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The Coral Island
A Tale of the Pacific Ocean

R. M. Ballantyne

September, 1996  [Etext #646]


Project Gutenberg's Etext of The Coral Island, R. M. Ballantyne
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The Coral Island: A Tale of the Pacific Ocean by R. M. Ballantyne.
Scanned and proofed by David Price
email [e-mail]





The Coral Island: A Tale of the Pacific Ocean




Preface


I was a boy when I went through the wonderful adventures herein set
down.  With the memory of my boyish feelings strong upon me, I
present my book specially to boys, in the earnest hope that they
may derive valuable information, much pleasure, great profit, and
unbounded amusement from its pages.

One word more.  If there is any boy or man who loves to be
melancholy and morose, and who cannot enter with kindly sympathy
into the regions of fun, let me seriously advise him to shut my
book and put it away.  It is not meant for him.

RALPH ROVER



CHAPTER I.



The beginning - My early life and character - I thirst for
adventure in foreign lands and go to sea.


ROVING has always been, and still is, my ruling passion, the joy of
my heart, the very sunshine of my existence.  In childhood, in
boyhood, and in man's estate, I have been a rover; not a mere
rambler among the woody glens and upon the hill-tops of my own
native land, but an enthusiastic rover throughout the length and
breadth of the wide wide world.

It was a wild, black night of howling storm, the night in which I
was born on the foaming bosom of the broad Atlantic Ocean.  My
father was a sea-captain; my grandfather was a sea-captain; my
great-grandfather had been a marine.  Nobody could tell positively
what occupation HIS father had followed; but my dear mother used to
assert that he had been a midshipman, whose grandfather, on the
mother's side, had been an admiral in the royal navy.  At anyrate
we knew that, as far back as our family could be traced, it had
been intimately connected with the great watery waste.  Indeed this
was the case on both sides of the house; for my mother always went
to sea with my father on his long voyages, and so spent the greater
part of her life upon the water.

Thus it was, I suppose, that I came to inherit a roving
disposition.  Soon after I was born, my father, being old, retired
from a seafaring life, purchased a small cottage in a fishing
village on the west coast of England, and settled down to spend the
evening of his life on the shores of that sea which had for so many
years been his home.  It was not long after this that I began to
show the roving spirit that dwelt within me.  For some time past my
infant legs had been gaining strength, so that I came to be
dissatisfied with rubbing the skin off my chubby knees by walking
on them, and made many attempts to stand up and walk like a man;
all of which attempts, however, resulted in my sitting down
violently and in sudden surprise.  One day I took advantage of my
dear mother's absence to make another effort; and, to my joy, I
actually succeeded in reaching the doorstep, over which I tumbled
into a pool of muddy water that lay before my father's cottage
door.  Ah, how vividly I remember the horror of my poor mother when
she found me sweltering in the mud amongst a group of cackling
ducks, and the tenderness with which she stripped off my dripping
clothes and washed my dirty little body!  From this time forth my
rambles became more frequent, and, as I grew older, more distant,
until at last I had wandered far and near on the shore and in the
woods around our humble dwelling, and did not rest content until my
father bound me apprentice to a coasting vessel, and let me go to
sea.

For some years I was happy in visiting the sea-ports, and in
coasting along the shores of my native land.  My Christian name was
Ralph, and my comrades added to this the name of Rover, in
consequence of the passion which I always evinced for travelling.
Rover was not my real name, but as I never received any other I
came at last to answer to it as naturally as to my proper name;
and, as it is not a bad one, I see no good reason why I should not
introduce myself to the reader as Ralph Rover.  My shipmates were
kind, good-natured fellows, and they and I got on very well
together.  They did, indeed, very frequently make game of and
banter me, but not unkindly; and I overheard them sometimes saying
that Ralph Rover was a "queer, old-fashioned fellow."  This, I must
confess, surprised me much, and I pondered the saying long, but
could come at no satisfactory conclusion as to that wherein my old-
fashionedness lay.  It is true I was a quiet lad, and seldom spoke
except when spoken to.  Moreover, I never could understand the
jokes of my companions even when they were explained to me:  which
dulness in apprehension occasioned me much grief; however, I tried
to make up for it by smiling and looking pleased when I observed
that they were laughing at some witticism which I had failed to
detect.  I was also very fond of inquiring into the nature of
things and their causes, and often fell into fits of abstraction
while thus engaged in my mind.  But in all this I saw nothing that
did not seem to be exceedingly natural, and could by no means
understand why my comrades should call me "an old-fashioned
fellow."

Now, while engaged in the coasting trade, I fell in with many
seamen who had travelled to almost every quarter of the globe; and
I freely confess that my heart glowed ardently within me as they
recounted their wild adventures in foreign lands, - the dreadful
storms they had weathered, the appalling dangers they had escaped,
the wonderful creatures they had seen both on the land and in the
sea, and the interesting lands and strange people they had visited.
But of all the places of which they told me, none captivated and
charmed my imagination so much as the Coral Islands of the Southern
Seas.  They told me of thousands of beautiful fertile islands that
had been formed by a small creature called the coral insect, where
summer reigned nearly all the year round, - where the trees were
laden with a constant harvest of luxuriant fruit, - where the
climate was almost perpetually delightful, - yet where, strange to
say, men were wild, bloodthirsty savages, excepting in those
favoured isles to which the gospel of our Saviour had been
conveyed.  These exciting accounts had so great an effect upon my
mind, that, when I reached the age of fifteen, I resolved to make a
voyage to the South Seas.

I had no little difficulty at first in prevailing on my dear
parents to let me go; but when I urged on my father that he would
never have become a great captain had he remained in the coasting
trade, he saw the truth of what I said, and gave his consent.  My
dear mother, seeing that my father had made up his mind, no longer
offered opposition to my wishes.  "But oh, Ralph," she said, on the
day I bade her adieu, "come back soon to us, my dear boy, for we
are getting old now, Ralph, and may not have many years to live."

I will not take up my reader's time with a minute account of all
that occurred before I took my final leave of my dear parents.
Suffice it to say, that my father placed me under the charge of an
old mess-mate of his own, a merchant captain, who was on the point
of sailing to the South Seas in his own ship, the Arrow.  My mother
gave me her blessing and a small Bible; and her last request was,
that I would never forget to read a chapter every day, and say my
prayers; which I promised, with tears in my eyes, that I would
certainly do.

Soon afterwards I went on board the Arrow, which was a fine large
ship, and set sail for the islands of the Pacific Ocean.



CHAPTER II.



The departure - The sea - My companions - Some account of the
wonderful sights we saw on the great deep - A dreadful storm and a
frightful wreck.


IT was a bright, beautiful, warm day when our ship spread her
canvass to the breeze, and sailed for the regions of the south.
Oh, how my heart bounded with delight as I listened to the merry
chorus of the sailors, while they hauled at the ropes and got in
the anchor!  The captain shouted - the men ran to obey - the noble
ship bent over to the breeze, and the shore gradually faded from my
view, while I stood looking on with a kind of feeling that the
whole was a delightful dream.

The first thing that struck me as being different from anything I
had yet seen during my short career on the sea, was the hoisting of
the anchor on deck, and lashing it firmly down with ropes, as if we
had now bid adieu to the land for ever, and would require its
services no more.

"There, lass," cried a broad-shouldered jack-tar, giving the fluke
of the anchor a hearty slap with his hand after the housing was
completed - "there, lass, take a good nap now, for we shan't ask
you to kiss the mud again for many a long day to come!"

And so it was.  That anchor did not "kiss the mud" for many long
days afterwards; and when at last it did, it was for the last time!

There were a number of boys in the ship, but two of them were my
special favourites.  Jack Martin was a tall, strapping, broad-
shouldered youth of eighteen, with a handsome, good-humoured, firm
face.  He had had a good education, was clever and hearty and lion-
like in his actions, but mild and quiet in disposition.  Jack was a
general favourite, and had a peculiar fondness for me.  My other
companion was Peterkin Gay.  He was little, quick, funny, decidedly
mischievous, and about fourteen years old.  But Peterkin's mischief
was almost always harmless, else he could not have been so much
beloved as he was.

"Hallo! youngster," cried Jack Martin, giving me a slap on the
shoulder, the day I joined the ship, "come below and I'll show you
your berth.  You and I are to be mess-mates, and I think we shall
be good friends, for I like the look o' you."

Jack was right.  He and I and Peterkin afterwards became the best
and stanchest friends that ever tossed together on the stormy
waves.

I shall say little about the first part of our voyage.  We had the
usual amount of rough weather and calm; also we saw many strange
fish rolling in the sea, and I was greatly delighted one day by
seeing a shoal of flying fish dart out of the water and skim
through the air about a foot above the surface.  They were pursued
by dolphins, which feed on them, and one flying-fish in its terror
flew over the ship, struck on the rigging, and fell upon the deck.
Its wings were just fins elongated, and we found that they could
never fly far at a time, and never mounted into the air like birds,
but skimmed along the surface of the sea.  Jack and I had it for
dinner, and found it remarkably good.

When we approached Cape Horn, at the southern extremity of America,
the weather became very cold and stormy, and the sailors began to
tell stories about the furious gales and the dangers of that
terrible cape.

"Cape Horn," said one, "is the most horrible headland I ever
doubled.  I've sailed round it twice already, and both times the
ship was a'most blow'd out o' the water."

"An' I've been round it once," said another, "an' that time the
sails were split, and the ropes frozen in the blocks, so that they
wouldn't work, and we wos all but lost."

"An' I've been round it five times," cried a third, "an' every time
wos wuss than another, the gales wos so tree-mendous!"

"And I've been round it no times at all," cried Peterkin, with an
impudent wink of his eye, "an' THAT time I wos blow'd inside out!"

Nevertheless, we passed the dreaded cape without much rough
weather, and, in the course of a few weeks afterwards, were sailing
gently, before a warm tropical breeze, over the Pacific Ocean.
Thus we proceeded on our voyage, sometimes bounding merrily before
a fair breeze, at other times floating calmly on the glassy wave
and fishing for the curious inhabitants of the deep, - all of
which, although the sailors thought little of them, were strange,
and interesting, and very wonderful to me.

At last we came among the Coral Islands of the Pacific, and I shall
never forget the delight with which I gazed, - when we chanced to
pass one, - at the pure, white, dazzling shores, and the verdant
palm-trees, which looked bright and beautiful in the sunshine.  And
often did we three long to be landed on one, imagining that we
should certainly find perfect happiness there!  Our wish was
granted sooner than we expected.

One night, soon after we entered the tropics, an awful storm burst
upon our ship.  The first squall of wind carried away two of our
masts; and left only the foremast standing.  Even this, however,
was more than enough, for we did not dare to hoist a rag of sail on
it.  For five days the tempest raged in all its fury.  Everything
was swept off the decks except one small boat.  The steersman was
lashed to the wheel, lest he should be washed away, and we all gave
ourselves up for lost.  The captain said that he had no idea where
we were, as we had been blown far out of our course; and we feared
much that we might get among the dangerous coral reefs which are so
numerous in the Pacific.  At day-break on the sixth morning of the
gale we saw land ahead.  It was an island encircled by a reef of
coral on which the waves broke in fury.  There was calm water
within this reef, but we could only see one narrow opening into it.
For this opening we steered, but, ere we reached it, a tremendous
wave broke on our stern, tore the rudder completely off, and left
us at the mercy of the winds and waves.

"It's all over with us now, lads," said the captain to the men;
"get the boat ready to launch; we shall be on the rocks in less
than half an hour."

The men obeyed in gloomy silence, for they felt that there was
little hope of so small a boat living in such a sea.

"Come boys," said Jack Martin, in a grave tone, to me and Peterkin,
as we stood on the quarterdeck awaiting our fate; - "Come boys, we
three shall stick together.  You see it is impossible that the
little boat can reach the shore, crowded with men.  It will be sure
to upset, so I mean rather to trust myself to a large oar, I see
through the telescope that the ship will strike at the tail of the
reef, where the waves break into the quiet water inside; so, if we
manage to cling to the oar till it is driven over the breakers, we
may perhaps gain the shore.  What say you; will you join me?"

We gladly agreed to follow Jack, for he inspired us with
confidence, although I could perceive, by the sad tone of his
voice, that he had little hope; and, indeed, when I looked at the
white waves that lashed the reef and boiled against the rocks as if
in fury, I felt that there was but a step between us and death.  My
heart sank within me; but at that moment my thoughts turned to my
beloved mother, and I remembered those words, which were among the
last that she said to me - "Ralph, my dearest child, always
remember in the hour of danger to look to your Lord and Saviour
Jesus Christ.  He alone is both able and willing to save your body
and your soul."  So I felt much comforted when I thought thereon.

The ship was now very near the rocks.  The men were ready with the
boat, and the captain beside them giving orders, when a tremendous
wave came towards us.  We three ran towards the bow to lay hold of
our oar, and had barely reached it when the wave fell on the deck
with a crash like thunder.  At the same moment the ship struck, the
foremast broke off close to the deck and went over the side,
carrying the boat and men along with it.  Our oar got entangled
with the wreck, and Jack seized an axe to cut it free, but, owing
to the motion of the ship, he missed the cordage and struck the axe
deep into the oar.  Another wave, however, washed it clear of the
wreck.  We all seized hold of it, and the next instant we were
struggling in the wild sea.  The last thing I saw was the boat
whirling in the surf, and all the sailors tossed into the foaming
waves.  Then I became insensible.

On recovering from my swoon, I found myself lying on a bank of soft
grass, under the shelter of an overhanging rock, with Peterkin on
his knees by my side, tenderly bathing my temples with water, and
endeavouring to stop the blood that flowed from a wound in my
forehead.



CHAPTER III.



The Coral Island - Our first cogitations after landing, and the
result of them - We conclude that the island is uninhabited.


THERE is a strange and peculiar sensation experienced in recovering
from a state of insensibility, which is almost indescribable; a
sort of dreamy, confused consciousness; a half-waking half-sleeping
condition, accompanied with a feeling of weariness, which, however,
is by no means disagreeable.  As I slowly recovered and heard the
voice of Peterkin inquiring whether I felt better, I thought that I
must have overslept myself, and should be sent to the mast-head for
being lazy; but before I could leap up in haste, the thought seemed
to vanish suddenly away, and I fancied that I must have been ill.
Then a balmy breeze fanned my cheek, and I thought of home, and the
garden at the back of my father's cottage, with its luxuriant
flowers, and the sweet-scented honey-suckle that my dear mother
trained so carefully upon the trellised porch.  But the roaring of
the surf put these delightful thoughts to flight, and I was back
again at sea, watching the dolphins and the flying-fish, and
reefing topsails off the wild and stormy Cape Horn.  Gradually the
roar of the surf became louder and more distinct.  I thought of
being wrecked far far away from my native land, and slowly opened
my eyes to meet those of my companion Jack, who, with a look of
intense anxiety, was gazing into my face.

"Speak to us, my dear Ralph," whispered Jack, tenderly, "are you
better now?"

I smiled and looked up, saying, "Better; why, what do you mean,
Jack?  I'm quite well"

"Then what are you shamming for, and frightening us in this way?"
said Peterkin, smiling through his tears; for the poor boy had been
really under the impression that I was dying.

I now raised myself on my elbow, and putting my hand to my
forehead, found that it had been cut pretty severely, and that I
had lost a good deal of blood.

"Come, come, Ralph," said Jack, pressing me gently backward, "lie
down, my boy; you're not right yet.  Wet your lips with this water,
it's cool and clear as crystal.  I got it from a spring close at
hand.  There now, don't say a word, hold your tongue," said he,
seeing me about to speak.  "I'll tell you all about it, but you
must not utter a syllable till you have rested well."

"Oh! don't stop him from speaking, Jack," said Peterkin, who, now
that his fears for my safety were removed, busied himself in
erecting a shelter of broken branches in order to protect me from
the wind; which, however, was almost unnecessary, for the rock
beside which I had been laid completely broke the force of the
gale.  "Let him speak, Jack; it's a comfort to hear that he's
alive, after lying there stiff and white and sulky for a whole
hour, just like an Egyptian mummy.  Never saw such a fellow as you
are, Ralph; always up to mischief.  You've almost knocked out all
my teeth and more than half choked me, and now you go shamming
dead!  It's very wicked of you, indeed it is."

While Peterkin ran on in this style, my faculties became quite
clear again, and I began to understand my position.  "What do you
mean by saying I half choked you, Peterkin?" said I.

"What do I mean?  Is English not your mother tongue, or do you want
me to repeat it in French, by way of making it clearer?  Don't you
remember - "

"I remember nothing," said I, interrupting him, "after we were
thrown into the sea."

"Hush, Peterkin," said Jack, "you're exciting Ralph with your
nonsense.  I'll explain it to you.  You recollect that after the
ship struck, we three sprang over the bow into the sea; well, I
noticed that the oar struck your head and gave you that cut on the
brow, which nearly stunned you, so that you grasped Peterkin round
the neck without knowing apparently what you were about.  In doing
so you pushed the telescope, - which you clung to as if it had been
your life, - against Peterkin's mouth - "

"Pushed it against his mouth!" interrupted Peterkin, "say crammed
it down his throat.  Why, there's a distinct mark of the brass rim
on the back of my gullet at this moment!"

"Well, well, be that as it may," continued Jack, "you clung to him,
Ralph, till I feared you really would choke him; but I saw that he
had a good hold of the oar, so I exerted myself to the utmost to
push you towards the shore, which we luckily reached without much
trouble, for the water inside the reef is quite calm."

"But the captain and crew, what of them?" I inquired anxiously.

Jack shook his head.

"Are they lost?"

"No, they are not lost, I hope, but I fear there is not much chance
of their being saved.  The ship struck at the very tail of the
island on which we are cast.  When the boat was tossed into the sea
it fortunately did not upset, although it shipped a good deal of
water, and all the men managed to scramble into it; but before they
could get the oars out the gale carried them past the point and
away to leeward of the island.  After we landed I saw them
endeavouring to pull towards us, but as they had only one pair of
oars out of the eight that belong to the boat, and as the wind was
blowing right in their teeth, they gradually lost ground.  Then I
saw them put about and hoist some sort of sail, - a blanket, I
fancy, for it was too small for the boat, - and in half an hour
they were out of sight."

"Poor fellows," I murmured sorrowfully.

"But the more I think about it, I've better hope of them,"
continued Jack, in a more cheerful tone.  "You see, Ralph, I've
read a great deal about these South Sea Islands, and I know that in
many places they are scattered about in thousands over the sea, so
they're almost sure to fall in with one of them before long."

"I'm sure I hope so," said Peterkin, earnestly.  "But what has
become of the wreck, Jack?  I saw you clambering up the rocks there
while I was watching Ralph.  Did you say she had gone to pieces?"

"No, she has not gone to pieces, but she has gone to the bottom,"
replied Jack.  "As I said before, she struck on the tail of the
island and stove in her bow, but the next breaker swung her clear,
and she floated away to leeward.  The poor fellows in the boat made
a hard struggle to reach her, but long before they came near her
she filled and went down.  It was after she foundered that I saw
them trying to pull to the island."

There wan a long silence after Jack ceased speaking, and I have no
doubt that each was revolving in his mind our extraordinary
position.  For my part I cannot say that my reflections were very
agreeable.  I knew that we were on an island, for Jack had said so,
but whether it was inhabited or not I did not know.  If it should
be inhabited, I felt certain, from all I had heard of South Sea
Islanders, that we should be roasted alive and eaten.  If it should
turn out to be uninhabited, I fancied that we should be starved to
death.  "Oh!" thought I, "if the ship had only stuck on the rocks
we might have done pretty well, for we could have obtained
provisions from her, and tools to enable us to build a shelter, but
now - alas! alas! we are lost!"  These last words I uttered aloud
in my distress.

"Lost!  Ralph?" exclaimed Jack, while a smile overspread his hearty
countenance. "Saved, you should have said.  Your cogitations seem
to have taken a wrong road, and led you to a wrong conclusion."

"Do you know what conclusion I have come to?" said Peterkin.  "I
have made up my mind that it's capital, - first rate, - the best
thing that ever happened to us, and the most splendid prospect that
ever lay before three jolly young tars.  We've got an island all to
ourselves.  We'll take possession in the name of the king; we'll go
and enter the service of its black inhabitants.  Of course we'll
rise, naturally, to the top of affairs.  White men always do in
savage countries.  You shall be king, Jack; Ralph, prime minister,
and I shall be - "

"The court jester," interrupted Jack.

"No," retorted Peterkin, "I'll have no title at all.  I shall
merely accept a highly responsible situation under government, for
you see, Jack, I'm fond of having an enormous salary and nothing to
do."

"But suppose there are no natives?"

"Then we'll build a charming villa, and plant a lovely garden round
it, stuck all full of the most splendiferous tropical flowers, and
we'll farm the land, plant, sow, reap, eat, sleep, and be merry."

"But to be serious," said Jack, assuming a grave expression of
countenance, which I observed always had the effect of checking
Peterkin's disposition to make fun of everything, "we are really in
rather an uncomfortable position.  If this is a desert island, we
shall have to live very much like the wild beasts, for we have not
a tool of any kind, not even a knife."

"Yes, we have THAT," said Peterkin, fumbling in his trousers
pocket, from which he drew forth a small penknife with only one
blade, and that was broken.

"Well, that's better than nothing; but come," said Jack, rising,
"we are wasting our time in TALKING instead of DOING.  You seem
well enough to walk now, Ralph, let us see what we have got in our
pockets, and then let us climb some hill and ascertain what sort of
island we have been cast upon, for, whether good or bad, it seems
likely to be our home for some time to come."



CHAPTER IV.



We examine into our personal property, and make a happy discovery -
Our island described - Jack proves himself to be learned and
sagacious above his fellows - Curious discoveries - Natural
lemonade!


WE now seated ourselves upon a rock and began to examine into our
personal property.  When we reached the shore, after being wrecked,
my companions had taken off part of their clothes and spread them
out in the sun to dry, for, although the gale was raging fiercely,
there was not a single cloud in the bright sky.  They had also
stripped off most part of my wet clothes and spread them also on
the rocks.  Having resumed our garments, we now searched all our
pockets with the utmost care, and laid their contents out on a flat
stone before us; and, now that our minds were fully alive to our
condition, it was with no little anxiety that we turned our several
pockets inside out, in order that nothing might escape us.  When
all was collected together we found that our worldly goods
consisted of the following articles:-

First, A small penknife with a single blade broken off about the
middle and very rusty, besides having two or three notches on its
edge.  (Peterkin said of this, with his usual pleasantry, that it
would do for a saw as well as a knife, which was a great
advantage.)  Second, An old German-silver pencil-case without any
lead in it.  Third, A piece of whip-cord about six yards long.
Fourth, A sailmaker's needle of a small size.  Fifth, A ship's
telescope, which I happened to have in my hand at the time the ship
struck, and which I had clung to firmly all the time I was in the
water.  Indeed it was with difficulty that Jack got it out of my
grasp when I was lying insensible on the shore.  I cannot
understand why I kept such a firm hold of this telescope.  They say
that a drowning man will clutch at a straw.  Perhaps it may have
been some such feeling in me, for I did not know that it was in my
hand at the time we were wrecked.  However, we felt some pleasure
in having it with us now, although we did not see that it could be
of much use to us, as the glass at the small end was broken to
pieces.  Our sixth article was a brass ring which Jack always wore
on his little finger.  I never understood why he wore it, for Jack
was not vain of his appearance, and did not seem to care for
ornaments of any kind.  Peterkin said "it was in memory of the girl
he left behind him!"  But as he never spoke of this girl to either
of us, I am inclined to think that Peterkin was either jesting or
mistaken.  In addition to these articles we had a little bit of
tinder, and the clothes on our backs.  These last were as follows:-

Each of us had on a pair of stout canvass trousers, and a pair of
sailors' thick shoes.  Jack wore a red flannel shirt, a blue
jacket, and a red Kilmarnock bonnet or night-cap, besides a pair of
worsted socks, and a cotton pocket-handkerchief, with sixteen
portraits of Lord Nelson printed on it, and a union Jack in the
middle.  Peterkin had on a striped flannel shirt, - which he wore
outside his trousers, and belted round his waist, after the manner
of a tunic, - and a round black straw hat.  He had no jacket,
having thrown it off just before we were cast into the sea; but
this was not of much consequence, as the climate of the island
proved to be extremely mild; so much so, indeed, that Jack and I
often preferred to go about without our jackets.  Peterkin had also
a pair of white cotton socks, and a blue handkerchief with white
spots all over it.  My own costume consisted of a blue flannel
shirt, a blue jacket, a black cap, and a pair of worsted socks,
besides the shoes and canvass trousers already mentioned.  This was
all we had, and besides these things we had nothing else; but, when
we thought of the danger from which we had escaped, and how much
worse off we might have been had the ship struck on the reef during
the night, we felt very thankful that we were possessed of so much,
although, I must confess, we sometimes wished that we had had a
little more.

While we were examining these things, and talking about them, Jack
suddenly started and exclaimed -

"The oar! we have forgotten the oar."

"What good will that do us?" said Peterkin; "there's wood enough on
the island to make a thousand oars."

"Ay, lad," replied Jack, "but there's a bit of hoop iron at the end
of it, and that may be of much use to us."

"Very true," said I, "let us go fetch it;" and with that we all
three rose and hastened down to the beach.  I still felt a little
weak from loss of blood, so that my companions soon began to leave
me behind; but Jack perceived this, and, with his usual considerate
good nature, turned back to help me.  This was now the first time
that I had looked well about me since landing, as the spot where I
had been laid was covered with thick bushes which almost hid the
country from our view.  As we now emerged from among these and
walked down the sandy beach together, I cast my eyes about, and,
truly, my heart glowed within me and my spirits rose at the
beautiful prospect which I beheld on every side.  The gale had
suddenly died away, just as if it had blown furiously till it
dashed our ship upon the rocks, and had nothing more to do after
accomplishing that.  The island on which we stood was hilly, and
covered almost everywhere with the most beautiful and richly
coloured trees, bushes, and shrubs, none of which I knew the names
of at that time, except, indeed, the cocoa-nut palms, which I
recognised at once from the many pictures that I had seen of them
before I left home.  A sandy beach of dazzling whiteness lined this
bright green shore, and upon it there fell a gentle ripple of the
sea.  This last astonished me much, for I recollected that at home
the sea used to fall in huge billows on the shore long after a
storm had subsided.  But on casting my glance out to sea the cause
became apparent.  About a mile distant from the shore I saw the
great billows of the ocean rolling like a green wall, and falling
with a long, loud roar, upon a low coral reef, where they were
dashed into white foam and flung up in clouds of spray.  This spray
sometimes flew exceedingly high, and, every here and there, a
beautiful rainbow was formed for a moment among the falling drops.
We afterwards found that this coral reef extended quite round the
island, and formed a natural breakwater to it.  Beyond this the sea
rose and tossed violently from the effects of the storm; but
between the reef and the shore it was as calm and as smooth as a
pond.

My heart was filled with more delight than I can express at sight
of so many glorious objects, and my thoughts turned suddenly to the
contemplation of the Creator of them all.  I mention this the more
gladly, because at that time, I am ashamed to say, I very seldom
thought of my Creator, although I was constantly surrounded by the
most beautiful and wonderful of His works.  I observed from the
expression of my companion's countenance that he too derived much
joy from the splendid scenery, which was all the more agreeable to
us after our long voyage on the salt sea.  There, the breeze was
fresh and cold, but here it was delightfully mild; and, when a puff
blew off the land, it came laden with the most exquisite perfume
that can be imagined.  While we thus gazed, we were startled by a
loud "Huzza!" from Peterkin, and, on looking towards the edge of
the sea, we saw him capering and jumping about like a monkey, and
ever and anon tugging with all his might at something that lay upon
the shore.

"What an odd fellow he is, to be sure," said Jack, taking me by the
arm and hurrying forward; "come, let us hasten to see what it is."

"Here it is, boys, hurrah! come along.  Just what we want," cried
Peterkin, as we drew near, still tugging with all his power.
"First rate; just the very ticket!"

I need scarcely say to my readers that my companion Peterkin was in
the habit of using very remarkable and peculiar phrases.  And I am
free to confess that I did not well understand the meaning of some
of them, - such, for instance, as "the very ticket;" but I think it
my duty to recount everything relating to my adventures with a
strict regard to truthfulness in as far as my memory serves me; so
I write, as nearly as possible, the exact words that my companions
spoke.  I often asked Peterkin to explain what he meant by
"ticket," but he always answered me by going into fits of laughter.
However, by observing the occasions on which he used it, I came to
understand that it meant to show that something was remarkably
good, or fortunate.

On coming up we found that Peterkin was vainly endeavouring to pull
the axe out of the oar, into which, it will be remembered, Jack
struck it while endeavouring to cut away the cordage among which it
had become entangled at the bow of the ship.  Fortunately for us
the axe had remained fast in the oar, and even now, all Peterkin's
strength could not draw it out of the cut.

"Ah! that is capital indeed," cried Jack, at the same time giving
the axe a wrench that plucked it out of the tough wood.  "How
fortunate this is!  It will be of more value to us than a hundred
knives, and the edge is quite new and sharp."

"I'll answer for the toughness of the handle at any rate," cried
Peterkin; "my arms are nearly pulled out of the sockets.  But see
here, our luck is great.  There is iron on the blade."  He pointed
to a piece of hoop iron, as he spoke, which had been nailed round
the blade of the oar to prevent it from splitting.

This also was a fortunate discovery.  Jack went down on his knees,
and with the edge of the axe began carefully to force out the
nails.  But as they were firmly fixed in, and the operation blunted
our axe, we carried the oar up with us to the place where we had
left the rest of our things, intending to burn the wood away from
the iron at a more convenient time.

"Now, lads," said Jack, after we had laid it on the stone which
contained our little all, "I propose that we should go to the tail
of the island, where the ship struck, which is only a quarter of a
mile off, and see if anything else has been thrown ashore.  I don't
expect anything, but it is well to see.  When we get back here it
will be time to have our supper and prepare our beds."

"Agreed!" cried Peterkin and I together, as, indeed, we would have
agreed to any proposal that Jack made; for, besides his being older
and much stronger and taller than either of us, he was a very
clever fellow, and I think would have induced people much older
than himself to choose him for their leader, especially if they
required to be led on a bold enterprise.

Now, as we hastened along the white beach, which shone so brightly
in the rays of the setting sun that our eyes were quite dazzled by
its glare, it suddenly came into Peterkin's head that we had
nothing to eat except the wild berries which grew in profusion at
our feet.

"What shall we do, Jack?" said he, with a rueful look; "perhaps
they may be poisonous!"

"No fear," replied Jack, confidently; "I have observed that a few
of them are not unlike some of the berries that grow wild on our
own native hills.  Besides, I saw one or two strange birds eating
them just a few minutes ago, and what won't kill the birds won't
kill us.  But look up there, Peterkin," continued Jack, pointing to
the branched head of a cocoa-nut palm.  "There are nuts for us in
all stages."

"So there are!" cried Peterkin, who being of a very unobservant
nature had been too much taken up with other things to notice
anything so high above his head as the fruit of a palm tree.  But,
whatever faults my young comrade had, he could not be blamed for
want of activity or animal spirits.  Indeed, the nuts had scarcely
been pointed out to him when he bounded up the tall stem of the
tree like a squirrel, and, in a few minutes, returned with three
nuts, each as large as a man's fist.

"You had better keep them till we return," raid Jack.  "Let us
finish our work before eating."

"So be it, captain, go ahead," cried Peterkin, thrusting the nuts
into his trousers pocket.  "In fact I don't want to eat just now,
but I would give a good deal for a drink.  Oh that I could find a
spring! but I don't see the smallest sign of one hereabouts.  I
say, Jack, how does it happen that you seem to be up to everything?
You have told us the names of half-a-dozen trees already, and yet
you say that you were never in the South Seas before."

"I'm not up to EVERYTHING, Peterkin, as you'll find out ere long,"
replied Jack, with a smile; "but I have been a great reader of
books of travel and adventure all my life, and that has put me up
to a good many things that you are, perhaps, not acquainted with."

"Oh, Jack, that's all humbug.  If you begin to lay everything to
the credit of books, I'll quite lose my opinion of you," cried
Peterkin, with a look of contempt.  "I've seen a lot o' fellows
that were ALWAYS poring over books, and when they came to try to DO
anything, they were no better than baboons!"

"You are quite right," retorted Jack; "and I have seen a lot of
fellows who never looked into books at all, who knew nothing about
anything except the things they had actually seen, and very little
they knew even about these.  Indeed, some were so ignorant that
they did not know that cocoa-nuts grew on cocoa-nut trees!"

I could not refrain from laughing at this rebuke, for there was
much truth in it, as to Peterkin's ignorance.

"Humph! maybe you're right," answered Peterkin; "but I would not
give TUPPENCE for a man of books, if he had nothing else in him."

"Neither would I," said Jack; "but that's no reason why you should
run books down, or think less of me for having read them.  Suppose,
now, Peterkin, that you wanted to build a ship, and I were to give
you a long and particular account of the way to do it, would not
that be very useful?"

"No doubt of it," said Peterkin, laughing.

"And suppose I were to write the account in a letter instead of
telling you in words, would that be less useful?"

"Well - no, perhaps not."

"Well, suppose I were to print it, and send it to you in the form
of a book, would it not be as good and useful as ever?"

"Oh, bother! Jack, you're a philosopher, and that's worse than
anything!" cried Peterkin, with a look of pretended horror.

"Very well, Peterkin, we shall see," returned Jack, halting under
the shade of a cocoa-nut tree.  "You said you were thirsty just a
minute ago; now, jump up that tree and bring down a nut, - not a
ripe one, bring a green, unripe one."

Peterkin looked surprised, but, seeing that Jack was in earnest, he
obeyed.

"Now, cut a hole in it with your penknife, and clap it to your
mouth, old fellow," said Jack.

Peterkin did as he was directed, and we both burst into
uncontrollable laughter at the changes that instantly passed over
his expressive countenance.  No sooner had he put the nut to his
mouth, and thrown back his head in order to catch what came out of
it, than his eyes opened to twice their ordinary size with
astonishment, while his throat moved vigorously in the act of
swallowing.  Then a smile and look of intense delight overspread
his face, except, indeed, the mouth, which, being firmly fixed to
the hole in the nut, could not take part in the expression; but he
endeavoured to make up for this by winking at us excessively with
his right eye.  At length he stopped, and, drawing a long breath,
exclaimed -

"Nectar! perfect nectar!  I say, Jack, you're a Briton - the best
fellow I ever met in my life.  Only taste that!" said he, turning
to me and holding the nut to my mouth.  I immediately drank, and
certainly I was much surprised at the delightful liquid that flowed
copiously down my throat.  It was extremely cool, and had a sweet
taste, mingled with acid; in fact, it was the likest thing to
lemonade I ever tasted, and was most grateful and refreshing.  I
handed the nut to Jack, who, after tasting it, said, "Now,
Peterkin, you unbeliever, I never saw or tasted a cocoa nut in my
life before, except those sold in shops at home; but I once read
that the green nuts contain that stuff, and you see it is true!"

"And pray," asked Peterkin, "what sort of 'stuff' does the ripe nut
contain?"

"A hollow kernel," answered Jack, "with a liquid like milk in it;
but it does not satisfy thirst so well as hunger.  It is very
wholesome food I believe."

"Meat and drink on the same tree!" cried Peterkin; "washing in the
sea, lodging on the ground, - and all for nothing!  My dear boys,
we're set up for life; it must be the ancient Paradise, - hurrah!"
and Peterkin tossed his straw hat in the air, and ran along the
beach hallooing like a madman with delight.

We afterwards found, however, that these lovely islands were very
unlike Paradise in many things.  But more of this in its proper
place.

We had now come to the point of rocks on which the ship had struck,
but did not find a single article, although we searched carefully
among the coral rocks, which at this place jutted out so far as
nearly to join the reef that encircled the island.  Just as we were
about to return, however, we saw something black floating in a
little cove that had escaped our observation.  Running forward, we
drew it from the water, and found it to be a long thick leather
boot, such as fishermen at home wear; and a few paces farther on we
picked up its fellow.  We at once recognised these as having
belonged to our captain, for he had worn them during the whole of
the storm, in order to guard his legs from the waves and spray that
constantly washed over our decks.  My first thought on seeing them
was that our dear captain had been drowned; but Jack soon put my
mind more at rest on that point, by saying that if the captain had
been drowned with the boots on, he would certainly have been washed
ashore along with them, and that he had no doubt whatever he had
kicked them off while in the sea, that he might swim more easily.

Peterkin immediately put them on, but they were so large that, as
Jack said, they would have done for boots, trousers, and vest too.
I also tried them, but, although I was long enough in the legs for
them, they were much too large in the feet for me; so we handed
them to Jack, who was anxious to make me keep them, but as they
fitted his large limbs and feet as if they had been made for him, I
would not hear of it, so he consented at last to use them.  I may
remark, however, that Jack did not use them often, as they were
extremely heavy.

It was beginning to grow dark when we returned to our encampment;
so we put off our visit to the top of a hill till next day, and
employed the light that yet remained to us in cutting down a
quantity of boughs and the broad leaves of a tree, of which none of
us knew the name.  With these we erected a sort of rustic bower, in
which we meant to pass the night.  There was no absolute necessity
for this, because the air of our island was so genial and balmy
that we could have slept quite well without any shelter; but we
were so little used to sleeping in the open air, that we did not
quite relish the idea of lying down without any covering over us:
besides, our bower would shelter us from the night dews or rain, if
any should happen to fall.  Having strewed the floor with leaves
and dry grass, we bethought ourselves of supper.

But it now occurred to us, for the first time, that we had no means
of making a fire.

"Now, there's a fix! - what shall we do?" said Peterkin, while we
both turned our eyes to Jack, to whom we always looked in our
difficulties.  Jack seemed not a little perplexed.

"There are flints enough, no doubt, on the beach," said he, "but
they are of no use at all without a steel.  However, we must try."
So saying, he went to the beach, and soon returned with two flints.
On one of these he placed the tinder, and endeavoured to ignite it;
but it was with great difficulty that a very small spark was struck
out of the flints, and the tinder, being a bad, hard piece, would
not catch.  He then tried the bit of hoop iron, which would not
strike fire at all; and after that the back of the axe, with no
better success.  During all these trials Peterkin sat with his
hands in his pockets, gazing with a most melancholy visage at our
comrade, his face growing longer and more miserable at each
successive failure.

"Oh dear!" he sighed, "I would not care a button for the cooking of
our victuals, - perhaps they don't need it, - but it's so dismal to
eat one's supper in the dark, and we have had such a capital day,
that it's a pity to finish off in this glum style.  Oh, I have it!"
he cried, starting up; "the spy-glass, - the big glass at the end
is a burning-glass!"

"You forget that we have no sun," said I.

Peterkin was silent.  In his sudden recollection of the telescope
he had quite overlooked the absence of the sun.

"Ah, boys, I've got it now!" exclaimed Jack, rising and cutting a
branch from a neighbouring bush, which be stripped of its leaves.
"I recollect seeing this done once at home.  Hand me the bit of
whip-cord."  With the cord and branch Jack soon formed a bow.  Then
he cut a piece, about three inches long, off the end of a dead
branch, which he pointed at the two ends.  Round this he passed the
cord of the bow, and placed one end against his chest, which was
protected from its point by a chip of wood; the other point he
placed against the bit of tinder, and then began to saw vigorously
with the bow, just as a blacksmith does with his drill while boring
a hole in a piece of iron.  In a few seconds the tinder began to
smoke; in less than a minute it caught fire; and in less than a
quarter of an hour we were drinking our lemonade and eating cocoa
nuts round a fire that would have roasted an entire sheep, while
the smoke, flames, and sparks, flew up among the broad leaves of
the overhanging palm trees, and cast a warm glow upon our leafy
bower.

That night the starry sky looked down through the gently rustling
trees upon our slumbers, and the distant roaring of the surf upon
the coral reef was our lullaby.



CHAPTER V.



Morning, and cogitations connected therewith - We luxuriate in the
sea, try our diving powers, and make enchanting excursions among
the coral groves at the bottom of the ocean - The wonders of the
deep enlarged upon.


WHAT a joyful thing it is to awaken, on a fresh glorious morning,
and find the rising sun staring into your face with dazzling
brilliancy! - to see the birds twittering in the bushes, and to
hear the murmuring of a rill, or the soft hissing ripples as they
fall upon the sea-shore!  At any time and in any place such sights
and sounds are most charming, but more especially are they so when
one awakens to them, for the fist time, in a novel and romantic
situation, with the soft sweet air of a tropical climate mingling
with the fresh smell of the sea, and stirring the strange leaves
that flutter overhead and around one, or ruffling the plumage of
the stranger birds that fly inquiringly around, as if to demand
what business we have to intrude uninvited on their domains.  When
I awoke on the morning after the shipwreck, I found myself in this
most delightful condition; and, as I lay on my back upon my bed of
leaves, gazing up through the branches of the cocoa-nut trees into
the clear blue sky, and watched the few fleecy clouds that passed
slowly across it, my heart expanded more and more with an exulting
gladness, the like of which I had never felt before.  While I
meditated, my thoughts again turned to the great and kind Creator
of this beautiful world, as they had done on the previous day, when
I first beheld the sea and the coral reef, with the mighty waves
dashing over it into the calm waters of the lagoon.

While thus meditating, I naturally bethought me of my Bible, for I
had faithfully kept the promise, which I gave at parting to my
beloved mother, that I would read it every morning; and it was with
a feeling of dismay that I remembered I had left it in the ship.  I
was much troubled about this.  However, I consoled myself with
reflecting that I could keep the second part of my promise to her,
namely, that I should never omit to say my prayers.  So I rose
quietly, lest I should disturb my companions, who were still
asleep, and stepped aside into the bushes for this purpose.

On my return I found them still slumbering, so I again lay down to
think over our situation.  Just at that moment I was attracted by
the sight of a very small parrot, which Jack afterwards told me was
called a paroquet.  It was seated on a twig that overhung
Peterkin's head, and I was speedily lost in admiration of its
bright green plumage, which was mingled with other gay colours.
While I looked I observed that the bird turned its head slowly from
side to side and looked downwards, fist with the one eye, and then
with the other.  On glancing downwards I observed that Peterkin's
mouth was wide open, and that this remarkable bird was looking into
it.  Peterkin used to say that I had not an atom of fun in my
composition, and that I never could understand a joke.  In regard
to the latter, perhaps he was right; yet I think that, when they
were explained to me, I understood jokes as well as most people:
but in regard to the former he must certainly have been wrong, for
this bird seemed to me to be extremely funny; and I could not help
thinking that, if it should happen to faint, or slip its foot, and
fall off the twig into Peterkin's mouth, he would perhaps think it
funny too!  Suddenly the paroquet bent down its head and uttered a
loud scream in his face.  This awoke him, and, with a cry of
surprise, he started up, while the foolish bird flew precipitately
away.

"Oh you monster!" cried Peterkin, shaking his fist at the bird.
Then he yawned and rubbed his eyes, and asked what o'clock it was.

I smiled at this question, and answered that, as our watches were
at the bottom of the sea, I could not tell, but it was a little
past sunrise.

Peterkin now began to remember where we were.  As he looked up into
the bright sky, and snuffed the scented air, his eyes glistened
with delight, and he uttered a faint "hurrah!" and yawned again.
Then he gazed slowly round, till, observing the calm sea through an
opening in the bushes, he started suddenly up as if he had received
an electric shock, uttered a vehement shout, flung off his
garments, and, rushing over the white sands, plunged into the
water.  The cry awoke Jack, who rose on his elbow with a look of
grave surprise; but this was followed by a quiet smile of
intelligence on seeing Peterkin in the water.  With an energy that
he only gave way to in moments of excitement, Jack bounded to his
feet, threw off his clothes, shook back his hair, and with a lion-
like spring, dashed over the sands and plunged into the sea with
such force as quite to envelop Peterkin in a shower of spray.  Jack
was a remarkably good swimmer and diver, so that after his plunge
we saw no sign of him for nearly a minute; after which he suddenly
emerged, with a cry of joy, a good many yards out from the shore.
My spirits were so much raised by seeing all this that I, too,
hastily threw off my garments and endeavoured to imitate Jack's
vigorous bound; but I was so awkward that my foot caught on a
stump, and I fell to the ground; then I slipped on a stone while
running over the mud, and nearly fell again, much to the amusement
of Peterkin, who laughed heartily, and called me a "slow coach,"
while Jack cried out, "Come along, Ralph, and I'll help you."
However, when I got into the water I managed very well, for I was
really a good swimmer, and diver too.  I could not, indeed, equal
Jack, who was superior to any Englishman I ever saw, but I
infinitely surpassed Peterkin, who could only swim a little, and
could not dive at all.

While Peterkin enjoyed himself in the shallow water and in running
along the beach, Jack and I swam out into the deep water, and
occasionally dived for stones.  I shall never forget my surprise
and delight on first beholding the bottom of the sea.  As I have
before stated, the water within the reef was as calm as a pond;
and, as there was no wind, it was quite clear, from the surface to
the bottom, so that we could see down easily even at a depth of
twenty or thirty yards.  When Jack and I dived in shallower water,
we expected to have found sand and stones, instead of which we
found ourselves in what appeared really to be an enchanted garden.
The whole of the bottom of the lagoon, as we called the calm water
within the reef, was covered with coral of every shape, size, and
hue.  Some portions were formed like large mushrooms; others
appeared like the brain of a man, having stalks or necks attached
to them; but the most common kind was a species of branching coral,
and some portions were of a lovely pale pink colour, others pure
white.  Among this there grew large quantities of sea-weed of the
richest hues imaginable, and of the most graceful forms; while
innumerable fishes - blue, red, yellow, green, and striped -
sported in and out amongst the flower-beds of this submarine
garden, and did not appear to be at all afraid of our approaching
them.

On darting to the surface for breath, after our first dive, Jack
and I rose close to each other.

"Did you ever in your life, Ralph, see anything so lovely?" said
Jack, as he flung the spray from his hair.

"Never," I replied.  "It appears to me like fairy realms.  I can
scarcely believe that we are not dreaming."

"Dreaming!" cried Jack, "do you know, Ralph, I'm half tempted to
think that we really are dreaming.  But if so, I am resolved to
make the most of it, and dream another dive; so here goes, - down
again, my boy!"

We took the second dive together, and kept beside each other while
under water; and I was greatly surprised to find that we could keep
down much longer than I ever recollect having done in our own seas
at home.  I believe that this was owing to the heat of the water,
which was so warm that we afterwards found we could remain in it
for two and three hours at a time without feeling any unpleasant
effects such as we used to experience in the sea at home.  When
Jack reached the bottom, he grasped the coral stems, and crept
along on his hands and knees, peeping under the sea-weed and among
the rocks.  I observed him also pick up one or two large oysters,
and retain them in his grasp, as if he meant to take them up with
him, so I also gathered a few.  Suddenly he made a grasp at a fish
with blue and yellow stripes on its back, and actually touched its
tail, but did not catch it.  At this he turned towards me and
attempted to smile; but no sooner had he done so than he sprang
like an arrow to the surface, where, on following him, I found him
gasping and coughing, and spitting water from his mouth.  In a few
minutes he recovered, and we both turned to swim ashore.

"I declare, Ralph," said he, "that I actually tried to laugh under
water."

"So I saw," I replied; "and I observed that you very nearly caught
that fish by the tail.  It would have done capitally for breakfast
if you had."

"Breakfast enough here," said he, holding up the oysters, as we
landed and ran up the beach.  "Hallo!  Peterkin, here you are, boy.
Split open these fellows while Ralph and I put on our clothes.
They'll agree with the cocoa nuts excellently, I have no doubt."

Peterkin, who was already dressed, took the oysters, and opened
them with the edge of our axe, exclaiming, "Now, that IS capital.
There's nothing I'm so fond of."

"Ah! that's lucky," remarked Jack.  "I'll be able to keep you in
good order now, Master Peterkin.  You know you can't dive any
better than a cat.  So, sir, whenever you behave ill, you shall
have no oysters for breakfast."

"I'm very glad that our prospect of breakfast is so good," said I,
"for I'm very hungry."

"Here, then, stop your mouth with that, Ralph," said Peterkin,
holding a large oyster to my lips.  I opened my mouth and swallowed
it in silence, and really it was remarkably good.

We now set ourselves earnestly about our preparations for spending
the day.  We had no difficulty with the fire this morning, as our
burning-glass was an admirable one; and while we roasted a few
oysters and ate our cocoa nuts, we held a long, animated
conversation about our plans for the future.  What those plans
were, and how we carried them into effect, the reader shall see
hereafter.



CHAPTER VI.



An excursion into the interior, in which we make many valuable and
interesting discoveries - We get a dreadful fright - The bread-
fruit tree - Wonderful peculiarity of some of the fruit trees -
Signs of former inhabitants.


OUR first care, after breakfast, was to place the few articles we
possessed in the crevice of a rock at the farther end of a small
cave which we discovered near our encampment.  This cave, we hoped,
might be useful to us afterwards as a store-house.  Then we cut two
large clubs off a species of very hard tree which grew near at
hand.  One of these was given to Peterkin, the other to me, and
Jack armed himself with the axe.  We took these precautions because
we purposed to make an excursion to the top of the mountains of the
interior, in order to obtain a better view of our island.  Of
course we knew not what dangers might befall us by the way, so
thought it best to be prepared.

Having completed our arrangements and carefully extinguished our
fire, we sallied forth and walked a short distance along the sea-
beach, till we came to the entrance of a valley, through which
flowed the rivulet before mentioned.  Here we turned our backs on
the sea and struck into the interior.

The prospect that burst upon our view on entering the valley was
truly splendid.  On either side of us there was a gentle rise in
the land, which thus formed two ridges about a mile apart on each
side of the valley.  These ridges, - which, as well as the low
grounds between them, were covered with trees and shrubs of the
most luxuriant kind - continued to recede inland for about two
miles, when they joined the foot of a small mountain.  This hill
rose rather abruptly from the head of the valley, and was likewise
entirely covered even to the top with trees, except on one
particular spot near the left shoulder, where was a bare and rocky
place of a broken and savage character.  Beyond this hill we could
not see, and we therefore directed our course up the banks of the
rivulet towards the foot of it, intending to climb to the top,
should that be possible, as, indeed, we had no doubt it was.

Jack, being the wisest and boldest among us, took the lead,
carrying the axe on his shoulder.  Peterkin, with his enormous
club, came second, as he said he should like to be in a position to
defend me if any danger should threaten.  I brought up the rear,
but, having been more taken up with the wonderful and curious
things I saw at starting than with thoughts of possible danger, I
had very foolishly left my club behind me.  Although, as I have
said the trees and bushes were very luxuriant, they were not so
thickly crowded together as to hinder our progress among them.  We
were able to wind in and out, and to follow the banks of the stream
quite easily, although, it is true, the height and thickness of the
foliage prevented us from seeing far ahead.  But sometimes a
jutting-out rock on the hill sides afforded us a position whence we
could enjoy the romantic view and mark our progress towards the
foot of the hill.  I wag particularly struck, during the walk, with
the richness of the undergrowth in most places, and recognised many
berries and plants that resembled those of my native land,
especially a tall, elegantly-formed fern, which emitted an
agreeable perfume.  There were several kinds of flowers, too, but I
did not see so many of these as I should have expected in such a
climate.  We also saw a great variety of small birds of bright
plumage, and many paroquets similar to the one that awoke Peterkin
so rudely in the morning.

Thus we advanced to the foot of the hill without encountering
anything to alarm us, except, indeed, once, when we were passing
close under a part of the hill which was hidden from our view by
the broad leaves of the banana trees, which grew in great
luxuriance in that part.  Jack was just preparing to force his way
through this thicket, when we were startled and arrested by a
strange pattering or rumbling sound, which appeared to us quite
different from any of the sounds we had heard during the previous
part of our walk.

"Hallo!" cried Peterkin, stopping short and grasping his club with
both hands, "what's that?"

Neither of us replied; but Jack seized his axe in his right hand,
while with the other he pushed aside the broad leaves and
endeavoured to peer amongst them.

"I can see nothing," he said, after a short pause.

"I think it - "

Again the rumbling sound came, louder than before, and we all
sprang back and stood on the defensive.  For myself, having
forgotten my club, and not having taken the precaution to cut
another, I buttoned my jacket, doubled my fists, and threw myself
into a boxing attitude.  I must say, however, that I felt somewhat
uneasy; and my companions afterwards confessed that their thoughts
at this moment had been instantly filled with all they had ever
heard or read of wild beasts and savages, torturings at the stake,
roastings alive, and such like horrible things.  Suddenly the
pattering noise increased with tenfold violence.  It was followed
by a fearful crash among the bushes, which was rapidly repeated, as
if some gigantic animal were bounding towards us.  In another
moment an enormous rock came crashing through the shrubbery,
followed by a cloud of dust and small stones, flew close past the
spot where we stood, carrying bushes and young trees along with it.

"Pooh! is that all?" exclaimed Peterkin, wiping the perspiration
off his forehead.  "Why, I thought it was all the wild men and
beasts in the South Sea Islands galloping on in one grand charge to
sweep us off the face of the earth, instead of a mere stone
tumbling down the mountain side."

"Nevertheless," remarked Jack, "if that same stone had hit any of
us, it would have rendered the charge you speak of quite
unnecessary, Peterkin."

This was true, and I felt very thankful for our escape.  On
examining the spot more narrowly, we found that it lay close to the
foot of a very rugged precipice, from which stones of various sizes
were always tumbling at intervals.  Indeed, the numerous fragments
lying scattered all around might have suggested the cause of the
sound, had we not been too suddenly alarmed to think of anything.

We now resumed our journey, resolving that, in our future
excursions into the interior, we would be careful to avoid this
dangerous precipice.

Soon afterwards we arrived at the foot of the hill and prepared to
ascend it.  Here Jack made a discovery which caused us all very
great joy.  This was a tree of a remarkably beautiful appearance,
which Jack confidently declared to be the celebrated bread-fruit
tree.

"Is it celebrated?" inquired Peterkin, with a look of great
simplicity.

"It is," replied Jack

"That's odd, now," rejoined Peterkin; "never heard of it before."

"Then it's not so celebrated as I thought it was," returned Jack,
quietly squeezing Peterkin's hat over his eyes; "but listen, you
ignorant boobie! and hear of it now."

Peterkin re-adjusted his hat, and was soon listening with as much
interest as myself, while Jack told us that this tree is one of the
most valuable in the islands of the south; that it bears two,
sometimes three, crops of fruit in the year; that the fruit is very
like wheaten bread in appearance, and that it constitutes the
principal food of many of the islanders.

"So," said Peterkin, "we seem to have everything ready prepared to
our hands in this wonderful island, - lemonade ready bottled in
nuts, and loaf-bread growing on the trees!"

Peterkin, as usual, was jesting; nevertheless, it is a curious fact
that he spoke almost the literal truth.  "Moreover," continued
Jack, "the bread-fruit tree affords a capital gum, which serves the
natives for pitching their canoes; the bark of the young branches
is made by them into cloth; and of the wood, which is durable and
of a good colour, they build their houses.  So you see, lads, that
we have no lack of material here to make us comfortable, if we are
only clever enough to use it."

"But are you sure that that's it?" asked Peterkin.

"Quite sure," replied Jack; "for I was particularly interested in
the account I once read of it, and I remember the description well.
I am sorry, however, that I have forgotten the descriptions of many
other trees which I am sure we have seen to-day, if we could but
recognise them.  So you see, Peterkin, I'm not up to everything
yet."

"Never mind, Jack," said Peterkin, with a grave, patronizing
expression of countenance, patting his tall companion on the
shoulder, - "never mind, Jack; you know a good deal for your age.
You're a clever boy, sir, - a promising young man; and if you only
go on as you have begun, sir, you will - "

The end of this speech was suddenly cut short by Jack tripping up
Peterkin's heels and tumbling him into a mass of thick shrubs,
where, finding himself comfortable, he lay still basking in the
sunshine, while Jack and I examined the bread-tree.

We were much struck with the deep, rich green colour of its broad
leaves, which were twelve or eighteen inches long, deeply indented,
and of a glossy smoothness, like the laurel.  The fruit, with which
it was loaded, was nearly round, and appeared to be about six
inches in diameter, with a rough rind, marked with lozenge-shaped
divisions.  It was of various colours, from light pea-green to
brown and rich yellow.  Jack said that the yellow was the ripe
fruit.  We afterwards found that most of the fruit-trees on the
island were evergreens, and that we might, when we wished, pluck
the blossom and the ripe fruit from the same tree.  Such a
wonderful difference from the trees of our own country surprised us
not a little.  The bark of the tree was rough and light-coloured;
the trunk was about two feet in diameter, and it appeared to be
twenty feet high, being quite destitute of branches up to that
height, where it branched off into a beautiful and umbrageous head.
We noticed that the fruit hung in clusters of twos and threes on
the branches; but as we were anxious to get to the top of the hill,
we refrained from attempting to pluck any at that time.

Our hearts were now very much cheered by our good fortune, and it
was with light and active steps that we clambered up the steep
sides of the hill.  On reaching the summit, a new, and if possible
a grander, prospect met our gaze.  We found that this was not the
highest part of the island, but that another hill lay beyond, with
a wide valley between it and the one on which we stood.  This
valley, like the first, was also full of rich trees, some dark and
some light green, some heavy and thick in foliage, and others
light, feathery, and graceful, while the beautiful blossoms on many
of them threw a sort of rainbow tint over all, and gave to the
valley the appearance of a garden of flowers.  Among these we
recognised many of the bread-fruit trees, laden with yellow fruit,
and also a great many cocoa-nut palms.  After gazing our fill we
pushed down the hill side, crossed the valley, and soon began to
ascend the second mountain.  It was clothed with trees nearly to
the top, but the summit was bare, and in some places broken.

While on our way up we came to an object which filled us with much
interest.  This was the stump of a tree that had evidently been cut
down with an axe!  So, then, we were not the first who had viewed
this beautiful isle.  The hand of man had been at work there before
us.  It now began to recur to us again that perhaps the island was
inhabited, although we had not seen any traces of man until now;
but a second glance at the stump convinced us that we had not more
reason to think so now than formerly; for the surface of the wood
was quite decayed, and partly covered with fungus and green matter,
so that it must have been cut many years ago.

"Perhaps," said Peterkin, "some ship or other has touched here long
ago for wood, and only taken one tree."

We did not think this likely, however, because, in such
circumstances, the crew of a ship would cut wood of small size, and
near the shore, whereas this was a large tree and stood near the
top of the mountain.  In fact it was the highest large tree on the
mountain, all above it being wood of very recent growth.

"I can't understand it," said Jack, scratching the surface of the
stump with his axe.  "I can only suppose that the savages have been
here and cut it for some purpose known only to themselves.  But,
hallo! what have we here?"

As he spoke, Jack began carefully to scrape away the moss and
fungus from the stump, and soon laid bare three distinct traces of
marks, as if some inscription or initials had been cut thereon.
But although the traces were distinct, beyond all doubt, the exact
form of the letters could not be made out.  Jack thought they
looked like J. S. but we could not be certain.  They had apparently
been carelessly cut, and long exposure to the weather had so broken
them up that we could not make out what they were.  We were
exceedingly perplexed at this discovery, and stayed a long time at
the place conjecturing what these marks could have been, but
without avail; so, as the day was advancing, we left it and quickly
reached the top of the mountain.

We found this to be the highest point of the island, and from it we
saw our kingdom lying, as it were, like a map around us.  As I have
always thought it impossible to get a thing properly into one's
understanding without comprehending it, I shall beg the reader's
patience for a little while I describe our island, thus, shortly:-

It consisted of two mountains; the one we guessed at 500 feet; the
other, on which we stood, at 1000.  Between these lay a rich,
beautiful valley, as already said.  This valley crossed the island
from one end to the other, being high in the middle and sloping on
each side towards the sea.  The large mountain sloped, on the side
farthest from where we had been wrecked, gradually towards the sea;
but although, when viewed at a glance, it had thus a regular
sloping appearance, a more careful observation showed that it was
broken up into a multitude of very small vales, or rather dells and
glens, intermingled with little rugged spots and small but abrupt
precipices here and there, with rivulets tumbling over their edges
and wandering down the slopes in little white streams, sometimes
glistening among the broad leaves of the bread-fruit and cocoa-nut
trees, or hid altogether beneath the rich underwood.  At the base
of this mountain lay a narrow bright green plain or meadow, which
terminated abruptly at the shore.  On the other side of the island,
whence we had come, stood the smaller hill, at the foot of which
diverged three valleys; one being that which we had ascended, with
a smaller vale on each side of it, and separated from it by the two
ridges before mentioned.  In these smaller valleys there were no
streams, but they were clothed with the same luxuriant vegetation.

The diameter of the island seemed to be about ten miles, and, as it
was almost circular in form, its circumference must have been
thirty miles; - perhaps a little more, if allowance be made for the
numerous bays and indentations of the shore.  The entire island was
belted by a beach of pure white sand, on which laved the gentle
ripples of the lagoon.  We now also observed that the coral reef
completely encircled the island; but it varied its distance from it
here and there, in some places being a mile from the beach, in
others, a few hundred yards, but the average distance was half a
mile.  The reef lay very low, and the spray of the surf broke quite
over it in many places.  This surf never ceased its roar, for,
however calm the weather might be, there is always a gentle swaying
motion in the great Pacific, which, although scarce noticeable out
at sea, reaches the shore at last in a huge billow.  The water
within the lagoon, as before said, was perfectly still.  There were
three narrow openings in the reef; one opposite each end of the
valley which I have described as crossing the island; the other
opposite our own valley, which we afterwards named the Valley of
the Wreck.  At each of these openings the reef rose into two small
green islets, covered with bushes and having one or two cocoa-nut
palms on each.  These islets were very singular, and appeared as if
planted expressly for the purpose of marking the channel into the
lagoon.  Our captain was making for one of these openings the day
we were wrecked, and would have reached it too, I doubt not, had
not the rudder been torn away.  Within the lagoon were several
pretty, low coral islands, just opposite our encampment; and,
immediately beyond these, out at sea, lay about a dozen other
islands, at various distances, from half a mile to ten miles; all
of them, as far as we could discern, smaller than ours and
apparently uninhabited.  They seemed to be low coral islands,
raised but little above the sea, yet covered with cocoa-nut trees.

All this we noted, and a great deal more, while we sat on the top
of the mountain.  After we had satisfied ourselves we prepared to
return; but here again we discovered traces of the presence of man.
These were a pole or staff and one or two pieces of wood which had
been squared with an axe.  All of these were, however, very much
decayed, and they had evidently not been touched for many years.

Full of these discoveries we returned to our encampment.  On the
way we fell in with the traces of some four-footed animal, but
whether old or of recent date none of us were able to guess.  This
also tended to raise our hopes of obtaining some animal food on the
island, so we reached home in good spirits, quite prepared for
supper, and highly satisfied with our excursion.

After much discussion, in which Peterkin took the lead, we came to
the conclusion that the island was uninhabited, and went to bed.



CHAPTER VII.



Jack's ingenuity - We get into difficulties about fishing, and get
out of them by a method which gives us a cold bath - Horrible
encounter with a shark.


FOR several days after the excursion related in the last chapter we
did not wander far from our encampment, but gave ourselves up to
forming plans for the future and making our present abode
comfortable.

There were various causes that induced this state of comparative
inaction.  In the first place, although everything around us was so
delightful, and we could without difficulty obtain all that we
required for our bodily comfort, we did not quite like the idea of
settling down here for the rest of our lives, far away from our
friends and our native land.  To set energetically about
preparations for a permanent residence seemed so like making up our
minds to saying adieu to home and friends for ever, that we tacitly
shrank from it and put off our preparations, for one reason and
another, as long as we could.  Then there was a little uncertainty
still as to there being natives on the island, and we entertained a
kind of faint hope that a ship might come and take us off.  But as
day after day passed, and neither savages nor ships appeared, we
gave up all hope of an early deliverance and set diligently to work
at our homestead.

During this time, however, we had not been altogether idle.  We
made several experiments in cooking the cocoa-nut, most of which
did not improve it.  Then we removed our goods, and took up our
abode in the cave, but found the change so bad that we returned
gladly to the bower.  Besides this we bathed very frequently, and
talked a great deal; at least Jack and Peterkin did, - I listened.
Among other useful things, Jack, who was ever the most active and
diligent, converted about three inches of the hoop-iron into an
excellent knife.  First he beat it quite flat with the axe.  Then
he made a rude handle, and tied the hoop-iron to it with our piece
of whip-cord, and ground it to an edge on a piece of sand-stone.
When it was finished he used it to shape a better handle, to which
he fixed it with a strip of his cotton handkerchief; - in which
operation he had, as Peterkin pointed out, torn off one of Lord
Nelson's noses.  However, the whip-cord, thus set free, was used by
Peterkin as a fishing line.  He merely tied a piece of oyster to
the end of it.  This the fish were allowed to swallow, and then
they were pulled quickly ashore.  But as the line was very short
and we had no boat, the fish we caught were exceedingly small.

One day Peterkin came up from the beach, where he had been angling,
and said in a very cross tone, "I'll tell you what, Jack, I'm not
going to be humbugged with catching such contemptible things any
longer.  I want you to swim out with me on your back, and let me
fish in deep water!"

"Dear me, Peterkin," replied Jack, "I had no idea you were taking
the thing so much to heart, else I would have got you out of that
difficulty long ago.  Let me see," - and Jack looked down at a
piece of timber on which he had been labouring, with a peculiar
gaze of abstraction, which he always assumed when trying to invent
or discover anything.

"What say you to building a boat?" he inquired, looking up hastily.

"Take far too long," was the reply; "can't be bothered waiting.  I
want to begin at once!"

Again Jack considered.  "I have it!" he cried.  "We'll fell a large
tree and launch the trunk of it in the water, so that when you want
to fish you've nothing to do but to swim out to it."

"Would not a small raft do better?" said I.

"Much better; but we have no ropes to bind it together with.
Perhaps we may find something hereafter that will do as well, but,
in the meantime, let us try the tree."

This was agreed on, so we started off to a spot not far distant,
where we knew of a tree that would suit us, which grew near the
water's edge.  As soon as we reached it Jack threw off his coat,
and, wielding the axe with his sturdy arms, hacked and hewed at it
for a quarter of an hour without stopping.  Then he paused, and,
while he sat down to rest, I continued the work.  Then Peterkin
made a vigorous attack on it, so that when Jack renewed his
powerful blows, a few minutes cutting brought it down with a
terrible crash.

"Hurrah! now for it," cried Jack; "let us off with its head."

So saying he began to cut through the stem again, at about six
yards from the thick end.  This done, he cut three strong, short
poles or levers from the stout branches, with which to roll the log
down the beach into the sea; for, as it was nearly two feet thick
at the large end, we could not move it without such helps.  With
the levers, however, we rolled it slowly into the sea.

Having been thus successful in launching our vessel, we next shaped
the levers into rude oars or paddles, and then attempted to embark.
This was easy enough to do; but, after seating ourselves astride
the log, it was with the utmost difficulty we kept it from rolling
round and plunging us into the water.  Not that we minded that
much; but we preferred, if possible, to fish in dry clothes.  To be
sure, our trousers were necessarily wet, as our legs were dangling
in the water on each side of the log; but, as they could be easily
dried, we did not care.  After half an hour's practice, we became
expert enough to keep our balance pretty steadily.  Then Peterkin
laid down his paddle, and having baited his line with a whole
oyster, dropt it into deep water.

"Now, then, Jack," said he, "be cautious; steer clear o' that sea-
weed.  There; that's it; gently, now, gently.  I see a fellow at
least a foot long down there, coming to - ha! that's it!  Oh!
bother, he's off."

"Did he bite?" said Jack, urging the log onwards a little with his
paddle.

"Bite? ay!  He took it into his mouth, but the moment I began to
haul he opened his jaws and let it out again."

"Let him swallow it next time," said Jack, laughing at the
melancholy expression of Peterkin's visage.

"There he's again," cried Peterkin, his eyes flashing with
excitement.  "Look out!  Now then!  No!  Yes!  No!  Why, the brute
WON'T swallow it!"

"Try to haul him up by the mouth, then," cried Jack.  "Do it
gently."

A heavy sigh and a look of blank despair showed that poor Peterkin
had tried and failed again.

"Never mind, lad," said Jack, in a voice of sympathy; "we'll move
on, and offer it to some other fish."  So saying, Jack plied his
paddle; but scarcely had he moved from the spot, when a fish with
an enormous head and a little body darted from under a rock and
swallowed the bait at once.

"Got him this time, - that's a fact!" cried Peterkin, hauling in
the line.  "He's swallowed the bait right down to his tail, I
declare.  Oh what a thumper!"

As the fish came struggling to the surface, we leaned forward to
see it, and overbalanced the log.  Peterkin threw his arms round
the fish's neck; and, in another instant, we were all floundering
in the water!

A shout of laughter burst from us as we rose to the surface like
three drowned rats, and seized hold of the log.  We soon recovered
our position, and sat more warily, while Peterkin secured the fish,
which had well-nigh escaped in the midst of our struggles.  It was
little worth having, however; but, as Peterkin remarked, it was
better than the smouts he had been catching for the last two or
three days; so we laid it on the log before us, and having re-
baited the line, dropt it in again for another.

Now, while we were thus intent upon our sport, our attention was
suddenly attracted by a ripple on the sea, just a few yards away
from us.  Peterkin shouted to us to paddle in that direction, as he
thought it was a big fish, and we might have a chance of catching
it.  But Jack, instead of complying, said, in a deep, earnest tone
of voice, which I never before heard him use, -

"Haul up your line, Peterkin; seize your paddle; quick, - it's a
shark!"

The horror with which we heard this may well be imagined, for it
must be remembered that our legs were hanging down in the water,
and we could not venture to pull them up without upsetting the log.
Peterkin instantly hauled up the line; and, grasping his paddle,
exerted himself to the utmost, while we also did our best to make
for shore.  But we were a good way off, and the log being, as I
have before said, very heavy, moved but slowly through the water.
We now saw the shark quite distinctly swimming round and round us,
its sharp fin every now and then protruding above the water.  From
its active and unsteady motions, Jack knew it was making up its
mind to attack us, so he urged us vehemently to paddle for our
lives, while he himself set us the example.  Suddenly he shouted
"Look out! - there he comes!" and in a second we saw the monstrous
fish dive close under us, and turn half over on his side.  But we
all made a great commotion with our paddles, which no doubt
frightened it away for that time, as we saw it immediately after
circling round us as before.

"Throw the fish to him," cried Jack, in a quick, suppressed voice;
"we'll make the shore in time yet if we can keep him off for a few
minutes."

Peterkin stopped one instant to obey the command, and then plied
his paddle again with all his might.  No sooner had the fish fallen
on the water than we observed the shark to sink.  In another second
we saw its white breast rising; for sharks always turn over on
their sides when about to seize their prey, their mouths being not
at the point of their heads like those of other fish, but, as it
were, under their chins.  In another moment his snout rose above
the water, - his wide jaws, armed with a terrific double row of
teeth, appeared.  The dead fish was engulfed, and the shark sank
out of sight.  But Jack was mistaken in supposing that it would be
satisfied.  In a very few minutes it returned to us, and its quick
motions led us to fear that it would attack us at once.

"Stop paddling," cried Jack suddenly.  "I see it coming up behind
us.  Now, obey my orders quickly.  Our lives may depend on it
Ralph.  Peterkin, do your best to BALANCE THE LOG.  Don't look out
for the shark.  Don't glance behind you.  Do nothing but balance
the log."

Peterkin and I instantly did as we were ordered, being only too
glad to do anything that afforded us a chance or a hope of escape,
for we had implicit confidence in Jack's courage and wisdom.  For a
few seconds, that seemed long minutes to my mind, we sat thus
silently; but I could not resist glancing backward, despite the
orders to the contrary.  On doing so, I saw Jack sitting rigid like
a statue, with his paddle raised, his lips compressed, and his eye-
brows bent over his eyes, which glared savagely from beneath them
down into the water.  I also saw the shark, to my horror, quite
close under the log, in the act of darting towards Jack's foot.  I
could scarce suppress a cry on beholding this.  In another moment
the shark rose.  Jack drew his leg suddenly from the water, and
threw it over the log.  The monster's snout rubbed against the log
as it passed, and revealed its hideous jaws, into which Jack
instantly plunged the paddle, and thrust it down its throat.  So
violent was the act that Jack rose to his feet in performing it;
the log was thereby rolled completely over, and we were once more
plunged into the water.  We all rose, spluttering and gasping, in a
moment.

"Now then, strike out for shore," cried Jack.  "Here, Peterkin,
catch hold of my collar, and kick out with a will."

Peterkin did as he was desired, and Jack struck out with such force
that he cut through the water like a boat; while I, being free from
all encumbrance, succeeded in keeping up with him.  As we had by
this time drawn pretty near to the shore, a few minutes more
sufficed to carry us into shallow water; and, finally, we landed in
safety, though very much exhausted, and not a little frightened by
our terrible adventure.



CHAPTER VIII.



The beauties of the bottom of the sea tempt Peterkin to dive - How
he did it - More difficulties overcome - The water garden - Curious
creatures of the sea - The tank - Candles missed very much, and the
candle-nut tree discovered - Wonderful account of Peterkin's first
voyage - Cloth found growing on a tree - A plan projected, and arms
prepared for offence and defence - A dreadful cry.


OUR encounter with the shark was the first great danger that had
befallen us since landing on this island, and we felt very
seriously affected by it, especially when we considered that we had
so often unwittingly incurred the same danger before while bathing.
We were now forced to take to fishing again in the shallow water,
until we should succeed in constructing a raft.  What troubled us
most, however, was, that we were compelled to forego our morning
swimming excursions.  We did, indeed, continue to enjoy our bathe
in the shallow water, but Jack and I found that one great source of
our enjoyment was gone, when we could no longer dive down among the
beautiful coral groves at the bottom of the lagoon.  We had come to
be so fond of this exercise, and to take such an interest in
watching the formations of coral and the gambols of the many
beautiful fish amongst the forests of red and green sea-weeds, that
we had become quite familiar with the appearance of the fish and
the localities that they chiefly haunted.  We had also become
expert divers.  But we made it a rule never to stay long under
water at a time.  Jack told me that to do so often was bad for the
lungs, and, instead of affording us enjoyment, would ere long do us
a serious injury.  So we never stayed at the bottom as long as we
might have done, but came up frequently to the top for fresh air,
and dived down again immediately.  Sometimes, when Jack happened to
be in a humorous frame, he would seat himself at the bottom of the
sea on one of the brain corals, as if he were seated on a large
paddock-stool, and then make faces at me, in order, if possible, to
make me laugh under water.  At first, when he took me unawares, he
nearly succeeded, and I had to shoot to the surface in order to
laugh; but afterwards I became aware of his intentions, and, being
naturally of a grave disposition, I had no difficulty in
restraining myself.  I used often to wonder how poor Peterkin would
have liked to be with us; and he sometimes expressed much regret at
being unable to join us.  I used to do my best to gratify him, poor
fellow, by relating all the wonders that we saw; but this, instead
of satisfying, seemed only to whet his curiosity the more, so one
day we prevailed on him to try to go down with us.  But, although a
brave boy in every other way, Peterkin was very nervous in the
water, and it was with difficulty we got him to consent to be taken
down, for he could never have managed to push himself down to the
bottom without assistance.  But no sooner had we pulled him down a
yard or so into the deep clear water, than he began to struggle and
kick violently, so we were forced to let him go, when he rose out
of the water like a cork, gave a loud gasp and a frightful roar,
and struck out for the land with the utmost possible haste.

Now, all this pleasure we were to forego, and when we thought
thereon, Jack and I felt very much depressed in our spirits.  I
could see, also, that Peterkin grieved and sympathized with us,
for, when talking about this matter, he refrained from jesting and
bantering us upon it.

As, however, a man's difficulties usually set him upon devising
methods to overcome them, whereby he often discovers better things
than those he may have lost, so this our difficulty induced us to
think of searching for a large pool among the rocks, where the
water should be deep enough for diving yet so surrounded by rocks
as to prevent sharks from getting at us.  And such a pool we
afterwards found, which proved to be very much better than our most
sanguine hopes anticipated.  It was situated not more than ten
minutes' walk from our camp, and was in the form of a small deep
bay or basin, the entrance to which, besides being narrow, was so
shallow that no fish so large as a shark could get in, at least not
unless he should be a remarkably thin one.

Inside of this basin, which we called our Water Garden, the coral
formations were much more wonderful, and the sea-weed plants far
more lovely and vividly coloured, than in the lagoon itself.  And
the water was so clear and still, that, although very deep, you
could see the minutest object at the bottom.  Besides this, there
was a ledge of rock which overhung the basin at its deepest part,
from which we could dive pleasantly and whereon Peterkin could sit
and see not only all the wonders I had described to him, but also
see Jack and me creeping amongst the marine shrubbery at the
bottom, like, as - he expressed it, - "two great white sea-
monsters."  During these excursions of ours to the bottom of the
sea, we began to get an insight into the manners and customs of its
inhabitants, and to make discoveries of wonderful things, the like
of which we never before conceived.  Among other things, we were
deeply interested with the operations of the little coral insect
which, I was informed by Jack, is supposed to have entirely
constructed many of the numerous islands in Pacific Ocean.  And,
certainly, when we considered the great reef which these insects
had formed round the island on which we were cast, and observed
their ceaseless activity in building their myriad cells, it did at
first seem as if this might be true; but then, again, when I looked
at the mountains of the island, and reflected that there were
thousands of such, many of them much higher, in the South Seas, I
doubted that there must be some mistake here.  But more of this
hereafter.

I also became much taken up with the manners and appearance of the
anemones, and star-fish, and crabs, and sea-urchins, and such-like
creatures; and was not content with watching those I saw during my
dives in the Water Garden, but I must needs scoop out a hole in the
coral rock close to it, which I filled with salt water, and stocked
with sundry specimens of anemones and shell-fish, in order to watch
more closely how they were in the habit of passing their time.  Our
burning-glass also now became a great treasure to me, as it enabled
me to magnify, and so to perceive more clearly the forms and
actions of these curious creatures of the deep.

Having now got ourselves into a very comfortable condition, we
began to talk of a project which we had long had in contemplation,
- namely, to travel entirely round the island; in order, first, to
ascertain whether it contained any other productions which might be
useful to us; and, second, to see whether there might be any place
more convenient and suitable for our permanent residence than that
on which we were now encamped.  Not that we were in any degree
dissatisfied with it; on the contrary, we entertained quite a home-
feeling to our bower and its neighbourhood; but if a better place
did exist, there was no reason why we should not make use of it.
At any rate, it would be well to know of its existence.

We had much earnest talk over this matter.  But Jack proposed that,
before undertaking such an excursion, we should supply ourselves
with good defensive arms, for, as we intended not only to go round
all the shore, but to ascend most of the valleys, before returning
home, we should be likely to meet in with, he would not say
dangers, but, at least, with everything that existed on the island,
whatever that might be.

"Besides," said Jack, "it won't do for us to live on cocoa-nuts and
oysters always.  No doubt they are very excellent in their way, but
I think a little animal food, now and then, would be agreeable as
well as good for us; and as there are many small birds among the
trees, some of which are probably very good to eat, I think it
would be a capital plan to make bows and arrows, with which we
could easily knock them over."

"First rate!" cried Peterkin.  "You will make the bows, Jack, and
I'll try my hand at the arrows.  The fact is, I'm quite tired of
throwing stones at the birds.  I began the very day we landed, I
think, and have persevered up to the present time, but I've never
hit anything yet."

"You forget," said I, "you hit me one day on the shin."

"Ah, true," replied Peterkin, "and a precious shindy you kicked up
in consequence.  But you were at least four yards away from the
impudent paroquet I aimed at; so you see what a horribly bad shot I
am."

"But," said I, "Jack, you cannot make three bows and arrows before
to-morrow, and would it not be a pity to waste time, now that we
have made up our minds to go on this expedition?  Suppose that you
make one bow and arrow for yourself, and we can take our clubs?"

"That's true, Ralph.  The day is pretty far advanced, and I doubt
if I can make even one bow before dark.  To be sure I might work by
fire-light, after the sun goes down."

We had, up to this time, been in the habit of going to bed with the
sun, as we had no pressing call to work o' nights; and, indeed, our
work during the day was usually hard enough, - what between
fishing, and improving our bower, and diving in the Water Garden,
and rambling in the woods; so that, when night came, we were
usually very glad to retire to our beds.  But now that we had a
desire to work at night, we felt a wish for candles.

"Won't a good blazing fire give you light enough?" inquired
Peterkin.

"Yes," replied Jack, "quite enough; but then it will give us a
great deal more than enough of heat in this warm climate of ours."

"True," said Peterkin; "I forgot that.  It would roast us."

"Well, as you're always doing that at any rate," remarked Jack, "we
could scarcely call it a change.  But the fact is, I've been
thinking over this subject before.  There is a certain nut growing
in these islands which is called the candle-nut, because the
natives use it instead of candles, and I know all about it, and how
to prepare it for burning - "

"Then why don't you do it?" interrupted Peterkin.  "Why have you
kept us in the dark so long, you vile philosopher?"

"Because," said Jack, "I have not seen the tree yet, and I'm not
sure that I should know either the tree or the nuts if I did see
them.  You see, I forget the description."

"Ah! that's just the way with me," said Peterkin with a deep sigh.
"I never could keep in my mind for half an hour the few
descriptions I ever attempted to remember.  The very first voyage I
ever made was caused by my mistaking a description, or forgetting
it, which is the same thing.  And a horrible voyage it was.  I had
to fight with the captain the whole way out, and made the homeward
voyage by swimming!"

"Come, Peterkin," said I, "you can't get even ME to believe that."

"Perhaps not, but it's true, notwithstanding," returned Peterkin,
pretending to be hurt at my doubting his word.

"Let us hear how it happened," said Jack, while a good-natured
smile overspread his face.

"Well, you must know," began Peterkin, "that the very day before I
went to sea, I was greatly taken up with a game at hockey, which I
was playing with my old school-fellows for the last time before
leaving them.  You see I was young then, Ralph."  Peterkin gazed,
in an abstracted and melancholy manner, out to sea!  "Well, in the
midst of the game, my uncle, who had taken all the bother and
trouble of getting me bound 'prentice and rigged out, came and took
me aside, and told me that he was called suddenly away from home,
and would not be able to see me aboard, as he had intended.
'However,' said he, 'the captain knows you are coming, so that's
not of much consequence; but as you'll have to find the ship
yourself, you must remember her name and description.  D'ye hear,
boy?'  I certainly did hear, but I'm afraid I did not understand,
for my mind was so taken up with the game, which I saw my side was
losing, that I began to grow impatient, and the moment my uncle
finished his description of the ship, and bade me good-bye, I
bolted back to my game, with only a confused idea of three masts,
and a green painted tafferel, and a gilt figure-head of Hercules
with his club at the bow.  Next day I was so much cast down with
everybody saying good-bye, and a lot o' my female friends cryin'
horribly over me, that I did not start for the harbour, where the
ship was lying among a thousand others, till it was almost too
late.  So I had to run the whole way.  When I reached the pier,
there were so many masts, and so much confusion, that I felt quite
humblebumbled in my faculties.  'Now,' said I to myself, 'Peterkin,
you're in a fix.'  Then I fancied I saw a gilt figure-head and
three masts, belonging to a ship just about to start; so I darted
on board, but speedily jumped on shore again, when I found that two
of the masts belonged to another vessel, and the figurehead to a
third!  At last I caught sight of what I made sure was it, - a fine
large vessel just casting off her moorings.  The tafferel was
green.  Three masts, - yes, that must be it, - and the gilt figure-
head of Hercules.  To be sure it had a three-pronged pitchfork in
its hand instead of a club; but that might be my uncle's mistake;
or perhaps Hercules sometimes varied his weapons.  'Cast off!'
roared a voice from the quarter-deck.  'Hold on!' cried I, rushing
frantically through the crowd.  'Hold on! hold on!' repeated some
of the bystanders, while the men at the ropes delayed for a minute.
This threw the captain into a frightful rage; for some of his
friends had come down to see him off, and having his orders
contradicted so flatly was too much for him.  However, the delay
was sufficient.  I took a race and a good leap; the ropes were cast
off; the steam-tug gave a puff, and we started.  Suddenly the
captain was up to me:  'Where did you come from, you scamp, and
what do you want here?'

"'Please, sir,' said I, touching my cap, 'I'm you're new 'prentice
come aboard.'

"'New 'Prentice,' said he, stamping, 'I've got no new 'prentice.
My boys are all aboard already.  This is a trick, you young
blackguard.  You've run away, you have;' and the captain stamped
about the deck and swore dreadfully; for, you see, the thought of
having to stop the ship and lower a boat and lose half an hour, all
for the slake of sending a small boy ashore, seemed to make him
very angry.  Besides, it was blowin' fresh outside the harbour, so
that, to have let the steamer alongside to put me into it was no
easy job.  Just as we were passing the pier-head, where several
boats were rowing into harbour, the captain came up to me, -

"'You've run away, you blackguard,' he said, giving me a box on the
ear.

"'No I haven't,' said I, angrily; for the box was by no means a
light one.

"Hark'ee, boy, can you swim?'

"'Yes,' said I.

"'Then do it,' and, seizing me by my trousers and the nape of my
neck, he tossed me over the side into the sea.  The fellows in the
boats at the end of the pier, backed their oars on seeing this; but
observing that I could swim, they allowed me to make the best of my
way to the pier-head.  So, you see, Ralph, that I really did swim
my first homeward voyage."

Jack laughed and patted Peterkin on the shoulder.  "But tell us
about the candle-nut tree," said I; "you were talking about it."

"Very true," said Jack, "but I fear I can remember little about it.
I believe the nut is about the size of a walnut; and I think that
the leaves are white, but I am not sure."

"Eh! ha! hum!" exclaimed Peterkin, "I saw a tree answering to that
description this very day."

"Did you?" cried Jack.  "Is it far from this?"

"No, not half a mile."

"Then lead me to it," said Jack, seizing his axe.

In a few minutes we were all three pushing through the underwood of
the forest, headed by Peterkin.

We soon came to the tree in question, which, after Jack had closely
examined it, we concluded must be the candle-nut tree.  Its leaves
were of a beautiful silvery white, and formed a fine contrast to
the dark-green foliage of the surrounding trees.  We immediately
filled our pockets with the nuts, after which Jack said, -

"Now, Peterkin, climb that cocoa-nut tree and cut me one of the
long branches."

This was soon done, but it cost some trouble, for the stem was very
high, and as Peterkin usually pulled nuts from the younger trees,
he was not much accustomed to climbing the high ones.  The leaf or
branch was a very large one, and we were surprised at its size and
strength.  Viewed from a little distance, the cocoa-nut tree seems
to be a tall, straight stem, without a single branch except at the
top, where there is a tuft of feathery-looking leaves, that seem to
wave like soft plumes in the wind.  But when we saw one of these
leaves or branches at our feet, we found it to be a strong stalk,
about fifteen feet long, with a number of narrow, pointed leaflets
ranged alternately on each side.  But what seemed to us the most
wonderful thing about it was a curious substance resembling cloth,
which was wrapped round the thick end of the stalk, where it had
been cut from the tree.  Peterkin told us that he had the greatest
difficulty in separating the branch from the stem, on account of
this substance, as it was wrapped quite round the tree, and, he
observed, round all the other branches, thus forming a strong
support to the large leaves while exposed to high winds.  When I
call this substance cloth I do not exaggerate.  Indeed, with regard
to all the things I saw during my eventful career in the South
Seas, I have been exceedingly careful not to exaggerate, or in any
way to mislead or deceive my readers.  This cloth, I say, was
remarkably like to coarse brown cotton cloth.  It had a seam or
fibre down the centre of it, from which diverged other fibres,
about the size of a bristle.  There were two layers of these
fibres, very long and tough, the one layer crossing the other
obliquely, and the whole was cemented together with a still finer
fibrous and adhesive substance.  When we regarded it attentively,
we could with difficulty believe that it had not been woven by
human hands.  This remarkable piece of cloth we stripped carefully
off, and found it to be above two feet long, by a foot broad, and
we carried it home with us as a great prize.

Jack now took one of the leaflets, and, cutting out the central
spine or stalk, hurried back with it to our camp.  Having made a
small fire, he baked the nuts slightly, and then pealed off the
husks.  After this he wished to bore a hole in them, which, not
having anything better at hand at the time, he did with the point
of our useless pencil-case.  Then he strung them on the cocoa-nut
spine, and on putting a light to the topmost nut, we found to our
joy that it burned with a clear, beautiful flame; upon seeing
which, Peterkin sprang up and danced round the fire for at least
five minutes in the excess of his satisfaction.

"Now lads," said Jack, extinguishing our candle, the sun will set
in an hour, so we have no time to lose.  "I shall go and cut a
young tree to make my bow out of, and you had better each of you go
and select good strong sticks for clubs, and we'll set to work at
them after dark."

So saying he shouldered his axe and went off, followed by Peterkin,
while I took up the piece of newly discovered cloth, and fell to
examining its structure.  So engrossed was I in this that I was
still sitting in the same attitude and occupation when my
companions returned.

"I told you so!" cried Peterkin, with a loud laugh.  "Oh, Ralph,
you're incorrigible.  See, there's a club for you.  I was sure,
when we left you looking at that bit of stuff, that we would find
you poring over it when we came back, so I just cut a club for you
as well as for myself."

"Thank you, Peterkin," said I.  "It was kind of you to do that,
instead of scolding me for a lazy fellow, as I confess I deserve."

"Oh! as to that," returned Peterkin, "I'll blow you up yet, if you
wish it - only it would be of no use if I did, for you're a perfect
mule!"

As it was now getting dark we lighted our candle, and placing it in
a holder made of two crossing branches, inside of our bower, we
seated ourselves on our leafy beds and began to work.

"I intend to appropriate the bow for my own use," said Jack,
chipping the piece of wood he had brought with his axe.  "I used to
be a pretty fair shot once.  But what's that you're doing?" he
added, looking at Peterkin, who had drawn the end of a long pole
into the tent, and was endeavouring to fit a small piece of the
hoop-iron to the end of it.

"I'm going to enlist into the Lancers," answered Peterkin.  "You
see, Jack, I find the club rather an unwieldy instrument for my
delicately-formed muscles, and I flatter myself I shall do more
execution with a spear."

"Well, if length constitutes power," said Jack, "you'll certainly
be invincible."

The pole which Peterkin had cut was full twelve feet long, being a
very strong but light and tough young tree, which merely required
thinning at the butt to be a serviceable weapon.

"That's a very good idea," said I.

"Which - this?" inquired Peterkin, pointing to the spear.

"Yes;" I replied.

"Humph!" said he; "you'd find it a pretty tough and matter-of-fact
idea, if you had it stuck through your gizzard, old boy!"

"I mean the idea of making it is a good one," said I, laughing.
"And, now I think of it, I'll change my plan, too.  I don't think
much of a club, so I'll make me a sling out of this piece of cloth.
I used to be very fond of slinging, ever since I read of David
slaying Goliath the Philistine, and I was once thought to be expert
at it."

So I set to work to manufacture a sling.  For a long time we all
worked very busily without speaking.  At length Peterkin looked up:
"I say, Jack, I'm sorry to say I must apply to you for another
strip of your handkerchief, to tie on this rascally head with.
It's pretty well torn at any rate, so you won't miss it."

Jack proceeded to comply with this request when Peterkin suddenly
laid his hand on his arm and arrested him.

"Hist, man," said he, "be tender; you should never be needlessly
cruel if you can help it.  Do try to shave past Lord Nelson's mouth
without tearing it, if possible!  Thanks.  There are plenty more
handkerchiefs on the cocoa-nut trees."

Poor Peterkin! with what pleasant feelings I recall and record his
jests and humorous sayings now!

While we were thus engaged, we were startled by a distant but most
strange and horrible cry.  It seemed to come from the sea, but was
so far away that we could not clearly distinguish its precise
direction.  Rushing out of our bower, we hastened down to the beach
and stayed to listen.  Again it came quite loud and distinct on the
night air, - a prolonged, hideous cry, something like the braying
of an ass.  The moon had risen, and we could see the islands in and
beyond the lagoon quite plainly, but there was no object visible to
account for such a cry.  A strong gust of wind was blowing from the
point whence the sound came, but this died away while we were
gazing out to sea.

"What can it be?" said Peterkin, in a low whisper, while we all
involuntarily crept closer to each other.

"Do you know," said Jack, "I have heard that mysterious sound twice
before, but never so loud as to-night.  Indeed it was so faint that
I thought I must have merely fancied it, so, as I did not wish to
alarm you, I said nothing about it."

We listened for a long time for the sound again, but as it did not
come, we returned to the bower and resumed our work.

"Very strange," said Peterkin, quite gravely.  "Do you believe in
ghosts, Ralph?"

"No," I answered, "I do not.  Nevertheless I must confess that
strange, unaccountable sounds, such as we have just heard, make me
feel a little uneasy."

"What say you to it, Jack?"

"I neither believe in ghosts nor feel uneasy," he replied.  "I
never saw a ghost myself, and I never met with any one who had; and
I have generally found that strange and unaccountable things have
almost always been accounted for, and found to be quite simple, on
close examination.  I certainly can't imagine what THAT sound is;
but I'm quite sure I shall find out before long, - and if it's a
ghost I'll - "

"Eat it," cried Peterkin.

"Yes, I'll eat it!  Now, then, my bow and two arrows are finished;
so if you're ready we had better turn in."

By this time Peterkin had thinned down his spear and tied an iron
point very cleverly to the end of it; I had formed a sling, the
lines of which were composed of thin strips of the cocoa-nut cloth,
plaited; and Jack had made a stout bow, nearly five feet long, with
two arrows, feathered with two or three large plumes which some
bird had dropt.  They had no barbs, but Jack said that if arrows
were well feathered, they did not require iron points, but would
fly quite well if merely sharpened at the point; which I did not
know before.

"A feathered arrow without a barb," said he, "is a good weapon, but
a barbed arrow without feathers is utterly useless."

The string of the bow was formed of our piece of whip-cord, part of
which, as he did not like to cut it, was rolled round the bow.

Although thus prepared for a start on the morrow, we thought it
wise to exercise ourselves a little in the use of our weapons
before starting, so we spent the whole of the next day in
practising.  And it was well we did so, for we found that our arms
were very imperfect, and that we were far from perfect in the use
of them.  First, Jack found that the bow was much too strong, and
he had to thin it.  Also the spear was much too heavy, and so had
to be reduced in thickness, although nothing would induce Peterkin
to have it shortened.  My sling answered very well, but I had
fallen so much out of practice that my first stone knocked off
Peterkin's hat, and narrowly missed making a second Goliath of him.
However, after having spent the whole day in diligent practice, we
began to find some of our former expertness returning - at least
Jack and I did.  As for Peterkin, being naturally a neat-handed
boy, he soon handled his spear well, and could run full tilt at a
cocoa nut, and hit it with great precision once out of every five
times.

But I feel satisfied that we owed much of our rapid success to the
unflagging energy of Jack, who insisted that, since we had made him
Captain, we should obey him; and he kept us at work from morning
till night, perseveringly, at the same thing.  Peterkin wished very
much to run about and stick his spear into everything he passed;
but Jack put up a cocoa nut, and would not let him leave off
running at that for a moment, except when he wanted to rest.  We
laughed at Jack for this, but we were both convinced that it did us
much good.

That night we examined and repaired our arms ere we lay down to
rest, although we were much fatigued, in order that we might be in
readiness to set out on our expedition at daylight on the following
morning.



CHAPTER IX.



Prepare for a journey round the island - Sagacious reflections -
Mysterious appearances and startling occurrences.


SCARCELY had the sun shot its first ray across the bosom of the
broad Pacific, when Jack sprang to his feet, and, hallooing in
Peterkin's ear to awaken him, ran down the beach to take his
customary dip in the sea.  We did not, as was our wont, bathe that
morning in our Water Garden, but, in order to save time, refreshed
ourselves in the shallow water just opposite the bower.  Our
breakfast was also despatched without loss of time, and in less
than an hour afterwards all our preparations for the journey were
completed.

In addition to his ordinary dress, Jack tied a belt of cocoa-nut
cloth round his waist, into which he thrust the axe.  I was also
advised to put on a belt and carry a short cudgel or bludgeon in
it; for, as Jack truly remarked, the sling would be of little use
if we should chance to come to close quarters with any wild animal.
As for Peterkin, notwithstanding that he carried such a long, and I
must add, frightful-looking spear over his shoulder, we could not
prevail on him to leave his club behind; "for," said he, "a spear
at close quarters is not worth a button."  I must say that it
seemed to me that the club was, to use his own style of language,
not worth a button-hole; for it was all knotted over at the head,
something like the club which I remember to have observed in
picture-books of Jack the Giant Killer, besides being so heavy that
he required to grasp it with both hands in order to wield it at
all.  However, he took it with him, and, in this manner we set out
upon our travels.

We did not consider it necessary to carry any food with us, as we
knew that wherever we went we should be certain to fall in with
cocoa-nut trees; having which, we were amply supplied, as Peterkin
said, with meat and drink and pocket-handkerchiefs!  I took the
precaution, however, to put the burning-glass into my pocket, lest
we should want fire.

The morning was exceeding lovely.  It was one of that very still
and peaceful sort which made the few noises that we heard seem to
be QUIET noises.  I know no other way of expressing this idea.
Noises which so far from interrupting the universal tranquillity of
earth, sea, and sky - rather tended to reveal to us how quiet the
world around us really was.  Such sounds as I refer to were, the
peculiarly melancholy - yet, it seemed to me, cheerful - plaint of
sea-birds floating on the glassy water, or sailing in the sky, also
the subdued twittering of little birds among the bushes, the faint
ripples on the beach, and the solemn boom of the surf upon the
distant coral reef.  We felt very glad in our hearts as we walked
along the sands side by side.  For my part, I felt so deeply
overjoyed, that I was surprised at my own sensations, and fell into
a reverie upon the causes of happiness.  I came to the conclusion
that a state of profound peace and repose, both in regard to
outward objects and within the soul, is the happiest condition in
which man can be placed; for, although I had many a time been most
joyful and happy when engaged in bustling, energetic, active
pursuits or amusements, I never found that such joy or satisfaction
was so deep or so pleasant to reflect upon as that which I now
experienced.  And I was the more confirmed in this opinion when I
observed, and, indeed, was told by himself, that Peterkin's
happiness was also very great; yet he did not express this by
dancing, as was his wont, nor did he give so much as a single
shout, but walked quietly between us with his eye sparkling, and a
joyful smile upon his countenance.  My reader must not suppose that
I thought all this in the clear and methodical manner in which I
have set it down here.  These thoughts did, indeed, pass through my
mind, but they did so in a very confused and indefinite manner, for
I was young at that time, and not much given to deep reflections.
Neither did I consider that the peace whereof I write is not to be
found in this world - at least in its perfection, although I have
since learned that by religion a man may attain to a very great
degree of it.

I have said that Peterkin walked along the sands between us.  We
had two ways of walking together about our island.  When we
travelled through the woods, we always did so in single file, as by
this method we advanced with greater facility, the one treading in
the other's footsteps.  In such cases Jack always took the lead,
Peterkin followed, and I brought up the rear.  But when we
travelled along the sands, which extended almost in an unbroken
line of glistening white round the island, we marched abreast, as
we found this method more sociable, and every way more pleasant.
Jack, being the tallest, walked next the sea, and Peterkin marched
between us, as by this arrangement either of us could talk to him
or he to us, while if Jack and I happened to wish to converse
together, we could conveniently do so over Peterkin's head.
Peterkin used to say, in reference to this arrangement, that had he
been as tall as either of us, our order of march might have been
the same, for, as Jack often used to scold him for letting
everything we said to him pass in at one ear and out at the other,
his head could of course form no interruption to our discourse.

We were now fairly started.  Half a mile's walk conveyed us round a
bend in the land which shut out our bower from view, and for some
time we advanced at a brisk pace without speaking, though our eyes
were not idle, but noted everything, in the woods, on the shore, or
in the sea, that was interesting.  After passing the ridge of land
that formed one side of our valley - the Valley of the Wreck - we
beheld another small vale lying before us in all the luxuriant
loveliness of tropical vegetation.  We had, indeed, seen it before
from the mountain-top, but we had no idea that it would turn out to
be so much more lovely when we were close to it.  We were about to
commence the exploration of this valley, when Peterkin stopped us,
and directed our attention to a very remarkable appearance in
advance along the shore.

"What's yon, think you?" said he, levelling his spear, as if he
expected an immediate attack from the object in question, though it
was full half a mile distant.

As he spoke, there appeared a white column above the rocks, as if
of steam or spray.  It rose upwards to a height of several feet,
and then disappeared.  Had this been near the sea, we would not
have been so greatly surprised, as it might in that case have been
the surf, for at this part of the coast the coral reef approached
so near to the island that in some parts it almost joined it.
There was therefore no lagoon between, and the heavy surf of the
ocean beat almost up to the rocks.  But this white column appeared
about fifty yards inland.  The rocks at the place were rugged, and
they stretched across the sandy beach into the sea.  Scarce had we
ceased expressing our surprise at this sight, when another column
flew upwards for a few seconds, not far from the spot where the
first had been seen, and disappeared; and so, at long irregular
intervals, these strange sights recurred.  We were now quite sure
that the columns were watery or composed of spray, but what caused
them we could not guess, so we determined to go and see.

In a few minutes we gained the spot, which was very rugged and
precipitous, and, moreover, quite damp with the falling of the
spray.  We had much ado to pass over dry-shod.  The ground also was
full of holes here and there.  Now, while we stood anxiously
waiting for the re-appearance of these water-spouts, we heard a
low, rumbling sound near us, which quickly increased to a gargling
and hissing noise, and a moment afterwards a thick spout of water
burst upwards from a hole in the rock, and spouted into the air
with much violence, and so close to where Jack and I were standing
that it nearly touched us.  We sprang to one side, but not before a
cloud of spray descended, and drenched us both to the skin.

Peterkin, who was standing farther off, escaped with a few drops,
and burst into an uncontrollable fit of laughter on beholding our
miserable plight.

"Mind your eye!" he shouted eagerly, "there goes another!"  The
words were scarcely out of his mouth when there came up a spout
from another hole, which served us exactly in the same manner as
before.

Peterkin now shrieked with laughter; but his merriment was abruptly
put a stop to by the gurgling noise occurring close to where he
stood.

"Where'll it spout this time, I wonder?" he said, looking about
with some anxiety, and preparing to run.  Suddenly there came a
loud hiss or snort; a fierce spout of water burst up between
Peterkin's legs, blew him off his feet, enveloped him in its spray,
and hurled him to the ground.  He fell with so much violence that
we feared he must have broken some of his bones, and ran anxiously
to his assistance; but fortunately he had fallen on a clump of
tangled herbage, in which he lay sprawling in a most deplorable
condition.

It was now our turn to laugh; but as we were not yet quite sure
that he was unhurt, and as we knew not when or where the next spout
might arise, we assisted him hastily to jump up and hurry from the
spot.

I may here add, that although I am quite certain that the spout of
water was very strong, and that it blew Peterkin completely off his
legs, I am not quite certain of the exact height to which it lifted
him, being somewhat startled by the event, and blinded partially by
the spray, so that my power of observation was somewhat impaired
for the moment.

"What's to be done now?" inquired Peterkin ruefully.

"Make a fire, lad, and dry ourselves," replied Jack.

"And here is material ready to our hand," said I, picking up a
dried branch of a tree, as we hurried up to the woods.

In about an hour after this mishap our clothes were again dried.
While they were hanging up before the fire, we walked down to the
beach, and soon observed that these curious spouts took place
immediately after the fall of a huge wave, never before it; and,
moreover, that the spouts did not take place excepting when the
billow was an extremely large one.  From this we concluded that
there must be a subterraneous channel in the rock into which the
water was driven by the larger waves, and finding no way of escape
except through these small holes, was thus forced up violently
through them.  At any rate, we could not conceive any other reason
for these strange water-spouts, and as this seemed a very simple
and probable one, we forthwith adopted it.

"I say, Ralph, what's that in the water? is it a shark?" said Jack,
just as we were about to quit the place.

I immediately ran to the overhanging ledge of rock, from which he
was looking down into the sea, and bent over it.  There I saw a
very faint pale object of a greenish colour, which seemed to move
slightly while I looked at it.

"It's like a fish of some sort," said I.

"Hallo, Peterkin!" cried Jack, "fetch your spear; here's work for
it."

But when we tried to reach the object, the spear proved to be too
short.

"There, now," said Peterkin with a sneer, "you were always telling
me it was too long."

Jack now drove the spear forcibly towards the object, and let go
his hold; but, although it seemed to be well aimed, he must have
missed, for the handle soon rose again; and when the spear was
drawn up, there was the pale green object in exactly the same spot,
slowly moving its tail.

"Very odd," said Jack.

But although it was undoubtedly very odd, and, although Jack and
all of us plunged the spear at it repeatedly, we could neither hit
it nor drive it away, so we were compelled to continue our journey
without discovering what it was.  I was very much perplexed at this
strange appearance in the water, and could not get it out of my
mind for a long time afterwards.  However, I quieted myself by
resolving that I would pay a visit to it again at some more
convenient season.



CHAPTER X.



Make discovery of many excellent roots and fruits - The resources
of the Coral Island gradually unfolded - The banian-tree - Another
tree which is supported by natural planks - Water-fowl found - A
very remarkable discovery, and a very peculiar murder - We
luxuriate on the fat of the land.


OUR examination of the little valley proved to be altogether most
satisfactory.  We found in it not only similar trees to those we
had already seen in our own valley, but also one or two others of a
different species.  We had also the satisfaction of discovering a
peculiar vegetable, which Jack concluded must certainly be that of
which he had read as being very common among the South Sea
islanders, and which was named TARO.  Also we found a large supply
of yams, and another root like a potato in appearance.  As these
were all quite new to us, we regarded our lot as a most fortunate
one, in being thus cast on an island which was so prolific and so
well stored with all the necessaries of life.  Long afterwards we
found out that this island of ours was no better in these respects
than thousands of other islands in those seas.  Indeed, many of
them were much richer and more productive; but that did not render
us the less grateful for our present good fortune.  We each put one
of these roots in our pocket, intending to use them for our supper;
of which more hereafter.  We also saw many beautiful birds here,
and traces of some four-footed animal again.  Meanwhile the sun
began to descend, so we returned to the shore, and pushed on round
the spouting rocks into the next valley.  This was that valley of
which I have spoken as running across the entire island.  It was by
far the largest and most beautiful that we had yet looked upon.
Here were trees of every shape and size and hue which it is
possible to conceive of, many of which we had not seen in the other
valleys; for, the stream in this valley being larger, and the mould
much richer than in the Valley of the Wreck, it was clothed with a
more luxuriant growth of trees and plants.  Some trees were dark
glossy green, others of a rich and warm hue, contrasting well with
those of a pale light green, which were everywhere abundant.  Among
these we recognised the broad dark heads of the bread-fruit, with
its golden fruit; the pure, silvery foliage of the candle-nut, and
several species which bore a strong resemblance to the pine; while
here and there, in groups and in single trees, rose the tall forms
of the cocoa-nut palms, spreading abroad, and waving their graceful
plumes high above all the rest, as if they were a superior race of
stately giants keeping guard over these luxuriant forests.  Oh! it
was a most enchanting scene, and I thanked God for having created
such delightful spots for the use of man.

Now, while we were gazing around us in silent admiration, Jack
uttered an exclamation of surprise, and, pointing to an object a
little to one side of us, said, -

"That's a banian-tree."

"And what's a banian-tree?" inquired Peterkin, as we walked towards
it.

"A very curious one, as you shall see presently," replied Jack.
"It is called the AOA here, if I recollect rightly, and has a
wonderful peculiarity about it.  What an enormous one it is, to be
sure."

"IT!" repeated Peterkin; "why, there are dozens of banians here!
What do you mean by talking bad grammar?  Is your philosophy
deserting you, Jack?"

"There is but one tree here of this kind," returned Jack, "as you
will perceive if you will examine it."  And, sure enough, we did
find that what we had supposed was a forest of trees was in reality
only one.  Its bark was of a light colour, and had a shining
appearance, the leaves being lance-shaped, small, and of a
beautiful pea-green.  But the wonderful thing about it was, that
the branches, which grew out from the stem horizontally, sent down
long shoots or fibres to the ground, which, taking root, had
themselves become trees, and were covered with bark like the tree
itself.  Many of these fibres had descended from the branches at
various distances, and thus supported them on natural pillars, some
of which were so large and strong, that it was not easy at first to
distinguish the offspring from the parent stem.  The fibres were of
all sizes and in all states of advancement, from the pillars we
have just mentioned to small cords which hung down and were about
to take root, and thin brown threads still far from the ground,
which swayed about with every motion of wind.  In short, it seemed
to us that, if there were only space afforded to it, this single
tree would at length cover the whole island.

Shortly after this we came upon another remarkable tree, which, as
its peculiar formation afterwards proved extremely useful to us,
merits description.  It was a splendid chestnut, but its proper
name Jack did not know.  However, there were quantities of fine
nuts upon it, some of which we put in our pockets.  But its stem
was the wonderful part of it.  It rose to about twelve feet without
a branch, and was not of great thickness; on the contrary, it was
remarkably slender for the size of the tree; but, to make up for
this, there were four or five wonderful projections in this stem,
which I cannot better describe than by asking the reader to suppose
that five planks of two inches thick and three feet broad had been
placed round the trunk of the tree, with their EDGES closely fixed
to it, from the ground up to the branches, and that these planks
bad been covered over with the bark of the tree and incorporated
with it.  In short, they were just natural buttresses, without
which the stem could not have supported its heavy and umbrageous
top.  We found these chestnuts to be very numerous.  They grew
chiefly on the banks of the stream, and were of all sizes.

While we were examining a small tree of this kind, Jack chipped a
piece off a buttress with his axe, and found the wood to be firm
and easily cut.  He then struck the axe into it with all his force,
and very soon split it off close to the tree, first, however,
having cut it across transversely above and below.  By this means
he satisfied himself that we could now obtain short planks, as it
were all ready sawn, of any size and thickness that we desired;
which was a very great discovery indeed, perhaps the most important
we had yet made.

We now wended our way back to the coast, intending to encamp near
the beach, as we found that the mosquitoes were troublesome in the
forest.  On our way we could not help admiring the birds which flew
and chirped around us.  Among them we observed a pretty kind of
paroquet, with a green body, a blue head, and a red breast; also a
few beautiful turtledoves, and several flocks of wood-pigeons.  The
hues of many of these birds were extremely vivid, - bright green,
blue, and scarlet, being the prevailing tints.  We made several
attempts throughout the day to bring down one of these, both with
the bow and the sling, - not for mere sport, but to ascertain
whether they were good for food.  But we invariably missed,
although once or twice we were very near hitting.  As evening drew
on, however, a flock of pigeons flew past.  I slung a stone into
the midst of them at a venture, and had the good fortune to kill
one.  We were startled, soon after, by a loud whistling noise above
our heads; and on looking up, saw a flock of wild ducks making for
the coast.  We watched these, and, observing where they alighted,
followed them up until we came upon a most lovely blue lake, not
more than two hundred yards long, imbosomed in verdant trees.  Its
placid surface, which reflected every leaf and stem, as if in a
mirror, was covered with various species of wild ducks, feeding
among the sedges and broad-leaved water-plants which floated on it,
while numerous birds like water-hens ran to and fro most busily on
its margin.  These all with one accord flew tumultuously away the
instant we made our appearance.  While walking along the margin we
observed fish in the water, but of what sort we could not tell.

Now, as we neared the shore, Jack and I said we would go a little
out of our way to see if we could procure one of those ducks; so,
directing Peterkin to go straight to the shore and kindle a fire,
we separated, promising to rejoin him speedily.  But we did not
find the ducks, although we made a diligent search for half an
hour.  We were about to retrace our steps, when we were arrested by
one of the strangest sights that we had yet beheld.

Just in front of us, at the distance of about ten yards, grew a
superb tree, which certainly was the largest we had yet seen on the
island.  Its trunk was at least five feet in diameter, with a
smooth gray bark; above this the spreading branches were clothed
with light green leaves, amid which were clusters of bright yellow
fruit, so numerous as to weigh down the boughs with their great
weight.  This fruit seemed to be of the plum species, of an oblong
form, and a good deal larger than the magnum bonum plum.  The
ground at the foot of this tree was thickly strewn with the fallen
fruit, in the midst of which lay sleeping, in every possible
attitude, at least twenty hogs of all ages and sizes, apparently
quite surfeited with a recent banquet.

Jack and I could scarce restrain our laughter as we gazed at these
coarse, fat, ill-looking animals, while they lay groaning and
snoring heavily amid the remains of their supper.

"Now, Ralph," said Jack, in a low whisper, "put a stone in your
sling, - a good big one, - and let fly at that fat fellow with his
back toward you.  I'll try to put an arrow into yon little pig."

"Don't you think we had better put them up first?" I whispered; "it
seems cruel to kill them while asleep."

"If I wanted SPORT, Ralph, I would certainly set them up; but as we
only want PORK, we'll let them lie.  Besides, we're not sure of
killing them; so, fire away."

Thus admonished, I slung my stone with so good aim that it went
bang against the hog's flank as if against the head of a drum; but
it had no other effect than that of causing the animal to start to
its feet, with a frightful yell of surprise, and scamper away.  At
the same instant Jack's bow twanged, and the arrow pinned the
little pig to the ground by the ear.

"I've missed, after all," cried Jack, darting forward with uplifted
axe, while the little pig uttered a loud squeal, tore the arrow
from the ground, and ran away with it, along with the whole drove,
into the bushes and disappeared, though we heard them screaming
long afterwards in the distance.

"That's very provoking, now," said Jack, rubbing the point of his
nose.

"Very," I replied, stroking my chin.

"Well, we must make haste and rejoin Peterkin," said Jack.  "It's
getting late."  And, without further remark, we threaded our way
quickly through the woods towards the shore.

When we reached it, we found wood laid out, the fire lighted and
beginning to kindle up, with other signs of preparation for our
encampment, but Peterkin was nowhere to be found.  We wondered very
much at this; but Jack suggested that he might have gone to fetch
water; so he gave a shout to let him know that we had arrived, and
sat down upon a rock, while I threw off my jacket and seized the
axe, intending to split up one or two billets of wood.  But I had
scarce moved from the spot when, in the distance, we heard a most
appalling shriek, which was followed up by a chorus of yells from
the hogs, and a loud "hurrah!"

"I do believe," said I, "that Peterkin has met with the hogs."

"When Greek meets Greek," said Jack, soliloquizing, "then comes the
tug of - "

"Hurrah!" shouted Peterkin in the distance.

We turned hastily towards the direction whence the sound came, and
soon descried Peterkin walking along the beach towards us with a
little pig transfixed on the end of his long spear!

"Well done, my boy!" exclaimed Jack, slapping him on the shoulder
when he came up, "you're the best shot amongst us."

"Look here Jack!" cried Peterkin, as he disengaged the animal from
his spear.  "Do you recognise that hole?" said he, pointing to the
pig's ear; "and are you familiar with this arrow, eh?"

"Well, I declare!" said Jack.

"Of course you do," interrupted Peterkin; "but, pray, restrain your
declarations at this time, and let's have supper, for I'm
uncommonly hungry, I can tell you; and it's no joke to charge a
whole herd of swine with their great-grandmother bristling like a
giant porcupine at the head of them!"

We now set about preparing supper; and, truly, a good display of
viands we made, when all was laid out on a flat rock in the light
of the blazing fire.  There was, first of all, the little pig; then
there was the taro-root, and the yam, and the potato, and six
plums; and, lastly, the wood-pigeon.  To these Peterkin added a bit
of sugar-cane, which he had cut from a little patch of that plant
which he had found not long after separating from us; "and," said
he, "the patch was somewhat in a square form, which convinces me it
must have been planted by man."

"Very likely," replied Jack.  "From all we have seen, I'm inclined
to think that some of the savages must have dwelt here long ago."

We found no small difficulty in making up our minds how we were to
cook the pig.  None of us had ever cut up one before, and we did
not know exactly how to begin; besides, we had nothing but the axe
to do it with, our knife having been forgotten.  At last Jack
started up and said, -

"Don't let us waste more time talking about it, boys.  Hold it up,
Peterkin.  There, lay the hind leg on this block of wood, so;" and
he cut it off, with a large portion of the haunch, at a single blow
of the axe.  "Now the other, - that's it."  And having thus cut off
the two hind legs, he made several deep gashes in them, thrust a
sharp-pointed stick through each, and stuck them up before the
blaze to roast.  The wood-pigeon was then split open, quite flat,
washed clean in salt water, and treated in a similar manner.  While
these were cooking, we scraped a hole in the sand and ashes under
the fire, into which we put our vegetables, and covered them up.

The taro-root was of an oval shape, about ten inches long and four
or five thick.  It was of a mottled-gray colour, and had a thick
rind.  We found it somewhat like an Irish potato, and exceedingly
good.  The yam was roundish, and had a rough brown skin.  It was
very sweet and well-flavoured.  The potato, we were surprised to
find, was quite sweet and exceedingly palatable, as also were the
plums; and, indeed, the pork and pigeon too, when we came to taste
them.  Altogether this was decidedly the most luxurious supper we
had enjoyed for many a day; and Jack said it was out-of-sight
better than we ever got on board ship; and Peterkin said he feared
that if we should remain long on the island he would infallibly
become a glutton or an epicure:  whereat Jack remarked that he need
not fear that, for he was BOTH already!  And so, having eaten our
fill, not forgetting to finish off with a plum, we laid ourselves
comfortably down to sleep upon a couch of branches under the
overhanging ledge of a coral rock.



CHAPTER XI.



Effects of over-eating, and reflections thereon - Humble advice
regarding cold water - The "horrible cry" accounted for - The
curious birds called penguins - Peculiarity of the cocoa nut palm -
Questions on the formation of coral islands - Mysterious footsteps
- Strange discoveries and sad sights.


WHEN we awoke on the following morning, we found that the sun was
already a good way above the horizon, so I came to the conclusion
that a heavy supper is not conducive to early rising.
Nevertheless, we felt remarkably strong and well, and much disposed
to have our breakfast.  First, however, we had our customary
morning bathe, which refreshed us greatly.

I have often wondered very much in after years that the inhabitants
of my own dear land did not make more frequent use of this most
charming element, water.  I mean in the way of cold bathing.  Of
course, I have perceived that it is not convenient for them to go
into the sea or the rivers in winter, as we used to do on the Coral
Island; but then, I knew from experience that a large washing-tub
and a sponge do form a most pleasant substitute.  The feelings of
freshness, of cleanliness, of vigour, and extreme hilarity, that
always followed my bathes in the sea, and even, when in England, my
ablutions in the wash-tub, were so delightful, that I would sooner
have gone without my breakfast than without my bathe in cold water.
My readers will forgive me for asking whether they are in the habit
of bathing thus every morning; and if they answer "No," they will
pardon me for recommending them to begin at once.  Of late years,
since retiring from the stirring life of adventure which I have led
so long in foreign climes, I have heard of a system called the
cold-water-cure.  Now, I do not know much about that system, so I
do not mean to uphold it, neither do I intend to run it down.
Perhaps, in reference to it, I may just hint that there may be too
much of a good thing.  I know not; but of this I am quite certain,
that there may also be too little of a good thing; and the great
delight I have had in cold bathing during the course of my
adventurous career inclines me to think that it is better to risk
taking too much than to content one's self with too little.  Such
is my opinion, derived from much experience; but I put it before my
readers with the utmost diffidence and with profound modesty,
knowing that it may possibly jar with their feelings of confidence
in their own ability to know and judge as to what is best and
fittest in reference to their own affairs.  But, to return from
this digression, for which I humbly crave forgiveness.

We had not advanced on our journey much above a mile or so, and
were just beginning to feel the pleasant glow that usually
accompanies vigorous exercise, when, on turning a point that
revealed to us a new and beautiful cluster of islands, we were
suddenly arrested by the appalling cry which had so alarmed us a
few nights before.  But this time we were by no means so much
alarmed as on the previous occasion, because, whereas at that time
it was night, now it was day; and I have always found, though I am
unable to account for it, that daylight banishes many of the fears
that are apt to assail us in the dark.

On hearing the sound, Peterkin instantly threw forward his spear.

"Now, what can it be?" said he, looking round at Jack.  "I tell you
what it is, if we are to go on being pulled up in a constant state
of horror and astonishment, as we have been for the last week, the
sooner we're out o' this island the better, notwithstanding the
yams and lemonade, and pork and plums!"

Peterkin's remark was followed by a repetition of the cry, louder
than before.

"It comes from one of these islands," said Jack.

"It must be the ghost of a jackass, then," said Peterkin, "for I
never heard anything so like."

We all turned our eyes towards the cluster of islands, where, on
the largest, we observed curious objects moving on the shore.

"Soldiers they are, - that's flat!" cried Peterkin, gazing at them
in the utmost amazement.

And, in truth, Peterkin's remark seemed to me to be correct; for,
at the distance from which we saw them, they appeared to be an army
of soldiers.  There they stood, rank and file, in lines and in
squares, marching and countermarching, with blue coats and white
trousers.  While we were looking at them, the dreadful cry came
again over the water, and Peterkin suggested that it must be a
regiment sent out to massacre the natives in cold blood.  At this
remark Jack laughed and said, -

"Why, Peterkin, they are penguins!"

"Penguins?" repeated Peterkin.

"Ay, penguins, Peterkin, penguins, - nothing more or less than big
sea-birds, as you shall see one of these days, when we pay them a
visit in our boat, which I mean to set about building the moment we
return to our bower."

"So, then, our dreadful yelling ghosts and our murdering army of
soldiers," remarked Peterkin, "have dwindled down to penguins, -
big sea-birds!  Very good.  Then I propose that we continue our
journey as fast as possible, lest our island should be converted
into a dream before we get completely round it."

Now, as we continued on our way, I pondered much over this new
discovery, and the singular appearance of these birds, of which
Jack could only give us a very slight and vague account; and I
began to long to commence to our boat, in order that we might go
and inspect them more narrowly.  But by degrees these thoughts left
me, and I began to be much taken up again with the interesting
peculiarities of the country which we were passing through.

The second night we passed in a manner somewhat similar to the
first, at about two-thirds of the way round the island, as we
calculated, and we hoped to sleep on the night following at our
bower.  I will not here note so particularly all that we said and
saw during the course of this second day, as we did not make any
further discoveries of great importance.  The shore along which we
travelled, and the various parts of the woods through which we
passed, were similar to those which have been already treated of.
There were one or two observations that we made, however, and these
were as follows:-

We saw that, while many of the large fruit-bearing trees grew only
in the valleys, and some of them only near the banks of the
streams, where the soil was peculiarly rich, the cocoa-nut palm
grew in every place whatsoever, - not only on the hill sides, but
also on the sea shore, and even, as has been already stated, on the
coral reef itself, where the soil, if we may use the name, was
nothing better than loose sand mingled with broken shells and coral
rock.  So near to the sea, too, did this useful tree grow, that in
many places its roots were washed by the spray from the breakers.
Yet we found the trees growing thus on the sands to be quite as
luxuriant as those growing in the valleys, and the fruit as good
and refreshing also.  Besides this, I noticed that, on the summit
of the high mountain, which we once more ascended at a different
point from our first ascent, were found abundance of shells and
broken coral formations, which Jack and I agreed proved either that
this island must have once been under the sea, or that the sea must
once have been above the island.  In other words, that as shells
and coral could not possibly climb to the mountain top, they must
have been washed upon it while the mountain top was on a level with
the sea.  We pondered this very much; and we put to ourselves the
question, "What raised the island to its present height above the
sea?"  But to this we could by no means give to ourselves a
satisfactory reply.  Jack thought it might have been blown up by a
volcano; and Peterkin said he thought it must have jumped up of its
own accord!  We also noticed, what had escaped us before, that the
solid rocks of which the island was formed were quite different
from the live coral rocks on the shore, where the wonderful little
insects were continually working.  They seemed, indeed, to be of
the sauce material, - a substance like limestone; but, while the
coral rocks were quite full of minute cells in which the insects
lived, the other rocks inland were hard and solid, without the
appearance of cells at all.  Our thoughts and conversations on this
subject were sometimes so profound that Peterkin said we should
certainly get drowned in them at last, even although we were such
good divers!  Nevertheless we did not allow his pleasantry on this
and similar points to deter us from making our notes and
observations as we went along.

We found several more droves of hogs in the woods, but abstained
from killing any of them, having more than sufficient for our
present necessities.  We saw also many of their foot-prints in this
neighbourhood.  Among these we also observed the footprints of a
smaller animal, which we examined with much care, but could form no
certain opinion as to them.  Peterkin thought they were those of a
little dog, but Jack and I thought differently.  We became very
curious on this matter, the more so that we observed these foot-
prints to lie scattered about in one locality, as if the animal
which had made them was wandering round about in a very irregular
manner, and without any object in view.  Early in the forenoon of
our third day we observed these footprints to be much more numerous
than ever, and in one particular spot they diverged off into the
woods in a regular beaten track, which was, however, so closely
beset with bushes, that we pushed through it with difficulty.  We
had now become so anxious to find out what animal this was, and
where it went to, that we determined to follow the track, and, if
possible, clear up the mystery.  Peterkin said, in a bantering
tone, that he was sure it would be cleared up as usual in some
frightfully simple way, and prove to be no mystery at all!

The beaten track seemed much too large to have been formed by the
animal itself, and we concluded that some larger animal had made
it, and that the smaller one made use of it.  But everywhere the
creeping plants and tangled bushes crossed our path, so that we
forced our way along with some difficulty.  Suddenly, as we came
upon an open space, we heard a faint cry, and observed a black
animal standing in the track before us.

"A wild-cat!" cried Jack, fitting an arrow to his bow, and
discharging it so hastily that he missed the animal, and hit the
earth about half a foot to one side of it.  To our surprise the
wild-cat did not fly, but walked slowly towards the arrow, and
snuffed at it.

"That's the most comical wild-cat I ever saw!" cried Jack.

"It's a tame wild-cat, I think," said Peterkin, levelling his spear
to make a charge.

"Stop!" cried I, laying my hand on his shoulder; "I do believe the
poor beast is blind.  See, it strikes against the branches as it
walks along.  It must be a very old one;" and I hastened towards
it.

"Only think," said Peterkin, with a suppressed laugh, "of a
superannuated wild-cat!"

We now found that the poor cat was not only blind, or nearly so,
but extremely deaf, as it did not hear our footsteps until we were
quite close behind it.  Then it sprang round, and, putting up its
back and tail, while the black hair stood all on end, uttered a
hoarse mew and a fuff.

"Poor thing," said Peterkin, gently extending his hand, and
endeavouring to pat the cat's head.  "Poor pussy; chee, chee, chee;
puss, puss, puss; cheetie pussy!"

No sooner did the cat hear these sounds than all signs of anger
fled, and, advancing eagerly to Peterkin, it allowed itself to be
stroked, and rubbed itself against his legs, purring loudly all the
time, and showing every symptom of the most extreme delight.

"It's no more a wild cat than I am!" cried Peterkin, taking it in
his arms.  "It's quite tame.  Poor pussy, cheetie pussy!"

We now crowded around Peterkin, and were not a little surprised,
and, to say truth, a good deal affected, by the sight of the poor
animal's excessive joy.  It rubbed its head against Peterkin's
cheek, licked his chin, and thrust its head almost violently into
his neck, while it purred more loudly than I ever heard a cat purr
before, and appeared to be so much overpowered by its feelings,
that it occasionally mewed and purred almost in the same breath.
Such demonstrations of joy and affection led us at once to conclude
that this poor cat must have known man before, and we conjectured
that it had been left either accidentally or by design on the
island many years ago, and was now evincing its extreme joy at
meeting once more with human beings.  While we were fondling the
cat and talking about it, Jack glanced round the open space in the
midst of which we stood.

"Hallo!" exclaimed he; "this looks something like a clearing.  The
axe has been at work here.  Just look at these tree-stumps."

We now turned to examine these, and, without doubt, we found trees
that had been cut down here and there, also stumps and broken
branches; all of which, however, were completely covered over with
moss, and bore evidence of having been in this condition for some
years.  No human foot-prints were to be seen, either on the track
or among the bushes; but those of the cat were found everywhere.
We now determined to follow up the track as far as it went, and
Peterkin put the cat down; but it seemed to be so weak, and mewed
so very pitifully, that he took it up again and carried it in his
arms, where, in a few minutes, it fell sound asleep.

About ten yards farther on, the felled trees became more numerous,
and the track, diverging to the right, followed for a short space
the banks of a stream.  Suddenly we came to a spot where once must
have been a rude bridge, the stones of which were scattered in the
stream, and those on each bank entirely covered over with moss.  In
silent surprise and expectancy we continued to advance, and, a few
yards farther on, beheld, under the shelter of some bread-fruit
trees, a small hut or cottage.  I cannot hope to convey to my
readers a very correct idea of the feelings that affected us on
witnessing this unexpected sight.  We stood for a long time in
silent wonder, for there was a deep and most melancholy stillness
about the place that quite overpowered us; and when we did at
length speak, it was in subdued whispers, as if we were surrounded
by some awful or supernatural influence.  Even Peterkin's voice,
usually so quick and lively on all occasions, was hushed now; for
there was a dreariness about this silent, lonely, uninhabited
cottage, - so strange in its appearance, so far away from the usual
dwellings of man, so old, decayed, and deserted in its aspect, -
that fell upon our spirits like a thick cloud, and blotted out as
with a pall the cheerful sunshine that had filled us since the
commencement of our tour round the island.

The hut or cottage was rude and simple in its construction.  It was
not more than twelve feet long by ten feet broad, and about seven
or eight feet high.  It had one window, or rather a small frame in
which a window might, perhaps, once have been, but which was now
empty.  The door was exceedingly low, and formed of rough boards,
and the roof was covered with broad cocoa-nut and plantain leaves.
But every part of it was in a state of the utmost decay.  Moss and
green matter grew in spots all over it.  The woodwork was quite
perforated with holes; the roof had nearly fallen in, and appeared
to be prevented from doing so altogether by the thick matting of
creeping-plants and the interlaced branches which years of neglect
had allowed to cover it almost entirely; while the thick, luxuriant
branches of the bread-fruit and other trees spread above it, and
flung a deep, sombre shadow over the spot, as if to guard it from
the heat and the light of day.  We conversed long and in whispers
about this strange habitation ere we ventured to approach it; and
when at length we did so it was, at least on my part, with feelings
of awe.

At first Jack endeavoured to peep in at the window, but from the
deep shadow of the trees already mentioned, and the gloom within,
he could not clearly discern objects; so we lifted the latch and
pushed open the door.  We observed that the latch was made of iron,
and almost eaten away with rust.  In the like condition were also
the hinges, which creaked as the door swung back.  On entering, we
stood still and gazed around us, while we were much impressed with
the dreary stillness of the room.  But what we saw there surprised
and shocked us not a little.  There was no furniture in the
apartment save a little wooden stool and an iron pot, the latter
almost eaten through with rust.  In the corner farthest from the
door was a low bedstead, on which lay two skeletons, imbedded in a
little heap of dry dust.  With beating hearts we went forward to
examine them.  One was the skeleton of a man, the other that of a
dog, which was extended close beside that of the man, with its head
resting on his bosom

Now we were very much concerned about this discovery, and could
scarce refrain from tears on beholding these sad remains.  After
some time, we began to talk about what we had seen, and to examine
in and around the hut, in order to discover some clue to the name
or history of this poor man, who had thus died in solitude, with
none to mourn his loss save his cat and his faithful dog.  But we
found nothing, - neither a book nor a scrap of paper.  We found,
however, the decayed remnants of what appeared to have been
clothing, and an old axe.  But none of these things bore marks of
any kind; and, indeed, they were so much decayed as to convince us
that they had lain in the condition in which we found them for many
years.

This discovery now accounted to us for the tree stump at the top of
the mountain with the initials cut on it; also for the patch of
sugar-cane and other traces of man which we had met with in the
course of our rambles over the island.  And we were much saddened
by the reflection that the lot of this poor wanderer might possibly
be our own, after many years' residence on the island, unless we
should be rescued by the visit of some vessel or the arrival of
natives.  Having no clue whatever to account for the presence of
this poor human being in such a lonely spot, we fell to
conjecturing what could have brought him there.  I was inclined to
think that he must have been a shipwrecked sailor, whose vessel had
been lost here, and all the crew been drowned except himself and
his dog and cat.  But Jack thought it more likely that he had run
away from his vessel, and had taken the dog and cat to keep him
company.  We were also much occupied in our minds with the
wonderful difference between the cat and the dog.  For here we saw
that while the one perished, like a loving friend, by its master's
side, with its head resting on his bosom, the other had sought to
sustain itself by prowling abroad in the forest, and had lived in
solitude to a good old age.  However, we did not conclude from this
that the cat was destitute of affection, for we could not forget
its emotions on first meeting with us; but we saw from this, that
the dog had a great deal more of generous love in its nature than
the cat, because it not only found it impossible to live after the
death of its master, but it must needs, when it came to die, crawl
to his side and rest its head upon his lifeless breast.

While we were thinking on these things, and examining into
everything about the room, we were attracted by an exclamation from
Peterkin.

"I say, Jack," said he, "here is something that will be of use to
us."

"What is it?" said Jack, hastening across the room.

"An old pistol," replied Peterkin, holding up the weapon, which he
had just pulled from under a heap of broken wood and rubbish that
lay in a corner.

"That, indeed, might have been useful," said Jack, examining it,
"if we had any powder; but I suspect the bow and the sling will
prove more serviceable."

"True, I forgot that," said Peterkin; "but we may as well take it
with us, for the flint will serve to strike fire with when the sun
does not shine."

After having spent more than an hour at this place without
discovering anything of further interest, Peterkin took up the old
cat, which had lain very contentedly asleep on the stool whereon he
had placed it, and we prepared to take our departure.  In leaving
the hut, Jack stumbled heavily against the door-post, which was so
much decayed as to break across, and the whole fabric of the hut
seemed ready to tumble about our ears.  This put into our heads
that we might as well pull it down, and so form a mound over the
skeleton.  Jack, therefore, with his axe, cut down the other door-
post, which, when it was done, brought the whole hut in ruins to
the ground, and thus formed a grave to the bones of the poor
recluse and his dog.  Then we left the spot, having brought away
the iron pot, the pistol, and the old axe, as they might be of much
use to us hereafter.

During the rest of this day we pursued our journey, and examined
the other end of the large valley, which we found to be so much
alike to the parts already described, that I shall not recount the
particulars of what we saw in this place.  I may, however, remark,
that we did not quite recover our former cheerful spirits until we
arrived at our bower, which we did late in the evening, and found
everything just in the same condition as we had left it three days
before.



CHAPTER XII.



Something wrong with the tank - Jack's wisdom and Peterkin's
impertinence - Wonderful behaviour of a crab - Good wishes for
those who dwell far from the sea - Jack commences to build a little
boat.


REST is sweet as well for the body as for the mind.  During my long
experience, amid the vicissitudes of a chequered life, I have found
that periods of profound rest at certain intervals, in addition to
the ordinary hours of repose, are necessary to the wellbeing of
man.  And the nature as well as the period of this rest varies,
according to the different temperaments of individuals, and the
peculiar circumstances in which they may chance to be placed.  To
those who work with their minds, bodily labour is rest.  To those
who labour with the body, deep sleep is rest.  To the downcast, the
weary, and the sorrowful, joy and peace are rest.  Nay, further, I
think that to the gay, the frivolous, the reckless, when sated with
pleasures that cannot last, even sorrow proves to be rest of a
kind, although, perchance, it were better that I should call it
relief than rest.  There is, indeed, but one class of men to whom
rest is denied.  There is no rest to the wicked.  At this I do but
hint, however, as I treat not of that rest which is spiritual, but,
more particularly, of that which applies to the mind and to the
body.

Of this rest we stood much in need on our return home, and we found
it exceedingly sweet, when we indulged in it, after completing the
journey just related.  It had not, indeed, been a very long
journey, nevertheless we had pursued it so diligently that our
frames were not a little prostrated.  Our minds were also very much
exhausted in consequence of the many surprises, frequent alarms,
and much profound thought, to which they had been subjected; so
that when we lay down on the night of our return under the shelter
of the bower, we fell immediately into very deep repose.  I can
state this with much certainty, for Jack afterwards admitted the
fact, and Peterkin, although he stoutly denied it, I heard snoring
loudly at least two minutes after lying down.  In this condition we
remained all night and the whole of the following day without
awaking once, or so much as moving our positions.  When we did
awake it was near sunset, and we were all in such a state of
lassitude that we merely rose to swallow a mouthful of food.  As
Peterkin remarked, in the midst of a yawn, we took breakfast at
tea-time, and then went to bed again, where we lay till the
following forenoon.

After this we arose very greatly refreshed, but much alarmed lest
we had lost count of a day.  I say we were much alarmed on this
head, for we had carefully kept count of the days since we were
cast upon our island, in order that we might remember the Sabbath-
day, which day we had hitherto with one accord kept as a day of
rest, and refrained from all work whatsoever.  However, on
considering the subject, we all three entertained the same opinion
as to how long we had slept, and so our minds were put at ease.

We now hastened to our Water Garden to enjoy a bathe, and to see
how did the animals which I had placed in the tank.  We found the
garden more charming, pelucid, and inviting than ever, and Jack and
I plunged into its depth, and gambolled among its radiant coral
groves; while Peterkin wallowed at the surface, and tried
occasionally to kick us as we passed below.  Having dressed, I then
hastened to the tank; but what was my surprise and grief to find
nearly all the animals dead, and the water in a putrid condition!
I was greatly distressed at this, and wondered what could be the
cause of it.

"Why, you precious humbug," said Peterkin, coming up to me, "how
could you expect it to be otherwise?  When fishes are accustomed to
live in the Pacific Ocean, how can you expect them to exist in a
hole like that?"

"Indeed, Peterkin," I replied, "there seems to be truth in what you
say.  Nevertheless, now I think of it, there must be some error in
your reasoning; for, if I put in but a few very small animals, they
will bear the same proportion to this pond that the millions of
fish bear to the ocean."

"I say, Jack," cried Peterkin, waving his hand, "come here, like a
good fellow.  Ralph is actually talking philosophy.  Do come to our
assistance, for he's out o' sight beyond me already!"

"What's the matter?" inquired Jack, coming up, while he endeavoured
to scrub his long hair dry with a towel of cocoa-nut cloth.

I repeated my thoughts to Jack, who, I was happy to find, quite
agreed with me.  "Your best plan," he said, "will be to put very
few animals at first into your tank, and add more as you find it
will bear them.  And look here," he added, pointing to the sides of
the tank, which, for the space of two inches above the water-level,
were incrusted with salt, "you must carry your philosophy a little
farther, Ralph.  That water has evaporated so much that it is too
salt for anything to live in.  You will require to add FRESH water
now and then, in order to keep it at the same degree of saltness as
the sea."

"Very true, Jack, that never struck me before," said I.

"And, now I think of it," continued Jack, "it seems to me that the
surest way of arranging your tank so as to get it to keep pure and
in good condition, will be to imitate the ocean in it.  In fact
make it a miniature Pacific.  I don't see how you can hope to
succeed unless you do that."

"Most true," said I, pondering what my companion said.  "But I fear
that that will be very difficult."

"Not at all," cried Jack, rolling his towel up into a ball, and
throwing it into the face of Peterkin, who had been grinning and
winking at him during the last five minutes.  "Not at all.  Look
here.  There is water of a certain saltness in the sea; well, fill
your tank with sea water, and keep it at that saltness by marking
the height at which the water stands on the sides.  When it
evaporates a little, pour in FRESH water from the brook till it
comes up to the mark, and then it will be right, for the salt does
not evaporate with the water.  Then, there's lots of sea-weed in
the sea; - well, go and get one or two bits of sea-weed, and put
them into your tank.  Of course the weed must be alive, and growing
to little stones; or you can chip a bit off the rocks with the weed
sticking to it.  Then, if you like, you can throw a little sand and
gravel into your tank, and the thing's complete."

"Nay, not quite," said Peterkin, who had been gravely attentive to
this off-hand advice, "not quite; you must first make three little
men to dive in it before it can be said to be perfect, and that
would be rather difficult, I fear, for two of them would require to
be philosophers.  But hallo! what's this?  I say, Ralph, look here.
There's one o' your crabs up to something uncommon.  It's
performing the most remarkable operation for a crab I ever saw, -
taking off its coat, I do believe, before going to bed!"

We hastily stooped over the tank, and certainly were not a little
amused at the conduct of one of the crabs which still survived it
companions.  It was one of the common small crabs, like to those
that are found running about everywhere on the coasts of England.
While we gazed at it, we observed its back to split away from the
lower part of its body, and out of the gap thus formed came a soft
lump which moved and writhed unceasingly.  This lump continued to
increase in size until it appeared like a bunch of crab's legs:
and, indeed, such it proved in a very few minutes to be; for the
points of the toes were at length extricated from this hole in its
back, the legs spread out, the body followed, and the crab walked
away quite entire, even to the points of its nipper-claws, leaving
a perfectly entire shell behind it, so that, when we looked, it
seemed as though there were two complete crabs instead of one!

"Well!" exclaimed Peterkin, drawing a long breath, "I've HEARD of a
man jumping out of his skin and sitting down in his skeleton in
order to cool himself, but I never expected to SEE a crab do it!"

We were, in truth, much amazed at this spectacle, and the more so
when we observed that the new crab was larger than the crab that it
came out of.  It was also quite soft, but by next morning its skin
had hardened into a good shell.  We came thus to know that crabs
grow in this way, and not by the growing of their shells, as we had
always thought before we saw this wonderful operation.

Now I considered well the advice which Jack had given me about
preparing my tank, and the more I thought of it, the more I came to
regard it as very sound and worthy of being acted on.  So I
forthwith put his plan in execution, and found it to answer
excellently well, indeed much beyond my expectation; for I found
that after a little experience had taught me the proper proportion
of sea-weed and animals to put into a certain amount of water, the
tank needed no farther attendance; and, moreover, I did not require
ever afterwards to renew or change the sea-water, but only to add a
very little fresh water from the brook, now and then, as the other
evaporated.  I therefore concluded that if I had been suddenly
conveyed, along with my tank, into some region where there was no
salt sea at all, my little sea and my sea-fish would have continued
to thrive and to prosper notwithstanding.  This made me greatly to
desire that those people in the world who live far inland might
know of my wonderful tank, and, by having materials like to those
of which it was made conveyed to them, thus be enabled to watch the
habits of those most mysterious animals that reside in the sea, and
examine with their own eyes the wonders of the great deep.

For many days after this, while Peterkin and Jack were busily
employed in building a little boat out of the curious natural
planks of the chestnut tree, I spent much of my time in examining
with the burning-glass the marvellous operations that were
constantly going on in my tank.  Here I saw those anemones which
cling, like little red, yellow, and green blobs of jelly, to the
rocks, put forth, as it were, a multitude of arms and wait till
little fish or other small animalcules unwarily touched them, when
they would instantly seize them, fold arm after arm around their
victims, and so engulf them in their stomachs.  Here I saw the
ceaseless working of those little coral insects whose efforts have
encrusted the islands of the Pacific with vast rocks, and
surrounded them with enormous reefs.  And I observed that many of
these insects, though extremely minute, were very beautiful, coming
out of their holes in a circle of fine threads, and having the form
of a shuttle-cock.  Here I saw curious little barnacles opening a
hole in their backs and constantly putting out a thin feathery
hand, with which, I doubt not, they dragged their food into their
mouths.  Here, also, I saw those crabs which have shells only on
the front of their bodies, but no shell whatever on their
remarkably tender tails, so that, in order to find a protection to
them, they thrust them into the empty shells of wilks, or some such
fish, and when they grow too big for one, change into another.
But, most curious of all, I saw an animal which had the wonderful
power, when it became ill, of casting its stomach and its teeth
away from it, and getting an entirely new set in the course of a
few months!  All this I saw, and a great deal more, by means of my
tank and my burning-glass, but I refrain from setting down more
particulars here, as I have still much to tell of the adventures
that befell us while we remained on this island.



CHAPTER XIII.



Notable discovery at the spouting cliffs - The mysterious green
monster explained - We are thrown into unutterable terror by the
idea that Jack is drowned - The Diamond Cave.


"COME, Jack," cried Peterkin, one morning about three weeks after
our return from our long excursion, "let's be jolly to-day, and do
something vigorous.  I'm quite tired of hammering and hammering,
hewing and screwing, cutting and butting, at that little boat of
ours, that seems as hard to build as Noah's ark; let us go on an
excursion to the mountain top, or have a hunt after the wild ducks,
or make a dash at the pigs.  I'm quite flat - flat as bad ginger-
beer - flat as a pancake; in fact, I want something to rouse me, to
toss me up, as it were.  Eh! what do you say to it?"

"Well," answered Jack, throwing down the axe with which he was just
about to proceed towards the boat, "if that's what you want, I
would recommend you to make an excursion to the water-spouts; the
last one we had to do with tossed you up a considerable height,
perhaps the next will send you higher, who knows, if you're at all
reasonable or moderate in your expectations!"

"Jack, my dear boy," said Peterkin, gravely, "you are really
becoming too fond of jesting.  It's a thing I don't at all approve
of, and if you don't give it up, I fear that, for our mutual good,
we shall have to part."

"Well, then, Peterkin," replied Jack, with a smile, "what would you
have?"

"Have?" said Peterkin, "I would HAVE nothing.  I didn't say I
wanted to HAVE; I said that I wanted to DO."

"By the by," said I, interrupting their conversation, "I am
reminded by this that we have not yet discovered the nature of yon
curious appearance that we saw near the water-spouts, on our
journey round the island.  Perhaps it would be well to go for that
purpose."

"Humph!" ejaculated Peterkin, "I know the nature of it well
enough."

"What was it?" said I.

"It was of a MYSTERIOUS nature to be sure!" said he, with a wave of
his hand, while he rose from the log on which he had been sitting,
and buckled on his belt, into which he thrust his enormous club.

"Well then, let us away to the water-spouts," cried Jack, going up
to the bower for his bow and arrows; "and bring your spear,
Peterkin.  It may be useful."

We now, having made up our minds to examine into this matter,
sallied forth eagerly in the direction of the water-spout rocks,
which, as I have before mentioned, were not far from our present
place of abode.  On arriving there we hastened down to the edge of
the rocks, and gazed over into the sea, where we observed the pale-
green object still distinctly visible, moving its tail slowly to
and fro in the water.

"Most remarkable!" said Jack.

"Exceedingly curious," said I.

"Beats everything!" said Peterkin.

"Now, Jack," he added, "you made such a poor figure in your last
attempt to stick that object, that I would advise you to let me try
it.  If it has got a heart at all, I'll engage to send my spear
right through the core of it; if it hasn't got a heart, I'll send
it through the spot where its heart ought to be."

"Fire away, then, my boy," replied Jack with a laugh.

Peterkin immediately took the spear, poised it for a second or two
above his head, then darted it like an arrow into the sea.  Down it
went straight into the centre of the green object, passed quite
through it, and came up immediately afterwards, pure and unsullied,
while the mysterious tail moved quietly as before!

"Now," said Peterkin, gravely, "that brute is a heartless monster;
I'll have nothing more to do with it."

"I'm pretty sure now," said Jack, "that it is merely a phosphoric
light; but I must say I'm puzzled at its staying always in that
exact spot."

I also was much puzzled, and inclined to think with Jack that it
must be phosphoric light; of which luminous appearance we had seen
much while on our voyage to these seas.  "But," said I, "there is
nothing to hinder us from diving down to it, now that we are sure
it is not a shark."

"True," returned Jack, stripping off his clothes; "I'll go down,
Ralph, as I'm better at diving than you are.  Now then, Peterkin,
out o' the road!"  Jack stepped forward, joined his hands above his
head, bent over the rocks, and plunged into the sea.  For a second
or two the spray caused by his dive hid him from view, then the
water became still, and we saw him swimming far down in the midst
of the green object.  Suddenly he sank below it, and vanished
altogether from our sight!  We gazed anxiously down at the spot
where he had disappeared, for nearly a minute, expecting every
moment to see him rise again for breath; but fully a minute passed,
and still he did not reappear.  Two minutes passed! and then a
flood of alarm rushed in upon my soul, when I considered that
during all my acquaintance with him, Jack had never stayed
underwater more than a minute at a time; indeed seldom so long.

"Oh, Peterkin!" I said, in a voice that trembled with increasing
anxiety, "something has happened.  It is more than three minutes
now!"  But Peterkin did not answer and I observed that he was
gazing down into the water with a look of intense fear mingled with
anxiety, while his face was overspread with a deadly paleness.
Suddenly he sprang to his feet and rushed about in a frantic state,
wringing his hands, and exclaiming, "Oh, Jack, Jack! he is gone!
It must have been a shark, and he is gone for ever!"

For the next five minutes I know not what I did.  The intensity of
my feelings almost bereft me of my senses.  But I was recalled to
myself by Peterkin seizing me by the shoulder and staring wildly
into my face, while he exclaimed, "Ralph! Ralph! perhaps he has
only fainted.  Dive for him, Ralph!"

It seemed strange that this did not occur to me sooner.  In a
moment I rushed to the edge of the rocks, and, without waiting to
throw off my garments, was on the point to spring into the waves,
when I observed something black rising up through the green object.
In another moment Jack's head rose to the surface, and he gave a
wild shout, flinging back the spray from his locks, as was his wont
after a dive.  Now we were almost as much amazed at seeing him re-
appear, well and strong, as we had been at first at his non-
appearance; for, to the best of our judgment, he had been nearly
ten minutes under water, perhaps longer, and it required no
exertion of our reason to convince us that this was utterly
impossible for mortal man to do and retain his strength and
faculties.  It was therefore with a feeling akin to superstitious
awe that I held down my hand and assisted him to clamber up the
steep rocks.  But no such feeling affected Peterkin.  No sooner did
Jack gain the rocks and seat himself on one, panting for breath,
than he threw his arms round his neck, and burst into a flood of
tears.  "Oh, Jack, Jack!" said he, "where were you?  What kept you
so long?"

After a few moments Peterkin became composed enough to sit still
and listen to Jack's explanation, although he could not restrain
himself from attempting to wink every two minutes at me, in order
to express his joy at Jack's safety.  I say he attempted to wink,
but I am bound to add that he did not succeed, for his eyes were so
much swollen with weeping, that his frequent attempts only resulted
in a series of violent and altogether idiotical contortions of the
face, that were very far from expressing what he intended.
However, I knew what the poor fellow meant by it, so I smiled to
him in return, and endeavoured to make believe that he was winking.

"Now, lads," said Jack, when we were composed enough to listen to
him, "yon green object is not a shark; it is a stream of light
issuing from a cave in the rocks.  Just after I made my dive, I
observed that this light came from the side of the rock above which
we are now sitting; so I struck out for it, and saw an opening into
some place or other that appeared to be luminous within.  For one
instant I paused to think whether I ought to venture.  Then I made
up my mind, and dashed into it.  For you see, Peterkin, although I
take some time to tell this, it happened in the space of a few
seconds, so that I knew I had wind enough in me to serve to bring
me out o' the hole and up to the surface again.  Well, I was just
on the point of turning, - for I began to feel a little
uncomfortable in such a place, - when it seemed to me as if there
was a faint light right above me.  I darted upwards, and found my
head out of water.  This relieved me greatly, for I now felt that I
could take in air enough to enable me to return the way I came.
Then it all at once occurred to me that I might not be able to find
the way out again; but, on glancing downwards, my mind was put
quite at rest by seeing the green light below me streaming into the
cave, just like the light that we had seen streaming out of it,
only what I now saw was much brighter.

"At first I could scarcely see anything as I gazed around me, it
was so dark; but gradually my eyes became accustomed to it, and I
found that I was in a huge cave, part of the walls of which I
observed on each side of me.  The ceiling just above me was also
visible, and I fancied that I could perceive beautiful glittering
objects there, but the farther end of the cave was shrouded in
darkness.  While I was looking around me in great wonder, it came
into my head that you two would think I was drowned; so I plunged
down through the passage again in a great hurry, rose to the
surface, and - here I am!"

When Jack concluded his recital of what he had seen in this
remarkable cave, I could not rest satisfied till I had dived down
to see it; which I did, but found it so dark, as Jack had said,
that I could scarcely see anything.  When I returned, we had a long
conversation about it, during which I observed that Peterkin had a
most lugubrious expression on his countenance.

"What's the matter, Peterkin?" said I.

"The matter?" he replied.  "It's all very well for you two to be
talking away like mermaids about the wonders of this cave, but you
know I must be content to hear about it, while you are enjoying
yourselves down there like mad dolphins.  It's really too bad."

"I'm very sorry for you, Peterkin, indeed I am," said Jack, "but we
cannot help you.  If you would only learn to dive - "

"Learn to fly, you might as well say!" retorted Peterkin, in a very
sulky tone.

"If you would only consent to keep still," said I, "we would take
you down with us in ten seconds."

"Hum!" returned Peterkin; "suppose a salamander was to propose to
you 'only to keep still,' and he would carry you through a blazing
fire in a few seconds, what would you say?"

We both laughed and shook our heads, for it was evident that
nothing was to be made of Peterkin in the water.  But we could not
rest satisfied till we had seen more of this cave; so, after
further consultation, Jack and I determined to try if we could take
down a torch with us, and set fire to it in the cavern.  This we
found to be an undertaking of no small difficulty; but we
accomplished it at last by the following means:- First, we made a
torch of a very inflammable nature out of the bark of a certain
tree, which we cut into strips, and, after twisting, cemented
together with a kind of resin or gum, which we also obtained from
another tree; neither of which trees, however, was known by name to
Jack.  This, when prepared, we wrapped up in a great number of
plies of cocoa-nut cloth, so that we were confident it could not
get wet during the short time it should be under water.  Then we
took a small piece of the tinder, which we had carefully treasured
up lest we should require it, as before said, when the sun should
fail us; also, we rolled up some dry grass and a few chips, which,
with a little bow and drill, like those described before, we made
into another bundle, and wrapped it up in cocoa-nut cloth.  When
all was ready we laid aside our garments, with the exception of our
trousers, which, as we did not know what rough scraping against the
rocks we might be subjected to, we kept on.

Then we advanced to the edge of the rocks, Jack carrying one
bundle, with the torch; I the other, with the things for producing
fire.

"Now don't weary for us, Peterkin, should we be gone some time,"
said Jack; "we'll be sure to return in half-an-hour at the very
latest, however interesting the cave should be, that we may relieve
your mind."

"Farewell!" said Peterkin, coming up to us with a look of deep but
pretended solemnity, while he shook hands and kissed each of us on
the cheek.   "Farewell! and while you are gone I shall repose my
weary limbs under the shelter of this bush, and meditate on the
changefulness of all things earthly, with special reference to the
forsaken condition of a poor ship-wrecked sailor boy!"  So saying,
Peterkin waved his hand, turned from us, and cast himself upon the
ground with a look of melancholy resignation, which was so well
feigned, that I would have thought it genuine had he not
accompanied it with a gentle wink.  We both laughed, and, springing
from the rocks together, plunged head first into the sea.

We gained the interior of the submarine cave without difficulty,
and, on emerging from the waves, supported ourselves for some time
by treading-water, while we held the two bundles above our heads.
This we did in order to let our eyes become accustomed to the
obscurity.  Then, when we could see sufficiently, we swam to a
shelving rock, and landed in safety.  Having wrung the water from
our trousers, and dried ourselves as well as we could under the
circumstances, we proceeded to ignite the torch.  This we
accomplished without difficulty in a few minutes; and no sooner did
it flare up than we were struck dumb with the wonderful objects
that were revealed to our gaze.  The roof of the cavern just above
us seemed to be about ten feet high, but grew higher as it receded
into the distance, until it was lost in darkness.  It seemed to be
made of coral, and was supported by massive columns of the same
material.  Immense icicles (as they appeared to us) hung from it in
various places.  These, however, were formed, not of ice, but of a
species of limestone, which seemed to flow in a liquid form towards
the point of each, where it became solid.  A good many drops fell,
however, to the rock below, and these formed little cones, which
rose to meet the points above.  Some of them had already met, and
thus we saw how the pillars were formed, which at first seemed to
us as if they had been placed there by some human architect to
support the roof.  As we advanced farther in, we saw that the floor
was composed of the same material as the pillars; and it presented
the curious appearance of ripples, such as are formed on water when
gently ruffled by the wind.  There were several openings on either
hand in the walls, that seemed to lead into other caverns; but
these we did not explore at this time.  We also observed that the
ceiling was curiously marked in many places, as if it were the
fret-work of a noble cathedral; and the walls, as well as the roof,
sparkled in the light of our torch, and threw back gleams and
flashes, as if they were covered with precious stones.  Although we
proceeded far into this cavern, we did not come to the end of it;
and we were obliged to return more speedily than we would otherwise
have done, as our torch was nearly expended.  We did not observe
any openings in the roof, or any indications of places whereby
light might enter; but near the entrance to the cavern stood an
immense mass of pure white coral rock, which caught and threw back
the little light that found an entrance through the cave's mouth,
and thus produced, we conjectured, the pale-green object which had
first attracted our attention.  We concluded, also, that the
reflecting power of this rock was that which gave forth the dim
light that faintly illumined the first part of the cave.

Before diving through the passage again we extinguished the small
piece of our torch that remained, and left it in a dry spot;
conceiving that we might possibly stand in need of it, if at any
future time we should chance to wet our torch while diving into the
cavern.  As we stood for a few minutes after it was out, waiting
till our eyes became accustomed to the gloom, we could not help
remarking the deep, intense stillness and the unutterable gloom of
all around us; and, as I thought of the stupendous dome above, and
the countless gems that had sparkled in the torch-light a few
minutes before, it came into my mind to consider how strange it is
that God should make such wonderful and extremely-beautiful works
never to be seen at all, except, indeed, by chance visitors such as
ourselves.

I afterwards found that there were many such caverns among the
islands of the South Seas, some of them larger and more beautiful
than the one I have just described.

"Now, Ralph, are you ready?" said Jack, in a low voice, that seemed
to echo up into the dome above.

"Quite ready."

"Come along, then," said he; and, plunging off the ledge of the
rock into the water, we dived through the narrow entrance.  In a
few seconds we were panting on the rocks above, and receiving the
congratulations of our friend Peterkin.



CHAPTER XIV.



Strange peculiarity of the tides - Also of the twilight -
Peterkin's remarkable conduct in embracing a little pig and killing
a big sow - Sage remarks on jesting - Also on love.


IT was quite a relief to us to breathe the pure air and to enjoy
the glad sunshine after our long ramble in the Diamond Cave, as we
named it; for, although we did not stay more than half an hour
away, it seemed to us much longer.  While we were dressing, and
during our walk home, we did our best to satisfy the curiosity of
poor Peterkin, who seemed to regret, with lively sincerity, his
inability to dive.

There was no help for it, however, so we condoled with him as we
best could.  Had there been any great rise or fall in the tide of
these seas, we might perhaps have found it possible to take him
down with us at low water; but as the tide never rose or fell more
than eighteen inches or two feet, this was impossible.

This peculiarity of the tide - its slight rise and fall - had not
attracted our observation till some time after our residence on the
island.  Neither had we observed another curious circumstance until
we had been some time there.  This was the fact, that the tide rose
and fell with constant regularity, instead of being affected by the
changes of the moon as in our own country, and as it is in most
other parts of the world, - at least in all those parts with which
I am acquainted.  Every day and every night, at twelve o'clock
precisely, the tide is at the full; and at six o'clock every
morning and evening it is ebb.  I can speak with much confidence on
this singular circumstance, as we took particular note of it, and
never found it to alter.  Of course, I must admit, we had to guess
the hour of twelve midnight, and I think we could do this pretty
correctly; but in regard to twelve noon we are quite positive,
because we easily found the highest point that the sun reached in
the sky by placing ourselves at a certain spot whence we observed
the sharp summit of a cliff resting against the sky, just where the
sun passed.

Jack and I were surprised that we had not noticed this the first
few days of our residence here, and could only account for it by
our being so much taken up with the more obvious wonders of our
novel situation.  I have since learned, however, that this want of
observation is a sad and very common infirmity of human nature,
there being hundreds of persons before whose eyes the most
wonderful things are passing every day, who nevertheless are
totally ignorant of them.  I therefore have to record my sympathy
with such persons, and to recommend to them a course of conduct
which I have now for a long time myself adopted, - namely, the
habit of forcing my attention upon ALL things that go on around me,
and of taking some degree of interest in them, whether I feel it
naturally or not.  I suggest this the more earnestly, though
humbly, because I have very frequently come to know that my
indifference to a thing has generally been caused by my ignorance
in regard to it.

We had much serious conversation on this subject of the tides; and
Jack told us, in his own quiet, philosophical way, that these tides
did great good to the world in many ways, particularly in the way
of cleansing the shores of the land, and carrying off the filth
that was constantly poured into the sea there-from; which, Peterkin
suggested, was remarkably TIDY of it to do.  Poor Peterkin could
never let slip an opportunity to joke, however inopportune it might
be:  which at first we found rather a disagreeable propensity, as
it often interrupted the flow of very agreeable conversation; and,
indeed, I cannot too strongly record my disapprobation of this
tendency in general:  but we became so used to it at last that we
found it no interruption whatever; indeed, strange to say, we came
to feel that it was a necessary part of our enjoyment (such is the
force of habit), and found the sudden outbursts of mirth, resulting
from his humorous disposition, quite natural and refreshing to us
in the midst of our more serious conversations.  But I must not
misrepresent Peterkin.  We often found, to our surprise, that he
knew many things which we did not; and I also observed that those
things which he learned from experience were never forgotten.  From
all these things I came at length to understand that things very
opposite and dissimilar in themselves, when united, do make an
agreeable whole; as, for example, we three on this our island,
although most unlike in many things, when united, made a trio so
harmonious that I question if there ever met before such an
agreeable triumvirate.  There was, indeed, no note of discord
whatever in the symphony we played together on that sweet Coral
Island; and I am now persuaded that this was owing to our having
been all tuned to the same key, namely, that of LOVE!  Yes, we
loved one another with much fervency while we lived on that island;
and, for the matter of that, we love each other still.

And while I am on this subject, or rather the subject that just
preceded it - namely, the tides - I may here remark on another
curious natural phenomenon.  We found that there was little or no
twilight in this island.  We had a distinct remembrance of the
charming long twilight at home, which some people think the most
delightful part of the day, though for my part I have always
preferred sunrise; and when we first landed, we used to sit down on
some rocky point or eminence, at the close of our day's work, to
enjoy the evening breeze; but no sooner had the sun sunk below the
horizon than all became suddenly dark.  This rendered it necessary
that we should watch the sun when we happened to be out hunting,
for to be suddenly left in the dark while in the woods was very
perplexing, as, although the stars shone with great beauty and
brilliancy, they could not pierce through the thick umbrageous
boughs that interlaced above our heads.

But, to return:  After having told all we could to Peterkin about
the Diamond Cave under Spouting Cliff, as we named the locality, we
were wending our way rapidly homewards, when a grunt and a squeal
were borne down by the land breeze to our ears.

"That's the ticket!" was Peterkin's remarkable exclamation, as he
started convulsively, and levelled his spear.

"Hist!" cried Jack; "these are your friends, Peterkin.  They must
have come over expressly to pay you a friendly visit, for it is the
first time we have seen them on this side the island."

"Come along!" cried Peterkin, hurrying towards the wood, while Jack
and I followed, smiling at his impatience.

Another grunt and half a dozen squeals, much louder than before,
came down the valley.  At this time we were just opposite the small
vale which lay between the Valley of the Wreck and Spouting Cliff.

"I say, Peterkin," cried Jack, in a hoarse whisper.

"Well, what is't?"

"Stay a bit, man.  These grunters are just up there on the hill
side.  If you go and stand with Ralph in the lee of yon cliff, I'll
cut round behind and drive them through the gorge, so that you'll
have a better chance of picking out a good one.  Now, mind you
pitch into a fat young pig, Peterkin," added Jack, as he sprang
into the bushes.

"Won't I, just!" said Peterkin, licking his lips, as we took our
station beside the cliff.  "I feel quite a tender affection for
young pigs in my heart.  Perhaps it would be more correct to say in
my s-."

"There they come!" cried I, as a terrific yell from Jack sent the
whole herd screaming down the hill.  Now, Peterkin, being unable to
hold back, crept a short way up a very steep grassy mound, in order
to get a better view of the hogs before they came up; and just as
he raised his head above its summit, two little pigs, which had
outrun their companions, rushed over the top with the utmost
precipitation.  One of these brushed close past Peterkin's ear; the
other, unable to arrest its headlong flight, went, as Peterkin
himself afterwards expressed it, "bash" into his arms with a sudden
squeal, which was caused more by the force of the blow than the
will of the animal, and both of them rolled violently down to the
foot of the mound.  No sooner was this reached than the little pig
recovered its feet, tossed up its tail, and fled shrieking from the
spot.  But I slang a large stone after it, which, being fortunately
well aimed, hit it behind the ear, and felled it to the earth.

"Capital, Ralph! that's your sort!" cried Peterkin, who, to my
surprise and great relief, had risen to his feet.  Apparently
unhurt, though much dishevelled, he rushed franticly towards the
gorge, which the yells of the hogs told us they were now
approaching.  I had made up my mind that I would abstain from
killing another, as, if Peterkin should be successful, two were
more than sufficient for our wants at the present time.  Suddenly
they all burst forth, - two or three little round ones in advance,
and an enormous old sow with a drove of hogs at her heels.

"Now, Peterkin," said I, "there's a nice little fat one; just spear
it."

But Peterkin did not move; he allowed it to pass unharmed.  I
looked at him in surprise, and saw that his lips were compressed
and his eyebrows knitted, as if he were about to fight with some
awful enemy.

"What is it?" I inquired, with some trepidation.

Suddenly he levelled his spear, darted forward, and, with a yell
that nearly froze the blood in my veins, stabbed the old sow to the
heart.  Nay, so vigorously was it done that the spear went in at
one side and came out at the other!

"Oh, Peterkin!" said I, going up to him, "what have you done?"

"Done?  I've killed their great-great-grandmother, that's all,"
said he, looking with a somewhat awe-struck expression at the
transfixed animal.

"Hallo! what's this?" said Jack, as he came up.  "Why, Peterkin,
you must be fond of a tough chop.  If you mean to eat this old hog,
she'll try your jaws, I warrant.  What possessed you to stick HER,
Peterkin?"

"Why, the fact is I want a pair of shoes."

"What have your shoes to do with the old hog?' said I, smiling.

"My present shoes have certainly nothing to do with her," replied
Peterkin; "nevertheless she will have a good deal to do with my
future shoes.  The fact is, when I saw you floor that pig so
neatly, Ralph, it struck me that there was little use in killing
another.  Then I remembered all at once that I had long wanted some
leather or tough substance to make shoes of, and this old
grandmother seemed so tough that I just made up my mind to stick
her, and you see I've done it!"

"That you certainly have, Peterkin," said Jack, as he was examining
the transfixed animal.

We now considered how we were to carry our game home, for, although
the distance was short, the hog was very heavy.  At length we hit
on the plan of tying its four feet together, and passing the spear
handle between them.  Jack took one end on his shoulder, I took the
other on mine, and Peterkin carried the small pig.

Thus we returned in triumph to our bower, laden, as Peterkin
remarked, with the glorious spoils of a noble hunt.  As he
afterwards spoke in similarly glowing terms in reference to the
supper that followed, there is every reason to believe that we
retired that night to our leafy beds in a high state of
satisfaction.



CHAPTER XV.



Boat-building extraordinary - Peterkin tries his hand at cookery
and fails most signally - The boat finished - Curious conversation
with the cat, and other matters.


FOR many days after this Jack applied himself with unremitting
assiduity to the construction of our boat, which at length began to
look somewhat like one.  But those only who have had the thing to
do can entertain a right idea of the difficulty involved in such an
undertaking, with no other implements than an axe, a bit of hoop-
iron, a sail-needle, and a broken pen-knife.  But Jack did it.  He
was of, that disposition which WILL not be conquered.  When he
believed himself to be acting rightly, he overcame all obstacles.
I have seen Jack, when doubtful whether what he was about to do
were right or wrong, as timid and vacillating as a little girl, -
and I honour him for it!

As this boat was a curiosity in its way, a few words here relative
to the manner of its construction may not be amiss.

I have already mentioned the chestnut tree with its wonderful
buttresses or planks.  This tree, then, furnished us with the chief
part of our material.  First of all Jack sought out a limb of a
tree of such a form and size as, while it should form the keel a
bend at either end should form the stem and stern posts.  Such a
piece, however, was not easy to obtain, but at last he procured it,
by rooting up a small tree which had a branch growing at the proper
angle about ten feet up its stem, with two strong roots growing in
such a form as enabled him to make a flat-sterned boat.  This
placed, he procured three branching roots of suitable size, which
he fitted to the keel at equal distances, thus forming three strong
ribs.  Now, the squaring and shaping of these, and the cutting of
the grooves in the keel, was an easy enough matter, as it was all
work for the axe, in the use of which Jack was become wonderfully
expert; but it was quite a different affair when he came to nailing
the ribs to the keel, for we had no instrument capable of boring a
large hole, and no nails to fasten them with.  We were, indeed,
much perplexed here; but Jack at length devised an instrument that
served very well.  He took the remainder of our hoop-iron and beat
it into the form of a pipe or cylinder, about as thick as a man's
finger.  This he did by means of our axe and the old rusty axe we
had found at the house of the poor man at the other side of the
island.  This, when made red hot, bored slowly though the timbers;
and, the better to retain the heat, Jack shut up one end of it and
filled it with sand.  True, the work was very slowly done, but it
mattered not - we had little else to do.  Two holes were bored in
each timber, about an inch and a half apart, and also down into the
keel, but not quite through.  Into these were placed stout pegs
made of a tree called iron-wood; and, when they were hammered well
home, the timbers were as firmly fixed as if they had been nailed
with iron.  The gunwales, which were very stout, were fixed in a
similar manner.  But, besides the wooden nails, they were firmly
lashed to the stem and stern posts and ribs by means of a species
of cordage which we had contrived to make out of the fibrous husk
of the cocoa nut.  This husk was very tough, and when a number of
the threads were joined together they formed excellent cordage.  At
first we tied the different lengths together, but this was such a
clumsy and awkward complication of knots, that we contrived, by
careful interlacing of the ends together before twisting, to make
good cordage of any size or length we chose.  Of course it cost us
much time and infinite labour, but Jack kept up our spirits when we
grew weary, and so all that we required was at last constructed.

Planks were now cut off the chestnut trees of about an inch thick.
These were dressed with the axe, - but clumsily, for an axe is ill
adapted for such work.  Five of these planks on each side were
sufficient, and we formed the boat in a very rounded, barrel-like
shape, in order to have as little twisting of the planks as
possible; for, although we could easily bend them, we could not
easily twist them.  Having no nails to rivet the planks with, we
threw aside the ordinary fashion of boat building and adopted one
of our own.  The planks were therefore placed on each other's
edges, and sewed together with the tough cordage already mentioned.
They were also thus sewed to the stem, the stern, and the keel.
Each stitch or tie was six inches apart, and was formed thus:
Three holes were bored in the upper plank and three in the lower, -
the holes being above each other, that is, in a vertical line.
Through these holes the cord was passed, and, when tied, formed a
powerful stitch of three ply.  Besides this, we placed between the
edges of the planks, layers of cocoa-nut fibre, which, as it
swelled when wetted, would, we hoped, make our little vessel water-
tight.  But in order further to secure this end, we collected a
large quantity of pitch from the bread-fruit tree, with which, when
boiled in our old iron pot, we payed the whole of the inside of the
boat, and, while it was yet hot, placed large pieces of cocoa-nut
cloth on it, and then gave it another coat above that.  Thus the
interior was covered with a tough water-tight material; while the
exterior, being uncovered, and so exposed to the swelling action of
the water, was we hoped, likely to keep the boat quite dry.  I may
add that our hopes were not disappointed.

While Jack was thus engaged, Peterkin and I sometimes assisted him,
but, as our assistance was not much required, we more frequently
went a-hunting on the extensive mud-flats at the entrance of the
long valley which lay nearest to our bower.  Here we found large
flocks of ducks of various kinds, some of them bearing so much
resemblance to the wild ducks of our own country that I think they
must have been the same.  On these occasions we took the bow and
the sling, with both of which we were often successful, though I
must confess I was the least so.  Our suppers were thus pleasantly
varied, and sometimes we had such a profusion spread out before us
that we frequently knew not with which of the dainties to begin.

I must also add, that the poor old cat which we had brought home
had always a liberal share of our good things, and so well was it
looked after, especially by Peterkin, that it recovered much of its
former strength, and seemed to improve in sight as well as hearing.

The large flat stone, or rock of coral, which stood just in front
of the entrance to our bower, was our table.  On this rock we had
spread out the few articles we possessed the day we were
shipwrecked; and on the same rock, during many a day afterwards, we
spread out the bountiful supply with which we had been blessed on
our Coral Island.  Sometimes we sat down at this table to a feast
consisting of hot rolls, - as Peterkin called the newly baked bread
fruit, - a roast pig, roast duck, boiled and roasted yams, cocoa
nuts, taro, and sweet potatoes; which we followed up with a dessert
of plums, apples, and plantains, - the last being a large-sized and
delightful fruit, which grew on a large shrub or tree not more than
twelve feet high, with light-green leaves of enormous length and
breadth.  These luxurious feasts were usually washed down with
cocoa-nut lemonade.

Occasionally Peterkin tried to devise some new dish, - "a
conglomerate," as he used to say; but these generally turned out
such atrocious compounds that he was ultimately induced to give up
his attempts in extreme disgust.  Not forgetting, however, to point
out to Jack that his failure was a direct contradiction to the
proverb which he, Jack, was constantly thrusting down his throat,
namely, that "where there's a will there's a way."  For he had a
great will to become a cook, but could by no means find a way to
accomplish that end.

One day, while Peterkin and I were seated beside our table on which
dinner was spread, Jack came up from the beach, and, flinging down
his axe, exclaimed, -

"There, lads, the boat's finished at last! so we've nothing to do
now but shape two pair of oars, and then we may put to sea as soon
as we like."

This piece of news threw us into a state of great joy; for although
we were aware that the boat had been gradually getting near its
completion, it had taken so long that we did not expect it to be
quite ready for at least two or three weeks.  But Jack had wrought
hard and said nothing, in order to surprise us.

"My dear fellow," cried Peterkin, "you're a perfect trump.  But why
did you not tell us it was so nearly ready? won't we have a jolly
sail to-morrow? eh?"

"Don't talk so much, Peterkin," said Jack; "and, pray, hand me a
bit of that pig."

"Certainly, my dear," cried Peterkin, seizing the axe; "what part
will you have? a leg, or a wing, or a piece of the breast; which?"

"A hind leg, if you please," answered Jack; "and, pray, be so good
as to include the tail."

"With all my heart," said Peterkin, exchanging the axe for his
hoop-iron knife, with which he cut off the desired portion.  "I'm
only too glad, my dear boy, to see that your appetite is so
wholesale; and there's no chance whatever of its dwindling down
into re-tail again, at least in so far as this pig is concerned.
Ralph, lad, why don't you laugh? - eh?" he added turning suddenly
to me with a severe look of inquiry.

"Laugh?" said I; "what at, Peterkin? why should I laugh?"

Both Jack and Peterkin answered this inquiry by themselves laughing
so immoderately that I was induced to believe I had missed noticing
some good joke, so I begged that it might be explained to me; but
as this only produced repeated roars of laughter, I smiled and
helped myself to another slice of plantain.

"Well, but," continued Peterkin, "I was talking of a sail to-
morrow.  Can't we have one, Jack?"

"No," replied Jack, "we can't have a sail, but I hope we shall have
a row, as I intend to work hard at the oars this afternoon, and, if
we can't get them finished by sunset we'll light our candle-nuts,
and turn them out of hands before we turn into bed."

"Very good," said Peterkin, tossing a lump of pork to the cat, who
received it with a mew of satisfaction.  "I'll help you, if I can."

"Afterwards," continued Jack, "we will make a sail out of the
cocoa-nut cloth, and rig up a mast, and then we shall be able to
sail to some of the other islands, and visit our old friends the
penguins."

The prospect of being so soon in a position to extend our
observations to the other islands, and enjoy a sail over the
beautiful sea, afforded us much delight, and, after dinner, we set
about making the oars in good earnest.  Jack went into the woods
and blocked them roughly out with the axe, and I smoothed them down
with the knife, while Peterkin remained in the bower, spinning, or,
rather, twisting some strong thick cordage with which to fasten
them to the boat.

We worked hard and rapidly, so that, when the sun went down, Jack
and I returned to the bower with four stout oars, which required
little to be done to them save a slight degree of polishing with
the knife.  As we drew near we were suddenly arrested by the sound
of a voice!  We were not a little surprised at this - indeed I may
almost say alarmed - for, although Peterkin was undoubtedly fond of
talking, we had never, up to this time, found him talking to
himself.  We listened intently, and still heard the sound of a
voice as if in conversation.  Jack motioned me to be silent, and,
advancing to the bower on tip-toe, we peeped in.

The sight that met our gaze was certainly not a little amusing.  On
the top of a log which we sometimes used as a table, sat the black
cat, with a very demure expression on its countenance; and in front
of it, sitting on the ground, with his legs extended on either side
of the log, was Peterkin.  At the moment we saw him he was gazing
intently into the cat's face, with his nose about four inches from
it, - his hands being thrust into his breeches pockets.

"Cat," said Peterkin, turning his head a little on one side, "I
love you!"

There was a pause, as if Peterkin awaited a reply to this
affectionate declaration but the cat said nothing.

"Do you hear me?" cried Peterkin, sharply.  "I love you - I do.
Don't you love me?"

To this touching appeal the cat said "Mew," faintly.

"Ah! that's right.  You're a jolly old rascal.  Why did you not
speak at once? eh?" and Peterkin put forward his mouth and kissed
the cat on the nose!

"Yes," continued Peterkin, after a pause, "I love you.  D'you think
I'd say so if I didn't, you black villain?  I love you because I've
got to take care of you, and to look after you, and to think about
you, and to see that you don't die - "

"Mew, me-a-w!" said the cat.

"Very good," continued Peterkin, "quite true, I have no doubt; but
you've no right to interrupt me, sir.  Hold your tongue till I have
done speaking.  Moreover, cat, I love you because you came to me
the first time you ever saw me, and didn't seem to be afraid, and
appeared to be fond of me, though you didn't know that I wasn't
going to kill you.  Now, that was brave, that was bold, and very
jolly, old boy, and I love you for it - I do!"

Again there was a pause of a few minutes, during which the cat
looked placid, and Peterkin dropped his eyes upon its toes as if in
contemplation.  Suddenly he looked up.

"Well, cat, what are you thinking about now? won't speak? eh?  Now,
tell me; don't you think it's a monstrous shame that these two
scoundrels, Jack and Ralph, should keep us waiting for our supper
so long?"

Here the cat arose, put up its back and stretched itself; yawned
slightly, and licked the point of Peterkin's nose!

"Just so, old boy, you're a clever fellow, - I really do believe
the brute understands me!" said Peterkin, while a broad grin
overspread his face, as he drew back and surveyed the cat.

At this point Jack burst into a loud fit of laughter.  The cat
uttered an angry fuff and fled, while Peterkin sprang up and
exclaimed, -

"Bad luck to you, Jack! you've nearly made the heart jump out of my
body, you have."

"Perhaps I have," replied Jack, laughing, as we entered the bower,
"but, as I don't intend to keep you or the cat any longer from your
supper, I hope that you'll both forgive me."

Peterkin endeavoured to turn this affair off with a laugh, but I
observed that he blushed very deeply at the time we discovered
ourselves, and he did not seem to relish any allusion to the
subject afterwards; so we refrained from remarking on it ever
after, - though it tickled us not a little at the time.

After supper we retired to rest and to dream of wonderful
adventures in our little boat, and distant voyages upon the sea.



CHAPTER XVI.



The boat launched - We visit the coral reef - The great breaker
that never goes down - Coral insects - The way in which coral
islands are made - The boat's sail - We tax our ingenuity to form
fish-hooks - Some of the fish we saw - And a monstrous whale -
Wonderful shower of little fish - Water-spouts.


IT was a bright, clear, beautiful morning, when we first launched
our little boat and rowed out upon the placid waters of the lagoon.
Not a breath of wind ruffled the surface of the deep.  Not a cloud
spotted the deep blue sky.  Not a sound that was discordant broke
the stillness of the morning, although there were many sounds,
sweet, tiny, and melodious, that mingled in the universal harmony
of nature.  The sun was just rising from the Pacific's ample bosom
and tipping the mountain tops with a red glow.  The sea was shining
like a sheet of glass, yet heaving with the long deep swell that,
all the world round, indicates the life of ocean; and the bright
sea-weeds and the brilliant corals shone in the depths of that
pellucid water, as we rowed over it, like rare and precious gems.
Oh! it was a sight fitted to stir the soul of man to its
profoundest depths, and, if he owned a heart at all, to lift that
heart in adoration and gratitude to the great Creator of this
magnificent and glorious universe.

At first, in the strength of our delight, we rowed hither and
thither without aim or object.  But after the effervescence of our
spirits was abated, we began to look about us and to consider what
we should do.

"I vote that we row to the reef," cried Peterkin.

"And I vote that we visit the islands within the lagoon," said I.

"And I vote we do both," cried Jack, "so pull away, boys."

As I have already said, we had made four oars, but our boat was so
small that only two were necessary.  The extra pair were reserved
in case any accident should happen to the others.  It was therefore
only needful that two of us should row, while the third steered, by
means of an oar, and relieved the rowers occasionally.

First we landed on one of the small islands and ran all over it,
but saw nothing worthy of particular notice.  Then we landed on a
larger island, on which were growing a few cocoa-nut trees.  Not
having eaten anything that morning, we gathered a few of the nuts
and breakfasted.  After this we pulled straight out to sea and
landed on the coral reef.

This was indeed a novel and interesting sight to us.  We had now
been so long on shore that we had almost forgotten the appearance
of breakers, for there were none within the lagoon; but now, as we
stood beside the foam-crested billow of the open sea, all the
enthusiasm of the sailor was awakened in our breasts; and, as we
gazed on the wide-spread ruin of that single magnificent breaker
that burst in thunder at our feet, we forgot the Coral Island
behind us; we forgot our bower and the calm repose of the scented
woods; we forgot all that had passed during the last few months,
and remembered nothing but the storms, the calms, the fresh breezes
and the surging billows of the open sea.

This huge, ceaseless breaker, to which I have so often alluded, was
a much larger and more sublime object than we had at all imagined
it to be.  It rose many yards above the level of the sea, and could
be seen approaching at some distance from the reef.  Slowly and
majestically it came on, acquiring greater volume and velocity as
it advanced, until it assumed the form of a clear watery arch,
which sparkled in the bright sun.  On it came with resistless and
solemn majesty, - the upper edge lipped gently over, and it fell
with a roar that seemed as though the heart of Ocean were broken in
the crash of tumultuous water, while the foam-clad coral reef
appeared to tremble beneath the mighty shock!

We gazed long and wonderingly at this great sight, and it was with
difficulty we could tear ourselves away from it.  As I have once
before mentioned, this wave broke in many places over the reef and
scattered some of its spray into the lagoon, but in most places the
reef was sufficiently broad and elevated to receive and check its
entire force.  In many places the coral rocks were covered with
vegetation, - the beginning, as it appeared to us, of future
islands.  Thus, on this reef, we came to perceive how most of the
small islands of those seas are formed.  On one part we saw the
spray of the breaker washing over the rocks, and millions of
little, active, busy creatures continuing the work of building up
this living rampart.  At another place, which was just a little too
high for the waves to wash over it, the coral insects were all
dead; for we found that they never did their work above water.
They had faithfully completed the mighty work which their Creator
had given them to do, and they were now all dead.  Again, in other
spots the ceaseless lashing of the sea had broken the dead coral in
pieces, and cast it up in the form of sand.  Here sea-birds had
alighted, little pieces of sea-weed and stray bits of wood had been
washed up, seeds of plants had been carried by the wind and a few
lovely blades of bright green had already sprung up, which, when
they died, would increase the size and fertility of these emeralds
of Ocean.  At other places these islets had grown apace, and were
shaded by one or two cocoa-nut trees, which grew, literally, in the
sand, and were constantly washed by the ocean spray; yet, as I have
before remarked, their fruit was most refreshing and sweet to our
taste.

Again at this time Jack and I pondered the formation of the large
coral islands.  We could now understand how the low ones were
formed, but the larger islands cost us much consideration, yet we
could arrive at no certain conclusion on the subject.

Having satisfied our curiosity and enjoyed ourselves during the
whole day, in our little boat, we returned, somewhat wearied, and,
withal, rather hungry, to our bower.

"Now," said Jack, "as our boat answers so well, we will get a mast
and sail made immediately."

"So we will," cried Peterkin, as we all assisted to drag the boat
above high-water mark; "we'll light our candle and set about it
this very night.  Hurrah, my boys, pull away!"

As we dragged our boat, we observed that she grated heavily on her
keel; and, as the sands were in this place mingled with broken
coral rocks, we saw portions of the wood being scraped off.

"Hallo!" cried Jack, on seeing this.  "That won't do.  Our keel
will be worn off in no time at this rate."

"So it will," said I, pondering deeply as to how this might be
prevented.  But I am not of a mechanical turn, naturally, so I
could conceive no remedy save that of putting a plate of iron on
the keel, but as we had no iron I knew not what was to be done.
"It seems to me, Jack," I added, "that it is impossible to prevent
the keel being worn off thus."

"Impossible!" cried Peterkin, "my dear Ralph, you are mistaken,
there is nothing so easy - "

"How?" I inquired, in some surprise.

"Why, by not using the boat at all!" replied Peterkin.

"Hold your impudent tongue, Peterkin," said Jack, as he shouldered
the oars, "come along with me and I'll give you work to do.  In the
first place, you will go and collect cocoa-nut fibre, and set to
work to make sewing twine with it - "

"Please, captain," interrupted Peterkin, "I've got lots of it made
already, - more than enough, as a little friend of mine used to be
in the habit of saying every day after dinner."

"Very well," continued Jack; "then you'll help Ralph to collect
cocoa-nut cloth, and cut it into shape, after which we'll make a
sail of it.  I'll see to getting the mast and the gearing; so let's
to work."

And to work we went right busily, so that in three days from that
time we had set up a mast and sail, with the necessary rigging, in
our little boat.  The sail was not, indeed, very handsome to look
at, as it was formed of a number of oblong patches of cloth; but we
had sewed it well by means of our sail-needle, so that it was
strong, which was the chief point.  Jack had also overcome the
difficulty about the keel, by pinning to it a FALSE keel.  This was
a piece of tough wood, of the same length and width as the real
keel, and about five inches deep.  He made it of this depth because
the boat would be thereby rendered not only much more safe, but
more able to beat against the wind; which, in a sea where the
trade-winds blow so long and so steadily in one direction, was a
matter of great importance.  This piece of wood was pegged very
firmly to the keel; and we now launched our boat with the
satisfaction of knowing that when the false keel should be scraped
off we could easily put on another; whereas, should the real keel
have been scraped away, we could not have renewed it without taking
our boat to pieces, which Peterkin said made his "marrow quake to
think upon."

The mast and sail answered excellently; and we now sailed about in
the lagoon with great delight, and examined with much interest the
appearance of our island from a distance.  Also, we gazed into the
depths of the water, and watched for hours the gambols of the
curious and bright-coloured fish among the corals and sea-weed.
Peterkin also made a fishing line, and Jack constructed a number of
hooks, some of which were very good, others remarkably bad.  Some
of these hooks were made of iron-wood, which did pretty well, the
wood being extremely hard, and Jack made them very thick and large.
Fish there are not particular.  Some of the crooked bones in fish-
heads also answered for this purpose pretty well.  But that which
formed our best and most serviceable hook was the brass finger-ring
belonging to Jack.  It gave him not a little trouble to manufacture
it.  First he cut it with the axe; then twisted it into the form of
a hook.  The barb took him several hours to cut.  He did it by
means of constant sawing with the broken pen-knife.  As for the
point, an hour's rubbing on a piece of sandstone made an excellent
one.

It would be a matter of much time and labour to describe the
appearance of the multitudes of fish that were day after day drawn
into our boat by means of the brass hook.  Peterkin always caught
them, - for we observed that he derived much pleasure from fishing,
- while Jack and I found ample amusement in looking on, also in
gazing down at the coral groves, and in baiting the hook.  Among
the fish that we saw, but did not catch, were porpoises and sword-
fish, whales and sharks.  The porpoises came frequently into our
lagoon in shoals, and amused us not a little by their bold leaps
into the air, and their playful gambols in the sea.  The sword-fish
were wonderful creatures; some of them apparently ten feet in
length, with an ivory spear, six or eight feet long, projecting
from their noses.  We often saw them darting after other fish, and
no doubt they sometimes killed them with their ivory swords.  Jack
remembered having heard once of a sword-fish attacking a ship, -
which seemed strange indeed; but, as they are often in the habit of
attacking whales, perhaps it mistook the ship for one.  This sword-
fish ran against the vessel with such force, that it drove its
sword quite through the thick planks; and when the ship arrived in
harbour, long afterwards, the sword was found still sticking in it!

Sharks did not often appear; but we took care never again to bathe
in deep water without leaving one of our number in the boat to give
us warning, if he should see a shark approaching.  As for the
whales, they never came into our lagoon, but we frequently saw them
spouting in the deep water beyond the reef.  I shall never forget
my surprise the first day I saw one of these huge monsters close to
me.  We had been rambling about on the reef during the morning, and
were about to re-embark in our little boat, to return home, when a
loud blowing sound caused us to wheel rapidly round.  We were just
in time to see a shower of spray falling, and the flukes or tail of
some monstrous fish disappear in the sea a few hundred yards off.
We waited some time to see if he would rise again.  As we stood,
the sea seemed to open up at our very feet; an immense spout of
water was sent with a snort high into the air, and the huge blunt
head of a sperm whale arose before us.  It was so large that it
could easily have taken our little boat, along with ourselves, into
its mouth!  It plunged slowly back into the sea, like a large ship
foundering, and struck the water with its tail so forcibly as to
cause a sound like a cannon shot.  We also saw a great number of
flying fish, although we caught none; and we noticed that they
never flew out of the water except when followed by their bitter
foe, the dolphin, from whom they thus endeavoured to escape.  But
of all the fish that we saw, none surprised us so much as those
that we used to find in shallow pools after a shower of rain; and
this not on account of their appearance, for they were ordinary-
looking and very small, but on account of their having descended in
a shower of rain!  We could account for them in no other way,
because the pools in which we found these fish were quite dry
before the shower, and at some distance above high-water mark.
Jack, however, suggested a cause which seemed to me very probable.
We used often to see water-spouts in the sea.  A water-spout is a
whirling body of water, which rises from the sea like a sharp-
pointed pillar.  After rising a good way, it is met by a long
tongue, which comes down from the clouds; and when the two have
joined, they look something like an hour-glass.  The water-spout is
then carried by the wind, sometimes gently, sometimes with
violence, over the sea, sometimes up into the clouds, and then,
bursting asunder, it descends in a deluge.  This often happens over
the land as well as over the sea; and it sometimes does much
damage, but frequently it passes gently away.  Now, Jack thought
that the little fish might perhaps have been carried up in a water-
spout, and so sent down again in a shower of rain.  But we could
not be certain as to this point; yet we thought it likely.

During these delightful fishing and boating excursions we caught a
good many eels, which we found to be very good to eat.  We also
found turtles among the coral rocks, and made excellent soup in our
iron kettle.  Moreover, we discovered many shrimps and prawns, so
that we had no lack of variety in our food; and, indeed, we never
passed a week without making some new and interesting discovery of
some sort or other, either on the land or in the sea.



CHAPTER XVII.



A monster wave and its consequences - The boat lost and found -
Peterkin's terrible accident - Supplies of food for a voyage in the
boat - We visit Penguin Island, and are amazed beyond measure -
Account of the penguins.


ONE day, not long after our little boat was finished, we were
sitting on the rocks at Spouting Cliff, and talking of an excursion
which we intended to make to Penguin Island the next day.

"You see," said Peterkin, "it might be all very well for a stupid
fellow like me to remain here and leave the penguins alone, but it
would be quite inconsistent with your characters as philosophers to
remain any longer in ignorance of the habits and customs of these
birds; so the sooner we go the better."

"Very true," said I; "there is nothing I desire so much as to have
a closer inspection of them."

"And I think," said Jack, "that you had better remain at home,
Peterkin, to take care of the cat; for I'm sure the hogs will be at
it in your absence, out of revenge for your killing their great-
grandmother so recklessly."

"Stay at home?" cried Peterkin; "my dear fellow, you would
certainly lose your way, or get upset, if I were not there to take
care of you."

"Ah, true," said Jack, gravely, "that did not occur to me; no doubt
you must go.  Our boat does require a good deal of ballast; and all
that you say, Peterkin, carries so much weight with it, that we
won't need stones if you go."

Now, while my companions were talking, a notable event occurred,
which, as it is not generally known, I shall be particular in
recording here.

While we were talking, as I have said, we noticed a dark line, like
a low cloud or fog-bank, on the seaward horizon.  The day was a
fine one, though cloudy, and a gentle breeze was blowing, but the
sea was not rougher, or the breaker on the reef higher, than usual.
At first we thought that this looked like a thunder-cloud; and, as
we had had a good deal of broken weather of late, accompanied by
occasional peals of thunder, we supposed that a storm must be
approaching.  Gradually, however, this line seemed to draw nearer,
without spreading up over the sky, as would certainly have been the
case if it had been a storm-cloud.  Still nearer it came, and soon
we saw that it was moving swiftly towards the island; but there was
no sound till it reached the islands out at sea.  As it passed
these islands, we observed, with no little anxiety, that a cloud of
white foam encircled them, and burst in spray into the air:  it was
accompanied by a loud roar.  This led us to conjecture that the
approaching object was an enormous wave of the sea; but we had no
idea how large it was till it came near to ourselves.  When it
approached the outer reef, however, we were awe-struck with its
unusual magnitude; and we sprang to our feet, and clambered hastily
up to the highest point of the precipice, under an indefinable
feeling of fear.

I have said before that the reef opposite Spouting Cliff was very
near to the shore, while, just in front of the bower, it was at a
considerable distance out to sea.  Owing to this formation, the
wave reached the reef at the latter point before it struck at the
foot of Spouting Cliff.  The instant it touched the reef we became
aware, for the first time, of its awful magnitude.  It burst
completely over the reef at all points, with a roar that seemed
louder to me than thunder; and this roar continued for some
seconds, while the wave rolled gradually along towards the cliff on
which we stood.  As its crest reared before us, we felt that we
were in great danger, and turned to flee; but we were too late.
With a crash that seemed to shake the solid rocks the gigantic
billow fell, and instantly the spouting-holes sent up a gush of
water-spouts with such force that they shrieked on issuing from
their narrow vents.  It seemed to us as if the earth had been blown
up with water.  We were stunned and confused by the shock, and so
drenched and blinded with spray, that we knew not for a few moments
whither to flee for shelter.  At length we all three gained an
eminence beyond the reach of the water; but what a scene of
devastation met our gaze as we looked along the shore!  This
enormous wave not only burst over the reef, but continued its way
across the lagoon, and fell on the sandy beach of the island with
such force that passed completely over it and dashed into the
woods, levelling the smaller trees and bushes in its headlong
course!

On seeing this, Jack said he feared our bower must have been swept
away, and that the boat, which was on the beach, must have been
utterly destroyed.  Our hearts sank within us as we thought of
this, and we hastened round through the woods towards our home.  On
reaching it we found, to our great relief of mind, that the force
of the wave had been expended just before reaching the bower; but
the entrance to it was almost blocked up by the torn-up bushes and
tangled heaps of sea-weed.  Having satisfied ourselves as to the
bower, we hurried to the spot where the boat had been left; but no
boat was there!  The spot on which it had stood was vacant, and no
sign of it could we see on looking around us.

"It may have been washed up into the woods," said Jack, hurrying up
the beach as he spoke.  Still, no boat was to be seen, and we were
about to give ourselves over to despair, when Peterkin called to
Jack and said, -

"Jack, my friend, you were once so exceedingly sagacious and wise
as to make me acquainted with the fact that cocoa nuts grow upon
trees; will you now be so good as to inform me what sort of fruit
that is growing on the top of yonder bush? for I confess to being
ignorant, or, at least, doubtful on the point."

We looked towards the bush indicated, and there, to our surprise,
beheld our little boat snugly nestled among the leaves!  We were
very much overjoyed at this, for we would have suffered any loss
rather than the loss of our boat.  We found that the wave had
actually borne the boat on its crest from the beach into the woods,
and there launched it into the heart of this bush; which was
extremely fortunate, for had it been tossed against a rock or a
tree, it would have been dashed to pieces, whereas it had not
received the smallest injury.  It was no easy matter, however, to
get it out of the bush and down to the sea again.  This cost us two
days of hard labour to accomplish.

We had also much ado to clear away the rubbish from before the
bower, and spent nearly a week in constant labour ere we got the
neighbourhood to look as clean and orderly as before; for the
uprooted bushes and sea-weed that lay on the beach formed a more
dreadfully confused-looking mass than one who had not seen the
place after the inundation could conceive.

Before leaving the subject I may mention, for the sake of those who
interest themselves in the curious natural phenomena of our world,
that this gigantic wave occurs regularly on some of the islands of
the Pacific, once, and sometimes twice in the year.  I heard this
stated by the missionaries during my career in those seas.  They
could not tell me whether it visited all of the islands, but I was
certainly assured that it occurred periodically in some of them.

After we had got our home put to rights and cleared of the DEBRIS
of the inundation, we again turned our thoughts to paying the
penguins a visit.  The boat was therefore overhauled and a few
repairs done.  Then we prepared a supply of provisions, for we
intended to be absent at least a night or two, perhaps longer.
This took us some time to do, for while Jack was busy with the
boat, Peterkin was sent into the woods to spear a hog or two, and
had to search long, sometimes, ere he found them.  Peterkin was
usually sent on this errand, when we wanted a pork chop (which was
not seldom), because he was so active, and could run so wonderfully
fast that he found no difficulty in overtaking the hogs; but, being
dreadfully reckless, he almost invariably tumbled over stumps and
stones in the course of his wild chase, and seldom returned home
without having knocked the skin off his shins.  Once, indeed, a
more serious accident happened to him.  He had been out all morning
alone and did not return at the usual time to dinner.  We wondered
at this, for Peterkin was always very punctual at the dinner hour.
As supper-time drew near we began to be anxious about him, and at
length sallied forth to search the woods.  For a long time we
sought in vain, but a little before dark we came upon the tracks of
the hogs, which we followed up until we came to the brow of a
rather steep bank or precipice.  Looking over this we beheld
Peterkin lying in a state of insensibility at the foot, with his
cheek resting on the snout of a little pig, which was pinned to the
earth by the spear!  We were dreadfully alarmed, but hastened to
bathe his forehead with water, and had soon the satisfaction of
seeing him revive.  After we had carried him home he related to as
how the thing had happened.

"You must know," said he, "I walked about all the forenoon, till I
was as tired as an old donkey, without seeing a single grunter, not
so much as a track of one; but, as I was determined not to return
empty-handed, I resolved to go without my dinner and - "

"What!" exclaimed Jack, "did you REALLY resolve to do that?"

"Now, Jack, hold your tongue," returned Peterkin; "I say that I
resolved to forego my dinner and to push to the head of the small
valley, where I felt pretty sure of discovering the hogs.  I soon
found that I was on the right scent, for I had scarcely walked half
a mile in the direction of the small plum tree we found there the
other day, when a squeak fell on my ear.  'Ho, ho,' said I, 'there
you go, my boys;' and I hurried up the glen.  I soon started them,
and singling out a fat pig, ran tilt at him.  In a few seconds I
was up with him, and stuck my spear right through his dumpy body.
Just as I did so, I saw that we were on the edge of a precipice,
whether high or low I knew not, but I had been running at such a
pace that I could not stop, so the pig and I gave a howl in concert
and went plunging over together.  I remembered nothing more after
that, till I came to my senses and found you bathing my temples,
and Ralph wringing his hands over me."

But although Peterkin was often unfortunate, in the way of getting
tumbles, he was successful on the present occasion in hunting, and
returned before evening with three very nice little hogs.  I, also,
was successful in my visit to the mud-flats, where I killed several
ducks.  So that, when we launched and loaded our boat at sunrise
the following morning, we found our store of provisions to be more
than sufficient.  Part had been cooked the night before, and, on
taking note of the different items, we found the account to stand
thus:-


10 Bread-fruits, (two baked, eight unbaked.)
20 Yams, (six roasted, the rest raw.)
6 Taro roots.
50 Fine large plums.
6 Cocoa nuts, ripe.
6 Ditto green, (for drinking.)
4 Large ducks and two small ones, raw.
3 Cold roast pigs, with stuffing.


I may here remark that the stuffing had been devised by Peterkin
specially for the occasion.  He kept the manner of its compounding
a profound secret, so I cannot tell what it was; but I can say,
with much confidence, that we found it to be atrociously bad, and,
after the first tasting, scraped it carefully out and threw it
overboard.  We calculated that this supply would last us for
several days, but we afterwards found that it was much more than we
required, especially in regard to the cocoa nuts, of which we found
large supplies wherever we went.  However, as Peterkin remarked, it
was better to have too much than too little, as we knew not to what
straits we might be put during our voyage.

It was a very calm sunny morning when we launched forth and rowed
over the lagoon towards the outlet in the reef, and passed between
the two green islets that guard the entrance.  We experienced some
difficulty and no little danger in passing the surf of the breaker,
and shipped a good deal of water in the attempt; but, once past the
billow, we found ourselves floating placidly on the long oily swell
that rose and fell slowly as it rolled over the wide ocean.

Penguin Island lay on the other side of our own island, at about a
mile beyond the outer reef, and we calculated that it must be at
least twenty miles distant by the way we should have to go.  We
might, indeed, have shortened the way by coasting round our island
inside of the lagoon, and going out at the passage in the reef
nearly opposite to Penguin Island, but we preferred to go by the
open sea; first, because it was more adventurous; and, secondly,
because we should have the pleasure of again feeling the motion of
the deep, which we all loved very much, not being liable to sea
sickness.

"I wish we had a breeze," said Jack.

"So do I," cried Peterkin, resting on his oar and wiping his heated
brow; "pulling is hard work.  Oh dear, if we could only catch a
hundred or two of these gulls, tie them to the boat with long
strings, and make them fly as we want them, how capital it would
be!"

"Or bore a hole through a shark's tail, and reeve a rope through
it, eh?" remarked Jack.  "But, I say, it seems that my wish is
going to be granted, for here comes a breeze.  Ship your oar,
Peterkin.  Up with the mast, Ralph; I'll see to the sail.  Mind
your helm; look out for squalls!"

This last speech was caused by the sudden appearance of a dark blue
line on the horizon, which, in an incredibly short space of time,
swept down on us, lashing up the sea in white foam as it went.  We
presented the stern of the boat to its first violence, and, in a
few seconds, it moderated into a steady breeze, to which we spread
our sail and flew merrily over the waves.  Although the breeze died
away soon afterwards, it had been so stiff while it lasted, that we
were carried over the greater part of our way before it fell calm
again; so that, when the flapping of the sail against the mast told
us that it was time to resume the oars, we were not much more than
a mile from Penguin Island.

"There go the soldiers!" cried Peterkin as we came in sight of it;
"how spruce their white trousers look, this morning!  I wonder if
they will receive us kindly.  D'you think they are hospitable,
Jack?"

"Don't talk, Peterkin, but pull away, and you shall see shortly."

As we drew near to the island we were much amused by the manoeuvres
and appearance of these strange birds.  They seemed to be of
different species, for some had crests on their heads while others
had none, and while some were about the size of a goose others
appeared nearly as large as a swan.  We also saw a huge albatross
soaring above the heads of the penguins.  It was followed and
surrounded by numerous flocks of sea-gulls.  Having approached to
within a few yards of the island, which was a low rock, with no
other vegetation on it than a few bushes, we lay on our oars and
gazed at the birds with surprise and pleasure, they returning our
gaze with interest.  We now saw that their soldier-like appearance
was owing to the stiff, erect manner in which they sat on their
short legs, - "Bolt-up-right," as Peterkin expressed it.  They had
black heads, long sharp beaks, white breasts, and bluish backs.
Their wings were so short that they looked more like the fins of a
fish, and, indeed, we soon saw that they used them for the purpose
of swimming under water.  There were no quills on these wings, but
a sort of scaly feathers; which also thickly covered their bodies.
Their legs were short, and placed so far back that the birds, while
on land, were obliged to stand quite upright in order to keep their
balance; but in the water they floated like other water-fowl.  At
first we were so stunned with the clamour which they and other sea-
birds kept up around us, that we knew not which way to look, - for
they covered the rocks in thousands; but, as we continued to gaze,
we observed several quadrupeds (as we thought) walking in the midst
of the penguins.

"Pull in a bit," cried Peterkin, "and let's see what these are.
They must be fond of noisy company, to consort with such
creatures."

To our surprise we found that these were no other than penguins
which had gone down on all fours, and were crawling among the
bushes on their feet and wings, just like quadrupeds.  Suddenly one
big old bird, that had been sitting on a point very near to us,
gazing in mute astonishment, became alarmed, and, scuttling down
the rocks, plumped or fell, rather than ran, into the sea.  It
dived in a moment, and, a few seconds afterwards, came out of the
water far a-head, with such a spring, and such a dive back into the
sea again, that we could scarcely believe it was not a fish that
had leaped in sport.

"That beats everything," said Peterkin, rubbing his nose, and
screwing up his face with an expression of exasperated amazement.
"I've heard of a thing being neither fish, flesh, nor fowl, but I
never did expect to live to see a brute that was all three
together, - at once - in one!  But look there!" he continued,
pointing with a look of resignation to the shore, "look there!
there's no end to it.  What HAS that brute got under its tail?"

We turned to look in the direction pointed out, and there saw a
penguin walking slowly and very sedately along the shore with an
egg under its tail.  There were several others, we observed,
burdened in the same way; and we found afterwards that these were a
species of penguins that always carried their eggs so.  Indeed,
they had a most convenient cavity for the purpose, just between the
tail and the legs.  We were very much impressed with the regularity
and order of this colony.  The island seemed to be apportioned out
into squares, of which each penguin possessed one, and sat in stiff
solemnity in the middle of it, or took a slow march up and down the
spaces between.  Some were hatching their eggs, but others were
feeding their young ones in a manner that caused us to laugh not a
little.  The mother stood on a mound or raised rock, while the
young one stood patiently below her on the ground.  Suddenly the
mother raised her head and uttered a series of the most discordant
cackling sounds.

"She's going to choke," cried Peterkin.

But this was not the case, although, I confess, she looked like it.
In a few seconds she put down her head and opened her mouth, into
which the young one thrust its beak and seemed to suck something
from her throat.  Then the cackling was renewed, the sucking
continued, and so the operation of feeding was carried on till the
young one was satisfied; but what she fed her little one with, we
could not tell.

"Now, just look yonder!" said Peterkin, in an excited tone; "if
that isn't the most abominable piece of maternal deception I ever
saw.  That rascally old lady penguin has just pitched her young one
into the sea, and there's another about to follow her example."

This indeed seemed to be the cue, for, on the top of a steep rock
close to the edge of the sea, we observed an old penguin
endeavouring to entice her young one into the water; but the young
one seemed very unwilling to go, and, notwithstanding the
enticements of its mother, moved very slowly towards her.  At last
she went gently behind the young bird and pushed it a little
towards the water, but with great tenderness, as much as to say,
'Don't be afraid, darling!  I won't hurt you, my pet!' but no
sooner did she get it to the edge of the rock, where it stood
looking pensively down at the sea, than she gave it a sudden and
violent push, sending it headlong down the slope into the water,
where its mother left it to scramble ashore as it best could.  We
observed many of them employed in doing this, and we came to the
conclusion that this is the way in which old penguins teach their
children to swim.

Scarcely had we finished making our remarks on this, when we were
startled by about a dozen of the old birds hopping in the most
clumsy and ludicrous manner towards the sea.  The beach, here, was
a sloping rock, and when they came to it, some of them succeeded in
hopping down in safety, but others lost their balance and rolled
and scrambled down the slope in the most helpless manner.  The
instant they reached the water, however, they seemed to be in their
proper element.  They dived and bounded out of it and into it again
with the utmost agility; and so, diving and bounding and
spluttering, for they could not fly, they went rapidly out to sea,

On seeing this, Peterkin turned with a grave face to us and said,
"It's my opinion that these birds are all stark, staring mad, and
that this is an enchanted island.  I therefore propose that we
should either put about ship and fly in terror from the spot, or
land valorously on the island, and sell our lives as dearly as we
can."

"I vote for landing, so pull in, lads," said Jack, giving a stroke
with his oar that made the boat spin.  In a few seconds we ran the
boat into a little creek where we made her fast to a projecting
piece of coral, and, running up the beach, entered the ranks of the
penguins armed with our cudgels and our spear.  We were greatly
surprised to find that, instead of attacking us or showing signs of
fear at our approach, these curious birds did not move from their
places until we laid hands on them, and merely turned their eyes on
us in solemn, stupid wonder as we passed.  There was one old
penguin, however, that began to walk slowly toward the sea, and
Peterkin took it into his head that he would try to interrupt its
progress, so he ran between it and the sea and brandished his
cudgel in its face.  But this proved to be a resolute old bird.  It
would not retreat; nay, more, it would not cease to advance, but
battled with Peterkin bravely and drove him before it until it
reached the sea.  Had Peterkin used his club he could easily have
felled it, no doubt; but, as he had no wish to do so cruel an act
merely out of sport, he let the bird escape.

We spent fully three hours on this island in watching the habits of
these curious birds, and, when we finally left them, we all three
concluded, after much consultation, that they were the most
wonderful creatures we had ever seen; and further, we thought it
probable that they were the most wonderful creatures in the world!



CHAPTER XVIII.



An awful storm and its consequences - Narrow escape - A rock proves
a sure foundation - A fearful night and a bright morning -
Deliverance from danger.


IT was evening before we left the island of the penguins.  As we
had made up our minds to encamp for the night on a small island,
whereon grew a few cocoa-nut trees, which was about two miles off,
we lay to our oars with some energy.  But a danger was in store for
us which we had not anticipated.  The wind, which had carried us so
quickly to Penguin Island, freshened as evening drew on, to a stiff
breeze, and, before we had made half the distance to the small
island, it became a regular gale.  Although it was not so directly
against us as to prevent our rowing in the course we wished to go,
yet it checked us very much; and although the force of the sea was
somewhat broken by the island, the waves soon began to rise, and to
roll their broken crests against our small craft, so that she began
to take in water, and we had much ado to keep ourselves afloat.  At
last the wind and sea together became so violent that we found it
impossible to make the island, so Jack suddenly put the head of the
boat round and ordered Peterkin and me to hoist a corner of the
sail, intending to run back to Penguin Island.

"We shall at least have the shelter of the bushes," he said, as the
boat flew before the wind, "and the penguins will keep us company."

As Jack spoke, the wind suddenly shifted, and blew so much against
us that we were forced to hoist more of the sail in order to beat
up for the island, being by this change thrown much to leeward of
it.  What made matters worse was, that the gale came in squalls, so
that we were more than once nearly upset.

"Stand by, both of you," cried Jack, in a quick, earnest tone; "be
ready to dowse the sail.  I very much fear we won't make the island
after all."

Peterkin and I were so much in the habit of trusting everything to
Jack that we had fallen into the way of not considering things,
especially such things as were under Jack's care.  We had,
therefore, never doubted for a moment that all was going well, so
that it was with no little anxiety that we heard him make the above
remark.  However, we had no time for question or surmise, for, at
the moment he spoke, a heavy squall was bearing down upon us, and,
as we were then flying with our lee gunwale dipping occasionally
under the waves, it was evident that we should have to lower our
sail altogether.  In a few seconds the squall struck the boat, but
Peterkin and I had the sail down in a moment, so that it did not
upset us; but, when it was past, we were more than half full of
water.  This I soon baled out, while Peterkin again hoisted a
corner of the sail; but the evil which Jack had feared came upon
us.  We found it quite impossible to make Penguin Island.  The gale
carried us quickly past it towards the open sea, and the terrible
truth flashed upon us that we should be swept out and left to
perish miserably in a small boat in the midst of the wide ocean.

This idea was forced very strongly upon us because we saw nothing
in the direction whither the wind was blowing us save the raging
billows of the sea; and, indeed, we trembled as we gazed around us,
for we were now beyond the shelter of the islands, and it seemed as
though any of the huge billows, which curled over in masses of
foam, might swallow us up in a moment.  The water, also, began to
wash in over our sides, and I had to keep constantly baling, for
Jack could not quit the helm nor Peterkin the sail for an instant,
without endangering our lives.  In the midst of this distress Jack
uttered an exclamation of hope, and pointed towards a low island or
rock which lay directly ahead.  It had been hitherto unobserved,
owing to the dark clouds that obscured the sky and the blinding
spray that seemed to fill the whole atmosphere.

As we neared this rock we observed that it was quite destitute of
trees and verdure, and so low that the sea broke completely over
it.  In fact it was nothing more than the summit of one of the
coral formations, which rose only a few feet above the level of the
water, and was, in stormy weather, all but invisible.  Over this
island the waves were breaking in the utmost fury, and our hearts
sank within us as we saw that there was not a spot where we could
thrust our little boat without its being dashed to pieces.

"Show a little bit more sail," cried Jack, as we swept past the
weather side of the rock with fearful speed.

"Ay, ay," answered Peterkin, hoisting about a foot more of our
sail.

Little though the addition was it caused the boat to lie over and
creak so loudly, as we cleft the foaming waves, that I expected to
be upset every instant; and I blamed Jack in my heart for his
rashness.  But I did him injustice, for, although during two
seconds the water rushed in-board in a torrent, he succeeded in
steering us sharply round to the leeward side of the rock, where
the water was comparatively calm, and the force of the breeze
broken.

"Out your oars now, lads; that's well done.  Give way!"  We obeyed
instantly.  The oars splashed into the waves together.  One good
hearty pull, and we were floating in a comparatively calm creek
that was so narrow as to be barely able to admit our boat.  Here we
were in perfect safety, and, as we leaped on shore and fastened our
cable to the rocks, I thanked God in my heart for our deliverance
from so great danger.  But, although I have said we were now in
safety, I suspect that few of my readers would have envied our
position.  It is true we had no lack of food, but we were drenched
to the skin; the sea was foaming round us and the spray flying over
our heads, so that we were completely enveloped, as it were, in
water; the spot on which we had landed was not more than twelve
yards in diameter, and from this spot we could not move without the
risk of being swept away by the storm.  At the upper end of the
creek was a small hollow or cave in the rock, which sheltered us
from the fury of the winds and waves; and as the rock extended in a
sort of ledge over our heads, it prevented the spray from falling
upon us.

"Why," said Peterkin, beginning to feel cheery again, "it seems to
me that we have got into a mermaid's cave, for there is nothing but
water all round us; and as for earth or sky, they are things of the
past."

Peterkin's idea was not inappropriate, for, what with the sea
roaring in white foam up to our very feet, and the spray flying in
white sheets continually over our heads, and the water dripping
heavily from the ledge above like a curtain in front of our cave,
it did seem to us very much more like being below than above water.

"Now, boys," cried Jack, "bestir yourselves, and let's make
ourselves comfortable.  Toss out our provisions, Peterkin; and
here, Ralph, lend a hand to haul up the boat.  Look sharp."

"Ay, ay, captain," we cried, as we hastened to obey, much cheered
by the hearty manner of our comrade.

Fortunately the cave, although not very deep, was quite dry, so
that we succeeded in making ourselves much more comfortable than
could have been expected.  We landed our provisions, wrung the
water out of our garments, spread our sail below us for a carpet,
and, after having eaten a hearty meal, began to feel quite
cheerful.  But as night drew on, our spirits sank again, for with
the daylight all evidence of our security vanished away.  We could
no longer see the firm rock on which we lay, while we were stunned
with the violence of the tempest that raged around us.  The night
grew pitchy dark, as it advanced, so that we could not see our
hands when we held them up before our eyes, and were obliged to
feel each other occasionally to make sure that we were safe, for
the storm at last became so terrible that it was difficult to make
our voices audible.  A slight variation of the wind, as we
supposed, caused a few drops of spray ever and anon to blow into
our faces; and the eddy of the sea, in its mad boiling, washed up
into our little creek until it reached our feet and threatened to
tear away our boat.  In order to prevent this latter calamity, we
hauled the boat farther up and held the cable in our hands.
Occasional flashes of lightning shone with a ghastly glare through
the watery curtains around us, and lent additional horror to the
scene.  Yet we longed for those dismal flashes, for they were less
appalling than the thick blackness that succeeded them.  Crashing
peals of thunder seemed to tear the skies in twain, and fell upon
our ears through the wild yelling of the hurricane as if it had
been but a gentle summer breeze; while the billows burst upon the
weather side of the island until we fancied that the solid rock was
giving way, and, in our agony, we clung to the bare ground,
expecting every moment to be whirled away and whelmed in the black
howling sea!  Oh! it was a night of terrible anxiety, and no one
can conceive the feelings of intense gratitude and relief with
which we at last saw the dawn of day break through the vapory mists
around us.

For three days and three nights we remained on this rock, while the
storm continued to rage with unabated fury.  On the morning of the
fourth day it suddenly ceased, and the wind fell altogether; but
the waves still ran so high that we did not dare to put off in our
boat.  During the greater part of this period we scarcely slept
above a few minutes at a time, but on the third night we slept
soundly and awoke early on the fourth morning to find the sea very
much down, and the sun shining brightly again in the clear blue
sky.

It was with light hearts that we launched forth once more in our
little boat and steered away for our island home, which, we were
overjoyed to find, was quite visible on the horizon, for we had
feared that we had been blown out of sight of it altogether.  As it
was a dead calm we had to row during the greater part of the day;
but towards the afternoon a fair breeze sprang up, which enabled us
to hoist our sail.  We soon passed Penguin Island, and the other
island which we had failed to reach on the day the storm commenced;
but as we had still enough of provisions, and were anxious to get
home, we did not land, to the great disappointment of Peterkin, who
seemed to entertain quite an affection for the penguins.

Although the breeze was pretty fresh for several hours, we did not
reach the outer reef of our island till night-fall, and before we
had sailed more than a hundred yards into the lagoon, the wind died
away altogether, so that we had to take to our oars again.  It was
late and the moon and stars were shining brightly when we arrived
opposite the bower and leaped upon the strand.  So glad were we to
be safe back again on our beloved island, that we scarcely took
time to drag the boat a short way up the beach, and then ran up to
see that all was right at the bower.  I must confess, however, that
my joy was mingled with a vague sort of fear lest our home had been
visited and destroyed during our absence; but on reaching it we
found everything just as it had been left, and the poor black cat
curled up, sound asleep, on the coral table in front of our humble
dwelling.



CHAPTER XIX.



Shoemaking - The even tenor of our way suddenly interrupted - An
unexpected visit and an appalling battle - We all become warriors,
and Jack proves himself be a hero.


FOR many months after this we continued to live on our island in
uninterrupted harmony and happiness.  Sometimes we went out a-
fishing in the lagoon, and sometimes went a-hunting in the woods,
or ascended to the mountain top, by way of variety, although
Peterkin always asserted that we went for the purpose of hailing
any ship that might chance to heave in sight.  But I am certain
that none of us wished to be delivered from our captivity, for we
were extremely happy, and Peterkin used to say that as we were very
young we should not feel the loss of a year or two.  Peterkin, as I
have said before, was thirteen years of age, Jack eighteen, and I
fifteen.  But Jack was very tall, strong, and manly for his age,
and might easily have been mistaken for twenty.

The climate was so beautiful that it seemed to be a perpetual
summer, and as many of the fruit-trees continued to bear fruit and
blossom all the year round, we never wanted for a plentiful supply
of food.  The hogs, too, seemed rather to increase than diminish,
although Peterkin was very frequent in his attacks on them with his
spear.  If at any time we failed in finding a drove, we had only to
pay a visit to the plum-tree before mentioned, where we always
found a large family of them asleep under its branches.

We employed ourselves very busily during this time in making
various garments of cocoa-nut cloth, as those with which we had
landed were beginning to be very ragged.  Peterkin also succeeded
in making excellent shoes out of the skin of the old hog, in the
following manner:- He first cut a piece of the hide, of an oblong
form, a few inches longer than his foot.  This he soaked in water,
and, while it was wet, he sewed up one end of it, so as to form a
rough imitation of that part of the heel of a shoe where the seam
is.  This done, he bored a row of holes all round the edge of the
piece of skin, through which a tough line was passed.  Into the
sewed-up part of this shoe he thrust his heel, then, drawing the
string tight, the edges rose up and overlapped his foot all round.
It is true there were a great many ill-looking puckers in these
shoes, but we found them very serviceable notwithstanding, and Jack
came at last to prefer them to his long boots.  We ago made various
other useful articles, which added to our comfort, and once or
twice spoke of building us a house, but we had so great an
affection for the bower, and, withal, found it so serviceable, that
we determined not to leave it, nor to attempt the building of a
house, which, in such a climate, might turn out to be rather
disagreeable than useful.

We often examined the pistol that we had found in the house on the
other side of the island, and Peterkin wished much that we had
powder and shot, as it would render pig-killing much easier; but,
after all, we had become so expert in the use of our sling and bow
and spear, that we were independent of more deadly weapons.

Diving in the Water Garden also continued to afford us as much
pleasure as ever; and Peterkin began to be a little more expert in
the water from constant practice.  As for Jack and I, we began to
feel as if water were our native element, and revelled in it with
so much confidence and comfort that Peterkin said he feared we
would turn into fish some day, and swim off and leave him; adding,
that he had been for a long time observing that Jack was becoming
more and more like a shark every day.  Whereupon Jack remarked,
that if he, Peterkin, were changed into a fish, he would certainly
turn into nothing better or bigger than a shrimp.  Poor Peterkin
did not envy us our delightful excursions under water, except,
indeed, when Jack would dive down to the bottom of the Water
Garden, sit down on a rock and look up and make faces at him.
Peterkin did feel envious then, and often said he would give
anything to be able to do that.  I was much amused when Peterkin
said this; for if he could only have seen his own face when he
happened to take a short dive, he would have seen that Jack's was
far surpassed by it.  The great difference being, however, that
Jack made faces on purpose - Peterkin couldn't help it!

Now, while we were engaged with these occupations and amusements,
an event occurred one day which was as unexpected as it was
exceedingly alarming and very horrible.

Jack and I were sitting, as we were often wont to do, on the rocks
at Spouting Cliff, and Peterkin was wringing the water from his
garments, having recently fallen by accident into the sea, - a
thing he was constantly doing, - when our attention was suddenly
arrested by two objects which appeared on the horizon.

"What are yon, think you?" I said, addressing Jack.

"I can't imagine," answered he; "I've noticed them for some time,
and fancied they were black sea-gulls, but the more I look at them
the more I feel convinced they are much larger than gulls."

"They seem to be coming towards us," said I.

"Hallo! what's wrong?" inquired Peterkin, coming up.

"Look there," said Jack.

"Whales!" cried Peterkin, shading his eyes with his hand.  "No! eh!
can they be boats, Jack?"

Our hearts beat with excitement at the very thought of seeing human
faces again.

"I think you are about right, Peterkin; - but they seem to me to
move strangely for boats," said Jack, in a low tone, as if he were
talking to himself.

I noticed that a shade of anxiety crossed Jack's countenance as he
gazed long and intently at the two objects, which were now nearing
us fast.  At last he sprang to his feet.  "They are canoes, Ralph!
whether war-canoes or not I cannot tell, but this I know, that all
the natives of the South Sea Islands are fierce cannibals, and they
have little respect for strangers.  We must hide if they land here,
which I earnestly hope they will not do."

I was greatly alarmed at Jack's speech, but I confess I thought
less of what he said than of the earnest, anxious manner in which
he said it, and it was with very uncomfortable feelings that
Peterkin and I followed him quickly into the woods.

"How unfortunate," said I, as we gained the shelter of the bushes,
"that we have forgotten our arms."

"It matters not," said Jack; "here are clubs enough and to spare."
As he spoke, he laid his hand on a bundle of stout poles of various
sizes, which Peterkin's ever-busy hands had formed, during our
frequent visits to the cliff, for no other purpose, apparently,
than that of having something to do.

We each selected a stout club according to our several tastes, and
lay down behind a rock, whence we could see the canoes approach,
without ourselves being seen.  At first we made an occasional
remark on their appearance, but after they entered the lagoon, and
drew near the beach, we ceased to speak, and gazed with intense
interest at the scene before us.

We now observed that the foremost canoe was being chased by the
other, and that it contained a few women and children, as well as
men, - perhaps forty souls altogether; while the canoe which
pursued it contained only men.  They seemed to be about the same in
number, but were better armed, and had the appearance of being a
war party.  Both crews were paddling with all their might, and it
seemed as if the pursuers exerted themselves to overtake the
natives ere they could land.  In this, however, they failed.  The
foremost canoe made for the beach close beneath the rocks behind
which we were concealed.  Their short paddles flashed like meteors
in the water, and sent up a constant shower of spray.  The foam
curled from the prow, and the eyes of the rowers glistened in their
black faces as they strained every muscle of their naked bodies;
nor did they relax their efforts till the canoe struck the beach
with a violent shock; then, with a shout of defiance, the whole
party sprang, as if by magic, from the canoe to the shore.  Three
women, two of whom carried infants in their arms, rushed into the
woods; and the men crowded to the water's edge, with stones in
their hands, spears levelled, and clubs brandished, to resist the
landing of their enemies.

The distance between the two canoes had been about half a mile,
and, at the great speed they were going, this was soon passed.  As
the pursuers neared the shore, no sign of fear or hesitation was
noticeable.  On they came like a wild charger, - received but
recked not of a shower of stones.  The canoe struck, and, with a
yell that seemed to issue from the throats of incarnate fiends,
they leaped into the water, and drove their enemies up the beach.

The battle that immediately ensued was frightful to behold.  Most
of the men wielded clubs of enormous size and curious shapes, with
which they dashed out each other's brains.  As they were almost
entirely naked, and had to bound, stoop, leap, and run, in their
terrible hand-to-hand encounters, they looked more like demons than
human beings.  I felt my heart grow sick at the sight of this
bloody battle, and would fain have turned away, but a species of
fascination seemed to hold me down and glue my eyes upon the
combatants.  I observed that the attacking party was led by a most
extraordinary being, who, from his size and peculiarity, I
concluded was a chief.  His hair was frizzed out to an enormous
extent, so that it resembled a large turban.  It was of a light-
yellow hue, which surprised me much, for the man's body was as
black as coal, and I felt convinced that the hair must have been
dyed.  He was tattooed from head to foot; and his face, besides
being tattooed, was besmeared with red paint, and streaked with
white.  Altogether, with his yellow turban-like hair, his Herculean
black frame, his glittering eyes and white teeth, he seemed the
most terrible monster I ever beheld.  He was very active in the
fight, and had already killed four men.

Suddenly the yellow-haired chief was attacked by a man quite as
strong and large as himself.  He flourished a heavy club something
like an eagle's beak at the point.  For a second or two these
giants eyed each other warily, moving round and round, as if to
catch each other at a disadvantage, but seeing that nothing was to
be gained by this caution, and that the loss of time might
effectually turn the tide of battle either way, they apparently
made up their minds to attack at the same instant, for, with a wild
shout and simultaneous spring, they swung their heavy clubs, which
met with a loud report.  Suddenly the yellow-haired savage tripped,
his enemy sprang forward, the ponderous club was swung, but it did
not descend, for at that moment the savage was felled to the ground
by a stone from the hand of one who had witnessed his chief's
danger.  This was the turning-point in the battle.  The savages who
landed first turned and fled towards the bush, on seeing the fall
of their chief.  But not one escaped.  They were all overtaken and
felled to the earth.  I saw, however, that they were not all
killed.  Indeed, their enemies, now that they were conquered,
seemed anxious to take them alive; and they succeeded in securing
fifteen, whom they bound hand and foot with cords, and, carrying
them up into the woods, laid them down among the bushes.  Here they
left them, for what purpose I knew not, and returned to the scene
of the late battle, where the remnant of the party were bathing
their wounds.

Out of the forty blacks that composed the attacking party, only
twenty-eight remained alive, two of whom were sent into the bush to
hunt for the women and children.  Of the other party, as I have
said, only ten survived, and these were lying bound and helpless on
the grass.

Jack and Peterkin and I now looked at each other, and whispered our
fears that the savages might clamber up the rocks to search for
fresh water, and so discover our place of concealment; but we were
so much interested in watching their movements that we agreed to
remain where we were; and, indeed, we could not easily have risen
without exposing ourselves to detection.  One of the savages now
went up to the wood and soon returned with a bundle of fire-wood,
and we were not a little surprised to see him set fire to it by the
very same means used by Jack the time we made our first fire, -
namely, with the bow and drill.  When the fire was kindled, two of
the party went again to the woods and returned with one of the
bound men.  A dreadful feeling of horror crept over my heart, as
the thought flashed upon me that they were going to burn their
enemies.  As they bore him to the fire my feelings almost
overpowered me.  I gasped for breath, and seizing my club,
endeavoured to spring to my feet; but Jack's powerful arm pinned me
to the earth.  Next moment one of the savages raised his club, and
fractured the wretched creature's skull.  He must have died
instantly, and, strange though it may seem, I confess to a feeling
of relief when the deed was done, because I now knew that the poor
savage could not be burned alive.  Scarcely had his limbs ceased to
quiver when the monsters cut slices of flesh from his body, and,
after roasting them slightly over the fire, devoured them.

Suddenly there arose a cry from the woods, and, in a few seconds,
the two savages hastened towards the fire dragging the three women
and their two infants along with them.  One of those women was much
younger than her companions, and we were struck with the modesty of
her demeanour and the gentle expression of her face, which,
although she had the flattish nose and thick lips of the others,
was of a light-brown colour, and we conjectured that she must be of
a different race.  She and her companions wore short petticoats and
a kind of tippet on their shoulders.  Their hair was jet black, but
instead of being long, was short and curly, - though not woolly -
somewhat like the hair of a young boy.  While we gazed with
interest and some anxiety at these poor creatures, the big chief
advanced to one of the elder females and laid his hand upon the
child.  But the mother shrank from him, and clasping the little one
to her bosom, uttered a wail of fear.  With a savage laugh, the
chief tore the child from her arms and tossed it into the sea.  A
low groan burst from Jack's lips as we witnessed this atrocious act
and heard the mother's shriek, as she fell insensible on the sand.
The rippling waves rolled the child on the beach, as if they
refused to be a party in such a foul murder, and we could observe
that the little one still lived.

The young girl was now brought forward, and the chief addressed
her; but although we heard his voice, and even the words
distinctly, of course we could not understand what he said.  The
girl made no answer to his fierce questions, and we saw by the way
in which he pointed to the fire that he threatened her life.

"Peterkin," said Jack in a hoarse whisper, "have you got your
knife?"

"Yes," replied Peterkin, whose face was pale as death.

"That will do.  Listen to me, and do my bidding quick.  Here is the
small knife, Ralph.  Fly both of you through the bush, cut the
cords that bind the prisoners and set them free.  There! quick, ere
it be too late.  Jack sprang up, and seized a heavy but short
bludgeon, while his strong frame trembled with emotion, and large
drops rolled down his forehead.

At this moment the man who had butchered the savage a few minutes
before advanced towards the girl with his heavy club.  Jack uttered
a yell that rang like a death-shriek among the rocks.  With one
bound he leaped over a precipice full fifteen feet high, and,
before the savages had recovered from their surprise, was in the
midst of them; while Peterkin and I dashed through the bushes
towards the prisoners.  With one blow of his staff Jack felled the
man with the club, then, turning round with a look of fury, he
rushed upon the big chief with the yellow hair.  Had the blow which
Jack aimed at his head taken effect, the huge savage would have
needed no second stroke; but he was agile as a cat, and avoided it
by springing to one side, while, at the same time, he swung his
ponderous club at the head of his foe.  It was now Jack's turn to
leap aside, and well was it for him that the first outburst of his
blind fury was over, else he had become an easy prey to his
gigantic antagonist; but Jack was cool now.  He darted his blows
rapidly and well, and the superiority of his light weapon was
strikingly proved in this combat, for while he could easily evade
the blows of the chief's heavy club, the chief could not so easily
evade those of his light one.  Nevertheless, so quick was he, and
so frightfully did he fling about the mighty weapon, that, although
Jack struck him almost every blow, the strokes had to be delivered
so quickly that they wanted force to be very effectual

It was lucky for Jack that the other savages considered the success
of their chief in this encounter to be so certain that they
refrained from interfering.  Had they doubted it, they would have
probably ended the matter at once by felling him.  But they
contented themselves with awaiting the issue.

The force which the chief expended in wielding his club now began
to be apparent.  His movements became slower, his breath hissed
through his clenched teeth, and the surprised savages drew nearer
in order to render assistance.  Jack observed this movement.  He
felt that his fate was sealed, and resolved to cast his life upon
the next blow.  The chiefs club was again about to descend on his
head.  He might have evaded it easily, but instead of doing so, he
suddenly shortened his grasp of his own club, rushed in under the
blow, struck his adversary right between the eyes with all his
force and fell to the earth, crushed beneath the senseless body of
the chief.  A dozen clubs flew high in air ready to descend on the
head of Jack, but they hesitated a moment, for the massive body of
the chief completely covered him.  That moment saved his life.  Ere
the savages could tear the chief's body away, seven of their number
fell prostrate beneath the clubs of the prisoners whom Peterkin and
I had set free, and two others fell under our own hand.  We could
never have accomplished this had not our enemies been so engrossed
with the fight between Jack and their chief that they had failed to
observe us until we were upon them.  They still out-numbered our
party by three, but we were flushed with victory while they were
taken by surprise and dispirited by the fall of their chief.
Moreover, they were awe-struck by the sweeping fury of Jack, who
seemed to have lost his senses altogether, and had no sooner shaken
himself free of the chief's body than he rushed into the midst of
them, and in three blows equalized our numbers.  Peterkin and I
flew to the rescue, the savages followed us, and, in less than ten
minutes, the whole of our opponents were knocked down or made
prisoners, bound hand and foot, and extended side by side upon the
sea shore.



CHAPTER XX.



Intercourse with the savages - Cannibalism prevented - The slain
are buried and the survivors depart, leaving us again alone on our
Coral Island.


AFTER the battle was over, the savages crowded round us and gazed
at us in surprise, while they continued to pour upon us a flood of
questions, which, being wholly unintelligible, of course we could
not answer.  However, by way of putting an end to it, Jack took the
chief (who had recovered from the effects of his wound) by the hand
and shook it warmly.  No sooner did the blacks see that this was
meant to express good-will than they shook hands with us all round.
After this ceremony was gone through Jack went up to the girl, who
had never once moved from the rock where she had been left, but had
continued an eager spectator of all that had passed.  He made signs
to her to follow him and then, taking the chief by the hand, was
about to conduct him to the bower when his eye fell on the poor
infant which had been thrown into the sea and was still lying on
the shore.  Dropping the chief's hand he hastened towards it, and,
to his great joy, found it to be still alive.  We also found that
the mother was beginning to recover slowly.

"Here, get out o' the way," said Jack, pushing us aside, as we
stooped over the poor woman and endeavoured to restore her, "I'll
soon bring her round."  So saying, he placed the infant on her
bosom and laid its warm cheek on hers.  The effect was wonderful.
The woman opened her eyes, felt the child, looked at it, and with a
cry of joy clasped it in her arms, at the same time endeavouring to
rise, for the purpose, apparently, of rushing into the woods.

"There, that's all right," said Jack, once more taking the chief by
the hand.  "Now Ralph and Peterkin, make the women and these
fellows follow me to the bower.  Well entertain them as hospitably
as we can."

In a few minutes the savages were all seated on the ground in front
of the bower making a hearty meal off a cold roast pig, several
ducks, and a variety of cold fish, together with an unlimited
supply of cocoa-nuts, bread-fruits, yams, taro, and plums; with all
of which they seemed to be quite familiar and perfectly satisfied.

Meanwhile, we three being thoroughly knocked up with our day's
work, took a good draught of cocoa-nut lemonade, and throwing
ourselves on our beds fell fast asleep.  The savages it seems
followed our example, and in half-an-hour the whole camp was buried
in repose.

How long we slept I cannot tell, but this I know, that when we lay
down the sun was setting and when we awoke it was high in the
heavens.  I awoke Jack, who started up in surprise, being unable at
first to comprehend our situation.  "Now, then," said he, springing
up, "let's see after breakfast.  Hallo!  Peterkin, lazy fellow, how
long do you mean to lie there?"

Peterkin yawned heavily.  "Well!" said he, opening his eyes and
looking up after some trouble, "if it isn't to-morrow morning, and
me thinking it was to-day all this time.  Hallo!  Venus, where did
you come from? you seem tolerably at home, any how.  Bah! might as
well speak to the cat as to you - better, in fact, for it
understands me, and you don't."

This remark was called forth by the sight of one of the elderly
females, who had seated herself on the rock in front of the bower,
and, having placed her child at her feet, was busily engaged in
devouring the remains of a roast pig.

By this time the natives outside were all astir, and breakfast in
an advanced state of preparation.  During the course of it we made
sundry attempts to converse with the natives by signs, but without
effect.  At last we hit upon a plan of discovering their names.
Jack pointed to his breast and add "Jack," very distinctly; then he
pointed to Peterkin and to me, repeating our names at the same
time.  Then he pointed to himself again, and said "Jack," and
laying his finger on the breast of the chief, looked inquiringly
into his face.  The chief instantly understood him and said
"Tararo," twice, distinctly.  Jack repeated it after him, and the
chief, nodding his head approvingly, said "Chuck."  On hearing
which, Peterkin exploded with laughter; but Jack turned and with a
frown rebuked him, saying, "I must look even more indignantly at
you than I feel, Peterkin, you rascal, for these fellows don't like
to be laughed at."  Then turning towards the youngest of the women,
who was seated at the door of the bower, he pointed to her;
whereupon the chief said, "Avatea;" and pointing towards the sun,
raised his finger slowly towards the zenith, where it remained
steadily for a minute or two.

"What can that mean, I wonder," said Jack, looking puzzled.

"Perhaps," said Peterkin, "the chief means she is an angel come
down to stay here for a while.  If so, she's an uncommonly black
one!"

We did not feel quite satisfied with this explanation, so Jack went
up to her and said, "Avatea."  The woman smiled sadly, and nodded
her head, at the same time pointing to her breast and then to the
sun, in the same manner as the chief had done.  We were much
puzzled to know what this could signify, but as there was no way of
solving our difficulty we were obliged to rest content.

Jack now made signs to the natives to follow him, and, taking up
his axe, he led them to the place where the battle had been fought.
Here we found the prisoners, who had passed the night on the beach
having been totally forgotten by us, as our minds had been full of
our guests, and were ultimately overcome by sleep.  They did not
seem the worse for their exposure, however, as we judged by the
hearty appetite with which they devoured the breakfast that was
soon after given to them.  Jack then began to dig a hole in the
sand, and, after working a few seconds, he pointed to it and to the
dead bodies that lay exposed on the beach.  The natives immediately
perceived what he wanted, and, running for their paddles, dug a
hole in the course of half an hour that was quite large enough to
contain all the bodies of the slain.  When it was finished they
tossed their dead enemies into it with so much indifference that we
felt assured they would not have put themselves to this trouble had
we not asked them to do so.  The body of the yellow-haired chief
was the last thrown in.  This wretched man would have recovered
from the blow with which Jack felled him, and, indeed, he did
endeavour to rise during the melee that followed his fall, but one
of his enemies, happening to notice the action, dealt him a blow
with his club that killed him on the spot.

While they were about to throw the sand over this chief, one of the
savages stooped over him, and with a knife, made apparently of
stone, cut a large slice of flesh from his thigh.  We knew at once
that he intended to make use of this for food, and could not
repress a cry of horror and disgust.

"Come, come, you blackguard," cried Jack, starting up and seizing
the man by the arm, "pitch that into the hole.  Do you hear?"

The savage of course did not understand the command, but he
perfectly understood the look of disgust with which Jack regarded
the flesh, and his fierce gaze as he pointed towards the hole.
Nevertheless he did not obey.  Jack instantly turned to Tararo and
made signs to him to enforce obedience.  The chief seemed to
understand the appeal, for he stepped forward, raised his club, and
was on the point of dashing out the brains of his offending
subject, when Jack sprang forward and caught his uplifted arm.

"Stop!" he shouted, "you blockhead, I don't want you to kill the
man."  He then pointed again to the flesh and to the hole.  The
chief uttered a few words, which had the desired effect; for the
man threw the flesh into the hole, which was immediately filled up.
This man was of a morose, sulky disposition, and, during all the
time he remained on the island, regarded us, especially Jack, with
a scowling visage.  His name, we found, was Mahine.

The next three or four days were spent by the savages in mending
their canoe, which had been damaged by the violent shock it had
sustained on striking the shore.  This canoe was a very curious
structure.  It was about thirty feet long, and had a high towering
stern.  The timbers, of which it was partly composed, were fastened
much in the same way as those of our little boat were put together;
but the part that seemed most curious to us was a sort of out-
rigger, or long plank, which was attached to the body of the canoe
by means of two stout cross beams.  These beams kept the plank
parallel with the canoe, but not in contact with it, for it floated
in the water with an open space between; thus forming a sort of
double canoe.  This we found was intended to prevent the upsetting
of the canoe, which was so narrow that it could not have maintained
an upright position without the out-rigger.  We could not help
wondering both at the ingenuity and the clumsiness of this
contrivance.

When the canoe was ready, we assisted the natives to carry the
prisoners into it, and helped them to load it with provisions and
fruit.  Peterkin also went to the plum-tree for the purpose of
making a special onslaught upon the hogs, and killed no less than
six of them.  These we baked and presented to our friends on the
day of their departure.  On that day Tararo made a great many
energetic signs to us, which, after much consideration, we came to
understand were proposals that we should go away with him to his
island; but, having no desire to do so, we shook our heads very
decidedly.  However, we consoled him by presenting him with our
rusty axe, which we thought we could spare, having the excellent
one which had been so providentially washed ashore to us the day we
were wrecked.  We also gave him a piece of wood with our names
carved on it, and a piece of string to hang it round his neck as an
ornament.

In a few minutes more we were all assembled on the beach.  Being
unable to speak to the savages, we went through the ceremony of
shaking hands, and expected they would depart; but, before doing
so, Tararo went up to Jack and rubbed noses with him, after which
he did the same with Peterkin and me!  Seeing that this was their
mode of salutation, we determined to conform to their custom, so we
rubbed noses heartily with the whole party, women and all!  The
only disagreeable part of the process was, when we came to rub
noses with Mahine, and Peterkin afterwards said, that when he saw
his wolfish eyes glaring so close to his face, he felt much more
inclined to BANG than to RUB his nose.  Avatea was the last to take
leave of us, and we experienced a feeling of real sorrow when she
approached to bid us farewell.  Besides her modest air and gentle
manners she was the only one of the party who exhibited the
smallest sign of regret at parting from us.  Going up to Jack, she
put out her flat little nose to be rubbed, and thereafter paid the
same compliment to Peterkin and me.

An hour later the canoe was out of sight, and we, with an
indefinable feeling of sadness creeping round our hearts, were
seated in silence beneath the shadow of our bower, meditating on
the wonderful events of the last few days.



CHAPTER XXI.



Sagacious and moral remarks in regard to life - A sail! - An
unexpected salute - The end of the black cat - A terrible dive - An
incautious proceeding and a frightful catastrophe.


LIFE is a strange compound.  Peterkin used to say of it, that it
beat a druggist's shop all to sticks; for, whereas the first is a
compound of good and bad, the other is a horrible compound of all
that is utterly detestable.  And indeed the more I consider it the
more I am struck with the strange mixture of good and evil that
exists not only in the material earth but in our own natures.  In
our own Coral Island we had experienced every variety of good that
a bountiful Creator could heap on us.  Yet on the night of the
storm we had seen how almost, in our case, - and altogether, no
doubt, in the case of others less fortunate - all this good might
be swept away for ever.  We had seen the rich fruit-trees waving in
the soft air, the tender herbs shooting upwards under the benign
influence of the bright sun; and, the next day, we had seen these
good and beautiful trees and plants uprooted by the hurricane,
crushed and hurled to the ground in destructive devastation.  We
had lived for many months in a clime for the most part so
beautiful, that we had often wondered whether Adam and Eve had
found Eden more sweet; and we had seen the quiet solitudes of our
paradise suddenly broken in upon by ferocious savages, and the
white sands stained with blood and strewed with lifeless forms;
yet, among these cannibals, we had seen many symptoms of a kindly
nature.  I pondered these things much, and, while I considered
them, there recurred to my memory those words which I had read in
my Bible, - the works of God are wonderful, and his ways past
finding out.

After these poor savages had left us, we used to hold long and
frequent conversations about them, and I noticed that Peterkin's
manner was now much altered.  He did not, indeed, jest less
heartily than before, but he did so less frequently, and often
there was a tone of deep seriousness in his manner, if not in his
words, which made him seem to Jack and me as if he had grown two
years older within a few days.  But indeed I was not surprised at
this, when I reflected on the awful realities which we had
witnessed so lately.  We could by no means shake off a tendency to
gloom for several weeks afterwards; but, as time wore away, our
usual good spirits returned somewhat, and we began to think of the
visit of the savages with feelings akin to those with which we
recall a terrible dream.

One day we were all enjoying ourselves in the Water Garden,
preparatory to going on a fishing excursion; for Peterkin had kept
us in such constant supply of hogs that we had become quite tired
of pork, and desired a change.  Peterkin was sunning himself on the
ledge of rock, while we were creeping among the rocks below.
Happening to look up, I observed Peterkin cutting the most
extraordinary capers and making violent gesticulations for us to
come up; so I gave Jack a push, and rose immediately.

"A sail! a sail!  Ralph, look!  Jack, away on the horizon there,
just over the entrance to the lagoon!" cried Peterkin, as we
scrambled up the rocks.

"So it is, and a schooner, too!" said Jack, as he proceeded hastily
to dress.

Our hearts were thrown into a terrible flutter by this discovery,
for if it should touch at our island we had no doubt the captain
would be happy to give us a passage to some of the civilized
islands, where we could find a ship sailing for England, or some
other part of Europe.  Home, with all its associations, rushed in
upon my heart like a flood, and, much though I loved the Coral
Island and the bower which had now been our home so long, I felt
that I could have quitted all at that moment without a sigh.  With
joyful anticipations we hastened to the highest point of rock near
our dwelling, and awaited the arrival of the vessel, for we now
perceived that she was making straight for the island, under a
steady breeze.

In less than an hour she was close to the reef, where she rounded
to, and backed her topsails in order to survey the coast.  Seeing
this, and fearing that they might not perceive us, we all three
waved pieces of cocoa-nut cloth in the air, and soon had the
satisfaction of seeing them beginning to lower a boat and bustle
about the decks as if they meant to land.  Suddenly a flag was run
up to the peak, a little cloud of white smoke rose from the
schooner's side, and, before we could guess their intentions, a
cannon-shot came crashing through the bushes, carried away several
cocoa-nut trees in its passage, and burst in atoms against the
cliff a few yards below the spot on which we stood.

With feelings of terror we now observed that the flag at the
schooner's peak was black, with a Death's head and cross bones upon
it.  As we gazed at each other in blank amazement, the word
"pirate" escaped our lips simultaneously.

"What is to be done?" cried Peterkin, as we observed a boat shoot
from the vessel's side, and make for the entrance of the reef.  "If
they take us off the island, it will either be to throw us
overboard for sport, or to make pirates of us."

I did not reply, but looked at Jack, as being our only resource in
this emergency.  He stood with folded arms, and his eyes fixed with
a grave, anxious expression on the ground.  "There is but one
hope," said he, turning with a sad expression of countenance to
Peterkin; "perhaps, after all, we may not have to resort to it.  If
these villains are anxious to take us, they will soon overrun the
whole island.  But come, follow me."

Stopping abruptly in his speech, Jack bounded into the woods, and
led us by a circuitous route to Spouting Cliff.  Here he halted,
and, advancing cautiously to the rocks, glanced over their edge.
We were soon by his side, and saw the boat, which was crowded with
armed men, just touching the shore.  In an instant the crew landed,
formed line, and rushed up to our bower.

In a few seconds we saw them hurrying back to the boat, one of them
swinging the poor cat round his head by the tail.  On reaching the
water's edge, he tossed it far into the sea, and joined his
companions, who appeared to be holding a hasty council.

"You see what we may expect," said Jack bitterly.  "The man who
will wantonly kill a poor brute for sport will think little of
murdering a fellow-creature.  Now, boys, we have but one chance
left, - the Diamond Cave."

"The Diamond Cave!" cried Peterkin, "then my chance is a poor one,
for I could not dive into it if all the pirates on the Pacific were
at my heels."

"Nay, but," said I, "we will take you down, Peterkin, if you will
only trust us."

As I spoke, we observed the pirates scatter over the beach, and
radiate, as if from a centre, towards the woods and along shore.

"Now, Peterkin," said Jack, in a solemn tone, "you must make up
your mind to do it, or we must make up our minds to die in your
company."

"Oh, Jack, my dear friend," cried Peterkin, turning pale, "leave
me; I don't believe they'll think it worth while to kill me.  Go,
you and Ralph, and dive into the cave."

"That will not I," answered Jack quietly, while he picked up a
stout cudgel from the ground.  "So now, Ralph, we must prepare to
meet these fellows.  Their motto is, 'No quarter.'  If we can
manage to floor those coming in this direction, we may escape into
the woods for a while."

"There are five of them," said I; "we have no chance."

"Come, then," cried Peterkin, starting up, and grasping Jack
convulsively by the arm, "let us dive; I will go."

Those who are not naturally expert in the water know well the
feelings of horror that overwhelm them, when in it, at the bare
idea of being held down, even for a few seconds, - that spasmodic,
involuntary recoil from compulsory immersion which has no
connection whatever with cowardice; and they will understand the
amount of resolution that it required in Peterkin to allow himself
to be dragged down to a depth of ten feet, and then, through a
narrow tunnel, into an almost pitch-dark cavern.  But there was no
alternative.  The pirates had already caught sight of us, and were
now within a short distance of the rocks.

Jack and I seized Peterkin by the arms.

"Now, keep quite still, no struggling," said Jack, "or we are
lost."

Peterkin made no reply, but the stern gravity of his marble
features, and the tension of his muscles, satisfied us that he had
fully made up his mind to go through with it.  Just as the pirates
gained the foot of the rocks, which hid us for a moment from their
view, we bent over the sea, and plunged down together head
foremost.  Peterkin behaved like a hero.  He floated passively
between us like a log of wood, and we passed the tunnel and rose
into the cave in a shorter space of time than I had ever done it
before.

Peterkin drew a long, deep breath on reaching the surface; and in a
few seconds we were all standing on the ledge of rock in safety.
Jack now searched for the tinder and torch, which always lay in the
cave.  He soon found them, and, lighting the torch, revealed to
Peterkin's wondering gaze the marvels of the place.  But we were
too wet to waste much time in looking about us.  Our first care was
to take off our clothes, and wring them as dry as we could.  This
done, we proceeded to examine into the state of our larder, for, as
Jack truly remarked, there was no knowing how long the pirates
might remain on the island.

"Perhaps," said Peterkin, "they may take it into their heads to
stop here altogether, and so we shall be buried alive in this
place."

"Don't you think, Peterkin, that it's the nearest thing to being
drowned alive that you ever felt?" said Jack with a smile.  "But
I've no fear of that.  These villains never stay long on shore.
The sea is their home, so you may depend upon it that they won't
stay more than a day or two at the furthest."

We now began to make arrangements for spending the night in the
cavern.  At various periods Jack and I had conveyed cocoa nuts and
other fruits, besides rolls of cocoa-nut cloth, to this submarine
cave, partly for amusement, and partly from a feeling that we might
possibly be driven one day to take shelter here from the savages.
Little did we imagine that the first savages who would drive us
into it would be white savages, perhaps our own countrymen.  We
found the cocoa-nuts in good condition, and the cooked yams, but
the bread-fruits were spoiled.  We also found the cloth where we
had left it; and, on opening it out, there proved to be sufficient
to make a bed; which was important, as the rock was damp.  Having
collected it all together, we spread out our bed, placed our torch
in the midst of us, and ate our supper.  It was indeed a strange
chamber to feast in; and we could not help remarking on the cold,
ghastly appearance of the walls, and the black water at our side,
with the thick darkness beyond, and the sullen sound of the drops
that fell at long intervals from the roof of the cavern into the
still water; and the strong contrast between all this and our bed
and supper, which, with our faces, were lit up with the deep red
flame of the torch.

We sat long over our meal, talking together in subdued voices, for
we did not like the dismal echoes that rang through the vault above
when we happened to raise them.  At last the faint light that came
through the opening died away, warning us that it was night and
time for rest.  We therefore put out our torch and lay down to
sleep.

On awaking, it was some time ere we could collect our faculties so
as to remember where we were, and we were in much uncertainty as to
whether it was early or late.  We saw by the faint light that it
was day, but could not guess at the hour; so Jack proposed that he
should dive out and reconnoitre.

"No, Jack," said I, "do you rest here.  You've had enough to do
during the last few days.  Rest yourself now, and take care of
Peterkin, while I go out to see what the pirates are about.  I'll
be very careful not to expose myself, and I'll bring you word again
in a short time."

"Very well, Ralph," answered Jack, "please yourself, but don't be
long; and if you'll take my advice you'll go in your clothes, for I
would like to have some fresh cocoa nuts, and climbing trees
without clothes is uncomfortable, to say the least of it."

"The pirates will be sure to keep a sharp lookout," said Peterkin,
"so, pray, be careful."

"No fear," said I; "good-bye."

"Good-bye," answered my comrades.

And while the words were yet sounding in my ears, I plunged into
the water, and in a few seconds found myself in the open air.  On
rising, I was careful to come up gently and to breathe softly,
while I kept close in beside the rocks; but, as I observed no one
near me, I crept slowly out, and ascended the cliff a step at a
time, till I obtained a full view of the shore.  No pirates were to
be seen, - even their boat was gone; but as it was possible they
might have hidden themselves, I did not venture too boldly forward.
Then it occurred to me to look out to sea, when, to my surprise, I
saw the pirate schooner sailing away almost hull-down on the
horizon!  On seeing this I uttered a shout of joy.  Then my first
impulse was to dive back to tell my companions the good news; but I
checked myself, and ran to the top of the cliff, in order to make
sure that the vessel I saw was indeed the pirate schooner.  I
looked long and anxiously at her, and, giving vent to a deep sigh
of relief, said aloud, "Yes, there she goes; the villains have been
baulked of their prey this time at least."

"Not so sure of that!" said a deep voice at my side; while, at the
same moment, a heavy hand grasped my shoulder, and held it as if in
a vice.



CHAPTER XXII.



I fall into the hands of pirates - How they treated me, and what I
said to them - The result of the whole ending in a melancholy
separation and in a most unexpected gift.


MY heart seemed to leap into my throat at the words; and, turning
round, I beheld a man of immense stature, and fierce aspect
regarding me with a smile of contempt.  He was a white man, - that
is to say, he was a man of European blood, though his face, from
long exposure to the weather, was deeply bronzed.  His dress was
that of a common seaman, except that he had on a Greek skull-cap,
and wore a broad shawl of the richest silk round his waist.  In
this shawl were placed two pair of pistols and a heavy cutlass.  He
wore a beard and moustache, which, like the locks on his head, were
short, curly, and sprinkled with gray hairs.

"So, youngster," he said, with a Sardonic smile, while I felt his
grasp tighten on my shoulder, "the villains have been baulked of
their prey, have they?  We shall see, we shall see.  Now, you
whelp, look yonder.  As he spoke, the pirate uttered a shrill
whistle.  In a second or two it was answered, and the pirate-boat
rowed round the point at the Water Garden, and came rapidly towards
us.  "Now, go, make a fire on that point; and hark'ee, youngster,
if you try to run away, I'll send a quick and sure messenger after
you," and he pointed significantly at his pistols.

I obeyed in silence, and as I happened to have the burning-glass in
my pocket, a fire was speedily kindled, and a thick smoke ascended
into the air.  It had scarcely appeared for two minutes when the
boom of a gun rolled over the sea, and, looking up, I saw that the
schooner was making for the island again.  It now flashed across me
that this was a ruse on the part of the pirates, and that they had
sent their vessel away, knowing that it would lead us to suppose
that they had left altogether.  But there was no use of regret now.
I was completely in their power, so I stood helplessly beside the
pirate watching the crew of the boat as they landed on the beach.
For an instant I contemplated rushing over the cliff into the sea,
but this I saw I could not now accomplish, as some of the men were
already between me and the water.

There was a good deal of jesting at the success of their scheme, as
the crew ascended the rocks and addressed the man who had captured
me by the title of captain.  They were a ferocious set of men, with
shaggy beards and scowling brows.  All of them were armed with
cutlasses and pistols, and their costumes were, with trifling
variations, similar to that of the captain.  As I looked from one
to the other, and observed the low, scowling brows, that never
unbent, even when the men laughed, and the mean, rascally
expression that sat on each face, I felt that my life hung by a
hair.

"But where are the other cubs?" cried one of the men, with an oath
that made me shudder.  "I'll swear to it there were three, at
least, if not more."

"You hear what he says, whelp; where are the other dogs?" said the
captain.

"If you mean my companions," said I, in a low voice, "I won't tell
you."

A loud laugh burst from the crew at this answer.

The pirate captain looked at me in surprise.  Then drawing a pistol
from his belt, he cocked it and said, "Now, youngster, listen to
me.  I've no time to waste here.  If you don't tell me all you
know, I'll blow your brains out!  Where are your comrades?"

For an instant I hesitated, not knowing what to do in this
extremity.  Suddenly a thought occurred to me.

"Villain," said I, shaking my clenched fist in his face, "to blow
my brains out would make short work of me, and be soon over.  Death
by drowning is as sure, and the agony prolonged, yet, I tell you to
your face, if you were to toss me over yonder cliff into the sea, I
would not tell you where my companions are, and I dare you to try
me!"

The pirate captain grew white with rage as I spoke.  "Say you so?"
cried he, uttering a fierce oath.  "Here, lads, take him by the
legs and heave him in, - quick!"

The men, who were utterly silenced with surprise at my audacity,
advanced, and seized me, and, as they carried me towards the cliff,
I congratulated myself not a little on the success of my scheme,
for I knew that once in the water I should be safe, and could
rejoin Jack and Peterkin in the cave.  But my hopes were suddenly
blasted by the captain crying out, "Hold on, lads, hold on.  We'll
give him a taste of the thumb-screws before throwing him to the
sharks.  Away with him into the boat.  Look alive! the breeze is
freshening."

The men instantly raised me shoulder high, and, hurrying down the
rocks, tossed me into the bottom of the boat, where I lay for some
time stunned with the violence of my fall.

On recovering sufficiently to raise myself on my elbow, I perceived
that we were already outside the coral reef, and close alongside
the schooner, which was of small size and clipper built.  I had
only time to observe this much, when I received a severe kick on
the side from one of the men, who ordered me, in a rough voice, to
jump aboard.  Rising hastily I clambered up the side.  In a few
minutes the boat was hoisted on deck, the vessel's head put close
to the wind, and the Coral Island dropped slowly astern as we beat
up against a head sea.

Immediately after coming aboard, the crew were too busily engaged
in working the ship and getting in the boat to attend to me, so I
remained leaning against the bulwarks close to the gangway,
watching their operations.  I was surprised to find that there were
no guns or carronades of any kind in the vessel, which had more of
the appearance of a fast-sailing trader than a pirate.  But I was
struck with the neatness of everything.  The brass work of the
binnacle and about the tiller, as well as the copper belaying-pins,
were as brightly polished as if they had just come from the
foundry.  The decks were pure white, and smooth.  The masts were
clean-scraped and varnished, except at the cross-trees and truck,
which were painted black.  The standing and running rigging was in
the most perfect order, and the sails white as snow.  In short,
everything, from the single narrow red stripe on her low black hull
to the trucks on her tapering masts, evinced an amount of care and
strict discipline that would have done credit to a ship of the
Royal Navy.  There was nothing lumbering or unseemly about the
vessel, excepting, perhaps, a boat, which lay on the deck with its
keel up between the fore and main masts.  It seemed
disproportionately large for the schooner; but, when I saw that the
crew amounted to between thirty and forty men, I concluded that
this boat was held in reserve, in case of any accident compelling
the crew to desert the vessel.

As I have before said, the costumes of the men were similar to that
of the captain.  But in head gear they differed not only from him
but from each other, some wearing the ordinary straw hat of the
merchant service, while others wore cloth caps and red worsted
night-caps.  I observed that all their arms were sent below; the
captain only retaining his cutlass and a single pistol in the folds
of his shawl.  Although the captain was the tallest and most
powerful man in the ship, he did not strikingly excel many of his
men in this respect, and the only difference that an ordinary
observer would have noticed was, a certain degree of open candour,
straightforward daring, in the bold, ferocious expression of his
face, which rendered him less repulsive than his low-browed
associates, but did not by any means induce the belief that he was
a hero.  This look was, however, the indication of that spirit
which gave him the pre-eminence among the crew of desperadoes who
called him captain.  He was a lion-like villain; totally devoid of
personal fear, and utterly reckless of consequences, and,
therefore, a terror to his men, who individually hated him, but
unitedly felt it to be their advantage to have him at their head.

But my thoughts soon reverted to the dear companions whom I had
left on shore, and as I turned towards the Coral Island, which was
now far away to leeward, I sighed deeply, and the tears rolled
slowly down my cheeks as I thought that I might never see them
more.

"So you're blubbering, are you, you obstinate whelp?" said the deep
voice of the captain, as he came up and gave me a box on the ear
that nearly felled me to the deck.  "I don't allow any such
weakness aboard o' this ship.  So clap a stopper on your eyes or
I'll give you something to cry for."

I flushed with indignation at this rough and cruel treatment, but
felt that giving way to anger would only make matters worse, so I
made no reply, but took out my handkerchief and dried my eyes.

"I thought you were made of better stuff," continued the captain,
angrily; "I'd rather have a mad bull-dog aboard than a water-eyed
puppy.  But I'll cure you, lad, or introduce you to the sharks
before long.  Now go below, and stay there till I call you."

As I walked forward to obey, my eye fell on a small keg standing by
the side of the main-mast, on which the word GUNPOWDER was written
in pencil.  It immediately flashed across me that, as we were
beating up against the wind, anything floating in the sea would be
driven on the reef encircling the Coral Island.  I also recollected
- for thought is more rapid than the lightning - that my old
companions had a pistol.  Without a moment's hesitation, therefore,
I lifted the keg from the deck and tossed it into the sea!  An
exclamation of surprise burst from the captain and some of the men
who witnessed this act of mine.

Striding up to me, and uttering fearful imprecations, the captain
raised his hand to strike me, while he shouted, "Boy! whelp! what
mean you by that?"

"If you lower your hand," said I, in a loud voice, while I felt the
blood rush to my temples, "I'll tell you.  Until you do so I'm
dumb!"

The captain stepped back and regarded me with a look of amazement.

"Now," continued I, "I threw that keg into the sea because the wind
and waves will carry it to my friends on the Coral Island, who
happen to have a pistol, but no powder.  I hope that it will reach
them soon, and my only regret is that the keg was not a bigger one.
Moreover, pirate, you said just now that you thought I was made of
better stuff!  I don't know what stuff I am made of, - I never
thought much about that subject; but I'm quite certain of this,
that I am made of such stuff as the like of you shall never tame,
though you should do your worst."

To my surprise the captain, instead of flying into a rage, smiled,
and, thrusting his hand into the voluminous shawl that encircled
his waist, turned on his heel and walked aft, while I went below.

Here, instead of being rudely handled, as I had expected, the men
received me with a shout of laughter, and one of them, patting me
on the back, said, "Well done, lad! you're a brick, and I have no
doubt will turn out a rare cove.  Bloody Bill, there, was just such
a fellow as you are, and he's now the biggest cut-throat of us
all."

"Take a can of beer, lad," cried another, "and wet your whistle
after that speech o' your'n to the captain.  If any one o' us had
made it, youngster, he would have had no whistle to wet by this
time."

"Stop your clapper, Jack," vociferated a third; "give the boy a
junck o' meat.  Don't you see he's a'most goin' to kick the
bucket?"

"And no wonder," said the first speaker, with an oath, "after the
tumble you gave him into the boat.  I guess it would have broke
YOUR neck if you had got it."

I did indeed feel somewhat faint; which was owing, doubtless, to
the combined effects of ill-usage and hunger; for it will be
recollected that I had dived out of the cave that morning before
breakfast, and it was now near mid-day.  I therefore gladly
accepted a plate of boiled pork and a yam, which were handed to me
by one of the men from the locker on which some of the crew were
seated eating their dinner.  But I must add that the zest with
which I ate my meal was much abated in consequence of the frightful
oaths and the terrible language that flowed from the lips of these
godless men, even in the midst of their hilarity and good-humour.
The man who had been alluded to as Bloody Bill was seated near me,
and I could not help wondering at the moody silence he maintained
among his comrades.  He did indeed reply to their questions in a
careless, off-hand tone, but he never volunteered a remark.  The
only difference between him and the others was his taciturnity and
his size, for he was nearly, if not quite, as large a man as the
captain.

During the remainder of the afternoon I was left to my own
reflections, which were anything but agreeable, for I could not
banish from my mind the threat about the thumb-screws, of the
nature and use of which I had a vague but terrible conception.  I
was still meditating on my unhappy fate when, just after night-
fall, one of the watch on deck called down the hatchway, -

"Hallo there! one o' you, tumble up and light the cabin lamp, and
send that boy aft to the captain - sharp!"

"Now then, do you hear, youngster? the captain wants you.  Look
alive," said Bloody Bill, raising his huge frame from the locker on
which he had been asleep for the last two hours.  He sprang up the
ladder and I instantly followed him, and, going aft, was shown into
the cabin by one of the men, who closed the door after me.

A small silver lamp which hung from a beam threw a dim soft light
over the cabin, which was a small apartment, and comfortably but
plainly finished.  Seated on a camp-stool at the table, and busily
engaged in examining a chart of the Pacific, was the captain, who
looked up as I entered, and, in a quiet voice, bade me be seated,
while he threw down his pencil, and, rising from the table,
stretched himself on a sofa at the upper end of the cabin.

"Boy," said he, looking me full in the face, "what is your name?"

"Ralph Rover," I replied.

"Where did you come from, and how came you to be on that island?
How many companions had you on it?  Answer me, now, and mind you
tell no lies."

"I never tell lies," said I, firmly.

The captain received this reply with a cold sarcastic smile, and
bade me answer his questions.

I then told him the history of myself and my companions from the
time we sailed till the day of his visit to the island, taking
care, however, to make no mention of the Diamond Cave.  After I had
concluded, he was silent for a few minutes; then, looking up, he
said - "Boy, I believe you."

I was surprised at this remark, for I could not imagine why he
should not believe me.  However, I made no reply.

"And what," continued the captain, "makes you think that this
schooner is a pirate?"

"The black flag," said I, "showed me what you are; and if any
further proof were wanting I have had it in the brutal treatment I
have received at your hands."

The captain frowned as I spoke, but subduing his anger he continued
- "Boy, you are too bold.  I admit that we treated you roughly, but
that was because you made us lose time and gave us a good deal of
trouble.  As to the black flag, that is merely a joke that my
fellows play off upon people sometimes in order to frighten them.
It is their humour, and does no harm.  I am no pirate, boy, but a
lawful trader, - a rough one, I grant you, but one can't help that
in these seas, where there are so many pirates on the water and
such murderous blackguards on the land.  I carry on a trade in
sandal-wood with the Feejee Islands; and if you choose, Ralph, to
behave yourself and be a good boy, I'll take you along with me and
give you a good share of the profits.  You see I'm in want of an
honest boy like you, to look after the cabin and keep the log, and
superintend the traffic on shore sometimes.  What say you, Ralph,
would you like to become a sandal-wood trader?"

I was much surprised by this explanation, and a good deal relieved
to find that the vessel, after all, was not a pirate; but instead
of replying I said, "If it be as you state, then why did you take
me from my island, and why do you not now take me back?"

The captain smiled as he replied, "I took you off in anger, boy,
and I'm sorry for it.  I would even now take you back, but we are
too far away from it.  See, there it is," he added, laying his
finger on the chart, "and we are now here, - fifty miles at least.
It would not be fair to my men to put about now, for they have all
an interest in the trade."

I could make no reply to this; so, after a little more
conversation, I agreed to become one of the crew, at least until we
could reach some civilized island where I might be put ashore.  The
captain assented to this proposition, and after thanking him for
the promise, I left the cabin and went on deck with feelings that
ought to have been lighter, but which were, I could not tell why,
marvellously heavy and uncomfortable still.



CHAPTER XXIII.



Bloody Bill - Dark surmises - A strange sail, and a strange crew,
and a still stranger cargo - New reasons for favouring missionaries
- A murderous massacre, and thoughts thereon.


THREE weeks after the conversation narrated in the last chapter, I
was standing on the quarter-deck of the schooner watching the
gambols of a shoal of porpoises that swam round us.  It was a dead
calm.  One of those still, hot, sweltering days, so common in the
Pacific, when Nature seems to have gone to sleep, and the only
thing in water or in air that proves her still alive, is her long,
deep breathing, in the swell of the mighty sea.  No cloud floated
in the deep blue above; no ripple broke the reflected blue below.
The sun shone fiercely in the sky, and a ball of fire blazed, with
almost equal power, from out the bosom of the water.  So intensely
still was it, and so perfectly transparent was the surface of the
deep, that had it not been for the long swell already alluded to,
we might have believed the surrounding universe to be a huge blue
liquid ball, and our little ship the one solitary material speck in
all creation, floating in the midst of it.

No sound broke on our ears save the soft puff now and then of a
porpoise, the slow creak of the masts, as we swayed gently on the
swell, the patter of the reef-points, and the occasional flap of
the hanging sails.  An awning covered the fore and after parts of
the schooner, under which the men composing the watch on deck
lolled in sleepy indolence, overcome with excessive heat.  Bloody
Bill, as the men invariably called him, was standing at the tiller,
but his post for the present was a sinecure, and he whiled away the
time by alternately gazing in dreamy abstraction at the compass in
the binnacle, and by walking to the taffrail in order to spit into
the sea.  In one of these turns he came near to where I was
standing, and, leaning over the side, looked long and earnestly
down into the blue wave.

This man, although he was always taciturn and often surly, was the
only human being on board with whom I had the slightest desire to
become better acquainted.  The other men, seeing that I did not
relish their company, and knowing that I was a protege of the
captain, treated me with total indifference.  Bloody Bill, it is
true, did the same; but as this was his conduct towards every one
else, it was not peculiar in reference to me.  Once or twice I
tried to draw him into conversation, but he always turned away
after a few cold monosyllables.  As he now leaned over the taffrail
close beside me, I said to him, -

"Bill, why is it that you are so gloomy?  Why do you never speak to
any one?"

Bill smiled slightly as he replied, "Why, I s'pose it's because I
haint got nothin' to say!"

"That's strange," said I, musingly; "you look like a man that could
think, and such men can usually speak."

"So they can, youngster," rejoined Bill, somewhat sternly; "and I
could speak too if I had a mind to, but what's the use o' speakin'
here!  The men only open their mouths to curse and swear, an' they
seem to find it entertaining; but I don't, so I hold my tongue."

"Well, Bill, that's true, and I would rather not hear you speak at
all than hear you speak like the other men; but I don't swear,
Bill, so you might talk to me sometimes, I think.  Besides, I'm
weary of spending day after day in this way, without a single soul
to say a pleasant word to.  I've been used to friendly
conversation, Bill, and I really would take it kind if you would
talk with me a little now and then."

Bill looked at me in surprise, and I thought I observed a sad
expression pass across his sun-burnt face.

"An' where have you been used to friendly conversation," said Bill,
looking down again into the sea; "not on that Coral Island, I take
it?"

"Yes, indeed," said I energetically; "I have spent many of the
happiest months in my life on that Coral Island;" and without
waiting to be further questioned, I launched out into a glowing
account of the happy life that Jack and Peterkin and I had spent
together, and related minutely every circumstance that befell us
while on the island.

"Boy, boy," said Bill, in a voice so deep that it startled me,
"this is no place for you."

"That's true," said I; "I'm of little use on board, and I don't
like my comrades; but I can't help it, and at anyrate I hope to be
free again soon."

"Free?" said Bill, looking at me in surprise.

"Yes, free," returned I; "the captain said he would put me ashore
after this trip was over."

"THIS TRIP!  Hark'ee, boy," said Bill, lowering his voice, "what
said the captain to you the day you came aboard?"

"He said that he was a trader in sandal-wood and no pirate, and
told me that if I would join him for this trip he would give me a
good share of the profits or put me on shore in some civilized
island if I chose."

Bill's brows lowered savagely as he muttered, "Ay, he said truth
when he told you he was a sandal-wood trader, but he lied when - "

"Sail ho!" shouted the look-out at the masthead.

"Where, away?" cried Bill, springing to the tiller; while the men,
startled by the sudden cry jumped up and gazed round the horizon.

"On the starboard quarter, hull down, sir," answered the look-out.

At this moment the captain came on deck, and mounting into the
rigging, surveyed the sail through the glass.  Then sweeping his
eye round the horizon he gazed steadily at a particular point.

"Take in top-sails," shouted the captain, swinging himself down on
the deck by the main-back stay.

"Take in top-sails," roared the first mate.

"Ay, ay, sir-r-r," answered the men as they sprang into the rigging
and went aloft like cats.

Instantly all was bustle on board the hitherto quiet schooner.  The
top-sails were taken in and stowed, the men stood by the sheets and
halyards, and the captain gazed anxiously at the breeze which was
now rushing towards us like a sheet of dark blue.  In a few seconds
it struck us.  The schooner trembled as if in surprise at the
sudden onset, while she fell away, then bending gracefully to the
wind, as though in acknowledgment of her subjection, she cut
through the waves with her sharp prow like a dolphin, while Bill
directed her course towards the strange sail.

In half an hour we neared her sufficiently to make out that she was
a schooner, and, from the clumsy appearance of her masts and sails
we judged her to be a trader.  She evidently did not like our
appearance, for, the instant the breeze reached her, she crowded
all sail and showed us her stern.  As the breeze had moderated a
little our top-sails were again shaken out, and it soon became
evident, - despite the proverb, "A stern chase is a long one," that
we doubled her speed and would overhaul her speedily.  When within
a mile we hoisted British colours, but receiving no acknowledgment,
the captain ordered a shot to be fired across her bows.  In a
moment, to my surprise, a large portion of the bottom of the boat
amidships was removed, and in the hole thus exposed appeared an
immense brass gun.  It worked on a swivel and was elevated by means
of machinery.  It was quickly loaded and fired.  The heavy ball
struck the water a few yards ahead of the chase, and, ricochetting
into the air, plunged into the sea a mile beyond it.

This produced the desired effect.  The strange vessel backed her
top-sails and hove-to, while we ranged up and lay-to, about a
hundred yards off.

"Lower the boat," cried the captain.

In a second the boat was lowered and manned by a part of the crew,
who were all armed with cutlasses and pistols.  As the captain
passed me to get into it, he said, "jump into the stern sheets,
Ralph, I may want you."  I obeyed, and in ten minutes more we were
standing on the stranger's deck.  We were all much surprised at the
sight that met our eyes.  Instead of a crew of such sailors as we
were accustomed to see, there were only fifteen blacks standing on
the quarter-deck and regarding us with looks of undisguised alarm.
They were totally unarmed and most of them unclothed; one or two,
however, wore portions of European attire.  One had on a pair of
duck trousers which were much too large for him and stuck out in a
most ungainly manner.  Another wore nothing but the common scanty
native garment round the loins, and a black beaver hat.  But the
most ludicrous personage of all, and one who seemed to be chief,
was a tall middle-aged man, of a mild, simple expression of
countenance, who wore a white cotton shirt, a swallow-tailed coat,
and a straw hat, while his black brawny legs were totally uncovered
below the knees.

"Where's the commander of this ship?" inquired our captain,
stepping up to this individual.

"I is capin," he answered, taking off his straw hat and making a
low bow.

"You!" said our captain, in surprise.  "Where do you come from, and
where are you bound?  What cargo have you aboard?"

"We is come," answered the man with the swallow-tail, "from
Aitutaki; we was go for Rarotonga.  We is native miss'nary ship;
our name is de OLIVE BRANCH; an' our cargo is two tons cocoa-nuts,
seventy pigs, twenty cats, and de Gosp'l."

This announcement was received by the crew of our vessel with a
shout of laughter, which, however, was peremptorily checked by the
captain, whose expression instantly changed from one of severity to
that of frank urbanity as he advanced towards the missionary and
shook him warmly by the hand.

"I am very glad to have fallen in with you," said he, "and I wish
you much success in your missionary labours.  Pray take me to your
cabin, as I wish to converse with you privately."

The missionary immediately took him by the hand, and as he led him
away I heard him saying, "Me most glad to find you trader; we
t'ought you be pirate.  You very like one 'bout the masts."

What conversation the captain had with this man I never heard, but
he came on deck again in a quarter of an hour, and, shaking hands
cordially with the missionary, ordered us into our boat and
returned to the schooner, which was immediately put before the
wind.  In a few minutes the OLIVE BRANCH was left far behind us.

That afternoon, as I was down below at dinner, I heard the men
talking about this curious ship.

"I wonder," said one, "why our captain looked so sweet on yon
swallow-tailed super-cargo o' pigs and Gospels.  If it had been an
ordinary trader, now, he would have taken as many o' the pigs as he
required and sent the ship with all on board to the bottom."

"Why, Dick, you must be new to these seas if you don't know that,"
cried another.  "The captain cares as much for the gospel as you do
(an' that's precious little), but he knows, and everybody knows,
that the only place among the southern islands where a ship can put
in and get what she wants in comfort, is where the gospel has been
sent to.  There are hundreds o' islands, at this blessed moment,
where you might as well jump straight into a shark's maw as land
without a band o' thirty comrades armed to the teeth to back you."

"Ay," said a man with a deep scar over his right eye, "Dick's new
to the work.  But if the captain takes us for a cargo o' sandal-
wood to the Feejees he'll get a taste o' these black gentry in
their native condition.  For my part I don't know, an' I don't
care, what the gospel does to them; but I know that when any o' the
islands chance to get it, trade goes all smooth an' easy; but where
they ha'nt got it, Beelzebub himself could hardly desire better
company."

"Well, you ought to be a good judge," cried another, laughing, "for
you've never kept any company but the worst all your life!"

"Ralph Rover!" shouted a voice down the hatchway.  "Captain wants
you, aft."

Springing up the ladder I hastened to the cabin, pondering as I
went the strange testimony borne by these men to the effect of the
gospel on savage natures; - testimony which, as it was perfectly
disinterested, I had no doubt whatever was strictly true.

On coming again on deck I found Bloody Bill at the helm, and as we
were alone together I tried to draw him into conversation.  After
repeating to him the conversation in the forecastle about the
missionaries, I said, -

"Tell me, Bill, is this schooner really a trader in sandal-wood?"

"Yes, Ralph, she is; but she's just as really a pirate.  The black
flag you saw flying at the peak was no deception."

"Then how can you say she's a trader?" asked I.

"Why, as to that, she trades when she can't take by force, but she
takes by force, when she can, in preference.  Ralph," he added,
lowering his voice, "if you had seen the bloody deeds that I have
witnessed done on these decks you would not need to ask if we were
pirates.  But you'll find it out soon enough.  As for the
missionaries, the captain favours them because they are useful to
him.  The South-Sea islanders are such incarnate fiends that they
are the better of being tamed, and the missionaries are the only
men who can do it."

Our track after this lay through several clusters of small islets,
among which we were becalmed more than once.  During this part of
our voyage the watch on deck and the look-out at the mast-head were
more than usually vigilant, as we were not only in danger of being
attacked by the natives, who, I learned from the captain's remarks,
were a bloody and deceitful tribe at this group, but we were also
exposed to much risk from the multitudes of coral reefs that rose
up in the channels between the islands, some of them just above the
surface, others a few feet below it.  Our precautions against the
savages I found were indeed necessary.

One day we were becalmed among a group of small islands, most of
which appeared to be uninhabited.  As we were in want of fresh
water the captain sent the boat ashore to bring off a cask or two.
But we were mistaken in thinking there were no natives; for
scarcely had we drawn near to the shore when a band of naked blacks
rushed out of the bush and assembled on the beach, brandishing
their clubs and spears in a threatening manner.  Our men were well
armed, but refrained from showing any signs of hostility, and rowed
nearer in order to converse with the natives; and I now found that
more than one of the crew could imperfectly speak dialects of the
language peculiar to the South Sea islanders.  When within forty
yards of the shore, we ceased rowing, and the first mate stood up
to address the multitude; but, instead of answering us, they
replied with a shower of stones, some of which cut the men
severely.  Instantly our muskets were levelled, and a volley was
about to be fired, when the captain hailed us in a loud voice from
the schooner, which lay not more than five or six hundred yards off
the shore.

"Don't fire," he shouted, angrily.  "Pull off to the point ahead of
you."

The men looked surprised at this order, and uttered deep curses as
they prepared to obey, for their wrath was roused and they burned
for revenge.  Three or four of them hesitated, and seemed disposed
to mutiny.

"Don't distress yourselves, lads," said the mate, while a bitter
smile curled his lip.  "Obey orders.  The captain's not the man to
take an insult tamely.  If Long Tom does not speak presently I'll
give myself to the sharks."

The men smiled significantly as they pulled from the shore, which
was now crowded with a dense mass of savages, amounting, probably,
to five or six hundred.  We had not rowed off above a couple of
hundred yards when a loud roar thundered over the sea, and the big
brass gun sent a withering shower of grape point blank into the
midst of the living mass, through which a wide lane was cut, while
a yell, the like of which I could not have imagined, burst from the
miserable survivors as they fled to the woods.  Amongst the heaps
of dead that lay on the sand, just where they had fallen, I could
distinguish mutilated forms writhing in agony, while ever and anon
one and another rose convulsively from out the mass, endeavoured to
stagger towards the wood, and ere they had taken a few steps, fell
and wallowed on the bloody sand.  My blood curdled within me as I
witnessed this frightful and wanton slaughter; but I had little
time to think, for the captain's deep voice came again over the
water towards us:  "Pull ashore, lads, and fill your water casks."
The men obeyed in silence, and it seemed to me as if even their
hard hearts were shocked by the ruthless deed.  On gaining the
mouth of the rivulet at which we intended to take in water, we
found it flowing with blood, for the greater part of those who were
slain had been standing on the banks of the stream, a short way
above its mouth.  Many of the wretched creatures had fallen into
it, and we found one body, which had been carried down, jammed
between two rocks, with the staring eyeballs turned towards us and
his black hair waving in the ripples of the blood-red stream.  No
one dared to oppose our landing now, so we carried our casks to a
pool above the murdered group, and having filled them, returned on
board.  Fortunately a breeze sprang up soon afterwards and carried
us away from the dreadful spot; but it could not waft me away from
the memory of what I had seen.

"And this," thought I, gazing in horror at the captain, who, with a
quiet look of indifference, leaned upon the taffrail smoking a
cigar and contemplating the fertile green islets as they passed
like a lovely picture before our eyes - "this is the man who
favours the missionaries because they are useful to him and can
tame the savages better than any one else can do it!"  Then I
wondered in my mind whether it were possible for any missionary to
tame HIM!



CHAPTER XXIV.



Bloody Bill is communicative and sagacious - Unpleasant prospects -
Retrospective meditations interrupted by volcanic agency - The
pirates negotiate with a Feejee chief - Various etceteras that are
calculated to surprise and horrify.


IT was many days after the events just narrated ere I recovered a
little of my wonted spirits.  I could not shake off the feeling for
a long time that I was in a frightful dream, and the sight of our
captain filled me with so much horror that I kept out of his way as
much as my duties about the cabin would permit.  Fortunately he
took so little notice of me that he did not observe my changed
feelings towards him, otherwise it might have been worse for me.

But I was now resolved that I would run away the very first island
we should land at, and commit myself to the hospitality of the
natives rather than remain an hour longer than I could help in the
pirate schooner.  I pondered this subject a good deal, and at last
made up my mind to communicate my intention to Bloody Bill; for,
during several talks I had had with him of late, I felt assured
that he too would willingly escape if possible.  When I told him of
my design he shook his head.  "No, no, Ralph," said he, "you must
not think of running away here.  Among some of the groups of
islands you might do so with safety, but if you tried it here you
would find that you had jumped out of the fryin' pan into the
fire."

"How so, Bill?" said I, "would the natives not receive me?"

"That they would, lad; but they would eat you too."

"Eat me!" said I in surprise, "I thought the South Sea islanders
never ate anybody except their enemies."

"Humph!" ejaculated Bill.  "I s'pose 'twas yer tender-hearted
friends in England that put that notion into your head.  There's a
set o' soft-hearted folk at home that I knows on, who don't like to
have their feelin's ruffled, and when you tell them anything they
don't like - that shocks them, as they call it - no matter how true
it be, they stop their ears and cry out, 'Oh, that is TOO horrible!
We can't believe that!'  An' they say truth.  They can't believe it
'cause they won't believe it.  Now, I believe there's thousands o'
the people in England who are sich born drivellin' WON'T-BELIEVERS
that they think the black fellows hereaway, at the worst, eat an
enemy only now an' then, out o' spite; whereas, I know for certain,
and many captains of the British and American navies know as well
as me, that the Feejee islanders eat not only their enemies but one
another; and they do it not for spite, but for pleasure.  It's a
FACT that they prefer human flesh to any other.  But they don't
like white men's flesh so well as black.  They say it makes them
sick."

"Why, Bill," said I, "you told me just now that they would eat ME
if they caught me."

"So I did; and so I think they would.  I've only heard some o' them
say they don't like white men SO WELL as black; but if they was
hungry they wouldn't be particular.  Anyhow, I'm sure they would
kill you.  You see, Ralph, I've been a good while in them parts,
and I've visited the different groups of islands oftentimes as a
trader.  And thorough goin' blackguards some o' them traders are.
No better than pirates, I can tell you.  One captain that I sailed
with was not a chip better than the one we're with now.  He was
tradin' with a friendly chief one day, aboard his vessel.  The
chief had swam off to us with the things for trade tied a-top of
his head, for them chaps are like otters in the water.  Well, the
chief was hard on the captain, and would not part with some o' his
things.  When their bargainin' was over they shook hands, and the
chief jumped over board to swim ashore; but before he got forty
yards from the ship the captain seized a musket and shot him dead.
He then hove up anchor and put to sea, and as we sailed along
shore, he dropped six black-fellows with his rifle, remarkin' that
'that would spoil the trade for the next comers.'  But, as I was
sayin', I'm up to the ways o' these fellows.  One o' the laws o'
the country is, that every shipwrecked person who happens to be
cast ashore, be he dead or alive, is doomed to be roasted and
eaten.  There was a small tradin' schooner wrecked off one of these
islands when we were lyin' there in harbour during a storm.  The
crew was lost, all but three men, who swam ashore.  The moment they
landed they were seized by the natives and carried up into the
woods.  We knew pretty well what their fate would be, but we could
not help them, for our crew was small, and if we had gone ashore
they would likely have killed us all.  We never saw the three men
again; but we heard frightful yelling, and dancing, and merry-
making that night; and one of the natives, who came aboard to trade
with us next day, told us that the LONG PIGS, as he called the men,
had been roasted and eaten, and their bones were to be converted
into sail needles.  He also said that white men were bad to eat,
and that most o' the people on shore were sick."

I was very much shocked and cast down in my mind at this terrible
account of the natives, and asked Bill what he would advise me to
do.  Looking round the deck to make sure that we were not
overheard, he lowered his voice and said, "There are two or three
ways that we might escape, Ralph, but none o' them's easy.  If the
captain would only sail for some o' the islands near Tahiti, we
might run away there well enough, because the natives are all
Christians; an' we find that wherever the savages take up with
Christianity they always give over their bloody ways, and are safe
to be trusted.  I never cared for Christianity myself," he
continued, in a soliloquising voice, "and I don't well know what it
means; but a man with half an eye can see what it does for these
black critters.  However, the captain always keeps a sharp look out
after us when we get to these islands, for he half suspects that
one or two o' us are tired of his company.  Then, we might manage
to cut the boat adrift some fine night when it's our watch on deck,
and clear off before they discovered that we were gone.  But we
would run the risk o' bein' caught by the blacks.  I wouldn't like
to try that plan.  But you and I will think over it, Ralph, and see
what's to be done.  In the meantime it's our watch below, so I'll
go and turn in."

Bill then bade me good night, and went below, while a comrade took
his place at the helm; but, feeling no desire to enter into
conversation with him, I walked aft, and, leaning over the stern,
looked down into the phosphorescent waves that gargled around the
ladder, and streamed out like a flame of blue light in the vessel's
wake.  My thoughts were very sad, and I could scarce refrain from
tears as I contrasted my present wretched position with the happy,
peaceful time, I had spent on the Coral Island with my dear
companions.  As I thought upon Jack and Peterkin anxious
forebodings crossed my mind, and I pictured to myself the grief and
dismay with which they would search every nook and corner of the
island, in a vain attempt to discover my dead body; for I felt
assured that if they did not see any sign of the pirate schooner or
boat, when they came out of the cave to look for me, they would
never imagine that I had been carried away.  I wondered, too, how
Jack would succeed in getting Peterkin out of the cave without my
assistance; and I trembled when I thought that he might lose
presence of mind, and begin to kick when he was in the tunnel!
These thoughts were suddenly interrupted and put to flight by a
bright red blaze which lighted up the horizon to the southward, and
cut a crimson glow far over the sea.  This appearance was
accompanied by a low growling sound, as of distant thunder, and, at
the same time, the sky above us became black, while a hot stifling
wind blew around us in fitful gusts.

The crew assembled hastily on deck, and most of them were under the
belief that a frightful hurricane was pending; but the captain
coming on deck, soon explained the phenomena.

"It's only a volcano," said he.  "I knew there was one hereabouts,
but thought it was extinct.  Up there and furl top-gallant-sails;
we'll likely have a breeze, and it's well to be ready."

As he spoke, a shower began to fall, which we quickly observed was
not rain, but fine ashes.  As we were many miles distant from the
volcano, these must have been carried to us from it by the wind.
As the captain had predicted, a stiff breeze soon afterwards sprang
up, under the influence of which we speedily left the volcano far
behind us; but during the greater part of the night we could see
its lurid glare and hear its distant thunder.  The shower did not
cease to fall for several hours, and we must have sailed under it
for nearly forty miles, perhaps farther.  When we emerged from the
cloud, our decks and every part of the rigging were completely
covered with a thick coat of ashes.  I was much interested in this,
and recollected that Jack had often spoken of many of the islands
of the Pacific as being volcanoes, either active or extinct, and
had said that the whole region was more or less volcanic, and that
some scientific men were of opinion that the islands of the Pacific
were nothing more or less than the mountain tops of a huge
continent which had sunk under the influence of volcanic agency.

Three days after passing the volcano, we found ourselves a few
miles to windward of an island of considerable size and luxuriant
aspect.  It consisted of two mountains, which seemed to be nearly
four thousand feet high.  They were separated from each other by a
broad valley, whose thick-growing trees ascended a considerable
distance up the mountain sides; and rich level plains, or meadow-
land, spread round the base of the mountains, except at the point
immediately opposite the large valley, where a river seemed to
carry the trees, as it were, along with it down to the white sandy
shore.  The mountain tops, unlike those of our Coral Island, were
sharp, needle-shaped, and bare, while their sides were more rugged
and grand in outline than anything I had yet seen in those seas.
Bloody Bill was beside me when the island first hove in sight.

"Ha!" he exclaimed, "I know that island well.  They call it Emo."

"Have you been here before, then?" I inquired.

"Ay, that I have, often, and so has this schooner.  'Tis a famous
island for sandal-wood.  We have taken many cargoes off it already,
and have paid for them too; for the savages are so numerous that we
dared not try to take it by force.  But our captain has tried to
cheat them so often, that they're beginnin' not to like us overmuch
now.  Besides, the men behaved ill the last time we were here; and
I wonder the captain is not afraid to venture.  But he's afraid o'
nothing earthly, I believe."

We soon ran inside the barrier coral-reef, and let go our anchor in
six fathoms water, just opposite the mouth of a small creek, whose
shores were densely covered with mangroves and tall umbrageous
trees.  The principal village of the natives lay about half a mile
from this point.  Ordering the boat out, the captain jumped into
it, and ordered me to follow him.  The men, fifteen in number, were
well armed; and the mate was directed to have Long Tom ready for
emergencies.

"Give way, lads," cried the captain.

The oars fell into the water at the word, the boat shot from the
schooner's side, and in a few minutes reached the shore.  Here,
contrary to our expectation, we were met with the utmost cordiality
by Romata, the principal chief of the island, who conducted us to
his house, and gave us mats to sit upon.  I observed in passing
that the natives, of whom there were two or three thousand, were
totally unarmed.

After a short preliminary palaver, a feast of baked pigs and
various roots was spread before us; of which we partook sparingly,
and then proceeded to business.  The captain stated his object in
visiting the island, regretted that there had been a slight
misunderstanding during the last visit, and hoped that no ill-will
was borne by either party, and that a satisfactory trade would be
accomplished.

Romata answered that he had forgotten there had been any
differences between them, protested that he was delighted to see
his friends again, and assured them they should have every
assistance in cutting and embarking the wood.  The terms were
afterwards agreed on, and we rose to depart.  All this conversation
was afterwards explained to me by Bill, who understood the language
pretty well.

Romata accompanied us on board, and explained that a great chief
from another island was then on a visit to him, and that he was to
be ceremoniously entertained on the following day.  After begging
to be allowed to introduce him to us, and receiving permission, he
sent his canoe ashore to bring him off.  At the same time he gave
orders to bring on board his two favourites, a cock and a paroquet.
While the canoe was gone on this errand, I had time to regard the
savage chief attentively.  He was a man of immense size, with
massive but beautifully moulded limbs and figure, only parts of
which, the broad chest and muscular arms, were uncovered; for,
although the lower orders generally wore no other clothing than a
strip of cloth called MARO round their loins, the chief, on
particular occasions, wrapped his person in voluminous folds of a
species of native cloth made from the bark of the Chinese paper-
mulberry.  Romata wore a magnificent black beard and moustache, and
his hair was frizzed out to such an extent that it resembled a
large turban, in which was stuck a long wooden pin!  I afterwards
found that this pin served for scratching the head, for which
purpose the fingers were too short without disarranging the hair.
But Romata put himself to much greater inconvenience on account of
his hair, for we found that he slept with his head resting on a
wooden pillow, in which was cut a hollow for the neck, so that the
hair of the sleeper might not be disarranged.

In ten minutes the canoe returned, bringing the other chief, who
certainly presented a most extraordinary appearance, having painted
one half of his face red and the other half yellow, besides
ornamenting it with various designs in black!  Otherwise he was
much the same in appearance as Romata, though not so powerfully
built.  As this chief had never seen a ship before, except,
perchance, some of the petty traders that at long intervals visit
these remote islands, he was much taken up with the neatness and
beauty of all the fittings of the schooner.  He was particularly
struck with a musket which was shown to him, and asked where the
white men got hatchets hard enough to cut the tree of which the
barrel was made!  While he was thus engaged, his brother chief
stood aloof, talking with the captain, and fondling a superb cock
and a little blue-headed paroquet, the favourites of which I have
before spoken.  I observed that all the other natives walked in a
crouching posture while in the presence of Romata.  Before our
guests left us, the captain ordered the brass gun to be uncovered
and fired for their gratification; and I have every reason to
believe he did so for the purpose of showing our superior power, in
case the natives should harbour any evil designs against us.
Romata had never seen this gun before, as it had not been uncovered
on previous visits, and the astonishment with which he viewed it
was very amusing.  Being desirous of knowing its power, he begged
that the captain would fire it.  So a shot was put into it.  The
chiefs were then directed to look at a rock about two miles out at
sea, and the gun was fired.  In a second the top of the rock was
seen to burst asunder, and to fall in fragments into the sea.

Romata was so delighted with the success of this shot, that he
pointed to a man who was walking on the shore, and begged the
captain to fire at him, evidently supposing that his permission was
quite sufficient to justify the captain in such an act.  He was
therefore surprised, and not a little annoyed, when the captain
refused to fire at the native, and ordered the gun to be housed.

Of all the things, however, that afforded matter of amusement to
these savages, that which pleased Romata's visitor most was the
ship's pump.  He never tired of examining it, and pumping up the
water.  Indeed, so much was he taken up with this pump, that he
could not be prevailed on to return on shore, but sent a canoe to
fetch his favourite stool, on which he seated himself, and spent
the remainder of the day in pumping the bilge-water out of the
ship!

Next day the crew went ashore to cut sandal-wood, while the
captain, with one or two men, remained on board, in order to be
ready, if need be, with the brass gun, which was unhoused and
conspicuously elevated, with its capacious muzzle directed point
blank at the chief's house.  The men were fully armed as usual; and
the captain ordered me to go with them, to assist in the work.  I
was much pleased with this order, for it freed me from the
captain's company, which I could not now endure, and it gave me an
opportunity of seeing the natives.

As we wound along in single file through the rich fragrant groves
of banana, cocoa-nut, bread-fruit, and other trees, I observed that
there were many of the plum and banian trees, with which I had
become familiar on the Coral Island.  I noticed also large
quantities of taro-roots, yams, and sweet potatoes, growing in
enclosures.  On turning into an open glade of the woods, we came
abruptly upon a cluster of native houses.  They were built chiefly
of bamboos, and were thatched with the large thick leaves of the
pandanus; but many of them had little more than a sloping roof and
three sides with an open front, being the most simple shelter from
the weather that could well be imagined.  Within these, and around
them, were groups of natives - men, women, and children - who all
stood up to gaze at us as we marched along, followed by the party
of men whom the chief had sent to escort us.  About half a mile
inland we arrived at the spot where the sandal-wood grew, and,
while the men set to work, I clambered up an adjoining hill to
observe the country.

About mid-day, the chief arrived with several followers, one of
whom carried a baked pig on a wooden platter, with yams and
potatoes on several plantain leaves, which he presented to the men,
who sat down under the shade of a tree to dine.  The chief sat down
to dine also; but, to my surprise, instead of feeding himself, one
of his wives performed that office for him!  I was seated beside
Bill, and asked him the reason of this.

"It is beneath his dignity, I believe, to feed himself," answered
Bill; "but I daresay he's not particular, except on great
occasions.  They've a strange custom among them, Ralph, which is
called TABU, and they carry it to great lengths.  If a man chooses
a particular tree for his god, the fruit o' that tree is tabued to
him; and if he eats it, he is sure to be killed by his people, and
eaten, of course, for killing means eating hereaway.  Then, you see
that great mop o' hair on the chief's head?  Well, he has a lot o'
barbers to keep it in order; and it's a law that whoever touches
the head of a living chief or the body of a dead one, his hands are
tabued; so, in that way, the barbers' hands are always tabued, and
they daren't use them for their lives, but have to be fed like big
babies, as they are, sure enough!"

"That's odd, Bill.  But look there," said I, pointing to a man
whose skin was of a much lighter colour than the generality of the
natives.  "I've seen a few of these light-skinned fellows among the
Fejeeans.  They seem to me to be of quite a different race."

"So they are," answered Bill.  "These fellows come from the Tongan
Islands, which lie a long way to the eastward.  They come here to
build their big war-canoes; and as these take two, and sometimes
four years, to build, there's always some o' the brown-skins among
the black sarpents o' these islands."

"By the way, Bill," said I, "your mentioning serpents, reminds me
that I have not seen a reptile of any kind since I came to this
part of the world."

"No more there are any," said Bill, "if ye except the niggers
themselves, there's none on the islands, but a lizard or two and
some sich harmless things.  But I never seed any myself.  If
there's none on the land, however, there's more than enough in the
water, and that minds me of a wonderful brute they have here.  But,
come, I'll show it to you."  So saying, Bill arose, and, leaving
the men still busy with the baked pig, led me into the forest.
After proceeding a short distance we came upon a small pond of
stagnant water.  A native lad had followed us, to whom we called
and beckoned him to come to us.  On Bill saying a few words to him,
which I did not understand, the boy advanced to the edge of the
pond, and gave a low peculiar whistle.  Immediately the water
became agitated and an enormous eel thrust its head above the
surface and allowed the youth to touch it.  It was about twelve
feet long, and as thick round the body as a man's thigh.

"There," said Bill, his lip curling with contempt, "what do you
think of that for a god, Ralph?  This is one o' their gods, and it
has been fed with dozens o' livin' babies already.  How many more
it'll get afore it dies is hard to say."

"Babies?" said I, with an incredulous look

"Ay, babies," returned Bill.  "Your soft-hearted folk at home would
say, 'Oh, horrible! impossible!' to that, and then go away as
comfortable and unconcerned as if their sayin' 'horrible!
impossible!' had made it a lie.  But I tell you, Ralph, it's a
FACT.  I've seed it with my own eyes the last time I was here, an'
mayhap if you stop a while at this accursed place, and keep a sharp
look out, you'll see it too.  They don't feed it regularly with
livin' babies, but they give it one now and then as a treat.  Bah!
you brute!' cried Bill, in disgust, giving the reptile a kick on
the snout with his heavy boot, that sent it sweltering back in
agony into its loathsome pool.  I thought it lucky for Bill, indeed
for all of us, that the native youth's back happened to be turned
at the time, for I am certain that if the poor savages had come to
know that we had so rudely handled their god, we should have had to
fight our way back to the ship.  As we retraced our steps I
questioned my companion further on this subject.

"How comes it, Bill, that the mothers allow such a dreadful thing
to be done?"

"Allow it? the mothers DO it!  It seems to me that there's nothing
too fiendish or diabolical for these people to do.  Why, in some of
the islands they have an institution called the AREOI, and the
persons connected with that body are ready for any wickedness that
mortal man can devise.  In fact they stick at nothing; and one o'
their customs is to murder their infants the moment they are born.
The mothers agree to it, and the fathers do it.  And the mildest
ways they have of murdering them is by sticking them through the
body with sharp splinters of bamboo, strangling them with their
thumbs, or burying them alive and stamping them to death while
under the sod."

I felt sick at heart while my companion recited these horrors.

"But it's a curious fact," he continued, after a pause, during
which we walked in silence towards the spot where we had left our
comrades, - "it's a curious fact, that wherever the missionaries
get a footin' all these things come to an end at once, an' the
savages take to doin' each other good, and singin' psalms, just
like Methodists."

"God bless the missionaries!" said I, while a feeling of enthusiasm
filled my heart, so that I could speak with difficulty.  "God bless
and prosper the missionaries till they get a footing in every
island of the sea!"

"I would say Amen to that prayer, Ralph, if I could," said Bill, in
a deep, sad voice; "but it would be a mere mockery for a man to ask
a blessing for others who dare not ask one for himself.  But,
Ralph," he continued, "I've not told you half o' the abominations I
have seen durin' my life in these seas.  If we pull long together,
lad, I'll tell you more; and if times have not changed very much
since I was here last, it's like that you'll have a chance o'
seeing a little for yourself before long."



CHAPTER XXV.



The Sandal-wood party - Native children's games, somewhat
surprising - Desperate amusements suddenly and fatally brought to a
close - An old friend recognised - News - Romata's mad conduct


NEXT day the wood-cutting party went ashore again, and I
accompanied them as before.  During the dinner hour I wandered into
the woods alone, being disinclined for food that day.  I had not
rambled far when I found myself unexpectedly on the sea-shore,
having crossed a narrow neck of land which separated the native
village from a large bay.  Here I found a party of the islanders
busy with one of their war-canoes, which was almost ready for
launching.  I stood for a long time watching this party with great
interest, and observed that they fastened the timbers and planks to
each other very much in the same way in which I had seen Jack
fasten those of our little boat.  But what surprised me most was
its immense length, which I measured very carefully, and found to
be a hundred feet long; and it was so capacious that it could have
held three hundred men.  It had the unwieldy out-rigger and
enormously high stern-posts which I had remarked on the canoe that
came to us while I was on the Coral Island.  Observing some boys
playing at games a short way along the beach, I resolved to go and
watch them; but as I turned from the natives who were engaged so
busily and cheerfully at their work, I little thought of the
terrible event that hung on the completion of that war-canoe.

Advancing towards the children, who were so numerous that I began
to think this must be the general play-ground of the village, I sat
down on a grassy bank under the shade of a plantain-tree, to watch
them.  And a happier or more noisy crew I have never seen.  There
were at least two hundred of them, both boys and girls, all of whom
were clad in no other garments than their own glossy little black
skins, except the maro, or strip of cloth round the loins of the
boys, and a very short petticoat or kilt on the girls.  They did
not all play at the same game, but amused themselves in different
groups.

One band was busily engaged in a game exactly similar to our blind-
man's-buff.  Another set were walking on stilts, which raised the
children three feet from the ground.  They were very expert at this
amusement and seldom tumbled.  In another place I observed a group
of girls standing together, and apparently enjoying themselves very
much; so I went up to see what they were doing, and found that they
were opening their eye-lids with their fingers till their eyes
appeared of an enormous size, and then thrusting pieces of straw
between the upper and lower lids, across the eye-ball, to keep them
in that position!  This seemed to me, I must confess, a very
foolish as well as dangerous amusement.  Nevertheless the children
seemed to be greatly delighted with the hideous faces they made.  I
pondered this subject a good deal, and thought that if little
children knew how silly they seem to grown-up people when they make
faces, they would not be so fond of doing it.  In another place
were a number of boys engaged in flying kites, and I could not help
wondering that some of the games of those little savages should be
so like to our own, although they had never seen us at play.  But
the kites were different from ours in many respects, being of every
variety of shape.  They were made of very thin cloth, and the boys
raised them to a wonderful height in the air by means of twine made
from the cocoa-nut husk.  Other games there were, some of which
showed the natural depravity of the hearts of these poor savages,
and made me wish fervently that missionaries might be sent out to
them.  But the amusement which the greatest number of the children
of both sexes seemed to take chief delight in, was swimming and
diving in the sea; and the expertness which they exhibited was
truly amazing.  They seemed to have two principal games in the
water, one of which was to dive off a sort of stage which had been
erected near a deep part of the sea, and chase each other in the
water.  Some of them went down to an extraordinary depth; others
skimmed along the surface, or rolled over and over like porpoises,
or diving under each other, came up unexpectedly and pulled each
other down by a leg or an arm.  They never seemed to tire of this
sport, and, from the great heat of the water in the South Seas,
they could remain in it nearly all day without feeling chilled.
Many of these children were almost infants, scarce able to walk;
yet they staggered down the beach, flung their round fat little
black bodies fearlessly into deep water, and struck out to sea with
as much confidence as ducklings.

The other game to which I have referred was swimming in the surf.
But as this is an amusement in which all engage, from children of
ten to gray-headed men of sixty, and as I had an opportunity of
witnessing it in perfection the day following, I shall describe it
more minutely.

I suppose it was in honour of their guest that this grand swimming-
match was got up, for Romata came and told the captain that they
were going to engage in it, and begged him to "come and see."

"What sort of amusement is this surf swimming?" I inquired of Bill,
as we walked together to a part of the shore on which several
thousands of the natives were assembled.

"It's a very favourite lark with these 'xtr'or'nary critters,"
replied Bill, giving a turn to the quid of tobacco that invariably
bulged out his left cheek.  "Ye see, Ralph, them fellows take to
the water as soon a'most as they can walk, an' long before they can
do that anything respectably, so that they are as much at home in
the sea as on the land.  Well, ye see, I 'spose they found swimmin'
for miles out to sea, and divin' fathoms deep, wasn't exciting
enough, so they invented this game o' the surf.  Each man and boy,
as you see, has got a short board or plank, with which he swims out
for a mile or more to sea, and then, gettin' on the top o' yon
thundering breaker, they come to shore on the top of it, yellin'
and screechin' like fiends.  It's a marvel to me that they're not
dashed to shivers on the coral reef, for sure an' sartin am I that
if any o' us tried it, we wouldn't be worth the fluke of a broken
anchor after the wave fell.  But there they go!"

As he spoke, several hundreds of the natives, amongst whom we were
now standing, uttered a loud yell, rushed down the beach, plunged
into the surf, and were carried off by the seething foam of the
retreating wave.

At the point where we stood, the encircling coral reef joined the
shore, so that the magnificent breakers, which a recent stiff
breeze had rendered larger than usual, fell in thunder at the feet
of the multitudes who lined the beach.  For some time the swimmers
continued to strike out to sea, breasting over the swell like
hundreds of black seals.  Then they all turned, and, watching an
approaching billow, mounted its white crest, and, each laying his
breast on the short flat board, came rolling towards the shore,
careering on the summit of the mighty wave, while they and the
onlookers shouted and yelled with excitement.  Just as the monster
wave curled in solemn majesty to fling its bulky length upon the
beach, most of the swimmers slid back into the trough behind;
others, slipping off their boards, seized them in their hands, and,
plunging through the watery waste, swam out to repeat the
amusement; but a few, who seemed to me the most reckless, continued
their career until they were launched upon the beach, and enveloped
in the churning foam and spray.  One of these last came in on the
crest of the wave most manfully, and landed with a violent bound
almost on the spot where Bill and I stood.  I saw by his peculiar
head-dress that he was the chief whom the tribe entertained as
their guest.  The sea-water had removed nearly all the paint with
which his face had been covered; and, as he rose panting to his
feet, I recognised, to my surprise, the features of Tararo, my old
friend of the Coral Island!

Tararo at the same moment recognised me, and, advancing quickly,
took me round the neck and rubbed noses; which had the effect of
transferring a good deal of the moist paint from his nose to mine.
Then, recollecting that this was not the white man's mode of
salutation, he grasped me by the hand and shook it violently.

"Hallo, Ralph!" cried Bill, in surprise, "that chap seems to have
taken a sudden fancy to you, or he must be an old acquaintance."

"Right, Bill," I replied, "he is indeed an old acquaintance;" and I
explained in a few words that he was the chief whose party Jack and
Peterkin and I had helped to save.

Tararo having thrown away his surf-board, entered into an animated
conversation with Bill, pointing frequently during the course of it
to me; whereby I concluded he must be telling him about the
memorable battle, and the part we had taken in it.  When he paused,
I begged of Bill to ask him about the woman Avatea, for I had some
hope that she might have come with Tararo on this visit.  "And ask
him," said I, "who she is, for I am persuaded she is of a different
race from the Feejeeans."  On the mention of her name the chief
frowned darkly, and seemed to speak with much anger.

"You're right, Ralph," said Bill, when the chief had ceased to
talk; "she's not a Feejee girl, but a Samoan.  How she ever came to
this place the chief does not very clearly explain, but he says she
was taken in war, and that he got her three years ago, an' kept her
as his daughter ever since.  Lucky for her, poor girl, else she'd
have been roasted and eaten like the rest."

"But why does Tararo frown and look so angry?" said I.

"Because the girl's somewhat obstinate, like most o' the sex, an'
won't marry the man he wants her to.  It seems that a chief of some
other island came on a visit to Tararo and took a fancy to her, but
she wouldn't have him on no account, bein' already in love, and
engaged to a young chief whom Tararo hates, and she kicked up a
desperate shindy; so, as he was going on a war expedition in his
canoe, he left her to think about it, sayin' he'd be back in six
months or so, when he hoped she wouldn't be so obstropolous.  This
happened just a week ago; an' Tararo says that if she's not ready
to go, when the chief returns, as his bride, she'll be sent to him
as a LONG PIG."

"As a long pig!" I exclaimed in surprise; "why what does he mean by
that?"

"He means somethin' very unpleasant," answered Bill with a frown.
"You see these blackguards eat men an' women just as readily as
they eat pigs; and, as baked pigs and baked men are very like each
other in appearance, they call men LONG pigs.  If Avatea goes to
this fellow as a long pig, it's all up with her, poor thing."

"Is she on the island now?" I asked eagerly.

"No, she's at Tararo's island."

"And where does it lie?"

"About fifty or sixty miles to the south'ard o' this," returned
Bill; " but I - "

At this moment we were startled by the cry of "Mao! mao! - a shark!
a shark!" which was immediately followed by a shriek that rang
clear and fearfully loud above the tumult of cries that arose from
the savages in the water and on the land.  We turned hastily
towards the direction whence the cry came, and had just time to
observe the glaring eye-balls of one of the swimmers as he tossed
his arms in the air.  Next instant he was pulled under the waves.
A canoe was instantly launched, and the hand of the drowning man
was caught, but only half of his body was dragged from the maw of
the monster, which followed the canoe until the water became so
shallow that it could scarcely swim.  The crest of the next billow
was tinged with red as it rolled towards the shore.

In most countries of the world this would have made a deep
impression on the spectators, but the only effect it had upon these
islanders was to make them hurry with all speed out of the sea,
lest a similar fate should befall some of the others; but, so
utterly reckless were they of human life, that it did not for a
moment suspend the progress of their amusements.  It is true the
surf-swimming ended for that time somewhat abruptly, but they
immediately proceeded with other games.  Bill told me that sharks
do not often attack the surf-swimmers, being frightened away by the
immense numbers of men and boys in the water, and by the shouting
and splashing that they make.  "But," said he, "such a thing as you
have seen just now don't frighten them much.  They'll be at it
again to-morrow or next day, just as if there wasn't a single shark
between Feejee and Nova Zembla."

After this the natives had a series of wrestling and boxing
matches; and being men of immense size and muscle, they did a good
deal of injury to each other, especially in boxing, in which not
only the lower orders, but several of the chiefs and priests
engaged.  Each bout was very quickly terminated, for they did not
pretend to a scientific knowledge of the art, and wasted no time in
sparring, but hit straight out at each other's heads, and their
blows were delivered with great force.  Frequently one of the
combatants was knocked down with a single blow; and one gigantic
fellow hit his adversary so severely that he drove the skin
entirely off his forehead.  This feat was hailed with immense
applause by the spectators.

During these exhibitions, which were very painful to me, though I
confess I could not refrain from beholding them, I was struck with
the beauty of many of the figures and designs that were tattooed on
the persons of the chiefs and principal men.  One figure, that
seemed to me very elegant, was that of a palm-tree tattooed on the
back of a man's leg, the roots rising, as it were, from under his
heel, the stem ascending the tendon of the ankle, and the graceful
head branching out upon the calf.  I afterwards learned that this
process of tattooing is very painful, and takes long to do,
commencing at the age of ten, and being continued at intervals up
to the age of thirty.  It is done by means of an instrument made of
bone, with a number of sharp teeth with which the skin is
punctured.  Into these punctures a preparation made from the kernel
of the candle-nut, mixed with cocoa-nut oil, is rubbed, and the
mark thus made is indelible.  The operation is performed by a class
of men whose profession it is, and they tattoo as much at a time,
as the person on whom they are operating can bear; which is not
much, the pain and inflammation caused by tattooing being very
great, sometimes causing death.  Some of the chiefs were tattooed
with an ornamental stripe down the legs, which gave them the
appearance of being clad in tights.  Others had marks round the
ankles and insteps, which looked like tight-fitting and elegant
boots.  Their faces were also tattooed, and their breasts were very
profusely marked with every imaginable species of device, -
muskets, dogs, birds, pigs, clubs, and canoes, intermingled with
lozenges, squares, circles, and other arbitrary figures.

The women were not tattooed so much as the men, having only a few
marks on their feet and arms.  But I must say, however
objectionable this strange practice may be, it nevertheless had
this good effect, that it took away very much from their appearance
of nakedness.

Next day, while we were returning from the woods to our schooner,
we observed Romata rushing about in the neighbourhood of his house,
apparently mad with passion.

"Ah!" said Bill to me, "there he's at his old tricks again.  That's
his way when he gets drink.  The natives make a sort of drink o'
their own, and it makes him bad enough; but when he gets brandy
he's like a wild tiger.  The captain, I suppose, has given him a
bottle, as usual, to keep him in good humour.  After drinkin' he
usually goes to sleep, and the people know it well and keep out of
his way, for fear they should waken him.  Even the babies are taken
out of ear-shot; for, when he's waked up, he rushes out just as you
see him now, and spears or clubs the first person he meets."

It seemed at the present time, however, that no deadly weapon had
been in his way, for the infuriated chief was raging about without
one.  Suddenly he caught sight of an unfortunate man who was trying
to conceal himself behind a tree.  Rushing towards him, Romata
struck him a terrible blow on the head, which knocked out the poor
man's eye and also dislocated the chief's finger.  The wretched
creature offered no resistance; he did not even attempt to parry
the blow.  Indeed, from what Bill said, I found that he might
consider himself lucky in having escaped with his life, which would
certainly have been forfeited had the chief been possessed of a
club at the time.

"Have these wretched creatures no law among themselves," said I,
"which can restrain such wickedness?"

"None," replied Bill.  "The chief's word is law.  He might kill and
eat a dozen of his own subjects any day for nothing more than his
own pleasure, and nobody would take the least notice of it."

This ferocious deed took place within sight of our party as we
wended our way to the beach, but I could not observe any other
expression on the faces of the men than that of total indifference
or contempt.  It seemed to me a very awful thing that it should be
possible for men to come to such hardness of heart and callousness
to the sight of bloodshed and violence; but, indeed, I began to
find that such constant exposure to scenes of blood was having a
slight effect upon myself, and I shuddered when I came to think
that I, too, was becoming callous.

I thought upon this subject much that night while I walked up and
down the deck during my hours of watch; and I came to the
conclusion that if I, who hated, abhorred, and detested such bloody
deeds as I had witnessed within the last few weeks, could so soon
come to be less sensitive about them, how little wonder that these
poor ignorant savages, who were born and bred in familiarity
therewith, should think nothing of them at all, and should hold
human life in so very slight esteem.



CHAPTER XXVI.



Mischief brewing - My blood is made to run cold - Evil
consultations and wicked resolves - Bloody Bill attempts to do good
and fails - The attack - Wholesale murder - The flight - The
escape.



NEXT morning I awoke with a feverish brow and a feeling of deep
depression at my heart; and the more I thought on my unhappy fate,
the more wretched and miserable did I feel.

I was surrounded on all sides by human beings of the most dreadful
character, to whom the shedding of blood was mere pastime.  On
shore were the natives, whose practices were so horrible that I
could not think of them without shuddering.  On board were none but
pirates of the blackest dye, who, although not cannibals, were foul
murderers, and more blameworthy even than the savages, inasmuch as
they knew better.  Even Bill, with whom I had, under the strange
circumstances of my lot, formed a kind of intimacy, was so fierce
in his nature as to have acquired the title of "Bloody" from his
vile companions.  I felt very much cast down the more I considered
the subject and the impossibility of delivery, as it seemed to me,
at least for a long time to come.  At last, in my feeling of utter
helplessness, I prayed fervently to the Almighty that he would
deliver me out of my miserable condition; and when I had done so I
felt some degree of comfort.

When the captain came on deck, before the hour at which the men
usually started for the woods, I begged of him to permit me to
remain aboard that day, as I did not feel well; but he looked at me
angrily, and ordered me, in a surly tone, to get ready to go on
shore as usual.  The fact was that the captain had been out of
humour for some time past.  Romata and he had had some differences,
and high words had passed between them, during which the chief had
threatened to send a fleet of his war-canoes, with a thousand men,
to break up and burn the schooner; whereupon the captain smiled
sarcastically, and going up to the chief gazed sternly in his face,
while he said, "I have only to raise my little finger just now, and
my big gun will blow your whole village to atoms in five minutes!"
Although the chief was a bold man, he quailed before the pirate's
glance and threat, and made no reply; but a bad feeling had been
raised and old sores had been opened.

I had, therefore, to go with the wood-cutters that day.  Before
starting, however, the captain called me into the cabin, and said,
-

"Here, Ralph, I've got a mission for you, lad.  That blackguard
Romata is in the dumps, and nothing will mollify him but a gift; so
do you go up to his house and give him these whales' teeth, with my
compliments.  Take with you one of the men who can speak the
language."

I looked at the gift in some surprise, for it consisted of six
white whales' teeth, and two of the same dyed bright red, which
seemed to me very paltry things.  However, I did not dare to
hesitate or ask any questions; so, gathering them up, I left the
cabin and was soon on my way to the chief's house, accompanied by
Bill.  On expressing my surprise at the gift, he said, -

"They're paltry enough to you or me, Ralph, but they're considered
of great value by them chaps.  They're a sort o' cash among them.
The red ones are the most prized, one of them bein' equal to twenty
o' the white ones.  I suppose the only reason for their bein'
valuable is that there ain't many of them, and they're hard to be
got."

On arriving at the house we found Romata sitting on a mat, in the
midst of a number of large bales of native cloth and other
articles, which had been brought to him as presents from time to
time by inferior chiefs.  He received us rather haughtily, but on
Bill explaining the nature of our errand he became very
condescending, and his eyes glistened with satisfaction when he
received the whales' teeth, although he laid them aside with an
assumption of kingly indifference.

"Go," said he, with a wave of the hand, - "go, tell your captain
that he may cut wood to-day, but not to-morrow.  He must come
ashore, - I want to have a palaver with him."

As we left the house to return to the woods, Bill shook his head:

"There's mischief brewin' in that black rascal's head.  I know him
of old.  But what comes here?"

As he spoke, we heard the sound of laughter and shouting in the
wood, and presently there issued from it a band of savages, in the
midst of whom were a number of men bearing burdens on their
shoulders.  At first I thought that these burdens were poles with
something rolled round them, the end of each pole resting on a
man's shoulder.  But on a nearer approach I saw that they were
human beings, tied hand and foot, and so lashed to the poles that
they could not move.  I counted twenty of them as they passed.

"More murder!" said Bill, in a voice that sounded between a hoarse
laugh and a groan.

"Surely they are not going to murder them?" said I, looking
anxiously into Bill's face.

"I don't know, Ralph," replied Bill, "what they're goin' to do with
them; but I fear they mean no good when they tie fellows up in that
way."

As we continued our way towards the wood-cutters, I observed that
Bill looked anxiously over his shoulder, in the direction where the
procession had disappeared.  At last he stopped, and turning
abruptly on his heel, said, -

"I tell ye what it is, Ralph, I must be at the bottom o' that
affair.  Let us follow these black scoundrels and see what they're
goin' to do."

I must say I had no wish to pry further into their bloody
practices; but Bill seemed bent on it, so I turned and went.  We
passed rapidly through the bush, being guided in the right
direction by the shouts of the savages.  Suddenly there was a dead
silence, which continued for some time, while Bill and I
involuntarily quickened our pace until we were running at the top
of our speed across the narrow neck of land previously mentioned.
As we reached the verge of the wood, we discovered the savages
surrounding the large war-canoe, which they were apparently on the
point of launching.  Suddenly the multitude put their united
strength to the canoe; but scarcely had the huge machine begun to
move, when a yell, the most appalling that ever fell upon my ear,
rose high above the shouting of the savages.  It had not died away
when another and another smote upon my throbbing ear; and then I
saw that these inhuman monsters were actually launching their canoe
over the living bodies of their victims.  But there was no pity in
the breasts of these men.  Forward they went in ruthless
indifference, shouting as they went, while high above their voices
rang the dying shrieks of those wretched creatures, as, one after
another, the ponderous canoe passed over them, burst the eyeballs
from their sockets, and sent the life's blood gushing from their
mouths.  Oh, reader, this is no fiction.  I would not, for the sake
of thrilling you with horror, invent so terrible a scene.  It was
witnessed.  It is true; true as that accursed sin which has
rendered the human heart capable of such diabolical enormities!

When it was over I turned round and fell upon the grass with a deep
groan; but Bill seized me by the arm, and lifting me up as if I had
been a child, cried, -

"Come along, lad; let's away!" - and so, staggering and stumbling
over the tangled underwood, we fled from the fatal spot.

During the remainder of that day I felt as if I were in a horrible
dream.  I scarce knew what was said to me, and was more than once
blamed by the men for idling my time.  At last the hour to return
aboard came.  We marched down to the beach, and I felt relief for
the first time when my feet rested on the schooner's deck.

In the course of the evening I overheard part of a conversation
between the captain and the first mate, which startled me not a
little.  They were down in the cabin, and conversed in an under-
tone, but the sky-light being off, I overheard every word that was
said.

"I don't half like it," said the mate.  "It seems to me that we'll
only have hard fightin' and no pay."

"No pay!" repeated the captain, in a voice of suppressed anger.
"Do you call a good cargo all for nothing no pay?"

"Very true," returned the mate; "but we've got the cargo aboard.
Why not cut your cable and take French leave o' them?  What's the
use o' tryin' to lick the blackguards when it'll do us no manner o'
good?"

"Mate," said the captain, in a low voice, "you talk like a fresh-
water sailor.  I can only attribute this shyness to some strange
delusion; for surely" (his voice assumed a slightly sneering tone
as he said this) "surely I am not to suppose that YOU have become
soft-hearted!  Besides, you are wrong in regard to the cargo being
aboard; there's a good quarter of it lying in the woods, and that
blackguard chief knows it and won't let me take it off.  He defied
us to do our worst, yesterday."

"Defied us! did he?' cried the mate, with a bitter laugh.  "Poor
contemptible thing!"

"And yet he seems not so contemptible but that you are afraid to
attack him."

"Who said I was afraid?" growled the mate, sulkily.  "I'm as ready
as any man in the ship.  But, captain, what is it that you intend
to do?"

"I intend to muffle the sweeps and row the schooner up to the head
of the creek there, from which point we can command the pile of
sandal-wood with our gun.  Then I shall land with all the men
except two, who shall take care of the schooner and be ready with
the boat to take us off.  We can creep through the woods to the
head of the village, where these cannibals are always dancing round
their suppers of human flesh, and if the carbines of the men are
loaded with a heavy charge of buck-shot, we can drop forty or fifty
at the first volley.  After that the thing will be easy enough.
The savages will take to the mountains in a body, and we shall take
what we require, up anchor, and away."

To this plan the mate at length agreed.  As he left the cabin I
heard the captain say, -

"Give the men an extra glass of grog, and don't forget the buck-
shot."

The reader may conceive the horror with which I heard this
murderous conversation.  I immediately repeated it to Bill, who
seemed much perplexed about it.  At length he said, -

"I'll tell you what I'll do, Ralph:  I'll swim ashore after dark
and fix a musket to a tree not far from the place where we'll have
to land, and I'll tie a long string to the trigger, so that when
our fellows cross it they'll let it off, and so alarm the village
in time to prevent an attack, but not in time to prevent us gettin'
back to the boat; so, master captain," added Bill with a smile that
for the first time seemed to me to be mingled with good-natured
cheerfulness, "you'll be baulked at least for once in your life by
Bloody Bill."

After it grew dark, Bill put this resolve in practice.  He slipped
over the side with a musket in his left hand, while with his right
he swam ashore and entered the woods.  He soon returned, having
accomplished his purpose, and got on board without being seen, - I
being the only one on deck.

When the hour of midnight approached the men were mustered on deck,
the cable was cut and the muffled sweeps got out.  These sweeps
were immensely large oars, each requiring a couple of men to work
it.  In a few minutes we entered the mouth of the creek, which was
indeed the mouth of a small river, and took about half an hour to
ascend it, although the spot where we intended to land was not more
than six hundred yards from the mouth, because there was a slight
current against us, and the mangroves which narrowed the creek,
impeded the rowers in some places.  Having reached the spot, which
was so darkened by overhanging trees that we could see with
difficulty, a small kedge anchor attached to a thin line was let
softly down over the stern.

"Now, lads," whispered the captain, as he walked along the line of
men, who were all armed to the teeth, "don't be in a hurry, aim
low, and don't waste your first shots."

He then pointed to the boat, into which the men crowded in silence.
There was no room to row, but oars were not needed, as a slight
push against the side of the schooner sent the boat gliding to the
shore.

"There's no need of leaving two in the boat," whispered the mate,
as the men stepped out; "we shall want all our hands.  Let Ralph
stay."

The captain assented, and ordered me to stand in readiness with the
boat-hook, to shove ashore at a moment's notice if they should
return, or to shove off if any of the savages should happen to
approach.  He then threw his carbine into the hollow of his arm and
glided through the bushes followed by his men.  With a throbbing
head I awaited the result of our plan.  I knew the exact locality
where the musket was placed, for Bill had described it to me, and I
kept my straining eyes fixed upon the spot.  But no sound came, and
I began to fear that either they had gone in another direction or
that Bill had not fixed the string properly.  Suddenly I heard a
faint click, and observed one or two bright sparks among the
bushes.  My heart immediately sank within me, for I knew at once
that the trigger had indeed been pulled but that the priming had
not caught.  The plan, therefore, had utterly failed.  A feeling of
dread now began to creep over me as I stood in the boat, in that
dark, silent spot, awaiting the issue of this murderous expedition.
I shuddered as I glanced at the water that glided past like a dark
reptile.  I looked back at the schooner, but her hull was just
barely visible, while her tapering masts were lost among the trees
which overshadowed her.  Her lower sails were set, but so thick was
the gloom that they were quite invisible.

Suddenly I heard a shot.  In a moment a thousand voices raised a
yell in the village; again the cry rose on the night air, and was
followed by broken shouts as of scattered parties of men bounding
into the woods.  Then I heard another shout loud and close at hand.
It was the voice of the captain cursing the man who had fired the
premature shot.  Then came the order, "Forward," followed by the
wild hurrah of our men, as they charged the savages.  Shots now
rang in quick succession, and at last a loud volley startled the
echoes of the woods.  It was followed by a multitude of wild
shrieks, which were immediately drowned in another "hurrah" from
the men; the distance of the sound proving that they were driving
their enemies before them towards the sea.

While I was listening intently to these sounds, which were now
mingled in confusion, I was startled by the rustling of the leaves
not far from me.  At first I thought it was a party of savages who
had observed the schooner, but I was speedily undeceived by
observing a body of natives - apparently several hundreds, as far
as I could guess in the uncertain light - bounding through the
woods towards the scene of battle.  I saw at once that this was a
party who had out-flanked our men, and would speedily attack them
in the rear.  And so it turned out, for, in a short time, the
shouts increased ten-fold, and among them I thought I heard a
death-cry uttered by voices familiar to my ear.

At length the tumult of battle ceased, and, from the cries of
exultation that now arose from the savages, I felt assured that our
men had been conquered.  I was immediately thrown into dreadful
consternation.  What was I now to do?  To be taken by the savages
was too horrible to be thought of; to flee to the mountains was
hopeless, as I should soon be discovered; and to take the schooner
out of the creek without assistance was impossible.  I resolved,
however, to make the attempt, as being my only hope, and was on the
point of pushing off when my hand was stayed and my blood chilled
by an appalling shriek in which I recognised the voice of one of
the crew.  It was succeeded by a shout from the savages.  Then came
another, and another shriek of agony, making my ears to tingle, as
I felt convinced they were murdering the pirate crew in cold blood.
With a bursting heart and my brain whirling as if on fire, I seized
the boat-hook to push from shore when a man sprang from the bushes.

"Stop! Ralph, stop! - there now, push off," he cried, and bounded
into the boat so violently as nearly to upset her.  It was Bill's
voice!  In another moment we were on board, - the boat made fast,
the line of the anchor cut, and the sweeps run out.  At the first
stroke of Bill's giant arm the schooner was nearly pulled ashore,
for in his haste he forgot that I could scarcely move the unwieldy
oar.  Springing to the stern he lashed the rudder in such a
position as that, while it aided me, it acted against him, and so
rendered the force of our strokes nearly equal.  The schooner now
began to glide quickly down the creek, but before we reached its
mouth, a yell from a thousand voices on the bank told that we were
discovered.  Instantly a number of the savages plunged into the
water and swam towards us; but we were making so much way that they
could not overtake us.  One, however, an immensely powerful man,
succeeded in laying hold of the cut rope that hung from the stern,
and clambered quickly upon deck.  Bill caught sight of him the
instant his head appeared above the taffrail.  But he did not cease
to row, and did not appear even to notice the savage until he was
within a yard of him; then, dropping the sweep, he struck him a
blow on the forehead with his clenched fist that felled him to the
deck.  Lifting him up he hurled him overboard and resumed the oar.
But now a greater danger awaited us, for the savages had outrun us
on the bank and were about to plunge into the water ahead of the
schooner.  If they succeeded in doing so our fate was sealed.  For
one moment Bill stood irresolute.  Then, drawing a pistol from his
belt, he sprang to the brass gun, held the pan of his pistol over
the touch-hole and fired.  The shot was succeeded by the hiss of
the cannon's priming, then the blaze and the crashing thunder of
the monstrous gun burst upon the savages with such deafening roar
that it seemed as if their very mountains had been rent asunder.

This was enough.  The moment of surprise and hesitation caused by
the unwonted sound, gave us time to pass the point; a gentle
breeze, which the dense foliage had hitherto prevented us from
feeling, bulged out our sails; the schooner bent before it, and the
shouts of the disappointed savages grew fainter and fainter in the
distance as we were slowly wafted out to sea.



CHAPTER XXVII.



Reflections - The wounded man - The squall - True consolation -
Death.


THERE is a power of endurance in human beings, both in their bodies
and in their minds, which, I have often thought, seems to be
wonderfully adapted and exactly proportioned to the circumstances
in which individuals may happen to be placed, - a power which, in
most cases, is sufficient to carry a man through and over every
obstacle that may happen to be thrown in his path through life, no
matter how high or how steep the mountain may be, but which often
forsakes him the moment the summit is gained, the point of
difficulty passed; and leaves him prostrated, with energies gone,
nerves unstrung, and a feeling of incapacity pervading the entire
frame that renders the most trifling effort almost impossible.

During the greater part of that day I had been subjected to severe
mental and much physical excitement, which had almost crushed me
down by the time I was relieved from duty in the course of the
evening.  But when the expedition, whose failure has just been
narrated, was planned, my anxieties and energies had been so
powerfully aroused that I went through the protracted scenes of
that terrible night without a feeling of the slightest fatigue.  My
mind and body were alike active and full of energy.  No sooner was
the last thrilling fear of danger past, however, than my faculties
were utterly relaxed; and, when I felt the cool breezes of the
Pacific playing around my fevered brow, and heard the free waves
rippling at the schooner's prow, as we left the hated island behind
us, my senses forsook me and I fell in a swoon upon the deck.

From this state I was quickly aroused by Bill, who shook me by the
arm, saying, -

"Hallo! Ralph, boy, rouse up, lad, we're safe now.  Poor thing, I
believe he's fainted."  And raising me in his arms he laid me on
the folds of the gaff-top-sail, which lay upon the deck near the
tiller.  "Here, take a drop o' this, it'll do you good, my boy," he
added, in a voice of tenderness which I had never heard him use
before, while he held a brandy-flask to my lips.

I raised my eyes gratefully, as I swallowed a mouthful; next moment
my head sank heavily upon my arm and I fell fast asleep.  I slept
long, for when I awoke the sun was a good way above the horizon.  I
did not move on first opening my eyes, as I felt a delightful
sensation of rest pervading me, and my eyes were riveted on and
charmed with the gorgeous splendour of the mighty ocean, that burst
upon my sight.  It was a dead calm; the sea seemed a sheet of
undulating crystal, tipped and streaked with the saffron hues of
sunrise, which had not yet merged into the glowing heat of noon;
and there was a deep calm in the blue dome above, that was not
broken even by the usual flutter of the sea-fowl.  How long I would
have lain in contemplation of this peaceful scene I know not, but
my mind was recalled suddenly and painfully to the past and the
present by the sight of Bill, who was seated on the deck at my feet
with his head reclining, as if in sleep, on his right arm, which
rested on the tiller.  As he seemed to rest peacefully I did not
mean to disturb him, but the slight noise I made in raising myself
on my elbow caused him to start and look round.

"Well, Ralph, awake at last, my boy; you have slept long and
soundly," he said, turning towards me.

On beholding his countenance I sprang up in anxiety.  He was deadly
pale, and his hair, which hung in dishevelled locks over his face,
was clotted with blood.  Blood also stained his hollow cheeks and
covered the front of his shirt, which, with the greater part of
dress, was torn and soiled with mud.

"Oh, Bill!" said I, with deep anxiety, "what is the matter with
you?  You are ill.  You must have been wounded."

"Even so, lad," said Bill in a deep soft voice, while he extended
his huge frame on the couch from which I had just risen.  "I've got
an ugly wound, I fear, and I've been waiting for you to waken, to
ask you to get me a drop o' brandy and a mouthful o' bread from the
cabin lockers.  You seemed to sleep so sweetly, Ralph, that I
didn't like to disturb you.  But I don't feel up to much just now."

I did not wait till he had done talking, but ran below immediately,
and returned in a few seconds with a bottle of brandy and some
broken biscuit.  He seemed much refreshed after eating a few
morsels and drinking a long draught of water mingled with a little
of the spirits.  Immediately afterwards he fell asleep, and I
watched him anxiously until he awoke, being desirous of knowing the
nature and extent of his wound.

"Ha!" he exclaimed, on awaking suddenly, after a slumber of an
hour, "I'm the better of that nap, Ralph; I feel twice the man I
was;" and he attempted to rise, but sank back again immediately
with a deep groan.

"Nay, Bill you must not move, but lie still while I look at your
wound.  I'll make a comfortable bed for you here on deck, and get
you some breakfast.  After that you shall tell me how you got it.
Cheer up, Bill," I added, seeing that he turned his head away;
"you'll be all right in a little, and I'll be a capital nurse to
you though I'm no doctor."

I then left him, and lighted a fire in the caboose.  While it was
kindling, I went to the steward's pantry and procured the materials
for a good breakfast, with which, in little more than half an hour,
I returned to my companion.  He seemed much better, and smiled
kindly on me as I set before him a cup of coffee and a tray with
several eggs and some bread on it.

"Now then, Bill," said I, cheerfully, sitting down beside him on
the deck, "let's fall to.  I'm very hungry myself, I can tell you;
but - I forgot - your wound," I added, rising; "let me look at it."

I found that the wound was caused by a pistol shot in the chest.
It did not bleed much, and, as it was on the right side, I was in
hopes that it might not be very serious.  But Bill shook his head.
"However," said he, "sit down, Ralph, and I'll tell you all about
it."

"You see, after we left the boat an' began to push through the
bushes, we went straight for the line of my musket, as I had
expected; but by some unlucky chance it didn't explode, for I saw
the line torn away by the men's legs, and heard the click o' the
lock; so I fancy the priming had got damp and didn't catch.  I was
in a great quandary now what to do, for I couldn't concoct in my
mind, in the hurry, any good reason for firin' off my piece.  But
they say necessity's the mother of invention; so, just as I was
givin' it up and clinchin' my teeth to bide the worst o't, and take
what should come, a sudden thought came into my head.  I stepped
out before the rest, seemin' to be awful anxious to be at the
savages, tripped my foot on a fallen tree, plunged head foremost
into a bush, an', ov coorse, my carbine exploded!  Then came such a
screechin' from the camp as I never heard in all my life.  I rose
at once, and was rushin' on with the rest when the captain called a
halt.

"'You did that a-purpose, you villain!' he said, with a tremendous
oath, and, drawin' a pistol from his belt, let fly right into my
breast.  I fell at once, and remembered no more till I was startled
and brought round by the most awful yell I ever heard in my life,
except, maybe, the shrieks o' them poor critters that were crushed
to death under yon big canoe.  Jumpin' up, I looked round, and,
through the trees, saw a fire gleamin' not far off, the light o'
which showed me the captain and men tied hand and foot, each to a
post, and the savages dancin' round them like demons.  I had scarce
looked for a second, when I saw one o' them go up to the captain
flourishing a knife, and, before I could wink, he plunged it into
his breast, while another yell, like the one that roused me, rang
upon my ear.  I didn't wait for more, but, bounding up, went
crashing through the bushes into the woods.  The black fellows
caught sight of me, however, but not in time to prevent me jumpin'
into the boat, as you know."

Bill seemed to be much exhausted after this recital, and shuddered
frequently during the narrative, so I refrained from continuing the
subject at that time, and endeavoured to draw his mind to other
things.

"But now, Bill," said I, "it behoves us to think about the future,
and what course of action we shall pursue.  Here we are, on the
wide Pacific, in a well-appointed schooner, which is our own, - at
least no one has a better claim to it than we have, - and the world
lies before us.  Moreover, here comes a breeze, so we must make up
our minds which way to steer."

"Ralph, boy," said my companion, "it matters not to me which way we
go.  I fear that my time is short now.  Go where you will.  I'm
content."

"Well then, Bill, I think we had better steer to the Coral Island,
and see what has become of my dear old comrades, Jack and Peterkin.
I believe the island has no name, but the captain once pointed it
out to me on the chart, and I marked it afterwards; so, as we know
pretty well our position just now, I think I can steer to it.
Then, as to working the vessel, it is true I cannot hoist the sails
single-handed, but luckily we have enough of sail set already, and
if it should come on to blow a squall, I could at least drop the
peaks of the main and fore sails, and clew them up partially
without help, and throw her head close into the wind, so as to keep
her all shaking till the violence of the squall is past.  And if we
have continued light breezes, I'll rig up a complication of blocks
and fix them to the top-sail halyards, so that I shall be able to
hoist the sails without help.  'Tis true I'll require half a day to
hoist them, but we don't need to mind that.  Then I'll make a sort
of erection on deck to screen you from the sun, Bill; and if you
can only manage to sit beside the tiller and steer for two hours
every day, so as to let me get a nap, I'll engage to let you off
duty all the rest of the twenty-four hours.  And if you don't feel
able for steering, I'll lash the helm and heave to, while I get you
your breakfasts and dinners; and so we'll manage famously, and soon
reach the Coral Island."

Bill smiled faintly as I ran on in this strain.

"And what will you do," said he, "if it comes on to blow a storm?"

This question silenced me, while I considered what I should do in
such a case.  At length I laid my hand an his arm, and said, "Bill,
when a man has done all that he CAN do, he ought to leave the rest
to God."

"Oh, Ralph," said my companion, in a faint voice, looking anxiously
into my face, "I wish that I had the feelin's about God that you
seem to have, at this hour.  I'm dyin', Ralph; yet I, who have
braved death a hundred times, am afraid to die.  I'm afraid to
enter the next world.  Something within tells me there will be a
reckoning when I go there.  But it's all over with me, Ralph.  I
feel that there's no chance o' my bein' saved."

"Don't say that, Bill," said I, in deep compassion, "don't say
that.  I'm quite sure there's hope even for you, but I can't
remember the words of the Bible that make me think so.  Is there
not a Bible on board, Bill?"

"No; the last that was in the ship belonged to a poor boy that was
taken aboard against his will.  He died, poor lad, I think, through
ill treatment and fear.  After he was gone the captain found his
Bible and flung it overboard."

I now reflected, with great sadness and self-reproach, on the way
in which I had neglected my Bible; and it flashed across me that I
was actually in the sight of God a greater sinner than this blood-
stained pirate; for, thought I, he tells me that he never read the
Bible, and was never brought up to care for it; whereas I was
carefully taught to read it by my own mother, and had read it daily
as long as I possessed one, yet to so little purpose that I could
not now call to mind a single text that would meet this poor man's
case, and afford him the consolation he so much required.  I was
much distressed, and taxed my memory for a long time.  At last a
text did flash into my mind, and I wondered much that I had not
thought of it before.

"Bill," said I, in a low voice, "'Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ
and thou shalt be saved.'"

"Ay, Ralph, I've heard the missionaries say that before now, but
what good can it do me?  It's not for me that.  It's not for the
likes o' me."

I knew not now what to say, for, although I felt sure that that
word was for him as well as for me, I could not remember any other
word whereby I could prove it.

After a short pause, Bill raised his eyes to mine and said, "Ralph,
I've led a terrible life.  I've been a sailor since I was a boy,
and I've gone from bad to worse ever since I left my father's roof.
I've been a pirate three years now.  It is true I did not choose
the trade, but I was inveigled aboard this schooner and kept here
by force till I became reckless and at last joined them.  Since
that time my hand has been steeped in human blood again and again.
Your young heart would grow cold if I - ; but why should I go on?
'Tis of no use, Ralph; my doom is fixed."

"Bill," said I, "'Though your sins be red like crimson, they shall
be white as snow.'  'Only believe.'"

"Only believe!" cried Bill, starting up on his elbow; "I've heard
men talk o' believing as if it was easy.  Ha! 'tis easy enough for
a man to point to a rope and say, 'I believe that would bear my
weight;' but 'tis another thing for a man to catch hold o' that
rope, and swing himself by it over the edge of a precipice!"

The energy with which he said this, and the action with which it
was accompanied, were too much for Bill.  He sank back with a deep
groan.  As if the very elements sympathized with this man's
sufferings, a low moan came sweeping over the sea.

"Hist! Ralph," said Bill, opening his eves; "there's a squall
coming, lad.  Look alive, boy.  Clew up the fore-sail.  Drop the
main-sail peak.  Them squalls come quick sometimes."

I had already started to my feet, and saw that a heavy squall was
indeed bearing down on us.  It had hitherto escaped my notice,
owing to my being so much engrossed by our conversation.  I
instantly did as Bill desired, for the schooner was still lying
motionless on the glassy sea.  I observed with some satisfaction
that the squall was bearing down on the larboard bow, so that it
would strike the vessel in the position in which she would be best
able to stand the shock.  Having done my best to shorten sail, I
returned aft, and took my stand at the helm.

"Now, boy," said Bill, in a faint voice, "keep her close to the
wind."

A few seconds afterwards he said, "Ralph, let me hear those two
texts again."

I repeated them.

"Are ye sure, lad, ye saw them in the Bible?"

"Quite sure," I replied.

Almost before the words had left my lips the wind burst upon us,
and the spray dashed over our decks.  For a time the schooner stood
it bravely, and sprang forward against the rising sea like a war-
horse.  Meanwhile clouds darkened the sky, and the sea began to
rise in huge billows.  There was still too much sail on the
schooner, and, as the gale increased, I feared that the masts would
be torn out of her or carried away, while the wind whistled and
shrieked through the strained rigging.  Suddenly the wind shifted a
point, a heavy sea struck us on the bow, and the schooner was
almost laid on her beam-ends, so that I could scarcely keep my
legs.  At the same moment Bill lost his hold of the belaying-pin
which had served to steady him, and he slid with stunning violence
against the sky-light.  As he lay on the deck close beside me, I
could see that the shock had rendered him insensible, but I did not
dare to quit the tiller for an instant, as it required all my
faculties, bodily and mental, to manage the schooner.  For an hour
the blast drove us along, while, owing to the sharpness of the
vessel's bow and the press of canvass, she dashed through the waves
instead of breasting over them, thereby drenching the decks with
water fore and aft.  At the end of that time the squall passed
away, and left us rocking on the bosom of the agitated sea.

My first care, the instant I could quit the helm, was to raise Bill
from the deck and place him on the couch.  I then ran below for the
brandy bottle and rubbed his face and hands with it, and
endeavoured to pour a little down his throat.  But my efforts,
although I continued them long and assiduously, were of no avail;
as I let go the hand which I had been chafing it fell heavily on
the deck.  I laid my hand over his heart, and sat for some time
quite motionless, but there was no flutter there - the pirate was
dead!



CHAPTER XXVIII.



Alone on the deep - Necessity the mother of invention - A valuable
book discovered - Natural phenomenon - A bright day in my history.


IT was with feelings of awe, not unmingled with fear, that I now
seated myself on the cabin sky-light and gazed upon the rigid
features of my late comrade, while my mind wandered over his past
history and contemplated with anxiety my present position.  Alone!
in the midst of the wide Pacific, having a most imperfect knowledge
of navigation, and in a schooner requiring at least eight men as
her proper crew.  But I will not tax the reader's patience with a
minute detail of my feelings and doings during the first few days
that followed the death of my companion.  I will merely mention
that I tied a cannon ball to his feet and, with feelings of the
deepest sorrow, consigned him to the deep.

For fully a week after that a steady breeze blew from the east,
and, as my course lay west-and-by-north, I made rapid progress
towards my destination.  I could not take an observation, which I
very much regretted, as the captain's quadrant was in the cabin;
but, from the day of setting sail from the island of the savages, I
had kept a dead reckoning, and as I knew pretty well now how much
lee-way the schooner made, I hoped to hit the Coral Island without
much difficulty.  In this I was the more confident that I knew its
position on the chart (which I understood was a very good one), and
so had its correct bearings by compass.

As the weather seemed now quite settled and fine, and as I had got
into the trade-winds, I set about preparations for hoisting the
top-sails.  This was a most arduous task, and my first attempts
were complete failures, owing, in a great degree, to my
reprehensible ignorance of mechanical forces.  The first error I
made was in applying my apparatus of blocks and pulleys to a rope
which was too weak, so that the very first heave I made broke it in
two, and sent me staggering against the after-hatch, over which I
tripped, and, striking against the main-boom, tumbled down the
companion ladder into the cabin.  I was much bruised and somewhat
stunned by this untoward accident.  However, I considered it
fortunate that I was not killed.  In my next attempt I made sure of
not coming by a similar accident, so I unreeved the tackling and
fitted up larger blocks and ropes.  But although the principle on
which I acted was quite correct, the machinery was now so massive
and heavy that the mere friction and stiffness of the thick cordage
prevented me from moving it at all.  Afterwards, however, I came to
proportion things more correctly; but I could not avoid reflecting
at the time how much better it would have been had I learned all
this from observation and study, instead of waiting till I was
forced to acquire it through the painful and tedious lessons of
experience.

After the tackling was prepared and in good working order, it took
me the greater part of a day to hoist the main-top sail.  As I
could not steer and work at this at the same time, I lashed the
helm in such a position that, with a little watching now and then,
it kept the schooner in her proper course.  By this means I was
enabled also to go about the deck and down below for things that I
wanted, as occasion required; also to cook and eat my victuals.
But I did not dare to trust to this plan during the three hours of
rest that I allowed myself at night, as the wind might have
shifted, in which case I should have been blown far out of my
course ere I awoke.  I was, therefore, in the habit of heaving-to
during those three hours; that is, fixing the rudder and the sails
in such a position as that by acting against each other, they would
keep the ship stationary.  After my night's rest, therefore, I had
only to make allowance for the lee-way she had made, and so resume
my course.

Of course I was to some extent anxious lest another squall should
come, but I made the best provision I could in the circumstances,
and concluded that by letting go the weather-braces of the top-
sails and the top-sail halyards at the same time, I should thereby
render these sails almost powerless.  Besides this, I proposed to
myself to keep a sharp look-out on the barometer in the cabin, and
if I observed at any time a sudden fall in it, I resolved that I
would instantly set about my multiform appliances for reducing
sail, so as to avoid being taken at unawares.  Thus I sailed
prosperously for two weeks, with a fair wind, so that I calculated
I must be drawing near to the Coral Island; at the thought of which
my heart bounded with joyful expectation.

The only book I found on board, after a careful search, was a
volume of Captain Cook's voyages.  This, I suppose, the pirate
captain had brought with him in order to guide him, and to furnish
him with information regarding the islands of these seas.  I found
this a most delightful book indeed, and I not only obtained much
interesting knowledge about the sea in which I was sailing, but I
had many of my own opinions, derived from experience, corroborated;
and not a few of them corrected.  Besides the reading of this
charming book, and the daily routine of occupations, nothing of
particular note happened to me during this voyage, except once,
when on rising one night, after my three hours' nap, while it was
yet dark, I was amazed and a little alarmed to find myself floating
in what appeared to be a sea of blue fire!  I had often noticed the
beautiful appearance of phosphorescent light, but this far exceeded
anything of the sort I ever saw before.  The whole sea appeared
somewhat like milk and was remarkably luminous.

I rose in haste, and, letting down a bucket into the sea, brought
some of the water on board and took it down to the cabin to examine
it; but no sooner did I approach the light than the strange
appearance disappeared, and when I removed the cabin lamp the
luminous light appeared again.  I was much puzzled with this, and
took up a little of the water in the hollow of my hand and then let
it run off, when I found that the luminous substance was left
behind on my palm.  I ran with it to the lamp; but when I got there
it was gone.  I found, however, that when I went into the dark my
hand shone again; so I took the large glass of the ship's telescope
and examined my hand minutely, when I found that there were on it
one or two small patches of a clear, transparent substance like
jelly, which were so thin as to be almost invisible to the naked
eye.  Thus I came to know that the beautiful phosphoric light,
which I had so often admired before, was caused by animals, for I
had no doubt that these were of the same kind as the medusae or
jelly-fish which are seen in all parts of the world.

On the evening of my fourteenth day, I was awakened out of a nap
into which I had fallen by a loud cry, and starting up, I gazed
around me.  I was surprised and delighted to see a large albatross
soaring majestically over the ship.  I immediately took it into my
head that this was the albatross I had seen at Penguin Island.  I
had, of course, no good reason for supposing this, but the idea
occurred to me, I know not why, and I cherished it, and regarded
the bird with as much affection as if he had been an old friend.
He kept me company all that day and left me as night fell.

Next morning as I stood motionless and with heavy eyes at the helm,
for I had not slept well, I began to weary anxiously for day-light,
and peered towards the horizon, where I thought I observed
something like a black cloud against the dark sky.  Being always on
the alert for squalls, I ran to the bow.  There could be no doubt
it was a squall, and as I listened I thought I heard the murmur of
the coming gale.  Instantly I began to work might and main at my
cumbrous tackle for shortening sail, and in the course of an hour
and a half had the most of it reduced, - the top-sail yards down on
the caps, the top-sails clewed up, the sheets hauled in, the main
and fore peaks lowered, and the flying-jib down.  While thus
engaged the dawn advanced, and I cast an occasional furtive glance
ahead in the midst of my labour.  But now that things were prepared
for the worst, I ran forward again and looked anxiously over the
bow.  I now heard the roar of the waves distinctly, and as a single
ray of the rising sun gleamed over the ocean I saw - what! could it
be that I was dreaming? - that magnificent breaker with its
ceaseless roar! - that mountain top! - yes, once more I beheld the
Coral Island!



CHAPTER XXIX.



The effect of a cannon-shot - A happy reunion of a somewhat moist
nature - Retrospects and explanations - An awful dive - New plans -
The last of the Coral Island.


I ALMOST fell upon the deck with the tumult of mingled emotions
that filled my heart, as I gazed ardently towards my beautiful
island.  It was still many miles away, but sufficiently near to
enable me to trace distinctly the well-remembered outlines of the
two mountains.  My first impulse was to utter an exclamation of
gratitude for being carried to my former happy home in safety; my
second, to jump up, clap my hands, shout, and run up and down the
deck, with no other object in view than that of giving vent to my
excited feelings.  Then I went below for the telescope, and spent
nearly ten minutes of the utmost impatience in vainly trying to get
a focus, and in rubbing the skin nearly off my eyes, before I
discovered that having taken off the large glass to examine the
phosphoric water with I had omitted to put it on again.

After that I looked up impatiently at the sails, which I now
regretted having lowered so hastily, and for a moment thought of
hoisting the main-top sail again; but recollecting that it would
take me full half a day to accomplish, and that, at the present
rate of sailing, two hours would bring me to the island, I
immediately dismissed the idea.

The remainder of the time I spent in making feverish preparations
for arriving and seeing my dear comrades.  I remembered that they
were not in the habit of rising before six, and, as it was now only
three, I hoped to arrive before they were awake.  Moreover, I set
about making ready to let go the anchor, resolving in my own mind
that, as I knew the depth of water in the passage of the reef and
within the lagoon, I would run the schooner in and bring up
opposite the bower.  Fortunately the anchor was hanging at the cat-
head, otherwise I should never have been able to use it.  Now, I
had only to cut the tackling, and it would drop of its own weight.
After searching among the flags, I found the terrible black one,
which I ran up to the peak.  While I was doing this, a thought
struck me.  I went to the powder magazine, brought up a blank
cartridge and loaded the big brass gun, which, it will be
remembered, was unhoused when we set sail, and, as I had no means
of housing it, there it had stood, bristling alike at fair weather
and foul all the voyage.  I took care to grease its mouth well,
and, before leaving the fore part of the ship, thrust the poker
into the fire.

All was now ready.  A steady five-knot breeze was blowing, so that
I was now not more than quarter of a mile from the reef.  I was
soon at the entrance, and, as the schooner glided quietly through,
I glanced affectionately at the huge breaker, as if it had been the
same one I had seen there when I bade adieu, as I feared for ever,
to the island.  On coming opposite the Water Garden, I put the helm
hard down.  The schooner came round with a rapid, graceful bend,
and lost way just opposite the bower.  Running forward, I let go
the anchor, caught up the red-hot poker, applied it to the brass
gun, and the mountains with a BANG, such as had only once before
broke their slumbering echoes!

Effective although it was, however, it was scarcely equal to the
bang with which, instantly after, Peterkin bounded from the bower,
in scanty costume, his eye-balls starting from his head with
surprise and terror.  One gaze he gave, one yell, and then fled
into the bushes like a wild cat.  The next moment Jack went through
exactly the same performance, the only difference being, that his
movements were less like those of Jack-in-the-box, though not less
vigorous and rapid than those of Peterkin.

"Hallo!" I shouted, almost mad with joy, "what, ho! Peterkin!
Jack! hallo! it's me!"

My shout was just in time to arrest them.  They halted and turned
round, and, the instant I repeated the cry, I saw that they
recognised my voice, by both of them running at full speed towards
the beach.  I could no longer contain myself.  Throwing off my
jacket, I jumped overboard at the same moment that Jack bounded
into the sea.  In another moment we met in deep water, clasped each
other round the neck, and sank, as a matter of course, to the
bottom!  We were well-nigh choked, and instantly struggled to the
surface, where Peterkin was spluttering about like a wounded duck,
laughing and crying by turns, and choking himself with salt water!

It would be impossible to convey to my reader, by description, an
adequate conception of the scene that followed my landing on the
beach, as we stood embracing each other indiscriminately in our
dripping garments, and giving utterance to incoherent rhapsodies,
mingled with wild shouts.  It can be more easily imagined than
described, so I will draw a curtain over this part of my history,
and carry the reader forward over an interval of three days.

During the greater part of that period Peterkin did nothing but
roast pigs, taro, and bread-fruit, and ply me with plantains,
plums, potatoes, and cocoa-nuts, while I related to him and Jack
the terrible and wonderful adventures I had gone through since we
last met.  After I had finished the account, they made me go all
over it again; and, when I had concluded the second recital, I had
to go over it again, while they commented upon it piecemeal.  They
were much affected by what I told them of the probable fate of
Avatea, and Peterkin could by no means brook the idea of the poor
girl being converted into a LONG PIG!  As for Jack, he clenched his
teeth, and shook his fist towards the sea, saying at the same time,
that he was sorry he had not broken Tararo's head, and he only
hoped that one day he should be able to plant his knuckles on the
bridge of that chief's nose!  After they had "pumped me dry," as
Peterkin said, I begged to be informed of what had happened to them
during my long absence, and particularly as to how they got out of
the Diamond Cave.

"Well, you must know," began Jack, "after you had dived out of the
cave, on the day you were taken away from us, we waited very
patiently for half an hour, not expecting you to return before the
end of that time.  Then we began to upbraid you for staying so
long, when you knew we would be anxious; but when an hour passed,
we became alarmed, and I resolved at all hazards to dive out, and
see what had become of you, although I felt for poor Peterkin,
because, as he truly said, 'If you never come back, I'm shut up
here for life.'  However, I promised not to run any risk, and he
let me go; which, to say truth, I thought very courageous of him!"

"I should just think it was!" interrupted Peterkin, looking at Jack
over the edge of a monstrous potato which he happened to be
devouring at the time.

"Well," continued Jack, "you may guess my consternation when you
did not answer to my halloo.  At first I imagined that the pirates
must have killed you, and left you in the bush, or thrown you into
the sea; then it occurred to me that this would have served no end
of theirs, so I came to the conclusion that they must have carried
you away with them.  As this thought struck me, I observed the
pirate schooner standing away to the nor'ard, almost hull-down on
the horizon, and I sat down on the rocks to watch her as she slowly
sank from my sight.  And I tell you, Ralph, my boy, that I shed
more tears that time, at losing you, than I have done, I verify
believe, all my life before - "

"Pardon me, Jack, for interrupting," said Peterkin; "surely you
must be mistaken in that; you've often told me that, when you were
a baby, you used to howl and roar from morning to - "

"Hold your tongue, Peterkin," cried Jack.  "Well, after the
schooner had disappeared, I dived back into the cave, much to
Peterkin's relief, and told him what I had seen.  We sat down and
had a long talk over this matter, and then we agreed to make a
regular, systematic search through the woods, so as to make sure,
at least, that you had not been killed.  But now we thought of the
difficulty of getting out of the cave without your help.  Peterkin
became dreadfully nervous when he thought of this; and I must
confess that I felt some alarm, for, of course, I could not hope
alone to take him out so quickly as we two together had brought him
in; and he himself vowed that, if we had been a moment longer with
him that time, he would have had to take a breath of salt water.
However, there was no help for it, and I endeavoured to calm his
fears as well as I could:  'for,' said I, 'you can't live here,
Peterkin;' to which he replied, 'Of course not, Jack, I can only
die here, and, as that's not at all desirable, you had better
propose something.'  So I suggested that he should take a good long
breath, and trust himself to me.

"'Might we not make a large bag of cocoa-nut cloth, into which I
could shove my head, and tie it tight round my neck?' he asked,
with a haggard smile.  'It might let me get one breath under
water!'

"'No use,' said I; 'it would fill in a moment and suffocate you.  I
see nothing for it, Peterkin, if you really can't keep your breath
so long, but to let me knock you down, and carry you out while in a
state of insensibility.'

"But Peterkin didn't relish this idea.  He seemed to fear that I
could not be able to measure the exact force of the blow, and
might, on the one hand, hit him so softly as to render a second or
third blow necessary, which would be very uncomfortable; or, on the
other hand, give him such a smash as would entirely spoil his
figure-head, or, mayhap, knock the life out of him altogether!  At
last I got him persuaded to try to hold his breath, and commit
himself to me; so he agreed, and down we went.  But I had not got
him half way through, when he began to struggle and kick like a
wild bull, burst from my grasp, and hit against the roof of the
tunnel.  I was therefore, obliged to force him violently back into
the cave gain, where he rose panting to the surface.  In short, he
had lost his presence of mind, and - "

"Nothing of the sort," cried Peterkin, indignantly, "I had only
lost my wind; and if I had not had presence of mind enough to kick
as I did, I should have bu'st in your arms!"

"Well, well, so be it," resumed Jack, with a smile, "but the upshot
of it was, that we had to hold another consultation on the point,
and I really believe that, had it not been for a happy thought of
mine, we should have been consulting there yet."

"I wish we had," again interrupted Peterkin with a sigh.  "I'm
sure, Ralph, if I had thought that you were coming back again, I
would willingly have awaited your return for months, rather than
have endured the mental agony which I went through!  But proceed."

"The thought was this," continued Jack, "that I should tie
Peterkin's hands and feet with cords, and then lash him firmly to a
stout pole about five feet long, in order to render him quite
powerless, and keep him straight and stiff.  You should have seen
his face of horror, Ralph, when I suggested this:  but he came to
see that it was his only chance, and told me to set about it as
fast as I could; 'for,' said he, 'this is no jokin', Jack, I can
tell you, and the sooner it's done the better.'  I soon procured
the cordage and a suitable pole, with which I returned to the cave,
and lashed him as stiff and straight as an Egyptian mummy; and, to
say truth, he was no bad representation of what an English mummy
would be, if there were such things, for he was as white as a dead
man."

"'Now,' said Peterkin, in a tremulous voice, 'swim with me as near
to the edge of the hole as you can before you dive, then let me
take a long breath, and, as I sha'nt be able to speak after I've
taken it, you'll watch my face, and the moment you see me wink -
dive!  And oh!' he added, earnestly, 'pray don't be long!'

"I promised to pay the strictest attention to his wishes, and swam
with him to the outlet of the cave.  Here I paused.  'Now then,'
said I, 'pull away at the wind, lad.'"

Peterkin drew in a breath so long that I could not help thinking of
the frog in the fable, that wanted to swell itself as big as the
ox.  Then I looked into his face earnestly.  Slap went the lid of
his right eye; down went my head, and up went my heels.  We shot
through the passage like an arrow, and rose to the surface of the
open sea before you could count twenty!

"Peterkin had taken in such an awful load of wind that, on reaching
the free air, he let it out with a yell loud enough to have been
heard a mile off, and then, the change in his feelings was so
sudden and great, that he did not wait till we landed, but began,
tied up as he was, to shout and sing for joy as I supported him
with my left arm to the shore.  However, in the middle of a laugh
that a hyaena might have envied, I let him accidentally slip, which
extinguished him in a moment.

"After this happy deliverance, we immediately began our search for
your dead body, Ralph, and you have no idea how low our hearts sank
as we set off, day after day, to examine the valleys and mountain
sides with the utmost care.  In about three weeks we completed the
survey of the whole island, and had at least the satisfaction of
knowing that you had not been killed.  But it occurred to us that
you might have been thrown into the sea, so we examined the sands
and the lagoon carefully, and afterwards went all round the outer
reef.  One day, while we were upon the reef, Peterkin espied a
small dark object lying among the rocks, which seemed to be quite
different from the surrounding stones.  We hastened towards the
spot, and found it to be a small keg.  On knocking out the head we
discovered that it was gunpowder."

"It was I who sent you that, Jack," said I, with a smile.

"Fork out!" cried Peterkin, energetically, starting to his feet and
extending his open hand to Jack.  "Down with the money, sir, else
I'll have you shut up for life in a debtor's prison the moment we
return to England!"

"I'll give you an I.O.U. in the meantime," returned Jack, laughing,
"so sit down and be quiet.  The fact is, Ralph, when we discovered
this keg of powder, Peterkin immediately took me a bet of a
thousand pounds that you had something to do with it, and I took
him a bet of ten thousand that you had not.

"Peterkin was right then," said I, explaining how the thing had
occurred.

"Well, we found it very useful," continued Jack; "although some of
it had got a little damp; and we furbished up the old pistol, with
which Peterkin is a crack shot now.  But, to continue.  We did not
find any other vestige of you on the reef, and, finally, gave up
all hope of ever seeing you again.  After this the island became a
dreary place to us, and we began to long for a ship to heave in
sight and take us off.  But now that you're back again, my dear
fellow, it looks as bright and cheerful as it used to do, and I
love it as much as ever."

"And now," continued Jack, "I have a great desire to visit some of
the other islands of the South Seas.  Here we have a first-rate
schooner at our disposal, so I don't see what should hinder us."

"Just the very thing I was going to propose," cried Peterkin; "I
vote for starting at once."

"Well, then," said Jack, "it seems to me that we could not do
better than shape our course for the island on which Avatea lives,
and endeavour to persuade Tararo to let her marry the black fellow
to whom she is engaged, instead of making a long pig of her.  If he
has a spark of gratitude in him he'll do it.  Besides, having
become champions for this girl once before, it behoves us, as true
knights, not to rest until we set her free; at least, all the
heroes in all the story-books I have ever read would count it foul
disgrace to leave such a work unfinished."

"I'm sure I don't know, or care, what your knights in story-books
would do," said Peterkin, "but I'm certain that it would be capital
fun, so I'm your man whenever you want me."

This plan of Jack's was quite in accordance with his romantic,
impulsive nature; and, having made up his mind to save this black
girl, he could not rest until the thing was commenced.

"But there may be great danger in this attempt," he said, at the
end of a long consultation on the subject; "will you, lads, go with
me in spite of this?"

"Go with you?" we repeated in the same breath.

"Can you doubt it?" said I.

"For a moment," added Peterkin.

I need scarcely say that, having made up our minds to go on this
enterprise, we lost no time in making preparations to quit the
island; and as the schooner was well laden with stores of every
kind for a long cruise, we had little to do except to add to our
abundant supply a quantity of cocoa-nuts, bread-fruit, taro, yams,
plums, and potatoes, chiefly with the view of carrying the
fragrance of our dear island along with us as long as we could.

When all was ready, we paid a farewell visit to the different
familiar spots where most of our time had been spent.  We ascended
the mountain top, and gazed for the last time at the rich green
foliage in the valleys, the white sandy beach, the placid lagoon,
and the barrier coral-reef with its crested breakers.  Then we
descended to Spouting Cliff, and looked down at the pale-green
monster which we had made such fruitless efforts to spear in days
gone by.  From this we hurried to the Water Garden and took a last
dive into its clear waters, and a last gambol amongst its coral
groves.  I hurried out before my companions, and dressed in haste,
in order to have a long examination of my tank, which Peterkin, in
the fulness of his heart, had tended with the utmost care, as being
a vivid remembrancer of me, rather than out of love for natural
history.  It was in superb condition; - the water as clear and
pellucid as crystal; the red and green sea-weed of the most
brilliant hues; the red, purple, yellow, green, and striped
anemones fully expanded, and stretching out their arms as if to
welcome and embrace their former master; the starfish, zoophytes,
sea-pens, and other innumerable marine insects, looking fresh and
beautiful; and the crabs, as Peterkin said, looking as wide awake,
impertinent, rampant, and pugnacious as ever.  It was indeed so
lovely and so interesting that I would scarcely allow myself to be
torn away from it.

Last of all, we returned to the bower and collected the few
articles we possessed, such as the axe, the pencil-case, the broken
telescope, the pen-knife, the hook made from the brass ring, and
the sail-needle, with which we had landed on the island; - also,
the long boots and the pistol, besides several curious articles of
costume which we had manufactured from time to time.

These we conveyed on board in our little boat, after having carved
our names on a chip of iron-wood, thus:-


JACK MARTIN,
RALPH ROVER,
PETERKIN GAY,


which we fixed up inside of the bower.  The boat was then hoisted
on board and the anchor weighed; which latter operation cost us
great labour and much time, as the anchor was so heavy that we
could not move it without the aid of my complex machinery of blocks
and pulleys.  A steady breeze was blowing off shore when we set
sail, at a little before sunset.  It swept us quickly past the reef
and out to sea.  The shore grew rapidly more indistinct as the
shades of evening fell, while our clipper bark bounded lightly over
the waves.  Slowly the mountain top sank on the horizon, until it
became a mere speck.  In another moment the sun and the Coral
Island sank together into the broad bosom of the Pacific.



CHAPTER XXX.



The voyage - The island, and a consultation in which danger is
scouted as a thing unworthy of consideration - Rats and cats - The
native teacher - Awful revelations - Wonderful effects of
Christianity.


OUR voyage during the next two weeks was most interesting and
prosperous.  The breeze continued generally fair, and at all times
enabled us to lie our course; for being, as I have said before,
clipper-built, the pirate schooner could lie very close to the
wind, and made little lee-way.  We had no difficulty now in
managing our sails, for Jack was heavy and powerful, while Peterkin
was active as a kitten.  Still, however, we were a very
insufficient crew for such a vessel, and if any one had proposed to
us to make such a voyage in it before we had been forced to go
through so many hardships from necessity, we would have turned away
with pity from the individual making such proposal as from a
madman.  I pondered this a good deal, and at last concluded that
men do not know how much they are capable of doing till they try,
and that we should never give way to despair in any undertaking,
however difficult it may seem:- always supposing, however, that our
cause is a good one, and that we can ask the divine blessing on it.

Although, therefore, we could now manage our sails easily, we
nevertheless found that my pulleys were of much service to us in
some things; though Jack did laugh heartily at the uncouth
arrangement of ropes and blocks, which had, to a sailor's eye, a
very lumbering and clumsy appearance.  But I will not drag my
reader through the details of this voyage.  Suffice it to say,
that, after an agreeable sail of about three weeks, we arrived off
the island of Mango, which I recognised at once from the
description that the pirate, Bill, had given me of it during one of
our conversations.

As soon as we came within sight of it we hove the ship to, and held
a council of war.

"Now, boys," said Jack, as we seated ourselves beside him on the
cabin sky-light, "before we go farther in this business, we must go
over the pros and cons of it; for, although you have so generously
consented to stick by me through thick and thin, it would be unfair
did I not see that you thoroughly understand the danger of what we
are about to attempt."

"Oh! bother the danger," cried Peterkin; "I wonder to hear YOU,
Jack, talk of danger.  When a fellow begins to talk about it, he'll
soon come to magnify it to such a degree that he'll not be fit to
face it when it comes, no more than a suckin' baby!"

"Nay, Peterkin," replied Jack, gravely, "I won't be jested out of
it.  I grant you, that, when we've once resolved to act, and have
made up our minds what to do, we should think no more of danger.
But, before we have so resolved, it behoves us to look at it
straight in the face, and examine into it, and walk round it; for
if we flinch at a distant view, we're sure to run away when the
danger is near.  Now, I understand from you, Ralph, that the island
is inhabited by thorough-going, out-and-out cannibals, whose
principal law is - 'Might is right, and the weakest goes to the
wall?'"

"Yes," said I, "so Bill gave me to understand.  He told me,
however, that, at the southern side of it, the missionaries had
obtained a footing amongst an insignificant tribe.  A native
teacher had been sent there by the Wesleyans, who had succeeded in
persuading the chief at that part to embrace Christianity.  But
instead of that being of any advantage to our enterprise, it seems
the very reverse; for the chief Tararo is a determined heathen, and
persecutes the Christians, - who are far too weak in numbers to
offer any resistance, - and looks with dislike upon all white men,
whom he regards as propagators of the new faith."

"'Tis a pity," said Jack, "that the Christian tribe is so small,
for we shall scarcely be safe under their protection, I fear.  If
Tararo takes it into his head to wish for our vessel, or to kill
ourselves, he could take us from them by force.  You say that the
native missionary talks English?"

"So I believe."

"Then, what I propose is this," said Jack:  "We will run round to
the south side of the island, and cut anchor off the Christian
village.  We are too far away just now to have been descried by any
of the savages, so we shall get there unobserved, and have time to
arrange our plans before the heathen tribes know of our presence.
But, in doing this, we run the risk of being captured by the ill-
disposed tribes, and being very ill used, if not - a - "

"Roasted alive and eaten," cried Peterkin.  "Come, out with it,
Jack; according to your own showing, it's well to look the danger
straight in the face!"

"Well, that is the worst of it, certainly.  Are you prepared, then,
to take your chance of that?"

"I've been prepared and had my mind made up long ago," cried
Peterkin, swaggering about the deck with his hands thrust into his
breeches' pockets.  "The fact is, Jack, I don't believe that Tararo
will be so ungrateful as to eat us; and I'm, quite sure that he'll
be too happy to grant us whatever we ask:  so the sooner we go in
and win the better."

Peterkin was wrong, however, in his estimate of savage gratitude,
as the sequel will show.

The schooner was now put before the wind, and, after making a long
run to the south'ard, we put about and beat up for the south side
of Mango, where we arrived before sunset, and hove-to off the coral
reef.  Here we awaited the arrival of a canoe, which immediately
put off on our rounding to.  When it arrived, a mild-looking
native, of apparently forty years of age, came on board, and,
taking off his straw hat, made us a low bow.  He was clad in a
respectable suit of European clothes; and the first words he
uttered, as he stepped up to Jack and shook hands with him, were, -

"Good day, gentlemen; we are happy to see you at Mango - you are
heartily welcome."

After returning his salutation, Jack exclaimed, "You must be the
native missionary teacher of whom I have heard - are you not?"

"I am.  I have the joy to be a servant of the Lord Jesus at this
station."

"You're the very man I want to see, then," replied Jack; "that's
lucky.  Come down to the cabin, friend, and have a glass of wine.
I wish particularly to speak with you.  My men there" (pointing to
Peterkin and me) "will look after your people."

"Thank you," said the teacher, as he followed Jack to the cabin, "I
do not drink wine or any strong drink."

"Oh! then, there's lots of water, and you can have biscuit."

"Now, 'pon my word, that's cool!" said Peterkin; "his MEN,
forsooth!  Well, since we are to be men, we may as well come it as
strong over these black chaps as we can.  Hallo, there!" he cried
to the half dozen of natives who stood upon the deck, gazing in
wonder at all they saw, "here's for you;" and he handed them a tray
of broken biscuit and a can of water.  Then, thrusting his hands
into his pockets, he walked up and down the deck with an enormous
swagger, whistling vociferously.

In about half an hour Jack and the teacher came on deck, and the
latter, bidding us a cheerful good evening, entered his canoe and
paddled to the shore.  When he was gone, Peterkin stepped up to
Jack, and, touching his cap, said, -

"Well, captain, have you any communications to make to your MEN?"

"Yes," cried Jack; "ready about, mind the helm and clew up your
tongue, while I con the schooner through the passage in the reef.
The teacher, who seems a first-rate fellow, says it's quite deep,
and good anchorage within the lagoon close to the shore."

While the vessel was slowly advancing to her anchorage, under a
light breeze, Jack explained to us that Avatea was still on the
island, living amongst the heathens; that she had expressed a
strong desire to join the Christians, but Tararo would not let her,
and kept her constantly in close confinement.

"Moreover," continued Jack, "I find that she belongs to one of the
Samoan Islands, where Christianity had been introduced long before
her capture by the heathens of a neighbouring island; and the very
day after she was taken, she was to have joined the church which
had been planted there by that excellent body, the London
Missionary Society.  The teacher tells me, too, that the poor girl
has fallen in love with a Christian chief, who lives on an island
some fifty miles or so to the south of this one, and that she is
meditating a desperate attempt at escape.  So, you see, we have
come in the nick of time.  I fancy that this chief is the fellow
whom you heard of, Ralph, at the Island of Emo.  Besides all this,
the heathen savages are at war among themselves, and there's to be
a battle fought the day after to-morrow, in which the principal
leader is Tararo; so that we'll not be able to commence our
negotiations with the rascally chief till the day after."

The village off which we anchored was beautifully situated at the
head of a small bay, from the margin of which trees of every
description peculiar to the tropics rose in the richest luxuriance
to the summit of a hilly ridge, which was the line of demarcation
between the possessions of the Christians and those of the
neighbouring heathen chief.

The site of the settlement was an extensive plot of flat land,
stretching in a gentle slope from the sea to the mountain.  The
cottages stood several hundred yards from the beach, and were
protected from the glare of the sea by the rich foliage of rows of
large Barringtonia and other trees, which girt the shore.  The
village was about a mile in length, and perfectly straight, with a
wide road down the middle, on either side of which were rows of the
tufted-topped ti tree, whose delicate and beautiful blossoms,
hanging beneath their plume-crested tops, added richness to the
scene.  The cottages of the natives were built beneath these trees,
and were kept in the most excellent order, each having a little
garden in front, tastefully laid out and planted, while the walks
were covered with black and white pebbles.

Every house had doors and Venetian windows, painted partly with
lamp black made from the candle-nut, and partly with red ochre,
which contrasted powerfully with the dazzling coral lime that
covered the walls.  On a prominent position stood a handsome
church, which was quite a curiosity in its way.  It was a hundred
feet long by fifty broad, and was seated throughout to accommodate
upwards of two thousand persons.  It had six large folding doors
and twelve windows with Venetian blinds; and, although a large and
substantial edifice, it had been built, we were told by the
teacher, in the space of two months!  There was not a single iron
nail in the fabric, and the natives had constructed it chiefly with
their stone and bone axes and other tools, having only one or two
axes or tools of European manufacture.  Everything around this
beautiful spot wore an aspect of peace and plenty, and, as we
dropped our anchor within a stone's cast of the substantial coral
wharf, I could not avoid contrasting it with the wretched village
of Emo, where I had witnessed so many frightful scenes.  When the
teacher afterwards told me that the people of this tribe had become
converts only a year previous to our arrival, and that they had
been living before that in the practice of the most bloody system
of idolatry, I could not refrain from exclaiming, "What a
convincing proof that Christianity is of God!"

On landing from our little boat, we were received with a warm
welcome by the teacher and his wife; the latter being also a
native, clothed in a simple European gown and straw bonnet.  The
shore was lined with hundreds of natives, whose persons were all
more or less clothed with native cloth.  Some of the men had on a
kind of poncho formed of this cloth, their legs being uncovered.
Others wore clumsily-fashioned trousers, and no upper garment
except hats made of straw and cloth.  Many of the dresses, both of
women and men, were grotesque enough, being very bad imitations of
the European garb; but all wore a dress of some sort or other.
They seemed very glad to see us, and crowded round us as the
teacher led the way to his dwelling, where we were entertained, in
the most sumptuous manner, on baked pig and all the varieties of
fruits and vegetables that the island produced.  We were much
annoyed, however, by the rats:  they seemed to run about the house
like domestic animals.  As we sat at table, one of them peeped up
at us over the edge of the cloth, close to Peterkin's elbow, who
floored it with a blow on the snout from his knife, exclaiming as
he did so -

"I say, Mister Teacher, why don't you set traps for these brutes? -
surely you are not fond of them!"

"No," replied the teacher, with a smile; "we would be glad to get
rid of them if we could; but if we were to trap all the rats on the
island, it would occupy our whole time."

"Are they, then, so numerous?" inquired Jack.

"They swarm everywhere.  The poor heathens on the north side eat
them, and think them very sweet.  So did my people formerly; but
they do not eat so many now, because the missionary who was last
here expressed disgust at it.  The poor people asked if it was
wrong to eat rats; and he told them that it was certainly not
wrong, but that the people of England would be much disgusted were
they asked to eat rats."

We had not been an hour in the house of this kind-hearted man when
we were convinced of the truth of his statement as to their
numbers, for the rats ran about the floors in dozens, and, during
our meal, two men were stationed at the table to keep them off!

"What a pity you have no cats," said Peterkin, as he aimed a blow
at another reckless intruder, and missed it.

"We would, indeed, be glad to have a few," rejoined the teacher,
"but they are difficult to be got.  The hogs, we find, are very
good rat-killers, but they do not seem to be able to keep the
numbers down.  I have heard that they are better than cats."

As the teacher said this, his good-natured black face was wrinkled
with a smile of merriment.  Observing that I had noticed it, he
said:-

"I smiled just now when I remembered the fate of the first cat that
was taken to Raratonga.  This is one of the stations of the London
Missionary Society.  It, like our own, is infested with rats, and a
cat was brought at last to the island.  It was a large black one.
On being turned loose, instead of being content to stay among men,
the cat took to the mountains, and lived in a wild state, sometimes
paying visits during the night to the houses of the natives; some
of whom, living at a distance from the settlement, had not heard of
the cat's arrival, and were dreadfully frightened in consequence,
calling it a 'monster of the deep,' and flying in terror away from
it.  One night the cat, feeling a desire for company, I suppose,
took its way to the house of a chief, who had recently been
converted to Christianity, and had begun to learn to read and pray.
The chief's wife, who was sitting awake at his side while he slept,
beheld with horror two fires glistening in the doorway, and heard
with surprise a mysterious voice.  Almost petrified with fear, she
awoke her husband, and began to upbraid him for forsaking his old
religion, and burning his god, who, she declared, was now come to
be avenged of them.  'Get up and pray! get up and pray!' she cried.
The chief arose, and, on opening his eyes, beheld the same glaring
lights, and heard the same ominous sound.  Impelled by the extreme
urgency of the case, he commenced, with all possible vehemence, to
vociferate the alphabet, as a prayer to God to deliver them from
the vengeance of Satan!  On hearing this, the cat, as much alarmed
as themselves, fled precipitately away, leaving the chief and his
wife congratulating themselves on the efficacy of their prayer."

We were much diverted with this anecdote, which the teacher related
in English so good, that we certainly could not have supposed him a
native but for the colour of his face and the foreign accent in his
tone.  Next day we walked out with this interesting man, and were
much entertained and instructed by his conversation, as we rambled
through the cool shady groves of bananas, citrons, limes, and other
trees, or sauntered among the cottages of the natives, and watched
them while they laboured diligently in the taro beds, or
manufactured the tapa or native cloth.  To some of these Jack put
questions through the medium of the missionary; and the replies
were such as to surprise us at the extent of their knowledge.
Indeed, Peterkin very truly remarked that "they seemed to know a
considerable deal more than Jack himself!"

Among other pieces of interesting information that we obtained was
the following, in regard to coral formations:-

"The islands of the Pacific," said our friend, "are of three
different kinds or classes.  Those of the first class are volcanic,
mountainous, and wild; some shooting their jagged peaks into the
clouds at an elevation of ten and fifteen thousand feet.  Those of
the second class are of crystalized limestone, and vary in height
from one hundred to five hundred feet.  The hills on these are not
so wild or broken as those of the first class, but are richly
clothed with vegetation, and very beautiful.  I have no doubt that
the Coral Island on which you were wrecked was one of this class.
They are supposed to have been upheaved from the bottom of the sea
by volcanic agency, but they are not themselves volcanic in their
nature, neither are they of coral formation.  Those of the third
class are the low coralline islands usually having lagoons of water
in their midst; they are very numerous.

"As to the manner in which coral islands and reefs are formed;
there are various opinions on this point.  I will give you what
seems to me the most probable theory, - a theory, I may add, which
is held by some of the good and scientific missionaries.  It is
well known that there is much lime in salt water; it is also known
that coral is composed of lime.  It is supposed that the polypes,
or coral insects, have the power of attracting this lime to their
bodies; and with this material they build their little cells or
habitations.  They choose the summit of a volcano, or the top of a
submarine mountain, as a foundation on which to build; for it is
found that they never work at any great depth below the surface.
On this they work; the polypes on the mountain top, of course,
reach the surface first, then those at the outer edges reach the
top sooner than the others between them and the centre, thus
forming the coral reef surrounding the lagoon of water and the
central island; after that the insects within the lagoon cease
working.  When the surface of the water is reached, these myriads
of wonderful creatures die.  Then birds visit the spot, and seeds
are thus conveyed thither, which take root, and spring up, and
flourish.  Thus are commenced those coralline islets of which you
have seen so many in these seas.  The reefs round the large islands
are formed in a similar manner.  When we consider," added the
missionary, "the smallness of the architects used by our heavenly
Father in order to form those lovely and innumerable islands, we
are filled with much of that feeling which induced the ancient king
to exclaim, 'How manifold, O God, are thy works! in wisdom thou
hast made them all.'"

We all heartily agreed with the missionary in this sentiment, and
felt not a little gratified to find that the opinions which Jack
and I had been led to form from personal observation on our Coral
Island were thus to a great extent corroborated.

The missionary also gave us an account of the manner in which
Christianity had been introduced among them.  He said:  "When
missionaries were first sent here, three years ago, a small vessel
brought them; and the chief, who is now dead, promised to treat
well the two native teachers who were left with their wives on the
island.  But scarcely had the boat which landed them returned to
the ship, than the natives began to maltreat their guests, taking
away all they possessed, and offering them further violence, so
that, when the boat was sent in haste to fetch them away, the
clothes of both men and women were torn nearly off their backs.

"Two years after this the vessel visited them again, and I, being
in her, volunteered to land alone, without any goods whatever;
begging that my wife might be brought to me the following year, -
that is, THIS year; and, as you see, she is with me.  But the surf
was so high that the boat could not land me; so with nothing on but
my trousers and shirt, and with a few catechisms and a Bible,
besides some portions of the Scripture translated into the Mango
tongue, I sprang into the sea, and swam ashore on the crest of a
breaker.  I was instantly dragged up the beach by the natives; who,
on finding I had nothing worth having upon me, let me alone.  I
then made signs to my friends in the ship to leave me; which they
did.  At fist the natives listened to me in silence, but laughed at
what I said while I preached the gospel of our blessed Saviour
Jesus Christ to them.  Afterwards they treated me ill sometimes;
but I persevered, and continued to dwell among them, and dispute,
and exhort them to give up their sinful ways of life, burn their
idols, and come to Jesus.

"About a month after I landed, I heard that the chief was dead.  He
was the father of the present chief, who is now a most consistent
member of the church.  It is a custom here that, when a chief dies,
his wives are strangled and buried with him.  Knowing this, I
hastened to his house to endeavour to prevent such cruelty if
possible.  When I arrived, I found two of the wives had already
been killed, while another was in the act of being strangled.  I
pleaded hard for her, but it was too late; she was already dead.  I
then entreated the son to spare the fourth wife; and, after much
hesitation, my prayer was granted:  but, in half an hour
afterwards, this poor woman repented of being unfaithful, as she
termed it, to her husband, and insisted on being strangled; which
was accordingly done.

"All this time the chief's son was walking up and down before his
father's house with a brow black as thunder.  When he entered, I
went in with him, and found, to my surprise, that his father was
not dead!  The old man was sitting on a mat in a corner, with an
expression of placid resignation on his face.

"'Why,' said I, 'have you strangled your father's wives before he
is dead?'

"To this the son replied, 'He is dead.  That is no longer my
father.  He is as good as dead now.  He is to be BURIED ALIVE.'

"I now remembered having heard that it is a custom among the Feejee
islanders, that when the reigning chief grows old or infirm, the
heir to the chieftainship has a right to depose his father; in
which case he is considered as dead, and is buried alive.  The
young chief was now about to follow this custom, and, despite my
earnest entreaties and pleadings, the old chief was buried that day
before my eyes in the same grave with his four strangled wives!
Oh! my heart groaned when I saw this, and I prayed to God to open
the hearts of these poor creatures, as he had already opened mine,
and pour into them the light and the love of the gospel of Jesus.
My prayer was answered very soon.  A week afterwards, the son, who
was now chief of the tribe, came to me, bearing his god on his
shoulders, and groaning beneath its weight.  Flinging it down at my
feet, he desired me to burn it!

"You may conceive how overjoyed I was at this.  I sprang up and
embraced him, while I shed tears of joy.  Then we made a fire, and
burned the god to ashes, amid an immense concourse of the people,
who seemed terrified at what was being done, and shrank back when
we burned the god, expecting some signal vengeance to be taken upon
us; but seeing that nothing happened, they changed their minds, and
thought that our God must be the true one after all.  From that
time the mission prospered steadily, and now, while there is not a
single man in the tribe who has not burned his household gods, and
become a convert to Christianity, there are not a few, I hope, who
are true followers of the Lamb, having been plucked as brands from
the burning by Him who can save unto the uttermost.  I will not
tell you more of our progress at this time, but you see," he said,
waving his hand around him, "the village and the church did not
exist a year ago!"

We were indeed much interested in this account, and I could not
help again in my heart praying God to prosper those missionary
societies that send such inestimable blessings to these islands of
dark and bloody idolatry.  The teacher also added that the other
tribes were very indignant at this one for having burned its gods,
and threatened to destroy it altogether, but they had done nothing
yet; "and if they should," said the teacher, "the Lord is on our
side; of whom shall we be afraid?"

"Have the missionaries many stations in these seas?" inquired Jack.

"Oh, yes.  The London Missionary Society have a great many in the
Tahiti group, and other islands in that quarter.  Then the
Wesleyans have the Feejee Islands all to themselves, and the
Americans have many stations in other groups.  But still, my
friend, there are hundreds of islands here the natives of which
have never heard of Jesus, or the good word of God, or the Holy
Spirit; and thousands are living and dying in the practice of those
terrible sins and bloody murders of which you have already heard.
I trust, my friends," he added, looking earnestly into our faces,
"I trust that if you ever return to England, you will tell your
Christian friends that the horrors which they hear of in regard to
these islands are LITERALLY TRUE, and that when they have heard the
worst, the 'HALF HAS NOT BEEN TOLD THEM;' for there are perpetrated
here foul deeds of darkness of which man may not speak.  You may
also tell them," he said, looking around with a smile, while a tear
of gratitude trembled in his eye and rolled down his coal-black
cheek, - "tell them of the blessings that the gospel has wrought
HERE!"

We assured our friend that we would certainly not forget his
request.  On returning towards the village, about noon, we remarked
on the beautiful whiteness of the cottages.

"That is owing to the lime with which they are plastered," said the
teacher.  "When the natives were converted, as I have described, I
set them to work to build cottages for themselves, and also this
handsome church which you see.  When the framework and other parts
of the houses were up, I sent the people to fetch coral from the
sea.  They brought immense quantities.  Then I made them cut wood,
and, piling the coral above it, set it on fire.

"'Look! look!' cried the poor people, in amazement; 'what wonderful
people the Christians are!  He is roasting stones.  We shall not
need taro or bread-fruit any more; we may eat stones!'

"But their surprise was still greater when the coral was reduced to
a fine soft white powder.  They immediately set up a great shout,
and, mingling the lime with water, rubbed their faces and their
bodies all over with it, and ran through the village screaming with
delight.  They were also much surprised at another thing they saw
me do.  I wished to make some household furniture, and constructed
a turning-lathe to assist me.  The first thing that I turned was
the leg of a sofa; which was no sooner finished than the chief
seized it with wonder and delight, and ran through the village
exhibiting it to the people, who looked upon it with great
admiration.  The chief then, tying a string to it, hung it round
his neck as an ornament!  He afterwards told me that if he had seen
it before he became a Christian he would have made it his god!"

As the teacher concluded this anecdote we reached his door.  Saying
that he had business to attend to, he left us to amuse ourselves as
we best could.

"Now, lads," said Jack, turning abruptly towards us, and buttoning
up his jacket as he spoke, "I'm off to see the battle.  I've no
particular fondness for seein' blood-shed, but I must find out the
nature o' these fellows and see their customs with my own eyes, so
that I may be able to speak of it again, if need be,
authoritatively.  It's only six miles off, and we don't run much
more risk than that of getting a rap with a stray stone or an over-
shot arrow.  Will you go?"

"To be sure we will," said Peterkin.

"If they chance to see us we'll cut and run for it," added Jack.

"Dear me!" cried Peterkin, - "YOU run! thought you would scorn to
run from any one."

"So I would, if it were my duty to fight," returned Jack, coolly;
"but as I don't want to fight, and don't intend to fight, if they
offer to attack us I'll run away like the veriest coward that ever
went by the name of Peterkin.  So come along."



CHAPTER XXXI.



A strange and bloody battle - The lion bearded in his den -
Frightful scenes of cruelty, and fears for the future.


WE had ascertained from the teacher the direction to the spot on
which the battle was to be fought, and after a walk of two hours
reached it.  The summit of a bare hill was the place chosen; for,
unlike most of the other islanders, who are addicted to bush-
fighting, those of Mango are in the habit of meeting on open
ground.  We arrived before the two parties had commenced the deadly
struggle, and, creeping as close up as we dared among the rocks, we
lay and watched them.

The combatants were drawn up face to face, each side ranged in rank
four deep.  Those in the first row were armed with long spears; the
second, with clubs to defend the spearmen; the third row was
composed of young men with slings; and the fourth consisted of
women, who carried baskets of stones for the slingers, and clubs
and spears with which to supply the warriors.  Soon after we
arrived, the attack was made with great fury.  There was no science
displayed.  The two bodies of savages rushed headlong upon each
other and engaged in a general MELEE, and a more dreadful set of
men I have never seen.  They wore grotesque war-caps made of
various substances and decorated with feathers.  Their faces and
bodies were painted so as to make them look as frightful as
possible; and as they brandished their massive clubs, leaped,
shouted, yelled, and dashed each other to the ground, I thought I
had never seen men look so like demons before.

We were much surprised at the conduct of the women, who seemed to
be perfect furies, and hung about the heels of their husbands in
order to defend them.  One stout young women we saw, whose husband
was hard pressed and about to be overcome:  she lifted a large
stone, and throwing it at his opponent's head, felled him to the
earth.  But the battle did not last long.  The band most distant
from us gave way and were routed, leaving eighteen of their
comrades dead upon the field.  These the victors brained as they
lay; and putting some of their brains on leaves went off with them,
we were afterwards informed, to their temples, to present them to
their gods as an earnest of the human victims who were soon to be
brought there.

We hastened back to the Christian village with feelings of the
deepest sadness at the sanguinary conflict which we had just
witnessed.

Next day, after breakfasting with our friend the teacher, we made
preparations for carrying out our plan.  At first the teacher
endeavoured to dissuade us.

"You do not know," said he, turning to Jack, "the danger you run in
venturing amongst these ferocious savages.  I feel much pity for
poor Avatea; but you are not likely to succeed in saving her, and
you may die in the attempt."

"Well," said Jack, quietly, "I am not afraid to die in a good
cause."

The teacher smiled approvingly at him as he said this, and after a
little further conversation agreed to accompany us as interpreter;
saying that, although Tararo was unfriendly to him, he had hitherto
treated him with respect.

We now went on board the schooner, having resolved to sail round
the island and drop anchor opposite the heathen village.  We manned
her with natives, and hoped to overawe the savages by displaying
our brass gun to advantage.  The teacher soon after came on board,
and setting our sails we put to sea.  In two hours more we made the
cliffs reverberate with the crash of the big gun, which we fired by
way of salute, while we ran the British ensign up to the peak and
cast anchor.  The commotion on shore showed us that we had struck
terror into the hearts of the natives; but seeing that we did not
offer to molest them, a canoe at length put off and paddled
cautiously towards us.  The teacher showed himself, and explaining
that we were friends and wished to palaver with the chief, desired
the native to go and tell him to come on board.

We waited long and with much impatience for an answer.  During this
time the native teacher conversed with us again, and told us many
things concerning the success of the gospel among those islands;
and perceiving that we were by no means so much gratified as we
ought to have been at the hearing of such good news, he pressed us
more closely in regard to our personal interest in religion, and
exhorted us to consider that our souls were certainly in as great
danger as those of the wretched heathen whom we pitied so much, if
we had not already found salvation in Jesus Christ.  "Nay,
further," he added, "if such be your unhappy case, you are, in the
sight of God, much worse than these savages (forgive me, my young
friends, for saying so); for they have no knowledge, no light, and
do not profess to believe; while you, on the contrary, have been
brought up in the light of the blessed gospel and call yourselves
Christians.  These poor savages are indeed the enemies of our Lord;
but you, if ye be not true believers, are traitors!"

I must confess that my heart condemned me while the teacher spoke
in this earnest manner, and I knew not what to reply.  Peterkin,
too, did not seem to like it, and I thought would willingly have
escaped; but Jack seemed deeply impressed, and wore an anxious
expression on his naturally grave countenance, while he assented to
the teacher's remarks and put to him many earnest questions.
Meanwhile the natives who composed our crew, having nothing
particular to do, had squatted down on the deck and taken out their
little books containing the translated portions of the New
Testament, along with hymns and spelling-books, and were now busily
engaged, some vociferating the alphabet, others learning prayers
off by heart, while a few sang hymns, - all of them being utterly
unmindful of our presence.  The teacher soon joined them, and soon
afterwards they all engaged in a prayer which was afterwards
translated to us, and proved to be a petition for the success of
our undertaking and for the conversion of the heathen.

While we were thus engaged a canoe put off from shore and several
savages leaped on deck, one of whom advanced to the teacher and
informed him that Tararo could not come on board that day, being
busy with some religious ceremonies before the gods, which could on
no account be postponed.  He was also engaged with a friendly chief
who was about to take his departure from the island, and therefore
begged that the teacher and his friends would land and pay a visit
to him.  To this the teacher returned answer that we would land
immediately.

"Now, lads," said Jack, as we were about to step into our little
boat, "I'm not going to take any weapons with me, and I recommend
you to take none either.  We are altogether in the power of these
savages, and the utmost we could do, if they were to attack us,
would be to kill a few of them before we were ourselves
overpowered.  I think that our only chance of success lies in mild
measures.  Don't you think so?"

To this I assented gladly, and Peterkin replied by laying down a
huge bell-mouthed blunderbuss, and divesting himself of a pair of
enormous horse-pistols with which he had purposed to overawe the
natives!  We then jumped into our boat and rowed ashore.

On reaching the beach we were received by a crowd of naked savages,
who shouted a rude welcome, and conducted us to a house or shed
where a baked pig and a variety of vegetables were prepared for us.
Having partaken of these, the teacher begged to be conducted to the
chief; but there seemed some hesitation, and after some
consultation among themselves, one of the men stood forward and
spoke to the teacher.

"What says he?" inquired Jack when the savage had concluded.

"He says that the chief is just going to the temple of his god and
cannot see us yet; so we must be patient, my friend."

"Well," cried Jack, rising; "if he won't come to see me, I'll e'en
go and see him.  Besides, I have a great desire to witness their
proceedings at this temple of theirs.  Will you go with me,
friend?"

"I cannot," said the teacher, shaking his head; "I must not go to
the heathen temples and witness their inhuman rites, except for the
purpose of condemning their wickedness and folly."

"Very good," returned Jack; "then I'll go alone, for I cannot
condemn their doings till I have seen them."

Jack arose, and we, having determined to go also, followed him
through the banana groves to a rising ground immediately behind the
village, on the top of which stood the Bure, or temple, under the
dark shade of a group of iron-wood trees.  As we went through the
village, I was again led to contrast the rude huts and sheds, and
their almost naked savage-looking inhabitants, with the natives of
the Christian village, who, to use the teacher's scriptural
expression, were now "clothed and in their right mind."

As we turned into a broad path leading towards the hill, we were
arrested by the shouts of an approaching multitude in the rear.
Drawing aside into the bushes we awaited their coming up, and as
they drew near we observed that it was a procession of the natives,
many of whom were dancing and gesticulating in the most frantic
manner.  They had an exceedingly hideous aspect, owing to the
black, red, and yellow paints with which their faces and naked
bodies were bedaubed.  In the midst of these came a band of men
carrying three or four planks, on which were seated in rows upwards
of a dozen men.  I shuddered involuntarily as I recollected the
sacrifice of human victims at the island of Emo, and turned with a
look of fear to Jack as I said, -

"Oh, Jack!  I have a terrible dread that they are going to commit
some of their cruel practices on these wretched men.  We had better
not go to the temple.  We shall only be horrified without being
able to do any good, for I fear they are going to kill them."

Jack's face wore an expression of deep compassion as he said, in a
low voice, "No fear, Ralph; the sufferings of these poor fellows
are over long ago."

I turned with a start as he spoke, and, glancing at the men, who
were now quite near to the spot where we stood, saw that they were
all dead.  They were tied firmly with ropes in a sitting posture on
the planks, and seemed, as they bent their sightless eye-balls and
grinning mouths over the dancing crew below, as if they were
laughing in ghastly mockery at the utter inability of their enemies
to hurt them now.  These, we discovered afterwards, were the men
who had been slain in the battle of the previous day, and were now
on their way to be first presented to the gods, and then eaten.
Behind these came two men leading between them a third, whose hands
were pinioned behind his back.  He walked with a firm step, and
wore a look of utter indifference on his face, as they led him
along; so that we concluded he must be a criminal who was about to
receive some slight punishment for his faults.  The rear of the
procession was brought up by a shouting crowd of women and
children, with whom we mingled and followed to the temple.

Here we arrived in a few minutes.  The temple was a tall circular
building, open at one side.  Around it were strewn heaps of human
bones and skulls.  At a table inside sat the priest, an elderly
man, with a long gray beard.  He was seated on a stool, and before
him lay several knives, made of wood, bone, and splinters of
bamboo, with which he performed his office of dissecting dead
bodies.  Farther in lay a variety of articles that had been
dedicated to the god, and among them were many spears and clubs.  I
observed among the latter some with human teeth sticking in them,
where the victims had been clubbed in their mouths.

Before this temple the bodies, which were painted with vermilion
and soot, were arranged in a sitting posture; and a man, called a
"dan-vosa" (orator), advanced, and, laying his hands on their
heads, began to chide them, apparently, in a low bantering tone.
What he said we knew not, but, as he went on, he waxed warm, and at
last shouted to them at the top of his lungs, and finally finished
by kicking the bodies over and running away, amid the shouts and
laughter of the people, who now rushed forward.  Seizing the bodies
by a leg, or an arm, or by the hair of the head, they dragged them
over stumps and stones and through sloughs, until they were
exhausted.  The bodies were then brought back to the temple and
dissected by the priest, after which they were taken out to be
baked.

Close to the temple a large fire was kindled, in which stones were
heated red hot.  When ready these were spread out on the ground,
and a thick coating of leaves strewn over them to slack the heat.
On this "lovo," or oven, the bodies were then placed, covered over,
and left to bake.

The crowd now ran, with terrible yells, towards a neighbouring hill
or mound, on which we observed the frame-work of a house lying
ready to be erected.  Sick with horror, yet fascinated by
curiosity, we staggered after them mechanically, scarce knowing
where we were going or what we did, and feeling a sort of
impression that all we saw was a dreadful dream.

Arrived at the place, we saw the multitude crowding round a certain
spot.  We pressed forward and obtained a sight of what they were
doing.  A large wooden beam or post lay on the ground, beside the
other parts of the frame-work of the house, and close to the end of
it was a hole about seven feet deep and upwards of two feet wide.
While we looked, the man whom we had before observed with his hands
pinioned, was carried into the circle.  His hands were now free,
but his legs were tightly strapped together.  The post of the house
was then placed in the hole, and the man put in beside it.  His
head was a good way below the surface of the hole, and his arms
were clasped round the post.  Earth was now thrown in until all was
covered over and stamped down; and this, we were afterwards told,
was a CEREMONY usually performed at the dedication of a new temple,
or the erection of a chief's house

"Come, come," cried Jack, on beholding this horrible tragedy, "we
have seen enough, enough, far more than enough!  Let us go."

Jack's face looked ghastly pale and haggard as we hurried back to
rejoin the teacher, and I have no doubt that he felt terrible
anxiety when he considered the number and ferocity of the savages,
and the weakness of the few arms which were ready indeed to essay,
but impotent to effect, Avatea's deliverance from these ruthless
men.



CHAPTER XXXII.



An unexpected discovery, and a bold, reckless defiance, with its
consequences - Plans of escape, and heroic resolves.


WHEN we returned to the shore, and related to our friend what had
passed, he was greatly distressed, and groaned in spirit; but we
had not sat long in conversation, when we were interrupted by the
arrival of Tararo on the beach, accompanied by a number of
followers bearing baskets of vegetables and fruits on their heads.

We advanced to meet him, and he expressed, through our interpreter,
much pleasure in seeing us.

"And what is it that my friends wish to say to me?" he inquired.

The teacher explained that we came to beg that Avatea might be
spared.

"Tell him," said Jack, "that I consider that I have a right to ask
this of him, having not only saved the girl's life, but the lives
of his own people also; and say that I wish her to be allowed to
follow her own wishes, and join the Christians."

While this was being translated, the chiefs brow lowered, and we
could see plainly that our request met with no favourable
reception.  He replied with considerable energy, and at some
length.

"What says he?" inquired Jack.

"I regret to say that he will not listen to the proposal.  He says
he has pledged his word to his friend that the girl shall be sent
to him, and a deputy is even now on this island awaiting the
fulfilment of the pledge."

Jack bit his lip in suppressed anger.  "Tell Tararo," he exclaimed
with flashing eye, "that if he does not grant my demand, it will be
worse for him.  Say I have a big gun on board my schooner that will
blow his village into the sea, if he does not give up the girl."

"Nay, my friend," said the teacher, gently, "I will not tell him
that; we must overcome evil with good.'"

"What does my friend say?" inquired the chief, who seemed nettled
by Jack's looks of defiance.

"He is displeased," replied the teacher.

Tararo turned away with a smile of contempt, and walked towards the
men who carried the baskets of vegetables, and who had now emptied
the whole on the beach in an enormous pile.

"What are they doing there?" I inquired.

"I think that they are laying out a gift which they intend to
present to some one," said the teacher.

At this moment a couple of men appeared leading a young girl
between them; and, going towards the heap of fruits and vegetables,
placed her on the top of it.  We started with surprise and fear,
for in the young female before us we recognised the Samoan girl,
Avatea!

We stood rooted to the earth with surprise and thick coming fears.

"Oh! my dear young friend," whispered the teacher, in a voice of
deep emotion, while he seized Jack by the arm, "she is to be made a
sacrifice even now!"

"Is she?" cried Jack, with a vehement shout, spurning the teacher
aside, and dashing over two natives who stood in his way, while he
rushed towards the heap, sprang up its side, and seized Avatea by
the arm.  In another moment he dragged her down, placed her back to
a large tree, and, wrenching a war-club from the hand of a native
who seemed powerless and petrified with surprise, whirled it above
his head, and yelled, rather than shouted, while his face blazed
with fury, "Come on, the whole nation of you, an ye like it, and do
your worst!"

It seemed as though the challenge had been literally accepted; for
every savage on the ground ran precipitately at Jack with club and
spear, and, doubtless, would speedily have poured out his brave
blood on the sod, had not the teacher rushed in between them, and,
raising his voice to its utmost, cried. -

"Stay your hands, warriors!  It is not your part to judge in this
matter.  It is for Tararo, the chief, to say whether or not the
young man shall live or die."

The natives were arrested; and I know not whether it was the
gratifying acknowledgment of his superiority thus made by the
teacher, or some lingering feeling of gratitude for Jack's former
aid in time of need, that influenced Tararo, but he stepped
forward, and, waving his hand, said to his people, - "Desist.  The
young man's life is mine."  Then, turning to Jack, he said, "You
have forfeited your liberty and life to me.  Submit yourself, for
we are more numerous than the sand upon the shore.  You are but
one; why should you die?"

"Villain!" exclaimed Jack, passionately, "I may die, but,
assuredly, I shall not perish alone.  I will not submit until you
promise that this girl shall not be injured."

"You are very bold," replied the chief, haughtily, "but very
foolish.  Yet I will say that Avatea shall not be sent away, at
least for three days."

"You had better accept these terms," whispered the teacher,
entreatingly.  "If you persist in this mad defiance, you will be
slain, and Avatea will be lost.  Three days are worth having."

Jack hesitated a moment, then lowered his club, and, throwing it
moodily to the ground, crossed his arms on his breast, and hung
down his head in silence.

Tararo seemed pleased by his submission, and told the teacher to
say that he did not forget his former services, and, therefore,
would leave him free as to his person, but that the schooner would
be detained till he had further considered the matter.

While the teacher translated this, he approached as near to where
Avatea was standing as possible, without creating suspicion, and
whispered to her a few words in the native language.  Avatea, who,
during the whole of the foregoing scene, had stood leaning against
the tree perfectly passive, and seemingly quite uninterested in all
that was going on, replied by a single rapid glance of her dark
eye, which was instantly cast down again on the ground at her feet.

Tararo now advanced, and taking the girl by the hand, led her
unresistingly away, while Jack, Peterkin, and I returned with the
teacher on board the schooner.

On reaching the deck, we went down to the cabin, where Jack threw
himself, in a state of great dejection, on a couch; but the teacher
seated himself by his side, and, laying his hand upon his shoulder,
said, -

"Do not give way to anger, my young friend.  God has given us three
days, and we must use the means that are in our power to free this
poor girl from slavery.  We must not sit in idle disappointment, we
must act" -

"Act!" cried Jack, raising himself, and tossing back his hair
wildly; "it is mockery to balk of acting when one is bound hand and
foot.  How can I act?  I cannot fight a whole nation of savages
single-handed.  Yes," he said, with a bitter smile, "I can fight
them, but I cannot conquer them, or save Avatea."

"Patience, my friend; your spirit is not a good one just now.  You
cannot expect that blessing which alone can insure success, unless
you are more submissive.  I will tell you my plans if you will
listen."

"Listen!" cried Jack, eagerly, "of course I will, my good fellow; I
did not know you had any plans.  Out with them.  I only hope you
will show me how I can get the girl on board of this schooner, and
I'd up anchor and away in no time.  But proceed with your plans."

The teacher smiled sadly:  "Ah! my friend, if one fathom of your
anchor chain were to rattle, as you drew it in, a thousand warriors
would be standing on your deck.  No, no, that could not be done.
Even now, your ship would be taken from you were it not that Tararo
has some feeling of gratitude toward you.  But I know Tararo well.
He is a man of falsehood, as all the unconverted savages are.  The
chief to whom he has promised this girl is very powerful, and
Tararo MUST fulfil his promise.  He has told you that he would do
nothing to the girl for three days; but that is because the party
who are to take her away will not be ready to start for three days.
Still, as he might have made you a prisoner during those three
days, I say that God has given them to us."

"Well, but what do you propose to do?" said Jack, impatiently.

"My plan involves much danger, but I see no other, and I think you
have courage to brave it.  It is this:  There is an island about
fifty miles to the south of this, the natives of which are
Christians, and have been so for two years or more, and the
principal chief is Avatea's lover.  Once there, Avatea would be
safe.  Now, I suggest that you should abandon your schooner.  Do
you think that you can make so great a sacrifice?"

"Friend," replied Jack, "when I make up my mind to go through with
a thing of importance, I can make any sacrifice."

The teacher smiled.  "Well, then, the savages could not conceive it
possible that, for the sake of a girl, you would voluntarily lose
your fine vessel; therefore as long as she lies here they think
they have you all safe:  so I suggest that we get a quantity of
stores conveyed to a sequestered part of the shore, provide a small
canoe, put Avatea on board, and you three would paddle to the
Christian island."

"Bravo!" cried Peterkin, springing up and seizing the teacher's
hand.  "Missionary, you're a regular brick.  I didn't think you had
so much in you."

"As for me," continued the teacher, "I will remain on board till
they discover that you are gone.  Then they will ask me where you
are gone to, and I will refuse to tell."

"And what'll be the result of that?" inquired Jack.

"I know not.  Perhaps they will kill me; but," he added, looking at
Jack with a peculiar smile, "I too am not afraid to die in a good
cause!"

"But how are we to get hold of Avatea?" inquired Jack.

"I have arranged with her to meet us at a particular spot, to which
I will guide you to-night.  We shall then arrange about it.  She
will easily manage to elude her keepers, who are not very strict in
watching her, thinking it impossible that she could escape from the
island.  Indeed, I am sure that such an idea will never enter their
heads.  But, as I have said, you run great danger.  Fifty miles in
a small canoe, on the open sea, is a great voyage to make.  You may
miss the island, too, in which case there is no other in that
direction for a hundred miles or more; and if you lose your way and
fall among other heathens, you know the law of Feejee - a cast-away
who gains the shore is doomed to die.  You must count the cost, my
young friend."

"I have counted it," replied Jack.  "If Avatea consents to run the
risk, most certainly I will; and so will my comrades also.
Besides," added Jack, looking seriously into the teacher's face,
"your Bible, - OUR Bible, tells of ONE who delivers those who call
on Him in the time of trouble; who holds the winds in his fists and
the waters in the hollow of his hand."

We now set about active preparations for the intended voyage;
collected together such things as we should require, and laid out
on the deck provisions sufficient to maintain us for several weeks,
purposing to load the canoe with as much as she could hold
consistently with speed and safety.  These we covered with a
tarpaulin, intending to convey them to the canoe only a few hours
before starting.  When night spread her sable curtain over the
scene, we prepared to land; but, first, kneeling along with the
natives and the teacher, the latter implored a blessing on our
enterprise.  Then we rowed quietly to the shore and followed our
sable guide, who led us by a long detour, in order to avoid the
village, to the place of rendezvous.  We had not stood more than
five minutes under the gloomy shade of the thick foliage when a
dark figure glided noiselessly up to us.

"Ah! here you are," said Jack, as Avatea approached.  "Now, then,
tell her what we've come about, and don't waste time."

"I understan' leetl English," said Avatea, in a low voice.

"Why, where did you pick up English?" exclaimed Jack, in amazement;
"you were dumb as a stone when I saw you last."

"She has learned all she knows of it from me," said the teacher,
"since she came to the island."

We now gave Avatea a full explanation of our plans, entering into
all the details, and concealing none of the danger, so that she
might be fully aware of the risk she ran.  As we had anticipated,
she was too glad of the opportunity thus afforded her to escape
from her persecutors to think of the danger or risk.

"Then you're willing to go with us, are you?" said Jack.

"Yis, I am willing to go."

"And you're not afraid to trust yourself out on the deep sea so
far?"

"No, I not 'fraid to go.  Safe with Christian."

After some further consultation, the teacher suggested that it was
time to return, so we bade Avatea good night, and having appointed
to meet at the cliff where the canoe lay, on the following night,
just after dark, we hastened away - we to row on board the schooner
with muffled oars - Avatea to glide back to her prison-hut among
the Mango savages.



CHAPTER XXXIII.



The flight - The pursuit - Despair and its results - The lion
bearded in his den again - Awful danger threatened and wonderfully
averted - A terrific storm.


AS the time for our meditated flight drew near, we became naturally
very fearful lest our purpose should be discovered, and we spent
the whole of the following day in a state of nervous anxiety.  We
resolved to go a-shore and ramble about the village, as if to
observe the habits and dwellings of the people, as we thought that
an air of affected indifference to the events of the previous day
would be more likely than any other course of conduct to avert
suspicion as to our intentions.  While we were thus occupied, the
teacher remained on board with the Christian natives, whose
powerful voices reached us ever and anon as they engaged in singing
hymns or in prayer.

At last the long and tedious day came to a close, the sank into the
sea, and the short-lived twilight of those regions, to which I have
already referred, ended abruptly in a dark night.  Hastily throwing
a few blankets into our little boat, we stepped into it, and,
whispering farewell to the natives in the schooner, rowed gently
over the lagoon, taking care to keep as near to the beach as
possible.  We rowed in the utmost silence and with muffled oars, so
that had any one observed us at the distance of a few yards, he
might have almost taken us for a phantom-boat or a shadow on the
dark water.  Not a breath of air was stirring; but fortunately the
gentle ripple of the sea upon the shore, mingled with the soft roar
of the breaker on the distant reef, effectually drowned the slight
plash that we unavoidably made in the water by the dipping of our
oars.

Quarter of an hour sufficed to bring us to the over-hanging cliff
under whose black shadow our little canoe lay, with her bow in the
water ready to be launched, and most of her cargo already stowed
away.  As the keel of our little boat grated on the sand, a hand
was laid upon the bow, and a dim form was seen.

"Ha!" said Peterkin in a whisper, as he stepped upon the beach, "is
that you, Avatea?"

"Yis, it am me," was the reply.

"All right!  Now, then, gently.  Help me to shove off the canoe,"
whispered Jack to the teacher; "and Peterkin, do you shove these
blankets aboard, we may want them before long.  Avatea, step into
the middle; - that's right."

"Is all ready?" whispered the teacher.

"Not quite," replied Peterkin.  "Here, Ralph, lay hold o' this pair
of oars, and stow them away if you can.  I don't like paddles.
After we're safe away I'll try to rig up rollicks for them."

"Now, then, in with you and shove off."

One more earnest squeeze of the kind teacher's hand, and, with his
whispered blessing yet sounding in our ears, we shot like an arrow
from the shore, sped over the still waters of the lagoon, and
paddled as swiftly as strong arms and willing hearts could urge us
over the long swell of the open sea.

All that night and the whole of the following day we plied our
paddles in almost total silence and without halt, save twice to
recruit our failing energies with a mouthful of food and a draught
of water.  Jack had taken the bearing of the island just after
starting, and laying a small pocket-compass before him, kept the
head of the canoe due south, for our chance of hitting the island
depended very much on the faithfulness of our steersman in keeping
our tiny bark exactly and constantly on its proper course.
Peterkin and I paddled in the bow, and Avatea worked untiringly in
the middle.

As the sun's lower limb dipped on the gilded edge of the sea Jack
ceased working, threw down his paddle, and called a halt.

"There," he cried, heaving a deep, long-drawn sigh, "we've put a
considerable breadth of water between us and these black rascals,
so now we'll have a hearty supper and a sound sleep."

"Hear, hear," cried Peterkin.  "Nobly spoken, Jack.  Hand me a drop
water, Ralph.  Why, girl what's wrong with you?  You look just like
a black owl blinking in the sunshine."

Avatea smiled.  "I sleepy," she said; and as if to prove the truth
of this, she laid her head on the edge of the canoe and fell fast
asleep.

"That's uncommon sharp practice," said Peterkin, with a broad grin.
"Don't you think we should awake her to make her eat something
first? or, perhaps," he added, with a grave, meditative look,
"perhaps we might put some food in her mouth, which is so elegantly
open at the present moment, and see if she'd swallow it while
asleep.  If so, Ralph, you might come round to the front here and
feed her quietly, while Jack and I are tucking into the victuals.
It would be a monstrous economy of time."

I could not help smiling at Peterkin's idea, which, indeed, when I
pondered it, seemed remarkably good in theory; nevertheless I
declined to put it in practice, being fearful of the result should
the victual chance to go down the wrong throat.  But, on suggesting
this to Peterkin, he exclaimed -

"Down the wrong throat, man! why, a fellow with half an eye might
see that if it went down Avatea's throat it could not go down the
wrong throat! - unless, indeed, you have all of a sudden become
inordinately selfish, and think that all the throats in the world
are wrong ones except your own.  However, don't talk so much, and
hand me the pork before Jack finishes it.  I feel myself entitled
to at least one minute morsel."

"Peterkin, you're a villain.  A paltry little villain," said Jack,
quietly, as he tossed the hind legs (including the tail) of a cold
roast pig to his comrade; "and I must again express my regret that
unavoidable circumstances have thrust your society upon me, and
that necessity has compelled me to cultivate your acquaintance.
Were it not that you are incapable of walking upon the water, I
would order you, sir, out of the canoe."

"There! you've wakened Avatea with your long tongue," retorted
Peterkin, with a frown, as the girl gave vent to a deep sigh.
"No," he continued, "it was only a snore.  Perchance she dreameth
of her black Apollo.  I say, Ralph, do leave just one little slice
of that yam.  Between you and Jack I run a chance of being put on
short allowance, if not - yei - a - a - ow!"

Peterkin's concluding remark was a yawn of so great energy that
Jack recommended him to postpone the conclusion of his meal till
next morning, - a piece of advice which he followed so quickly,
that I was forcibly reminded of his remark, a few minutes before,
in regard to the sharp practice of Avatea.

My readers will have observed, probably, by this time, that I am
much given to meditation; they will not, therefore, be surprised to
learn that I fell into a deep reverie on the subject of sleep,
which was continued without intermission into the night, and
prolonged without interruption into the following morning.  But I
cannot feel assured that I actually slept during that time,
although I am tolerably certain that I was not awake.

Thus we lay like a shadow on the still bosom of the ocean, while
the night closed in, and all around was calm, dark, and silent.

A thrilling cry of alarm from Peterkin startled us in the morning,
just as the gray dawn began to glimmer in the east.

"What's wrong?" cried Jack, starting up.

Peterkin replied by pointing with a look of anxious dread towards
the horizon; and a glance sufficed to show us that one of the
largest sized war-canoes was approaching us!

With a groan of mingled despair and anger Jack seized his paddle,
glanced at the compass, and, in a suppressed voice, commanded us to
"give way."

But we did not require to be urged.  Already our four paddles were
glancing in the water, and the canoe bounded over the glassy sea
like a dolphin, while a shout from our pursuers told that they had
observed our motions.

"I see something like land ahead," said Jack, in a hopeful tone.
"It seems impossible that we could have made the island yet; still,
if it is so, we may reach it before these fellows can catch us, for
our canoe is light and our muscles are fresh."

No one replied; for, to say truth, we felt that, in a long chase,
we had no chance whatever with a canoe which held nearly a hundred
warriors.  Nevertheless, we resolved to do our utmost to escape,
and paddled with a degree of vigour that kept us well in advance of
our pursuers.  The war-canoe was so far behind us that it seemed
but a little speck on the sea, and the shouts, to which the crew
occasionally gave vent, came faintly towards us on the morning
breeze.  We therefore hoped that we should be able to keep in
advance for an hour or two, when we might, perhaps, reach the land
ahead.  But this hope was suddenly crushed by the supposed land,
not long after, rising up into the sky; thus proving itself to be a
fog-bank!

A bitter feeling of disappointment filled each heart, and was
expressed on each countenance, as we beheld this termination to our
hopes.  But we had little time to think of regret.  Our danger was
too great and imminent to permit of a moment's relaxation from our
exertions.  No hope now animated our bosoms; but a feeling of
despair, strange to say, lent us power to work, and nerved our arms
with such energy, that it was several hours ere the savages
overtook us.  When we saw that there was indeed no chance of
escape, and that paddling any longer would only serve to exhaust
our strength, without doing any good, we turned the side of our
canoe towards the approaching enemy, and laid down our paddles.

Silently, and with a look of bitter determination on his face, Jack
lifted one of the light boat-oars that we had brought with us, and,
resting it on his shoulder, stood up in an attitude of bold
defiance.  Peterkin took the other oar and also stood up, but there
was no anger visible on his countenance.  When not sparkling with
fun, it usually wore a mild, sad expression, which was deepened on
the present occasion, as he glanced at Avatea, who sat with her
face resting in her hands upon her knees.  Without knowing very
well what I intended to do, I also arose and grasped my paddle with
both hands.

On came the large canoe like a war-horse of the deep, with the foam
curling from its sharp bow, and the spear-heads of the savages
glancing the beams of the rising sun.  Perfect silence was
maintained on both sides, and we could hear the hissing water, and
see the frowning eyes of the warriors, as they came rushing on.
When about twenty yards distant, five or six of the savages in the
bow rose, and, laying aside their paddles, took up their spears.
Jack and Peterkin raised their oars, while, with a feeling of
madness whirling in my brain, I grasped my paddle and prepared for
the onset.  But, before any of us could strike a blow, the sharp
prow of the war-canoe struck us like a thunderbolt on the side, and
hurled us into the sea!

What occurred after this I cannot tell, for I was nearly drowned;
but when I recovered from the state of insensibility into which I
had been thrown, I found myself stretched on my back, bound hand
and foot between Jack and Peterkin, in the bottom of the large
canoe.

In this condition we lay the whole day, during which time the
savages only rested one hour.  When night came, they rested again
for another hour, and appeared to sleep just as they sat.  But we
were neither unbound nor allowed to speak to each other during the
voyage, nor was a morsel of food or a draught of water given to us.
For food, however, we cared little; but we would have given much
for a drop of water to cool our parched lips, and we would have
been glad, too, had they loosened the cords that bound us, for they
were tightly fastened and occasioned us much pain.  The air, also,
was unusually hot, so much so that I felt convinced that a storm
was brewing.  This also added to our sufferings.  However, these
were at length relieved by our arrival at the island from which we
had fled.

While we were being led ashore, we caught a glimpse of Avatea, who
was seated in the hinder part of the canoe.  She was not fettered
in any way.  Our captors now drove us before them towards the hut
of Tararo, at which we speedily arrived, and found the chief seated
with an expression on his face that boded us no good.  Our friend
the teacher stood beside him, with a look of anxiety on his mild
features.

"How comes it," said Tararo, turning to the teacher, "that these
youths have abused our hospitality?"

"Tell him," replied Jack, "that we have not abused his hospitality,
for his hospitality has not been extended to us.  I came to the
island to deliver Avatea, and my only regret is that I have failed
to do so.  If I get another chance, I will try to save her yet."

The teacher shook his head.  "Nay, my young friend, I had better
not tell him that.  It will only incense him."

"Fear not," replied Jack.  "If you don't tell him that, you'll tell
him nothing, for I won't say anything softer."

On hearing Jack's speech, Tararo frowned and his eye flashed with
anger.

"Go," he said, "presumptuous boy.  My debt to you is cancelled.
You and your companions shall die."

As he spoke he rose and signed to several of his attendants, who
seized Jack, and Peterkin, and me, violently by the collars, and,
dragging us from the hut of the chief, led us through the wood to
the outskirts of the village.  Here they thrust us into a species
of natural cave in a cliff, and, having barricaded the entrance,
left us in total darkness.

After feeling about for some time - for our legs were unshackled,
although our wrists were still bound with thongs - we found a low
ledge of rock running along one side of the cavern.  On this we
seated ourselves, and for a long time maintained unbroken silence.

At last I could restrain my feelings no longer.  "Alas! dear Jack
and Peterkin," said I, "what is to become of us?  I fear that we
are doomed to die."

"I know not," replied Jack, in a tremulous voice, "I know not;
Ralph, I regret deeply the hastiness of my violent temper, which, I
must confess, has been the chief cause of our being brought to this
sad condition.  Perhaps the teacher may do something for us.  But I
have little hope."

"Ah! no," said Peterkin, with a heavy sigh; "I am sure he can't
help us.  Tararo doesn't care more for him than for one of his
dogs."

"Truly," said I, "there seems no chance of deliverance, unless the
Almighty puts forth his arm to save us.  Yet I must say that I have
great hope, my comrades, for we have come to this dark place by no
fault of ours - unless it be a fault to try to succour a woman in
distress."

I was interrupted in my remarks by a noise at the entrance to the
cavern, which was caused by the removal of the barricade.
Immediately after, three men entered, and, taking us by the collars
of our coats, led us away through the forest.  As we advanced, we
heard much shouting and beating of native drums in the village, and
at first we thought that our guards were conducting us to the hut
of Tararo again.  But in this we were mistaken.  The beating of
drums gradually increased, and soon after we observed a procession
of the natives coming towards us.  At the head of this procession
we were placed, and then we all advanced together towards the
temple where human victims were wont to be sacrificed!

A thrill of horror ran through my heart as I recalled to mind the
awful scenes that I had before witnessed at that dreadful spot.
But deliverance came suddenly from a quarter whence we little
expected it.  During the whole of that day there had been an
unusual degree of heat in the atmosphere, and the sky assumed that
lurid aspect which portends a thunder-storm.  Just as we were
approaching the horrid temple, a growl of thunder burst overhead
and heavy drops of rain began to fall

Those who have not witnessed gales and storms in tropical regions
can form but a faint conception of the fearful hurricane that burst
upon the island of Mango at this time.  Before we reached the
temple, the storm burst upon us with a deafening roar, and the
natives, who knew too well the devastation that was to follow, fled
right and left through the woods in order to save their property,
leaving us alone in the midst of the howling storm.  The trees
around us bent before the blast like willows, and we were about to
flee in order to seek shelter, when the teacher ran toward us with
a knife in his hand.

"Thank the Lord," he said, cutting our bonds, "I am in time!  Now,
seek the shelter of the nearest rock."

This we did without a moment's hesitation, for the whistling wind
burst, ever and anon, like thunder-claps among the trees, and,
tearing them from their roots, hurled them with violence to the
ground.  Rain cut across the land in sheets, and lightning played
like forked serpents in the air; while, high above the roar of the
hissing tempest, the thunder crashed, and burst, and rolled in
awful majesty.

In the village the scene was absolutely appalling.  Roofs were
blown completely off the houses in many cases; and in others, the
houses themselves were levelled with the ground.  In the midst of
this, the natives were darting to and fro, in some instances saving
their goods, but in many others seeking to save themselves from the
storm of destruction that whirled around them.  But, terrific
although the tempest was on land, it was still more tremendous on
the mighty ocean.  Billows sprang, as it were, from the great deep,
and while their crests were absolutely scattered into white mist,
they fell upon the beach with a crash that seemed to shake the
solid land.  But they did not end there.  Each successive wave
swept higher and higher on the beach, until the ocean lashed its
angry waters among the trees and bushes, and at length, in a sheet
of white curdled foam, swept into the village and upset and carried
off, or dashed into wreck, whole rows of the native dwellings!  It
was a sublime, an awful scene, calculated, in some degree at least,
to impress the mind of beholders with the might and the majesty of
God.

We found shelter in a cave that night and all the next day, during
which time the storm raged in fury; but on the night following it
abated somewhat, and in the morning we went to the village to seek
for food, being so famished with hunger that we lost all feeling of
danger and all wish to escape in our desire to satisfy the cravings
of nature.  But no sooner had we obtained food than we began to
wish that we had rather endeavoured to make our escape into the
mountains.  This we attempted to do soon afterwards, but the
natives were now able to look after us, and on our showing a
disposition to avoid observation and make towards the mountains, we
were seized by three warriors, who once more bound our wrists and
thrust us into our former prison.

It is true Jack made a vigorous resistance, and knocked down the
first savage who seized him, with a well-directed blow of his fist,
but he was speedily overpowered by others.  Thus we were again
prisoners, with the prospect of torture and a violent death before
us.



CHAPTER XXXIV.



Imprisonment - Sinking hopes - Unexpected freedom to more than one,
and in more senses than one.


FOR a long long month we remained in our dark and dreary prison,
during which dismal time we did not see the face of a human being,
except that of the silent savage who brought us our daily food.

There have been one or two seasons in my life during which I have
felt as if the darkness of sorrow and desolation that crushed my
inmost heart could never pass away, until death should make me
cease to feel the present was such a season.

During the first part of our confinement we felt a cold chill at
our hearts every time we heard a foot-fall near the cave - dreading
lest it should prove to be that of our executioner.  But as time
dragged heavily on, we ceased to feel this alarm, and began to
experience such a deep, irrepressible longing for freedom, that we
chafed and fretted in our confinement like tigers.  Then a feeling
of despair came over us, and we actually longed for the time when
the savages would take us forth to die!  But these changes took
place very gradually, and were mingled sometimes with brighter
thoughts; for there were times when we sat in that dark cavern on
our ledge of rock and conversed almost pleasantly about the past,
until we well-nigh forgot the dreary present.  But we seldom
ventured to touch upon the future.

A few decayed leaves and boughs formed our bed; and a scanty supply
of yams and taro, brought to us once a-day, constituted our food.

"Well, Ralph, how have you slept?" said Jack, in a listless tone,
on rising one morning from his humble couch.  "Were you much
disturbed by the wind last night?"

"No," said I; "I dreamed of home all night, and I thought that my
mother smiled upon me, and beckoned me to go to her; but I could
not, for I was chained."

"And I dreamed, too," said Peterkin; "but it was of our happy home
on the Coral Island.  I thought we were swimming in the Water
Garden; then the savages gave a yell, and we were immediately in
the cave at Spouting Cliff, which, somehow or other, changed into
this gloomy cavern; and I awoke to find it true."

Peterkin's tone was so much altered by the depressing influence of
his long imprisonment, that, had I not known it was he who spoke, I
should scarcely have recognised it, so sad was it, and so unlike to
the merry, cheerful voice we had been accustomed to hear.  I
pondered this much, and thought of the terrible decline of
happiness that may come on human beings in so short a time; how
bright the sunshine in the sky at one time, and, in a short space,
how dark the overshadowing cloud!  I had no doubt that the Bible
would have given me much light and comfort on this subject, if I
had possessed one, and I once more had occasion to regret deeply
having neglected to store my memory with its consoling truths.

While I meditated thus, Peterkin again broke the silence of the
cave, by saying, in a melancholy tone, "Oh, I wonder if we shall
ever see our dear island more."

His voice trembled, and, covering his face with both hands, he bent
down his head and wept.  It was an unusual sight for me to see our
once joyous companion in tears, and I felt a burning desire to
comfort him; but, alas! what could I say?  I could hold out no
hope; and although I essayed twice to speak, the words refused to
pass my lips.  While I hesitated, Jack sat down beside him, and
whispered a few words in his ear, while Peterkin threw himself on
his friend's breast, and rested his head on his shoulder.

Thus we sat for some time in deep silence.  Soon after, we heard
footsteps at the entrance of the cave, and immediately our jailer
entered.  We were so much accustomed to his regular visits,
however, that we paid little attention to him, expecting that he
would set down our meagre fare, as usual, and depart.  But, to our
surprise, instead of doing so, he advanced towards us with a knife
in his hand, and, going up to Jack, he cut the thongs that bound
his wrists, then he did the same to Peterkin and me!  For fully
five minutes we stood in speechless amazement, with our freed hands
hanging idly by our sides.  The first thought that rushed into my
mind was, that the time had come to put us to death; and although,
as I have said before, we actually wished for death in the strength
of our despair, now that we thought it drew really near I felt all
the natural love of life revive in my heart, mingled with a chill
of horror at the suddenness of our call

But I was mistaken.  After cutting our bonds, the savage pointed to
the cave's mouth, and we marched, almost mechanically, into the
open air.  Here, to our surprise, we found the teacher standing
under a tree, with his hands clasped before him, and the tears
trickling down his dark cheeks.  On seeing Jack, who came out
first, he sprang towards him, and clasping him in his arms,
exclaimed, -

"Oh! my dear young friend, through the great goodness of God you
are free!"

"Free!" cried Jack.

"Ay, free," repeated the teacher, shaking us warmly by the hands
again and again; "free to go and come as you will.  The Lord has
unloosed the bands of the captive and set the prisoners free.  A
missionary has been sent to us, and Tararo has embraced the
Christian religion!  The people are even now burning their gods of
wood!  Come, my dear friends, and see the glorious sight."

We could scarcely credit our senses.  So long had we been
accustomed in our cavern to dream of deliverance, that we imagined
for a moment this must surely be nothing more than another vivid
dream.  Our eyes and minds were dazzled, too, by the brilliant
sunshine, which almost blinded us after our long confinement to the
gloom of our prison, so that we felt giddy with the variety of
conflicting emotions that filled our throbbing bosoms; but as we
followed the footsteps of our sable friend, and beheld the bright
foliage of the trees, and heard the cries of the paroquets, and
smelt the rich perfume of the flowering shrubs, the truth, that we
were really delivered from prison and from death, rushed with
overwhelming power into our souls, and, with one accord, while
tears sprang to our eyes, we uttered a loud long cheer of joy.

It was replied to by a shout from a number of the natives who
chanced to be near.  Running towards us, they shook us by the hand
with every demonstration of kindly feeling.  They then fell behind,
and, forming a sort of procession, conducted us to the dwelling of
Tararo.

The scene that met our eyes here was one that I shall never forget.
On a rude bench in front of his house sat the chief.  A native
stood on his left hand, who, from his dress, seemed to be a
teacher.  On his right stood an English gentleman, who, I at once
and rightly concluded, was a missionary.  He was tall, thin, and
apparently past forty, with a bald forehead, and thin gray hair.
The expression of his countenance was the most winning I ever saw,
and his clear gray eye beamed with a look that was frank, fearless,
loving, and truthful.  In front of the chief was an open space, in
the centre of which lay a pile of wooden idols, ready to be set on
fire; and around these were assembled thousands of natives, who had
come to join in or to witness the unusual sight.  A bright smile
overspread the missionary's face as he advanced quickly to meet us,
and he shook us warmly by the hands.

"I am overjoyed to meet you, my dear young friends," he said.  "My
friend, and your friend, the teacher, has told me your history; and
I thank our Father in heaven, with all my heart, that he has guided
me to this island, and made me the instrument of saving you."

We thanked the missionary most heartily, and asked him in some
surprise how he had succeeded in turning the heart of Tararo in our
favour.

"I will tell you that at a more convenient time," he answered,
"meanwhile we must not forget the respect due to the chief.  He
waits to receive you."

In the conversation that immediately followed between us and
Tararo, the latter said that the light of the gospel of Jesus
Christ had been sent to the island, and that to it we were indebted
for our freedom.  Moreover, he told us that we were at liberty to
depart in our schooner whenever we pleased, and that we should be
supplied with as much provision as we required.  He concluded by
shaking hands with us warmly, and performing the ceremony of
rubbing noses.

This was indeed good news to us, and we could hardly find words to
express our gratitude to the chief and to the missionary.

"And what of Avatea?" inquired Jack.

The missionary replied by pointing to a group of natives in the
midst of whom the girl stood.  Beside her was a tall, strapping
fellow, whose noble mien and air of superiority bespoke him a chief
of no ordinary kind.

"That youth is her lover.  He came this very morning in his war-
canoe to treat with Tararo for Avatea.  He is to be married in a
few days, and afterwards returns to his island home with his
bride!"

"That's capital," said Jack, as he stepped up to the savage and
gave him a hearty shake of the hand.  "I wish you joy, my lad; -
and you too, Avatea."

As Jack spoke, Avatea's lover took him by the hand and led him to
the spot where Tararo and the missionary stood, surrounded by most
of the chief men of the tribe.  The girl herself followed, and
stood on his left hand while her lover stood on his right, and,
commanding silence, made the following speech, which was translated
by the missionary:-

"Young friend, you have seen few years, but your head is old.  Your
heart also is large and very brave.  I and Avatea are your debtors,
and we wish, in the midst of this assembly, to acknowledge our
debt, and to say that it is one which we can never repay.  You have
risked your life for one who was known to you only for a few days.
But she was a woman in distress, and that was enough to secure to
her the aid of a Christian man.  We, who live in these islands of
the sea, know that the true Christians always act thus.  Their
religion is one of love and kindness.  We thank God that so many
Christians have been sent here - we hope many more will come.
Remember that I and Avatea will think of you and pray for you and
your brave comrades when you are far away."

To this kind speech Jack returned a short sailor-like reply, in
which he insisted that he had only done for Avatea what he would
have done for any woman under the sun.  But Jack's forte did not
lie in speech-making, so he terminated rather abruptly by seizing
the chief's hand and shaking it violently, after which he made a
hasty retreat.

"Now, then, Ralph and Peterkin," said Jack, as we mingled with the
crowd, "it seems to me that the object we came here for having been
satisfactorily accomplished, we have nothing more to do but get
ready for sea as fast as we can, and hurrah for dear old England!"

"That's my idea precisely," said Peterkin, endeavouring to wink,
but he had wept so much of late, poor fellow, that he found it
difficult; "however, I'm not going away till I see these fellows
burn their gods."

Peterkin had his wish, for, in a few minutes afterwards, fire was
put to the pile, the roaring flames ascended, and, amid the
acclamations of the assembled thousands, the false gods of Mango
were reduced to ashes!



CHAPTER XXXV.



Conclusion.


TO part is the lot of all mankind.  The world is a scene of
constant leave-taking, and the hands that grasp in cordial greeting
to-day, are doomed ere long to unite for the last time, when the
quivering lips pronounce the word - "Farewell."  It is a sad
thought, but should we on that account exclude it from our minds?
May not a lesson worth learning be gathered in the contemplation of
it?  May it not, perchance, teach us to devote our thoughts more
frequently and attentively to that land where we meet, but part no
more?

How many do we part from in this world with a light "Good-bye,"
whom we never see again!  Often do I think, in my meditations on
this subject, that if we realized more fully the shortness of the
fleeting intercourse that we have in this world with many of our
fellow-men, we would try more earnestly to do them good, to give
them a friendly smile, as it were, in passing (for the longest
intercourse on earth is little more than a passing word and
glance), and show that we have sympathy with them in the short
quick struggle of life, by our kindly words and looks and action.

The time soon drew near when we were to quit the islands of the
South Seas; and, strange though it may appear, we felt deep regret
at parting with the natives of the island of Mango; for, after they
embraced the Christian faith, they sought, by showing us the utmost
kindness, to compensate for the harsh treatment we had experienced
at their hands; and we felt a growing affection for the native
teachers and the missionary, and especially for Avatea and her
husband.

Before leaving, we had many long and interesting conversations with
the missionary, in one of which he told us that he had been making
for the island of Raratonga when his native-built sloop was blown
out of its course, during a violent gale, and driven to this
island.  At first the natives refused to listen to what he had to
say; but, after a week's residence among them, Tararo came to him
and said that he wished to become a Christian, and would burn his
idols.  He proved himself to be sincere, for, as we have seen, he
persuaded all his people to do likewise.  I use the word persuaded
advisedly; for, like all the other Feejee chiefs, Tararo was a
despot and might have commanded obedience to his wishes; but he
entered so readily into the spirit of the new faith that he
perceived at once the impropriety of using constraint in the
propagation of it.  He set the example, therefore; and that example
was followed by almost every man of the tribe.

During the short time that we remained at the island, repairing our
vessel and getting her ready for sea, the natives had commenced
building a large and commodious church, under the superintendence
of the missionary, and several rows of new cottages were marked
out; so that the place bid fair to become, in a few months, as
prosperous and beautiful as the Christian village at the other end
of the island.

After Avatea was married, she and her husband were sent away,
loaded with presents, chiefly of an edible nature.  One of the
native teachers went with them, for the purpose of visiting still
more distant islands of the sea, and spreading, if possible, the
light of the glorious gospel there.

As the missionary intended to remain for several weeks longer, in
order to encourage and confirm his new converts, Jack and Peterkin
and I held a consultation in the cabin of our schooner, - which we
found just as we had left her, for everything that had been taken
out of her was restored.  We now resolved to delay our departure no
longer.  The desire to see our beloved native land was strong upon
us, and we could not wait.

Three natives volunteered to go with us to Tahiti, where we thought
it likely that we should be able to procure a sufficient crew of
sailors to man our vessel; so we accepted their offer gladly.

It was a bright clear morning when we hoisted the snow-white sails
of the pirate schooner and left the shores of Mango.  The
missionary, and thousands of the natives, came down to bid us God-
speed, and to see us sail away.  As the vessel bent before a light
fair wind, we glided quickly over the lagoon under a cloud of
canvass.

Just as we passed through the channel in the reef the natives gave
us a loud cheer; and as the missionary waved his hat, while he
stood on a coral rock with his gray hairs floating in the wind, we
heard the single word "Farewell" borne faintly over the sea.

That night, as we sat on the taffrail, gazing out upon the wide sea
and up into the starry firmament, a thrill of joy, strangely mixed
with sadness, passed through our hearts, - for we were at length
"homeward bound," and were gradually leaving far behind us the
beautiful, bright, green, coral islands of the Pacific Ocean.




End of the Project Gutenberg eText The Coral Island