ashore, and cannot find room for them just
now."
We still wanted oars. Ernest found four that
the sailors had left behind. Remembering that
savages, to preserve the equilibrium of their canoes,
use a kind of balance, I determined to follow their
example. I took two yards, and joined them to-
FIRST DAY ON LAND.
gether, so that they could turn freely towards
either end of the boat. To each of these poles I
tied a small empty barrel, which kept the boat
steady.
By the time all was adjusted, it was too late to
think of setting sail that day; we must pass an-
other night on the foundered vessel; but my wife
consoled us for this disappointment by a good
repast.
At length we all retired to rest-having first
commended ourselves to God-and slept well, for
the day had been a laborious one. That night
passed away without any accident.
CHAPTER II.
7
FIRST DAY ON LAND.
Ar break of day we were all awake; hope, like
sorrow, sleeps little. Morning prayers over, I said
to my children, "With God's help we will now
attempt our deliverance. Give the animals pro-
visions for several days; we will return and fetch
them if, as I hope, we succeed in saving our-
selves."
I took, in addition to what we had collected on
the previous day, as being most necessary, a bar-
rel of powder, one or two guns, several pairs of
pistols, some balls, along with lead and moulds
8
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
to enable us to make more. We were each pro-
vided with a bag of provisions. I took a case of
portable soup, a box of biscuits, a large pot, some
knives, hatchets, saws, pincers, nails, gimlets, and
some sailcloth for a tent. We had heaped so
many things together, that I was obliged to leave
much behind. We were just going on board when
we heard the cocks crowing, as if bidding us fare-
well. My wife thought we had better take them
with us, as well as the ducks, geese, and pigeons.
Accordingly, we put two cocks and a dozen hens
into one of the tubs, which I covered over with a
wooden grating. As for the geese, ducks, and
pigeons, I set them at liberty, trusting that their
own instinct would guide them to land.
The children were already embarked, in the
order I had assigned to them, when my wife came
from the hold of the vessel carrying a large sack,
which she threw into the tub where she had put
little Francis. I thought nothing of it at the
time, supposing that the careful mother was only
providing a more comfortable seat for her child.
When I had seen them all seated, I cut the
cable, and we rowed toward the shore. In the first
tub was my wife; in the second, Francis. Fritz
and I sat upon a rough plank which we had made
as a seat, to enable us to row. I gave Ernest one
of the oars for a helm. Jack was in the sixth
tub.
The dogs being too heavy to be allowed to
THE LANDING.
{
embark with us, we left them on the vessel.
When they saw that we were gone, they began
to howl piteously, but suddenly threw themselves
into the water, and soon rejoined us.
The sea swelled gently, the sky was clear, and
the sun was bright. We rowed along smoothly,
aided by the rising tide. Around us floated boxes
and barrels belonging to the wreck. Fritz and
I would fain have seized them, but we were
too heavily loaded already, and moved very
slowly.
We made the passage without accident; but
the nearer we drew to the land, the more barren
and desolate it appeared. All we could distinguish
was a range of naked grey rocks. Fritz, however,
thought he discerned clumps of palms. Ernest,
naturally fond of luxuries, was delighted with the
idea, for, judging from what he had read, cocoa
nuts, he thought, were much better than any
European nuts.
"How happy I shall be," cried little Francis.
On this a discussion arose amongst the children
about the nature of the trees which Fritz had
pointed out to them; and I was regretting that I
had not brought the Captain's telescope, when
Jack drew from his pocket a small perspective
glass he had found in the boatswain's room. I
turned towards the shore, and, forgetting the
point in question, I tried to discover a convenient
landing-place, and spied a creek, towards which
3.
9
10
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
the geese and ducks, having got ahead of us, were
directing their course.
"And the cocoas, papa; do you see them? ”
said Francis.
"Yes," I replied, smiling, "Fritz's eyes have
not deceived him. I can distinguish trees, even
at this distance, very like cocoas.'
"Oh, how delightful," cried he, clapping his
little hands.
"}
Hard rowing soon brought us ashore, and we
landed at the mouth of a little stream, where the
water was only deep enough to float our raft, and
where, the banks being low and shelving, it was
easy to leap out. The children sprang lightly
ashore, all excepting little Francis, who, in spite
of his impatience, could not leave his tub without
his mother's help. The dogs welcomed us by
barking and leaping for joy. The ducks and
geese, already at home on the banks of the stream,
mingled their salutations with the hoarse cries of
the penguins perched on the rocks, and the
screams of the flamingoes overheard. Francis, in
his delight at seeing them, forgot even the cocoas.
Our first care when we landed was to kneel
down and thank God, who had so mercifully pre-
served us, and ask Him to continue to us His
protection. I embraced my wife and children;
and my wife, with tearful eyes, said, "God is
good. He has still left us each other, and our dear
children."
MAKING BOUP.
11
We then began to unload the raft; and although
what we had been able to bring with us was in-
considerable, we thought ourselves rich in pos-
sessing it. Having chosen a convenient place, we
set about erecting our tent. I drove into the
ground one of the poles we had used to balance
the boat; to the top of this I fastened the second,
the other end of which rested in a cleft of the
rock. Over this I threw the sailcloth, which
I fastened to the ground with stakes, making it
more secure by lacing upon it our casks of pro-
visions, and other heavy objects. Fritz attached
hooks to the opening, so that we could shut our-
selves in at night.
I
I told the children to gather together, for beds,
all the dry herbs and moss. they could find.
While they were thus occupied, I constructed at
a little distance from the tent a sort of hearth, to
which I carried several armfuls of dry wood from
the banks of the stream, and we had soon a bright
crackling fire. My wife placed on it a large pot
full of water, into which I put some of the port-
able soup.
""
"What are you going to glue, papa," said
Francis, who mistook the soup in its solid form
for glue. His mother, smiling at the question,
told him I was making soup.
Soup made of glue!" said he, making a wry face.
"No, dear," said his mother, "good rich soup
made of meat.”
12
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
“Made of meat !" cried Francis; "then you are
going to the butcher's, mamma ?" His mother
explained to him that what he had mistaken for
glue was the juice of meat reduced to a solid state
by cooking. "It is used by sailors," she said, " in-
stead of fresh meat, which would not keep during
long voyages."
Fritz, who had loaded his gun, went higher
up the stream Ernest wandered in an opposite
direction along the shore. Jack amused himself
climbing the rocks in search of mussels. I was
pulling out of the water the casks we had towed
to shore, when I heard Jack screaming. Armed
with a hatchet, I ran in the direction in which
I heard his voice, and found him up to his knees
in the water.
(
Papa, papa," cried he, in a voice in which
triumph mingled, "make haste, I have caught
a large lobster."
"Well, bring it here."
"I cannot, papa; it has got hold of me."
"I could scarcely help laughing when I saw
this would-be conqueror held prisoner by his
captive; but there was no time to be lost in going
to his rescue. A large lobster held him by the
leg, and poor Jack struggled in vain to escape
from its pincers. When I waded into the water
it let go its hold and tried to make off, but I
caught it and brought it ashore. Jack, anxious
to show this prize to his mother, seized it with
13
both hands, but it gave him such a pinch that
he quickly let it go, and began to cry. I could
not restrain my inclination to laugh any longer;
but when I showed him that the best way to
secure his prisoner was to seize it by the middle
of the body, he was quite consoled, and ran away
triumphantly to his mother.
"Mamma! Francis! Ernest! Fritz! Where
is Fritz?" he cried, on arriving at the tent;
(C come, see a lobster! a lobster!'
CATCHING A LOBSTER.
Ernest, after gravely examining the animal,
gave it as his opinion, that it should be put
into the pot to improve our soup. His mother,
however, not quite persuaded of the excellence
of this receipt, preferred to cook it separately.
Ernest then told us that he also had made a
discovery.
"I saw some shell-fish in the water," said he,
"but I could not reach them without wetting
my feet."
"I saw them, too," said Jack disdainfully,
"but what of that? They were only bad mus-
sels, that no one could eat. They are not to be
compared to my lobster."
"Who knows," replied Ernest, "that they
are not oysters ? Indeed I am almost sure they
are, from the manner in which they are attached
to the rocks, and from the depth of water at
which they are found."
"Well, Mr Nicety," said I, "if you think they
B
14
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
are oysters, why did you not bring us some?
You were afraid of wetting your feet, you say;
remember that in our circumstances we must not
be too particular.
"I saw, besides," answered Ernest,
(C some
salt in a crevice of the rocks; I suppose it has
been formed by sea-water, being dried up by the
sun."
""
"Well," cried I, "you great discoverer, you
should have brought a whole sackful of it; go
and make amends for your negligence, or we
shall have very insipid soup."
Ernest ran off, and soon reappeared with the
salt, which, however, was so mixed with sand
and earth, that I was on the point of throwing it
away, when my wife stopped me. Melting it in
some water, she strained the water through a
piece of linen and seasoned the soup with it. I
told Ernest he should have been more careful in
gathering it. The soup was now ready, but
Fritz had not yet returned; and, besides, con-
templating the large boiling pot, we began to ask
how we were to partake of it. Must we lift this
great boiling pot to our lips each in turn, or must
we lift the soup in our hands? Our circum-
stances were not unlike those of the fox in the
fable, when the stork presented his food in a
bottle. Our situation was really laughable.
"If we had only some cocoa-nuts," said
Ernest, "we could make them into spoons."
·
15
"Yes," said I; "if to wish were to have, we
might instantly supply ourselves with beautiful
silver spoons.
We have not yet discovered
Fritz's cocoa trees; the rocks are between us and
them; we must think of something within our
reach."
8
ANOTHER CAPTURE.
"Could we not use oyster-shells?" replied
Ernest.
"A very good idea," cried I; "run and get some."
Ernest obeyed; but Jack, more active in his
movements, was already in the water when he
reached the shore. Jack separated them from
the rocks and threw them on the beach to Ernest,
who thus did not require to wet his feet. As
they returned, Fritz also reappeared. He came
forward with one hand behind his back, affecting
a dispirited air.
(C
"Have you found nothing?" I asked.
Nothing at all," he answered. But his
brothers, who crowded round him, snouted,
"Oh, a guinea-pig! Where did you find it? Let
us see it!"
Fritz then produced it proudly. I congratu-
lated him on his success; but at the same time
reprimanded him for the untruth he had told,
and which he thought was excusable as a joke.
He asked my pardon; and then related to us
how, when he had crossed to the other side of
the stream, he found that the country was much
more fertile than where we were.
"The vege-
16
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
tation there," he said, "is very luxuriant, and
besides, on that part of the beach the sea has
thrown up a quantity of boxes and casks and
other things from the wreck. We must not let
all these be lost. Let us go to the vessel and
bring the cattle on shore. The milk the cow
would give us would make our biscuits much
more palatable; and on the other side of the
stream there is plenty of fine pasture for her, as
well as large trees to shelter us. Let us go over
there, and leave this bare desolate shore."
"Patience, patience," said I. Everything
in its right time; to-morrow must follow to-day;
and first of all, have you seen any trace of our
unhappy companions ? '
"No, none.
Neither on shore nor on the sea.
I saw no living creatures, but a troop of animals
like the one I have brought. I think they are
guinea-pigs, but they must be of a particular
species, for they have feet like hares. They are
so tame that I could observe them quite near.
They frisk amongst the grass, and sit and eat
like squirrels."
(6
Ernest, with his most learned air, examined
the animal minutely, and then, on the authority
of his book of natural history, declared it to be
an agouti.
"Ah!" said Fritz, "listen to the sage who
tries to impose upon us; I am sure that is a
guinea pig."
*
17
"Do not speak so positively," I said to Fritz ;
"I never saw an agouti alive, but the animal
you have there answers to the description given
of it by naturalists. Besides being too large, its
flattened head, little ears, short tail, and thick
smooth hair, all forbid the idea of its being a
guinea-pig. It is like a large rabbit; and see
how sharp and curved its front teeth are. A
guinea-pig never had such teeth."
"
Father," said Ernest, "since the agoutis
are so tame, why could we not train them like
rabbits, and then we should have game without
hunting for it?”
"Yes, that would suit your indolence nicely,
my lazy Ernest; try it, if you like; the agouti is
not very difficult to tame. But I warn you they
will give you much more trouble than rabbits.
They are famous gnawers; nothing can resist
their teeth, however hard; I have heard of them
even gnawing through an iron wire cage. In
what kind of prison would you confine yours?"
Jack, while his brothers were listening to this
lesson in natural history, was trying hard to
open an oyster with a knife, but in spite of all
the wry faces he pulled and the great efforts he
made, he did not succeed. I showed him, how-
ever, that if laid upon hot coals they opened of
themselves.
THE AGOUTI.
66
Now, children," I said, "this is one of the
dainties most prized by gourmands." So saying,
18
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
I ate one; but Fritz and Jack, imitating my
example, declared them very bad; Ernest and
Francis agreed with them. No one cared to eat
any more; so we threw away all but the shells
of the others, and used them as spoons.
While we were making a good meal, the dogs,
which thought they could not do better than follow
our example, discovered Fritz's agouti, and began
to attack it. Perceiving this, Fritz was furious,
and the first thing he could lay hold of being his
gun, he struck them with it so violently as to
break it. Then, when they made their escape, he
threw stones after them so long as he thought he
could reach them.
This was not the first time that Fritz had given
way to passion. I reprimanded him severely for
this violent outbreak-which grieved me the more
as it was a very bad example for his brothers-
and showed him that, in the blindness of his rage,
he had not only completely destroyed his gun,
but also maimed the poor animals which would
be of the greatest service to us. He saw the
justice of the rebuke, and soon showed that he
was sorry for his fault. I pardoned him on con-
dition that he would make his peace with the
dogs. He took a bit of biscuit in each hand and
set off, soon reappearing with the faithful ani-
mals.
Ga
"Oh, father," he said, the tears standing in
his eyes, "they licked my hands before taking the
19
biscuit. How could I be so cruel to such good
creatures."
The sun was setting as we finished our repast.
The fowls and ducks gathered round us, and my
wife got them some corn from the bag I had
seen her throw into the tub Francis had oc-
cupied. I praised her forethought, but advised
that the birds be fed on biscuit crumbs, and that
the corn be kept for sowing. The pigeons went
to roost in the crevices of the rocks, and the
fowls on the top of the tent, while the ducks
sought shelter for the night among the rushes at
the mouth of the stream. We also made pre-
parations for repose. We loaded our arms and
placed them so as to be at hand in case of any
alarm; and having offered up our evening prayer,
we retired into the tent. To the great surprise
of the children, it was dark almost immediately,
from which I guessed we were somewhere near
the equator, or at least within the tropics.
I looked out once more before retiring to rest,
to make sure that all was right, and then closed
the entrance to our tent. It was a chill fresh
night, and the cold made us draw close together.
The children were soon asleep. My wife and I
had arranged that I should watch till midnight,
and that she should then replace me; but in-
sensibly sleep crept over me, and God alone
watched over us during the first night we passed
in this land of exile.
Kada
THE FIRST NIGHT ON SHORE.
20
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
CHAPTER III.
VOYAGE OF DISCOVERY.
My wife and I were early wakened the next morn-
ing by the crowing of the cocks. Our first care
was to deliberate on the day's work. She agreed
with me that we should first try to discover some
trace of our shipmates. We could, at the same
time, explore the country, and fix on some spot
on which to pitch our tent. It was arranged that
Fritz and I should go on this tour of discovery,
and that the other boys and their mother should
stay near the tent. The latter set about prepar-
ing breakfast, while I awoke the children, who
were all soon up, not even excepting Ernest. I
asked Jack what had become of the lobster. He
told me he had hid it in a crevice of the rocks, to
save it from the fate of Fritz's agouti.
CC
Well," said I, "you are not blind to your
own interests, and you have learned a lesson from
Fritz's experience. Will you let us take its claws
for food during the journey we are going to
make?"
'Oh, a journey! a journey!" cried all the
children at once; "take me, papa, take me!"
"It is impossible to take you all at this time,"
said I, we should get on so slowly; and if we
(6
THE START.
21
met with any danger, it would be difficult to de-
fend you all. Fritz and I will go alone with
Turk, and you will stay with your mother, and
keep Flora for protection."
Fritz, reddening, asked me if he might leave
his own gun, which he had spoiled, and take
another. I gave him permission, without seem-
ing to notice the confusion the remembrance of
his fault caused him. I made him take a pair of
pistols and a hatchet in his belt, and did the
same myself. We filled our bags with powder and
shot and provisions, taking, besides, a tin bottle
of water. Breakfast was now ready. It consisted
of the lobster, which, however, proved so hard
that the most cf it was left for us to take with us.
Fritz advised that we should set out before the
heat became very great.
"You are right," said I; "let us go; but stay,
we have forgotten something very important."
"What is it ?" he asked; "to kiss my mother
and brothers ?"
"It is to thank God," said Ernest.
"Yes, my dear Ernest, you have guessed
right."
I was interrupted by Jack, who, imitating the
ringing of a bell, cried, "Ding dong, ding dong!
to prayers! to prayers!"
"Naughty child," said I, "thus to ridicule
sacred things. Leave us; we will not admit you
to worship at all." Jack went away with a full
22
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
heart, and knelt by himself. After prayers he
came forward and promised me he should never
again commit the same fault. I kissed him
fondly, glad to pass by his thoughtlessness.
When I had reminded the children to be kind
and obedient to their mother, we set out, not
without tearful eyes and anxious hearts; for my
wife was afraid our adventure might be a danger-
ous one, and I was anxious about the safety of
the dear ones we were leaving. We proceeded at
a brisk pace, and before long the noise of the
stream drowned the farewells of those we had left
behind.
In order to cross the stream, we had to go
farther up its course, to a place where the steep
overhanging rocks made its bed considerably
narrower, and where it formed a waterfall. On
the opposite side, the country presented quite a
different appearance. We found ourselves first
amongst high dry grass, through which we found
it very difficult to make our way. We had gone
about a hundred steps, when we heard a rustling
behind us, and, turning quickly round, we saw
that something was moving the grass. Fritz
loaded his gun, and held himself ready, with his
finger on the trigger, to meet the intruder; but he
soon recognised Turk, whom we had forgotten.
and who now came to rejoin us. I patted the
faithful animal, and praised the presence of mind
which Fritz had shown in not being afraid of the
23
danger, and in not firing hastily before he had
distinctly seen who the supposed enemy was.
Continuing our course, we gained the sea shore,
which we scanned anxiously to discover some
traces of our shipmates; but all in vain. We
examined the sand to find, if possible, some foot-
prints; but we could see nothing. Fritz suggested
that we might fire our guns once or twice, so
that, if any of the castaways were in the neigh-
bourhood, they would be attracted to us.
"That is very well," I answered, "if we were
sure the noise would not attract bands of savages,
an encounter with whom would be anything but
agreeable."
"After all," said he, "I do not see why we
should trouble ourselves about those who so
heartlessly abandoned us."
"For several reasons," I answered: first, be-
cause it is contrary to the golden rule to render
good for evil; and, besides, we have as much
need of them as they have of us.”
"But, father, we are losing time in searching
for them, which might be better employed in
bringing ashore the cattle we left on the wreck."
"Of the two duties let us attend first to the
most important," said I. "The animals have food
enough to last them several days, and they are
in no danger from the sea, which is very calm."
We left the shore, and after going about two
leagues, always keeping a watchful eye around us,
SEARCH FOR THE LOST.
24
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
we entered a small wood. Having walked about
two hours, and the sun being now high, we rested
beside a small stream, which murmured gently,
while round us flew, chirped, and warbled, birds
of a beautiful bright plumage, quite unknown to
us. Fritz thought he saw a monkey amongst the
branches of the trees. I thought he was right,
for Turk began first to smell about, and then to
bark at something in that direction. As Fritz
went to see what it was, and walked along look-
ing up at the trees, he stumbled on something
round, all bristling with hair. He took it up
eagerly and brought it to me, saying that he
thought it must be the nest of some large bird.
"Your nest, my dear Fritz," I said, laughing
at his mistake, "is a cocoa-nut."
Fritz, however, with a self-confident spirit,
natural to youth, persisted in his opinion.
"There are many birds," he said, "that make
their nests round like that.”
That is true; but why do you speak so posi-
tively. Do you not remember having read that
the cocoa-nut is protected by a mass of fibres,
which, in their turn, are covered with a thin
brittle skin. The one you have found is evi-
dently old; the outer covering has been de-
stroyed by the air; if you lift those hairy fibres
you will see the nut." Fritz did so, and saw
that I was right. We then broke the shell, but
found the kernel dry and uneatable.
25
What," said Fritz, "is that the fruit that
the learned Ernest praised so much? I expected
to find a delicious milk in it."
THE COCOA.
"You would have done so had this nut not
been so perfectly ripe; but as the nut ripens, the
milk thickens and forms a kernel, which becomes
dry and hardens, unless the fruit falls into a soil
where it can germinate, in which case it breaks
the shell to give birth to a new tree."
"What!" said Fritz, very much astonished,
"has the kernel power to break through a shell
so solid as that is ?"
*C
Yes," said I; "have you never seen a peach
stone open in the same way? yet it is very hard.'
"But peach stones are naturally formed of two
parts, which the kernel separates when softened
by the moisture.”
I told him he was right, but that the cocoa
germinates in a different way. I showed him
three little holes near the end of the nut. "These
openings," I said, "are closed, as you will see, by
a softer substance than that of which the rest of
the shell is composed. It is by these that the
germs of the stalk and the roots find there way
out." I was glad to see that my son listened
with great interest to these lessons on the wisdom
of nature's laws. We now started afresh on our
journey, keeping still across the wood. We were
often obliged to cut a road with our hatchets
through the luxurious undergrowth which formed
26
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
a network on our path. We discovered strange
unknown plants and trees at every step. Fritz,
who thought every one stranger and more beauti-
ful than another, suddenly exclaimed:-
"Oh! papa! what are those trees with wens on
their trunks ?”
I recognised the calabash, which, twisting its
flexible stem round the trunks of other trees,
forms on them a species of excrescence, with a
hard dry rind. These gourds are useful for
making plates, bowls, bottles, or spoons. I told
Fritz that the savages make use of them even for
boiling water or cooking food. He was very
much astonished that such utensils could stand
the fire. I then explained to him that they were
not put upon the fire, but that the water was
heated by red-hot pebbles, which were thrown into
it.
“Oh! is that all ?" cried he; "the plan is so
simple that I would have found it out with very
little reflection."
"Yes," said I, "you would have found it out,
just as the friends of Columbus discovered how to
make an egg stand on end after he had told them.
The most simple ideas are often those most diffi-
cult to discover."
While speaking, we had each taken a calabash,
and were trying to convert them into some useful
utensil. Fritz tried to cut his with his knife, but
failing, threw it away impatiently. Tying a cord
27
round mine, I tightened it gradually till it cut the
gourd through, and I had two bowls of equal size.
"I own," said Fritz, "that I could not have
been so ingenious."
"I do not claim credit for the invention," I an-
swered; "I have only put into practice what I
remember having read the savages, who have no
knives, do."
THE CALABASH.
Fritz wanted to know how the gourds could be
made into bottles. "I understand," he said,
"how, when the calabash is dried, the pith may
be extracted by a hole; but is there no way of
making them into a more convenient shape, and
giving them a neck ?"
I told him that to form a neck, while the fruit
is still young, the upper end of it is bandaged
tightly round with linen or bark, which prevents
its further growth, while the other part is allowed
to grow freely. Fritz took courage from my suc-
cess, and we made a good many bowls, which I
placed in the sun to dry, filling them with sand
to prevent them shrivelling up too much; and,
marking the spot where we left them, so as to
be able again to find it, we went on our way.
We tried to manufacture some spoons as we went
along; and although they were very clumsy pro-
ductions, they were a great improvement on the
oyster-shells we had used the previous evening.
Fritz leapt with joy: "Plates, cups, and spoons!
Ah! how delighted mamma will be!" Then.
28
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
thinking of little Francis, he cried, "Let us look
out a small calabash; our spoons would hurt his
little mouth; I will make him a small one for
himself."
One kind thought always gives birth to another;
so Fritz also made two large bowls, one for each
of the dogs. When they were finished, he made
a kind of soup for Turk in one them, of a biscuit
and some fresh water. Turk showed his delight
by licking Fritz's hand, and doing full justice to
the unexpected meal. Having walked about
three hours longer, we came to a tongue of land
which ran out into the sea; on it rose a hill, which
we climbed with difficulty. The view from the
top was very extensive, and showed us a beautiful
rich country all around; but no trace could we
discover of our shipwrecked companions, nor
anything to lead us to suppose that the country
was inhabited. At our feet lay the calm sea,
forming a large bay, the shores of which were
covered with a rich vegetation, and which stretched
away into the blue distance. This sight would
have filled me with joy had not the fate of our
companions weighed heavily upon me. Never-
theless, I could not help feeling glad that the fer-
tility of the land promised so well for our com-
fort.
،،
Come," said I; "we are destined to be lonely
colonists. God has decided thus. Let us sub-
mit cheerfully and bravely to his will."
THE SUGAR-CANE.
29
"Bah!" said Fritz, "who knows, if we may
not, like the old patriarch of whom the Bible
speaks, be the founders of a great nation."
The idea of an Abraham of fifteen made me
smile; and the sun being very hot at the time, I
told Fritz to follow me to the shelter of a wood
at some distance off.
For," I said, “my poor
Fritz, it would be a pity to allow ourselves to be
burnt up before having fulfilled our patriarchal
destiny."
"My dear father," said Fritz, throwing his
arms round my neck, "I only wished to cheer
you a little. As for us boys, we have no reason
to complain; where you and my mother are, we
must be happy. We are growing fast, and will
soon be able to relieve you of all trouble."
The dear child! his heart was older than his
years. Clasping him in my arms, I thanked God
for having given me such a son.
To get to the wood we had to cross a field of
reeds so thick and entangled, that it was with
difficulty we got along. Thinking it was a likely
place for reptiles to lurk in, I cut one of the reeds,
with which to defend us, should we encounter
any. As I cut it I felt that my hand was covered
with a glutinous liquid; when I had tasted this
liquid I was convinced that we were in a natural
plantation of sugar-cane. I said nothing of it to
Fritz, however, anxious that he should make the
discovery for himself. He was walking before
C
CC
30
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
:
me; and I told him he had better cut a reed also;
it would be a better defence against serpents than
either our pistols or knives. He obeyed, and 1
soon heard him crying with transport, "Oh!
sugar-canes! sugar-canes! what an exquisite
juice! what a delicious syrup! how delighted my
mother and brothers will be! and Mr Ernest, for
once, will want nothing to complete his happi-
ness!" He broke his reed in several places, and
sucked the juice eagerly.
“I should like," he said, "to carry some of these
to my mother and brothers, as well as a few to
refresh ourselves on the way." I advised him
not to take too many, for we had still a long way
to go; but he cut a dozen of the largest canes,
and stripping them of their leaves, carried them
under his arm. We had scarcely entered the
palm wood when a troop of monkeys, startled by
our footsteps and Turk's barking, rushed up the
trees, where they sat grinning and chattering at
us. Fritz, without a moment's reflection, threw
down his bundle of canes and seized his gun, but
I stopped him.
Why would you kill the animals ?”
"Monkeys," he said, "are wicked, silly an-
imals. Just look how they are showing their teeth
at us."
(C
•
"Yes, but they are enraged, and not without
reason. We have intruded upon them; do not
let us unnecessarily kill any creature. It is sad
31
enough that man is already at war with most of
the animals. Leave the monkeys alone; they may
yet be useful to us."
"Useful," repeated Fritz, astonished; "mon-
keys useful! And how, I should like to know ?"
“You will see,” I said.
PELTED WITH COCOA-NUTS.
I threw some stones at them, when, obeying
their natural imitative impulse, they seized
some cocoa-nuts and threw them back in re-
turn. Not being very well aimed, we did not
find much difficulty in avoiding these missiles.
Fritz was very much amused by the success of
my ruse.
"Thanks, Messrs Monkey," he cried,
hiding behind the trees, "many thanks!
"}
When the shower was over, he gathered as
many as he could carry, and we sat down, out of
reach of the monkeys, to regale ourselves with
them. We first made openings at the softer
places near the end of the nuts, by which to
drink the milk; but we were disappointed in the
excellence of the liquid. The cream, which we
found when we broke the shell, we thought much
better. We supped it with our spoons, sweeten-
ing it with the juice of the sugar canes.
Thanks
to this delicious windfall, Fritz threw the re-
mainder of the lobster and our biscuits to Turk,
who, however, found it necessary to supplement
this poor fare with some canes and cocoa-nuts.
Refreshed by our repast, we proceeded on our
homeward journey, I carrying a string of cocoa-
32
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
nuts tied together by their stalks, and Fritz the
remainder of the sugar-canes. Fritz soon tired
of his load. He changed it from one shoulder to
another, and from one arm to the other. At last
he said, impatiently, "Really, I did not think
those canes would be so much trouble; still I
should like to carry some to the tent to my mo-
ther and brothers."
"Have patience," I said; "your bundle may be
compared to the panniers of bread that Esop
carried, which became lighter with every step.
Yours also will be considerably diminished before
we rejoin the others. Let us take one each; they
will do equally well as pilgrim-staffs, or as hives
of portable honey. Tie the others together, and
sling them across your back with your gun."
Remember," I added, "that henceforth we will
often have to draw on our imagination to relieve
the tedium of this deserted land." As we went
along I often tasted my cane, and Fritz, trying
to imitate me, found he could not extract any
juice whatever. He asked me what was the
reason.
"Reflect a little," I said, "and I am sure you
will find out."
It soon occurred to him that he must make an
opening above the first knot of the cane to let in
the air. This done, he found no difficulty in re-
freshing himself as much as he wished with this
delicious beverage. He drew my attention, how-
83
ever, to the fact that, if we continued to use them
as we were doing, very few of the canes would
reach the tent.
DEATH OF A MONKEY.
"Do not allow that to distress you," I said,
"for the juice will not keep sweet long, especially
when it is exposed to the sun. The heat makes
it ferment. As we have still a considerable dis-
tance to walk, the probability is that by the time
we reach the tent our canes will be full of a very
bitter juice."
"At any rate,” replied Fritz, "they will taste
the cocoa milk, for I have taken some in my tin
flask."
66
"Yes," said I, "but you must know, that when
taken out of the nut it very soon ferments also,
and becomes very bitter. You may be disap-
pointed in it also."
Fritz took out his bottle, but when he removed
the cork it escaped by the neck, effervescing like
champagne. We tasted it, and found it very de-
licious. Fritz was so delighted with it, that I
warned him to be moderate, lest it should go
to his head. Very much refreshed, we walked
on more briskly, and soon returned to the
place where we had left our calabash dishes.
We found them quite dry, and took them with
us.
A little farther on Turk ran barking at a troop
of monkeys, which had not been aware of our
approach. They all made off and escaped but
34
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
one, which tried to take its young one with it,
but which fell a victim to its maternal care.
Fritz ran off to save it, throwing down in his
haste his bottle and sugar canes, and losing his
hat besides; but he was too late; the poor beast
was already dead, and almost half devoured.
The young ape, in its fright, had taken refuge in
a tuft of grass, and sat contemplating the sad
sight, grinding its teeth.
Whenever he saw Fritz, with one bound he
seated himself on his shoulders, and clung to him
so tightly, that, notwithstanding all his efforts,
the poor boy could not disengage himself from
its hold. He was sorry for the little innocent
thing, who did not intend to hurt him, but only
to seek his protection from the dreadful enemy
that had made it an orphan. Greatly amused at
Fritz's embarrassing position, I petted the little
monkey, and soon coaxed it to loosen its hold.
It lay in my arms just like a child.
"Poor little creature," I said,
"what can we
do with you? We must think seriously before
adding another useless eater to the number of
our family."
But Fritz interrupted me. Oh, papa, do
keep it! pray, do keep it! It will die if we
abandoned it. Let me adopt it. I have read
that monkeys, guided by their instinct, can dis-
tinguish between the fruits that are good to eat
and those that are poisonous; if such is the
((
35
case, we need not hesitate to keep this little one;
it will be very useful to us."
Well, my child, I see you are prompted
both by a good heart and by wise considera-
tions. I consent to the adoption of your little
protége; but remember you must train it up
well, so that we shall never be forced to part
with it."
CC
THE ORPHAN MONKEY.
"Mr Turk," said Fritz, addressing him
solemnly, and pointing to the little ape, "you
have made this poor little innocent an orphan;
you have killed its mother; and I pardon you
only because you are without reason. But look
at this little monkey, and promise me to love
and respect it in future. It is too young, for-
tunately, to understand all the wrong you have
done. If you are honest and repentant, I pro-
mise you such good fare as will for ever disgust
you with such abominable meals of raw flesh."
Turk lay down at Fritz's feet, as if he under
stood the gravity of this discourse, and looked
from his young master to the little animal that
Fritz was caressing, as if to say that henceforth
the little monkey would be sacred in his eyes.
This done, the little animal again established
itself on Fritz's shoulder, and sat there with as
much confidence as if it had long been accus-
tomed to it. It was very much afraid whenever
Turk came near, and tried to hide in Fritz's
arms. Fritz then hit upon a curious idea.
36
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
To assure himself of the complete repentance
of the guilty dog, he again addressed Turk.
"You wicked animal," said he, "make amends
for your fault. You have deprived this little
orphan of its mother and guardian; it is only
just that you should fill its place." Passing
a cord round Turk's neck, he made the little
monkey, whom he had set down on the dog's
back, hold the other end. After a little coaxing,
Turk submitted with a tolerably good grace, and
the little animal, completely reassured, seemed to
find his seat very comfortable.
"Now," said I,
(6
we have all the appearance
of jugglers going to a fair. How astonished your
brothers will be to see us arrive with this equi-
page."
"Yes," said Fritz, "and Jack, who likes so
much to pull faces, will now have a teacher."
"Do not speak so of your brother," said I;
"those who love each other and live together,
should not remark on one another's faults. Mu-
tual forbearance is a great help to union and
happiness. We have all our share of faults and
shortcomings."
Fritz acknowledged that he had spoken with-
out reflection, and hastened to turn the conver-
sation. He was led naturally to speak of the
cruelty of the Spaniards, who, when they dis-
covered America, trained dogs to hunt the poor
natives, and tear them in pieces as Turk had
RETURNING LOADED.
37
done the poor monkey. I then told him all I
knew about the habits of monkeys. These con-
versations helped greatly to shorten the way;
and before long we found ourselves in the midst
of our friends, who had come to the banks of the
stream to meet us. The dogs saluted each other
when still some distance off, by barking. The
tumult so frightened the poor little monkey, that
it again sought refuge on Fritz's shoulder, and
could not be persuaded to leave it. When the
children saw us, they shouted with joy; but
when they saw the little animal which clung
trembling to its protector, they cried---
"Oh! a monkey! a monkey! Where did you
find it? How did you catch it? How pretty
it is!"
Then seeing our provisions: "What are these
rods and large balls that papa is carrying?"
They so deluged us with questions, that we
could not answer one half. When I had had
time to take breath, I said, "Yes, thank God,
we are returned safe and sound, and have
brought you all sorts of good things. But what
we went in search of, alas! we have not found.
There is not the smallest trace of our compan-
ions." To relieve ourselves, we then distributed
our loads among the children.
Ernest took the cocoa-nuts, which, however, he
had not yet recognised. Francis carried the
calabash utensils, which were greatly admired,
2
38
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
Francis declaring that he liked his little spoon
better than his old silver one. Jack took my
gun, and his mother my bag. Fritz, distributing
his sugar-canes, and replacing his little charge
on Turk's back, presented Ernest with his gun.
The latter took it, remarking, however, that it
was dangerous to carry with such heavy loads.
His mother, understanding the hint, relieved him
of the cocoa-nuts, and the little procession wound
its way back to the tent.
"Ah," said Fritz, "if Ernest only knew
what those are that he let mamma take from
him, he would not have given them up so wil-
lingly. These are cocoa-nuts!"
"Cocoa-nuts!" cried Ernest,
.. cocoa-nuts!
Oh, mamma! give me them back, please, I can
carry both the gun and them quite easily."
CC
No, no," replied his mother, "you com-
plained of their weight, and you cannot have
them now."
"I promise you, I will not complain," said
Ernest; besides, I can throw away these long
rods, and carry the gun in my hand."
“You had better not," said Fritz, "these rods
are nothing less than sugar canes, and I am
going to teach you all how to drink the sweet
juice they contain."
"C
Yes, yes," cried all the children at once,
“let us taste the sugar canes.”
As Fritz and his brothers walked before, dis-
ROAST PENGUIN.
39
cussing the excellence of this new luxury and the
best mode of enjoying it, I satisfied my wife's
curiosity about the incidents of our adventure.
Nothing we had brought gave her so much
pleasure as the dishes we had manufactured from
the calabashes. Though very imperfect, there
was no doubt they would be really useful to us.
When we arrived at the tent, I was glad to see
all ready for a comfortable repast. On the fire
was the large pot full of savoury soup; at one
side was a spit with fish, at the other a goose
roasting, the gravy of which was gathered in a
large shell; near was a cask of good Dutch
cheese; all promised well for the satisfaction of
our appetites, which the fruits we had fallen in
with on our way had rather staved off than
satisfied. I advised, however, that we should let
our fowls multiply before beginning to kill any of
them.
"Keep yourself easy," said my wife, "our
farm-yard has not supplied any part of our meal.
The fish were caught by Francis; and the roast
was provided by Ernest, who gives to his game a
very singular name.”
"I gave it its true name," answered the young
naturalist, "I call it a stupid penguin. I am
sure I am not wrong; the bird let me come close
up to it and kill it with a stick. Besides, it has
a webbed foot with four toes, and a long, strong,
curved beak; all agreeing perfectly with the
40
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
description the naturalist Franklin gives of the
penguin."
I praised the young philosopher for making so
good a use of what he read; and we all seated
ourselves in a circle on the sand, and began our
repast, each using a calabash bowl and spoon.
While waiting for the soup to cool, the children
broke some of the cocoa-nuts, and drank the
milk eagerly. After the soup we attacked the
fish, which were rather dry, and the penguin had
a strong oily taste; nevertheless, we were thank-
ful for such good cheer. A good appetite makes
a good dinner.
The monkey, as was to be expected, was the
object of general attention. The children dipped
the corners of their handkerchiefs in the cocoa
milk, and made him suck it. This he seemed to
enjoy very much; and we thought we should not
have much difficulty in bringing him up. We
agreed to call him Knips. Fritz asked us to
taste his cocoa champagne.
"Taste it yourself
first," said I, "and see if it is worth offering us."
He did so, but pulled a dreadfully wry face,
and cried, "Pooh! it is as sour as vinegar."
"I warned you of that," said I;
"but never
mind; it's an ill wind brings good to no one; the
vinegar we can take as a sauce to this dry fish."
I showed them an example by taking some
on my plate, and we all agreed that the cocoa
vinegar was not to be despised. By the time we
41
ENCOUNTER WITH JACKALS.
finished our repast, the sun was disappearing
under the horizon; so we had evening prayers,
and retired to our bed in the tent. Knips was
appointed a place between Fritz and Jack, who
called him their son, and covered him well in
from the cold.
After reconnoitring, as on the previous evening,
to be sure there was no enemy lurking near us, I
also lay down and slept amongst them. I had
not, however, been long asleep, when I was
startled by the dogs barking furiously, and by a
disturbance amongst the fowls perched on the
top of the tent. I sprang to my feet, and went
out, followed by my wife, and by Fritz, who was
not so sound a sleeper as his brothers. We each
seized some kind of weapon. The bright moon-
light showed us the dogs fighting desperately
against about ten jackals. The brave animals
had already stretched three of the jackals dead
on the ground, but they must have yielded to
superior numbers had we not come to their aid.
Fritz and I fired together and killed two of them,
and the others, frightened by the report of the
guns, made off. Fritz dragged the one he had
shot into the tent, to show in the morning to
his brothers, whom neither the firing of the guns
nor the barking of the dogs had wakened. We
lay down once more to sleep, and were not dis-
turbed again that night.
42
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
CHAPTER IV.
EXPEDITION TO THE VESSEL.
In the morning, I consulted my wife as to the
best way of spending the day. "My dear," I
said, "there are so many important things to
be done, that I scarcely know what to do first.
One consideration is, that if we wish to save the
cattle and a number of other useful things, we
must make a voyage to the ship. Then, again,
we are in great need of a more comfortable
dwelling. We have no want of work."
"Do not distress yourself," she answered;
"patience and perseverance will overcome all
obstacles. Your own courage, aided by brave
children like ours, will accomplish all. I must
confess that I cannot see you return to the vessel
without anxiety; but if it is necessary-and I
think with you that it is-I will not oppose it."
Fritz was the first to appear; and while his
brothers were rubbing their eyes, he hastened to
drag the dead jackal to the door, so as to see the
surprise the sight of it would cause them. He
had not, however, thought of the dogs, who,
thinking it was alive, pounced upon it; and he
had the greatest difficulty in driving them away.
This unusual scuffle hastened the appearance of
43
the little idlers. They came one by one; Jack
with Knips on his shoulders, who, however,
when he saw the jackal, scampered back into the
tent and hid amongst the moss which made up
our beds, showing only his little nose.
"A wolf!" cried Jack. "Are there wolves in
our island ?"
'No," said Ernest, "it is a fox."
"No," said little Francis, "it is a yellow
dog."
"Ah! ah! Mr Ernest," answered Fritz, in
a mocking tone, "you recognised the agouti, but
this time your science is at fault.
What! you
take that for a fox ?"
Yes," answered Ernest, "I think it is a
golden fox."
"Ah, a golden fox!" cried Fritz, laughing.
Poor Ernest! his pride was hurt, and the
tears came into his eyes. "You are unkind,"
he said to his brother; "I may be mistaken, but
did
you know the animal's name yourself before
papa told you ?"
66
((
CC
THE DEAD JACKAL.
"Don't quarrel about trifles," said I, "and
before you laugh at your brother as in the
wrong, allow me to tell you, my dear Fritz, that,
according to the naturalists, the jackal partakes
of the nature at once of the wolf, the fox, and
the dog. It is even pretty generally admitted
that the dog may be originally descended from
the jackal.
Therefore Ernest is not far wrong
44
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
in calling it a fox, and neither are Jack and
Francis, who took it, the one for a wolf, and the
other for a dog."
This dispute settled, I called my children to
prayer, reminding them that we should begin the
day with God. Our next care was breakfast, for
children always rise with an appetite; so we
visited the biscuit and cheese barrels. As we
were doing so, Ernest had been anxiously
examining one of the other casks, and suddenly
exclaimed-
"Oh, papa, how much nicer the biscuits would
taste, if we could have some butter to them."
""
Oh, those eternal 'if's' of yours," said I;
you only tantalize us with speaking of things
which there is no possibility of our getting. Can
you not be content with good cheese?"
"I do not say I am not content," replied
Ernest; "but I wish some one would open this
barrel."
""
"What barrel ?"
This one. I am sure it is full of butter,
for there is a kind of greasy substance oozing
through it all round, which smells like butter."
Having assured ourselves that Ernest was
right, we made an opening with a knife, by whica
to extract the butter without destroying the
barrel. It tasted so well, that our breakfast was
greatly improved by it.
The dogs, tired with their battle, slept quietly
45
beside us. I noticed they had not come quite
scatheless through the combat with the jackals,
for they had both large wounds in their necks.
My wife washed some of the butter in fresh
water to remove the salt, and applied it to the
wounds. They submitted quietly to have them
dressed, and then began to lick one another,
which made me hope that before long they would
be quite healed.
"It is important," said Fritz, "that, in
future, our dogs should be protected by spiked
collars."
LAUNCHING THE RAFT.
“Oh!” said Jack, "if mother would help me, I
would undertake to make them good strong ones.'
"With all my heart," said his mother; "I
will put myself entirely at your service; we shall
see if your idea is a good one.”
Yes, my child," said I, "bend your mind to
it, and if your project is at all a practicable one,
we will all help you to work it out. As to you,
Fritz, you must get ready to go with me to the
vessel. Your mother and I both think we should
go to-day."
(C
""
We soon launched our boat of tubs. Before
leaving we arranged that my wife should hoist,
as a signal on the shore, a piece of sailcloth on
a pole. As a signal of distress, she was to re-
verse it, and fire three shots. She courageously
granted us permission to remain all night on
board if we should find it was more convenient
D
46
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
to do so, in which case we were to light lanterns
to show that all was well with us. Remembering
that there were still some provisions on the wreck,
we carried nothing but our arms, and the little
monkey, which I allowed Fritz to take with him,
that it might have some goat's milk. Having
bidden farewell to those left behind, and com-
mended them and ourselves to God's keeping, we
set out on our expedition. Fritz rowed vigour-
ously, and I did my best to help by directing our
awkward craft. When we had got a little way
out to sea, I noticed another streamlet, larger
than the one on whose banks we had established
ourselves, and also emptying itself into the bay.
I conjectured that the stream, on falling into the
sea, would create a current, which, if we took
advantage of it, might aid us greatly in getting
to the vessel. I was not deceived, for we soon
found ourselves floating out to our destination
almost without effort on our part. A few strokes
with our oars brought our voyage to a happy con-
clusion. We disembarked, and fastened our raft
securely to the opening in the ship's side I had
made when we first left it.
Fritz's first care was the animals, which wel-
comed us, each in its own way, and seemed really
glad to see us. We gave them some food and
fresh water, and then easily procured ourselves a
good meal, for the vessel had been stocked for a
long voyage.
47
Fritz brought his little monkey to the goat,
and it drank the milk, and seemed to enjoy it
much.
CONSTRUCTING A SAIL.
"What shall we do
"Let us see," said I."
first?"
"I think," said Fritz, "we should begin by
making a sail for our boat."
I did not at first see that this was a very
urgent necessity; but Fritz said that, when mak
ing our way over to the vessel, he had remarked
a wind blowing against us, which would have
hindered us very much had we not been aided by
the current, but which might help us very materi-
ally by means of a sail, on our return voyage.
The difficulty of making our way home, with only
our oars to depend upon, would be further in-
creased, he remarked, by the heavy load we should
have to carry. Convinced of the importance of
these considerations, I set to work, and soon.
found two poles, one large enough for a mast,
and a thinner one for a cross spar; and to these
I fastened the sail. Fritz meanwhile nailed a
thick plank into one of the tubs, and made a hole
in it, in which to fix the mast. I then fixed
pulleys to the corners of the sail, to facilitate its
management. As a finish, Fritz hoisted a piece
of red cloth on the top of the mast, and was very
much delighted to see it floating on the wind.
Smiling at his glee, I took out the telescope
I had found in the captain's room, and, turning
48
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
BELLA BOTA A
it towards the land, reassured myself of the safety
and welfare of our dear ones. It was already
getting late, and it soon became evident that we
could not return that night. The rest of the
day we employed in removing from the vessel all
kinds of useful things, and loading our tubs
with them.
In making provision for a long sojourn on this
deserted land, I gave the preference to tools,
which might aid us in our efforts to make a com-
fortable home for ourselves, and to firearms,
which were necessary for defence.
The vessel, which had been destined to found a
colony in some of the South Sea Islands, was more
fully provided with useful implements, and with
all sorts of provisions, than it would have been
for an ordinary voyage; we had only, therefore,
to choose amongst a multitude of useful objects.
Of these I did not forget spoons, knives, plates,
pots and pans, Fritz even taking possession of
a service of silver plate, belonging to the captain,
as well as some bottles of wine and liqueurs, and
a few Westphalian hams. These luxuries, how-
ever, did not make us despise sacks of corn,
maize, and other grain; and we were glad to
possess ourselves of a compass, and some garden-
ing tools, also a few guns and pistols. We took
also hammocks, blankets, cord, and sailcloth,
and even a small barrel of sulphur, of which to
make matches, those we had being pretty nearly
49
exhausted. I thought our provision was already
complete; when Fritz appeared with another
package.
"My dear child," I said, "we shall be obliged
to leave that; we have no more room; it is too
large, and looks heavy.
((
Oh, papa," said Fritz, "let me take this
packet; it is the captain's books; books of science
and natural history; journals of voyages, and a
Bible. Ernest and mamma will be so pleased."
A NIGHT IN THE TUBS.
"Dear child," I said, "you are right; the food
of the mind is as necessary as that of the body;
your package will be a treasure to us."
Our boat was now so loaded that the water
was washing up to the edge; had the sea not
been so perfectly calm, I should have been
obliged to lighten it. As it was, we secured our-
selves against accident by tying on some cork
floats we had found. Night was already coming
on. A large fire blazing on the shore assured
us that all was right with our friends. In answer
to this signal, we suspended three lighted lamps
to the stern of the vessel; and the report of a
gun let us know that our signal also was observed.
Our preparations were soon made for passing
the night in our tubs. We did not think it safe
to remain on the vessel, for the slightest breeze
might at any moment break it up and place us
in danger of our lives. Fritz was soon asleep, in
spite of the discomforts of his temporary bed.
50
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
As for myself, I did not shut an eye; anxiety
about those we had left on land, as well as for
our own safety, kept me wakeful.
As soon as the day dawned, I mounted the
deck of the vessel, and turned my telescope
towards the shore. I saw my wife come out of
the tent, and gaze towards the vessel. I hoisted
a flag on the mast, and, to show that she under-
stood my signal, she raised and lowered her flag
three times. "God be praised," I cried; “all
our dear ones are safe. Now for the best way to
get our cattle safely ashore."
"Let us make a raft," said Fritz.
I showed him the trouble such a piece of work
would cost us, and the difficulty, not to say
impossibility, of guiding it in the water.
Well," he said, "if the animals are thrown
into the water, they will swim ashore. The pig,
especially, with its great fat body, will have no
difficulty in keeping afloat."
<<
፡፡
Yes, but I would more willingly sacrifice it
than any of the others. How do you think the ass,
the cow, the goat, and the sheep, would come on ?"
"But," replied Fritz, why could we not
make floats for them as we have for ourselves?
It would be delightful to see them all swimming
ashore with their help."
"Bravo! my boy; your suggestion, though
droll, is yet practicable. Let us go to work im-
mediately, and try one of the animals."
(C
51
We took one of the sheep, and tying round its
body a pair of floats, threw it into the sea. The
poor trembling thing disappeared below the
water, but soon rose to the surface, and, reassured
by feeling the support of the floats, ceased strug
gling, and we were glad to see could swim with
perfect ease. Quite satisfied of the excellence
of this arrangement, for the smaller animals
we made floats of cork, but the ass and cow,
being much heavier, we supported by an empty
barrel, tied at each side with cords and bands of
linen.
THE ANIMALS SWIM ASHORE.
All our animals being thus provided, we fixed
a cord to the horns or the body of each, the
other end of which we intended to fasten to
our boat of tubs. They were soon all in the
water, the ass, with its proverbial obstinacy, being
the only one which gave us much trouble. It
struggled very much at first, but, once fairly
afloat, set off and swam in a most exemplary
manner. We then went on board our boat, and
having loosened the rope, the wind filled our sail,
and we glided towards the shore. Fritz, over-
joyed at the success of our expedition, played
with Knips, and looked proudly at the red flag
waving at our mast-head. My eyes and my
thoughts were with the loved ones on land,
whom, with the help of the telescope, I could see
leave the tent and run down to the shore to meet
us. Suddenly, Fritz exclaimed-
D
K
52
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
Oh, father, there is an enormous fish coming
towards us."
"Have your gun ready," I answered. Our
guns were loaded, and as the creature came
nearer we recognised it as an immense shark.
"Let us fire both at once," said I, as the
monster, which was swimming near the surface,
opened its huge jaws to devour one of our sheep.
Our shot took effect, and the monster dis-
appeared; but a long line of blood assured us
that we had rid ourselves of that enemy. I
made Fritz keep his gun loaded, in case the
shark might not have been alone; but we had
further encounters, and a few minutes
brought us to the shore.
no
My wife and the three children were awaiting
us, and we threw them the rope, by which they
fastened our raft securely. The animals, which
were already ashore, we relieved of their floats.
The ass careered about on the sand in great glee,
and at last gave expression to its joy on being
once more on terra firma, in a hearty, not to say
musical bray. After exchanging mutual con-
gratulations on our safe re-union after such a
perilous separation, we all adjourned to the
banks of our little stream, where we seated our-
selves on the grass, and I recounted the incidents
of our expedition, giving Fritz the high praise he
deserved for the help he had rendered me.
JACK'S GIRDLE.
CHAPTER V.
58
AN ACCOUNT OF WHAT HAD HAPPENED DURING
OUR ABSENCE.
FRITZ'S invention for transporting the animals
ashore was the subject of general admiration ;
and we set about unloading the tubs. Jack,
leaving that work to the others, turned his
attention to the live stock, and jumping on the
ass's back, which had not yet been relieved of its
barrels, he rode towards us majestically. This
comic equipage was too much for our gravity; but
our amusement was changed to surprise, when
we saw that he wore round his waist a hairy
girdle, in which he had stuck a brace of pistols.
"Where did you find that brigand-like
costume?" I said.
"All this is our own manufacture," he said, at
the same time pointing to the two dogs, which
were each armed with a collar bristling with
nails.
"Bravo! my son," I said, "is this your own
invention ?"
“Mamma did what sewing was necessary,” he
replied.
"But where did you get the skin, and the
thread and needle ?" I asked, turning to my
wito.
54
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
"Fritz's jackal furnished the skin; as for the
rest," she added, smiling, "a good housewife
should always have a stock of them."
I saw that Fritz was only half pleased with
this cool appropriation of the skin of his jackal;
but disguising his ill humour, he went up to Jack,
pulling a wry face, and saying, "Faugh! what
a disagreeable smell!"
"It is the skin of my girdle," replied Jack
quietly; "when it is quite dry it will lose it."
"You must keep to our leeward, so that the
wind won't waft the disgusting odour to us," said
Fritz.
(C
Yes," cried all the children, laughing, "keep
to the leeward, Jack."
The little man himself did not seem in the least
annoyed at the disagreeable perfume he carried
with him, but strutted proudly about, displaying
his pistols. Knowing that it was near supper-
time, I asked my wife if she had anything for us.
"Here are some turtle's eggs," she said, "and
with the frying-pan you have brought, I will make
an omelette, which will not want even butter."
"Turtle's eggs," said Ernest, always glad to
display his knowledge, "are easily recognised by
their roundness, their membranous shell, parch-
ment-like and damp; and, besides, it is only
turtles which lay their eggs in the sand of the
sea-shore."
"How did you discover them?" I asked.
55
"That belongs to the account of our day's
history," said our good housewife; "and before
beginning that we must think about our supper."
"You are right," I answered;" get the ome-
lette ready; we will keep the recital till we sit
down; meantime the children and I will see
about getting the cargo we brought over to some
safe place, and try to find some shelter where
the cattle may go for the night."
We accordingly set off towards the shore, and
had just finished our work there, when my wife
called us to come and do honour to her supper.
It wanted for nothing-omelette, cheese, and
biscuit, all were excellent; and the table service
we had found contributed not a little to our
comfort. Francis alone, faithful to his calabash
dinner-set, would not avail himself of the more
elegant silver ones.
The dogs, the fowls, goats, and sheep stood
round about us like a circle of interested spec-
tators. As for the ducks and geese, I left them
to find their own supper, with which arrange-
ment they seemed to agree perfectly, quite revel-
ling in the quantity of worms and small crabs
they found at the marshy mouth of the stream.
Supper over, I bade my wife give us her account
of the day's proceedings.
"It is well," she said, laughing, "that my
turn is at last come, to record my high achieve-
ments. I must first tell you about Jack and his
SUPPER.
56
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
collars. The morning after you left, Jack ap
peared with two stripes cut out of the jackal's
hide, and began to clean them as best he could.
This done, he stuck them full of long nails, and
then with a piece of sailcloth lined the inside of
his work, and asked me to sew the leather and
the lining firmly together, so as to cover the
heads of the nails. I did as he wished, notwith-
standing the disagreeable odour of the skin. He
was proceeding to line another band for a girdle
to himself, when I showed him, that as it was
not yet dry, it would probably shrink and make
all his work useless. Ernest, laughing, advised
him to nail it on a plank, and then lay it in the
sun to dry; and Jack, not seeing through the
joke, went and put the advice in practice,
gravely bringing his plank to the sunshine.
"I then told my sons of a plan I had thought
of for the day, with which they were very much
delighted. It was to try and discover a more
suitable place for an encampment. In a very
short time, they had collected all the arms and
provisions we considered necessary. I took a
bottle of water and a hatchet, and we set off,
accompanied by the dogs.
Turk, who had been over the road before,
preceded us, and acted as our guide. My two
sons marched resolutely forward, proud of carry-
ing arms, and feeling all the importance of their
situation; for I told them that our safety de-
57
pended on their courage and address. I then
appreciated more than ever the wisdom of your
teaching our children the management of fire-
arms, so that they might be able to avert or to
meet danger. It was no easy matter to cross
the stream on the wet, slippery stones. Ernest
crossed first, without any accident; Jack relieved
me of the hatchet and the bottle of water, and I
took Francis on my back. I had great difficulty
in preserving my balance, for the dear little thing
threw his arms round my neck and clung to my
shoulders with all his strength. However, I
got safely over; and when we climbed the hill
from which you had discovered the beautiful
country beyond, my heart yielded, for the first
time since our shipwreck, to feelings of pleasure
and hope. Then we started afresh, and entered
a green shady valley.
"We saw a wood at some distance off, and
made for it; but first we had to traverse an
extent of reeds, so close and high, that the
children were almost buried. At last, Jack found
a path, which we concluded was the one you had
made. Following it, we soon arrived at the
wood. All at once we heard a rustling amongst
the leaves; and a large bird rose and flew away.
Each of my little men got ready his gun, but the
bird was already beyond reach.
"What a pity,' said Ernest, 'that I had
not my small gun; if the bird had not made off
CROSSING THE STREAM.
58
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
so fast, I would have been sure to bring it
down.'
CCC
Yes,' I answered, you would be a good
shot, if the game would only make known its
intention of flying off a quarter of an hour before-
hand.'
"But I could not tell,' replied he, 'that a
bird would rise so near us.'
"It is just such surprises that make suc-
cessful shooting a difficulty; and not only is
a correct eye necessary, but also presence of
mind.'
"What could the large bird be?' asked Jack.
"An eagle, I am sure,' said Francis; it
had such large wings.'
"That does not prove it,' said Ernest; all
birds with large wings are not eagles.'
(
"I suppose,' said I, that it flew away from
its nest when we disturbed it; if we could find
the nest, perhaps it would enlighten us as to the
kind of bird.'
"Thoughtless Jack sprang instantly towards
the spot from which the bird had risen, when
suddenly another bird like the first flew off, deal-
ing the brave little intruder such a heavy stroke
with one of its great wings, that he stood very
much amazed and almost frightened. The other
children, not less astonished, did not attempt to
shoot this second bird.
"What poor hunters,' I said to them; is it
59
possible you have learned so little from the
lesson you had a minute or two ago? I see you
must still have some lessons from your father.'
"Ernest looked vexed; as for Jack, making a
mock salaam to the fugitive, now only a speck
against the sky, he cried, 'Farewell, Mr Bird;
we may meet again; till then I remain your
obedient servant.' Ernest soon discovered the
nest we were searching for. It was roughly
built, and only contained a few broken egg shells.
We concluded from this that the fledglings had
left it shortly before.
THE NEST.
"These birds cannot be eagles,' said Ernest,
eaglets could not run so soon after being
hatched, like domestic fowls or other birds of the
same species. They are bustards, I believe. Their
plumage is white underneath, mixed with black
and red on the back; and besides, that last one
has on his beak the long thin feathers which
mark the male bird.'
"
“Instead of examining it thus,' said I to my
little 'savan,' who was refreshing himself after
having finished his learned lecture, 'you would
have done better by securing it, and thus gaining
an opportunity of examining it more closely.'
"In returning, we came upon a little wood. A
crowd of birds unknown to us filled the branches,
and produced quite a concert of sound. The
children prepared to take aim; but I drew their
attention to the great height of the trees, which
60
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON,
would make their shots quite useless. The form
and extraordinary size of these giant trees sur-
prised us greatly. The immense trunks were
sustained by roots spread over a great space on
the surface of the ground. Jack climbed on one
of the roots to measure with a cord the thickness
of the trunk. Ernest thought the circumference
could not be less than forty feet, and the height
eighty. The arched roots, sixty in number,
formed a wonderful vault. Nothing ever aston-
ished me so much as this splendid vegeta-
tion. Ten or twelve great trees formed what
we had taken for a wood. The branches spread
themselves far out, and the foliage, resembling
that of our European walnut trees, cast a delight-
ful shade. Underneath, the ground was carpeted
with soft green grass, on which we rested. Our
basket of provisions was opened, and we had no
lack of appetite. The streamlet close by sup-
plied us with clear cold water, and the vocal con-
cert over our heads turned our simple meal
quite into a fête.
"Our dogs had been absent for some time, but
now returned, and to our surprise, lay down
quickly and went to sleep, without begging any-
thing to eat. They had evidently had some re-
freshment in their absence.
"This spot seemed to me so desirable, that I
thought we need not go farther in search of a place
to settle. I resolved, therefore, to return and
THE TURTLE'S EGGS.
61
then go to the coast and recover anything that
the sea might have cast up from the ship. Before
starting, Jack besought me to sew for him the
straps and band of skin, which he had carried the
whole way, and which were now quite dry. This
done, he put on his belt, and, quite proud, stick-
ing his pistols into it, marched away to meet you.
We had often to quicken our steps to keep him
in sight.
<<
C
"On arriving at the shore, we did not find
much to bring away, things we would have
liked being too heavy to carry. I noticed our
dogs busy catching small crabs, and feasting
upon them. See, my children,' said I, how
hunger makes them industrious;' we need take
no thought about the feeding of our dogs, nor
fear their devouring us, so long as the sea pro-
vides so liberally for them. On leaving the
shore, Flora scratched up a large ball, and
swallowed it greedily.
"I suppose that was a turtle's egg,' said
Ernest. A turtle's egg,' said Francis; 'are
turtles fowls, then?' You may imagine the
amusement of Jack and Ernest at this question.
"Let us profit by Flora's discovery,' said I,
for I have heard these eggs are very good to
eat.' It was no easy task to drive away Flora
from this repast, which she found very much to
her taste; but we succeeded in rescuing twenty
of the eggs, which we placed in our provision
E
62
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
bags. Looking towards the sea, we saw the sail
of your boat. Francis feared it might be sav-
ages coming to kill us; but Ernest was sure it
was your boat; and he was right, for a few
moments after you landed.
(6
Ι
Such, my dear, are our adventures.
searched for a better place for our house. I
have found a delightful spot; and if you agree
with me, we will go to-morrow and establish
ourselves under these magnificent trees; the
view from them is exquisite. We can con-
struct tents between the branches of these trees.
Have you not seen the same thing in Europe?
Do you not remember in our own country that
lime tree with a pavilion upon it, called 'Rob-
inson's Tree ?""
"All right," said I; "but it is already late,
and we must have a good night's rest before
entering on this formidable undertaking."
Night had set in, but our interesting conver-
sation had made us forget how time was flying.
We had evening prayers all together; and, glad
to be once more re-united, we fell asleep, and
were only wakened by the sun's first rays.
REASONS FOR REMOVING.
CHAPTER VI.
CHANGE OF RESIDENCE.
63
"I HAVE been considering your plan," I said to
my wife next morning, "and I think we ought
not to be too hasty in changing our abode.
First of all, I do not know if we are justified in
leaving the place Providence has chosen for us,
and which is so conveniently situated. Besides,
here we are protected on one side by the sea,
and on the other by the rocks, which also would
help us to fortify the banks of the stream, in
case of danger. And, most important of all, here
we are within reach of the ship, still quite a
mine of wealth, which we would be forced to
abandon should we remove to a distance."
"Your reasons are certainly strong," answered
my wife, "but you do not know how unbearable
the noon-day heat is here. During your excur-
sion with Fritz, you were sheltered from the
greatest heat by the cool shade of the trees, and
were refreshed by delicious fruits; but here, the
only refuge we have is the tent, where the heat
is so suffocating as to make me anxious about
the children's health, and our only refreshment
the mussels and oysters we gather on the shore,
which are not very tempting. As for the safety
64
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
of this retreat, it seems to me that the jackals
had not much difficulty in finding us out, and I
don't think lions and tigers would have more.
The treasures the vessel contains are not to be
despised, I know; but I would renounce them
all gladly to be spared the anxiety your sea
voyages cause me."
"Come," I said, "you defend your opinions
so warmly, that I feel forced to yield to you; but
I think we can make a compromise. I will con-
sent to change our residence to the wood, on
condition that we retain this settlement as a pro-
vision store, and as a sort of fortress to which
we can retire in time of danger. We will leave
between the rocks our stock of powder, which is
very useful to us, but which it would not be safe
to keep in our immediate neighbourhood. If
this plan be adopted, our first care must be to
throw a bridge across the stream, so as to make
constant communication between the two places
quite easy."
"Do you think so?" cried my wife.
"The
construction of a bridge will be long and tedious.
Could we not load the ass and the cow with our
baggage?" I assured her that she was exag-
gerating the difficulty of the work, and the ob-
stacles that stood in our way.
"In that case,
let us all set to work without further delay," she
said; I am anxious to leave this place as soon
as possible."
65
Thus was settled the question of our change of
abode. The children, when we awoke them and
told them our project, were overjoyed. They
immediately named the little wood, "The Land
of Promise," and were very anxious to lose no
time in setting about the construction of the
bridge. Morning prayers over, each one impro-
vised a breakfast as best he could. Fritz did not
forget his little monkey, but brought it to the
goat for its morning meal. Jack, thinking the
example a good one, first tried to milk the cow
into his hat; but not succeeding, he set to drink
like the monkey, the gentle creature standing
quite quiet all the time.
"Francis," he cried, while taking breath,
Francis, come here; you can have such a de-
lightful warm drink." His brothers, seeing him
in this singular position, ridiculed him much;
they called him the little calf-a name which
stuck to him for some time. His mother re-
proved him for his greediness, and, proceeding to
milk the cow, showed him there was no need for
such an awkward way of procuring the milk.
She filled a cup for each, and then proceeded to
put some into a pan to be boiled with biscuits,
which made a very palatable dish.
Meantime I got our boat in readiness, to go
over to the vessel for the pieces of timber and
planks I knew we should require. Knowing we
would need help, I determined to take Ernest.
((
MILKING THE COW.
66
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
We pushed out to sea, and soon fell in with the
current of the stream we had already found so
useful. As we passed an islet at the entrance of
the bay, we saw quite a cloud of gulls, albatrosses,
and other sea birds, hovering over a spot on the
shore, and screeching so shrilly that we were glad
to stop our ears. Fritz prepared to fire amongst
them, but I forbade him. I knew so extraordi-
nary a gathering must be caused by something
unusual, and I wished to find out what it was.
I hoisted the sail, and a slight breeze soon
brought us close to the islet. Fritz kept his
eyes fixed on a spot towards which the birds
seemed to be crowding.
"Oh," he cried at last, "they are discussing
some sea monster, and have not invited us to
their feast."
He was not wrong. Having landed, we secured
our boat, and stood near enough to look on with-
out disturbing the birds, which we found were
dissecting an enormous fish, and were so ab-
sorbed in their feast that they did not observe
our approach. Fritz wondered how we did not
notice the fish the previous day.
Will it not be the shark you killed yester-
day?" said Ernest.
"Ernest is right," said I; "this is just our
pirate of yesterday. Look at its terrible jaws,
and its skin, which is so coarse, that it is used to
polish iron and wood. It is certainly a large
67
specimen of its class, for it measures at least
fifteen feet. We cannot be too thankful to God,
who delivered us from such an enemy. Let the
gulls take what they want of its flesh; but I
think we should carry away some stripes of the
skin; they may be useful to us. Ernest took
the ramrod of his gun and went amongst the
birds, striking right and left. He killed some,
and the others took to flight. Fritz then cut off
some of the shark's skin, and we returned to the
boat. As we were about to wade over to it, I
thought I perceived, at some little distance along
the shore of the islet, some rafters and planks
that the waves had thrown up; so that it was no
longer necessary to continue our voyage. I
chose from the debris, what I thought would be
serviceable to us, and made a sort of raft, which
we tied behind our boat, and set sail towards our
own island. The wind favoured us; so we did
not need to use our oars; it was only necessary
for me to steer. Fritz nailed the pieces of skin
to the mast, so that the sun might dry them,
while Ernest examined minutely the birds he
had killed.
THE DEAD SHARK.
He asked me a great many questions about
them, which I answered to the best of my ability.
Then he wished to know what I intended to do
with the shark's skin; and I satisfied him by
saying that I meant to manufacture some files.
Having landed, we were surprised to find no
68
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
trace of the others. When we shouted, however,
they came running; Francis with a fishing-rod
over his shoulder, and Jack with a handkerchief
carefully closed, which, when he came up to us,
he opened, and showed us a number of large
lobsters.
"It was I, father, it was I who discovered
them!" cried Francis, proudly.
(C
Yes," said Jack, "but I fished them up. I
waded up to my knees in the river to catch them.
I would have caught more if you had not called
me away."
"We have a great many more than we can
use," said I; "I think it would even be wise to
throw the small ones back into the sea again, to
let them grow."
"But," cried he, "there are millions more;
the river is swarming with them."
"No matter," I answered;
(( we must not
waste the good things God sends us."
Turning in the direction of the stream, he
asked me to come with him, for he thought he
had found the most suitable place for the erec-
tion of the bridge. "I am glad," said I, "that
you have for once thrown off your habitual care-
lessness, and thought of the good of the colony.
I am anxious to see if you have made a wise
choice; if you have, we will immediately set
about bringing up the planks, while your mother
prepares our repast." Jack led the way to the
CO
spot he had fixed upon; and I thought we could
not have a better; so we began by transporting
our materials from the shore, making use, for this
purpose, of the ass and the cow. Of course we
had no harness for them; but we passed ropes
round the animals' necks, the other ends of which
were tied to the pieces of timber. This trans-
portation being accomplished, we proceeded to
the construction of the bridge. At the point
Jack had chosen, the stream was much narrower
than at other parts of its course, and its banks
were of an equal height, besides having trees at
each side, to which we could fasten the beams.
Now," said I, when we were all ready to be-
gin, "the first thing to be done is to measure
the breadth of the stream, and find out if our
planks are long enough."
"Nothing is easier," said Ernest; "we have
only to tie a stone to the end of a cord, throw it
over to the other side, and, drawing it to the
edge of the bank, measure with the cord the dis-
tance between the two banks."
""
ERECTING A BRIDGE.
By this simple but ingenious plan, Ernest cal-
culated the stream to be eighteen feet wide. So,
as the principal beams would need to rest three
feet at least on each bank, we chose three, twenty-
four or twenty-five feet long. The greatest diffi-
culty was still to be overcome, which was how to
get the ends of these immense logs passed over
to the other side. I told the boys to try and
70
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
think of some plan during our meal, which we had
kept waiting some time; and my wife was getting
impatient, for the lobsters had long been ready.
She showed us some carrying sacks she had
made for the ass and cow. We praised her
patience, and admired it still more, when we
learned that, having no large strong needles,
she was obliged to pierce every hole with a nail.
We did not linger over our repast, all be-
ing anxious to return to work. Though the
children suggested many plans of getting the
ends of the planks over the stream, none of them
were practicable. But I had thought of a plan
myself, which I proceeded to work out as soon
as we returned to the scene of our labours. One
end of a large beam I tied to a tree; to the
other end I tied a long rope which I carried
with me, and, crossing the stream, passed it
over a pulley fastened to a tree on the opposite
bank. Then returning, I tied the end of the
rope round the necks of the ass and cow, and
made them both pull. The beam turned round
the trunk it was tied to, and soon rested on the
other side. The children sprang on to it, clap-
ping their hands, and shouting for joy. The most
difficult part of our work was over. Two other
beams were soon placed beside the first, and it
only remained to nail on a few cross planks to
finish our bridge. Before night our task was
accomplished, and we went to bed pretty much
¡
THE REMOVAL.
71
fatigued with our hard day's work, and slept
more soundly than we had yet done since we
landed from the wrecked vessel.
CHAPTER VII.
THE REMOVAL.
I AWOKE the children when day broke, as I wished
to give them some directions about our emigra-
tion.
"We are going," I said, "to a part of
the country which is new to us. Sec that none
of you wander away alone. You may get into
danger as well by going on before as by lingering
behind. Keep as much as possible all together,
and if we meet an enemy, let me direct the at-
tack or the defence."
Prayers and breakfast over, we prepared to
depart. The cavalcade was assembled; the ass
and the cow carried the bags my wife had made,
filled with a number of indispensables. We took
care not to forget the captain's stock of wine, and
a barrel of butter. As I was going to load the
animals with our hammocks and blankets, my
wife interposed and claimed a place for little
Francis, and for the sack she called her magic
bag. Then she showed me the absolute necessity
of taking with us the fowls and pigeons, which,
72
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
if they were left behind, would be scattered and
lost. I saw she was right. A comfortable seat
was found for Francis on the ass's back, between
the two bags, with his mother's magic bag to
lean his back upon. We had still to get hold of
our fowls and pigeons. The children set off to
chase them, but returned unsuccessful, and were
persuaded by their mother to remain where they
were, while she undertook the capture of the
startled birds.
"We shall see, we shall see," cried the little
blunderers. "You shall see," replied their mother.
By means of a handful of corn scattered on the
ground, the birds were tempted within the tent,
where they were easily caught.
"Skill works better than violence, you see,
gentlemen," said she, closing the entrance to our
tent, through which Jack crept, and handed us
one by one our feathered prisoners, whose feet we
bound, and then placed them upon the back of the
Cow. This done, we covered them with a cloth,
and thus, plunged in darkness, they ceased to
annoy us by their cries. All the things that we left,
that could have suffered from exposure, were laid
up in the tent, which was well barricaded with
stakes and boxes, both full and empty. We were
all well armed, and each carried a bag for provi
sions and ammunition. Every one seemed in
good spirits.
Fritz, with his gun under his arm, marched
THE PROCESSION.
73
first; behind him, his mother drove the ass and
cow, side by side; on the ass rode little Francis,
amusing us all by his simple remarks; third
from the front came Jack, with the goat; fourthly,
Ernest, with the sheep; while I myself brought
up the rear. Our dogs kept running here and
there, barking and scenting. This caravan
moved along slowly, and was really quite pic-
turesque; so much so, indeed, that I could not
help calling to my eldest son-
"Well, Fritz, here is your idea carried out, for
something after this fashion Abraham must have
travelled. How do you like it, my little patri-
arch?" Ernest answered for his brother: I,
papa, think it is delightful."
(C
(6
True," said I, "but it is not God's will that
we should long be reduced to wander about like
this. You would soon tire of it, and I trust this
may be our last pilgrimage."
"So do I," said my wife. "I hope that our
new abode will please us, and that we shall be able
to remain in it. If not, the responsibility is mine."
"Wherever you lead," replied I,
we shall be
willing to follow."
CC
As we approached the bridge, the pig, which
had at first appeared very loath to accompany
us, now joined the procession, grunting loud re-
monstrances against this long walk; but its ill
humour did not meet with much sympathy from
the rest of the party.
74
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
!
The passage of the stream was effected without
accident; but the luxuriant vegetation on the
other side did not fail to retard our march con-
siderably. The rich grass, such as they had
never before seen, was a temptation too great to
be resisted by our cow and ass. It was only by
the aid of our dogs, who barked and snapped at
their heels, that we could get them to move on.
To avoid such hindrances in future, I changed
our course, going with the stream towards the
sea, hoping to reach the well known road by the
shore, where there was nothing to impede our
progress.
We had scarcely started in that direction, when
our dogs bounded into the thick grass, growling
as if they were on the track of some fierce animal.
Fritz, with his gun loaded, and his finger on the
trigger, advanced resolutely. Ernest, terrified,
drew near his mother, having at the same time
loaded his gun. Jack courageously followed his
elder brother, and I hurried to his assistance, lest
he should run into anger. Suddenly I heard
him cry, "Oh, papa, come quick, a porcupine, a
monster porcupine,"
I quickened my steps, and soon came in sight
of the porcupine, which, however, was not so
large as Jack had led me to believe. The dogs
barked furiously round the animal, which they
could not attack without paying dearly for it.
The porcupine turned his back to his enemies,
75
lowered his head between his two fore paws, and
marched backwards, his bristles erect like so many
swords. Every time the dogs attempted to charge,
they came off bleeding and wounded. Fritz and
I were watching for the moment when we might
fire without injuring the dogs. Jack, all impa-
tience, and not understanding our hesitation,
discharged one of his pistols, and killed the por-
cupine on the spot. Fritz, a little spiteful at
his brother's success, said hastily--
Imprudent boy; you might have killed the
dogs, or wounded us, in firing so near."
“Wound you, indeed!" repeated Jack, proudly;
"do you think no one can manage a gun but
yourself?"
Seeing that Fritz was going to reply, I hastened
to interfere. "It is true," I said to my eldest
son, "that Jack might have acted more pru-
dently; but you must admit that he has shewn
great skill. You must learn to praise others
when they deserve it."
Jack, meanwhile, without thinking, had laid
hold of the animal with his hands, and was
severely wounded.
"Go and get a rope," I said to him,
"and
Fritz and you can carry it with the help of a
stick between you."
66
THE PORCUPINE.
But, impatient to show his prize to his mother
and brothers, Jack tied his handkerchief round
the animal's neck, and drew it after him to the
76
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
place where we had left the caravan. See,
mamma," he cried, "see, Ernest, see, Francis,
the great animal I have killed. Yes, I killed it;
I was not afraid of a hundred thousand lances;
I went up to it and killed it with one shot; and
it is excellent eating; papa says so."
His mother congratulated him on his courage
and skill. Ernest examined the animal in his
usual cool manner, observing that he had in each
jaw two long incisors like those of the hare and
squirrel, and that his ears were short and
rounded like a man's. My wife and I sat down
and began pulling out the bristles from the
muzzles of our dogs.
(C
((
(C
Jack," said I, were you not afraid that the
porcupine would send its quills into your body?
It is said the animal has that power."
"I never thought of it," he replied, "but I
think that statement must be a fable."
"You see, however," said I, "that the dogs
have not been spared."
"It is true," he answered; "but they threw
themselves on the animal; if they had kept at a
distance, they would not have been hurt."
"You are right, my son," I said, “and I am
glad to see you can defend your opinions. The
porcupine has not the power of shooting out its
quills; his losing some in a fight has probably
given rise to the story."
Determined to carry home the porcupine, I
77
covered him with a thick coat of grass, rolled
him in a cover, and placed him on the ass
behind Francis. We had not gone far, however,
when the ass escaped from my wife, who held
the bridle, and ran on before us, jumping and
cutting a number of grotesque capers that would
have amused us very much, had we not all
feared for Francis. Fritz ran after him, and
aided by the dogs, soon got the better of him.
Searching for the cause of this sudden change in
the conduct of the usually quiet animal, I found
that the bristles of the porcupine had come
through the grass and covering in which he was
wrapped; so I placed the carcase on the en-
chanted bag, and counselled Francis not to lean
upon it. Fritz kept at some distance from the
caravan, doubtless with the intention of taking
his revenge, if an occasion presented itself.
GIGANTIC TREES.
"Wonderful!" exclaimed Ernest, when he
saw the large trees we were approaching,
"what
gigantic vegetation! the steeple of Strasbourg is
not higher; how luxuriant nature is here. It
was a good idea of mamma's to leave the deso-
late country in which we were, for a place like
this." He asked me if I knew the name of the
trees.
"I have never seen them described, and we
are probably the first Europeans who have seen
them," said I; "but I defy the most agile bear
to reach us at the top of these enormous trunks,
F
78
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
when we shall have succeeded in establishing
ourselves there."
"Well," said my wife, "what do you think
of our trees ?"
"I understand your admiration, and approve
of your choice," said I.
When we halted, our first care was to unload
the ass and cow, which, with the sheep and
goats, we allowed to graze round us, taking the
precaution, however, to shackle their fore legs.
The sow only was allowed perfect freedom. We
also set the fowls and pigeons at liberty. The
fowls kept near us, scraping and picking up what
they could get. The pigeons perched themselves
on the branches of the trees, from which eleva-
tion, however, they descended when the first
handful of corn was thrown down.
While we rested on the soft thick grass with
which the ground was carpeted, we deliberated
as to the best means of erecting our house on the
branches of one of the giant trees. As it was not
likely we could get comfortably installed that
night, I was somewhat anxious about our safety
during the night, which we should be forced to
pass in the open air, exposed to the damp and
quite unprotected against the attacks of wild
animals. I called Fritz, believing him to be close
at hand, to tell him it would be absolutely neces-
sary for our safety to try and climb the largest
tree. He did not answer, but two gun-shots, one
THE TIGER-CAT.
after the other, at some distance off, announced
to us that he was not idle. He soon appeared,
carrying by the hind legs a most beautiful tiger-
cat, which, as he advanced, he held up for our
admiration.
"C
79
"Bravo! my young huntsman,” I said; you
have really rendered a service to our feathered
flock, in ridding them of such an enemy as that,
which could follow them even to the tops of the
trees. If you should see any more in our neigh-
bourhood, I entreat you to give them no quarter."
Why," said Ernest; "if God created the
animals, He surely did so for some useful end;
and I do not think we should declare against them
such a merciless war."
"C
"It would be presumptuous," answered I, "to
interrogate the Creator on the design of His
works; but we are allowed to hazard some con-
jectures. I believe, then, that the animals
which we call, no doubt wrongfully, destructive,
have been created to maintain a certain equality
between the creatures. Fritz will now tell us
where and how he discovered this animal.”
"I found it quite near," answered the hunter;
"I saw something moving amongst the leaves of
a tree; and-creeping noiselessly to the foot of it,
I fired, and the animal fell at my feet. As I was
going to take it up, I saw it move; so I des-
patched it with my pistol."
"You may be glad it did not spring upon
80
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
you when it was only wounded; for, although
those animals are small, they are very terrible
when fighting for life. I can assure you, you
have made a happy escape; all the more, that
I see this is not an ordinary tiger-cat, but a
margay, a species common in South America,
and notorious for its fierceness and rapacity.
"Whatever it may be," said Fritz, "look at the
beautiful stains of black and brown on a gold
ground. I hope that Jack will not cut up the
skin of my margay, as he did that of my jackal."
Never fear. If you warn Jack, he will not
meddle with it. But what do you intend to do
""
with the skin ?”
"Nay, it is I who should ask you that," he
answered; "I will follow your advice; I do not
want to retain it for my sole use."
"Well answered, my son; and now that we
have no need for clothing, you can make cases of
it, in which to keep our table service; and you
can have the tail for a hunting belt to hold your
knife and pistols."
"And I, father," asked Jack, "what shall I do
with the skin of my porcupine ?"
}
“When we have taken out as many quills as
we want for needles, and for arrow points, I be-
lieve we could make the skin into a sort of cuirass
for one of the dogs, to defend it in encounters
with wild animals."
"Oh, capital!" cried Jack, "I long to see Flora
81
or Turk harnessed like that;" and he gave me no
rest till I set about skinning his porcupine. This
I managed easily by tying the animal to a branch
by its hind feet. Fritz watched my progress,
doing the same with his margay. The two skins
were afterwards nailed to a tree to dry; part of
the porcupine's flesh was cooked for our dinner,
and the remainder was put aside to be salted.
As Ernest was working by me, making a hearth
with large stones, he asked if I did not think the
trees under which we were, were mangolias. I
said it was very probable, but I could not say
positively, without consulting the captain's
library.
"Ah! those dear books," said he; "when shall
we be able to read and re-read them at our lei-
sure!"
MORE FRUIT.
((
Patience, my boy; let us first see to matters
that are indispensable; there are better days
coming, I hope."
Francis, whom his mother had commissioned
to gather fire-wood, came back dragging some
branches behind him, and greedily eating some
fruit he had found.
"You foolish child!" cried his mother, running
towards him; "how do you know that fruit is not
poisonous ? It might kill you. Show it to me."
"Kill me!" he repeated, terrified, putting out
what he was just about to swallow. "Oh no,
I don't want to die, mamma.”
82
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
Dropping the branches he carried, he pulled
from his pocket two or three little figs, and gave
them to me. I was reassured; for I had never
heard of any kind of figs being poisonous. I
asked Francis where he had found them.
Just under one of those trees," he answered;
"there are a great many more. I thought I
might eat them when I saw the sow and the
fowls devouring them in such numbers."
"That is not a sufficient guarantee," I said;
"for some fruits that are wholesome for animals
are not so for man, and vice versa. The monkey
however has a physical constitution resembling
that of a man, and besides has a natural instinct
about the nature of fruits; so I advise you
always to consult it about anything of which
you are in doubt."
I had scarcely said so when Francis ran to the
foot of a tree where the monkey was seated, and
offered it some of the figs with which his pockets
were filled. The little animal took one in its
hands, looked at it, smelled it, and then began to
eat it.
Hurrah!" cried Francis, quite reassured, and
again beginning to eat the fruit, which he very
much liked.
Then these trees," said Ernest,
"are fig-
Yes," I replied, "but not dwarf trees, like
those that grow in our country. These belong
trees?"
(C
83
rather, as you supposed, to the genus of the man-
golia, and to the species called the yellow man-
golia, whose roots, as you see here, form arches
or vaults."
DINNER.
Thus conversing, and while Francis helped his
mother to prepare dinner, I tried to manufacture
needles from the spikes of the porcupine. The
point, of course, was already there; all I had to
do was to make a hole in the other end, which I
did with a red hot nail. In a short time, I had
an assortment of needles, of which our good house-
wife was very glad. The children, still astonished
at the great height of the trees on which we pro-
posed to erect our dwelling, set about trying to
discover some way of climbing them. I was, at
first, as much at a loss as they were; still, after a
little reflection, an idea struck me, but I deter-
mined to defer its execution.
Our dinner being now ready, we seated our-
selves in a circle; the porcupine's flesh and the
soup made from it were both highly praised; for
dessert, we had biscuit, with Dutch cheese and
butter. When we were sufficiently refreshed, I
determined that we should be busy during the
remaining hours of daylight. I asked my wife
to make the leather straps which were necessary
to yoke our beasts of burden to the pieces of tim-
ber to be brought from the shore. She immedi-
ately set to her task.
The next thing to be done was to suspend our
84
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
hammocks to the branches of the tree. Over
them we spread sailcloth, and fastened it in at
the sides, to protect us from the dew and mos-
quitoes. That done, Fritz, Ernest, and I went
to the shore to search for pieces of wood, strong
and straight enough to serve as steps to the rope
ladder I had resolved to make. Ernest dis-
covered on the borders of a small marsh a num-
ber of bamboos, half buried in the mud. We
pulled them out, and cut them with a hatchet
into lengths of three or four feet, putting them
into three bundles, one for each. A short dis-
tance farther on, and a little way into the marsh,
I saw a tuft of reeds, towards which I went, in-
tending to cut some for arrows. Flora, which
was at my side, suddenly sprang forward, bark-
ing, when a whole troop of beautiful flamingoes
flew away with an amazing rapidity. Fritz, who
seemed never to be taken by surprise, got ready
his gun, and fired before they were out of reach.
Two of them fell; one quite dead, the other only
wounded in the wing. The wounded bird would
probably have escaped, if Flora had not pursued
and seized it; the brave dog held it by the wing
till I came up. When I brought my captive to
the children they were overjoyed, and entreated
that the bird might be kept alive and tamed.
"How beautiful its bright red plumage will be
among the other fowls," said Fritz.
Ernest was astonished to see that the feet of
85
the flamingo were equally well adapted for run-
him many other
ning or swimming; but I told
kinds of birds were as well off. I then cut some
of the longest reeds, telling the boys as I did so,
that I wished, by their aid, to measure the exact
height of the tree we were to inhabit.
"Oh!" they cried incredulously, "you will
need a great number to measure even to the
beginning of the branches."
"Have patience," I replied; "you have for-
gotten the lesson you learned from your mother's
way of catching the fowls. Before pronouncing
your opinion, you must see what I do."
We returned loaded with the bamboos and reeds,
and the dead and living birds. Jack and Francis
welcomed the flamingo with shouts of joy, but
their mother looked grave when she saw another
mouth added to the number of our domestic
animals. Not at all alarmed on that score, I
examined the poor bird's wounds. I saw that the
extremities of both wings were fractured, the one
by the shot, and the other by Flora's teeth. I
dressed them with a kind of ointment composed of
butter, salt, and wine, and then tied it by the leg
to a stake near the stream, where, left to itself,
it put its head under its wing, and, standing on
one long leg, fell asleep.
While I had been thus occupied, the children
had tied a number of the reeds together, and
were trying to measure the height of one of the
THE FLAMINGO.
86
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
trees. They could hardly reach to where the
branches joined the trunk, and I heard them
again speak doubtfully of the success of my plan,
which, however, I had not yet explained to them.
Smiling at their incredulity, I proceeded to con-
vert some of the canes into arrows, by sharpening
one end, and garnishing the other with the
feathers of the dead flamingo, using a flexible
bamboo for a bow. Jack and Fritz had been
watching the operation, and now exclaimed,
Oh, a bow! a bow and arrows! Let me try
it, papa; you will see how expert I am !"
CC
"Wait a moment," I said; "I have had all
the trouble of making them, and I must have
the honour of trying them first. I did not make
them for play, however; I had an end in view,
which I will show you immediately." I asked
my wife if she could find me a clew of strong
thread.
"I will consult my magic bag," she said,
smiling; "this is what you want, is it not?" she
added, promptly satisfying my want.
"It is no great mystery," said Jack, "to find
in a bag what you put into it."
"It is no mystery, certainly," I answered;
"but it shows a presence of mind in your mother,
of which none of the rest of us were capable, to
remember, in a moment of danger--such as that
which preceded our departure from the vessel-
so many small things, useful to us all."
87
Now Jack had the best heart in the world ; so,
throwing himself into his mother's arms, he said,
"I deserve to be sewed into your bag, and never
to be let out again."
Unrolling the greater part of the clew, I tied
one end of the thread to one of the arrows, which
I shot up amongst the branches of the trees. The
arrow passed over one of the branches, and, falling
on the other side, left the thread resting on it. We
easily ascertained by this means what height it
would be necessary to make our ladder, deciding
on fifty feet. Measuring, then, one hundred feet
of strong rope, and halving it, I stretched the two
lengths parallel on the grass, and told Fritz to
cut the bamboos into pieces two feet long; and
these again Ernest and Jack helped me to fasten
to the ropes by knots and nails, to prevent them
slipping. In less than an hour and a half our
ladder was completed; and to hoist it, the same
means were used as I had employed to discover
the height of the tree. I took another arrow, and
a triple cord, to ensure its being strong enough.
To the end of the cord we attached the ladder,
which was soon securely fixed.
THE LADDER.
Jack and Fritz disputed which should mount
first. I gave the preference to Jack, as being the
lightest, and as agile as a squirrel. I warned him
to make sure of the strength of every step before
venturing on to it, and to hurry down if he saw
the least danger of the ladder giving way. He
88
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
set off, paying very little heed to my warning-
reached the first branch safely, and seating him-
self on it, shouted, "Victory, Victory!" Fritz
mounted after him, and fastened the ladder more
securely, when I followed them, and examined
the tree, to decide on the best mode of erecting
our dwelling. Night soon set in, and the last
piece of work I did, namely, fixing a strong
pulley, preparatory to commencing operations on
the following morning, had to be concluded by
moonlight.
I turned to descend, and was surprised to find
the boys had disappeared. I had just made up
my mind they must have gone down, when I
heard above me two clear young voices singing
an evening hymn. I did not think it right to
interrupt their song of praise; and their voices
sounded so sweetly, it seemed to me almost like
the presage of a blessing on our new habitation.
When they had finished, we all descended to-
gether; and my wife, who had meanwhile milked
the cow and goat, set before us some milk, and
slices of the porcupine which remained from
dinner. We tied the cattle for the night near
our hammocks, to the roots of our tree, and
made a large fire of dry wood as a protection
against beasts of prey.
Our prayer offered, my wife and children went
into their hammocks, and slept soundly. I
watched by the fire, kept wide awake during the
FARM LIFE.
first hours of the night by anxiety, and starting
at every slight noise I heard; but gradually I
was overcome by fatigue, and towards morning
fell asleep, only awaking when all the rest of the
family were astir.
CHAPTER VIII.
*
89
CONSTRUCTION OF OUR HOUSE.
AFTER breakfast, my wife told Jack and Ernest to
put the harness she had made on the cow and
ass, and prepare to accompany Francis and her
to the shore, to fetch the wood necessary for our
house. I was afraid this kind of work, to which
she was not accustomed, would be too heavy for
her.
"Do not distress yourself," she said; "this
farm life suits me very well. I think we should
only rest when we have earned it by the sweat of
our brow; I like to feel I am fulfilling that com-
mandment of God. I have become quite attached
to our animals, and I think they are fond of me ;
our ducks, and fowls, and dogs, our cow, and our
poor ass-are they not all friends, and the most
faithful we have ever had, so humble, patient,
and grateful? If we ever leave this island, what
an instructive and salutary school it will have
Sally
90
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
been to me, to the children, and to yourself."
My wife spoke golden words, for they were words
of courage and truth.
I let her go, and, strengthened by her example,
proceeded to my part of the work with a light
heart. Fritz and I mounted the tree, and with
hatchets and saws prepared a place for our
habitation. The first horizontal branches served
as a foundation to our floor; we cut off the
others, excepting one or two, at an elevation of
about six feet, to which we could suspend our
hammocks, and a few higher up, to support our
roof of sailcloth. While we were occupied with
these preliminaries, difficult enough of accom-
plishment, the timber and planks arrived from
the shore, and, hoisting them by the help of the
pulley, the floor was soon laid, and a balustrade
erected all round it. So absorbed were we in
our labour, that the middle of the day arrived
before we thought of eating anything. We took
only a slight repast, and returned to our task.
We found the spreading of the sailcloth roof a
matter of some difficulty. Letting it hang over
at the ends, we fastened it to the balustrade, thus
making two sides of our dwelling; the trunk of
the tree itself formed the third, securely closed.
The fourth we left open for the present, though
I intended to close it by and by, with a kind of
blind, which could be drawn up or down at
pleasure. When we had suspended our ham-
91
BOILED FLAMINGO.
mocks to the branches we left for the purpose,
our house was ready for our reception.
Fritz and I descended from the tree; and
although the sun was already low, and we were
very tired, we erected a table and forms, placing
them under the roots where we had spent the
previous night, a spot I thought very convenient
for our dining-room. This last work accom-
plished, I said to my wife, as I threw myself on
one of the forms, "I have worked to-day like a
negro, and to-morrow I shall take a holiday, and
rest." "You not only can," replied she, "but
you ought; we have not had one day of rest since
we were cast upon this shore.”
My wife went to call the boys to table. As
they were seating themselves, she brought from
the fire a large pot, from which she lifted, with a
fork, the flamingo killed the previous evening.
"I had intended to roast it," said she, "but
Ernest dissuaded me, saying it was an old bird,
and would be tough. You shall judge for your-
selves if I have done well." Our doctor was a
little teased about his knowledge of cookery, but
we all thought his advice had been good, for the
flamingo was very savoury, and we picked the
very bones. While we were dining, we were de-
lighted to see our living flamingo moving with a
friendly air among our fowls, picking up crumbs
near us. He had been walking solemnly back
and forward all afternoon, like one absorbed in
92
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
profound meditation. As he began to look a little
more animated, we threw him some pieces of
bread, which he snapped up very cleverly, to the
great discomfiture of the fowls, who were not half
sharp enough to get any share of what was going.
The monkey, also, became more and more fa-
miliar, even to impudence. It jumped from one
shoulder to another, cutting all manner of capers;
and to its share fell most of the dainties. Finally,
the pig, which we had not seen since the
night before, arrived in time for dessert. It
seemed to grunt out its satisfaction at having
found us again. My wife gave it a dish of milk,
which it drank eagerly: I thought this liberality
rather extravagant, and said so to my wife, but
she had her answer ready : Seeing that we
have not the utensils necessary to make our milk
into butter and cheese, how could we do better
than give it to the animals, as a means of attach-
ing them to us, and also of saving our corn and
salt, which are all but finished ?"
(C
<<
True, my dear wife," said I, "and we shall
go soon to the rocks for more salt, and take care
to bring plenty of corn with us the next time we
go to the vessel."
<<
Ah," said she,
at the bottom of the sea."
CC
I understand your fears," said I; "but you
know we only go in very calm weather; and you
must admit that it would be foolish to give way
"that vessel! I wish it were
93
to our fears so far as to abandon the ship whilst
it contains so much that would be useful to us."
As we were talking, the children had lit a large
fire of branches to frighten away wild animals
from attacking our cattle. Then we climbed
into our tree. Fritz, Jack, and Ernest mounted
first, like three cats. Their mother followed
cautiously, and I came last, with Francis on my
back. I got to the top without accident; and
when I had drawn up the ladder, the boys thought
we were like a company of ancient cavaliers, in a
sccure refuge from all our enemies.
Notwithstanding all this, I loaded our pieces,
to be ready against the approach of any intruder
of which our dogs might warn us. We then all
got to bed, and slept soundly.
A HOLIDAY.
•
CHAPTER IX.
Good morning! What shall we do to-day ?"
asked the children.
(C
A HOLIDAY.
"Nothing, absolutely nothing," said I.
"Oh! you are making fun of us," said Fritz.
"No," said I, we are going to have a holi-
<<
day."
"A holiday! a holiday!" shouted Jack, “I
G
94
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
shall go to walk, and hunt, and fish, and do what
I like." He then begged my bow, and tried to
point some arrows with porcupine quills. As he
proceeded he found some difficulty in fixing
them. "I wish I had some glue," said he.
I advised him to melt a cake of portable soup.
He did so, and soon had a number of arrows,
which would have been quite dangerous in the
hands of a good archer. I thought it was de-
sirable my sons should practise archery; for our
store of powder, though large, was not inexhaus-
tible, and we must be as economical as possible.
While meditating on future arrangements, I was
startled out of my reverie by the report of fire-
arms, and by a fall at my feet of half-a-dozen
birds, which I picked up, and which proved to be
ortolans. Our philosopher had climbed into a
tree, and seeing a flock of birds, had fired upon
them. “Hurra!” cried he from the platform;
"have I not aimed well? am I not a good shot?”
This little incident showed me that game of
the most delicate kind abounded near us. These
ortoians were feasting in great numbers on the
fruit of the fig-trees around us; and knowing
that, prepared in a certain way, they were con-
sidered a great delicacy, I determined to bring
down some of them. Meanwhile, my wife
plucked and set about cooking the six Ernest
had killed.
Fritz, coming to consult me about how to
-
NAMING THE PLACES.
95
curry the skin of his margay, I advised him to rub
it with cinders and sand, and to soften it with the
yokes of eggs and butter. While he was thas
occupied, Francis, who had a small bow and
arrows for himself, came and entreated me to
make him a quiver to sling over his shoulder
and hold his arrows. I made him one with four
large pieces of bark, equipped in which he
seemed quite proud of his appearance. Ernest
seated himself at the foot of the tree with the
Bible on his knee, and was soo profoundly
absorbed in what he was reading. My wife now
called us to dinner; the ortolang were voted by
all to be delicions.
"I want you to help me," I said to my sons
while at dinner, "to give names to the different
parts of our island; it would aid us much in un-
derstanding one another. We need only, how-
ever, give names to the inland parts, for some
Europeans may already have named the coasts,
and we must respect what they have done."
"What a capital idea," cried all the children
at once; "let us look for names at once."
"I think we should choose extraordinary
names, such as Coromandel, Chandernagor,
Zangnebar, Nonomotapa," said Jack.
"But if we could not remember them, we would
be the first to suffer, little hare-brain," replied I.
“Then what names will you give them?” he
asked.
96
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINson.
"Let us
"The answer is simple," I said.
name each spot after some event that has hap-
pened there."
•
"That will be the best way," said Ernest;
and, to begin with the bay where we landed, I
think we should call it Safety Bay."
"I would like it called Lobster Bay," said
Jack;
"for it was there one of these wicked
animals pinched my leg so terribly."
"Then," said his mother, smiling at her boy's
egotism, "I think it might be as appropriately
called the Bay of Cries. I agree with Ernest
that we ought to name it Safety Bay; our grati-
tude to God demands it."
This was passed unanimously, and the other
parts of our domain were soon named respec-
tively-Tent House, our first settlement; Shark
Island, the small islet at the entrance to the
bay; Flamingo Marsh, and Jackal River. Our
new dwelling we called Falcon's Nest, because,
as I explained to my sons, they were as active
and adventurous as young falcons, and as much
inclined to pillage the surrounding territory.
The promontory from which Fritz and I had
vainly hoped to discover some trace of our un-
fortunate companions, was called Cape Disap-
pointment.
Dinner over, we each resumed our various
occupations. Fritz proceeded with the manu-
facture of the cases for our silver plate, by cover-
TURK'S COAT OF MAIL.
ing wooden boxes with the skin of his margay.
Jack asked me to help him to make the prickly
skin of the porcupine into a coat of mail for
Turk. This we did by cleaning the skin as Fritz
had done that of the margay, and then fastening
it on to the dog with straps. This warlike dress
gave him a very formidable appearance. He did
not seem to find it at all inconvenient; but it
was different with Flora, for when she came to
play with him, as she often did, she got very
much hurt. It was, at last, deemed advisable
that master Turk should only wear his coat of
mail when going on important expeditions. The
remainder of the skin Jack made into a military
cap for himself, with which he intended to
frighten the savages, if we should encounter
any.
97
Ernest and Francis tried the bow and arrow,
and I was glad to see were not so awkward as I
had feared they would be. The sun being now
pretty low, and the heat not so great, I proposed
a walk, which, it was decided, should be in the
direction of Tent House, that we might bring
away provisions and other requisites from our
stores there. Fritz and Jack wanted powder and
shot, my wife wanted butter, and Ernest thought
we should bring away a pair of ducks, which
would find food in abundance on the banks of
the stream.
"Well, let us be off," said I; "and you must
98
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
be prepared for a little fatigue, for we are going
by a longer road than the way we came."
We set off; the three boys and myself with
our guns, and Fritz and Jack armed besides,
the one with a girdle of jackal's skin, the other
with his famous porcupine hat. Even little
Francis carried his bow and quiver. My wife
alone was unarmed. The little monkey, anxious
to accompany us, jumped as usual on Turk's
back; but hurting itself on the coat of mail in
which he was still accoutred, ran away making
hideous grimaces, and took refuge on Flora, who
consented benevolently to carry the impudent
little cavalier. Our flamingo also followed us
when he saw us all set off, looking very comical
on his stilts, with his long waving neck. Keep-
ing along the bank of the stream, we had a
beautiful road. My wife and I walked behind
leisurely, the children running before. At last
Ernest came, holding up to us what seemed a
twig, with some little green balls hanging to it,
and crying-
"Potatoes, papa, potatoes!"
I saw he was right, and praised his observa-
tion, which had made such an invaluable dis-
covery. Ernest, delighted, urged us to make
haste to come with him to his potato field, for
he said that the country where he had found those
was covered with them. We hastened to see this
natural plantation. Jack, throwing himself on
99
his knees, began to scratch them out of the earth
with his hands. Knips imitated his example, and
Francis gathered them in a heap as they threw
them on the ground. We filled our sacks and
game bags, and went on our way, after carefully
marking the whereabouts of the field, to which
we determined to return.
THE KARATAS.
We crossed the stream at the foot of some
rocks, over which the water fell, forming a cas-
cade. From this spot, the view was both exten-
sive and beautiful. We could have imagined
ourselves in some greenhouse in Europe, with
this difference, that, instead of flower-pots and
cases with rare shrubs and flowers, the interstices
of the rocks were filled with the most beautiful
and luxuriant vegetation. Grasses abounded in
great variety; as also the Indian fig, the aloe,
the cactus, with its prickly leaves and bright
flowers; the grass plantain, with long trailing
branches; and above all, the pine-apple, the most
delicious of fruits, which the children recognised
at once, and ate with an eagerness I was obliged
to check, fearing they would do themselves an
injury. Amongst those plants, I recognised the
karatas, a sort of aloe; and pulling some, I
showed it to the boys, saying, "I have found
something much more important than the pine-
apples you have devoured so greedily."
"What!" said Jack, with his mouth still full,
"those ugly tufts of prickly leaves? It is im-
100
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
possible; there is nothing finer than the pine-
apple; it is a splendid fruit."
"You young gourmand," said I, interrupting
his panegyric, in which the others by their looks
plainly joined, "you must learn not to judge by
appearances. Here, Ernest, you are the most
serious; take my steel and flint, and light me a fire."
But, father," answered my young savant,
very much perplexed, "I have no tinder."
<<
"C
Well, do the best you can, for we must have
fire, by all means."
"Come," said Jack, "we will rub two pieces of
wood together, as the savages do."
"A very wearisome way for those not accus-
tomed to it," I answered; "and besides, my
boy, you may rub a whole day without getting
one spark."
Then," said Ernest, "we must look for the
tinder tree."
“That is unnecessary," I said, taking some of
the pith from a dry twig of the karatas. Placing
it on the flint, I struck the flint with the steel,
and the first spark set it on fire.
"Bravo! bravo!" shouted all the children;
"hurrah for the tinder-tree."
"You have not yet seen all the uses of the
karatas," I answered. So saying, I took a leaf
and pulled from it several very fine but strong
threads.
"I confess," said Fritz," that the karatas is a
(C
THE COCHINEAL.
101
most useful plant; but I would like to know
what use we could make of those other thorny
shrubs which are so numerous here."
(C
They are far from useless," I answered;
"the juice of the aloe, for instance, is an invalu-
able medicine; the Indian fig is not to be
despised either, for it grows in the most arid
deserts, where people would often die of starvation
were it not for its excellent fruit."
Jack, in his haste to test the excellence of the
fruit, ran to pull some, but got his hands so
pricked with the thorns that he returned crying,
and looking very angrily at the tree. His mother
extracted the thorns, which gave him great pain,
while I showed his brothers how to gather the
fruit without coming into contact with them.
Having pointed a piece of wood, I fixed a fig on
the point, and easily pulled out its thorns with
my penknife. Ernest, who had been anxiously
examining a fig, announced that it was covered
with a multitude of small red insects, which were
feasting on the juice of the fruit.
((
Look, father," he said, "tell me what those
animals are, if you can, before I guess."
Recognising the cochineal, I cried, "We have
really made some extraordinary discoveries to-
day; this last would be a very precious one to
us if we could traffic in it with Europeans, who
buy it at a very high price, for the sake of the
scarlet dye it yields."
102
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
"Whatever it is," said Ernest, "it is the
second plant we have found superior to the pine-
apple we praised so much."
<<
Yes," I answered, "you are right, and to
prove it, I will show you another use of the
Indian fig-tree. Its thick prickly branches,
formed into a hedge, are a very secure protection
against wild animals."
*(
P
What," cried Jack, "those leaves form a
barrier against wild animals! I could soon break
down a hedge of that with my knife or a stick."
Accordingly, he set vigorously to work to hack
the branches of a very fine fig-tree; but one of the
leaves striking his leg, the sharp thorns made him
CC
cry out. Well," I said, "do you understand
now, why such a hedge would be a defence
against half-naked savages, or beasts of prey ?”
"We would need it all round our dwelling,"
said Ernest.
"I think we should take some of the cochineal;
we might find it ornamental, if not useful," said
Fritz.
"It will be wise to load ourselves only with
what is useful, in the meantime," I answered.
"The ornamental can be thought of afterwards,
master Fritz."
As we continued our conversation, it turned on
more serious subjects, and I was often astonished
at the judicious remarks Ernest made. His
great thirst for knowledge often led him to ask
HOW TO CATCH DUCKS.
103
questions which I was forced to confess I could
not answer. I had not yet looked over the cap-
tain's books; they were all shut up in a case,
except one or two which I thought would best
suit the children's age. Ernest had often en-
treated me to let him have the key, but I thought
we should first attend to the comfort and safety
of our establishment.
After crossing Jackal River, a few minutes'
walk brought us to Tent House, where we found
all exactly as we had left it. Fritz carried away
an abundant supply of powder and shot, and my
wife filled a large tin jar full of butter. The
younger boys ran after the ducks, which, having
become wild, were not easily caught. Ernest
employed rather an original means of capturing
them. Tying a piece of cheese to the end of a
cord, he let it float on the water till one of the
birds swallowed it, and then pulling it gently,
brought it to the shore. By this means they
soon made them all prisoners, and, tying them
each in separate hankerchiefs, we put them in
our game bags.
We took also a supply of salt, and being
already heavily laden, we were even obliged to
take off Turk's coat of mail, and make him carry
his part of the burden; besides, we had to leave
our arms behind us. "Fire-arms are like sol-
diers," said Ernest; "in time of peace, they are
of little use." The jokes and remarks on the
104
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
ij
comic appearance of our caravan relieved very
much the monotony of our way home; it was
not till we sat down to rest that we felt tired.
Our good housekeeper, however, prepared us a
substantial repast of potatoes and milk, which
revived us very much. Supper over, the children
hastened to their hammocks, and their mother
went to help them. She returned smiling, and
said to me, "Do you know what Francis has
added to his prayer? I want you to guess."
"Tell me yourself," I answered, "and as
quickly as possible, for I am just falling asleep."
"Well, here it is," she said: "Good God, I
thank Thee for planting such good potatoes in
our island for little Francis, and large pine-
apples for Jack."
"Be assured," said I, bidding her good night,
"that God listens to the simplest prayer of the
child. Our Lord has taught us to say, 'Give us
this day our daily bread.'"
CHAPTER X.
THE SLEDGE.
DURING our walk the previous evening, I had
noticed, scattered along the shore, a quantity of
timber, which I thought would be useful in mak-
1
108
ing a hurdle for transporting from one place to
another, burdens too heavy for our animals to
carry on their backs. Waking Ernest at dawn,
we got ready the ass, and yoked it to a large
branch of a tree I thought we should require. I
took Ernest, because I thought a morning walk
would help to cure the indolence into which his
meditative disposition was apt to degenerate.
"Are you not rather contradictory," said I to
my son, as we went along, "in having risen
sooner than usual from your bed where you
slept so soundly? and do you not regret being
deprived of the pleasure of shooting and all the
rest of it with your brothers in a morning ?”
"Oh! now that I am up, I like it very well,”
said he; "and as for the shooting, I dare-
say there will be some birds left for me, for
I believe they will frighten more than they will
catch"
A MORNING WALK.
"How so?" asked I.
"Because they will be sure either to forget to
load their pieces with small shot instead of ball,
or they will fire from the ground, forgetting that
the height of the trees is so great."
"You say well, my boy; but it would only
have been amiable to warn your brothers of all
this: there is a time for acting, as well as for
meditating and reflecting."
Talking thus, we arrived at the shore, and
found a good many logs, &c., cast up by the
106
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
waves.
These we placed on the tree branch,
which formed a sort of primitive sledge. I also
found among the rubbish a case, which I opened
as soon as we got to Falcon's Nest. It contained
sailors' clothes, drenched with sea water. The
report of fire-arms, as we approached Falcon's
Nest, announced the whereabouts of the sports-
men; and, as we came into view, the whole
family ran joyfully toward us. After apologising
to my wife for leaving her without saying where
we were going, we sat down to breakfast. The
boys had shot four dozen birds, thrushes and
ortolans, few in proportion to the quantity of
powder spent. After breakfast, I showed my
little poachers how to preserve the game till we
should want it for use, by hanging it in a tree
by a thread of the karatas. While Jack and
Francis attended to this, Fritz and Ernest helped
me to make the hurdle.
We had been busy for some little time, when
we were startled by a great disturbance amongst
our fowls, and the cock crowing at the pitch of his
voice. My wife went to see if the appearance of
some wild beast was the cause of the commo-
tion; but all she saw was the little ape, running
to the roots of the fig-tree, under which he dis-
appeared. Suspecting some mischief, she fol-
lowed him, and caught him in the act of break-
ing an egg, preparatory to eating it. Searching
under the neighbouring roots, Ernest found quite
DOES GUNPOWDER GROW?
107
a store of eggs master Knips had laid by in re-
serve, his greediness having tempted him to
steal the eggs as they were laid.
"This explains, "said my wife, "how I have
often heard the hens cackling as if they had laid,
and yet when I looked for the eggs, there were
hardly ever any to be had."
We decided to punish the young thief by keep-
ing him a prisoner during the hours that the
hens generally laid; at the same time it occurred
to us he might be useful to us in finding out the
eggs that were not laid in the ordinary nests.
When Jack, who had been up in the tree, spread-
ing snares for the birds, came down, he announced
that the pigeons we had brought from the vessel
had built a nest in the branches. I was glad to
hear it, and forbade the children to fire into the
tree, for fear of hurting or disturbing them. I
was sorry I had suggested setting the snares.
Little Francis came to me, with the simplicity
natural to him, to ask if it would not be possible
to sow powder in a field, which he promised he
would look after himself, so that his brothers
could shoot as much as they pleased. The idea,
which amused us very much, showed as much
kindness of heart as ignorance.
"My dear Francis," said Ernest, "powder is
not a thing that grows; it is manufactured by
mixing together, in nearly equal proportions,
bruised charcoal, sulphur, and saltpetre."
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THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
"Oh! I did not know," said Francis, simply,
"and I thank you for telling me."
Leaving my young philosopher to teach his
brother, I became so absorbed in the construc-
tion of the hurdle, that I did not notice that my
wife and younger children had plucked a great
many birds. Fixing them on an old sword we
had found in the vessel, my wife was preparing to
roast them, when I remarked that there were
three times the number of ortolans we could
consume. She said she would not have plucked
so many, if she had not heard me say that
ortolans could be preserved by being laid in
butter after being half roasted. The hurdle
finished, I determined to have another expedition
to Tent House in the afternoon, and again to
take Ernest alone, being anxious to cure his
indolence and timidity.
Papa," said Francis, as we were setting out,
"Ernest told me that friction or any quick
motion draws out the fire that is hid in every
body. Now, if I run too fast, I may perhaps set
myself on fire."
((
"Not set yourself on fire, my child, but
make yourself very warm. Your little legs,
or even the legs of a man, are not strong
enough to allow of him running so fast as to
set fire to himself. You may set your mind
at rest on that subject, and run as fast as you
can."
109
"I am very glad," he answered; "I like
famously to run."
Fritz presented us, before we set out, with one
of his cases, which was large enough to hold our
hatchets. I praised his ingenuity, and we bade
them farewell. The ass and cow drew the hurdle,
and Ernest and I, with our guns, walked beside
it, Flora following. We took the road by the
shore, and arrived without accident at the Tent.
We set the beasts at liberty, while we loaded the
hurdle with a cask of butter, a barrel of powder,
and some shot, cheese, and other provisions.
Absorbed in this work, we did not notice that
the cow and ass, attracted by the luxuriant ver-
dure on the other side of the stream, had wandered
across the bridge. I sent Ernest after them,
telling him that I would go meanwhile in quest
of a convenient place to bathe, for I thought a
bath would refresh us after our fatigues. I
found a place in Safety Bay, which I thought
would do; but before going into the water, I
called Ernest several times. Getting no answer, I
became anxious, and went back towards the Tent,
calling him, but still receiving no reply. I was
beginning to fear some accident, when I per-
ceived him at a little distance, fast asleep at the
foot of a tree, the two animals grazing quietly
beside him.
ASLEEP ON DUTY.
"You idle boy!" I cried; "this is a fine way
to take care of your charge. Did it never occur
#
110
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
to you that they might recross the bridge and
be lost?"
"There is nothing to fear," he answered, rub-
bing his eyes; "I have lifted some of the planks
of the bridge."
"Ah! I see, idleness has made you ingenious;
but instead of sleeping there, you might have
been filling a bag with salt, as your mother told
you to do. Do it now, and when you have
finished, come to me behind these rocks, where I
am going to bathe." So saying, I left him.
After being nearly half-an-hour in the water, I
began to wonder that he had never appeared, and
dressed myself to go and see if he had fallen
asleep again. I had not gone far, when I heard
him cry-
"Oh! father, come and help me, or it will pull
me into the water."
Hastening to him, I found the young philoso-
pher on the ground close to the edge of the stream,
holding with both hands a line, with which he
had caught an enormous fish. I was just in
time to prevent him losing his splendid prize, for
his strength was nearly exhausted. Taking the
cord, I led the fish into a shallow place, where
Ernest, despatched it with a hatchet. It was a
salmon of at least fifteen pounds. I praised
Ernest not only for his skill as a fisher, but also
for his prudence and foresight in bringing fishing
lines away with him.
111
While he was bathing, I rubbed the salmon in
salt, and placed it, along with some smaller ones
he had caught, on the sledge. I replaced the
planks on the bridge, re-yoked the animals, and
we set out on our return.
THE KANGAROO.
We had gone about three quarters of a mile,
when Flora suddenly bounded towards a tuft of
high grass; and an animal started out of it, about
the size of a sheep, and springing in a very ex.
traordinary way. I fired, but too hastily, and
missed. Ernest was more successful, and killed
it. On examining this singular animal, we found
it had the muzzle of a mouse, the ears of a hare,
and the tail of a tiger. Its fore paws were very
short, and its hind legs very long. I examined
it a long time before I could come to any con-
clusion as to what animal it could be. Ernest
was so delighted with his success, that he could
think of nothing else.
"What will my mother and brothers say when
they see it?" he cried; " and I will tell them it
was I who shot it.”
You have really a correct eye, and a steady
hand," I said; "but I would like to know the
name of your victim; examine it with me, and
perhaps❞—
"It has four incisors," he said, interrupting
me, “and therefore may belong to the tribe of the
rodentia."
"But it has, also," I answered, "a pouch,
❤
112
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
which is the distinctive feature of the marsupalia.
I think I may venture to say that we have here
a female kangaroo-an animal first discovered by
Captain Cook in New Holland. You have really
made an extraordinary capture."
66
Father," said Ernest, "you seem very much
pleased that I shot the animal; are you not
sorry you did not bring it down yourself?"
46
No, Ernest; I love my son better than my-
self, and his success gives me as much pleasure
as my own does."
**
'My dear father!" he exclaimed, throwing
his arms round me.
We put the kangaroo on the hurdle; and as we
went on, I told Ernest all I knew about its habits.
The children ran to meet us whenever they saw
us coming. They were dressed in the most ex-
traordinary style; one in a long white chemise;
another in a pair of blue trousers, in which he
was almost lost; while the third was en-
veloped, and nearly out of sight, in a vest, which
reached to the ground, and made him look like a
walking portmanteau. I asked an explanation
of this strange masquerade. They told me that,
in my absence, their mother had thought fit to
wash their clothes; and so they were obliged to
dress, in the meantime, as best they could, out of
the sailors' chests. After we had laughed till we
could laugh no longer, all gathered round the
hurdle to inspect its load. Our housekeeper was
113
very thankful for the butter, the salt, and the
fish; but the children were most delighted with
the salmon and the kangaroo, which Ernest was
very proud to exhibit. Jack and Francis shouted
with delight when they saw it, but Fritz evidently
eyed it with envy, which he vainly tried to hide.
"Father," said he, coming close to me, "will
you take me with you in your next excursion ?”
"Yes, my boy," said I, and in an undertone, I
added, "if it were only to reward you for making
an attempt to subdue your jealousy."
After this he congratulated Ernest most grace-
fully on his skill and courage. The hurdle being
unloaded, I gave our animals some salt, of which
they had been deprived latterly. The kangaroo
was hung up in a tree, and we supped on the small
fish caught by Ernest, retiring afterwards to our
dormitory in the tree.
BECOND VOYAGE TO THE VESSEL.
CHAPTER XI.
SECOND VOYAGE TO THE VESSEL.
THE next morning very early, I called Fritz to
accompany me to the vessel. My wife, hearing
us moving, began to exclaim against our expedi-
tion, on account of its danger, and I had again
114
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
to point out the folly of our allowing the waves to
swallow up so much of which we stood in need.
I got down out of the tree, and proceeded to skin
the kangaroo; part of the flesh was to be eaten
immediately, and part salted and laid aside.
T
After having breakfasted, and collected our
arms and provisions, I called Ernest and Jack, to
give them some orders before leaving. They were
nowhere to be found, however. Their mother
thought they had gone to dig up some potatoes;
and as they had taken Turk with them, we con-
sidered they were in safe keeping, and set out
without waiting their return.
As we got to the Jackal Bridge, we were startled
by Jack and Ernest darting out from behind a
bush, and screaming and laughing over the trick
they had played upon us. I scolded them well
for going away without telling any one; and they
owned that they had done so in the hope that I
would take them with me to the ship. I assured
them this was impossible, for they would be too
many for the boat, and those at home would be
anxious about their non-appearance. I sent
them back with the message that we would be
obliged to remain all night-an announcement
which I had lacked courage myself to make that
morning.
**
Try," said I, "to get home before mid-day.
Ernest shall have Fritz's watch, in order that he
may not forget how the time flies. Fritz can get
115
another for himself in the ship, and also one for
Jack."
VALUABLES FROM THE SHIP.
Without further parley, the two boys set out
to Falcon's Nest, leaving us to pursue our voy-
age. It was not long before we stepped on board
the vessel. Our first care was to collect ma-
terials to construct a raft, which would carry more
than our boat of tubs could hold. Choosing a
dozen empty water barrels, we nailed them solidly
together, and then put a flooring of planks above,
surrounding it with a railing about two feet high.
This occupied us most of the day; and when it
was finished, we took a survey of the vessel, to
decide what would be most useful to take with
us; then, after a comfortable meal, we retired
into the captain's cabin, and slept well.
We were astir at dawn the next morning, and
began to load our two boats. We visited the
cabins, and carried away the locks, bolts, win-
dow hangings, and even the windows and doors.
Boxes of carpenters' and gunsmiths' tools also
formed part of the spoil. A coffer with gold
and silver watches and rings dazzled us for a
moment; but our attention was soon attracted by
what were far more precious to us, namely, bags
of oats, wheat, peas, and maize, as well as
young European trees, which had been destined
to be planted in the new colony. What was our
delight to find, besides, bars of iron, wheels, pick-
axes, spades, and above all, a hand-mill! Nothing
116
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
which could be useful in founding a colony seemed
to have been forgotten. We could not take all;
so we decided to take only what was sure to be
useful. Out of the case of jewels we took only
the two watches we had promised to Ernest and
Jack. Fritz asked leave to take some fishing
tackle, a pair of harpoons, and some packages of
cord he had come upon accidentally.
The loading of our rafts took half of the day,
and when we were ready to start, they were so
heavily leaden, we should have had difficulty in
moving them, had the wind not helped us very
much. I was at the helm, and the sail prevented.
me seeing what Fritz was about. Suddenly he
exclaimed, "Hurrah! it cannot escape now!"
He had very adroitly harpooned a large tortoise
as it was sleeping near the surface of the water.
I pulled in the sail and wanted to cut the cord of
the harpoon, for the animal, in its fright, was
dragging our boat after it with great rapidity;
but Fritz entreated me not to let his victim escape,
promising to cut the cord immediately he saw any
danger. Carried forward with such terrible
swiftness, I had the greatest difficulty in guiding
the boat; and seeing that the animal was direct-
ing its course to the open sea, I again hoisted
the sail, against which the tortoise could not
make any way, so was obliged to turn towards
the shore. We ran aground a little distance
from shore, and I leapt into the water and des
117
patched our captive, while Fritz fired his gun to
announce our arrival. We were welcomed by
the whole family, who had come to meet us; and
I had to submit to a very mild scold from my
wife, for my long absence.
The two younger boys had brought the ass and
cow, with the hurdle, from Falcon's Nest, and we
loaded it with mattresses and the tortoise, which
weighed three hundred-weight. The rest of
the cargo we drew up out of reach of the sea,
and anchored our rafts where they were.
On our
way home we were besieged with questions.
Fritz told the children of a box full of piastres he
had seen, some of which he brought to Francis.
"Do you mean to sow them, my man ?" I
asked, laughing.
"No, papa," he answered; "I mean to keep
them, and buy gingerbread at the next fair time."
His answer amused us all exceedingly.
THE TORTOISE.
When we got home, I removed the shell of the
tortoise, and gave my wife some slices of the
flesh to cook for our repast.
"I must first cut off these greenish pieces,"
she said.
"These are considered by epicures the most
savoury parts," I answered.
"Dear father," said Jack, "may I have the
shell ?"
Each of the other children also put in a claim;
but I reminded them that it was Fritz's pro-
118
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
perty. Curious to know what they each intended
to do with it, if it were in their possession, I asked
them, beginning with Jack. He said he would
make a neat little boat to sail in on the stream.
Ernest would use it for a shield, to defend him
from the savages. Francis was going to make a
pretty little house, and the shell was to form the
roof.
"(
Well, my dear boy," I said, turning to Fritz,
what do you intend to do with it ?”
"
I, father? I want to make a basin at the
side of the river, where mamma can always have
clear fresh water, when she wishes it."
'Bravo!" I cried; "that will be a public
benefit. You must work out your plan as soon
as we can find some potter's clay."
"Potter's clay!" exclaimed Jack; "I gathered
a heap of it under a tree over there, this morn
ing."
"But where did you get it?" I asked.
"He got it on the hill," answered his mother,
“and soiled his clothes so, I had to wash them."
It was not my fault, mother," answered
Jack; "I slipped on the clay, and fell, and it
was to that accident that I owe the discovery."
"Oh!" answered his mother; "from what
you said this morning, I understood that you
went expressly to look for it."
"When the basin is made," said Ernest, "I
am going to steep in it some roots I suspect to
1
119
be radishes; they are more like shrubs than
herbs, and I am afraid to taste them, till I have
seen the pig eat them without hurt.”
"You are right, my son," I answered; "you
cannot be too cautious. Show me the roots, and
tell me where you got them."
"I saw the pig devouring those roots," he
said, "and brought some of them away."
66
"If I am not mistaken," I said,
you have
made a precious discovery. I think this root is
the manioc, from which, in the East Indies, cas-
sava bread is made. It has first, however, to be
submitted to a process by which the poisonous
juices it contains are extracted."
Having arrived at Falcon's Nest with our
load, we returned for another, leaving my wife
and Francis to prepare a repast with the flesh of
the tortoise. During our walk back to the shore,
Fritz asked me if our tortoise was not of the kind
the shell of which was often made into orna-
ments; if so, he said, would it not be a pity to
make a basin of it? I told him the species he
thought of is named the caret, and is not good
to eat; and then enlightened him, as far as I
could, as to the way the shell of the caret is
polished.
We reloaded the hurdle with a number of
useful things, and, amongst others, with the
hand-mill, which, now we had found the manioc,
would be of great service. Arriving at Falcon's
TORTOISE-SHELL.
120
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
Nest, my wife came forward, smiling, and say
ing, "You have had two days' hard work, and,
to refresh you, I am going to offer you a bever-
age you did not expect to find here." I followed
her till we came to a little barrel, half buried in
the earth, under a tree. "I found that along
the shore to-day," she said. "Ernest thinks it
is canary wine, and I hope, for your sake, that
it is."
I tasted it, and found that Ernest was right.
The children were also anxious to taste it, and I
had difficulty in restraining their eagerness.
I
then called them to help me to get the mattresses
we had brought carried up into the tree. This
done, we sat down to supper, and afterwards
slept very comfortably on our improved beds.
CHAPTER XII.
THIRD VOYAGE TO THE VESSEL.-THE
PENGUINS.
BEING anxious about the safety of our two
boats, I descended the tree next morning before
any of the others were awake, and determined
on a walk to the shore. I found all the animals
astir, and yoked the ass to the hurdle. The
boats I found all right, left dry by the ebbing
121
tide; so, loading the hurdle, I returned, and was
astonished to see no appearance of life when I
arrived at Falcon's Nest. I made a noise, equal
to an invasion of savages, and my wife looked
out, very much amazed at herself for sleeping so
long. "The mattresses have made us all very
lazy," she said; "the children can scarcely open
their eyes now." The boys yawned and stretched
themselves, but did not seem at all inclined to
leave their beds. "Get up, get up!" I cried;
"6 we must have no laziness here."
Fritz ap-
peared first, and Ernest last, and looking as if
he were very loath to leave his bed even then.
"Are you not ashamed?" I said to him, "to
let even Francis get up before you ?"
"Oh!" he said, "it is so delightful to go to
sleep again after I have been wakened. I would
like to be wakened every morning two hours
before it is time to get up, just for the pleasure
of falling asleep again."
"If you do not struggle against that indolence,
Ernest, my boy, you will grow up a weak effemi-
nate man."
TWO MORE VOYAGES.
We took a hasty breakfast, and then proceeded
to the shore, to bring away the rest of our cargo
we had left there. We made two journeys in a
very short time; and, as I saw the rising tide
had again reached our boats, I resolved to take
them round to a place of greater security in
Safety Bay. I took Fritz and Jack with me, and
122
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
sent the others home with their mother. We
were soon afloat; but instead of taking the direct
way to Safety Bay, we directed our course once
more towards the wrecked vessel. It was too
late when we reached it to gather together a
large cargo, but we began to collect what we
could find that would be useful. Jack, to his
great satisfaction, found a wheelbarrow, and
Fritz discovered a pinnace all ready to put
together, its parts complete, and even furnished
with two little cannon. I was overjoyed to see
it, but determined to return for it another day,
for I found we had not time to put it together.
We brought away some more kitchen utensils,
plates, and glasses; some tobacco, a grindstone,
and another barrel of powder; Jack's wheel-
barrow, and other things equally valuable. We
were then obliged to hasten away, in order to
avoid the land breeze, which rose every evening.
When we were rowing home, we saw a number
of little white animals along the shore, which
seemed to be regarding us curiously, and stretch-
ing out their arms to us.
"Are we in the land of Pygmies ?" I said to
Jack, laughing.
W
"Or in that of the Lilliputians?" cried he.
"I think that is a regiment of birds," said
Fritz;
"for I can see their bills; and those
things like arms are their wings."
"You are right, my boy," I answered; "these
123
are penguins; they swim very swiftly, but their
wings are so small in proportion to their bodies,
and their feet so ill-adapted for running, that
they are very easily captured when surprised on
dry ground; besides, they are so indolent, that
they will scarcely put themselves about to escape
from an enemy." When we were near the shore,
Jack seized one of the oars, jumped into the
water, and, before the birds were aware of his
approach, had killed and stupified several; the
others plunged into the water and escaped.
Those that were only stunned by the blows Jack
had given them, we tied together and set at
liberty amongst our ducks and geese, when
they recovered their senses. It was too late
to unload our rafts that night, but we took
with us the wheelbarrows-with which all were
delighted—the tobacco, and kitchen utensils.
Our housekeeper then showed us a store of pota-
toes and maniocs they had collected in our
absence; and Francis, with an air of mystery,
said, "Papa, would you be very much surprised
if we soon had crops of maize, oats, and melons?
Mamma has planted some down there.”
"You little tell-tale!" cried his mother, "I
wanted to give your father a surprise."
"Thanks for your kind intentions," I said,
"but where did you get all the seeds ?"
"In my magic bag," she said, smiling. "You
are so occupied with voyages to the ship, I
SOWING FOR CROPS.
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THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
thought you would have no time to make a
kitchen garden; so I set to work myself, and
chose the field where we found the potatoes.”
Fritz announced his discovery of the pinnace;
but his mother was too much alarmed about the
dangers we met with in our voyages on the sea,
to receive the announcement with much pleasure.
When I showed her, however, that the danger
would be less in a real boat than in our raft of
tubs, she was reassured. Night having set in, I
sent the children to bed, telling them that next
day I would teach them a new accomplishment.
CHAPTER XIII.]
BAKING.
WHEN the children awoke next morning, they
came round me to know what it was I was
going to teach them. "To bake," I answered.
"But we have neither oven nor flour," cried
Jack.
"The flour," I answered, we will get from
the manioc root; and some iron plates we
brought from the vessel yesterday will supply
the place of an oven.'
""
After carefully washing the roots, we grated
them down till we had a sufficient quantity of
125
fine flour.
"It is the first time I ever heard of
bread being made from radishes," said Jack.
My wife was not very confident in my powers as
a baker, and put on a quantity of potatoes to
boil, in case I should fail. But I was not in the
least discouraged.
MANIOC FLOUR.
"The manioc is not to be despised," I said;
"it forms the principal food of many inhabitants
of the New World. Some Europeans even prefer
this kind of bread to wheaten bread. I am sure
you will all appreciate it, too, if our roots are of
the proper kind."
Then there are several kinds of manioc ?”
said Ernest.
"There are, at least, three," I answered.
"Two are very poisonous, if eaten raw, but
are preferred to the third harmless species, be-
cause they are more productive, and ripen more
quickly."
How silly," cried Jack, "to prefer the
poisonous to the wholesome plant. I will have
nothing to do with your poisonous cakes.”
**
"Never fear, you little coward," I answered;
we have only to press the flour, to remove from
it everything hurtful."
"
Why press it ?" asked Ernest.
"To extract the sap, which is the poisonous
part. To make certain of the wholesomeness of
our bread, we will try it first with the monkey
and the fowls."
I
126
1
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
"But," expostulated Jack, "I do not want
poor Knips to be poisoned."
"Do not fear," I answered; "if the food we
offer him is in the least hurtful, instinct will lead
master Knips to refuse it; it is not the first time
he has been of use to us in this way."
•
Jack, reassured, set to work again; and we had
soon what I considered a sufficient supply of
flour. This we put into a linen bag, and pressed
well between two planks. When the juice stop-
ped running out, the boys urged me to proceed
immediately with the baking; but they were not
so ardent when I told them that this was only
destined for Knips and the hens. Drying the
flour in the sun, I kneaded it carefully with a
little water, and fired it on one of the iron plates
over a hot fire; and we had a very palatable-
looking cake, which, however, I forbade the boys
to taste.
"How nice it smells!" said Ernest.
a pity we did not think of it before to-day.”
CC
Oh, papa, let me have just the smallest
morsel to taste," cried Jack.
"A bit no bigger than that," said Francis,
holding up his little finger.
"You little greedy ones," I said, “you are not
afraid of the poison now. I believe there is no
danger; but still it is more prudent to ask master
Knips's advice."
When we offered it to the fowls and the mon-
"What
THE PINNACE.
127
key, they ate it eagerly; but I thought it wise,
before tasting ourselves, to wait and see that no
bad effects followed. In the meantime we had
a substantial repast of potatoes, during which
I told the children something about the nature
of different poisons, warning them particularly
against the fruit of the manchineel tree, which I
thought might possibly be found in our island;
and finishing by repeating what I had often told
them, never to eat any fruit till they knew what
it was.
After dinner we visited the fowls and Knips,
and found them, to our great delight, in perfect
health; so I told the boys to set to work again at
the baking. They did so with great good will,
and soon had a number of cakes of all conceiv-
able shapes. When these were ready and tasted,
they were pronounced by all excellent, especially
when soaked in milk. The rest of the day we
employed in bringing the remainder of our cargo
up from the boats.
CHAPTER XIV.
THE PINNACE.
ALTHOUGH my wife was so much alarmed by our
voyages to the vessel, I persuaded her next day
128
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
to let me take the three older boys, for I knew I
should need them all to put the pinnace together.
So, taking our floats with us, and an ample pro-
vision of cassava bread, we started, promising to
return in the evening. On examination, I found
that all the parts of the pinnace were numbered,
and that it only required patience to put them
together. The great difficulty was how to get it
out of the narrow space where it lay, and to
launch it on the sea, as all our united efforts could
not move it. After thinking of many plans, none
of which were practicable, I called the boys to
help me to hew down the partition in which it
was incased, trusting meanwhile that some feasi-
ble idea might occur to me. Evening came be-
fore we had done very much; but we determined
to return next day, and complete our work.
Francis and his mother met us on the beach;
the latter told me she had made up her mind to
take
up her abode at Tent House during the time
we were obliged to be at the vessel. She wel-
comed with pleasure the supplies we had brought
of rice, flour, corn, butter, and other provisions.
Our voyages to the vessel occupied at least a
week. Every morning we started at dawn, and
only returned on the setting of the sun, when a
choerful meal and interesting conversation made
us forget the fatigues of the day. Our pinnace ·
was gradually put together, and, when finished,
looked light and elegant. She had a little deck
129
at the stern, and rigging complete. When we
had tarred her, and fitted the two little cannons
on to the deck, she was finished; and the diffi-
culty again arose, how to get her into the water.
After much consideration, I hit upon a plan,
which I determined to put into execution myself,
without letting the boys into my secret. Filling
a large iron mortar with gunpowder, and closing
it securely over, I fastened it to the side of the
vessel where the pinnace was fixed. Then light-
ing a long match, I ordered the children into the
boat, and rowed quickly towards the shore. We
were just stepping ashore, when the usual still-
ness of our island was broken by a loud report.
My wife and children were very much startled.
"It is the signal of a vessel in distress; let us
go to its aid," said Fritz.
LAUNCH BY GUNPOWDER.
"No," answered his mother, "the report came
from the vessel; you must have let a spark fall,
and it has found its way to a barrel of powder."
I proposed to the boys to return to the ship
immediately, and ascertain the real cause.
Curiosity made them row with all their strength,
and we soon were alongside once more. We
sailed round the vessel before going on board,
and I was glad to see neither flames nor smoke.
Coming round to where the pinnace had be-
fore been fixed, we found a great part of the
vessel's side blown out, and our boat quite un-
harmed.
130
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
"
Victory!" I cried, "the pinnace is ours."
I then explained to the boys my expedient.
With a little help from a screw, the pinnace
glided from its rollers into the sea, and rode
gracefully on the waves. The boys thought that
with this little vessel, and its complete equipment
of cannons, powder, and guns, we might bid de-
fiance to any number of savages who could in-
vade our coasts; but I told them I hoped we
should always have reason to thank God for keep-
ing away from us any such danger. We did not
complete our little ship for two days more; but
my wife was kept in ignorance of what was going
on, till we could make a triumphant entry into
Safety Bay.
When all was done, we embarked and steered
landwards. Myself taking the helm, Ernest and
Jack established themselves beside the cannon, to
be ready to fire a salute, and Fritz managed the
sail. The wind favoured us, and our boat glided
through the water very rapidly, although towing
behind it our raft of tubs. At last Fritz gave the
signal to fire, and at the same time discharged
his own two pistols, while we all shouted a joyous
"hurrah!" Francis and his mother came run-
ring to the beach, and were very much surprised
at our beautiful craft, though frightened by the
noise.
"How
“You are very welcome," said my wife.
beautiful your little ship is; it looks so safe and
131
comfortable, I think I would have courage to
venture on the sea in it myself."
(
"Oh! mamma, do come in just for a moment,
please; see, we have called her after you, the
Elizabeth,' cried Fritz. She yielded to his en-
treaties, and we had a short sail all together.
When we had again landed, my wife said to me,
"You must not think we have been idle, while
you were busy in the vessel. Our labours are not
the less valuable, that we cannot announce them
with a salute of cannons."
THE KITCHEN GARDEN.
So saying, she conducted us to the waterfall
on Jackal River, and showed us the potato field
there, nicely laid out as a vegetable garden.
"Here is our work," she said; " there, I have
planted potatoes; here, maniocs. At this side
are lettuces, and over there I have left a space
for sugar-canes, besides sowing some melons,
cabbages, peas, and beans."
I praised her ingenuity and activity, and com-
mended Francis for the help he had been to his
mother. "I
never thought,” I said, “that with
only Francis to aid you, you could accomplish
such a piece of work as that."
"I did not expect to succeed so well myself,"
she answered, “and therefore I did not tell you
before of my intentions. I only regret one thing,
which is, that I have not visited Falcon's Nest,
to look after our European plants there; I am
afraid they must be in a bad state.”

132
I promised to go and see after them next day.
Wo then unloaded and secured the pinnace to the
shore; and as we had no farther tie te Tent
House, we set out for Falcon's Nest.
ITILL
T
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
CHAPTER XV
THE CROCODILE.
day was Sabbath, and we spent it in
prayer, and other exercises. Next day
the children amused themselves with gymnastics.
While they were learning how to climb up a rope
hung from a tree, I employed myself fastening a
lead ball to each end of a long cord. Ernest,
the first to notice what I was about, asked me
what I was making.
"I am making a lasso, my dear," I answered,
"an instrument used by the Mexicans and Pata-
gonians, for capturing wild animals. They throw
it while at full gallop, and the weight at the end
causes the rope to twist round the neck or the
legs of the animal, making it quite helpless in the
hands of its captor. Buffaloes and wild horses
are often taken in this way."
My older sons were delighted with the idea of
this new kind of hunt, and began to practise the
use of the lasso on the trees. Fritz was soon
THE BUSTARD.
133
quite expert, and able to teach his brothers.
Next day there was a strong wind blowing, and I
saw from the top of our tree that the sea was
running high; so we contented ourselves with
planting our European shrubs, and attending to
other minor duties about Falcon's Nest.
Early next morning we were all astir, for I had
announced, the previous evening, that we should
all make an excursion to Calabash Wood, to get
a new assortment of dishes. We yoked the ass
to the hurdle, in which we placed our arms and
provisions. Turk with his coat of mail led the
way; then followed the boys; and my wife and I
brought up the rear, followed by Flora with
Knips.
When we had reached Flamingo Marsh, Fritz,
who with Turk had wandered away from the
others and was quite hid by the bamboos, shot a
large bird, which fell, but was only wounded, and
tried to run away. Turk pursued it, and Flora,
shaking Knips off her back, followed him, and
reaching the bird first, caught and held it by the
wing till Fritz arrived. It struggled however so
violently, that he was forced to call me to his
assistance. Throwing a handkerchief over its
head, I stopped its struggling, and then, tying its
wings and legs, we carried it with us to where
the others were waiting, on the borders of the
marsh.
"It is a bustard," said our young naturalist,
194
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
after examining it. Fritz shrugged his shoulders
incredulously.
"Ernest is quite right," I said. "I recognise
it by its feet, with only three toes, all pointing
forward; and, judging from the absence of the
moustache, it must be a female bustard."
"Then," said Jack, "it is probably the same
bird that we startled once before here, but could
not shoot. You remember, mamma ?"
If that is the case," said his mother,
"I"
must plead for her; for the young ones had evi-
dently just left the nest shortly before that, and
must still need her care."
"Be assured, my dear," I said to her, "that
during the three weeks that have passed, the
little orphans have learned to do for themselves.
As to the mother, we will try and tame her, and
she will prove a valuable addition to our live
stock."
Placing the bird on the hurdle, we went to the
Monkey Wood, Fritz entertaining his brothers by
an account of how, on our first visit there, the
monkeys provided us with such a plentiful sup-
ply of cocoa-nuts. I was much amused by the
different expressions the contemplation of these
gigantic cocoa-trees called up on Ernest's face,
a mixture of admiration for such natural
prodigies, and a strong desire to have some of
the delicious fruit.
'Would you not like," I said to him, “if
64
THE FAIRY IN THE TREE.
135
these nuts would fall into your mouth of them-
selves ?"
"Certainly not," he answered; "I would run
a great risk of having broken teeth."
He had scarcely done speaking, when a large
nut fell at his feet; it was followed by a second
and a third.
"This is like what takes place in fairy tales,"
said Ernest, "where people have only to wish
for things, and they get them."
It certainly looks like it," I answered; "but
I think the fairy perched in this tree rather
wants to chase us away than to fulfil our
wishes." We gathered up the nuts, however,
which looked very fine ones.
"The fairy would be very kind if he would
send some nuts to little Francis and me, too,"
said Jack. With this, two nuts more came
tumbling down.
<<
Papa!" cried Fritz, "I see the sorcerer; it
is a horrible beast,-round, and with two fright-
ful pincers. There it is coming down the tree
now."
Francis ran to his mother. Ernest did not
move, but looked about for a safe retreat. The
intrepid Jack drew himself up defiantly, and,
flourishing his gun, said, "I'll speak to this
sorcerer."
By this time the strange-looking animal, cling-
ing to the trunk of the tree, was rapidly descend-
196
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
ing. When only a step or two from the ground,
Jack struck at him with all his force, but the
blow missed its aim, and fell harmlessly on the
tree, while the creature, having reached the
ground, pursued his assailant with open pincers.
Jack tried again to strike it, but it avoided his
blows dexterously. Unsuccessful, he retreated,
and his brothers began to laugh at him; but he
was not to be outdone. Throwing away his
gun and game-bag, he next took off his vest,
and turning suddenly round upon the animal,
threw it over it, thus hindering its further pro-
gress.
"Ah! you wicked dragon," he cried, "I will
teach you to show your pincers in that way." I
went to his aid, and, after some heavy blows on
its back, despatched the creature, which, even
when dead, looked formidable.
"What is the name of that terrible beast ?"
asked Jack.
"It is a land-crab," I answered. "This is
the second encounter you have had with animals
of this order; to-day you have shewn much
more courage and presence of mind than the first
time. Your ruse was very ingenious, and was
well thought of, for the land-crab is a very dan-
gerous adversary, especially to a child. It lives
on the cocoa-nuts, which it breaks by throwing
them down on the ground."
After refreshing ourselves with some of the fruit,
A WILD PIG.
137
we placed the crab on the hurdle, and proceeded
on our way. We went slowly, for the thick brush-
wood hindered us very much, and we were often
obliged to cut our way through it with hatchets.
Ernest, observing that a clear juice ran from some
of the trailing branches we cut, tasted it, and
pronounced it as good and refreshing as the purest
spring water.
A few minutes more brought us to Calabash
Wood, where, having gathered a number of the
gourds, we all set to work to cut them into dif
ferent kinds of vessels. Amongst others, we
made milk-bowls and cheese-moulds; and I also
cut out a neat little bowl for my wife to keep
eggs in. The boys even manufactured nests for
the fowls and pigeons, so neat and comfortable-
looking, that Francis wished he had been less,
so that he could have one to sleep in.
1
While occupied in this way, Ernest and Jack
resolved to try and cook the crab, as the savages
do, by throwing hot pebbles into the water to
heat it. For this purpose they prepared an
enormous calabash, to serve for a pot. As they
were going to light a fire, they remembered they
had no water, and separated in opposite direc-
tions to look for it. They were scarcely out of
sight, when we heard Ernest crying-
"A wild pig! a wild pig! perhaps a boar!'
I ran in the direction from which his voice
came, and soon met our young philosopher, run-
**
138
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
ning as fast as he could. I saw the animal also,
a little way off, and sent the dog after it.
"It is there, father; do you see it?" said
Ernest, who was now marching bravely behind
me. "It was there I came upon the terrible
beast, roaring hoarsely."
'I do not wonder that it roared," I said,
"for
you no doubt disturbed it while enjoying an
excellent repast."
me.
From the noise the dogs were now making, I
knew that they were in close conflict with the
enemy; so, leaving Ernest behind, I marched
forward cautiously with Fritz, who had followed
What was our surprise and amusement, to
see, instead of a wild boar, our own sow, which,
escaping from the dogs, ran forward to meet us.
Poor Ernest was sadly teased about his "terrible
beast." He changed the subject, by drawing our
attention to some little round apples the sow had
been devouring when he disturbed her. Fritz
thought they might be the fruit of the manchineel
tree, against which I had warned them; but I
did not think so, and determined to take some of
them to master Knips. We were proceeding to
rejoin Francis and his mother in the Calabash
Wood, when we heard Jack, who had gone in
search of water, exclaiming-
"Papa, papa, a crocodile! a crocodile!"
"A crocodile!" I repeated, laughing; "a croco-
dile in a place where we cannot find a drop of water."
139
"C
I assure you, papa," he answered, “that it
is a crocodile; I saw it stretched full length below
a rock, sleeping in the sun."
We went in the direction he indicated, and
saw that what he had taken for a crocodile was
a large green lizard, the flesh of which is con-
sidered by the Indians a great delicacy. Fritz
immediately raised his gun, but I seized his arm.
"You are always too hasty," I said to him;
you may miss fire, and only give the animal a
chance of escape by waking it, whereas we can
easily take it, now it is asleep." I cut a rod from
a neighbouring tree, and tied a cord to the end of
it, with a running loop, and then approached the
lizard cautiously, whistling an air all the while.
Wakened by the music, it looked up and seemed
to fall into a kind of ecstacy; and while in this
state I threw the noose over its head, and drew
it tightly round its throat so as to choke it. The
boys were delighted with my device, and I told
them it was one often practised by the Indians.
I took the lizard on my back, Jack carrying the
tail behind me; it looked like the equipage of
some oriental prince. My wife, who had been
getting anxious about our long absence, and was
very much astonished to see us return without
water, was about to scold us a little, but the sight
of the lizard explained matters.
She told us that during our absence, Knips
had been greedily eating some of the new fruit
4
THE GREEN LIZARD.
140
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON."
we had discovered. I gave some to the bustard,
which was tied to a tree near, and it devoured
them so eagerly, that I was satisfied there could
be nothing hurtful about them; so we refreshed
ourselves with some, along with the provisions
we had brought with us, for it was now too late
to think of cooking Jack's crab. In order to
hasten our return home, and to leave a place on
the hurdle for Francis, who was getting tired, we
resolved to go back next day for our calabash
dishes, taking with us only a very few that were
dry, and the crab and lizard. A part of the latter
my wife cooked with some potatoes for our
evening meal, which was relished by all.
CHAPTER XVI.
THE HEATH-ооок.
NEXT morning Fritz and I, accompanied by our
ass and the dogs, set out, nominally to fetch the
rest of our gourd dishes, but in reality to try and
find out the extent of the land on which we had
been cast. When near the oak wood, we again
spied our pig, quietly breakfasting on the acorns,
but did not disturb her. This wood was alive with
birds. Fritz shot a tufted jay and two beautiful
141
paroquets, and was preparing to load again,
when we were startled by a noise like some one
playing a tambourine. Afraid that it might be
the military music of some band of savage in-
vaders, we advanced very cautiously, and soon
discovered the cause of our alarm. Perched on
the trunk of a fallen tree was a magnificent
heath-cock, performing some wonderful evolu-
tions before an admiring circle of wood-hens.
He turned round and round in circles, bristling
up his gorgeous neck feathers; then, spreading
out his tail like a fan, he uttered the most extra-
ordinary cries. I was curious to see the close of
the performance, but a shot from Fritz brought
it to a premature end, by striking down the
principal actor, and dispersing his audience. I
rebuked him very severely for his hastiness.
"Why always be so precipitate?" I said. "Is it
not much better to see those beautiful birds en-
joying themselves in life than to destroy them
wantonly?"
He seemed sorry for his thoughtlessness; and
I told him to pick up the dead bird and put it
on the ass's back, till he could present it to his
mother. Arrived at the wood, we found all we
had left, and, as it was still early, proceeded to
the exploration of that part of the island still
unknown to us. In this we were considerably
retarded by the very luxurious undergrowth. We
crossed several streams, on whose banks pota-
K
EXPLORATION.
142
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
In a
toes and manioc were very abundant.
thicket of shrubs a little farther on, I recognised
the American wax-tree, from which can be
obtained a substance that burns as well as bees-
wax, and exhales a delightful fragrance. I was
delighted to see it, and told Fritz to gather a
plentiful supply.
A little way farther we saw a colony of birds,
something like our European chaffinches, which
seemed to inhabit one common nest divided into
a number of separate cells, each having its own
window or door, but all under one roof of inter-
laced roots or branches. A great many birds were
constantly flying out or in, and some little paro-
quets were hovering about, and seemed to be
disputing the right of possession with them.
Fritz mounted the tree, and, after getting his
hands severely pecked, succeeded in capturing
one of the young birds. Putting it inside his
vest, he slid down the trunk, and on examination
found his captive was a young paroquet, with
green plumage, which, with my permission, he
resolved to keep, that he might teach it to speak.
In all probability this was a parrot's nest, and
the other birds were intruders, which sought to
possess themselves of it. Hence the little battle
which we had just witnessed.
While we were speaking, we came to the bor-
der of a wood, new to us. The trees were of
great height, and resembled the wild fig. Fritz
143
remarked, that out of one of the trunks there
exuded a kind of resin, which hardened in the
air. He took a little and kneaded it in his fin-
gers. When he saw that it was softened and dis-
tended by the heat of his hand, and that he could
fold without breaking it, astonished, he came to
me, crying, "Really, father, I believe I have
found gutta-percha."
((
Well," said I, joyfully, "this is a treasure
indeed!" Having myself examined the gum, I
saw that Fritz had not been deceived; and when
he asked of what use this would be to us, I told
him that, among other things, it would make us
excellent shoes. The curiosity of the young
man was excited, and I was obliged to explain
to him, as we walked along, how I expected to
turn our discovery to good account.
<<
Gutta-percha, as we have seen," said I,
"falls, drop by drop, from the trees. Being
gathered in jars, and while in a liquid state, it
is put into small earthen bottles, which are ex-
posed to smoke, to dry the gum, and give it a
dark colour. Then the bottle which has served
as a mould is broken, and there remains a smooth
flagon, glossy and flexible. The process which
I shall employ in making our shoes resembles
the one I have described. We shall fill a pair of
stockings with sand, cover them over with gutta-
percha, and have a pair of boots ready made,
solid, and water-tight."
GUTTA-PERCHA.
144
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
Delighted with our discovery, and already
shod, in imagination, with our gutta-percha
boots, we made good speed on our way. A new
wood of cocoa-nut trees was before us.
"Let
us stop here," said I to Fritz. Observing the
trees by which we were surrounded, I thought I
recognised among them the sago-tree. Not only
did I see in one of the trunks, broken by the
wind, that succulent pith sold in Europe under
the name of sago, but, to confirm me in my
opinion, I saw the large white worms-considered
by the inhabitants of the East Indies a great
delicacy-which feed on the tree. To satisfy my-
self of their value, I proceeded to roast a num-
ber over the fire we had lit. Fritz at first pro-
fessed to despise my meal, and declared he would
never allow such a mess to pass his lips. The
odour, however, became shortly so savoury
as to be quite irresistible, and Fritz was the
first to partake of the dish he had treated so
saucily.
At last we came again to the Calabash Wood.
Our ass was yoked to the hurdle that we had left
there, and in the evening we found ourselves
again at Falcon's Nest, where our non-appear-
ance had already excited some anxiety.
The account of our excursion was the sub-
ject of conversation during the evening. The
parrot was the source of great amusement to the
young people, each one offering to be its teacher;
•
INVENTING A CHURN.
and the contention was only put an end to by
Fritz's declaring that he himself would take sole
charge of the new comer.
CHAPTER XVII.
145
LAST VOYAGE TO THE VESSEL.
In the morning, I proceeded to make some
candles of the berries we had found. I first
boiled them in a kettle of water. The green wax
soon showed itself on the surface of the liquid.
I then collected it in jars, already heated, to pre-
vent its congealing. When my wife had finished
making the wicks of linen thread, I dipped them
in the wax, and hung them up in the air to dry.
By dipping them several times, candles were pro-
duced; not, indeed, so round and polished as
those made in moulds, nor very brilliant, but
giving light enough to relieve us of the dire ne-
cessity of going to bed by daylight. This first
success encouraged us to put another project into
execution.
It distressed my wife to lose her cream for want
of a churn in which to make butter. By way of
substitute, I took one of our large calabash bottles,
filled it three-quarters full of cream, sealed it her-
metically, and placed it upon a piece of sail-cloth,
146
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
the four corners of which were attached to stakes.
I then charged my sons to lay hold of the sail-
cloth, and keep the bottle in constant motion,
which occupation they found so amusing that
they made quite a recreation of it. At the end
of an hour I opened the jar. and found a small
quantity of excellent butter. My wife scarcely
knew how to express her delight; and the boys,
who always received well a new dainty, were as
well pleased as their mother.
The success attending these various experiments
gave me boldness to undertake a work much
longer and more difficult than anything I had yet
attempted. This was to make some kind of small
carriage, to replace the hurdle, which our animals
had great difficulty in dragging along. I believed
myself, from my observations in Europe, to be
sufficiently acquainted with the manufacture of
carriages to be able to make a simple car; but
when I came to the manufacture of wheels, I was
at a great loss. The humblest trade demands an
apprenticeship, study, and a special talent. After
many efforts, and much working in the dark, I
had a two-wheeled chariot,-heavy, ill-shaped,
frightful, I confess, but very useful to us in our
labours.
While I was occupied with this work, my wife
and sons were not idle. They had transplanted
our European trees each to the most suitable spot.
The stalks of the vines were placed under large
147
trees, the thick foliage of which was to protect them
from the burning rays of the sun. An alley of
chesnut, nut, and cherry trees, planted by our
diligent labourers, shaded the way to Jackal
River. We took especial care to embellish
Tent House. All trees which would not be
harmed by exposure to the sun's rays, such as
the lemon, the citron, pistachio, mulberry, and
almond tree, were planted here, transforming
this barren spot into an agreeable retreat. We
made it a place of refuge in time of danger, sur-
rounding it with a great hedge of thorny plants,
to protect us from the attacks of wild beasts.
These arrangements occupied no less than six
weeks, during which time we did not neglect to
observe the Sabbath.
BLOWING UP THE VESSEL.
The condition of our wardrobe was by this
time deplorable, and another voyage to the
vessel, where there yet remained some boxes of
clothing, was quite indispensable. Choosing the
first calm day, we launched the pinnace, which
soon took us to the ship. It was much shattered
by the wind and waves, and the ammunition and
other stores were a good deal damaged. We
brought away every article which we thought
would be useful-utensils and arms of all kinds,
including four pieces of cannon. After this I
resolved to blow up the hulk of the vessel, that
we might procure the beams and planks which
the waves would wash ashore. For this purpose
148
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
I rolled into the hull of the vessel a barrel of
gunpowder, to which, just as we left the ship, I
attached a lighted match. It was dark before
the explosion took place. Suddenly a loud report
was heard, and a large column of fire rose from
sea to sky, announcing the complete destruction
of the ship. Thus was severed the last tie that
bound us to Europe.
We were astir by break of day, and went down to
the beach, where there floated a quantity of spoil
from the vessel. I was delighted to espy several
large tuns, to which I had attached some copper
cooking utensils, too heavy for our pinnace, and
which I intended using in my sugar-refining.
For several days we were occupied in collecting
those parts of the wreck which were thrown up
upon the shore. My wife meanwhile discovered
that two of the ducks and the geese had brought
out a large family of young ones; and she re-
membered with regret her little feathered flock
at Falcon's Nest. We all joined with her in
wishing to return; so at last I said we should go
to-morrow.
On the way Ernest remarked that the young
trees forming the avenue leading to Falcon's
Nest were not strong enough to support them-
selves, and that we should require to bring
bamboo canes from Cape Disappointment, with
which to prop them up. This expedition became
the more necessary, because our wax candles
NEW SCENERY.
149
were diminishing, and we required a fresh supply
of wax berries. All the boys found an excuse
for being of the expedition, and I willingly con-
sented to turn it into a party of pleasure. In
order that my sons might more easily climb the
cocoa-trees, I had made shields for their arms
and legs out of the skin of the shark. The fields
of cassava and potatoes, and the place where we
had found the parrot, rose before us, and the
boys rushed forward, eager to see this singular
bird republic of which Fritz had spoken.
Owing to the great number of wax trees, our
provision for lights was soon made; and we hid
our bags full of berries in a convenient place,
where we might find them on our return. A short
walk brought us to the gutta-percha trees. A
white liquid flowed from the notches of these
trees, which we received in bowls brought for the
purpose, and the supply was all that could be
desired. After having crossed the wood of palms,
and turned Cape Disappointment, our road led
through one of the most delightful countries that
the imagination can paint. On the left, were fields
of sugar-cane; on the right, bamboos and a wood
of palms; immediately before us lay the Bay of
Disappointment; and beyond it, far as the eye
could reach, the boundless ocean. We were so
delighted with the prospect, that we decided to
make this beautiful spot the centre of our excur-
sions. We even thought of abandoning Falcon's
150
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
Nest for this paradise, but habit and a sense of
its security had attached us to our old home.
Having unyoked our beasts of burden, and left
them to graze on the tufted
grass, which grew
under the shade of the palm trees, some of us
went in search of bamboos for props to our trees;
the others set about gathering a store of sugar-
cane. This work awoke the appetites of the
children, who wanted their mother to give them
the provisions she had intended for supper. Our
prudent housewife would not agree to this, but
she advised them to contrive some other means
of satisfying their hunger. They cast longing
glances to the tops of the palm-trees, where hung
magnificent nuts; but not belonging to the race
of squirrels, how could they climb to such a
height? I helped them out of this difficulty by
tying round their bodies pieces of shark skin, to
enable them to climb more easily, and by fasten-
ing a loop of rope round the trunk of the tree, on
which they might rest when tired. By these
means, they succeeded in reaching the tops of the
trees. With a hatchet which they carried they
sent down a shower of fresh nuts, on which we
were able to satisfy our appetites, without en-
croaching upon our supper. Fritz and Jack
were proud of their exploit, and rallied Ernest on
his laziness in the ascent. But Ernest, insensi-
ble to their mockery, seemed bent on some great
project. All at once be rose, and asked me to
151
saw in two one of the nuts for him, out of which
he formed a cup, and suspended it at his waist.
"Gentlemen and ladies," said he, "it is true
I have no great taste for perilous adventures; but
when occasion requires, I can be as courageous
as any one. I hope to make you a more agree-
able present than even the cocoa-nuts, if you will
but wait a little." After a comical bow, he
approached a high palm-tree.
"Bravo! Ernest,” said I; "the spirit of emu-
lation by which you are animated is worthy of
praise."
THE CABBAGE-PALM.
I offered him the same help as his brothers,
and counselled him to act prudently. He sprang
lightly up the palm which he had chosen, with an
agility of which I did not think him capable, and
soon reached the top in triumph. Fritz and Jack,
who did not see any fruit on the tree, laughed
mockingly; but our naturalist, without replying
to their raillery, cut off the top of the tree, which
fell at our feet.
"Naughty boy!" cried his mother, "in his
spite at not finding any nuts, he has destroyed a
noble palm-tree."
"Do not put yourself about, mother," said he,
from the top of his tree; "what I have sent you
is a cabbage-palm, very much better than the
cocoa-nut, and I condemn myself to remain here,
if I am saying anything that is not true."
"Ernest is quite right," said I; "the cabbage.
152
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
palm is considered very delicate in the Indies,
and our naturalist is much more deserving of the
admiration than of the sarcasm of certain gentle-
men." As I said this, I looked at the two little
railers.
Meantime, Ernest was in no hurry to come
down; and we tried in vain to see or to guess
what he was about. He descended at last, and,
drawing from his pocket a flask filled with coloured
liquid, he poured it into the cocoa-nut which I
had prepared for him, and presented it to me.
"Taste it, Father," he said; "it is the wine
of the palm. Is it not delicious ?"
I found it refreshing and agreeable, and thanked
my little cup-bearer; and after his mother had
tasted the sweet liquor, the flask was passed
round and emptied to the health of Ernest.
1
The day was far advanced; and as we had re-
solved to pass the night in this charming place,
we occupied ourselves in making a hut to shelter
us from the night air. Suddenly our ass, which
had been grazing quietly at the foot of a tree,
began to bray loudly, kicking up his heels in the
air as if afraid, and at last galloped off and dis-
appeared. We rushed along in the direction he
had gone, but could see no trace of him, and re-
turned sad and disappointed. This circumstance
troubled me, for two reasons: first, because we
had lost a useful animal'; and secondly, because
I was afraid it had been startled by the approach
153
of some ferocious beast. Animated by this fear,
we lighted large fires all round our hut. The
night was calm, and my family stretched them-
selves on their beds of moss; but I kept watch
until I saw the day break, when I snatched a few
moments' rest.
BUFFALOES.
In the morning we thanked God, who had pre-
served us from danger; and having fortified our-
selves with a good breakfast, I proposed to go in
search of the ass. I took Jack with me, leaving
the two eldest to watch over the safety of their
mother and Francis. After half-an-hour's walk,
I recognised the traces of the ass's hoofs; and a
little farther on they became mingled with the
impressions of larger hoofs. Following these
traces, we reached an immense plain, extend-
ing as far as the eye could reach. In the
distance, we thought we perceived troops of ani-
mals like horses; and, supposing that our ass
might possibly be amongst them, we bent our
steps that way. In the marshy ground we were
obliged to cross we saw reeds of a prodigious
height and thickness, which I concluded to be
the bamboo properly so called, or giant reed of
America, which grows thirty or forty feet high.
Leaving this marsh, we found ourselves about a
hundred paces from the animals, which we im-
mediately recognised as buffaloes. I knew the
ferocity of these animals, and could not restrain
a movement of terror. I cast an anxious look
154
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
on my son. The sudden fright had deprived me
of my presence of mind, so that I did not think
even of loading my gun. It was too late to
speak of flight; the buffaloes were there staring at
us, but with looks more of surprise than anger;
for doubtless we were the first men they had
seen. All at once, our dogs, which had been
behind, rushed on, barking furiously. We tried
in vain to keep them back; on seeing the buffaloes,
they ran at once into the midst of the herd.
The combat was terrible; the buffaloes ran here
and there, roaring, pawing the ground, tearing it
up with their horns, and precipitating themselves
on the dogs, who, nothing daunted, sprang at
their enemies. We had time to load our guns,
and retire some steps, when the dogs, laying hold
of a young buffalo, commenced dragging him
towards us. His mother came to his rescue,
and would soon have ripped up one of the dogs
with her horns, when Jack, at a sign from me,
pulled the trigger of his gun. We both fired to-
gether. At the report, the buffaloes fled in terror,
and were soon out of sight, and the rocks sent
back the echo of their roaring.
Our brave dogs had kept fast hold of the young
buffalo. I had fired at the mother, and she had
rolled on the ground. Delivered from imminent
danger, I breathed more freely, and praised Jack
for his courage. Meantime we had still to con-
quer the young buffalo, which was struggling with
N
155
the dogs; but we did not want to use our guns.
I wished to take him alive, to supply the place
of our ass, for which I was not inclined to make
any further search. Jack happily thought of his
lasso; and threw it so cleverly, that the animal,
firmly held by the hind legs, was caught at once.
I called off the dogs, and replaced the lasso by a
tether. But we found it no easy matter to make
him follow us. At my wits' end, I had recourse
to an expedient, cruel but sure. While his legs
were firmly tied, and the dogs held each an ear,
I pierced his nostril, and passed a cord through,
with which to guide him; and meanwhile tied
this cord to a tree. As we had no proper instru-
ments with us to cut up the dead animal, I only
took the tongue and some pieces of flesh, which,
after rubbing with salt, we carried with us. The
rest of the dead buffalo we left to the vultures
and other birds of prey, which, after flying round
our heads, descended in a black cloud on the
carcase. Amongst these birds, I distinguished
the royal vulture, and rhinoceros bird, so called.
from the excresence which it has above the
beak. We returned home after taking some re-
freshment, leading with us the not very willing
buffalo.
VULTURES.
As we climbed a low hill, our dogs pursued
and caught a young jackal. Jack petitioned to
be allowed to keep it, and I consented, because I
thought, if trained for the chase, it might be use-
156
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
ful to us. Jack was overjoyed, and could not
sufficiently admire his future pupil, with its soft
yellow hair and bright eyes.
I too had made an important discovery, in the
shape of a dwarf palm with prickly leaves, which
I thought would be useful in making hedges; and
I determined to come as soon as possible, and
secure some of these shrubs, to strengthen the
enclosure at Tent House.
It was almost night before we reached home,
where we found them watching for us. We
were assailed with a host of questions, to which
Jack replied with his usual vivacity. So much
did his account engage the attention of his
audience, that it was almost supper time before
I found time to ask my wife what had happened
in my absence.
CHAPTER XVIII.
TRAINING OF ANIMALS.
My wife told me she was proud of her sons who
had been left with her at Cape Disappointment.
They had cut down Ernest's enormous palm.
This work required more strength than skill, but
by means of a hatchet, a saw, and a strong rope,
they succeeded in accomplishing it without
157
accident. While they were thus engaged, a band
of monkeys entered the hut, and worked so much
mischief, that it took my sons an hour to repair
it.
SAGO.
Fritz had caught a young bird, which I recog-
nised as the eagle of Malabar. I had read that
this bird was easily educated, and advised Fritz
to take care of his, as it might be trained in the
same way as a falcon. Ernest told us all he
knew of falconry, which was the favourite art of
noblemen in the middle ages; and he was con-
vinced that Fritz's eagle might be taught to
catch game. My wife made the young buffalo a
supper of potatoes and milk, and he seemed so
docile, that we put him beside our cow for the
night. Our supper was a very cheerful one; and
after securing our safety, by lighting a fire, we
sank to sleep on our beds of moss.
The next morning I would have given the
signal to depart, but the young people had an-
other project.
CC
My dear," said my wife to me,
"C we must
not go away without taking part of the palm
which the children have cut down. Ernest
says that the pith of it is sago, and if our little
doctor says true, I will be delighted to carry away
a substance so wholesome and agreeable."
I examined the tree, and saw that Ernest was
right; but it was no light labour to open up this
great trunk, fifty feet long, and take out the
L
1
158
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
4
pith; but by the help of hatchets, we at length
succeeded. While engaged in this operation, the
idea struck me that the two parts of the trunk, if
preserved, would form canals, by which we
might bring water from the river, to water our
kitchen garden.
The first thing we did was to clear one half
of the tree, to serve for a channel; we then
placed in it the pith, sprinkled well with water,
and the boys, turning up their sleeves, kneaded
it thoroughly. When the paste was of the proper
consistency, I pressed it through grater
attached to one end of the channel, and dried
the little round grains thus obtained, in the sun.
I even attempted to make vermicelli. This I
accomplished by making the paste a little thicker,
and exerting a continued pressure upon it.
The next day we set out for Falcon's Nest.
The cow and the buffalo were yoked to the
chariot, and we were much pleased with the
docility of the latter. The road we had taken
brought us to our sacks of berries, and we found
the calabashes we had left at the foot of the
gutta-percha trees were filled with gum. In
going through a wood of guaiacums, our dogs
started at intervals, barking furiously. Fearing
the approach of some savage animal, we stood
still, and held our guns ready to fire; when Jack,
who was lying almost flat upon the ground try-
ing to discover the cause of our alarm, cried out,
159
"It is a wild boar and six little ones." A well
known grunt followed the exclamation, and was
succeeded by a general peal of laughter. There
was the poor sow, with six little pigs four or five
days old. We agreed to take only two of the
little ones, and leave the rest to multiply in the
woods.
TAMING THE EAGLE.
Our arrival at Falcon's Nest was quite a
triumph. We were glad to see our animals again,
and they seemed to welcome our return. The
buffalo and the jackal were tied up till habit
should render them quiet and docile. Fritz's
eagle was also tethered; but my son had the im-
prudence to remove the bandage from his eyes.
Immediately the bird began to strike right and
left with his claws and beak. The young parrot,
which happened to be near, was killed at a single
stroke, and Fritz was so angry that he wished to
punish the murderer with death.
·
"Rather give him to me," said Ernest, "I will
undertake to tame him."
"No, indeed, replied Fritz; "I caught and I
will keep it; but tell me your secret."
"If you are determined to keep your eagle,"
said Ernest, "I will keep my secret."
ཝཱ
Here I interfered, and represented to them
both, the unkindness of their conduct. Ernest
at once told his brother that the means were
very simple. He could blow tobacco smoke in
the face of the bird, and thus produce giddiness,
160
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
which would make him lose all his ferocity.
Fritz affected to disbelieve in the efficacy of the ex-
expedient, but Ernest took a pipe we had found in
the ship, and commenced smoking at the eagle's
head. After the first few puffs he became quite
quiet, and by and by motionless. Fritz thought
he was dead, and repented having permitted such
an experiment; but in a little while the bird
revived, and was as tractable as before he had
been fierce and violent. Happily it was not
necessary to repeat this operation often.
The next morning we proceeded to prop up our
young shrubs with bamboos we had brought for
the purpose. The trees had been very much bent
down by the strong winds that had blown from
the shore during the last few days. While we
were engaged in raising them up, and tying them
to the bamboos, my sons asked me questions
about agriculture, which I answered to the best
of my ability; but I wished I had known more
about the subject, that I might have satisfied
them more fully.
Are the trees we have planted here," asked
Fritz, “in their natural state, or have they been
trained ?"
"What a question!" said Jack. "One would
think, to hear you, there is a way of taming trees
like animals. Perhaps you think they can he
rendered docile, like your eagle, and taught to
bend politely, that we may pull the fruit."
161
"You think you have said a witty thing, my
poor Jack, when you have only said a foolish one.
It is quite true that we do not find trees obeying
the voice of their possessors; but some of them
grow of their own accord, without culture, while
others go through a process of education, by
which their fruit is greatly improved. Since you
place all beings in the same list, then, when you
are disobedient I ought to punish you by passing
a cord through your nose, as if you were a buffalo,
or blowing tobacco smoke into your eyes."
"It would not be a bad plan," observed Ernest,
maliciously.
-
"Yes," replied I, laughing, "a plan which I
would have often to adopt with you all, not ex-
cepting Mr Doctor. But if men are treated dif-
ferently from animals, so vegetables must be
treated after their nature, by grafting, transplant-
ing, manuring, and the like." I told them that
the greater number of our fruit trees at home
have been brought from foreign countries. The
olive-tree, for example, comes from Palestine ; the
peach from Persia; the fig from Lydia; the
apricot from Armenia; the prune from Syria ;
and the pear from Greece; although most of
them have been so long cultivated in our country,
that we forget they are not indigenous.
About mid-day our work was done, and we
returned to Falcon's Nest to dinner. After
dinner, we occupied ourselves in the execution
CULTIVATION OF PLANTS.
162
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
of a plan we had long thought of. This
was to replace the rope ladder leading to our
aërial castle, and which formed a perilous ascent
for my wife and youngest son, by a fixed stair-
case. To make an outside stair would have been
a difficult, not to say an impossible, work. I re-
solved, therefore, to construct it inside the hollow
trunk of the fig-tree, then occupied by a hive of
bees. To expel these angry tenants was our first
work.
To sound the cavity of the tree, we each took a
hatchet, and, with the back of it, struck the trunk
at different places. This noise disturbed the
bees, who came out in great numbers, and at-
tacked Jack, who, in spite of my warning, had
ventured too near the mouth of the hive. In a
moment his face and hands were stung all over,
causing him great pain. I relieved him a little by
rubbing him with wet earth. This accident proved
to me that we could only dislodge our neighbours
by violent means. I had hoped to force them to
change their habitation, and had formed, out of a
hollow trunk and one end of a calabash, a small
bee-hive, in which I had thought to install them;
but I did not see how I was to accomplish the trans-
lation; and I was not sure that, supposing it ac-
complished, the bees would adopt a new place of
abode.
As I was trying to solve this problem, I noticed
an unusual commotion at the mouth of the hive.
BEE-SWARMING.
163
The bees came and went in a great state of ex-
citement. I concluded that a new hive was go-
ing to separate itself from the parent one, and I
was right. In a few moments a small army of
bees came out of the trunk, and, after flying
about for a short time in the air, settled in the
form of a large bunch of grapes on the lowest
branch of a small tree. I had more than once
seen a hive taken, and set about employing the
same means. I covered my head with a piece
of sail-cloth, leaving several small holes in it
through which I might see and breathe. Protect-
ing my hands with a handkerchief, I approached
the tree, and reversed the hive which I had made
under the branch on which the bees had alighted.
With my foot I shook the tree. The greater
part of the bees fell into the hive, which I has-
tened to place on a plank laid for this purpose
at the foot of the tree. The most difficult part of
the work was over. I had taken care to leave a
hole by which the bees might go in and out. A
noisy coming and going was established between
the bees on the tree and those in the hive, but
an hour after the whole swarm had taken pos-
session of their new home. At night, when they
were asleep, we placed the hive against the wall
of our kitchen garden, facing the south; and in
the morning the little republic commenced work-
ing. Having become possessed of a hive which
promised us in future a double supply of honey
164
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
and wax, we had less regret in sacrificing those
in possession of our fig-tree. We killed them by
throwing into the trunk two or three pieces of
lighted sulphur, and then closing up the opening.
The next day we took possession of the accumu-
lated provisions of the year, and proceeded with-
out hindrance to the construction of our stair. I
sounded the tree, and found, to my satisfaction,
that it was hollow from the base almost to the
branches on which we had placed the planks of
our house, so that we could make a winding stair
inside without losing time.
First we made, at the foot of the tree, a large
opening, into which we fitted the door of the cap-
tain's cabin. A large joist from the vessel was
set up in the middle of the trunk to support the
steps, which rested on their other extremities in
hollow grooves cut on the inside of the tree. We
also made openings in the trunk, into which we
put the windows we brought from the vessel,
giving it the appearance of a tower surmounted
by a house almost hid amongst the branches.
This work, which occupied several days, was per-
haps wanting in architectural elegance, but it
was solid and convenient, and appeared to us
superb.
While we had been working at our stair, Flora
had had two little pups, a male and a female;
and I allowed Jack to give his jackal as foster-
brother to the little dogs. The docile mother
TAMING THE ANIMALS.
165
made no objection to this addition to her family,
who on his part was much benefited by the adop-
tion. About the same time we had an addition
to our flock, of four kids, and five or six lambs.
We saw with pleasure our stock of animals in-
creasing; but fearing lest, like the ass, they
should stray from us, Jack suggested that
we should tie the little bells we had brought
from the wreck round their necks, so that the
tinkling might guide us to the track of the fugi-
tives.
The incision I had made in the nostrils of the
buffalo was now quite healed, and I followed the
example of the Hottentots, by passing a piece of
stick through it to serve as a bit. Thanks to
this invention, he was soon easily led; but it was
some time before he would allow himself to be
mounted or to carry burdens. Fritz busied him-
self training his eagle. The bird knew his master
perfectly, and obeyed his voice; but he was too
desirous to regain his liberty to make it safe for
him to be loosed.
Ernest, too, was taken with this education fever,
which had become general. He determined to
train the monkey which Fritz had given to him.
It was amusing to see the indolent boy patiently
trying to conquer his blundering and rebellious
pupil. The careless professor, who felt the least
burden too heavy, resolved that master Knips
should carry his. He tied to his back a small
166
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
creel, made of reeds and filled with light things.
The monkey found this occupation little to his
taste, and rolled on the sand, ground his teeth,
and tried several other ways of getting quit of
his basket. But at length, by means of alternate
praises and threats, Ernest taught him to carry
light burdens with a better grace.
Jack in his turn was occupied training his
jackal, which in anticipation he had named Hun-
ter, and which he intended should seek out the
living game, and bring it to him after having
killed it. The animal was very difficult to teach.
He would seize anything that was thrown to him,
but could not be got to bring the game he had
sought out to his master. Jack, however, did
not despair of obtaining a better result in time.
Such were our employments during the hours
in which we were not working; so that we had
no time for wearying.
Hardly was our stair finished, when we began
to think of perfecting our wax candles. We were
in want of wicks, for my wife reasonably refused
to let us tear our handkerchiefs and cravats for
that purpose. I thought of making them of a
kind of inflammable wood, found in the Antilles,
and had already cut several small splinters, which
I placed inside the moulds; but my wife had little
faith in wooden wicks, and she manufactured
some out of the fibres of the karata, dried in the
sun, and twisted together. Having prepared our
BOOT-MAKING.
167
wicks, we melted a quantity of wax in our kettle
over a slow fire, and poured it into the moulds,
which had been previously dipped in cold water
to secure the wax hardening quickly. When
night came I lighted two candles, one of each
sort, that we might see whether the wood or the
fibres burned best.
Alas! they both fell far short of the cotton.
The inflammable wood burned too quickly, and
the fibres of the karata carbonised. We sighed
for the time when we should be able to obtain
cotton without destroying our clothes. Having
finished the candles, I turned my attention to
the manufacture of boots. I employed the pro-
cess of which I had spoken to Fritz when we dis-
covered the gutta-percha tree. I filled a pair of
stockings with sand, and daubed them over with
clay, which I afterwards dried in the sun. I
then, by means of a brush made of goat's hair,
covered them with a coating of liquid india-rub-
ber. When this coating was dry, I put on a
second, and continued the process till the india.
rubber appeared to me to be of the proper thick
ness. When the whole was sufficiently dry,
removed the sand and clay, and found myself ir
possession of a pair of boots, so comfortable, that
the children requested me to make each of them
a pair.
As the boys often stirred up the mud of the
stream when they were drawing water, I formed
168
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
a small well of the shell of the tortoise, collecting
the water by means of a tube made of the wood
of the sago palm. Thus, day by day, we busied
ourselves trying to better our situation.
CHAPTER XIX.
THE WILD ASS.
ONE morning, as we were commencing our work,
we were startled by a terrible sound in the dis-
tance. It was a mixture of howling and sharp
whistling, and died away in a lamentable moan.
Fearing an attack, we collected our animals under
the roots of the tree, and retired into our strong
castle, while our dogs stood with ears erect,
ready to defend us. There was silence for some
moments, and then the sounds were repeated,
but this time much nearer. We all turned our
heads in the direction from which they appeared
to come, and Fritz, who had sharper eyes
than the rest of us, threw down his gun and
burst into a fit of laughing, saying, "It is our
ass, who returns with a flourish of trumpets."
His brothers began to feel ashamed of being so
easily frightened. I was not so reassured as they
were. "It is possible," I said to Fritz, "that
169
it was our ass made that strange noise, but it is
not at all certain."
THE WILD ASS.
'You are right, papa," said he, "for our ass
brings company."
I looked in the direction he indicated, and saw
a magnificent wild ass, or onagra, trotting beside
our ass. I immediately descended from the tree,
followed by Fritz, telling the others to make as
little noise as possible. I tied a long cord to the
root of our tree, and made a running loop on the
other end of it. With a piece of bamboo I made
a pair of pincers, while Fritz stood beside me
wondering what I was going to do with them.
In his impatience he wanted to catch the onagra
with his lasso, but I stopped him, telling him
mine was the better way.
The two animals approached the tree. The
onagra saw us, and started back in fear. Just
at this moment Fritz held out his hand full of
oats to our ass, who approached with such eager-
'ness that the onagra, thinking, from the conduct
of his companion, it must be something tempting,
followed her example. I seized the opportunity,
and threw round his neck the rope I held in my
hand. He tried to escape, but the knot tightened.
and he fell on the ground almost suffocated. I
hastened to replace the noose by our ass's halter,
and before the onagra could recover himself, I
pierced his nostrils with my bamboo pincers,
following the example of farriers when they tame
170
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINson.
wild horses. I tied the halter to a tree, and
waited till the animal recovered himself, that I
might know what to do next.
Meantime my family had come down from the
tree, and were admiring the graceful form of our
captive. After a few moments he rose and tried
to regain his liberty, but feeling the pain of his
wound, his ardour cooled considerably, and he
allowed himself to be conducted to the stable.
We had lost confidence in our ass, and to pre-
vent her deserting us a second time, we fettered
her fore feet, and tied her up beside the onagra,
hoping that this might help to reconcile him to
his new mode of life. This we found by experi-
ence to be no easy matter. We tried privations,
and even stripes, but did not succeed until we
had tried an American plan, and pierced his ear
several times.
At the end of some weeks, Lightfoot, as we
called him, was quite tame, and we mounted him
without fear. To guide him I invented a bridle
composed of a halter and small switch, which
was so balanced as to strike either his right or
left ear as his driver wanted.
About this time we had an addition of more
than forty chickens to our poultry; and this re-
minded me that the rainy season was at hand,
and that it was necessary to build a stable and
hen-roost. On the arched roots of our dwelling
we constructed a pent-house of bamboo canes
171
interlaced together, and covered with moss and
clay, coated with tar. The whole enclosure we
surrounded with a pretty balustrade. The in-
terior of this erection was divided into two com-
partments, the one serving as stable and barn,
the other as milk-house and store-house, in which
were our provisions for the rainy season, the
winter of these tropical climates.
Few days passed without enriching our maga-
zine with some new acquisition.
One evening, returning from gathering potatoes,
I left my wife and two youngest sons to guide
the team home, while Fritz, Ernest, and I went
to the wood of green oaks, to gather acorns.
Fritz was mounted on the onagra; Ernest had
his monkey on his shoulder. We carried seve-
ral empty bags with us, which we proposed to
bring back filled on the back of the onagra.
Arrived at the wood, I tied Lightfoot to a tree,
and we commenced filling our sacks. The har-
vest was abundant, and our work progressed
rapidly. All at once the monkey darted into the
nearest thicket, and we heard the cries of birds
and fluttering of wings, which made us suspect
that master Knips was having a combat with
some inhabitant of the woods. Ernest, who was
nearest the field of battle, advanced cautiously,
and cried out, “Come, Fritz, here is a nest of
eggs; come and take the bird before it escapes,
while I hold master Knips." Fritz ran towards
A NEST.
172
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
the thicket, and soon afterwards came towards
me, carrying a Canadian fowl he had attempted
to shoot some days before. I helped him to tie
its legs together, as I considered it a valuable
acquisition. Ernest, who had succeeded in chas-
ing away the monkey, came with his cap full of
eggs, and covered with leaves like those of the
iris. Showing me his spoil, he said, "I have
brought some of the leaves of which the nest was
made; they are like lances, and Francis will
amuse himself with them."
Our sacks filled, we laid them on the back of
the onagra. Ernest carried the eggs, and I the
hen. My wife was delighted at the sight of
the bird and eggs. She set the hen carefully,
and at the end of twenty days we had fifteen
chickens.
Some days after, on seeing the lance-like leaves
Francis had been playing with, scattered round
the foot of the tree, Fritz, by way of amusing his
brother, said to him, "Come, Francis, we will
make whips of these leaves." As they were
splitting them up into long thin straps, I hap-
pened to pass, and taking up one of them, I dis-
covered that this plant was the phormium tenax,
which, amongst the Indians, answers all the pur-
poses of flax. My joy at this discovery was
equalled by that of my wife, who exclaimed, "It
is the greatest discovery you have made; bring
me a sufficient quantity of these leaves, and I
173
will make you shirts and clothing of all kinds."
Alas! she forgot through how many processes
these leaves would have to go before they could
be made into cloth.
FLAX-STEEPING.
While I was explaining this to her, I saw Fritz
on the onagra, and Jack on the buffalo, disappear
in the direction of the oak wood. About a
quarter of an hour afterwards they re-appeared,
their animals laden with enormous bundles of
flax plants, which they deposited at our feet.
"We must first steep the flax," said I, "by
exposing it to the damp and to the air, so that
the plant may corrupt to a certain degree. The
soft part or vegetable glue that holds the plant
together dissolves and leaves the long strong
fibres."
"But do not these fibres corrupt with the
rest ?" asked Fritz.
"That would happen," said I, "if the steeping
was continued too long; but such is the tough-
ness of the threads, that this rarely happens, and
there is little fear of it if the plant, instead of
being exposed to the hot rays of the sun, is
simply steeped in water.”
My wife thought that, owing to the great heat
of the climate, we ought to adopt this latter
mode of steeping, and suggested the Flamingo
Marsh as a likely place for the process. I agreed
with her, and the next morning we yoked the ass
to the cart, in which we placed Francis, master
M
174
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
F
Knips, and our package of flax, and set out,
armed with shovels and pickaxes.
Arrived at our destination, we sunk the flax to
the bottom with large stones, in order that it
might be quite submerged. While engaged in
this work, we had occasion to admire the instinct
of the flamingoes in the construction of their
nests. They were raised above the water in the
form of a truncated cone, and the eggs were
placed at the bottom, so that the female can sit
on them with her legs in the water. These nests
are built of earth, so well packed together that
the action of the water cannot destroy them till
the young flamingoes are beyond danger. After
fifteen days, our housekeeper thought that the
flax would be sufficiently steeped; so we went and
drew it out of the water, spreading it on the grass
to dry. We then brought it home to Falcon's
Nest, leaving the peeling, spinning, and weaving
of it to a future day.
I saw that the rainy season was at hand, and
began to lay in a store of provisions. The weather,
which up to this time had been warm and clear,
changed. The sky was overcast, the wind blew
violently, and heavy showers fell. We gathered
together all the potatoes and cassava we could
find, and stowed them away in heaps. We also
provided ourselves with a large store of nuts and
acorns. Instead of cassava and potatoes, I had
sown a good quantity of wheat; for, in spite of
175
all the delicacies offered to us by this fertile
country, we regretted the want of bread. We
did not know how precious it was until we were
deprived of it; and even little Francis, who was
never very fond of it, was of this opinion.
We transplanted to Tent House a number of
young cocoas; and some sugar-canes, but the
rain surprised us in the midst of our work, and
fell in such torrents, that Francis was seriously
alarmed, and asked if it was going to be a second
deluge, and if we had not better build an ark, as
Noah had done.
THE RAINY SEASON.
The rain was so heavy and the wind so violent,
that it was impossible for us to live in our castle.
We found that we should have to live under the
pent-house at the foot of the tree; but it was so
full of provisions, tools, and animals, that this
was no easy matter. The worst of it all was
that, in attempting to light a fire, we were
threatened with suffocation. To make more
room, we confined all our animals in one com-
partment, and packed away a number of our
things in the winding stair. We did with as
little cooking as possible, as the smoke was very
disagreeable to us.
As we had only gathered a very small quantity
of wood, we had reason to be thankful that the
climate was only damp, and not cold, else we
should have suffered very much. My wife was
in great fear lest the children would take ill
"
176
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
Happily her fears were groundless, as they all
seemed strong and well.
The fodder we had collected began soon to be
exhausted, and we dared not supply the want
with any of our own provisions; so we liberated
during the day such of our animals as had origin-
ally belonged to the country, that they might
forage for themselves, taking care to go in search
of them at night and bring them to the foot of
our tree.
My wife, seeing us return from these excur-
sions drenched to the skin, resolved to make
each of us a waterproof coat. She took two of
the sailors' shirts, and made a hood, which could
be drawn over the head, to each of them. She
then dipped them in liquid gutta-percha. Covered
with these mantles, we went out in the rain with-
out fearing for our clothes or our health.
It was now that I found time to write an
account of our adventures in this desert island;
but I had more than once to refer to my wife
and sons, about the details of events that had
escaped my memory. The children instructed
each other by their mutual questions, and each
told all he could recollect. Ernest took notes,
that nothing might be forgotten; Jack and
Francis were his pupils; their pious mother gave
them religious instructions; I preached hope
and courage to all; and thus we amused our-
selves and whiled away the time, which yet
177
appeared long, notwithstanding all we could
do.
MAKING A FLAX CARD.
The captain's case of books was a great help
to us.
We found some good works in it, scien-
tific dictionaries and manuals, and sometimes
were able to correct, by our experience, remarks
made on the animals and plants. Ernest
made a note of these errors on the margin. The
errors, however, were few, compared with the
amount of useful information.
Of all my works, my wife appreciated most a
comb which I made for carding the flax. I
rounded and pointed with a file long nails, which
I fixed at equal distances in a thin sheet of tin.
The edge of this sheet was turned up all round,
so as to form a box, into which we poured
melted lead, to consolidate the nails. To this
card I soldered little flaps, by which it might
be fastened to a support. My wife now wished
impatiently for the sun to dry the flax, that we
might begin to card it.
CHAPTER XX.
THE DRY SEASON.
Ir is impossible to describe our joy, when, after
long weeks of privation and confinement, we saw
178
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
the sky clear and the sun shine out brightly
was with unfeigned delight that we left our un-
healthy room to breathe the fresh air once more.
We forgot in our joy all the troubles we had ex-
perienced, and work seemed mere play in our
eyes. Our first care was to visit what we called
our domains. Our plantation was in good con-
dition. The seeds we had sown had sprouted,
and the earth was covered with a carpet of beau-
tiful flowers, whose delicious scent was borne to
us on the wind; the birds were singing on every
tree, and it appeared to us that we had never
seen such a beautiful spring.
My wife wished to begin at once to the carding
and spinning of the flax. While the younger
boys took out the animals to graze on the fresh
green grass, Fritz and I spread the flax out on
the ground before the sun. When it was suffi-
ciently dry, the children beat it out with large
sticks;
and my wife, aided by Francis and
Ernest, occupied herself with peeling it. I was
the carder, and succeeded so well, that my wife
entreated me to make her a spindle, that she
might proceed to the spinning at once. By
means of perseverance and application I suc-
ceeded in making not only a spindle, but also a
wheel and a reel. My wife set to work immedi-
ately, without even allowing herself a walk, of
which she had great need. She consented wil-
lingly to remain alone with Francis while we
179
went to Tent House, her desire being to renew
our store of under-clothing.
I went to the Tent with my three sons, and
found it in a sad state. A great part of it had
been carried away with the wind, and much of
our provisions destroyed with the rain. We im-
mediately set to work, and dried all that could
be useful to us. Fortunately the pinnace was
not injured, but our tub-boat was rendered utterly
useless.
EXCAVATING THE ROCK.
What grieved me most was the loss of two
barrels of powder that I had left under the Tent,
instead of placing them in the rock magazine,
where, happily, I had preserved four others.
This accident made me resolve to build winter
quarters, in which we might find a refuge from
the heavy rains, and where we might store our
provisions.
I dared not hope that, as Fritz proposed, we
should be able to cut out a dwelling for ourselves
in the rock, even supposing we had had tools
strong enough for the purpose. I thought, how-
ever, we might hollow out a small cave, in which
to place our provisions. I set out one morning
with Fritz and Jack, armed with shovels, pick-
axes, and hammers; and having chosen a con-
venient spot and marked out the form of the
opening, we set to work. At the close of the
day we had done so little, that we were on the
point of giving it up, but took courage on obsery-
180
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
ing that the rock became softer as we progressed,
and that we were able, in some places, even to
detach portions of it with the spade. We had
already penetrated seven feet, when Jack, who
was in the hollow, trying to move a piece of
rock with his lever, suddenly cried out-
"I have broken through, papa, I have broken
through." "Broken through what?" I asked;
"the mountain ?" Yes, I have broken into
the mountain," he cried, joyfully. "Hurrah!
hurrah! !"
((
"He is right," said Fritz, who had run to the
spot, "and, poor boy, his lever has fallen down
inside."
I advanced, and convinced myself of the truth
of what they said; and, lifting my pickaxe, I
struck the rock, which immediately fell in, leav-
ing an opening into which the boys would have
rushed, had I not stopped them. The air which
proceeded from the cave was unwholesome, and
I felt quite dizzy on approaching to look into the
interior. I embraced this opportunity of explain-
ing to my sons the component parts of the atmos-
phere.
"The gases," I said, "of which the air is com-
posed, must be in a certain proportion to each
other, and unmixed with any pernicious element.
There are several means of knowing vitiated air.
The surest of these is fire, which will only burn
in pure air,"
181
Our first experiment was to throw bundles of
burning herbs into the cave, which were immedi-
ately extinguished. I then had recourse to a
more efficacious means. I put in a case some
fusées and grenados, used in vessels for signals.
Placing the case in the opening to the cave, I set
fire to it. It exploded, and showed us a deep
cavern, whose walls glittered as if they had been
studded with diamonds. After firing off a gun
once or twice, I tried the herbs a second time,
and found that they burned brightly; so I con-
cluded that there was no danger in entering the
grotto. Still, as it was very dark, I thought it
not safe to venture in without a light. I des-
patched Jack to Falcon's Nest to bring candles,
and tell the joyful news to those at home.
During his absence Fritz and I busied our-
selves enlarging the entrance to the cave. We
had just finished when we saw my wife and her
three sons coming towards us in the cart, which
Jack was driving. Francis and Ernest waved
their hats when they saw us. We all entered the
cavern at once, each with a lighted candle. Fritz
and I carried matches, lest our lights should go
out. I led the way, my sons following closely.
The soil of the cave, which seemed to havo
been prepared for us, was firm, and covered with
a fine dry sand. Having examined the form of
the crystals, in fragments which I broke off from
the wall, and tasted, I saw that this was a cavern
CAVERN OF ROCK SALT.
182
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
of rock salt. I rejoiced at this discovery, because
it would secure to us a plentiful supply of salt,
and save us the trouble of gathering it upon the
shore. When we had penetrated farther into the
cave, our admiration could not contain itself at
the wonderful scene before us. Majestic spiral
columns rose to the roof, covered with strange
figures, which, according to the light reflected
on them, appeared to be men, or fabulous ani-
mals. Oriental courts, lustres, gothic lamps,
beautifully sculptured, surrounded us on all sides.
Francis fancied himself in a cathedral, Jack in a
fairy palace. Ernest was pensive and reflective,
while Fritz exclaimed, "It is a most beautiful
diamond castle." Yes, my son, and God is the
architect," said his mother.
(C
I found pieces of crystal detached from the
walls in several places. I thought it probable
that they had become loosened by our firing;
and, to preserve ourselves from accident, I called
my family to the mouth of the cave, and fired
upon those pieces of rock that seemed inclined to
come away.
We sounded the vault with long
poles, and did not leave it till we were assured of
its solidity.
When we had decided on making it our winter
residence, numberless projects filled our minds
with regard to it. Falcon's Nest was to continue
our summer residence; but we thought no more
of the improvements we had intended to make
CAPTIVE TORTOISES.
21
183
before the rainy season. Our subterranean castle
occupied all our attention. We shaped the door-
way properly, and formed windows in the walls.
Into these we fitted the doors and windows of
Falcon's Nest, which were not needed, now that
summer was come.
The grotto was spacious, and divided into
several compartments. To the right was our
house; to the left the kitchen, the stables, and
the workshop. Underneath were the cellar and
magazine. Our house contained several rooms.
The first was my bedroom, the second the dining-
room, and the third the children's bedroom. In
the kitchen we made a large fire-place, and con-
structed a chimney high enough to carry away
the smoke. Our tools and provisions had a place
assigned to them; and, notwithstanding the ex-
tent of the cavern, we were at a loss where to
place some of our animals. Never since coming
to the island had we been so busy; and our labour
was crowned with success. While working at the
grotto, we had been subsisting on eggs and the
flesh of some tortoises we had caught on the shore.
In order that we might have one for our table
when we wished, we had caught some of the ani-
mals, and, boring holes in their shells, had them
tied to stakes on the shore; so that, although
they had liberty to plunge in the water, they were
still our prisoners.
One morning, on going to Safety Bay we ob-
184
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
served that the sea, for hundreds of yards round,
was in great commotion, while gulls and sea-
swallows flew, in wild excitement, over the waves.
My sons were lost in conjecture as to what all
this could mean. Fritz thought it was owing to
the eruption of a subterraneous volcano, while
Ernest declared the commotion could only be
caused by some sea monster. This idea was
favoured by the children, who were always ready
to catch at the marvellous. A little observation
enabled me to see that the disturbance was
caused by the arrival of a shoal of herrings; and
I determined to take advantage of this new
means of subsistence which Providence had
thrown in our way.
"You have heard," I said to the children,
"that these shoals are composed of columns of
fish closely packed together, and covering often
an extent of several miles. They are often ac-
companied by dolphins and sturgeons, which
feed on the flesh of the herring. The sea birds,
too, are continually on the watch to pounce upon
such of the small fish as venture to the surface.
To escape their enemies the herrings retire to
deep pools, where they may be taken in nets."
While I was speaking the shoal had advanced
into the bay, the fish knocking against and jump-
over each other, thus causing the commotion in
the water we had first observed. Fritz now
entered the sea with a basket in his hand, which
185
he immersed in the water, and filled with fish.
He then threw them out on the sand. Ernest
and Jack gutted them, and my wife salted them,
and packed them in the tubs belonging to our
old boat. I nailed up the tubs and conveyed
them to our grotto.
COMPLETING THE CAVE.
This work occupied us three days. As we
were about to leave the bay, we observed a num-
ber of sea-dogs, come probably in search of the
shoal. We killed several, and preserved the skin
and fat the skin to make harness for our beasts
of burden, and clothes for ourselves; and the fat
to be used in manufacturing candles. We threw
the flesh in the Jackal River, and by means of this
bait, caught a number of lobsters. By my advice
the children preserved them alive in a case
pierced with holes, and sunk in the water. In
the same way we kept alive, in sea water, some
of the fish the boys were daily catching.
The fishing over, we set to work vigorously at
our cave. I found some loose pieces of plaster
stone on the floor, and on inspecting the walls
closely, observed a vein of this precious sub-
stance, close to our magazine. This discovery
gave us excellent plaster, and enabled us to per-
fect, and even to ornament, our dwelling. In
the meantime I used it to render our herring
barrels air-tight, two of which we set apart for
smoked herrings.
I had seen cow-hunters smoke their meat, and
186
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
determined to try the same plan with our fish.
I constructed a large hut at some distance from
our habitation, inside of which I suspended the
herrings. We then lighted a fire of moss and
damp herbs, and closed the door of the cabin.
When this operation was repeated several times,
we obtained a quantity of excellent smoked her-
rings, which we stored up in our magazine.
About a month after the herrings had disap-
peared, a number of salmon and sturgeons came
up our stream to deposit their eggs in fresh water.
Jack, who saw them first, thought they were
young whales. As I was reflecting on the best
means of capturing the fish, Jack saw my em-
barrassment, and running to the other side of the
cave, cried out, "Wait a little, papa; I know
what will do it."
In a little he returned with a bow and arrows,
some hooks, a quantity of pack-thread, and some
bladders of the sea-dogs. Curious to know what
he was going to do, we formed a circle round
him. He tied a piece of string round a bladder,
one end of which he attached to an arrow, and
the other to a large stone. Then, drawing his
bow, he shot at the first large salmon that showed
himself. The arrow entered the body of the ani-
mal.
<<
Caught, caught," cried the little archer, joy-
fully.
The salmon plunged, and would have made off,
PICKLING STURGEON.
187
but was prevented by the weight of the stone and
the air in the bladder. His strength was soon
exhausted, and we pulled him out easily. Jack's
success excited us all to emulation. Fritz went
for the harpoon and spindle. I armed myself
with a trident. Ernest provided himself with
fish-hooks, which he baited with pieces of the
salmon, and fished according to rule. Jack
would not give up his old plan. He shot several
arrows, but only succeeded in catching one sal-
mon. Ernest secured a large sturgeon. I struck
two fish, but only succeeded in capturing one.
As for Fritz, he kept his harpoon in readiness
till he saw an enormous sturgeon, ten feet long,
opposite him; he then plunged it into the back
of the animal, which made terrible struggles to
get away. It took our united efforts to prevent
his escaping us. Little by little we got him into
a deep pool. One of the boys went into the
water and passed a cord round his body, and we
drew him ashore.
In gutting the fish, I put aside the eggs and
bladder of the sturgeon for a particular purpose.
The greater part of the flesh was cut in pieces
and salted; the rest I pickled as I had seen them
do tunnies on the shores of the Mediterranean,
by cooking them in very salt water, and packing
them in barrels with oil. My wife thought the
bladder and eggs were useless, and wanted to
throw them away, but I assured her that a very
188
THE SWISS FA "ILY ROBINSON.
delicate dish could be made of the eggs, and that
I could manufacture isinglass from the bladder.
The eggs I prepared by washing them in the sea,
steeping them in salt water, and smoking them
in the hut as we had done the herrings. I then
set about manufacturing the glue. I pared off
stripes of the bladder, steeped them in water, and
dried them in the sun to soften them. We thus
obtained a kind of shavings, which, when thrown
into boiling water, dissolved and formed glue.
The garden at Tent House was very fruitful,
and yielded all kinds of vegetables, almost with-
out culture. The only thing we required to do
was to water it; and even this cost us little
trouble, for we had formed small canals of sago-
wood, that conveyed the water from the Jackal
River. The greater part of the plants had be-
come quite acclimated. The melons and cucum-
bers were already ripe, and the pine-apples pro-
mised well. The flourishing state of this plan-
tation augured well for those at a distance; and
one morning the whole family set out on an ex-
pedition to visit them.
On our way to Falcon's Nest, we stopped at
the old field my wife had planted, and which we
found well stocked with barley, peas, lentils, and
wheat. In one corner I observed a large quantity
of maize, quite ripe. As we approached to cut it
down, half a dozen bustards, a number of quails,
and two or threo kangaroos, started out from
189
amongst the grain. Fritz loosened his eagle,
which pounced upon a bustard, and brought it
to us so little hurt that we kept it alive. The
jackal, which had become a famous hunter,
brought us about a dozen quails.
We continued our journey, and reached Fal-
con's Nest in the afternoon.
We were very
tired, and my wife made us a most refreshing
drink, by crushing some grains of maize, and
dissolving the paste thus obtained in water,
sweetened with the juice of the sugar-cane. The
rest of the day was spent in shaking out the
grain from the maize, and in preparing for a pro-
ject which I had formed some days before. I
wished to try and form a colony of animals in
the open country, which would get accustomed
to the climate, and propagate themselves, thus
saving us the trouble of looking after them and
feeding them. We could well afford to make the
experiment, as our animals were very numerous.
A NEW PROJECT.
CHAPTER XXI.
THE COTTON PLANT.
THE next morning we set out on our expedition,
taking with us a dozen hens, two cocks, three
N
190
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
young pigs, and two brace of hares. Fritz, on
the onagra, went before the caravan as pioneer.
Our course was directed to a part of the island
we had not yet visited, namely, that country
which lay between Falcon's Nest and the great
bay beyond the observatory and Cape Disappoint-
ment. On setting out, we had sometimes to
clear the way with our hatchets, for we had to
cross fields obstructed with high herbs and
thickets. But on passing through a little wood,
we reached a plateau where grew numerous
shrubs, covered with white flakes.
CC
Snow, snow," cried Francis, jumping down
from the cart. Hore, at last, we are come to
a country where there is real winter."
We all laughed at the simplicity of the child.
I knew the plant at once; but observing that the
doctor joined in the laugh, I said to him, "Do
you know the name of the shrub ?"
"
"I have guessed at it," he said.
"As far as
I am able to judge, it is the cotton plant; and if
so, we can have an excellent supply of cotton
without much trouble."
Ernest was right; this was the cotton plant. The
field presented a very curious appearance to us.
The pods of the tree being fully ripe, had burst
open, and the down, of which they were full, had
escaped from them. Some of it still hung on
the branches, and was blown about with every
breath of wind; the rest lay on the ground like
THE FARM.
191
snow. This discovery delighted us all very
much, but particularly my wife, who saw her
way now to renew our under-clothing, and was
most anxious to have some of the cotton in a
state for weaving. The boys filled our empty
bags with the white flakes, and their mother
collected some of the seeds to sow near Tent
House, that we might have this precious plant
growing nearer home.
Continuing our route, we came to a low hill from
which we had a magnificent view, and the sides
of which were covered with rich vegetation. At
the foot of this hill extended a large plain, fer-
tilised by the water of a winding river. We all
agreed that this was the place for our animals.
The tent was set up, a fire-place constructed,
and my wife, aided by Francis and Jack, began
to prepare our supper. While it was getting
ready, Fritz, Ernest, and I went out to explore
the country, and choose the most favourable
place for the colony.
At last we came to a group of trees so con-
veniently situated, that we thought they might
form the pillars of the edifice we intended to con-
struct; so we laid our plans for the morrow's
work, and returned home. My wife had made a
pillow for each of us of the cotton we had
gathered; and our sleep was sound and refreshing.
The trees which I had chosen for the construc-
tion of our cabin, were six in number, and placed
192
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
so as to form an oblong, the side of which faced
the sea.
In the trunks of the three first, about
twelve feet from the ground, I inserted several
notches, into each of which I placed a strong
pole. I did the same to the other three, but at
a distance of only eight feet from the ground.
On these poles rested others less strong, closer
together, and covered with bark for tiles. By
means of a kind of bind-weed and flexible reeds,
interlaced, the walls were closed to the height of
five feet. The roof was formed of lattice work,
through which the light and air could penetrate
freely. The interior of the edifice was divided
into two unequal parts; the largest was reserved
as a sheep-fold, a small corner being cut off for
the fowls; and the smallest as a resting-place for
ourselves. All this was quickly finished, and left
much to be done; but I promised to return as
soon as we could spare a little time; and in the
meanwhile, it was sufficient that our animals
had a shelter. To induce them to come home at
night, we filled their troughs with grain, mixed
with salt; and this allurement was continued till
they became accustomed to their new abode.
This work, which we had thought to accomplish
in a day or two, took us a week; and our pro.
visions began to run short; but we did not wish
to return to Falcon's Nest till we had put our
farm in good order; so Fritz and Jack went to
bring us a fresh supply. In their absence I went
((
193
THE BEAKED ANIMAL.'
with Ernest, to explore the surrounding country
and seek for potatoes and cocoa-nuts.
We ascended a small stream, which brought us
to the road, and after following it for a little, we
came to a small picturesque lake, the banks of
which were covered with the wild rice plant. A
flock of birds fled at our approach. I shot five or
six, but my efforts would have been fruitless had
not the jackal followed us, and, springing into the
water, brought us each bird as it fell. A little
further on, master Knips made a sudden dart into
a thicket, where I discovered him regaling himself
with strawberries. Having refreshed ourselves
with them, we filled the monkey's basket with the
fruit, and covered them over with a thick layer
of leaves, lest it should please master Knips to
overturn his burden and devour the strawberries.
I pulled some of the rice and took it home,
that we might try how we liked it cooked.
In repassing the lake, we observed several
black swans sailing majestically upon the water.
Our admiration at this beautiful and novel sight
kept us from firing. Flora, however, who did not
seem to participate in our admiration, darted into
the water and brought out an animal, which at a
distance had appeared to be an otter, but which,
when I had examined it, baffled all my ideas of
natural history, as it seemed a curious combination
of a bird, a fish, and a quadruped. I thought it
must be unknown to naturalists; so I gave it the
194
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
name of "beaked animal," and told Ernest to
carry it home, and we would stuff it as a curiosity.
"I know it," said the little philosopher;
"it is
the ornithorhynhcus. I was reading a description
of it in one of the captain's books the other day."
"Well," said I, laughing, "this will be the
commencement of our study of natural history."
Loaded with our booty, we reached the farm at
the same time as Fritz and Jack, who told us all
they had done at Falcon's Nest; and I was
happy to see that, besides attending to all I said,
they had brought some very useful things of
their own accord. The next morning we left the
farm, to which we gave the name of Forest Farm.
Entering a small wood, we encountered a troop
of monkeys, which welcomed us with hideous
cries, and showered pine-apples at us. I fired
once or twice in the air, to frighten them away;
and having made the children gather a quantity
of the fruit, we proceeded on our way, and soon
reached Cape Disappointment. Here we erected
a pavilion, to serve us as a resting-place in case
of an excursion in this direction, and dignified it
with the name of Prospect Hill. For a long time
I had been wishing to find a tree, of the bark of
which I could make a small boat; and I did not
despair of attaining my object, although I had
hitherto been unsuccessful; and one day, when
out on an exploring expedition with the boys, I
found what I wanted. The tree I fixed upon
195
was something like an oak, both in its height,
leaves, and fruit.
THE CALF.
We had our rope ladder with us, and Fritz
climbed the tree and sawed through the bark at
the top of the trunk, while I did the same at the
bottom. I then peeled off a small stripe length-
ways, and by means of wedges of wood, carefully
applied, we succeeded in getting all the bark
away. This part of the work was comparatively
easy, as the tree was full of sap; but it was not
so easy to convert this bark into a boat. By per-
severance, however, and working while the bark
was soft and pliable, we succeeded in making a
tolerably good boat. To make it light, I fixed
leather bottles to the sides, which also prevented
it from being upset.
Soon after the rainy season, our cow had a
calf, and I now thought the animal old enough
to be of service to us. One evening I asked the
advice of the assembled family on this subject.
Ernest thought we should follow the example of
the Hottentots, and train our calf to fight; and
seeing his brothers look surprised, he said,
"These people inhabit a country infested with
wild beasts; and their flocks, which form their
riches, would be completely destroyed if they
were not protected by those animals, which are
trained to fight. These brave champions watch
over the cattle in the pastures, keeping them all
together. When they perceive danger, they form
196
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
them into a circle, putting the weak members in
the middle; and when the enemy sees a rampart
of long pointed horns awaiting him, he rarely
comes any further. The lion, however, is not so
easily intimidated, and sometimes the gallant
defender has to lay down his life for his troop.
These animals are used, too, in the wars of the
Hottentots; and it is often to their courage that
the conquerors owe their victory."
This story pleased the younger boys very much;
but as we had neither troops to guard, nor wars
to carry on, we thought it better to give our calf
a more ordinary education.
The next point was, Who would train him?
The indolent Ernest was tired even of his monkey;
Fritz had the onagra and his eagle; and enter-
prising Jack had most to do, his jackal and buffalo
occupying all his spare time. The ass was my
wife's care, and I myself looked after all the
animals together. Francis alone had nothing to do.
"Well, little man," said I," will you take care
of the calf ?”
"Oh yes, papa," he exclaimed, clapping his
hands. "The calf is very gentle, and I will be
kind to him, and give him what he likes; and
though I am young, I think I shall succeed. I
will call my pupil Steady."
This name pleased the children, and they im-
mediately began to find names for all the animals.
Jack proposed to call the buffalo Tempest, be-
197
cause it would sound well to hear it said, "Here
comes Jack on the Tempest." The two young
dogs were called respectively, Scamper and Swift.
For two months we worked in the cavern,
putting up partitions, and leaving all embellish-
ment for the winter season. The great quantity
of planks and other material we possessed, ren-
dered our work less difficult than we had expected.
The floor of our room was clay, thickly studded
with pebbles; as for the plaster we had used for
our walls, I thought it would dry before the end
of the summer. We made a sort of carpet for
our drawing-room and dining-room, by spreading
a quantity of goat's hair and sheep's wool on a
piece of canvass, watering it with boiling water,
in which was dissolved some of the isinglass,
rolling up the canvass, and beating it well with
thick sticks. When this process was repeated
once or twice, and the canvass unrolled, we ob-
tained a sheet of felt, which, although not of the
finest description, answered our purpose.
CARPET-MAKİNG.
CHAPTER XXII.
THE ANNIVERSARY.
ONE morning, being awake sooner than usual,
and not wishing to disturb my wife, I began to
calculate how long it was since we were ship-
198
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
wrecked, and found, to my surprise, that the next
day was the anniversary of that unfortunate, yet,
at the same time, happy event. I was indulging
in sad thoughts of the past, when I was roused
by the thought of my ingratitude to that God,
who had not only saved us all from death, but also
placed us on this beautiful island, where all our
work had been visibly blest. A hymn of praise
rose from my heart to Him who had so cared for
my beloved wife and dear little ones; and I deter-
mined that this day should not pass unnoticed
amongst us. That evening, at supper, I said to
my children-
"To-morrow is a great day, and one which we
must never forget all our life long. It is the anni-
versary of our miraculous deliverance, and our
landing in this island. We must be up early in
the morning to celebrate it."
This news surprised the children; they could
not believe that we had been a year in our solitude.
"Is it not possible," said my wife, "that you
may have miscalculated ?”
<<
No, my dear wife," said I, "I am not mis-
taken. We were shipwrecked on the 30th of
January, and the calendar which I saved guided
us for eleven months; since it expired, it is exactly
four weeks. We landed on this island on the 2d
of February, and to-morrow is the anniversary.
Our librarian has forgotten to send a new alma-
nack, but we must look after our chronology."
MEASUREMENT OF TIME.
199
(C
“That is easy, papa," said Ernest ;
we have
only to put a notch on a piece of wood every day,
as Robinson Crusoe did, and divide these notches
into weeks, months, and years."
The idea seemed to me a good one. I gave the
clocks of our dominion into Ernest's hand, and
jokingly termed him the astronomer of the colony.
"The astronomer," said he, modestly, "is
much indebted to the library. How fortunate that
we preserved those precious books."
"I don't like books," said Francis.
"Little lazy boy," said his mother; "wait till
you know what is in them before you speak."
""
But, mamma, I like better to play with
Flora, run with Jack, or work with you in the
garden. That is not wrong, is it ?”
(6
'No, not just now," said his mother, “but
when you grow older you must learn to like read-
ing too. There are good things in big books,
Francis, very necessary to know, and very pleasant
to read about, and you will find this out some
day."
After this our conversation returned to the
measurement of time. I said to Ernest,
"You
know that the year is made up of 365 days, 5
hours, 48 minutes, 43 seconds; but will not these
odd minutes destroy your calculations ?"
No," said he, "I will add them up at the end
of every fourth year; they will form an odd day,
which, put into February, will make leap year.”
(C
200
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
"Papa," said Fritz, "I always forget what
months have thirty-one days, and which only
thirty."
"You may remember that easily," said I, "for
you carry with you a calendar to which you can
always refer."
“A calendar !" said Jack, in amazement.
"Yes, on your hand, my child.
Shut your
hand, and look at the roots of your fingers, not
taking your thumb into account: what do you
see?"
"Nothing at all," said Jack.
"And you, Fritz?"
"I see four little bones, and three hollows
between."
"(
Well, begin with the little bone and name
the months of the year, and in coming back,
when you have got the length of the little finger,
you will see-What will you see ?”
"So it is," said Fritz; "the months that have
31 days fall on the bones, those that have 30 on
the hollows between."
"That is it," said I; only remember that
February has but 28 days, and 29 in leap year."
This experiment amused the children greatly.
After talking a long time, we retired to rest, the
boys wondering how I meant to celebrate the
next day.
In the morning we were aroused by the firing
of cannon on the shore. At first we did not
.،
"
201
know whether to rejoice, or feel afraid; but see-
ing that Fritz and Jack were not in their beds,
I thought I saw how it was. In a little they
came in
Well, how do you like the thunder?” said
Jack.
But Fritz, seeing that I was not quite pleased,
said, “Forgive us, papa, for the liberty we have
taken, of opening this day with the firing of can-
We only thought of surprising you, and
did not remember you might be alarmed."
non.
I said I blamed them less for rudely wakening,
or even alarming us, than for uselessly squander-
ing a quantity of our precious powder, the means
of replacing which we had not yet found. But
their intentions were good, and I had not the
heart to damp their joy. After breakfast in the
open air, at the door of the grotto, I read from
my journal the account of our deliverance.
Then followed religious services, and a walk to
"
"
1
GYMNASTICS.
the Bay of Deliverance. After our return, we
sat down to an excellent repast my wife had
prepared; and that over, I said to the boys,
Come, my children, let me see your skill in
gymnastic exercises. I will give prizes to the
victors."
A loud hurrah showed that my proposition
was approved of. The birds, roused by the
noise, took fright, and flew screaming overhead;
and the boys, amused at the stir they had
202
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
excited, joined hands, and danced round in a
circle, singing.
I decided that the exercises would begin by
firing. I set up a piece of wood about a hundred
paces off, and formed it somewhat in the shape
of a kangaroo. Each of the boys except Francis
loaded his gun and fired. Fritz struck the head
twice; Ernest, less skilful, sent a ball through
the body; Jack's first shot missed the mark alto-
gether; the second struck the ears. They now
threw down their guns and took up their pistols;
and here again Fritz had the advantage. I then
made them load their arms with small shot, and
fire at an old hat which I threw up into the air.
Fritz and Ernest showed almost equal skill, but
Jack missed his mark entirely. They all showed
great skill with the bow and arrow; and here
Francis distinguished himself so much, that his
brothers made him a crown of leaves, which he
wore as proudly as if it had been gold.
The race was the next thing; but, as the chil-
dren were pretty well tired, they took a short
rest. Fritz and Jack set off impetuously; Ernest
more deliberately, but at such a steady pace that
I prophesied he would win. They were to run
to Falcon's Nest, and the winner was to bring
me, in token, a knife I had left on my table.
About an hour after they had started Jack re-
turned on his buffalo.
"Oh, Mr Horseman," I said, "it was of the
ķ
203
swiftness of your own legs we wanted to judge,
not of those of your buffalo."
HORSEMANSHIP.
"I am not so simple as to run for nothing,"
he replied, jumping down. "When I saw that
with all my efforts I could not keep up, I gave
up all hopes of the prize, and, arriving at
Falcon's Nest, I mounted my buffalo." Just then
Fritz appeared, and a little way behind him,
Ernest, holding the knife in his hand. I asked
him how he, the victor, happened to be last?
He replied, that from the moment he saw the
knife was his, he thought there was no need to
hurry. I could not refrain from smiling at this
characteristic answer of the indolent doctor.
I now told the boys to show us their skill in
climbing. Jack ran to a tall palm-tree, climbed
up it, and descended with the agility of a squirrel.
A second and third he climbed in the same man-
ner, turning round the trunk and pulling faces
with a drollery that was irresistible. Fritz and
Ernest applauded warmly, and declared that it
was impossible for them to compete with him.
Jack and Fritz next displayed their prowess in
horsemanship. They rode without saddle or
bridle, jumping off and on when the animals were
at a gallop. Ernest shook his head, and declined
entering the lists. Francis, who up to this time
had been a spectator, requested to be allowed to
show us how he had trained Steady. After
having performed several evolutions, he showed
204
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
how obedient the animal was to his voice. He
made it turn round, go backwards or forwards,
and walk, trot, or gallop, as he pleased, and,
finally, caused it to kneel, that he might come
down and receive our congratulations.
We now went to the shore, that we might judge
who was the best swimmer. Fritz carried off
all the honours here. Ernest was timid. Jack
plunged impetuously into the waves, but soon
lost strength. Little Francis gave promise of
becoming an excellent swimmer. When the sun
set, we returned home.
My wife had preceded us, that she might be
prepared to receive us, and to distribute the
prizes. We found her seated on a large tun,
decorated with leaves. The children passed be-
fore her, and stood in a circle round the throne.
She accompanied each prize with a few words
of praise and encouragement. To Fritz was
awarded a double-barrelled English gun, and a
hunting knife he had long wished to have; to
Ernest, a gold watch; to Jack, a pair of spurs
and a whip; and to Francis, a small pair of
spurs. I then advanced to my wife, and amidst
the loud applause of my children, presented her
with a beautiful bureau, full of all that could be
useful to a housekeeper, which I had preserved
from the wreck, and concealed till I could find a
fitting opportunity to present it. The boys beg-
ged to be allowed to close the day by firing a
SE
205
salute; and I gave them leave, counselling them,
at the same time, to use as little powder as
possible.
THE GINSENG ROOT.
CHAPTER XXIII.
ADVENTURES OF JACK.
ABOUT a month after this, the trees at Falcon's
Nest became covered with thrushes, ortolans,
and wild pigeons; and we resolved to capture
some of them for our use. I did not wish to
use our powder if I could help it, so had recourse
to a kind of glue made of india-rubber and fat.
Our stock of the former substance was just about
exhausted; so I sent Fritz and Jack to the gutta-
percha trees for a fresh supply. They returned
in the evening, and, besides a large quantity of
the india-rubber, they brought with them some
turpentine, a crane that Fritz's eagle had caught,
an anise plant, and some roots they called mon-
key roots, because they had seen the monkeys
feeding upon them. In these roots I recognised
the ginseng, a plant which the Chinese value
very much, and which only the emperor of that
country is allowed to cultivate. There was one
piece of bad news, however, which the children
Q
206
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
...
brought us. They had been to Forest Farm,
and found it completely devastated,-the cabin
demolished, the fowls strangled, and the sheep
and goats wandering about. This they thought
was the work of the monkeys. I determined to
have my revenge, but said nothing to my family.
The glue which I succeeded in making I put
on small sticks below the branches; and in less
than a week we caught as many birds as would
fill a large barrel. We prepared them for use,
as we had done the year before. Amongst the
ensnared birds, we discovered two of our old
pigeons that had deserted us. At Jack's request
they were spared, and a dove-cot erected for
them at Tent House. This abode they found so
comfortable, that they not only remained there
themselves, but also allured a number of wild
pigeons to settle with them.
An accident, more comical than sad, happened
at this time to divert the monotony of our life.
One morning Jack appeared all covered with
mud, and with a most pitiable face. His brothers
began to tease him, but he seemed more ready
to cry than to laugh. I stopped their raillery,
and asked Jack where he had been to dirty him-
self so.
"Behind the rocks in the Goose Marsh,"
said he.
"But what were you doing there? You are
not a goose, I suppose."
JACK IN THE MARSH.
"I went to gather reeds for the pigeon-house,"
replied he.
207
"Your intention was good," I answered, "al-
though you have not succeeded.”
"Not succeeded!" he replied; "I have brought
all this immense bundle."
"(
They are as muddy as yourself, my poor
boy. We cannot use them in that state. But tell
us what happened to you."
"I wanted to get thick straight reeds, such as
grow in the middle of the marsh; and as I was
jumping from one piece of firm ground to another,
I fell in. I immediately sank, and the more I
struggled to get out the faster I went down.
The mire reached over my knees; I shouted for
help, but no one came, and I saw that I must
help myself. With my knife I cut the reeds
about me, and made them into a bundle, on
which I rested my chest and arms while I dis-
engaged my legs. With a vigorous spring I suc-
ceeded in placing myself on the bundle so as to
ride upon them, and thus supported I made the
best of my way to the edge of the marsh, where
probably I should have been yet but for my
jackal."
""
"How was that?" said Ernest.
Although I had come to the edge of the
marsh, I had nothing to lay hold of by which
to pull myself out. My brave jackal went and
came, and seemed very uneasy about me. I
208
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
called him to me; he came. I stretched out my
hands and caught him by the tail. Terrified, he
made a vigorous effort to escape, and pulled me
after him on to firm ground."
Although Jack had just escaped from a most
dangerous position, we could not help laughing
at the thought of the ridiculous appearance he
presented. At the same time, I praised him for
the calmness and courage he had shewn. His
mother hurried him away to change his clothes,
and Francis followed, "to help to rub him up,"
he said.
I took some of the strongest of Jack's reeds,
and used them in constructing combs for the
loom I had promised to make for my wife. I
employed the children to make little wooden teeth
for me; and as I wished to tell no one about
this piece of work till it was finished, I had to
use my skill in parrying the many curious ques-
tions that were put to me. About this time the
onagra had a young ass, which we called Light-
ning, which name he justified afterwards by his
great speed.
As the rainy season was approaching, it be-
came necessary to lay in a large store of provi-
sions, both for ourselves and our animals. We
also formed a canal of bamboo canes, supported
by wooden forks stuck in the ground, which con-
ducted the water to a large barrel sunk beside
our winter palace as a reservoir. My wife was
:
PUNISHING MONKEYS.
209
as proud of her fountain as if it had been built
of marble and ornamented with statuary. We
were at a loss where to put the fruit we had
gathered; so my wife made us sacks of sail-
cloth, and we demolished our raft to make barrels..
·
I had not forgotten our expedition against the
monkeys; and one morning my three eldest sons
and I set out well armed, and provided with a
quantity of bird-lime. Arrived at the lake, we
chose a convenient place for our camp, and tied
up our animals so that they could not run away.
I sent Fritz out as a spy, and he returned saying
he saw the enemy at a little distance from the
wood. I planted small stakes round the farm,
interlaced with bind-weed, and placed near them
some cocoa-nuts and calabashes filled with rice
and palm, covering the stakes and calabashes
with bird-lime. We then retired to lie in wait;
but that night we saw nothing of the enemy.
The next morning, however, a troop of monkeys
advanced towards the hut, and were caught in
the snare. Their despair when they found them-
selves in the toils was pitiable. Our dogs rushed
on them, but we called them back, and, after
administering several strokes of the whip to our
captives, we released them, and they scampered
off with incredible speed.
C
Well, a monkey is like no other animal,"
said Ernest; "killing one seems almost like
killing one of our own species."
210
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
"Yes," replied Jack, "they are like little old
men and women in rags."
1
"You know," said Ernest, "that the negroes
think an ourang-outang is a negro, and that he
is dumb, not because he can't, but because he
won't speak."
"What reason do they give for his not
speaking?"
"Oh," replied Ernest, "they say he is afraid
of being made to work."
"Poor negro," said Jack, "he envies the lot
of the monkey."
Fritz now proposed that we should repair the
devastations of the farm. To prevent the mon-
keys returning, we erected a succession of wind-
mills round about it. I was not quite persuaded
of the efficacy of this means, but the boys had
proposed it, and I let them carry out their own
plan. We took four days to repair the damage
that had been done, and immediately afterwards
we had to shut ourselves up in our winter quarters,
for the rain came on. We only kept four of our
domestic animals with us-the cow, the onagra,
the buffalo, and the ass. The dogs, the eagle,
the jackal, and monkey, remained near us, and
the tricks of the latter amused us greatly.
The light, which came in by the windows of
our cave, was not sufficient for us.
To remedy
this in the meantime, I hit upon a plan in which
Jack greatly assisted me. I fixed a long pole in
THE LIBRARY.
211
the floor of the cavern, the top of which reached
to the roof. Up this pole Jack climbed, and fixed
to the roof a piece of wood, to which was attached
a pulley. He passed a cord over the pulley, by
means of which, when it was lighted, we pulled
up a large lantern we had brought from the ship.
The arrangement of our apartments took us
some time. Ernest and Francis put up shelves
in the library; my wife and Jack occupied them-
selves with the drawing-room and kitchen; while
Fritz and I looked after the workshop. Here we
placed the captain's turning-lathe, the joiner's
bench, and all the tools of the carpenter and
cooper. Close by the workshop was the forge;
we had got the bellows, anvil, and hammers, but
we wanted many of the tools necessary to a
blacksmith. Every day we felt more and more
the want of such things as chairs, tables, and
chests of drawers; and to prevent our being
idle, we occupied ourselves trying to make those
things of which we stood most in need. With
the masses of stone we had dug out of the rock
we made a sort of terrace, on which, supported
by four strong bamboos, we erected a balcony, to
serve as a look-out or observatory.
Our library, under the care of Ernest and Jack,
began to assume quite an imposing appearance.
On the shelves were ranged the captain's books,
treatises on natural history, botany, and zoology.
There were also a number of mathematical and
212
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
astronomical instruments, and a large terrestrial
globe. Amongst the books were grammars and
dictionaries of different languages, which suggested
to us the idea of perfecting ourselves in those we
were in some degree acquainted with, and study-
ing those of which we were ignorant, so as to
be able to hold communication with the first
European vessel that might pass, no matter to
what nation it might belong. French was well
known to all of us. The two elder boys decided
to turn their attention to English. Jack chose
Italian and Spanish, as being harmonious and
pompous in sound. Ernest applied himself to
Latin, so as to understand the treatises on na-
tural history and medicine in our library. He
also constituted himself little Francis's teacher,
and was so patient and gentle that the child, in-
stead of hating books as before, began to look for-
ward with pleasure to his lessons. I myself studied
the Malay, because I thought it not impossible
that Indians might some day land on our island.
When we unpacked the cases which had been
washed ashore among the debris of the vessel, we
found ourselves unexpectedly rich in a great
many articles both useful and ornamental-
mirrors, writing-desks, and a beautiful commode.
My wife had her choice of what she should have,
and the boys fitted her up a room for herself,
with which she was very much delighted. We
named our subterranean dwelling Rock House,
·
213
The close of the month of August was marked
by a succession of terrible hurricanes and thunder
storms, when we had often cause to thank God for
our grotto, which sheltered us so securely from the
war of the elements. The weather, however, at
last changed; the sky again became blue, and
we ventured out of our retreat.
REFLECTIONS.
Fritz, with his lynx-eyes, thought he saw some-
thing like a stranded vessel near a little island in
Flamingo Bay. I took the telescope, but could
discern nothing distinctly; so we determined to
make an excursion to the bay, and find out what
it was. Fritz, Ernest, Jack, and myself, accord-
ingly set off for the bay. As we approached the
islet, what Fritz had taken for a stranded ship
turned out to be an immense whale, which the
violence of the waves had thrown up on the
beach.
The islet, which was about half-a-mile in cir-
cumference, had no trees on it, but was covered
with flowers of all kinds. We were obliged to
make a circuit, in order to get a convenient land-
ing-place. I climbed over the rocks towards the
whale; my sons taking the road round the shore.
From the peaks of the rocks I had an extensive
view, both towards Tent House, Falcon's Nest,
and seaward; the view in one direction calling
up thoughts of the past, and of our fatherland,
from which we were now severed for ever; and
that in the other, thoughts of the present and
214
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
future.
From these sad reflections I was roused
by the sight of the whale, and hastened to rejoin
my boys, who came to meet me, and showed
some beautiful shells and corals they had picked
up on the beach. I told them what I knew
about the nature-half animal, half vegetable-
of the corals, which interested them so much,
they forgot the primary object of our visit; so, as
the day was already wearing on, and we had not
the necessary means with us to enable us to carry
away any of the whale, we decided to return to
it another day, and again took the way to the
shore.
My wife and Francis were waiting us on the
shore. They were delighted with the beauty of
the corals we brought, and said they would go
with us when we returned to the whale next
day. Next morning the whole family started to-
gether, taking an ample supply of provisions, and
some tools and empty barrels. The sea was very
calm, and we soon anchored at the islet. Francis
and his mother were much struck by the formida-
ble appearance of the monster, which was, at
least, seventy feet in length, and would weigh
not less than sixty thousand pounds.
We now began to cut up the whale. Fritz
and Jack, armed with their saws and hatchets,
mounted on the back. We filled our barrels
with pieces of fat dug out of the sides, and were
often interrupted at our work by birds of prey
215
that lighted on the body and devoured the flesh
close to our hatchets. The next day we pro-
ceeded to penetrate into the body of the animal;
but this being a very disagreeable piece of work,
we left my wife and youngest son at home. Be-
fore proceeding, however, we took the precaution
to change our clothes for others made on pur-
pose. My wife objected strongly to this kind of
work, but I quieted her a little by telling her
how rich it would make us.
A NEW COLONY OF BIRDS.
Our next business was to convert the fat of
the whale into oil. We first extracted a quantity
of fine oil, and afterwards, by melting some of
the fat in our large pot, obtained some of a more
ordinary quality; but we took care to perform
this operation at a distance from our dwelling.
With all our precaution, however, my wife was
greatly annoyed with the unpleasant odour, and
proposed that we should do this work, in future,
on the little island. "I have been thinking, too,"
she said, "that since the islet is so fertile, we
might found a colony of our birds there, and
then we would not be afraid of monkeys or jack-
als."
"The idea is a good one," said I; "and we
will put it into execution immediately." The
younger boys, delighted with the idea, would
have set off at once, but I reminded them that
we had some alterations to make in our canoe
and oars.
These alterations finished to our
216
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
satisfaction, late one afternoon, I proposed a
voyage to Prospect Hill the next day. The
next morning, accordingly, the whole family set
out on the expedition. The weather was beauti-
ful and the sea calm. In passing the Monkey's
Wood, we landed to renew our provision of cocoa
nuts. This done, we embarked and soon reached
Prospect Hill. Our first care was to visit the
colony, which we found in pretty tolerable order;
but the goats and sheep had become so wild, that
the boys had to use their lassoes to catch them.
The fowls were tamer, and my wife caught two or
three couples, and put them in the canoe to take
to Whale Island.
After having gone over this part of our do-
minions to ascertain that all was in good order,
we sat down to dinner. When that was over,
we collected some sugar-canes and roots of plants,
and again set sail. Arrived at Whale Island, the
boys dispersed in various directions, while my
wife and I occupied ourselves planting the roots
we had brought from Prospect Hill. All at once
Jack came running towards us. "Papa," cried
he, "come and see this mammoth skeleton."
I laughingly told him his mammoth would be
the skeleton of the whale; but, as he insisted, I
rose to go with him. On the way I was arrested
by Fritz, who wanted me to help him with an
enormous tortoise he had caught. I rushed back
for our oars, and arrived just in time, for the
217
animal was in the act of escaping when I came
up. I turned it over on its back, and effectually
prevented its running away. I now went with
Jack to see his mammoth, and found, as I had
anticipated, that it was the skeleton of our
whale, from which the sea birds had completely
stripped the flesh. I asked Jack what made him
think of a mammoth, and discovered that he had
been mystified by the doctor. I rallied him on
his credulity, and gave him a lesson on natural
history, to which he listened attentively.
When we got back to the plantation it was too
late to plant all the shrubs; so we covered the roots
of those that remained with wet leaves, to preserve
them, and turned to go home. In order to get the
tortoise with us, we tied a cord round its neck and
fore paws, and attached it to the boat, placing
two large barrels under it to prevent its diving.
I sat in the end of the boat with a knife in my
hand, ready to cut the cord in case of accident;
but fortunately it was not required, and we
arrived safely at Rock House. The next morn-
ing we decided on killing the animal, whose shell
made a more elegant fountain than the barrel we
had used for the purpose.
TOWING A TORTOISE.
218
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
ند
CHAPTER XXIV.
THE LOOM.
SOON after this time, with Ernest's help, I
finished and presented to my wife the loom I
had promised to make for her. She was over-
joyed; and, pleased with my success, I deter-
mined to make saddles and harness for the
animals. In this, however, I was not so skilful,
and had often to go like a tailor and take the
measure. I had scarcely finished this work when
a shoal of herrings arrived, followed by the sea-
dogs. As we had done the previous year, we
laid in a good store of the fish, killed several of
the dogs, preserved their skins, fat, and bladders,
and threw their flesh into the Jackal River as a
bait to the lobsters. We now set about making
baskets and panniers, in which my wife might
store roots and grain. With a little practice, we
acquired great skill in this. Jack and Ernest
were so proud of one they had made, that they
put Francis in it, and, placing sticks through
the handles, marched proudly up and down.
Fritz, who was watching them, said, "Papa,
do you not think we could make something of
the kind for mamma when she wishes to accom-
219
pany us on our excursions? That would be
much more comfortable for her than the cart.”
THE PALANQUIN.
Doubtless, Fritz; but which of us would
have strong enough shoulders for such a palan-
quin ?"
}
"We will make Tempest and Steady support
between them the rod to which the basket is
tied," said Jack.
I consented, and they immediately put their
plan into execution. Jack and Francis mounted
the animals, and Ernest went into the basket,
which was suspended between them. The basket
balanced beautifully, and all were delighted.
Little by little the pace was quickened, much to
the delight of Ernest, who, at the same time,
could not refrain from clutching nervously at the
sides of the basket. His brothers seeing this,
mischievously quickened their pace to a gallop.
Poor Ernest, jolted and shaken, roared with all
his might, till, at last, the animals stopped of
themselves just before us, as if for our applause.
Ernest angrily reproached his brothers, who
would have retorted, had I not stepped in and
showed them what might have been the serious
consequences of their frolic. They were very
sorry, and begged Ernest's pardon, who, in his
turn, was easily pacified, and not only helped
them to unyoke the animals, but was soon busy
arranging with them about the next ride in the
palanquin.
220
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
As my wife and I were talking quietly together,
Fritz, who had been looking towards the river,
came up to me, and said, "There is a strange-
looking animal over there; it seems to be com-
ing from the shore, and raising great clouds of
dust."
"It will be some of our animals rolling in the
sand," said my wife.
66
'No," said Fritz; "all our animals are shut
up, and this beast is like an immense cable, that
alternately coils itself up and throws itself out."
My wife, terrified, retired into the cave, and I
ordered my sons to get their arms ready, while I
went with a lantern in the direction of the bridge.
Suddenly I called out.
What have you found, papa?" said Fritz.
"An enormous serpent," said I, in a low
voice.
"Then I will not be last in the fight," said
the courageous boy; "I will go and fetch our
guns and hatchets."
"We must be prudent," said I; "the serpent
is very cunning." Saying these words I entered
the grotto, and we prepared to receive the
monster. We could see the frightful reptile
crawling up from the shore; already he had
crossed the bridge, and from time to time raised
his hideous head as if to reconnoitre. We had
barricaded the door, stuffed up all the openings,
and were mounted on the terrace, where we could
THE SERPENT.
221
see without being seen. The serpent was a boa
of the largest size, and was coming direct towards
us, when suddenly he stopped and seemed to
hesitate when he saw signs of a human dwelling.
Ernest accidentally let go the trigger of his gun,
and Jack and Francis thought they were at
liberty to fire also. At this triple discharge, the
animal raised his head, more in surprise than
fear. He did not appear to be wounded, and
Fritz and I were preparing to take a surer aim,
when the reptile glided quickly into the Goose
Marsh and disappeared.
A murmur of satisfaction escaped from all; but
the near neighbourhood of the boa disturbed me
greatly. At any moment the terrible animal
might appear; and any attempt to rid ourselves
of him was fraught with danger. I forbade any
one to leave the grotto on any pretence whatever
without my permission. For three days we re-
mained in our dwelling, without daring to ven-
ture even to the door. We saw nothing of the
serpent, but knew, from the excited state of the
feathered tribe, that he was still near us. Our
provisions were nearly exhausted, and I sent
Fritz to liberate our animals, that they might
seek food for themselves. He drove them as much
as possible away from the marsh, while we stood
on the balcony ready to fire on the animal if he
appeared. All at once the ass, who was rather
frisky with three days feeding and no work, set
I'
222
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
off at full speed over the country, braying and
gambolling in a manner that made us laugh in
spite of our danger. Fritz mounted the onagra
and prepared to pursue the fugitive, but I re-
minded him of the danger to himself in going
near the marsh.
We tried all we could to entice back the ass,
but in vain; he seemed determined to enjoy his
liberty, and made straight for the marsh. All at
once a horrible head was raised above the reeds.
The ass saw it, and gave a wild cry of terror, but,
on the serpent approaching, made no effort to
escape, and seemed rooted to the spot. One mo-
ment more, and the poor beast was folded in the
coils of the reptile, and suffocated in the horrible
embrace. All this we saw from our balcony.
The children begged me to allow them to fire, and
save the poor ass; but I told them it would only
irritate the monster, without saving the ass, who
by this time was dead.
Wait," said I, "till he has swallowed his
victim, and then he will be easily caught."
((
But," said Jack, "will the boa swallow the
ass at one mouthful?”
"Serpents," said I, "have no teeth with
which to tear their prey to pieces; so they swallow
it whole, as the boa is about to do now."
When the hideous reptile had swallowed all
but the head of his victim, he fell down quite
motionless.
CC
DISPOSAL OF THE SERPENT.
223
"Now is our time," said I to my sons; "courage!
the monster is ours."
I seized my gun, and rushed forward, followed
by Jack and Fritz. Ernest, more timid, remained
watching. As we advanced, the serpent regarded
us with eyes full of rage; but he was incapable of
moving, and Fritz and I shot him through the
head, and killed him. Our cries of joy brought
my wife and two boys to our side.
"I think," said Ernest, always ready to dis-
play his learning, "that we ought to revere the
ass, as his fellow-citizens did Curtius."
"What will we do with the serpent?" said
Jack.
CC
Stuff it, and put it in our museum," said
Ernest.
"Is it not good for eating ?" asked Francis.
"Good for eating-a venomous serpent!" cried
my wife in horror.
"The boa, my dear wife," said I, "is not
venomous, and if he were, there would be no
danger, if only we were careful to throw away the
head, in which are the glands that secrete
venom."
Here the children overwhelmed me with ques-
tions on natural history. Ernest wanted to know
if it were true that some serpents were fond of
music. "Yes," said I; "and not only are they
fond of it, but they will dance in time to it by
raising themselves on their tails. It is thus that
224
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
jugglers charm serpents; but they make a mystery
of their art to deceive the ignorant."
"I think," said Ernest, "I have read that some
serpents charm their prey by their fixed look."
"That is taking the effect for the cause," said
I; "what appears to be fascination on the part
of the serpent, is only terror on the part of its
victim. Our ass was an example of this. It is
possible, however, that these serpents may exhale
an odour that stupifies their victims, though this
has never happened with man.”
Father," said Fritz, "what ought one to do,
when bitten by a serpent?"
"In the first place, my dear children," said I,
"if you are bitten by one of these serpents, it
must be through your own carelessness, for they
are timid, and will not attack you, unless you
hurt or threaten them. An enemy who warns
you of his approach, by the noise which he makes,
and the disagreeable odour he exhales, is not
very formidable, especially when you are well
armed. But if you are bitten, the most effectual
remedy is to cut out or burn the piece of poisoned
flesh. There are milder remedies, but they are
not so sure."
I think the cure is worse than the disease,'
said Ernest.
"C
?"
"You would not say that if you were really
stung, my child," said I; "for if the poison were
not arrested, you would die a horrible death."
1
THE ASS'S EPITAPH.
225
"I am sorry there are serpents in our island,"
said Francis; "we were better off in Switzer-
land; there were none there.”
"Are you then going to leave our beautiful
island, and go back to the narrow crowded
streets?"
"You are mocking me now," said Francis,
' but I do not like serpents."
"I am like Francis," said my wife; "I shall
never feel happy when you are out."
CHAPTER XXV.
THE ASS.
DURING this long conversation, we had been rest-
ing ourselves under the shade of a large rock. I
now turned to Ernest, and, to rally him for the
inactive part he had taken in the dangerous
adventure, I asked him to make an epitaph for
our ass, as he had formerly shewn considerable
talent in that way. Ernest failed to perceive the
slight irony in my request, and, burying his face
in his hands, prepared to comply with it to the
best of his ability. In about ten minutes he
raised himself up, saying, "I have made an
epitaph, but you must not laugh at me, papa." I
226
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
encouraged him to go on, and, slightly colouring,
he repeated his composition, which ran as fol-
lows:-
""
HERE LIES
AN HONEST ass,
THE VICTIM OF HIS OWN IMPRUDENCE.
HIS DEATH
WAS THE MEANS OF PRESERVING THE LIVES
OF FOUR CHILDREN AND THEIR PARENTS,
WHO WERE SHIPWRECKED
ON THIS ISLAND.
Bravo, Ernest," said I;
"" we must inscribe
your epitaph on the rock over the spot where this
accident occurred." So saying, I took a red pencil
from my pocket, and wrote the above inscription
on the rock at Ernest's dictation, who was
divided between pleasure at being the author,
and the consciousness that his production was
not a master-piece.
Arrived at Rock House, we set about stuffing
the skin of the boa, as a curiosity to place in our
museum. To give it a characteristic attitude, I
coiled the immense body round a stake about
five feet high, and rested the head on the top
of the stake. The mouth was open and the
tongue hanging out, and the hideous animal
looked so life-like lying exposed to the sun, that
our cattle were quite afraid to pass it. When it
was quite dry we placed it in our library, the
boys inscribing over it, in red letters, "Entrance
forbidden to asses,"
PASSING THE MARSH.
CHAPTER XXVI.
THE EXCURSION.
227
ALTHOUGH the danger was over for the present, I
was in constant terror lest we should meet with
more of these formidable enemies. We beat the
bush round about Falcon's Nest, and, that done,
I planned an excursion to Prospect Hill, lest
there might be some of the terrible creatures
lurking there. I saw that Jack and Ernest had
not got over the impression that the sight of the
boa had produced, and that they were unwilling
to go.
"I cannot help shivering," said Jack, "when
I think of the terrible half-hour we passed with
the horrible beast."
I tried to reassure them as well as I could, and
represented to them, that if the boa had left any
eggs or young ones behind it, and we did not
immediately seek them out and destroy them, we
exposed ourselves to great future danger. This
consideration roused them at once, and we all set
out together, armed with everything we thought
we were likely to need. When we arrived at the
marsh, we advanced cautiously, throwing planks
and bamboos before us; but we reached the other
side without finding any traces of the boa, or
228
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
discovering anything that would lead us to sus-
pect it had left either eggs or little ones behind
it.
A little farther on we came to a large grotto,
the floor of which was covered with a fine earth,
which I discovered to be fullers'-earth.
"This will be a present for your mother," said
I; "It will help to clean our clothes, and will re-
lieve me from the tiresome necessity of preparing
lime."
"Is lime a necessary part of soap?" said
Ernest.
"Yes," said I; "soap is composed of greasy
or fatty matter, soda, potash, and cinders washed
in lime water. This preparation, however, is
expensive, and its place is often supplied by this
fullers'-earth we have discovered."
I remarked that the little stream proceeded
from a fissure in the rock, and the stone being
very brittle, I succeeded in making an opening,
through which Fritz and I crept, telling Jack and
Ernest to wait for us. We found ourselves in a
cave, of the extent of which we were ignorant,
for it was profoundly dark. I fired a pistol, and
concluded, from the sound, that it must be about
the same size as the one we had left. We then
lit a candle to test the air, and found it quite
pure.
"Oh, papa," cried Fritz, looking round at the
glittering walls, "another salt grotto."
220
"It is not salt, my child," said I, "for the
water in the little stream is quite fresh. I think
it must be rock crystal."
ROCK CRYSTAL.
""
Oh, yes, papa, you are right," said he, more
and more delighted; "what a treasure it will
be."
"Precious as it is, my son," said I, "it will
be as useless to us as the gold was to Robinson
Crusoe."
"At any rate, papa, I will take a piece as a
specimen. But why," said he, holding up a
piece he had broken off, "has this crystal lost its
transparency?”
'Because, said I, "you have not broken it off
properly. These masses of crystal contain a cen-
tral solid piece called the mother crystal, to
which are attached others; and in breaking off
a piece you must strike only the mother crystal,
and bring it away with all the small ones that
adhere to it. If you injure or bruise the small
crystals, you destroy their transparency, and
produce that milky appearance."
During this conversation we had been walk-
ing through the grotto, and our candle was al-
most out; so I said to Fritz it was time to return.
When we got to the entrance of the cave, I per-
ceived Jack standing by himself, sobbing bitterly;
but the moment he heard our voices he ran to-
wards us, shouting for joy.
66
My dear child," said I, "what is the matter ?"
230
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
“Oh, papa,” he replied, "I am so glad to see
you again! I thought you were never coming
back, and once or twice I thought I heard
strange noises proceeding from the direction in
which you disappeared."
((
My dear boy," said I, "your fears were
groundless. We are quite safe; but where is
Ernest ?"
"He is down amongst these reeds," said Jack.
I left him with Fritz, and went after Ernest,
whom I found seated among the reeds, making a
fishing basket.
"I have done more than that, papa," said he;
“I have killed a young serpent; it is lying beside
my gun."
"A serpent," said I, laughing, when I had
examined it; "it is a large eel, which will make us
an excellent supper.'
""
His brothers learning his mistake, commenced
to tease him; but I interfered. "Ernest," said
I, "has showed great courage, for he was quite
under the belief that his eel was a serpent, and
yet he fought bravely." This said, we collected
our spoil and returned home.
EXPLORING THE LAKE.
CHAPTER XXVII.
THE VOYAGE TO THE HERMITAGE.
231
SATISFIED that all was safe in the direction of the
Goose Marsh, I determined to make a second
expedition to the farm; and as it was to last
several weeks, we took everything with us that
could possibly be of use. We set out gaily,
having first liberated our animals, that they
might seek their own nourishment, and took
the road towards Forest Farm, where we pro-
posed to pass the night. We hoped to be able
to fill our sacks with cotton, and examine the
lake a little more minutely.
Up till this time we had perceived but faint
traces of the serpent; and these traces, like those
of the monkeys, had gradually disappeared since
we left Falcon's Nest. Our farm we found in a
flourishing condition; and after dinner we set out
to explore the lake. My wife and Ernest, ac-
companied by Flora and master Knips, examined
the lower end; Fritz and Jack, taking Turk and
the jackal with them, went up the right side; as
for myself, after placing a gun in Francis's hand
and teaching him how to use it, I called Scamper
and Swift, and we turned to the left. Our path-
way was all interlaced with reeds, amongst which
232
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
our dogs seemed to be in their element. All at
once we heard a sort of disagreeable roaring;
and Francis thought it must be our young ass.
"That is impossible," said I; "our ass is too
young to bray so loudly; and besides, he could
not have passed us without our seeing him. The
noise is caused by a bittern, or marsh cow, as it
is called, from its roaring."
"But, papa," said Francis, "how can a little
bird make such a noise?"
"You must not judge of the size of animals
by the strength of their voice," said I.
"Night-
ingales and canaries have stronger voices than
ducks or turkeys, although they are small birds.
The bittern, when it cries, pushes its beak into
the mud of the marsh." Bittern or not, Francis
was very anxious to try his first shot upon it.
To gratify him, I called the dogs, and put them
on the right track.
Several minutes after, I heard Francis shout
triumphantly, "I have shot it, papa! I have
shot it."
CC
"What is it, then ?" said I.
"A wild boar," papa;
a large wild boar."
"I hope you have not shot one of our little
pigs," said I, advancing to the spot.
Fortunately it was not one of our pigs, but a
cavia, or cabiai, about two-and-a-half feet long,
with dark rough hair of a deep black brown
colour. It is a web-footed animal belonging to
933
the family of the rodentia, and is known in
Europe by the name of the Indian pig. It lives
on aquatic plants, and can remain a long time
below the water, but is not, strictly speaking,
amphibious. Francis, like a true hunter, wished
to carry his game over his shoulders; but finding
it too heavy, he consigned it to the care of Swift,
which he had himself trained to carry burdens,
and we reached Forest Farm without seeing any
traces of the boa. We found Ernest surrounded
by an immense number of newly killed rats.
I asked him, in astonishment, where he had
found them.
ENCOUNTER WITH RATS.
"In a nest, at the foot of the rice field," said
he. "I saw two or three rats come out of this
nest, and, armed with my stick, I imprudently
ventured in without ascertaining the number of
my enemies. While striking right and left, and
examining the place, which resembled a large
cylinder artistically built with twigs, rice, leaves,
' and reeds, I was surrounded by an innumerable
army of rats.
of rats. I had to make a vigorous use of
my feet and stick, but the horrible animals
always returned to the charge. I shouted aloud
for all the world to help me, but no one heard
me but Flora, which came bounding in-bit in all
directions and soon made a clear space round
Those rats which were fortunate enough to
escape her soon disappeared. Mamma helped
me to collect the carcasses of the vanquished.”
me.
234
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
Ernest's story interested me very much, and I
asked him to conduct me to this nest.
From his
description, I thought it must resemble a beaver
establishment. "I am right in my conjectures,"
said I; these animals are, properly speaking,
neither rats nor beavers, but beaver-rats, musk-
rats, and are natives of North America."
Returning to where we had left my wife, we
found that Fritz and Jack had returned, bringing
with them a moor-cock and hen, and some eggs
rolled in a kind of fur. Before dinner we skinned
the rats, and, stretching each skin in the sun by
means of little sticks, we salted it, and powdered
it with cinders. Part of Francis's cabiai we
cooked for that day's dinner, but we did not
relish it very much. During dinner my sons
questioned me about the singular odour which
gives these rats their name.
"The animals," said I, "are provided with
vesicles that secrete an oil having this peculiar
odour. I do not know if they make any particular
use of this oil, but the odour serves to repel
those of their enemies to whom the smell of
musk is disagreeable."
Ernest complained that he had nothing to put
away the taste of the cabiai. Fritz and Jack
brought him some kernels of the pine-apple, and
some small green apples that Jack had picked up
near the lake, and which turned out to be very
good.
((
AN OTAHEITIAN ROAST.
CHAPTER XXVIII.
SUGAR MEADOW.
235
EARLY in the morning we started for the sugar-
cane marsh that we had named Sugar Meadow.
While my wife was occupying herself with the
dinner, we went to look for traces of the boa, but
found none. We had just returned, and were
refreshing ourselves with some sugar-cane, when
we heard our dogs barking furiously. Rushing
out, we saw a string of young wild pigs, or pec-
caries, making their escape as fast as possible.
We fired and killed about half-a-dozen; and, as
they were too many for present use, we salted
the greater number and packed them in the cart.
The next morning was employed in preparing an
Otaheitian roast, with which Fritz wished to sur-
prise his mother. By his directions his brothers
dug a cylindrical hole, in which they burned a
fire of wood till the stones became red hot.
When the roast was prepared, it was buried in
this bed of burning stones, coals, cinders, and
earth; Fritz having first, by my advice, rolled it
in bark to protect it from the dust.
The hams of the peccaries we suspended and
smoked in a hut built for the purpose, and this
caused us to remain two days longer at Sugar
236
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
Meadow. During these two days we made
several excursions, in one of which we came
upon some enormous sugar-canes, sixty feet high.
These we sawed down, and made into barrels for
ourselves. In a visit to Prospect Hill, I was
sorry to see that the colony had suffered, in the
same way as that at Forest Farm, from the depre-
dations of the monkeys; but I had to defer put-
ting it in order to another time. We now con-
tinued our journey, taking one or two of the
hams with us, and stowing the others away in
our hut, the door of which we barricaded with
stones and sand, to prevent the entrance of
beasts of prey, or monkeys.
CHAPTER XXIX.
WALK IN THE SAVANNAHS.
AFTER two hours walk we found the country be-
came less fertile; the verdure gradually disap-
peared; even the grass became rare. Happily
for us, we had filled our gourds before leaving
the river. After a tiresome walk of two hours,
during which my sons had only opened their
mouths to grumble at the heat, we came to the
foot of a steep hill, and threw ourselves down
under the shadow of a rock to refresh ourselves.
237
Suddenly master Knips jumped up and darted
towards the rocks, followed by the dogs. We
took no notice of them, for we had just opened
out our provisions, and did not want to be dis-
turbed for a trifle.
OSTRICHES.
But Fritz, who had been looking after them,
suddenly exclaimed, "What do I see there! Men
on horseback! Can they be the Arabs of the de-
sert, papa ?"
"That is impossible, my child," said I; "take
my glass and tell us what you see now."
"Troops of animals running here and there,
haycocks walking, and chariots coming and
going from the river! What can it all mean,
papa ?"
Smiling, I took the glass from him.
"What
you mistook for cavaliers," said I, "are large
ostriches, and if you are willing we will give
chase to them, since we have got such a fine op-
portunity." The boys were delighted, and, calling
off the dogs, we hid ourselves in a crevice of the
rock. The ostriches approached, and when they
saw us, stood still, uncertain what to do. Re-
assured, however, when they saw that we re-
mained still, they drew a little nearer. But our
dogs could be restrained no longer, and they
darted out, barking furiously. In a moment the
ostriches were off, and were soon beyond reach.
One male, however, lingered a little behind to
protect his companions, and this delay proved
238
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
fatal to him. Fritz loosed his eagle, which caught
and pulled him to the ground; and the jackal,
coming up at the moment, killed him. We only
arrived in time to preserve some of his feathers.
We were walking on slowly, when Jack and
Ernest, who were in advance, suddenly exclaimed,
"An ostrich nest, papa." We ran to the spot,
and found it as they had said.
"Do not disturb the order of the eggs," said I,
"lest the ostrich should forsake them when she
comes back."
"Do you not think they may be forsaken
already?" said Fritz.
No," I answered; "in this warm climate
the ostrich often leaves her eggs during the day,
and returns to them at night."
<<
The boys, however, could not resist the tempta-
tion of carrying one or two of the eggs to show
to their mother. I raised a pile of small stones
at some distance, to guide us to the nest. We
now entered a beautiful green valley, which
formed a strong contrast to the one we had left.
Troops of buffaloes and antelopes were grazing
peacefully in it. Gradually we approached the
cave where Jack had found his jackal, when we
saw Ernest running towards us, pale with terror.
"A bear, papa, a bear," said he, throwing his
arms round my neck, and almost strangling me
in his terror. His fears were only too well
founded, for I perceived two enormous bears
1.
239
coming out of the cave, and endeavouring to
shake themselves free of the dogs. Fritz and I
both fired, but only succeeded in wounding one
in the jaw, and the other in the leg. These
wounds, however, rendered them less capable of
fighting with the dogs, who threw themselves on
them with redoubled fury. The bears defended
themselves bravely, and I saw that the contest
might prove fatal to the dogs; so I approached
cautiously, and shot one bear through the head
with my pistol, at the same time that Fritz suc-
ceeded in sending a bali through the heart of the
other.
A FIGHT WITH BEARS.
"God be praised!" said I, fervently, when I
saw them both stretched dead. Jack, who had
witnessed the victory, carried the joyful news to
Ernest.
"What made you in such a hurry to reach
the cave?" said I.
"I have been rightly punished," said he. "I
wanted to frighten Jack by making a noise like a
bear, and the first thing I heard was the sound
of a real bear.”
"My dear children," said I, "we ought to be
very thankful that we have been able to rid our-
selves of two such dangerous neighbours." They
were two formidable animals; one being eight
feet long, the other six. Their heavy paws,
strong shoulders, and thick necks, were the
admiration of the children, who could now ex-
240
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
amine them at leisure. We drew the two corpses
into the cave, and left them there with the
ostrich eggs, barricading the entrance with
branches of trees.
CHAPTER XXX.
EXCURSION.
THE sun was setting when we reached home; and
at supper we told over the story of our adven-
tures. My wife also narrated what she had been
doing in our absence. She had discovered a
species of fine clay, with which she thought we
might make porcelain. She and Francis to-
gether had built an oven with this clay and
pieces of rock; they had formed a small canal,
by which to lead water from the river; and had
collected in one place all the materials they
thought we should require for our fortifications.
Before going to bed I made several small balls of
the clay my wife had discovered, and placed
them near the fire to dry. In the morning I
found that the heat had been too strong for
them, and they were cracked; so I resolved that
when we attempted to make vessels of it, I would
build a furnace in such a way that I could regu-
late the heat.
-
MICA.
241
After breakfast we set out for the Bears'
Cavern. Fritz, who went before, shouted to us
to come quickly and see the crowd of birds round
the cavern. "One is marching up and down,”
said he, "like a guardian to keep the others off."
This so-called guardian bird was black, with a
ruff of white feathers round its neck, which was
naked and of a pale red colour. As we were
looking at it we heard a flutter of wings over-
head, and looking up saw a large bird Fritz had
just shot fall at our feet. The flock of birds,
startled, flew away; the guardian at first kept his
place, but apparently on second thoughts con-
sidered it would be better to follow the example
of his companions.
When I entered the cave, I saw that the
tongue and eyes of one of the bears were gone;
an hour or two later, and their beautiful skins
would have been lost to us.
The boys were very impatient to continue the
excursion, and at last I complied with their
earnest request, and allowed Fritz, Jack, and
Francis to go by themselves, whilst we examined
the cavern. I found that the rock in the interior
consisted partly of mica, and discovered several
large leaves of this transparent substance, which
I determined to put into our windows instead of
glass.
Towards evening, when we were anxiously
looking for the boys, a shout announced their
242
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
return. I ran out to meet them. Jack and
Francis each carried a living kid on their
shoulders; Fritz, a very significant-looking sack.
"Beautiful hunting, papa," cried Jack; "here
are two goats."
"Without counting the innumerable rabbits
Fritz has in his sack," said Francis.
"Without counting also—” said Jack.
Softly," said I; "let Fritz relate your ad-
ventures to us."
W
Fritz then began. "An hour," said he, "after
we left you, we crossed the Green Valley and en-
tered the Great Plain. We climbed to the top
of a small hill, from which we could perceive a
defile of rocks, and I formed the resolution of
chasing into it a troop of animals like goats or
antelopes. We crept cautiously towards them;
Jack keeping the middle, and Francis and I at
each side. We had got pretty near them, when
some of the group took alarm. We then loosed
our dogs, and pursued our animals as fast as
possible, and managed so well that the troop ran
just in the direction we wanted, and all went
into the defile. The next thing was to keep
them there. We stretched a cord across the
passage, at the height of three or four feet, to
which we attached ostrich feathers and rags, to
frighten any of the animals from coming back.
This idea I took from a book I had read."
"Well done," said I, interrupting the boy; "I
("
243
am happy to find that you have profited by these
readings. But tell me now how you have become
possessed of your rabbits, and what you intend
doing with them; for I warn you that I cannot
allow you to take them home, they would be so
destructive to our plantations."
DWARF ANTELOPES.
"It was my eagle," said Fritz, "that caught
two out of a great many that were running about
the hill; and we might put them on our desert
island; they would be capital eating, and their
skins would do for hats."
"You speak wisely, my son; therefore I shall
leave you to carry out your well-conceived plan."
"May I speak now?" demanded Jack impati-
ently.
(6
Certainly," replied I, smiling; "tell us how
you caught those pretty birds."
"We caught them at the gallop, father. While
Fritz was chasing his rabbits, our dogs started
two animals like large hares, which capered away
before us in an extraordinary fashion. After a
chase of a quarter of an hour, we captured them.
Instead of hares, they proved to be birds; and
there they are."
66
'Very good, my children; but allow me to tell
you that your birds are dwarf antelopes." Then
turning to Jack, I asked him how he came to
have such a swelled face; had he, by mistake, been
fighting with a swarm of mosquitoes ?
"Oh! my wounds are more honourable," said
244
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
Jack. “As we were returning towards you, a bird
preceded us, lighting on tree after tree, and seem-
ing, by its song, to invite us to follow it. I at
once shouldered my gun, intending to bring it to
the ground, but Fritz prevented me, reminding
me that my piece was loaded with ball. We all
followed the bird, which soon perched upon a tree
and stopped singing. We stood still, and per-
ceived that this tree was the retreat of a swarm
of bees. It was a cuckoo, which coveted the spoil
of the hive, and had guided us to it in the hope
that it would have a share. We debated how to
take the honey, and Fritz suggested that we
might smoke them with sulphur. Without wait-
ing for this, I pushed too near the hive, and the
whole swarm came buzzing out upon me. They
stung me till I believed all the bees in the world
were after me; so there was nothing for it but to
mount my buffalo and take refuge in flight."
“You ought to have taken care, my poor Jack,"
I said, "seeing this is not the first time you have
met with such an accident."
CHAPTER XXXI.
AN OSTRICH.
MANY things yet remained to be done before our
return to head quarters--a return necessary for
245
many reasons, of which the chief was the ap
proach of the rainy season. Our bears' flesh was
smoked and salted; but I was not willing to lose
the ostrich eggs, nor the gum of the spurge which
I had discovered in a small wood during one of
our halts. I resolved then upon a final expe-
dition to the savannah. On setting out I left
with his mother, not little Francis, who willingly
accompanied us, but Ernest, who was lazy, and
frankly avowed his dislike of these fatiguing ex-
peditions. Fritz gave up to me his onagra, and
took the young colt; Jack and Francis were
mounted on their buffaloes; Ernest, by my
desire, retained the dogs as a protection to his
mother. We took our old road by the Green
Valley, and arrived at the Tower of the Arabs-
a name we gave to the eminence from which we
first saw the ostriches, and mistook them for
Arab riders. Jack and Francis I sent on before,
always keeping them in sight; Fritz remained
with me, to assist in collecting the gum from the
incisions which I had before made in the shrubs
surrounding us. The sun had dried the gum, of
which we collected a considerable quantity in a
vessel which we had brought for that purpose.
This precious harvest gathered, we thought of
overtaking our companions, who had long ago
passed the ostrich nests. Doubtless, the boys
were anxious to fall in with a few of these beau-
tiful coursers of the plain. We had not long to
COLLECTING GUM.
246
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
wait for the result of their sport. From the
bushes close by rushed out four ostriches-three
females and one male. As they came towards
us, and our two riders followed them closely,
they could scarcely hope to escape.
When they neared us, I threw out my lasso,
which, instead of catching the feet of the bird,
twisted round its body, and for a moment embar-
rassed its wings; soon, however, it disentan-
gled itself; and, had not Fritz unhooded his
eagle, I should have lost my game. The eagle
flew at the ostrich, fastened upon its head, and
thus impeded its rapid flight. Jack now came
up at full gallop on his buffalo, and, more dex-
terous than I, threw the lasso round the legs of
the ostrich, which fell heavily on its side. To
secure it was the work of a moment. Having
covered its eyes, I bound it with a leather strap,
which I attached on each side by a cord to the
collars of the two buffaloes. I then uncovered
its eyes, and watched the result. At first, irri-
tated at finding itself conquered, it remained
motionless, crouching to the ground. Then,
suddenly believing itself free, it mounted, as if
to take flight; but, being held by the belt, fell
again to the ground. Rising immediately, it
renewed its efforts, but still in vain, thanks to
the strong chests of our buffaloes, between which
it was obliged to march.
While Jack and Francis took our captive to
·
247
the Tower of the Arabs, Fritz and I went in
search of the ostrich nest. We were just within
a few feet of it, when a female ostrich rose off
her eggs, taking us so much by surprise that we
had not presence of mind to pursue her. Her
being there, however, showed us that the nest
was not abandoned; so we selected a dozen eggs,
leaving the remainder buried in the sand. This
prize secured, we rejoined our companions, taking
the road by the Bears' Cave and the Green
Valley.
JACK AND HIS OSTRICH.
Cries of astonishment greeted our return.
Our housewife was rather alarmed at the pro-
spect of feeding the stranger, and exclaimed,
Why do you bring that glutton here?"
"It shall be my courser," said Jack, with
enthusiasm. "Its name shall be Fleetwing,
and some of these days I shall go to Europe,
thanks to my ostrich, and bring you news and
supplies; and, as soon as I shall have trained it,
you, Ernest, shall have my buffalo." From this
time the ostrich became the property of Jack,
who took charge of its training.
On our return to Rock House, one or two days
afterwards, the ostrich, freed from its buffalo
attendants, was tethered before the house, under
the trees, where it was to remain till quite
tamed. Our ostrich eggs were bathed in tepid
water, then placed upon cotton in our oven,
where, directed by the thermometer, I kept up
CC
248
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
the temperature necessary to hatch them. The
same day the rabbits were transported to the
island, there to be acclimatised. The Whale
Islet was allotted to the dwarf antelopes. Had
it not been that we were afraid our dogs would
molest these small, graceful creatures, only a
foot in length, we would not have sent them
away from us. As for the tortoises which I had
found, my wife objected to their being admitted
into the garden, because they would probably
work more mischief than the snails on which
they were to feed; so, by my orders, Jack carried
them off to the marsh.
He had scarcely left us when I heard him
calling loudly to Fritz to bring him a stick. I
thought at first that he had seen some frogs,
which the boys had been anxious to hunt, and
was not a little surprised to see them return
bringing a splendid eel, caught in a net laid by
Ernest before our departure. Part of this ex-
cellent fish we cooked for dinner, and part we
preserved in melted butter. The young cuttings
of the pepper plant and scented shrubs, which
we had brought, we planted at the foot of the
bamboo columns supporting the projecting roof
of our dwelling, up which we expected them to
climb, knowing them to be trailing plants. Our
housewife claimed the bear and peccary hams,
also the cask of tallow which we had filled from
those animals. The bear-skin was plunged in
249
the sea, and secured by large stones. The wood-
hens were placed in a special cage, out of the
reach of the monkey and the dogs.
The condor and the vulture were put, in the
meantime, in our museum, as trophies. Tha
stuffing of their skins we reserved as a pastime
during the rainy season. The minerals we also
laid aside for the present in our workshop.
Lastly, the skins of the musk-rats were hung
up under the roof of our gallery. These various
arrangements occupied two days; after which
the sowing of our field, the taming of the os-
trich, and the curing of the bear skins, engaged
our attention.
FIELD LABOUR.
Field labour, a thing quite new to us, we felt
to be rather hard, and began to understand, by
experience, the full meaning of the words, "Thou
shalt eat thy bread in the sweat of thy brow.”
Of a single acre we managed to clear, we sowed
one third in wheat, one in maize, and one in
barley. On the other side of the rivulet, I
planted a small tongue of land with potatoes and
manioc. To this hard work we only devoted two
hours in the morning, and two again in the even-
ing, thus avoiding the heat of the day, and leav
ing us considerable leisure to devote to other
matters. We set about, for instance, training
the ostrich; and here, I must confess, we made at
first but sorry progress. I had recourse to the
tobacco fumes, as in the case of Fritz's eagle.
250
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
Under this influence, the ostrich fell to the
ground, quite stupified, and while in this state
the boys got upon its back, in order to accustom
it to a burden. But, notwithstanding all our
care and kind usage, the poor creature began to
refuse all food, and seemed determined to die of
want. It became, at the same time, so weak, that
I really began to have my fears on its account.
Happily, however, my wife tempted its delicate
appetite with something very savoury of her own
cooking, and it took quietly ever afterwards any-
thing we gave it, and, indeed, became so voraci-
ous, that we began to fear a famine. Its strength
being restored, its training was managed without
much difficulty. In a month it could lie down,
rise, turn itself, march in step, trot, or gallop, at
the command of its rider.
I was certainly puzzled as to what sort of bit
and bridle we should have for our new steed. A
bit it must have, with which to direct it; but who
ever saw a bit adapted to a beak? I was on the
point of giving up this riddle as insolvable, when
I recollected how the ostrich was affected by the
alternations of light and darkness. My idea was
to make for it a leather hood, like that of the
eagle, only coming further down on the neck, and
having two movable blinders: one of these being
lowered, the ostrich would turn to the other side,
following the light; both being lowered, it would
stand still; both being raised, it would move
ศ
251
straight forward. The saddle also demanded par-
ticular attention; but here I acquitted myself to
admiration.
This equipment completed, we had only to try
our courser, and were delighted with the results;
for although there was a little rearing and plung-
ing at first, this only showed his high mettle; and
the journey to and from Falcon's Nest was made
in less time than Fritz had allowed for one half
of the way.
Jack was rather envied by his
brothers, who wished me to recall my decision
that Jack should be master of the ostrich; but I
remained firm, though I admitted that the new
steed was in one sense public property, and that
all the four had a right to it. Fritz, Ernest, and
Francis consoled themselves with the thought
that the eggs in our kiln would soon be hatched,
and provide them with coursers as swift as Jack's.
The ostrich chickens, however, notwithstanding
all our care, only lived a few days; so the hopes
of the three boys were but short-lived.
The preparation of the bear skins had been pro-
gressing at the same time as the training of the
ostrich. I had cleaned them with the blade of an
old sabre. I tanned them with a kind of vinegar,
and made them supple and fit for use by rubbing
them with a mixture of grease and cinders. My
success as tanner and distiller encouraged me: I
resolved to turn hat manufacturer, by trying to
make little Francis a hat out of the musk-rat
TANNING AND HAT-MAKING.
252
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
skin. After several attempts, I made a sort of
felt, which I coloured with cochineal, and made
waterproof by means of gutta-percha liquid. This
mixture I exposed during one night, on a mould
of my own invention, to the heat of our drying-
oven, and had in the morning the satisfaction of
showing a Swiss cap of a bright red colour. My
dear wife, delighted at the pleasure this would
give the child, added herself a silk lining, a gold
lacing, and an ostrich plume. Francis, however,
was not quite at his ease in his newly acquired
splendour, and insisted on my providing his
brothers with similar head gear. This I under-
took to do.
"
CHAPTER XXXII.
RETURN OF THE RAINY SEASON.
By
So busy had we been that we were now surprised
to find it so near the time of the rainy season.
My success as hatter, &c., encouraged me also to
turn our workshop temporarily into a pottery.
I adapted an old cannon-wheel to a wooden axle,
to which I fixed a circular piece of wood, and
began with making some bowls to replace the
calabashes in which we put our milk. I had
found among our articles from the wreck certain
253
glass wares, that had been intended for barter
with savages. Part of these I crushed to a very
fine powder, and with it enamelled the half-dried
pottery. After several unsuccessful attempts,
we made several coffee cups, a sugar basin, and
six small plates.
My stock of porcelain clay being all used, I
occupied myself during the remainder of the
rainy season in stuffing a condor and vulture we
had shot. I softened the skins by plunging them
in tepid water powdered with herbs to keep away
insects, and then stretched them on a wooden
block formed like a bird. The neck was dis-
tended by means of small rings covered with
cotton, and the eyes were made of painted
porcelain.
66
This work completed, we still were prisoners, it
being the rainy season. Ernest gave lessons to
Francis; Jack read for his own improvement;
and I gave lectures on natural history for our
mutual edification. Nevertheless, our time did
sometimes hang heavily on our hands, and Fritz
helped me to invent a new occupation. "Now,"
he said, "we have Mr Fleetwing as a swift
courser on land; let us make one to go on the
sea; let us make a Greenland canoe, a kajak!
I welcomed the proposal with satisfaction, and
the boys were quite enthusiastic on the subject;
but their mother, who had only a very faint idea
of what a kajak was, looked rather frightened i
R
FINDING EMPLOYMENT.
}
254
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
and even when I explained the mystery, her
aversion to the sea prevented her entering cor-
dially into our plans.
We set to work immediately, being anxious to
complete at least the hull of our kajak before
the fine weather should return. We made the
keel and ribs of whalebone, and bound them to-
gether with bamboo-cane. The deck was placed
on a level with the sides, in which were circular
holes to admit the rower. The Greenlander
kneels in his canoe; but as this is a fatiguing
posture, we provided our boatmen with stools.
The hull being completed, we caulked all the
seams with tar and moss, and covered the whole
boat with the skin of the sea-dog. The holes for
the oars were towards the stern, as I wanted to
keep the fore part of the boat clear for a sail and
mast. Our kajak was now ready, and I said
that Fritz, who had first projected the canoe,
should be the first to enter it. To guard against
accident, I begged his mother to make him a
swimming coat, close-fitting but double, and
supplied with a small tube for filling the space
between the two plies with air, thus making the
coat a sort of life-buoy.
Meanwhile, the rainy season passed away; and
right glad were we to welcome back the sunny
weather. It was on a beautiful afternoon that
our canoe was launched into the sea; and Fritz,
delighted to venture in his new boat, put on his
255
swimming coat, and pushed off from the shore.
His brothers, as he sat enveloped in his puffed-
out coat, greeted him with shouts of laughter;
but he took no notice of them, and rowed
away manfully till he arrived at Shark Island,
where we soon followed in our own boat.
We
paid a visit to our dwarf antelopes, and left them
some salt, maize, and soft roots; we were happy
to find them flourishing in their new home.
Before re-embarking, we made a circuit of the
island to seek for corals and shells for our
museum. We also saw quantities of sea-weed,
which the boys gathered and brought away, by
their mother's orders.
MAKING JELLY.
On our return to Safety Bay she selected a
few leaves of a certain marine plant, and placed
them mysteriously in our oven. We teased her
to tell us what she was going to do, but we got
no satisfactory answer. Some days after, when
we returned hot and tired from a journey to
Falcon's Nest, we were presented by our thought-
ful housekeeper with a dish of most delightful
jelly, made from the mysterious leaves. My
wife said that, on our visit to the island, she
had recognised among the sea plants one which
she had seen used at the Cape in this way. As a
substitute for citron or orange juice, of which
she had none, she had seasoned the jelly with
cinnamon, honey, and vinegar, and very good it
was, and most refreshing after our hard work.
256
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
As we had been well satisfied with the state of
our plantations on Shark Island, we expected to
find those on Whale Island equally flourishing.
We found, however, on our arrival, that our
rabbits, having multiplied greatly, had destroyed
the bark of many of the young trees, and had
quite devoured the cocoas we had planted. The
resinous flavour of the pines seemed to have
protected them from a like fate. We fenced our
nursery anew with prickly plants, and left it
once more, hoping the greedy little creatures
would be unable to destroy it.
On the shore we found the remains of the
whale, the bones picked almost bare by birds of
prey, and bleached by the sun and wind. We had
little difficulty in bringing part of the skeleton
away with us. We also brought home two ma-
rine plants, on which I had observed the rabbits
feeding the one had a very disagreeable taste,
the other had a perfume of violets: the first I
thought was the fucus saccharinus, and the other
the fucus palmatus.
CHAPTER XXXIII.
THE WILD BOAR.
ONE morning, while three of my sons had gone
off to catch beaver-rats, of whose skins they
257
made caps, I decided to go in search of a tree of
a certain size, that I wanted, to make a grinding
mill, and also to seek some more porcelain clay,
of which I was also in need. I yoked Steady to
our old sledge, and accompanied by Flora and
Turk, I set out for the wood beside the Jackal
stream. As I neared the bridge, and got my eye
on our plantation of maniocs and potatoes, I was
horrified to find it sadly destroyed by the ravages
of some animals, evidently, by the footprints, of
the hog tribe. These depredators had come in
great numbers, and had done a world of mischief;
but there was not one of them visible on whom I
could wreak my vengeance. Suddenly, however,
the dogs began to bark furiously, and were an-
swered by a loud grunting. I ran, and saw our
own old pig facing the two dogs, surrounded by
eight well-grown pigs. Blinded by anger, I fired
at once upon them. Three fell, and the rest fled.
I then dragged the carcasses to my sledge, and
went in search of my tree. I found one such as
I wanted, two feet in circumference; the trunk
straight and smooth. After having marked it in
the manner of a woodman, I returned to our
grotto. Our rat-hunters had not yet got home,
and my wife was alone with Ernest, who had been
spending the day in the library. Towards even-
ing the wanderers arrived, Jack on his ostrich,
followed by Fritz, and Francis leading Tempest,
loaded with two sacks, containing twenty ortolans,
REAPPEARANCE OF THE SOW.
258
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINson.
a kangaroo, a monkey, two animals like hares
and half-a-dozen beaver-rats. Fritz, besides,
carried in his hand a bunch of large thistles; but
the contents of the sacks in the meantime en-
grossed all our attention.
"Oh! father, father," cried Jack; "was there
ever such a courser as my ostrich? She runs
like the wind; I thought I should have lost my
breath entirely. You must make me a mask with
glass eyes, for the rapidity is quite blinding."
Impetuous little man," said I. "No, I must
not do what you want."
(C
"Why, father ?"
First, because you ought never to say to your
parents, You must;' and secondly, because I
have other things to do much more important
than the making of a mask with glass eyes for a
young gentleman who can make what he wants
for himself if he chooses."
""
"
Jack was silent, and allowed Fritz to speak.
"We have really, father, spent a most delightful
day," said he; "and see what supplies we have
brought home; but we are willing to exchange all
our riches for a taste of our mother's wine.”
"Each of you shall have some wine," said I,
"for you well deserve it; but another time you
must not go away from home as you did this
morning, without asking leave. And now, unyoke
your animals; a good cavalier always attends to
his horse's comfort before he thinks of his own.'
259
When we met at supper Fritz related the day's
adventures, how he and his brothers had re-
mained the whole day in the neighbourhood of
Forest Farm, setting their traps in different
places; how with snares they had caught the
ortolans, and the beaver-rats with little fish;
and how, afterwards, they had dined under the
trees.
EXPERIMENT IN SKINNING.
T
"But you say nothing of my jackal," said
Jack; "he beat the cover for us, and raised the
hares, and the kangaroo, which, for the first and
last time in its life, smelt gunpowder."
"In running about," said Fritz, "I found
these large thistles, which I thought might be
useful in carding felt; also I picked up this little
cinnamon apple, and gave a lesson with my gun
to this big monkey, that would throw cocoa-nuts
at me." His mother took the thistles and the
apple from him, with both of which she was well
pleased.
The animals which they brought I proposed to
skin, by means of an instrument from the sur-
geon's chest, resembling a syringe. I introduced
air by an opening in the skin between it and the
flesh; thus separating them, and making the
removal of the skin very easy. The children
laughed greatly when I appeared among them
with this strange apparatus, but their delight
and astonishment knew no bounds when they
witnessed the result of my experiment.
260
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
"Wonderful!" cried Jack and Francis, in a
breath. "Father is quite a sorcerer."
"But how is it done?" said Jack.
Having satisfied their curiosity, I left them to
finish taking off the skin; and, as we had a good
many animals to treat in the same manner, we
had quite a day of it.
Next morning we started early, to cut down
the tree I had marked the day before. Jack first
climbed the tree, to cut off any branches that
might be entangled with the neighbouring trees
in falling. With a large saw we made a con-
siderable incision all round, and then, pulling
hard at the ropes which Jack had fastened, the
trunk fell without much trouble. We soon cut
off what we wanted for immediate use, and left
the remainder to dry in the sun. When one is
not master of his trade he makes no great pro-
gress at work of this sort; but I managed, after
some difficulty, to construct a mill capable of
grinding a little rice. Whilst superintending my
mill, I noticed that our fowls kept going to the
neighbouring field with great eagerness, and
returned with a very well satisfied air. The
mystery I soon solved on going myself to the
field, for there was our corn already nearly ripe.
This discovery was very gratifying, for we were
now sure we should have two harvests in the
year.
Next morning we went to the corn field and
261
began our reaping, and by evening had it com-
pleted. My wife, when she saw us taking merely
the heads of the wheat, and leaving all the straw
and grass, thought we were very wasteful; but I
explained to her that this was the Italian method
of reaping: they leave the long stubble standing,
to protect the young grass, which is cut down
afterwards for winter fodder.
TREADING OUT THE CORN.
The treading out of the corn was a rare amuse-
ment for the boys. Each mounted his favourite
animal on the occasion, and enjoyed the work
immensely. Their mother rather grudged seeing
the buffalo occasionally regale himself with a
mouthful of the precious grain, but I removed
her scruples by quoting the text, "Thou shalt
not muzzle the ox that treadeth out the corn."
We added nearly a hundred measures of wheat,
and almost as much barley, to our store of pro-
visions by this harvest. With a view to a second
harvest, we had to sow again immediately: this
time, however, we sowed oats and rye, instead of
wheat and barley. In the midst of our work,
the shoal of herrings reached our island, followed
by the sea-dogs. Under the circumstances we
contented ourselves with securing two barrels of
herring and a small number of the sea-dogs,
which were rapidly deprived of their skins by my
newly-invented method.
W
262
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
ܕ
CHAPTER XXXIV.
DISAPPEARANCE OF FRITZ.
ALL this while the kajak had been lying idle, and
Fritz, who was considered captain, was getting
quite impatient for a voyage in his new craft.
The busy season now being over, there was no
reason why he should not be gratified. We all
went down to the shore to see him off, and after
we had equipped and armed him for the voyage,
he stepped into his kajak and bounded away over
the waves like a miniature Neptune. I was
proud to see how cleverly he managed his boat;
but in order to satisfy his mother, who was by no
means at ease, I had our pinnace ready to push
off at a moment's notice to the assistance of the
adventurer should he require it. The kajak
seemed easily propelled, and shot hither and
thither like an arrow. Sometimes it seemed as if
almost upset; this latter feat being performed by
Fritz for our benefit, to show us that there could
not possibly be any danger. This alarmed my
wife, however, not a little; and when the daring
boy made directly for the current of the Jackal
stream, and was carried right out to sea with ter-
rible rapidity, I thought it was time to get into
the canoe and follow him. Our six oars soon
4
PURSUIT OF FRITZ.
263
took us to the other side of the bay, to the point
at which the kajak had disappeared; but we got
there only to be entangled in a labyrinth of rocks
and shoals; our view of the horizon being com-
pletely shut out; and impatient though we were,
we could not for some time find our way out.
We had just reached the open sea, when I thought
I perceived in the distance a thin wreath of
smoke, and heard a faint report of firearms.
"Fritz is there!" cried I, with great satisfac-
tion. "Where, where?" asked Jack and Ernest.
At that moment I heard a second report, and
fired my pistol, which was answered by a third
shot. I assured the boys that we were within a
quarter of a mile of their brother, and a little
vigorous rowing soon brought us up with him.
After he had shewn us a "blue wonder," as they
call the sea-cow, which he had killed, I reproached
him with having caused us such anxiety. He
excused himself by saying that the current had
carried him out whether he would or not. I
suspect he was not sorry to have an opportunity
of trying the dangers of the open sea; but of this
he said nothing, and I was quite willing to let
the matter rest, satisfied to be able to take him
home unhurt to his mother.
On our way home Ernest questioned me as to
how I had calculated that Fritz was within a
quarter of a mile of us. I told him how light
travels faster than sound, and how, by counting
264
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
the number of seconds between the appearance
of the smoke and the sound of the shot, I calcu-
lated the distance. "Have these same calcula-
tions been applied to the light of the stars?" asked
Ernest. "Oh yes; and there are stars so dis-
tant that their light takes thousands of years to
reach our earth; and if they were extinguished
to-day they would still be visible to us during
these thousands of years."
"How delightful it would be to know every-
thing," said Ernest.
"It is delightful to know what we do know,
my boy, and better still to know that the secret
of the remainder rests with God."
We had only made about a third of our passage
when the storm, which I had expected but had
believed to be still distant, overtook and broke
upon us with great violence. Fritz unfortunately
was a good deal in advance, and the roaring of
the wind and waves, and the falling of the
heavy rain, rendered it quite impossible to recall
him to shelter in our boat. We had quite lost
sight of him by this time. I began to be very
anxious, but tried not to alarm my companions by
showing it. I bade them buckle on their life-
buoys and fasten themselves to the sides of the
canoe, to prevent their being washed away by the
waves. Jack and Francis happened both to rise at
the same moment, and coming against each other
violently, were pitched into the sea. They were
265
excellent swimmers, and, by good fortune, a rope
was hanging from the stern, which Jack grasped
in a moment; but such was my excitement when
I saw my two sons thus struggling with the
wavés, I should, in my despair, have leaped in
after them, but Ernest held me and implored me
to remain to assist him in getting them into the
pinnace. This we accomplished with consider-
able difficulty; and beyond being drenched with
salt water they sustained no further injury.
THANKS FOR DELIVERANCE.
Meanwhile the storm continued to increase in
fury. The waves seemed to rise to the sky and
then fall in avalanches, lighted up by lurid flashes
of lightning. Every now and then we expected
to be engulphed in the abyss, which opened just
under our boat. Our canoe stood the rough
usage wonderfully. When the water got in we
baled her as best we could, but all attempts at
directing her course were perfectly useless. The
fear for our own safety was nothing compared with
what I suffered on Fritz's account. Swift as his
kajak was, I knew he could not have got to shore
before the storm overtook him. I imagined all
sorts of dreadful things-that he was drowned—
that he was dashed to pieces on the rocks-that
he was devoured by the sharks. I was occupied
with these despairing thoughts when over the
wave tops I caught sight of the headlands
enclosing Safety Bay, for which we immediately
pulled, and were soon ashore. But how shall I
266
THE SWISS. FAMILY ROBINSON.
describe our joy, when we saw on the rocks at the
head of the bay, Fritz and his mother and
Francis, praying for us, whom they never expected
to see again! or how shall I tell of our happy-
meeting! My wife and I were so glad to have
all our children in safety around us, that we could
not reproach Fritz, even in the gentlest way, for
what his thoughtlessness had cost us. After
having thanked God for our deliverance, and par- .
taken of a hasty meal, we dragged our pinnace
and kajak to the grotto. The sudden swelling of
the streams by the heavy rain had made some
work for us. The Jackal stream had carried off
our bridge, and done a good deal of damage
besides.
One bright moonlight night I was awakened by
the barking of the dogs, answered by a kind of
growling. I got up in great haste, seized my
gun, and put my head out over the door. Pre-
sently I heard Fritz calling—
"Are you up, father ?"
"Yes; come with me."
Fritz came, and we went towards the scene of
the commotion, which seemed to be caused by an
invasion of pigs, which our dogs were trying to
repel. The invaders were evidently our own ani-
mals, become wild. We pursued the pigs to the
stream, which they crossed by the bridge, which
we had restored in a temporary way; so we re-
solved to make a drawbridge.
"SALTLICK."
I was well aware of the numerous improve-
ments in drawbridges, and especially of the re-
volving bridges, which I had seen in use in the
great dock-yards of France. Something much
simpler, however, was amply sufficient for our
purpose; and having constructed two uprights
of great strength, with pulleys attached to them,
through which ropes could be passed, and placed
two others on the top of these, suspended mid-
way, so as to act as levers, we had little difficulty
in making the beams on our own side of the
river move on pins passed through them as on a
hinge. The other ends we cut through ob-
liquely, so that they would still rest firmly when
down, on the pieces secured on the opposite side;
and having firmly fastened all the planks which
had hitherto been left loose, we had an excellent
drawbridge, which could be pulled up at all
times when not in use, and thus place the river
as a barrier between us and any invaders. Its
novelty was a source of great delight to the boys,
and for some days the pulling up and down of it
formed one of their chief pastimes, and the prin-
cipal object of their thoughts.
What a pity," said Fritz one day, "that we
cannot tame these graceful antelopes, and have
them going about us when we are at our work.'
"Yes," said Ernest, "we should make &
"salt-
lick," as it is called in Georgia, and they would
come of themselves."
THE
267
268
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
For the benefit of his brothers less well-in-
formed, I explained that Ernest meant patches
of salt earth or soil impregnated with salt, either
natural or artificial, resorted to by wild animals,
and that he proposed to make an artificial "salt-
lick" on the spot where we stood, to attract the
gazelles and antelopes. "I am quite willing,"
I continued, "if you would like it. With porce-
lain earth and salt we could make an excellent
bait. Let us procure some more of the clay, and
at the same time we can get some bamboo canes,
which I require for the execution of a plan I
have in my head." The boys looked at one
another. (C
Father," said Fritz, " we have a
plan, too, in our heads, which we have long
thought of; we should like to go to Forest Farm
and Prospect Hill, and make excursions on the
way in all directions. What do you say to it?”
All eyes were anxiously turned upon me.
"If you
are very anxious," said I, "I see nothing to pre-
vent you. Our establishments there are much
in want of being looked after.”
"Let us go! let us go!" cried they all.
“I should like first," said Fritz, "if my
mother would give me some bear's flesh to make
pemmican."
"And what is pemmican? Is that what sav
ages eat?" asked my wife.
"Mother," replied Fritz, "it is a kind of pre-
served meat used by Canadian hunters on their
269
long expeditions; it takes up little room, and yet
is
very substantial; and as we are about to under-
take a hunting excursion, we wish to have a sup-
ply of it."
His mother never looked favourably on those
expeditions which took her children and hus-
band away from her, but she submitted in silence
to what she supposed to be inevitable, and helped
Fritz to make his pemmican. Meantime the
other boys made ready for the hunt, which was
to be on a large scale, judging from the prepara-
tions required. The old sledge, on two cannon
wheels, was loaded, not only with all manner of
sacks and panniers and baskets, but also with
the tent and kajak; while Jack, ignorant that
I was watching him, packed up with the pemmi-
can, of which there was more than enough, some
pigeons, on his own account, as a variety; for I
supposed he thought he might tire of eating no-
thing but bear's flesh.
SETTING OUT.
CHAPTER XXXV.
HYENA.
Ir had been resolved we should all journey
together; but on the morning fixed for our
departure, my wife declared she needed rest, and
S
270
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
would remain at home. Ernest, after some con-
sultation with Fritz and Jack, said he also
preferred to remain with her; so, having some
work of my own, I thought it best to send the
three boys by themselves. Our three hunters
departed in good spirits, having been well
counselled to be prudent-advice which no
doubt they found it easy to carry.
I busied myself constructing a press for the
sugar-canes, which did not differ materially from
the sugar mill, and therefore need not be
described. The adventures of the boys, as they
told them to us on their return after a few days,
may be more entertaining.
On drawing near to Forest Farm, where they
intended spending the first two days, they were
startled by a strange shout, resembling the
laughter of a man. The ostrich and buffaloes,
as well as the dogs, seemed terrified; and as the
strange laugh was continued, they turned to
flee. Fritz and Francis, dismounting, tried to
calm the excited animals, and Francis crept
cautiously forward to reconnoitre. Drawing
aside the branch of a small shrub, he saw at the
distance of about thirty paces, a large hyena in
the act of devouring a ram. The animal, on
seeing him, renewed its horrid laughter, and
Francis, aware of his danger, fired, and striking it
on the fore paw and breast, it tumbled over.
Fritz, who had succeeded in tying up the buffaloes,
THE DESPATCH.
271
now came to his brother's rescue; but fortunately
his aid was not needed, for the dogs had thrown
themselves on the hyena and killed him. In a
few moments Jack rejoined his brothers, having
been all this time engaged in quieting his ostrich,
in which he was at length successful.
While all this was happening we were seated
quietly resting ourselves at home, after the labours
of the day, my wife trembling lest any mischief
should befall her sons; and I questioned Ernest
as to the motives of his brothers in going away.
His answers were rather enigmatical; but at last
he said, "Keep your mind easy, my dear father;
to-morrow I think I will have news of our tra-
vellers to tell you."
"How is that?" said I. "Do you propose
rejoining them? That will be rather inconvenient
for me."
"I will not leave you, papa, but I still hope
to have news to give you. Perhaps I shall dream
to-night where they have been, and so will be
able to tell you all about it to-morrow."
"Stop," said I. "What is that which has
entered the dove-cot? It is so dark I cannot see
whether it is a wild pigeon or one of our own."
Perhaps it is a courier from Sidney," said
Ernest. "If so, we might make use of it to cor-
respond with New Holland."
"C
"Would that it were," said I; "but it is late,
and we must go to bed. If you like, you can
272
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
consult your courier in the morning, and tell us
the news at breakfast time; meanwhile, good
night, and do not dream too much.'
The next morning Ernest went to the dove-cot,
and, just as we were sitting down to breakfast,
he gravely handed us a sealed and folded paper,
saying, "The humble postmaster of Rock House
respectfully recommends himself to your lord-
ships, and hopes you will not be displeased at
his not forwarding the despatches from Forest
Farm and Sidney sooner; they arrived only last
night.'
My wife and I could scarcely keep from laugh-
ing; but thinking I saw underneath some little
piece of diversion invented by Ernest to beguile..
the time during his brothers' absence, I entered
into the spirit of it, and, with a serious air,
replied, "Well, Mr Secretary, what has happened
in our capital? Give us the news of our sub-
jects."
,
C
Ernest then unfolded his paper, bowed gravely,
and read in a clear voice :-
"The Governor-General of New South Valley, to the
Governor of Rock House, Falcon's Nest, Forest.
Farm, &c. &c., sendeth greeting:
"Most beloved, noble, and faithful Ally,-We have learned
with displeasure that three adventurers have left your colony
to live as robbers in this province, by plundering and destroy-
ing the game, and also that a troop of hyenas have made an
irruption into your province, and committed ravages amongst
your flocks. We pray you to take prompt measures against
HUNTERS' LETTERS.
273
these disorders by recalling the hunters to your colony, and
putting an end to the outrages of these animals.-The
Governor,
"PHILIP PHILIPPSON.”
"Sidney, Jackson's Bay, 12th of this month,
34th year of the colony."
When Ernest had finished reading, he began
to laugh and dance about, when a small note fell
from his pocket.
This," said he, "is a par-
ticular note from Forest Farm; if it is your
pleasure I will read it to your lordships. It is
short, but contains perhaps as much information
as the official document of Sir Philip Philippson,
who, it appears to me, has received these exagger-
ated reports with too much credulity."
"This is quite an enigma," said I. "Did Fritz
leave you this letter, and order you to deliver it
to me on a certain day ?”
"No, father," said Ernest; "here is the solu-
tion of the enigma in this note, brought by a
carrier pigeon yesterday evening.
<<
"DEAR PARENTS AND ERNEST,-A great hyena has de-
voured a lamb and a sheep. Francis is a noble fellow; he
wounded it right in the chest, and the dogs despatched it.
We took a whole day to take off its skin, which is very beau-
tiful. Our pemmican is not worth eating: mother is quite
justified in making fun of my cooking.-Your
"''FRITZ.'"
Forest Farm, 15th inst.'"
"A true hunter's letter," said I, laughing.
"I am thankful that Francis is unhurt in his
encounter with the hyena."
274
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
"I wish they would be more prudent," ejac
ulated my wife, who wanted us to start from
home immediately to seek the hunters, and bring
them back with us.
Towards evening another pigeon arrived,
bringing a note, which ran as follows:-
"Quiet night. Beautiful morning. Sailing in the kajak on
Forest Lake. Capture of black swans. Royal heron.
Cranes and widgeons. Unknown animal escaped. To-morrow
to Prospect Hill. Farewell to all.
“FRITZ, JAOK, AND FRANCIS.”
This little note, assuring us of their welfare,
was very comforting to us. The details they
would communicate on their return.
It had been their intention to explore this lake
more particularly, to find out the places where it
could be reached from the shore without sinking
in the mud. Fritz coasted in his kajak, while
Jack and Francis beat about among the reeds.
Such spots were marked by bamboos, that they
might be easily discovered again. It was in the
course of this exploring expedition that Fritz
discovered three young black swans, which he
caught and brought home. Subsequently he
observed, quite near him, a royal heron, over
which he cast his lasso, and shooting his kajak
among the reeds, secured his prey. While the
three brothers stood on the shore, admiring their
beautiful captives, there came out of the marsh a
strange-looking animal, quite new to them.
275
Fritz went in pursuit, leaving his brothers to
take the other game to the Forest Farm. This
animal I afterwards found, from their description,
must be the tapir, a kind of small elephant.
At dinner they met again, the two younger boys
bringing numbers of cranes and other water-
fowl, and Fritz a gorgeous bird of paradise.
They dined on peccary ham and potatoes, leav-
ing the pemmican to the dogs. They spent the
evening in preparing for the journey to Prospect
Hill. I shall now leave Fritz to tell all about it
in his own words: "We had hardly entered into
the little pine wood, when we were surrounded by
numbers of monkeys, who pelted us with pine-
apples. To stop this we fired among them, on
which four or five fell to the ground, and their
companions, alarmed at our mode of returning
their mischievous pranks, soon vanished out of
sight."
DANGER AHEAD.
Here I take up the story and continue the
narrative. We were just comforting ourselves.
in the assurance of the well-being of our absent
ones, when a pigeon arrived bearing a note having
the following:-"The defile has been broken
through. As far as Sugar Vale everything is
destroyed; the canes are trampled and broken;
many enormous footprints are visible everywhere.
Come quickly to our help. We are all well, but
dare not go either back or forward for fear of our
unknown enemy." Without delay I saddled the
276
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
onagra, and telling Ernest and his mother to
meet us the day following with various stores at
the defile, I started at full gallop.
CHAPTER XXXVI.
ELEPHANTS.
I MADE the journey, which usually occupied six
hours, in three, so great was my anxiety; and
when I arrived so much sooner than was expected,
the boys greeted me with shouts of joy. Without
a moment's delay, I examined the footprints which
had caused them such alarm, and saw at once,
from the nature of the devastation, that a troop of
elephants had broken into the enclosure. There
were also footprints of the hyena, but neither they
nor I saw any of the animals themselves. Before
night set in, we gathered a huge pile of firewood,
and, having kindled it, Fritz and I kept watch by
the tent door all night, but were not disturbed.
About mid-day Ernest and his mother arrived,
and we made preparation for a considerable stay,
to repair the damages our plantation had sus-
tained. We first closed the defile with a very
strong barrier. This occupied us a whole week.
Then we constructed a summer-house of four fine
trees growing close together, whose interlacing
277
boughs we bound together, cutting away others to
give us room. In this way we had an upper house
at once safe and beautiful, which we called The
L
Hermitage.
The boys varied their employments by occa-
sional excursions, in which they made many
valuable discoveries, such as the cacao-bean, of
which chocolate is made, and the banana, which
forms an excellent substitute for bread. We had
some trouble in the preparation of the cacao; but
our learned Ernest told us how, by heating it, the
husk might be removed, and then that, by roast-
ing, it could be pounded in a hot mortar. With
a little sugar, it was then fit for use. The banana,
which is called the king of vegetables, we planted
in the garden in slips.
Next day Fritz took his kajak across the lake
to bring a fresh supply to his mother of the cacao
and banana fruits. On his return he gave an ac-
count of all the wonderful things he had seen in
his explorations,-how he had seen elephants in
groups of ten and twenty, stripping trees of their
young branches, which they seemed to swallow
without difficulty; panthers with beautifully
spotted skins, which he had been much tempted
to shoot; and how he had observed many other
fierce and wild animals, known and unknown,
whose notice he was very glad to escape.
WILD BEASTS.
After having advanced a considerable way up
the lake in this manner, congratulating himself
278
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
on the impunity which his mode of approach
into this new and dangerous region afforded him,
he turned his kajak in order to descend, when,
what was his horror to see almost within gun-
shot, and making apparently directly for him, an
enormous pair of jaws filled with formidable
teeth, which seemed gliding towards him on the
surface of the water! Poor Fritz's presence of
mind nearly forsook him at so unexpected an as-
sailant, and though he continued to ply his oars,
and by a sort of instinctive wheel of the canoe
shot dexterously out of the way of his terrific
antagonist, and then continued his course swiftly
down the lake, yet he said he could hardly tell
how it had been done, and he had obtained a
lesson in natural history which he had no desire
to repeat.
Ernest at once pronounced the horrible mon-
ster to have been an alligator or crocodile, and
proceeded to give his brothers an account of this
aquatic giant lizard, and of its production from
an extremely small egg. The conclusion, mean-
while, which I arrived at was, that this new
region beyond the defile was occupied by still
fiercer and more dreadful animals than I had
had any conception of, and I felt as little satis-
faction in the belief that we had already so offec-
tually fortified the defile as permanently to pro-
tect us from their intrusion.
Fritz's experience in the voyage up the lake
-
279
had not in any degree intimidated him in the use
of his kajak; and when we were ready to set
off homeward on the following morning, I was
in no degree displeased when he made the pro-
position of going home in it round Cape Disap-
pointment. The ease with which he managed
his light canoe gave me the utmost confidence;
and I was glad of the opportunity of obtaining a
little more definite knowledge of the coast. Both
parties accordingly set out, and arrived at home
nearly about the same time. Fritz, indeed, had
a short route and an unencumbered carriage,
compared with us; but while we steadily pursued
our homeward route, various attractions sufficed
to delay him. Among the rocks he recognised a
plant covered with highly scented rose-coloured
flowers, in which my wife was delighted to dis-
cover the caper tree used for pickling. His ob-
servations, however, led to a much more important
discovery; for, on inspecting the branch of a
plant he had brought home, bearing numerous
small white flowers, and leaves somewhat like
the myrtle, I had no doubt of its belonging to
the same family as the Chinese tea-plant.
The latter discovery was a source of general
delight; nor can it be concealed that, amid all
our contentment and satisfaction with our lot,
we still indulged the idea that we might some
day hail a European ship, and find a new value
in the various stores of skins, furs, cotton, spices,
THE TEA-PLANT.
280
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
and other articles of native produce, which were
annually accumulating in our stores. We could
not, indeed, amid all our present comforts, look
forward to our living and dying solitary beings,
upon an unknown shore, without some feeling of
dissatisfaction, which gave birth to more ardent,
though still moderate desires. We now, however,
looked on the newly discovered tea-plant as a
means available for present comfort still more
than for future barter.
Jack, who was mounted on the ostrich, was the
first to reach home; Fritz followed immediately;
while the rest of us found our baggage and stores
required us to proceed at a more deliberate pace.
All, however, arrived safely at last, and united in
unloading the waggon and storing away the various
fruits of our journey, and putting our dwelling
once more in order for occupation. We found,
however, after our brief sojourn in the airy hut
we had constructed at the defile, that, with all the
many comforts of Rock House, it was still open
to objections as a summer residence; and my wife
appealed to me if it was right to desert our beau-
tifully situated dwelling at Falcon's Nest, and
leave it to go to ruin. As her remarks com-
pletely coincided with my own ideas on the sub-
ject, I readily promised to comply with her
wishes; and we accordingly set out soon after for
Falcon's Nest.
I set to work, with the aid of the boys, and soon
281
put in order the building reared round the trunk
of the tree in which our first season had been
passed. The staircase and platform were still
firm and good; and over the latter I constructed
a pent-roof of bark, and closed in the sides with
trellis-work of wrought bamboos, so that we
found it once more a most agreeable resting-place,
while the number of animals, and the convenient
carriages we had at our command, rendered the
stores at Rock House accessible at all times.
B
THE FORT ON SHARK ISLAND.
When this work of restoration was finished,
another task of a very different nature awaited
us. Fritz had never abandoned his idea of
having a fort reared on Shark Island, as a secure
rallying point under any imminent danger. I
put him off from time to time, but his head was
full of the project; and as our chief works for the
season were completed, I at length yielded to his
importunities, conceiving that it could do no
harm, and would serve to keep the boys occupied.
It proved, however, no easy task; but at length,
after much more labour than we had any idea of
when we commenced, a broad platform was com-
pleted on the highest part of the island, with
ramparts and embrasures; and on this, after
much toil, we at length saw our guns planted,
and a magazine, dwellings, storehouse, and all
other requisites for this new city of refuge
finished. Our last work was the erection of a
flag-staff; and when we had all landed on Shark
282
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
Island to celebrate the completion of our fort,
the white flag was hoisted amid the shouts of the
boys; nor, with all my sense of the urgent neces-
sity for economy of our ammunition, could I re-
sist the contagion, but loading both our cannons,
we fired them, and listened with a feeling of
triumph as the echoes prolonged and repeated
the sounds.
CHAPTER XXXVII.
AFTER TEN YEARS.
TEN years passed away with little to vary their
uniformity,-ten years far from the world, far
from home and friends, in which our own in-
dustry had been our only support, and the good-
ness of God, with our mutual affection, which had
strengthened with every trial, our only hope. In
all our ways we have sought to acknowledge
Him; every night, ere we slept, we committed
ourselves to His care, every morning sought
His blessing, and every day have endeavoured to
guide ourselves by His holy Word. We have too
often forgotten Him, indeed, and allowed earthly
cares to engross our minds; but we have put our
trust in the mercy of the Saviour of sinners, and
have not trusted in vain.
We had been engaged throughout the period
of our residence on the unknown land, whither
INCREASED ACCOMMODATIONS.
283
we were so unexpectedly driven, in conquering
and taking possession of its wealth. Our habita-
tions at Falcon's Nest and Rock House were
pleasant, commodious, and admirably suited to
all the requisites of the favoured climate and
country where our lot was cast. Rock House
supplied the most excellent and ample accommo-
dation for all our winter stores, and abundant
accommodation for our lodgement during the
rainy season, while Falcon's Nest had become
our habitual residence during the greater part of
the year, in which we enjoyed the pleasant shelter
of its shady environs and the abundant fruits of
the fertile country which surrounded it. We
continued from year to year to add to its accom-
modations, as convenience or necessity dictated;
so that we had, through time, abundant provision
for the housing and feeding of all our flocks and
herds, and our European and native poultry ;
our extensive palisaded enclosures securing them
alike from wandering or from danger from hostile
intruders. Our large trees were also the resort
of great flocks of pigeons, who made their nests
in the columbaria constructed with calabashes
on the branches, and roosted there throughout
the year; so that while our dove-cot at Rock
House remained abundantly stocked, we were
under no apprehension from the continued in-
crease of this more extensive colony.
Every year we found our experience of the
284
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
climate, and our knowledge of the many natural
productions of the country, increasing, while the
completion of all the great undertakings which
had kept our hands so fully occupied during the
early seasons of our enforced settlement on an
unknown and uninhabited coast, left us with
abundant leisure, and required only a pleasant
amount of exertion to preserve our erections in
repair, or to add to them such additional con-
veniences as seemed calculated to increase our
comfort. Ten years also made an important
difference on my assistants. The boys, who,
when we landed, were only a source of care
and anxiety to me, had, by that time, grown
up to be strong and active youths, equally capable
of any amount of exertion or fatigue as my-
self; and having acquired nearly all their know-
ledge and habits of life in the strange country
which my wife and I were sometimes tempted to
contrast with the remembrances of our native
land, their hopes and anticipations were entirely
concentrated in our new possessions.
Thus happiness and contentment reigned
throughout our cheerful colony, and a rich
abundance greatly exceeded our utmost wants.
The bees, which had at first threatened to prove
dangerous and troublesome neighbours at Falcon's
Nest, had so prospered under our management,
that we had now little other trouble than to provide
additional hives for the annual swarms; and
COMFORTS AND EMBELLISHMENTS.
285
their great numbers around our pleasant summer
dwelling attracted to it flocks of the merops, or
bee-eater, the inroads of which on the increasing
numbers of the bees was rather advantageous,
while their presence added to the life and cheer-
fulness of the scene, their brilliant plumage glan-
cing in the sun, and far surpassing in beauty
anything to which we had been accustomed
among the feathered songsters of our native land.
As our works of necessity, dictated by the in-
dispensable requirements of shelter, food, and
raiment, were gradually completed, we continued
to add to our comforts by many embellishments
of our different dwellings. Rock House especially
received all the internal improvements we could
devise during our annual occupation of it in the
winter season, and was, besides, greatly increased
in comfort and beauty of appearance by the ad-
ditions we made to it during the summer.
Under our united labours, the surrounding
ground, which had at first been a sterile and
barren waste, was gradually occupied with ex-
tending plantations, which rendered it as plea-
sant in summer as it was comfortable and ample
for our winter accommodation. Still further to
add to its beauty and convenience, a covered
gallery and verandah were erected along the
whole front of the grotto, supported on stout
columns of bamboo, up which the vine and other
climbing plants, and beautiful flowering creepers,
286
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
=
were trained; so that it was latterly a matter of
choice with us at all seasons whether we found it
most agreeable to make Rock House or Falcon's
Nest our abode.
1
Our various outposts were no less comfortable
and convenient. Our labours at the Hermitage
and Prospect Hill were at last crowned with
abundant success. Our structure at the defile
also fully answered the purpose for which it had
been reared with so much labour, and we found
it occasionally a pleasant change to remove to
the station-house we had erected there, and to
make it the centre of various expeditions into the
country beyond, in which the love of novelty and
adventure found abundant gratification.
Our colonies on Shark and Whale Islands had
also succeeded beyond our highest hopes. These
islands were now covered with thriving palms
and other valuable fruits, and occupied by our
thriving colonies, which multiplied there beyond
the reach of any assailants, so that we could at
any time command the most abundant supplies
without labour or delay.
Could a stranger have witnessed the desolate
beach on which our first Tent House was reared,
and then returned for the first time after this in-
terval of ten years, he could not have conceived
it possible that the beautiful garden of fruit-trees,
palms, and luxuriant tropical plants, extending
all the way from Rock House to Jackal River,
287
was, when we had first landed, a parched and
desert plain. By digging in the vicinity of
Rock House, we had found two abundant springs
of water, which rose in graceful and refreshing
fountains, and were then led in winding chan-
nels amid our plantations, so as to water the
whole, and give it the appearance of a rich and
fertile garden. In the extreme heat of summer
the trees supplied a most grateful and refreshing
shelter; and by means of bamboo tubes we were
able to distribute the water, so as to preserve an
abundant and luxurious vegetation where for-
merly all had been scorched and burnt up by the
heat.
THRIVING ORCHARDS.
Our European fruit-trees had also thriven most
successfully, and the avenue which we had planted
with so much labour from Falcon's Nest to
Family Bridge, was now a luxuriant orchard,
under the delightful shade of which we could
traverse, in the hottest season, from one habita-
tion to the other.
With such conveniences and attractions at
both habitations, and the ready means of trans-
port and conveyance which the increase of our
cattle afforded us, we no longer regarded the dis-
tance between the two dwellings as any great
impediment even to daily intercourse between
them, so that, even when taking up our perma-
nent summer abode at Falcon's Nest, we rode over
to our store-house at Rock House for whatever
288
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
the daily demands on its abundant stores re-
quired.
Throughout the whole extent of the space be-
tween the two lodgings, the eye was now regaled
with the cocoa-nut and other palms, the bread-
fruit tree, the sugar and cabbage palms, and
numerous other native fruit-trees, mingling with
the delicious products of European orchards,
while, in the hottest season, the comfort of its
delightful shelter was increased by the prospect
of the sea laving the shore, at a little distance,
with its deep blue waves. Oranges, figs, ban-
anas, dates, guavas, cocoa-nuts, and many other
delicious fruits, appeared in continuous succession
throughout the season, and helped to attract
whole flocks of birds, which pillaged our stores
as rapidly as they ripened, and were far too
numerous to be baffled by any attempts we could
make to lessen their depredations by shooting or
snaring the spoilers. There was, however, abund-
ance for all; and though the flocks of pillagers
compelled us to be on our guard, in order to
secure the desired supplies, we could always, with
a little care, obtain as abundant stores of ripe
fruit as it was possible to consume, or desirable
to preserve for the winter.
It almost seemed as if there was nothing left
us that we could desire; yet many a look had I
cast towards the sea, during these years that had
intervened since the shipwreck, in the hope of
M
FOREBODINGS.
289
espying a distant sail, and once more greeting
other human beings, from whom we had been so
long shut out. The same feeling animated me
in continuing to store up cotton, spices, ostrich-
plumes, &c., in the hope that some day they
might prove a source of wealth to us, and enable
us to purchase permission to return to Europe,
or to acquire such additions to our supplies as
might become requisite. Such feelings were little
sympathised in by the boys. Fritz, indeed, was
now a hardy, vigorous young man of twenty-four
years of age. Ernest and Jack had also attained
to manhood, and Francis was a lively and active
youth of eighteen. They all had fine disposi-
tions, and we had the inestimable advantage of
being able to train them up without the risk of
any contaminating influences of evil companions,
or the temptations of civilised life.
-
My dear wife Elizabeth, and myself, were a-
ready feeling the symptoms of approaching age;
and, with our own more vivid recollections of the
past, it was impossible to shut out some haunting
-
- anticipations for the future. We felt, if the place
of our settlement was to be our final abode, that
some one of us must be destined to be the sur-
vivor of all the rest; and to my mind especially
the thought frequently recurred, with sad fore
bodings, and made me turn my thoughts to
heaven, and pray to God that he, who had cared
for us amid so many dangers, and surrounded us
290
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
with so many mercies, would avert from any of
us so sad a fate as to perish in solitude, amid
scenes which had been the source of so much
comfort and happiness.
CHAPTER XXXVIII.
FRITZ'S VOYAGE.
ONE morning, Fritz, having left us in his kajak,
and not returning till evening, we all went in the
afternoon to the Shark Island to watch his re-
turn. We fired one shot to attract his attention,
and almost immediately the kajak appeared, like
a black speck upon the water, coming very slowly
towards us. As it came nearer it appeared to be
heavily laden.
"Where have you come from, Fritz," cried I,
“loaded in this way? I hope you have not been
running into danger."
"No," said he; "this has been the most for-
tunate voyage possible, as you will think when I
tell you all about it."
As soon as he landed we all gathered round him,
anxious to hear his story. "First of all, father,
I stocked my boat well with provisions, in case
of my having a long sail, and had also with me
291
harpoons, boat-hooks, pistols, &c., so that I was
ready for any emergency. The weather was all
that could be desired; the sea calm, and the sky
without a cloud. When I passed the spot where
the vessel broke up ten years ago, the water was
so clear that I could see at the bottom cannons
and many other things, which might be useful
to us if we could contrive a diving-bell to raise
them. Turning to the south-west, I passed a
rocky promontory, on which I saw several large
animals,—bears, sea-lions, walruses, &c., from
which I prudently kept my distance. Coasting
farther round, I came to a sort of triumphal arch,
built of immense blocks of rock, piled one upon
another, the recesses of which were crowded with
the nests of the sea-swallow. These birds flew
about my head in hundreds; and here is a piece
of a nest, which you can taste, if you have a mind
to know what the Chinese consider a dainty. I
sailed yet farther, and came to a beautiful bay,
bordered by a green savannah, dotted with trees,
and watered by a winding stream with wooded
banks. In this stream I noticed several large
oyster-beds. I brought up a few with my boat-
hook, and opened them, intending to regale my-
self with them, but I found them very tough,
and in each something about the size of a pea,
and very like a pearl. I brought some home in a
bag; here they are; you can judge for yourself."
At these words all pressed eagerly round to in-
PEARL OYSTERS.
292
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
spect the wonderful pearls, which were indeed of
a fine kind, and some of them large.
"This is really a treasure which you have
stumbled upon," said I to Fritz.
"Had we
communication with the rest of the world, this
oyster-bed would be a very mine of wealth to us.
In the meantime, it is not worth a bag of nails or
wheat. Some day, however, we may be permit-
ted to renew our intercourse. with our brother-
men, and then we may profit by your discovery.
Now, my boy, finish your story."
Fritz resumed: "After a short repast, I con-
tinued my voyage at random along the beautiful
coast. Having arrived at the mouth of the river,
I was surrounded by a great flock of birds,-sea-
swallows, sea-gulls, albatrosses, &c. I kept
swinging my boat-hook about my head to keep
them off, and I brought one to the ground, which
was an albatross. Having gone thus far, I
thought I had better turn homewards; and here
I am, loaded with spoils."
CHAPTER XXXIX.
THE ENGLISHWOMAN.
FRITZ had finished the public recital of his adven-
tures; but, while my wife and the boys were
examining what he had brought more closely, he
THE ALBATROSS'S MESSAGE.
293
drew me aside, and confided to me the following
facts:"Listen, father," said he. "When I
lifted the albatross, I noticed a piece of linen
tied round its leg. I unwound it, and found
written on the inside, in red ink, these words in
English Whoever you are to whom God sends
this message of a helpless girl, make haste to
seek out a volcanic island, distinguished by the
smoke which escapes from its summit. O! haste,
and rescue a poor castaway.'
Amazed, I took the piece of linen from Fritz,
and read and re-read these words, to assure myself
that I was not dreaming. "What!" cried I;
"is it possible a human being is living in these
lands! How did she come here? Oh! that
we may find her in time!'
(
* 19
"Meanwhile," continued Fritz, "I tried to
restore the albatross, which was only stunned,
by giving it a little cordial. I tore a piece off my
handkerchief, and wrote with a quill of the alba-
tross, dipped in the sea-dog's blood, these words:-
Trust in God; His help is nearer, perhaps, than
you think.' I fastened my message as she had
fastened hers, and set the bird at liberty. He
made for the south-west so rapidly that I could
not follow him. I had hoped he would guide me
to the burning mountain; but he was soon out
of sight, and I was disappointed. That is what
I had to tell, father; and now, that message of
mine, will it ever reach the poor girl? Where is
294
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
she? How shall I find her?” ((
My dear son,"
said I, "I cannot but praise you for the prudence
with which you have conducted yourself in this
matter. You did quite right to tell your tale
only to me. We must talk over this another
time. You know this message you have found
may be of very old date, or the island spoken of
may be very distant, and quite beyond our reach.
In the meantime let us join the others; they
will wonder what we are talking about." Ad-
dressing the group, I said—"Dear wife and
children, I find that Fritz here has so long con-
ducted himself with courage, skill, and wisdom,
that I think he is quite worthy to be trusted with
full liberty of action; so from this day I declare
him his own master: still our son and brother,
of course, but no longer to be commanded like a
child, but counselled and advised as a man.
Fritz was congratulated by all on the auspicious
His mother kissed him, in silence.
"I wish you joy, with all my heart," said Ernest;
now that you are no longer a boy, and are at
liberty to wear the manly toga."
occasion.
(6
"Cover me sometimes, brother," said Jack,
"with that toga of yours, when I am on the
point of committing some piece of youthful folly."
"And take me with you," said Francis, "that I
may be your companion, and share your inde-
pendence." Fritz smiled, but said nothing, and
we all went to supper. The conversation turned
"1
EXPEDITION TO PEARL BAY.
295
upon pearl fisheries, and I had to explain all
about them, how the pearls were formed, how
they were fished for, and what dangers the divers
have to encounter. The result of this was that
the boys were bent upon an expedition to the
oyster-beds. Every one took part in the pre-
parations. I forged four iron hooks, furnished
with a strong wooden handle, which was to be
attached to our canoe. These hooks were in-
tended to rake the bed and loosen the shells.
Ernest made another sort of hook, destined to
tear from the rocks the nests of the sea-swallow.
Jack made a light sort of ladder, by which to
scale the rocks; and Francis and his mother
made strong nets of cord, in which to carry the
oysters. As for Fritz, he seemed to devote him-
self to altering his kajak to hold two instead of
We left Francis at home with his mother,
and Jack insisted on going in the kajak with
Fritz, Ernest and I following them in the pinnace.
We soon arrived in Pearl Bay, and before the
famous arch of rocks of which Fritz had told us.
one.
The gigantic arch under which we passed was
well worthy the praises Fritz had given it; and we
were surrounded as he had been, by hundreds of
sea-swallows, as numerous as flies on a summer
evening. We dispersed over the rocks in search
of any rarities we thought might be valuable to
us; but the daring adventures of my sons made
me feel uneasy; and calling them back to the boat,
296
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
we put our treasures in a large bag we had
brought for the purpose.
The rising tide helped us to pass safely through
this dangerous strait, when we found ourselves in
a magnificent bay, about seven or eight miles in
circuit, and studded with a number of beautiful
islets. The entrance to the bay was guarded by
a ridge of high rocks, leaving a passage wide
enough to admit the largest vessels. The only
drawback was the sand-banks in it, which, how-
ever, were not dangerous. A creek near a bank
of pearl oysters was chosen as our landing-place.
The dogs and monkey were ashore before us, and
ran eagerly to slake their thirst at a clear limpid
stream. The sun was far down, and it was time
to think of supper and our arrangements for the
the night. We lighted a large fire of dry wood
on the beach, and, leaving our dogs on shore to
watch, we retired on board our pinnace, which
was anchored some distance out.
CHAPTER XL.
FRITZ'S EXPEDITION.
THE only disturbance we had through the night
was caused by the howling of the jackals in the
distance-our own of course answering them. At
297
dawn we were all astır, and busy fishing for
oysters, which were so abundant that I deter-
mined to continue fishing for three days longer.
We laid them out on the shore as we caught
them, and the sun opened them.
Every evening before supper we made a short
pedestrian excursion, and brought home either
birds or some new vegetable. The last evening
we penetrated farther into the wood than we had
yet done. Ernest with Fallow led the way; then
Jack and his jackal; Fritz and I remained on
the beach, repairing some of our tools. Sud-
denly we were startled by the report of a gun,
then a sharp piercing cry of distress, followed by
another report. We immediately ran in the
direction of the noise, Fritz having his eagle,
Turk, and Flora. This cry of distress was soon
followed by another quite different, and we came
in sight of Jack, limping and trembling, sup-
ported by his brother.
JACK HURT.
"What has happened, Jack, my child? What
is the matter? Are you hurt?" cried I, greatly
alarmed.
"Oh! I am hurt here, and here, and here, and
all over," sobbed Jack; "I am bruised like pepper."
I examined him carefully, but could find no
wounds at all, only a blue mark or two.
"My dear Jack," I said, quite reassured, "you
are much too soft for a hunter."
"Too soft!" he cried, with a degree of indig
298
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
nation quite comic, "when I have been nearly
murdered, trampled and ground under foot!
Father, if our good dogs and Fritz's eagle had
not rescued me, I would have fallen a prey to
the monster."
"But what monster is it that is the author of
so much evil?"
"A wild boar, papa, an enormous wild boar!”
answered Ernest, "with tusks half a foot in
length. If we had not had our guns with us,
Jack would have been trampled to death. Jack
gave him one shot, but slipped his foot, and the
beast rushed upon him. Fallow and the jackal
behaved nobly, and I managed to shoot him
right through the head."
"Well, thank God, the danger is past," I said,
"and dear Jack safe and sound."
So saying, I led Jack to the boat, and gave him
some canary wine, rubbing his bruises with a
little of the same; and he soon fell asleep. To
this accident we owed the discovery of the swine-
bread, on which the boar had been feasting
when disturbed. We gathered a large supply of it,
knowing it would be acceptable to our housewife.
My boys asked me about this singular plant,
and I told them that naturalists place it in the
class of mushrooms, for it has neither leaves,
twigs, nor root. Dogs and swine are a great help
in discovering it," I said, "for by their scent
they can find out where it grows. It is found
((
299
abundantly in France and Italy, and is very much
prized, as much, I dare say, for its odour as for
its taste, which is nothing remarkable."
That night we also passed in the boat, and
were undisturbed. Next day my two elder sons
accompanied me to where the dead boar was.
Jack preferred to rest himself, feeling still a little
bruised. We were very much struck by the great
size of the animal.
NANKIN COTTON.
"What a good opportunity to replenish our
stock of hams," said Fritz.
"I would like to get the head for our museum,
said Ernest; "but I suppose the first thing to be
done is to get the body down to the shore."
"That will be easily done, if father gives us
permission," answered Fritz.
"I will not forbid you," I said; "but I know
that, excepting the legs and head, the other parts
are not good to eat, and I advise you to cut off
those parts, and leave the enormous carcass here."
They took my advice, and we placed the head
and legs of the boar on a kind of sledge made of
branches, drawn by the dogs. We found that the
branches we cut for this purpose were those of
the Nankin cotton tree, and I gathered a large
quantity of the beautiful yellow down. Jack,
quite recovered both in health and spirits, met us
on the shore, and was very active in helping his
brothers to prepare the hams. Lighting our fire
on shore, we again retired on board our boat
300
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
and were just falling asleep, when we were roused
by a horrible roar, which made the forest and the
rocks ring again.
"What a fearful concert!" cried Fritz, starting
to his feet and seizing his gun. "Stay you here,"
he added; "I will go and discover the enemy."
I
So saying, the brave boy jumped into his
kajak, and disappeared in the darkness.
stood ready to go to his aid, should it be neces-
sary. The roar was repeated several times, each
time nearer than the last. The boys were terrified.
I was myself very uneasy, and expected every
moment to see the glaring eyes of a panther or
leopard. We soon saw, by the light of our fire, a
large lion come and stop abruptly, scared by the
blaze, which fell full on its face, on which rage
and hunger were painted. Suddenly there was
the report of a gun.
"It is Fritz," said Ernest, hoarsely.
The lion sprang forward with a roar of pain,
and then rolled over on the grass.
"Fritz has killed it," I cried, rowing ashore, but
telling Ernest and Jack to remain in the pinnace
and keep their arms in readiness.
The dogs
came bounding to meet me, but soon began anew
to growl, springing towards the forest. I stopped,
fearing another enemy; and I was not wrong; for
a large lioness emerged from the wood, and by
her cries seemed to be calling her companion.
When she saw the carcass, she went up to it,
301
licked the blood from the wounds, and then, when
the truth seemed to dawn upon her, with glaring
eyes and a deep growl of vengeance, turned
round as if to seek a victim.
FLORA AND THE LIONS
At this moment there was another shot, caus-
ing her to howl with pain; but the creature was
only wounded, and still dangerous. Fritz had
shot one of her paws. I fired, and shattered her
jaw, and then the dogs sprang forward and fast-
ened on her sides. A mortal combat ensued. I
remained a mute spectator, not daring to move.
I was deterred from firing by the fear of wound-
ing the dogs; but when I saw poor Flora struck
down dead by one blow of the terrible creature's
paw, I rushed forward and plunged my hunting
knife into its breast. It rolled over dead on the
ground. I discharged my pistol into its head to
make sure; and Fritz coming up, we called
Ernest and Jack, who ran and threw themselves
into our arms, so great was their joy to see us
safe and sound again.
The two lions were stretched side by side on
the sand; and even though dead, we could not
look at them without a shudder. The dead body
of poor Flora lay beside that of her antagonist.
"Brave dog!" said Fritz," she has fallen a
victim to her devotion. There, my dear Ernest,
is another opportunity of exercising your literary
talent, by composing an epitaph on our faithful
companion."
J
802
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
(6
Yes," said Ernest, "but my heart is too full
to compose in rhyme; so the epitaph must be in
simple prose."
While he retired to compose the epitaph, Fritz
and Jack dug the grave. I washed the wounds
of Turk and Fallow, and even of the jackal,
which had fought bravely, and received its share
of blows from the paws of the enemy. When the
grave was dug, we buried the body of our old
friend. A flat stone was laid above on the
ground, on which Ernest proposed to engrave
the following epitaph:-
HERE LIES THE FAITHFUL FLORA.
SHE DIED AS DIE THE BRAVE.
STRUCK DOWN BY THE PAW OF A GIGANTIC LIONESS,
SHE FELL A MARTYR TO HER DEVOTION,
AND IS MOURNED BY THE FRIENDS SHE SAVED.
Poor Jack was inconsolable.
Flora! our best friend," he cried.
In the morning, after taking the skins of the
two lions, we started on our return to Rock
House, leaving our pearls for another day. Fritz
went before in his kajak. When we were past
the rocks, he turned round and presented me
with a letter, which, he said laughing, the post-
man had forgotten to deliver. I withdrew to the
stern of the boat, and was rather troubled to read
Fritz's determination to go in search of the poor
castaway on the burning mountain. I looked
after him anxiously as he shot, swift as an arrow,
over the water. Adieu, Fritz; be cautious," I
6.6
"My poor dear
303
cried after him, "and return soon, my child, to
your mother and us all." He kissed his hand to
us, and then disappeared behind a promontory,
and we went on our voyage without him.
THE CACHALOT.
My wife welcomed us back cordially, and was
much pleased with the treasures we brought her;
but nothing I could say to her would quiet her
anxiety about Fritz, the real object of whose ex-
pedition I had not disclosed to her. When four
days had passed and still there was no word of
him, I also began to feel anxious, and proposed
that we should take the pinnace, and go in
search of him.
My wife also asked to accompany us. So, tak-
ing a good supply of provisions, we set sail. A
strong land-breeze carried us out to sea so quickly
that I had almost lost command of the vessel al-
together, when we struck against a large block
that seemed to be floating on the surface. At
the same moment the whole mass lifted itself out
of the water with a great noise, and, throwing up
two immense spouts of water, plunged under the
waves and disappeared. We had run against a
cachalot. We were rather disconcerted by the
neighbourhood of such a monster, and held our-
selves ready to fire should it reappear, which it
did a little distance off. Jack and Ernest fired,
and the bullet took effect. The monster dived,
but left a long train of blood behind him, and
when again he rose to the surface, his strength
304
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
seemed far gone, and the waves afterwards threw
up the immense carcass on the rocks at the en-
trance to the bay.
I was thanking my sons for delivering as from
such a formidable enemy, when Jack suddenly
exclaimed-
"A savage, father, a savage!"
Looking in the direction in which he pointed,
I saw, a great distance off, a strangely formed
canoe. The occupant of it evidently saw us, and
darted behind a ridge of rocks. I told the boys to
get the cannons ready, for I feared this might only
be one of a horde of savages. When he reap-
peared I seized the speaking-trumpet and saluted
him with some Malay words, which, however, he
did not seem to understand. Jack next took the
trumpet, and shouted one or two English phrases
common among sailors. Immediately the
stranger waved a branch as a signal of peace, and
bounded lightly over the waves towards us.
The boys were pleased at the success of Jack's
idea; but their delight knew no bounds, when in
the black-stained savage, with plumed head, we
recognised our lost Fritz.
FRITZ'S DISCOVERY.
CHAPTER XLI.
THE CASTAWAY.
CC
305
Ir was now necessary to explain to my wife the
real object of Fritz's voyage, at the disclosure of
which her surprise knew no bounds. The others,
suspecting some mystery, overwhelmed him with
questions. When they became a little calmer, I
questioned him as to the success of his expedition.
"My expedition has been most successful,"
he answered, looking meaningly at me, "and I am
glad, father, that I undertook it. As for my dis-
guise, I assumed it out of prudence. I took you
for Malay pirates, and I thought that in this
dress I would more easily escape notice than in
my European costume."
His mother came and entreated him to go and
resume his natural colour and usual dress. He
yielded to her wishes, and returning, said to me,
"C
· Father, I have discovered the isle of the burn-
ing mountain, and if you will consent, we will row
to a little island near, where we will find-
Here I interrupted him, and, taking him aside,
interrogated him about the person he was going
to introduce to us. He satisfied me fully.
"1
Father," he said, "she will be a sister to us,
and a daughter worthy of my mother and you."
806
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
"Come," I said joyfully, "lead us to her."
We were soon all aboard, and rowing quickly
towards a little island at the extremity of the
Bay of Pearls, where we landed. We followed
Fritz into a small wood of palm-trees, where he
halted, and fired a pistol. At this signal we saw,
descending a large tree, a handsome but slightly
built young sailor. I cannot describe our feel-
ings at this moment. For ten years we had been
shut out from the society of human beings, and
now it was restored to us, in this young, fragile,
child-like creature. We were quite stupified by
this apparition. The younger boys could not
believe their eyes, and the stranger, too, hesi-
tated, uncertain as to how he should address us.
Fritz, however, put an end to our embarrassment.
'My dear mother, father, and brothers, allow
me to present to you Edward Montrose! Wel-
come him as a friend and brother into our
family circle!"
"C
"He is welcome!" we all answered earnestly;
and I went forward and spoke to him in English,
welcoming him as cordially as I could have done
a long-lost child. He answered in a low trem-
ulous voice, and then turned to my wife, as if
claiming her special protection and love.
I saw by Fritz's face that he wished to keep
his brothers in the dark as to the real sex of our
new friend; so I advised my wife to do the same,
charging the boys to pay all possible attention to
JENNY'S INTRODUCTION.
807
the young stranger. We enjoyed a most savoury
supper, enlivened by merry conversation, and then
I proposed that we should retire for the night
The stranger was preparing to mount a
palm-tree, but my wife interfered and prepared a
bed on board the pinnace. The boys had lighted
a large fire on the beach, for security against
intruders, and sat talking by it. The three
younger ones questioned Fritz unceasingly as to
how he had first conceived the idea of making a
voyage to the burning mountain. He told them
the story of the albatross and his expedition, and
was so interested in the recital, that he forgot to
substitute "Edward" for "Jenny," which was
our new friend's true name.
<<
'Ah, ah! master Fritz," they cried all at
once; "you have betrayed yourself, and our new
brother turns out to be a charming sister.
Hurrah!"
Fritz was rather disconcerted, but returned an
answer, laughing. "Dear me," said Francis,
quite stupified, “I had almost forgot there were
any women in the world but mamma."
The boys felt rather awkward next morning in
meeting their adopted sister, whom they now
called Jenny. The poor child, in her turn,
coloured and looked down; but recovering her
self-possession, she held out her hand frankly,
and asked them to take her as a sister.
After breakfast we set out in search of the
808
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
body of the cachalot, which, when we had found,
we took what of it we could carry away, and
returning, embarked all that Jenny had left on
the isle of the burning mountain.
With praiseworthy gratitude, she carried away
every object that could remind her of her solitary
life, and the special protection of Providence that
had been vouchsafed her. Bidding adieu to the
burning mountain, and naming the place where
we had landed, Happy Bay, we steered for the
Bay of Pearls, where we intended to make a
short stay before returning to Rock House. We
pitched our tent with the intention of remaining
only long enough to allow of our gathering the
pearls; but the discovery of what I thought
was limestone decided me to continue a little
longer, and prepare some of it in a furnace.
One evening, when Jenny had retired to rest,
Fritz gave us the following history of his meeting
with her:-"When I parted from you in the Bay
of Pearls, the sea was calm; but I was no sooner
beyond the bay than a tempest arose. My
kajak being too slight to struggle against the
violence of the waves, I thought it more prudent
to let it drift. After three hours the sea became
calmer, the sky more serene, and my kajak
glided once more smoothly over the waves. But
I could nowhere discover any land that I knew.
The scenery round me was on a much grander
scale than any I had seen before. The mountains
309
me.
towered up to the clouds, and large majestic
rivers came rolling down to the sea.
I was very
much tempted to sail up some of the rivers; but
the recollection of the object of my search deterred
The heat in the middle of the day, however,
was so scorching, that I was glad to land and
take shelter under the large trees. I had scarcely,
however, jumped ashore, than I was glad to push
off again, for I saw, a little way off, a herd of
hippopotami; and as I rowed along the shore, I
often saw lions, panthers, elephants, and other
formidable animals, besides several immense
serpents. After rowing several hours longer, the
country seemed to be inhabited with more peace-
ful animals.
FRITZ COASTING.
"The silence of these coasts was only broken
by the songs of beautiful birds. Here I landed,
and after refreshing myself with a few oysters
and other shell-fish, again retired for the night
into my boat, which I anchored a little way from
the shore. The night passed quietly, and early
next morning I proceeded on my way. After
some hours' hard rowing, feeling tired, I landed
near a little wood which looked very inviting, and
entering it, threw myself down on the soft green
sward. My eagle, which I had liberated for a
little, had flown away in search of prey, and
before long returned with a little green parrot.
While examining this beautiful bird, I was
startled by a noise behind me, and turning quickly
310
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
round, I saw, not more than ten or twelve feet
from me, an enormous tiger, whose eyes glared
fiercely at me. A cold perspiration broke out all
over my body, and I trembled so violently that I
could scarcely hold my gun. The eagle, which
seemed to understand my fear, pounced upon the
creature's head, and with its beak and talons
gave it so much to do in defending itself, that it
thought no more of me. I immediately seized
my pistols and shot it through the head, when,
with a terrible roar, it fell quite dead.
But my
joy at this deliverance was mingled with deep re-
gret; for one of the bullets had struck my eagle,
and it lay dead beside the tiger. I could not
help shedding tears over the faithful bird, which
1 lifted and carried to my kajak; and with a
sad and discouraged heart, I rowed away. My
heart was so heavy and desponding, that I was
on the point of giving up my search as hopeless,
and returning to Rock House, when, turning
round a promontory, I came in sight of a little
rocky island, from which rose a volume of reddish
smoke.
✔
"The isle of the burning mountain !' I shouted,
and all my enthusiasm returned.
"Hard rowing soon brought me to the island,
where I landed, and climbed up the rocks to a
point from which I could survey the landscape.
Descrying a narrow path leading to some rocks a
little way off, I followed it, and found myself in
THE SLEEPER IN THE GROTTO.
311
front of a kind of cave, or grotto. What was my
surprise to see it inhabited, not by some ferocious
animal, as I had feared, but by a human being,
who seemed to be fast asleep on a bed of moss.
I stood rooted to the spot, and as much aston-
ished as if all along this had not been the object
of my search. I was glad to find that the
stranger was so young and charming; indeed the
sleeper's features were so infantile, that I could
not believe she could be more than twelve or
fourteen years old. She was clothed in the dress
of a young sailor, but that did not deceive me.
The little white hand, and long fair curls, as well
as the delicately cut features, told me that I had
found a sister of our own age, and a daughter to
my mother and you.
"I could hear my heart beating against my
breast, and a hundred confused thoughts hurried
through my brain. I would have given worlds if
my good mother had been in my place at that
moment, to speak the first words of kindness to
the poor young stranger. My hesitation was put
an end to by a little bird which flew into the cave
and alighted on the sleeper's forehead. She awoke,
and raising herself and looking around, her large
eyes rested on me. She uttered an exclamation
of surprise and alarm; but, in a voice almost of
supplication, I entreated her to be calm and fear
nothing.
"Do not look so frightened,' I said; I do not
312
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
wish you any harm; I am even more astonished
than you.'
"Who are you?' she asked me. Where do
you come from? How came you here?' Then
rising, she added, 'Whoever you may be, if you
are an honest man, you are welcome in this soli-
tude.' The sound of her voice, her uneasy looks,
and the extreme emotion which agitated her, all
helped me to regain my composure.
"I am come,' I said, 'in answer to the mes-
sage you confided to the albatross. I am not
English, as you may guess from my accent, but I
am from a free country, and know the respect
due to misfortune. A tempest, I suppose, has.
cast you upon this rock. A tempest cast me,
with my father, mother, and three brothers, on a
neighbouring island. For ten years we have been
cut off from the rest of mankind. If you will fol-
low me, I will conduct you to my friends.'
"After some moments' hesitation, during which
I could read her conflicting feelings in her face,
she came forward and held out her hand to me.
"God bless you and yours,' she said, 'who
have saved me from a life worse than death. If
your mother and father will receive me, if your
brothers will welcome me, I will be the most sub-
missive and grateful of children, and the most
devoted of sisters.'
"Our common misfortunes drew out our mu-
tual confidence; and Jenny-she told me that was
313
She
her name and I were soon fast friends.
narrated how she had been thrown half dead
on the rocky isle, and how, by what seems most
miraculous courage and industry in a young girl,
she has managed to live. The island is very
different from ours; it is rocky and barren, and
yields none of the delicious fruits and wholesome
vegetables we have enjoyed. Her self-possession
and unbounded trust in God are well worthy of
admiration. My astonishment was extreme when
she recounted to me the life she had led. She
was soon completely at her ease, and asked me
to aid her in preparing our supper, which I im-
proved by some provisions I had brought with
me; these to Jenny were a rare treat.
•
"I used to be an epicure,' she said, laugh-
ing; they spoiled me at home. Ah! my poor
father! He little dreamed what fate was in store
for his daughter.'
"At this allusion she burst into tears, and I
wept with her, both from sympathy with her for-
lorn condition, and because I could not restrain
sad thoughts about our own friendless life.
My poor sister,' I said, 'God will yet re-
store or make up for all you have lost.'
"We passed an undisturbed night, I in my
kajak, and she in the tree where she had estab
lished her dwelling, and which she climbed most
nimbly. Next morning all my efforts to persuade
her to accompany me to Rock House were in
CCC
SUPPER IN THE CAVE.
M
814
THE SWISS FAMILY BOBINSON,
vain; so I left her alone once more and came
back, with the double object of getting a larger
boat that would hold all she wished to carry
away, and of bringing you to welcome her."
CHAPTER XLII.
JENNY'S HISTORY.
FRITZ's recital was so interesting that we forgot
how time was passing, and it was late when we
retired; but next morning the boys again gathered
round Fritz, entreating him to tell them what
more he knew of Jenny's history. The account
he gave us was as follows:
Major Montrose, her father, belonged to the
British army in India. He lost his wife when
his daughter was not more than seven years old.
He gave her almost a boy's education, having
trained her to the use of firearms, the manage-
ment of horses, &c., as well as in accomplish-
ments more suitable to her sex.
M
About this time Major Montrose was nominated
to the command of an expedition, and was obliged
to leave his daughter to the care of a friend, who
was captain of a man-of-war, and with his vessel
was returning to Europe. Jenny's father in-
JENNY'S NEST.
815
tended that during his absence she should visit
a sister of his own in London, where, after a
year, he would rejoin her. The first few days of
her voyage were favourable, but a tempest soon
rose, which threw the vessel on some rocks. It
foundered, and went down at once. Jenny, with
the captain and some sailors, jumped into a boat,
which, however, was upset, and, as if almost by
a miracle, she was washed ashore in a fainting
condition on the isle of the burning mountain,
where we found her; the others she supposes
were drowned, for she never saw anything of
them.
When she came to herself, the prospect before
her was full of horror; death either from hunger
or savage beasts seemed her inevitable fate.
How thankful she felt then that her father had
taught her to fish and use the bow and arrow.
Happily, among a few other things, a case of
sailors' clothes had been washed ashore with her,
and several planks or spars of wood, some of
which she used to construct a kind of hut, or
rather nest, for herself, amongst the branches of
a large palm-tree, and some she made into
arrows, &c. One of her favourite pastimes was
to catch and tame young birds; it was thus that
the albatross was entrusted with her message,
and knew to carry back to her Fritz's answer.
Such was the stranger's history. The affect-
ing recital increased our interest in her; and her
316
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
extreme gratitude for every little attention or
kindness endeared her still more to us.
Her ac-
tivity and good sense were a great help to us in
whatever work we undertook. I had often cause
to bless God for having sent us such a child.
Next day we weighed anchor and returned
homewards. On our way we landed at Prospect
Hill, and visited our live stock. Poor Jenny was
delighted with everything she saw. Our cocks
and hens, and the farm-like appearance of our
establishment, called forth her most lively ad-
miration. It was the first trace of a human
habitation she had seen for two years.
Fritz and Francis, who had preceded us to
Rock House, saluted us with cannon when we
entered Safety Bay. We answered their salute
by firing the small cannon of the pinnace. They
met us in the kajak, and Fritz, as Governor of
Rock House, invited us to do him the honour of
partaking of the refreshments he had prepared;
then, offering Jenny his arm, he led her towards
the shady terrace which surrounded the grotto.
Here we were surprised to find a most tastefully
laid out table, groaning with savoury dishes and
choice fruits, beautifully decorated with flowers,
some of which were arranged so as to form the
following words: "Welcome to our sister; wel-
come to our dwelling." It was quite an ovation.
Jenny took her place between my wife and me,
as the place of honour. Ernest and Jack sat
·
A PLEASANT RAINÝ SEASON.
317
opposite, but Fritz and Francis refused to be
seated at all. They performed the part of
waiters very expertly, carving the meat, chang-
ing the plates, and pouring out the wine with
great good grace. After dinner the boys led
Jenny to all the different apartments in the
grotto, with which she was very much pleased.
The following day all were early astir, for we
intended an excursion to Falcon's Nest. We went
on foot, except Jenny, at whose disposal Francis
placed his buffalo. We found our tree dwelling
rather dilapidated; but, after three days' labour,
we made it very comfortable. Several heavy
showers warned us of the approach of the rainy
season, to which, much as we were accustomed
to it, we always looked forward with sadness.
This time, however, our long imprisonment was
very much enlivened by the cheerful conversation
and winning ways of our new friend. She be-
came most attached to my wife, who, in her turn,
could not have been fonder of her own child.
Jenny had a very sweet voice, and quite a natural
musical talent. Many an hour was whiled away
listening to her beautiful songs. Never had the
rainy season passed so quickly before.
*
318
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
CHAPTER XLIII.
CONCLUSION.
As soon as we could leave our prison, we re-
sumed our various occupations. Jenny took
great pleasure in the poultry. Ernest and
Francis set out for Whale Island, to see if the
storm had brought us anything new, promising
to announce their arrival by firing two guns.
My wife told me she would take a walk along the
beach, and that Jack would follow her to Shell
Cave, which we had so named from the beautiful
shells we had gathered there; and Fritz and I
busied ourselves with our gardens, which the
wind had wasted.
Several hours elapsed, and neither my wife nor
Jack appearing, I sent Fritz in search of them.
In an incredibly short space he returned in the
highest state of excitement. "Where is mother?"
he cried, "Where is Jack. Are they not here? ·
As soon as he was calm enough, he gave me an
account of what had alarmed him.
It appeared that on leaving me he saw very
distinctly the footprints of his mother and Jack
on the soft sand; but about the distance of two
miles he was startled to see the prints of several
feet, which on examination he saw were large,
319
and evidently those of men. At this point he
lost trace of those of his mother and brother, and
ran forward where the track along the shore was
distinctly marked. Turning round the shoulder
of a huge rock, he came suddenly on two men,
one like a clergyman, while a boat was beached
on the shore, and another was rowing rapidly
away in the distance. Fritz rushed at once to
the conclusion that his mother and brother had
been kidnapped, and at first he thought of aveng-
ing himself on those who stood before him, but
who seemed no less surprised than he was. How-
ever, he changed his purpose, and kneeling down
to the clergyman, and seizing his hand, cried,
"Reverend man, you have seen my brother Jack,
perhaps my mother too. You know where they
are; oh! are they living?"
Both the minister and his companion, it seems,
had endeavoured to soothe him, and assured him
they had seen no one; but, pointing to the dis-
tant boat, Fritz asked them if they were not
there. He hardly knew what they said, and
thought, from their manner, they could not be
trusted; so, starting to his feet, he rushed home.
to tell me what he had seen.
STRANGERS.
Just at this moment my wife with Jack were
seen quietly approaching us from the other side
of the house, and were no less astonished than
we were at Fritz's story, for they had seen no
one. While we were considering what to do, two
320
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
shots were heard from Whale Island, which were
answered by another report from a distance. At
first we thought it must be an echo, but a second
report, and afterwards a third and a fourth,
showed our mistake. There was evidently a
large ship in our neighbourhood, and those Fritz
had seen belonged to it.
In a little while Ernest and Francis made
their appearance, crying, "Oh, father, did you
hear anything? Did you not hear the report of
cannon ?"
We told him we had, and what Fritz had seen.
They told us they had been looking seaward, and
imagined they saw two boats, one much nearer
than the other. This let us know it was of no
use to go in search of the clergyman and his
companion. It was decided that next day we
should all embark on board the pinnace and pro-
ceed, in great state, to the vessel, which, from
the boom of the cannon, we saw was only a short
distance from us. We got out all our finest
attire, which was somewhat nautical and perhaps
old-fashioned, but was of excellent quality; and
we loaded our boat with the finest fruits and
productions of our island, as a present.
A light breeze soon carried us round the point,
where we beheld, anchored in the bay, a large
three-masted vessel, carrying the British flag,
which we at once saluted by the firing of our
cannon. Our salute was acknowledged, and we
**
PASSENGERS IN "LA LICORNE.
321
saw the whole shrouds crowded with men, who
gave us a loud cheer as we drew close up to the
ship. There is the clergyman," cried Fritz,
pointing to a gentleman in black, "and that be-
side him, who I think must be the captain, is his
companion." We were invited to come on board,
and had refreshments presented us in the cabin;
and we placed the fresh fruits and provisions we
brought with us at the disposal of the captain.
I told him our history briefly, and then spoke
to him of Jenny, asking him if he knew her
father, Major Montrose. He had heard that he
had landed safely at Portsmouth, and believed
he was now in London. He told us that his own
name was Littlestone, and the vessel he com-
manded was "La Licorne."
The captain introduced to us the family of a
Mr Wolton-a distinguished marine engineer,
passengers in "La Licorne." Mr Wolton's health
had suffered very much by the sea voyage. We
offered them our grotto until the ship sailed,
which we assured them they would find very
comfortable. They accepted it gratefully, and we
all set out for it at once.
The strangers were struck with astonishment
and admiration when they saw our establish-
ment. Every new sight called forth another
exclamation of surprise.
During the evening my wife and I consulted
seriously as to whether or not we should avail
322
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
ourselves of this opportunity of returning home
to Europe. After much consideration, we decided
to remain in our adopted country, to which we
had become so much attached, we could not bear
the thought of leaving it. We determined, how-
ever, that our decision should not be allowed to
influence the boys, though we felt that to part
from any of them would break our hearts.
Jenny, ever since she heard of her father's re-
turn to England, had expressed the most ardent
longing to rejoin him; and I knew that her
departure would be a great trial to Fritz, who, I
could perceive, was warmly attached to her, and
she not less so to him.
The captain and officers of the vessel break-
fasted with us next morning. During the repast
Mr Wolton said to me, "I have a plan to propose
to you. The quiet life you lead here pleases me;
the beautiful scenery around revives me ; I am
tired of European life, and would like to establish
myself on a corner of this beautiful island, if you
will allow me."
This announcement was received by all with
extreme joy. We all expressed to Mr Wolton
the happiness it would give us if he and his
family would settle amongst us; and I took the
opportunity to announce the determination my
wife and I had come to, that we would spend the
remainder of our days in New Switzerland, as
we had named our island.
323
"Prosperity to New Switzerland," cried all,
filling their calabash wine cups.
"And to those who are coming to live with
us," cried the three younger boys.
I guessed the reason of Fritz's silence. I saw
that he wished to accompany Jenny.
Mother, my own dear mother," he said at
last,
"I will not leave you; no, never; I will die
with you."
MARRIAGE OF FRITZ AND JENNY.
"The captain," I replied,
<< assures me he was
commissioned to discover a safe harbour in these
islands, and has been successful; so that there
will soon be ready communication with Britain.
Jenny must go to her father. We cannot keep her
here; but your mother and I see no reason why
you should not go with her, and return again
within a year.
婆
​It was not difficult to make the necessary
arrangements with the captain; and after a few
days we saw the ship sail, taking Fritz and Jenny
away. The blank caused by their departure was
never filled up; our beautiful island seemed con-
verted into a desert; but in another year they
returned. Jenny's father had died in London
two months before her arrival, leaving her a very
small fortune; and without waiting our consent,
which they knew could not be denied, they were
married in England.
Ten years have elapsed, and our island now
contains two thousand inhabitants. The report of

324
our riches soon brought numbers of colonists.
Ernest and Jack have married Mr Wolton's two
amiable daughters. Jack is a successful ship-
builder, and Ernest is still the philosopher,-a
member of more than one society in Europe, to
which he has made valuable contributions. The
"little Francis" of other days is captain of a
merchantman. He is not married. "My voca-
tion is that of son and uncle," he says, laugh-
ingly; and he loads with presents his mother
and his little nephews and nieces, by whom he is
adored. As for my wife and myself, we are
perhaps getting old, but that is the least of our
cares. Our welfare is bound up with that of our
children and grandchildren; and they are all in-
dustrious, happy, and well-behaved; satisfied
with their lot, and universally esteemed. We
are ready, when God shall call us, to go to Him;
death has no terrors for those who have trusted
in His mercy, and lived and served Him.
;
THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON.
THE END,


ぴきかえ
​