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A DREADFUL ADVENTURE
oo
ERE
CORAL [SLAND
A Tale of the Pacific Ocean
By
Robert Michael Ballantyne
Author of “The Dog Crusoe and his Master,†‘‘ The Young Fur-Traders, â€
“The Gorilla-Hunters,†‘The World of Ice,â€
“Martin Rattler,†‘ Ungava,â€
&. &e.
NEW EDITION
LL. NELSON AND SONS
LONDON * EDINBURGH
NEW YORK
1893
Piel BACT.
I was a boy when I went through the wonderful ad-
ventures 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
CON TENG S:
CHAPTER I.
The beginning—My early life and character—I thirst for adventure in foreign
Lands, ANd GO tO SC. ......cccecece cece ee ese ee eee c ee eeeeee eee nne cere acne eee aeea ens eeteeaes
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
WDCC eer e ic vo Bae oo acess be Sdsi owienebbedtc ovo shvatieteesdagen teases Widastecasestueesceerses 14
CHAPTER III.
The Coral Island—Our first cogitations after landing, and the result of them—
We conclude that the island ts uninhabited. ...........cceecceeeeceeeceneseeeeeeees 19
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 !...........ceceee eee eseeee 25
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..........+-- 38
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.......... 44
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.......55
CHAPTER VIII.
The beauties of the bottom of the sea tempt Peterkin to dive—How he did t%t—
More difficulties overcome—The Water Garden — Curious creatures of the sea
Vi CONTENTS.
—The tank—Candles missed very much, and the candle-nut tree discovered
—Wonderful account of Peterkin’s first voyage—Cloth found growing on a
iree—A plan projected, and arms prepared for eerie and defence—A
ATCO PUL CH Yea ne ees o Notiac desea eee rans aaeeR este eae aces Sao RMR SRT ee 62
CHAPTER IX.
Prepare for a.journey round the island—Sagacrous reflections—Mysterious ap-
PCATANCES ANA SEATTLING OCCUTTENCES.« .....00scceeceeseccucunccss sen stnecttelovencoies 78
CHAPTER X.
Make discovery of many excellent roots and fruits—The resources of the Coral
Island gradually unfolded—The banyan tree—Another tree which is swp-
vorted by natural planks—Water-fowl found—A very remarkable discov-
ery, and a very peculiar murder—We luxuriate on the fat of the land....85
CHAPTER XI.
Effects of over-eating, and reflections thereon—Humble advice regarding cold
water—The ‘‘horrible cry†accounted for—The curious birds called pen-
guins—Peculiarity of the cocoa-nut palm—Questions on the formation
of coral islands—Mysterious footsteps— Strange discoveries and sad
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 Godt...... 00. .cccee cece cee cee eee ee ees 107
CHAPTER XIII.
Notable discovery at the spouting clifis—The mysterious green monster explained
—We are thrown into unutterable terror by the idea that Jack is drowned
SE DUAMON COVel isc. seesccccseoness boa sles es cn Siagubetgncn dee esace aes oe etae 114
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
FOStiNg—A SOOT LOVE sisscczsy
CHAPTER XV.
Boat-building extraordinary—Peterkin tries his hand at cookery and fails
most signally—The boat finished—Curious conversation with the cat, and
OL CT MMULLCN Seek costae a sc delvetols poss os Kae e SaaS RST Lec oe ore taeed 131
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 jfish-hooks—Some of the fish
we saw—And a monstrous whale—Wonderful shower of litile fish—Water-
SPOUTS sicc va vote cccw Mae Sout sop See ETE IGE EU on on eee dU Sen act eee 140
CONTENTS. vil
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 pen-
CHAPTER XVIII.
An awful storm and tts consequences—Narrow escape—A rock proves a sure
foundation—A fearful night and a bright morning—Deliverance from
LONG Cn ee aarti et eel wl JAE RNR Boe MSTA SAE Baha a he 162
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
RUNSCLf 10> GEO: NETO sic se nce re sieescc caress a NSe Bee dace dae oa eee dees 169
CHAPTER XX.
Intercourse with the savages—Cannibalism prevented—The slain are buried
and the survivors depart, leaving us again alone on our Coral Island...180
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.
@ frightful cabastrOQhe. .......c.ccccccccecccccsseevesseesensseceecsassesesecsacetscceses 187
CHAPTER XXII.
I fail 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
uneapected Gift ids. evsrcsscckallavccarcis ase tdiwanSaeewdetii cues Sr iewig dana ete nen pu 196
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 ......c...cccceeceeceuses Ss tase cngguneineea eee 206
CHAPTER XXIV.
Bloody Bill is communicative and sagactous— Unpleasant prospects—Retrospect-
ive meditations interrupted by volcanic agency— The pirates negotiate
with a Feejee chief—Various etecteras that are calculated to surprise and
horrify
CHAPTER XXV.
The sandal-wood party—Native children’s games somewhat surprising—
Desperate amusements suddenly and fatally brought to a close—An old
friend recognized—News—Romata’s mad conduct........ sGaau card ate e st sesee 231
Vili CONTENTS.
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, ...........sssececccssseeeccecssvesecesenaeseeeceenes 242
CHAPTER XXVII.
Reflections—The wounded man—The squall—True consolation—Death....... 253
CHAPTER XXVIII.
Alone on the deep—Wecessity the mother of invention—A valuable book discov:
ered—Natural phenomenon—A bright day in my history... cece 263
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
COTGUST ROM Sew dits sc cos sedevees audeduenscee tsk Gio oaek eee SoD AEE 268
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............00ccccscseeees 280
CHAPTER XXXI.
A strange and bloody battle—The lion bearded in his den—Frightful scenes of
cruelty, and fears for the fUtUTEC..........ccccceeeccecceeeecceceeeeeeesceeauaeeeeeeaes 297
CHAPTER XXXII.
An wnexpected discovery, and a bold, reckless defiance, with its consequences—
Plans of escape, and heroic resolves .......ccccecececcceeeeecccaeeecececseaeeees -..806
CHAPTER XXXIII.
The flight—The pursuit—Despair and rts results—The lion bearded in his den
again—Auful danger threatened and wonderfully averted—A terrific
SLOMMU se ces eves dente ss ccc secaresee ta tn ccavs sues ceke curds edi ossden terete ese ee 314
CHAPTER XXXIV.
Imprisonment—Sinking hopes—Unexpected freedom to more than one, and in
more senses than one
OOMELUB TON ot NR eee Pe OO aint padi Re ene Aa LS Raa ee ee 333
THE CORAL ISLAND.
CHAPTER I.
The beginning—My early life and character—I thirst for adventure in foreign
lands, and go to sea.
OVING 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-grand-
father 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 any rate, we knew that,
as far back as our family could be traced, it had been
intimately connected with the great watery waste. In-
10 THE CORAL ISLAND.
deed 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 rov-
ing 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 dis-
tant, 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 ap-
prentice 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
THE CORAL ISLAND. ii
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 cbserved that they were laughing at some wit-
ticism 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.â€
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
12 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 imagina-
tion 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 |
ereat 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.â€
I will not take up my reader’s time with a minute
account of all that oceurred 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 messmate of his
own, a merchant captain, who was on the point of sail-
ing to the South Seas in his own ship, the Arrow. My
THE CORAL ISLAND. 13
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 pro-
mised, 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 IL.
The departure—The sea—My companions—Some account of the wonderful
sights we saw on the great decp—A dreadful storm and a frightful wreck.
T was a bright, beautiful, warm day when our ship
_ spread her canvas 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, giv-
ing 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!â€
And so it was. That anchor did not “kiss the mudâ€
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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 15
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 [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.â€
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 ex-
tremity 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.
16 THE CORAL ISLAND.
“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.â€
“T’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.â€
“ An’ I’ve been round it fives times,†cried a third,
“an’ every time wos wuss than another, the gales wos so
tree-mendous !â€
“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!â€
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 fore-
mast standing. Eyen this, however, was more than
enough, for we did not dare to hoist a rag of sail on it.
THE CORAL ISLAND. 17
For five days the tempest raged in all its fury. Every-
thing 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 see only one narrow open-
ing 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.
“Tt’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.â€
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 quarter-deck await-
ing our fate—“come, boys; we three shall stick to-
gether. 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?â€
We gladly agreed to follow Jack, for he inspired us
with confidence, although I could perceive, by the sad
2
18 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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, how-
ever, 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 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.
“HERE is a strange and peculiar sensation experi-
‘| enced 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, how-
ever, 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 honeysuckle 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,
20 THE CORAL ISLAND.
with a look of intense anxiety, was gazing into my
face.
“Speak to us, my dear Ralph,†whispered Jack ten-
derly. “Are you better now?â€
I.smiled and. looked up, saying, “ Better! why, what
do you mean, Jack? I’m quite well.â€
“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; youre 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'l tell you all about it,
but you must not utter a syllable till you have rested
well.â€
“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 sham-
ming dead! It’s very wicked of you, indeed it is.â€
THE CORAL ISLAND. 21
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—â€
“JT remember nothing,†said I, interrupting him, “ after
we were thrown into the sea.â€
“Hush, Peterkin!†said Jack ; “you're exciting Ralph
with your nonsense.—I’ll explain it to you. You recol-
lect 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 telesecope—which
you clung to as if it had been your life—against Peter-
kin’s mouth—â€
“ 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 !â€
“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.â€
“But the captain and crew, what of them?†I in-
quired anxiously.
Jack shook his head.
“ Are they lost ?â€
“No, they are not lost, I hope, but I fear there is
22 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 to-
wards 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.â€
“Poor fellows!†I murmured sorrowfully.
“But the more I think about it, 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.â€
“T’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 ?â€
“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.â€
There was a long silence after Jack ceased speak-
THE CORAL ISLAND. | 23
ing, 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,â€
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 over-
spread his hearty countenance. “Saved, you should
have said. Your cogitations seem to have taken a
wrong road, and led you to a wrong conclusion.â€
“Do you know what conclusion I have come to?â€
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 inhabit-
ants. 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—â€
“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.â€
24, THE CORAL ISLAND.
“ But suppose there are no natives ?â€
“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.â€
“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.â€
“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.â€
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 !
E now seated ourselves upon a rock, and began
to examine into our personal property. When
we reached the shore, after being wrecked, my com-
panions 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 to-
gether, 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.
26 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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. Per-
haps 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 canvas 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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 27
were cast into the sea; but this was not of much conse-
quence, as the climate of the island proved to be ex-
tremely 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 hand-
kerchief 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 canvas 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.â€
“ What good will that do us?†said Peterkin; “there’s
wood enough on the island to make a thousand oars.â€
“ 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.â€
“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 land-
ing, 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,
28 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 recognized 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 recol-
lected 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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 29
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 counte-
nance, 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!â€
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.â€
“ 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!â€
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.
30 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 endeavour-
ing 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.â€
“TI 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 care-
fully 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.â€
“ Agreed!†cried Peterkin and I together, as, indeed,
we would have agreed to any proposal that Jack made;
THE CORAL ISLAND. 31
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 him-
self 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!â€
“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.â€
“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,†said Jack.
“Let us finish our work before eating.â€
“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,
32 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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.â€
“Tm 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.â€
“QO 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.
“T’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!â€
“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 !â€
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 twppence for a man of books, if
he had nothing else in him.â€
“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 ?â€
THE CORAL ISLAND. 33
“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?â€
“ Well—no, perhaps not.â€
“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?â€
“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.â€
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 swallow-
ing. Then a smile and look of intense delight over-
spread 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, ex-
alnimed —
“Nectar! perfect nectar! I say, Jack, you're a Briton
3
34 THE CORAL ISLAND.
—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 copi-
ously 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!â€
“And pray,†asked Peterkin, “what sort of ‘stuff’
does the ripe nut contain ?â€
“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.â€
“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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 35
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 recognized 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 re-
mained 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 abso-
lute 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 sleep-
ing in the open air, that we did not quite relish the idea
36 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 Peter-
kin, 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,â€
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 suc-
cessive 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’ burn-
ing-glass !â€
“You forget that we have no sun,†said I.
Peterkin was silent. In his sudden recollection of
THE CORAL ISLAND. - 37
the telescope he had quite overlooked the absence of the
sun.
“ Ah, boys, Pve got it now!†exclaimed Jack, rising
and cutting a branch from a neighbouring bush, which
he 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.
{i??
CHAPTER V.
Morning, and cogitations connected therewith—We luxuriate in the sca, 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.
HAT 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 first 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 over-
head and around one, or ruffling the plumage of the
stranger birds that fly inquiringly around, as if to de-
mand 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 condi-
tion; 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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 39
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, first with the one eye and then with the
other. On glancing downwards I observed that Peter-
kin’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
\
40 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 excite-
ment, 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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 41
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 imi-
tate 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 sand,
and nearly fell again, much to the amusement of Peter-
kin, who laughed heartily, and called me a “slow coach,â€
while Jack cried out, “Come along, Ralph, and Ill 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 our-
selves 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 quan-
42 ; THE CORAL ISLAND.
tities 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.â€
“Dreaming!†cried Jack; “do you know, Ralph, ’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!â€
We took the second dive together, and kept beside
each other while under water; and I was greatly sur-
prised 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 amd
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 follow-
THE CORAL ISLAND. ; 43
ing 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.
“J declare, Ralph,†said he, “that I actually tried to
laugh under water.â€
“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.â€
“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.â€
Peterkin, who was already dressed, took the oysters,
and opened them with the edge of our axe, exclaiming,
“Now, that 7s capital. There’s nothing I’m so fond of.â€
“Ah! that’s lucky,†remarked Jack. “Tl 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.â€
“Tm very glad that our prospect of breakfast is so
good,†said I, “for ’'m very hungry.â€
“ 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.
UR 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 Peter-
kin, 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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 45
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 parti- |
cular 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
hillsides afforded us a position whence we could enjoy
the romantic view and mark our progress towards the
foot of the hill. JI was particularly struck, during the
walk, with the richness of the undergrowth in most
places, and recognized many berries and- plants that
46 THE CORAL ISLAND.
resembled those of my native land, especially a tall,
elegantly-formed fern, which emitted an agreeable per-
fume. 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 ?â€
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.
“T can see nothing,†he said, after a short pause.
“T think it—â€
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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 47
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, and 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.â€
“ Nevertheless,†remarked Jack, “if that same stone
had hit any of us, it would have rendered the charge
you speak of quite unnecessary, Peterkin.â€
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 dis-
covery which caused us all very great joy. This was
a tree of a remarkably beautiful appearance, which
48 THE CORAL ISLAND.
Jack confidently declared to be the celebrated bread-
fruit tree.
“Ts it celebrated?†inquired Peterkin, with a look of
great simplicity.
“Tt is,†replied Jack.
«That's odd, now,†rejoined Peterkin ; “I never heard
of it before.â€
“Then it’s not so celebrated as I thought it was,â€
returned Jack, quietly squeezing Peterkin’s hat over
his eyes; “but listen, you ignorant boobie! and hear
of it now.â€
Peterkin readjusted 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!â€
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.â€
“But are you sure that that’s it?†asked Peterkin.
“Quite sure,†replied Jack; “for I was particularly
THE CORAL ISLAND. 49
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 recognize 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—â€
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 comfort-
able, he lay still, basking in the sunshine, while Jack
and I examined the bread-fruit 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 wonder-
ful difference from the trees of our own country sur-
prised. 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
4
50 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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
recognized 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 hillside,
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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 51
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.â€
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.
“T 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?â€
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. 8, 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 per-
plexed 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 impos-
52 THE CORAL ISLAND.
sible 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 1,000.
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 hiding altogether beneath the rich under-
wood. 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 circum-
ference must have been thirty miles—perhaps a little
more, if allowance be made for the numerous bays and
THE CORAL ISLAND. 53
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 unin-
habited. 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
54: THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 encamp-
ment. 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 pre-
pared 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 VIL.
Jack's ingenuity—We get into difiiculties about fishing, and get out of them by a
method which gives us a cold bath—Horrible encounter with a shark.
OR several days after the excursion related in the
last chapter we did not wander far from our en-
campment, 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 every-
thing around us was so delightful, and we could without
difficulty obtain all that we required for our bodily com-
fort, 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 ap-
peared, 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
56 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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,
—TI 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 sandstone. 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, ’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.
THE CORAL ISLAND. 57
_ “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!â€
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.â€
“ Would not a small raft do better?†said I.
“Much better; but we have no ropes to bind it to-
gether with. Perhaps we may find something hereafter
that will do as well, but in the meantime let us try the
tree.â€
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 Peter-
kin 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.â€
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
2.
58 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 Peter-
kin laid down his paddle, and having baited his line with
a whole oyster, dropped 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.â€
“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!â€
“Try to haul him up by the mouth, then,†cried Jack.
“Do it gently.â€
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 say-
ing, Jack plied his paddle; but scarcely had he moved
from the spot, when a fish with an enormous head and
THE CORAL ISLAND. 59
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!â€
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, dropped 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 !â€
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
60 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 vehe-
mently 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, sup-
pressed voice; “we'll make the shore in time yet if we
can keep him off for a few minutes.â€
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 sk. 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 satis-
fied. Ina 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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 61
balance the log. Don’t look out for the shark. Don’t
glance behind you. Do nothing but balance the log.â€
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 com-
pressed, and his eyebrows 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 an-
other 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 this act that Jack rose to his feet in per-
forming 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.â€
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, suc-
ceeded 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.
UR 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 un-
wittingly 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 niost, however, was, that we
were compelled to forego our morning swimming excur-
sions. 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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 63
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
64 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 situ-
ated 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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 65
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 cease-
less 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 con-
tent 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.
66 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 excur-
sion, 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 return-
ing home, we should be likely to meet in with, he would
not say dangers, but at least with everything that ex-
isted 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.â€
“ First-rate!†cried Peterkin. “You will make the
bows, Jack, and I'll try my hand at the arrows. The
fact is, ’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.â€
“You forget,†said I, “you hit me one day on the
shin.â€
“ 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.â€
THE CORAL ISLAND. 67
“ 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 ?â€
“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.â€
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 im-
proving 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 ?â€
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.â€
“True,†said Peterkin; “I forgot that. It would
roast us.â€
“Well, as you're always doing that at any rate,†re-
marked 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—â€
“Then why don’t you do it?†interrupted Peterkin
68 THE CORAL ISLAND.
“Why have you kept us in the dark so long, you vile
philosopher ? â€
“ 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.â€
“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 !â€
“Come, Peterkin,†said I, “ you can’t get even me to
believe that.â€
“ 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. ‘How-
ever, 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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 69
and description. D’ye hear, boy?’ I certainly did
hear, but ’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 figure-head 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 franticly 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
70 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 walks 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 your 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 sake 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 pierhead, where several boats
were rowing into the 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?’
«<« Ves, 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 pierhead—So you see, Ralph, that I
really did swim my first homeward voyage.â€
Jack laughed, and patted Peterkin on the shoulder.
THE CORAL ISLAND. 71
“But tell us about the candle-nut tree,†said I; “you
were talking about it.â€
“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.â€
“Eh! ha! hum!†exclaimed Peterkin, “I saw a tree
answering to that description this very day.â€
“Did you?†cried Jack. “Is it far from this?â€
“No, not half-a-mile.â€
“Then lead me to it,†said Jack, seizing his axe.
Tn 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.â€
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
72 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 peeled off the husks. After this he
wished to bore a hole in them, which, not having any-
thing 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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 73
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.â€
So saying he shouldered his axe and went off, fol-
lowed 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.
—O 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.â€
'“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.â€
“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!â€
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.
“TI intend to appropriate the bow for my own use,â€
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
74: THE CORAL ISLAND.
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.
“Tm 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.â€
“Well, if length constitutes power,’ said Jack, “ you'll
certainly be invincible.â€
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 !â€
“T mean the idea of making it is a good one,†said
I, laughing. “And, now I think of it, Pl 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.â€
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 hand-
kerchief, to tie on this rascally head with. It’s pretty
well torn at any rate, so you won’t miss it.â€
THE CORAL ISLAND. 75
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.â€
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. Rush-
ing 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 ta
account for such a cry.
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 whis-
per, while we all involuntarily crept closer to each
other.
“Do you know,†said Jack, “I have heard that mys-
terious 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.â€
We listened for a long time top the sound again, but
as it did not come, we returned to the bower and
resumed our work.
76 THE CORAL ISLAND.
“Very strange,†said Peterkin, quite gravely. “Do
you believe in ghosts, Ralph ?â€
“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.â€
“What say you to it, Jack?â€
“TJ neither believe in ghosts nor feel uneasy,†he re-
plied. “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 P1I—TM—â€
“Hat 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.â€
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 dropped. 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.â€
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.
THE CORAL ISLAND. 77
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 imper-
fect, 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 preci-
sion 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.
CARCELY 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, re-
freshed 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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 79
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 precau-
tion, however, to put the burning-glass into my pocket,
lest we should want fire.
The morning was exceedingly lovely. It was one of
that very still and peaceful sort which made the few
noises that we heard seem to be quiet noises. JI 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 round 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 amuse-
80 THE CORAL ISLAND.
ments, 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 sup-
pose that I thought all this in the clear and methodi-
cal 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 reflec-
tions. 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 con-
veniently do so over Peterkin’s head. Peterkin used to
THE CORAL ISLAND. 81
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 inter-
ruption to our discourse.
We were now fairly started. Half-a-mile’s walk con-
veyed 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 be-
fore us in all the luxuriant loveliness of tropical vegeta-
tion. 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 ap-
proached so‘near to the island that in some parts it
almost joined it. There was therefore no lagoon be-
tween, and the heavy surf of the ocean beat almost up
to the rocks. But this white column appeared about
6
82 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 inter-
vals, 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 deter-
mined 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 reappearance of these waterspouts, we heard a low,
rumbling sound near us, which quickly increased to a
eurgling 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 aside, 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 shriecked with laughter; but his merri-
ment 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,
THE CORAL ISLAND. 83
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 some-
what 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 ?†asked Peterkin ruefully.
“Make a fire, lad, and dry ourselves,†replied Jack.
“And here is material ready to our hand,†said J,
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 con-
cluded that there must be a subterraneous channel in
the rock into which the water was driven by the larger
84 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 waterspouts, and as this seemed
a very simple and probable one, we forthwith adopted it.
“Tsay, Ralph, what’s that in the water? is it a shark?â€
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.
“Tt’s like a fish of some sort,†said I.
“Hallo, Peterkin!†cried Jack, “fetch your spear:
here’s work for it.â€
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.â€
Jack now atovs the spear forcibly towards the object,
and let go his hold; but although it seemed to be well
aimed, tie must have missed, fo the handle soon rose
again ; and when the spear was drawn up, there was the
pale green object in exactly the same spot, slowly mov-
ing 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 re-
peatedly, we could neither hit it nor drive it away, so
we were compelled to continue our journey without dis-.
covering 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. How-
ever, 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 banyan tree—Another tree which is sup-
ported by natural planks—Water-fowl found—A very remarkable discov-
ery, and a very peculiar murder—We luxuriate on the fat of the land.
UR 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 an-
other 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
86 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 beau-
tiful that we had yet looked upon. Here were trees of
every shape and size and hue which it is possible to con-
ceive 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 recognized 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 de-
lightful 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 banyan tree.â€
“ And what’s a banyan tree?†inquired Peterkin, as
we walked towards it.
“A very curious one, as you shall see presently,â€
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!â€
THE CORAL ISLAND. 87
“Tt!†repeated Peterkin; “why, there are dozens of
banyans here! What do you mean by talking bad
grammar? Is your philosophy deserting you, Jack ?â€
“There is but one tree here of this kind,†returned
Jack, “as you will perceive if you will examine it.â€
And, sure enough, we did find that what we had sup-
posed 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 dis-
tances, 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 advance-
ment, 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
88 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 had
been covered over with the bark of the tree and incor-
porated with it. In short, they were just natural but-
tresses, without which the stem could not have supported
its heavy and umbrageous top. We found these chest-
nuts 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, intend-
ing to encamp near the beach, as we found that the
musquitoes 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 turtle-doves, 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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 89
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 pro-
cure 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
90 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 ?â€
I whispered ; “it seems cruel to kill them while asleep.â€
“Tf 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.â€
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.
“T’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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 91
with it, along with the whole drove, into the bushes and
disappeared, though we heard them screaming long after-
wards 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.
“JT do believe,†said I, “that Peterkin has met with
the hogs.â€
“When Greek meets Greek,†said Jack, soliloquizing,
“then comes the tug of—â€
“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.â€
92 THE CORAL ISLAND.
“Look here, Jack!†cried Peterkin, as he disengaged
the animal from his spear. “Do you recognize that
hole?†said he, pointing to the pig’s ear ; “and are you
familiar with this arrow, eh ?â€
“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 ’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 !â€
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 were 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.â€
“ 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.â€
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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 93
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 ery†accounted for—The curious birds called pen-
guins—Peculiarity of the cocoa-nut palm—Questions on the formation of
coral islands—Mysterious footsteps—Strange discoveries and sad sights.
HEN 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. Never-
theless, 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 ablu-
tions 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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 95
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,
Ido not know much about that system, so I do not mean
to uphold it, neither do I intend to run it down. Per-
haps, in reference to it, I may just hint that there may
be too much of a good thing. I know not; but of this
Iam 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 refer-
ence 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 beauti-
ful 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.
96 THE CORAL ISLAND.
On hearing the sound, Peterkin instantly threw for-
ward his spear.
“ Now, what can it be?†said he, looking round at
Jack. “T 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!â€
Peterkin’s remark was followed by a repetition of the
ery, louder than before.
“Tt comes from one of these islands,†said Jack.
“Tt must be the ghost of a jackass, then,†said
Peterkin, “ for I never heard anything so like.â€
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, gaz-
ing 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 ery 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 !â€
“ 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.â€
THE CORAL ISLAND. 97
“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.â€
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 hillsides, 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,
qT
98 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 con-
tinually working. They seemed, indeed, to be of the
same 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 some-
times so profound that Peterkin said we should cer-
tainly get drowned in them at last, even although we
THE CORAL ISLAND. 99
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 footprints 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 footprints 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
100 THE CORAL ISLAND.
came upon an open space, we heard a faint cry, and ob-
served 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.
“Tt’s a tame wild-cat, I think,†said Peterkin, level-
ling his spear to make a charge.
“Stop!†eried I, laying my hand on his shoulder ;
“TI do believe the poor beast is blind. See, it strikes
against the branches as it walks along. It must bea
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!â€
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.
“Tt’s no more a wild-cat than I am!†cried Peterkin,
taking it in his arms; “it’s quite tame:—Poor pussy,
cheetie pussy !â€
{222
THE CORAL ISLAND. 101
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 pur
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.â€
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 evi-
dence of having been in this condition for some years.
No human footprints 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.
102 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 con-
tinued 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 over-
powered 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 commence-
ment of our tour round the island.
The hut or cottage was rude and simple in its con-
struction. 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 wood-work was quite
perforated with holes; the roof had nearly fallen in, and
THE CORAL ISLAND. 103
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, embedded 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 dis- ’
covery, 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
104 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 what-
ever 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 wonder-
ful 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
THE CORAL ISLAND. “105
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 examin-
ing into everything about the room, we were attracted
by an exclamation from Peterkin.
“T say, Jack,†said he, “here is something that will
be of use to us.â€
“ 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.â€
“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.â€
After having spent more than an hour at this place
without discovering anything of further interest, Peter-
kin 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, there-
fore, 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.
106 THE CORAL ISLAND. .
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 tunk—Jack’s wisdom and Peterkin’s impertinence—
Wonderful behaviour of a crab—Good wishes for those who dwell far fron
- the sca—Jack commences to build a little boat.
EST 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 pro-
-found rest at certain intervals, in addition to the ordinary
hours’ of repose, are necessary to the well-being 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
108 THE CORAL ISLAND.
home, and we found it exceedingly sweet when we in-
dulged in it after completing the journey just related.
It had not, indeed, been a very long journey, neverthe-
less 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 sur-
prises, 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 awak-
ing 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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 109
placed in the tank. We found the garden more charm-
ing, pellucid, 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?â€
“ 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.â€
“T 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 0’
sight beyond me already !â€
“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. “The 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
110 THE CORAL ISLAND.
inerusted 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.â€
“Very true, Jack; that never struck me _ before,â€
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
amitate 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.â€
“Most true,†said I, pondering what my companion
said. “ But I fear that that will be very difficult.â€
“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.â€
“ Nay, not quite,†said Peterkin, who had been gravely
attentive to this off-hand advice—* not quite; you must
THE CORAL ISLAND. Wit
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!â€
We hastily stooped over the tank, and certainly were
not a little amused at the conduct of one of the crabs
which still survived its 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 the 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,
“Tve 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!â€
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 hard-
ened into a good shell. We came thus to know that crabs
112 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 re-
new 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 de-
sire 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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 118
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 work-
ing of those little coral insects whose efforts have incrusted
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 en-
tirely new set in the course of a few months! ll 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 clifis—The mysterious green monster explained
—We are thrown into unutterable terror by the idea that Jack is drowned
—The Diamond Cave.
i. OME, Jack,’ cried Peterkin, one morning about
three weeks after our return from our long
excursion, “let’s be jolly to-day, and do something vigor-
ous. I’m quite tired of hammering and bammering,
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 pan-
cake; in fact, I want something to rouse me, to toss me
up, as it were. Eh! what do you say to it?â€
“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 waterspouts. The last one we
had to do with tossed you up a considerable height; per-
haps the next will send you higher, who knows, if you're
at all reasonable or moderate in your expectations |â€
«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.â€
THE CORAL ISLAND. 115
“Well then, Peterkin,†replied Jack, with a smile,
“what would you have ?â€
“Have?†said Peterkin; “I would have nothing. I
didn’t say I wanted to have; I said that I wanted to do.â€
“ By-the-by,†said I, interrupting their conversation,
“T 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. Per-
haps it would be well to go for that purpose.â€
“Humph!†ejaculated Peterkin, “I know the nature
of it well enough.â€
“What was it?†said I.
“Tt 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.â€
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 to that object, that I would
advise you to let me try it. If it has got a heart at all,
T'll engage to send my spear right through the core of
116 THE CORAL ISLAND.
it; if it hasn’t got a heart, I'll send it through the spot
where its heart ought to be.â€
“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 heart-
less monster; I'll have nothing more to do with it.â€
“Tm 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.â€
I also was much puzzled, and inclined to think with
Jack that it must be phosphoric light, of which lumin-
ous 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.â€
“True,†returned Jack, stripping off his clothes; “Tl
go down, Ralph, as I’m better at diving than you are.
—Now then, Peterkin, out 0’ 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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 117
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 under water more than
a minute at a time; indeed seldom so long.
“O 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. Sud-
denly he sprang to his feet and rushed about in a frantic
state, wringing his hands, and exclaiming, “O Jack, Jack!
he is gone! It must have been a shark, and he is gone
for ever!â€
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!â€
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 some-
thing 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 reappear, 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 impos-
sible for mortal man to do and retain his strength and
- 118 THE CORAL ISLAND.
faculties. It was therefore with a feeling akin to super-
stitious 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. “O Jack, Jack!†said he, “where were you?
What kept you so long ?â€
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 fre-
quent 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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 119
on the point of turning—for I began to feel a little un-
comfortable in such a place—when it seemed to me as
if there was a faint light right above me. I darted up-
wards, 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 be-
came 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 won-
der, 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!â€
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 any-
thing. 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
120 THE CORAL ISLAND.
to hear about it, while you are enjoying yourselves down
there like mad dolphins. It’s really too bad.â€
“T’m very sorry for you, Peterkin, indeed I am,†said
Jack, “but we cannot help you. If you would only
learn to dive—â€
“Learn to fly, you might as well say
Peterkin, in a very sulky tone.
“Tf you would only consent to keep still,†said I, “we
would take you down with us in ten seconds.â€
“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?â€
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 re-
quire 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,
1?
retorted
THE CORAL ISLAND. 121
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.â€
“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 shipwrecked 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
122 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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.
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 fretwork 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 where-
THE CORAL ISLAND. 123
by 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 at-
tracted our attention. We concluded, also, that the re-
flecting 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 extin-
guished 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 torchlight a few minutes
before, it came into my mind to consider how strange it
is that God should make such wonderful and exquisitely
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.â€
“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 So Rte remarks on
jesting—Also on love.
T 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 per-
haps 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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 125
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 observa-
tion 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 there-
fore 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, philo-
sophical way, that these tides did great good to the
126 THE CORAL ISLAND.
world in many ways, particularly in the way of cleans-
ing the shores of the land, and carrying off the filth that
was constantly poured into the sea therefrom; 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 in-
terrupted 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 patt of our enjoyment (such is the force of
habit), and found the sudden outbursts of mirth, result-
ing from his humorous disposition, quite natural and re-
freshing to us in the midst of our more serious conver-
sations. 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 agree-
able 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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 127
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 inter-
laced 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 ex-
clamation, as he started convulsively, and levelled his -
spear.
“Hist!†cried Jack; “these are your friends, Peter-
kin. 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.â€
“Come along!†cried Peterkin, hurrying towards the
wood, while Jack and I followed, smiling at his im-
patience.
Another grunt and half-a-dozen squeals, much louder
than before, came down the valley. At this time we
128 THE CORAL ISLAND.
were just opposite the small vale which lay between the
_ Valley of the Wreck and Spouting Cliff.
“T say, Peterkin,†cried Jack, in a hoarse whisper.
“Well, what is’t?â€
“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, Pll 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—.â€
“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 head-
long flight, went, as Peterkin himself afterwards ex-
pressed 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 slung 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,
THE CORAL ISLAND. 129
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.â€
But Peterkin did not move; he allowed it to pass un-
harmed. 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!
“O Peterkin!†said I, going up to him, “what have
you done ?â€
“Done? I’ve killed their great-great-grandmother,
that’s all,†said he, looking with a somewhat awestruck
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 ?â€
“Why, the fact is I want a pair of shoes.â€
“What have your shoes to do with the old hog?â€
said I, smiling.
9
130 THE CORAL ISLAND.
“ 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 atoncethat I had long wanted some leather
or tough substance to make shoes of, and this old grand-
mother seemed so tough that I just made up my mind
to stick her, and you see I’ve done it!â€
“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 jinished—Curious conversation with the cat, and
other matters.
OR many days after this Jack applied himself with
F 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 enter-
tain 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 act-
ing 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, fur-
nished 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,
132 THE CORAL ISLAND.
however, was not easy to obtain; but at last he procured
it, by rooting up a small tree which had a branch grow-
ing 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 aaual 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 if 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, “atideeds 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 through 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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 133
' 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 con-
structed.
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-build-
ing 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
134 THE CORAL ISLAND.
tree, with which, when boiled in our old iron pot, we
paid 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 in-
terior 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 some-
times assisted him; but as our assistance was not much
required, we more frequently went a-hunting on the ex-
tensive 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 that 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, especi-
ally by Peterkin, that it recovered much of its former
strenoth, 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 pos-
sessed the day we were shipwrecked; and on the same
rock, during many a day afterwards, we spread out the
THE CORAL ISLAND. 135
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 delight-
ful fruit, which grew on a large shrub or tree not more
than twelve feet high, with light-green leaves of enor-
mous 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 gener-
ally 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.â€
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.â€
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 per-
136 THE CORAL ISLAND.
fect trump. But why did you not tell us it was so
nearly ready? Won't we have a jolly sail to-morrow,
eh?â€
“Don’t talk so much, Peterkin,†said Jack ; “and, pray,
hand me a bit of that pig.â€
“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 ? â€
“A hind leg, if you please,†answered Jack; “and,
pray, be so good as to include the tail.â€
“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.
T laugh ?â€
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 ?â€
“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.â€
“Very good,†said Peterkin, tossing a lump of pork to
THE CORAL ISLAND. 137
the cat, who received it with a mew of satisfaction. “Tl
help you, if I can.â€
« 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.â€
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 un-
doubtedly 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 tiptoe, 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 expres-
sion 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
138 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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!â€
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?â€
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 for-
ward his mouth and kissed the cat on the nose!
“Yes,†continued Peterkin, after a pause, “I love you.
D’you think Td 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—â€
“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 ap-
peared 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!â€
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 mon-
strous shame that these two scoundrels, Jack and Ralph,
should keep us waiting for our supper so long?â€
THE CORAL ISLAND. 139
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.â€
“ 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 for-
give me.â€
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 ta
relish any allusion to the subject afterwards; so we re-
frained 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 won-
derful 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.
T 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.
THE CORAL ISLAND. 141
“T 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.â€
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 widespread 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
142 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 143
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 con-
stantly 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.â€
“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!â€
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.â€
“ 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
144 THE CORAL ISLAND.
me, Jack,†I added, “ that it is impossible | to prevent the
keel being worn off thus.â€
s Impossible ! 1†cried Peterkm. “My dear Ralph, you
are mistaken ; there is nothing so easy.â€
“ 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.â€
“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.â€
And to ee 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 over-
come 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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 145
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.â€
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 ex-
tremely 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 service-
able 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 fisb 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—
10
146 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 147
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 rose 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, sug-
gested 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 some-
thing 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
148 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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. More-
over, 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—A ccount of the penguins.
NE 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.â€
“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
Tm sure the hogs will be at it in your absence, out of
revenge for your killing their great-grandmother so
recklessly.â€
“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.â€
“ Ah, true,†said Jack gravely ; “that did not occur
to me; no doubt you must go. Our boat does require
150 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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.â€
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 sea-
ward 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 approach-
ing. 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.
THE CORAL ISLAND. 151
Owing to this formation, the wave reached the reef at
the latter point before it struck at the foot of Spouting
Clif 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 con-
tinued 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 rock 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 it 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
152 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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.
“Tt may have been washed up into the Fone 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.â€
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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 153
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
154 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 us 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—â€
“What!†exclaimed Jack, “did you really resolve to
do that ?â€
“Now, Jack, hold your tongue,†returned Peterkin.
“T 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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 155
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.
156 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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
guarded 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.
“T wish we had a breeze,†said Jack.
“So do I,†eried 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!â€
“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!â€
This last speech was caused by the sudden appearance
of a dark-blue line on the horizon, which, in an incredibly
THE CORAL ISLAND. 157
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 ?â€
“Don’t talk, Peterkin, but pull away, and you shall
see shortly.â€
As we drew near to the island we were much amused
by the manceuvres 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 asa 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 vegeta-
tion 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 thatâ€
their soldier-like appearance was owing to the stiff, erect
manner in which they sat on their short legs—“ bolt-
upright,†as Peterkin expressed it. They had black
heads, long sharp beaks, white breasts, and bluish backs.
158 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 connpany to
consort with such creatures.â€
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 ahead, with such a spring,
and such a dive back into the sea again, that we could
searcely 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 ofâ€
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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 159
—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 ?â€
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 solem-
nity 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 mater-
160 THE CORAL ISLAND.
nal 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.â€
This indeed seemed to be the case, 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 con-
clusion that this is the way in which old penguins teach
their children to swim.
Scarcely had we finished making our + etnies 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 sputtering—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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 161
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.â€
“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 sur-
prised 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 towards the sea, and Peterkin took
it into his head that he would try to interrupt its pro-
gress, 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 eruel 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 consulta-
tion, 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 tts consequences—Narrow escape—A rock proves a sure
foundation—A fearful night and a bright morning—Deliverance from
danger. b
T was evening before we left the island of the pen-
guins. 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 be-
came 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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 163
said, as the boat flew before the wind, “and the penguins
will keep us company.â€
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,†eried Jack, in a quick,
earnest tone; “be ready to douse the sail. I very
much fear we won’t make the island after all.â€
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 bailed
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
164 THE CORAL ISLAND.
we saw nothing in the direction whither the wind was
blowing us save the raging billows of the sea; and, in-
deed, 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 bailing, for Jack could not quit the
helm nor Peterkin the sail for an instant without en-
dangering 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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 165
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.â€
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
166 | THE CORAL ISLAND.
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.â€
“ 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 CORAL ISLAND. 167
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 vapoury 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,
168 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 nightfall, 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, how-
ever, 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—TWe all become warriors, and Jack proves
himself to be a hero.
OR 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 con-
tinued to bear fruit and blossom all the year round, wé
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,
170 THE CORAL ISLAND.
we had only to pay a visit to the plum-tree before men-
tioned, 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 service-
able notwithstanding, and Jack came at last to prefer
them to his long boots. We also 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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 171
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 me, we began to feel as if water were
our native element, and revelled in it with so much con-
fidence 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 pur-
pose—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 wring-
ing 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.
“T can’t imagine,†answered he. “I’ve noticed them
172 THE CORAL ISLAND.
for some time, and fancied they were black sea-culls,
but the more I look at them the more I feel convinced
they are much larger than gulls.â€
“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 ?â€
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 coun-
tenance 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.â€
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!â€
“Tt 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. -
THE CORAL ISLAND. 173
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 appear-
ance, 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 fugitives 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 earried 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.
174 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 com-
batants. 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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 175
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 pur-
pose 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
fifteen survived, and these were lying bound and help-’
less 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
176 THE CORAL ISLAND.
our place of concealment; but we were so much in-
terested in watching their movements that we agreed
to remain where we were,—and, indeed, we could not
easily have risen without exposing ourselves to detec-
tion. One of the savages now went up to the wood,
and soon returned with a bundle of firewood, 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 mo-
ment 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.
THE CORAL ISLAND. 177
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 he 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?â€
“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
12
178 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 superiorit
of his light weapon was strikingly proved in this com-
bat; 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 con-
sidered 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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 179
club now began to be apparent. His movements became
slower, his breath hissed through his clinched 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 chief’s 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 sense-
less 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 numberfell 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 outnumbered our party by three; but we
were flushed with victory, while they were taken by
surprise and dispirited by the fall of their chief. More-
over, 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 XxX.
Intercourse with the savages—Cannibalism prevented—The slain are buried
and the survivors depart, leaving us again alone on our Coral Island.
FTER 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 endea-
voured to restore her; “T’ll soon bring her round.†So
THE CORAL ISLAND. * 181
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 ery 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.
We'll entertain them as hospitably as we can.â€
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 com-
prehend 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 ?â€
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 ?
182 THE CORAL ISLAND.
you seem tolerably at home, anyhow. Bah! might as
well speak to the cat as to you—better, in fact, for it
understands me, and you don’t.â€
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 said “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 “ Tararoâ€
twice distinctly. Jack repeated it after him, and the
chief, nodding his head approvingly, said “Chuck.â€
On hearing which Peterkin exploded with laughter ;
but Jack turned, and with a frown rebuked him, saying,
“T 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,â€
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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 183
angel come down to stay here for a while. If so, she's
an uncommonly black one!â€
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 ex-
posure, 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 go. 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
mélée that followed his fall; but one of his enemies,
184 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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?â€
The savage, of course, did not understand the com-
mand, 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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 185
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 outrigger, 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 outrigger. 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 pro-
videntially washed ashore to us the day we weré
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
186 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 deter-
mined 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 after-
wards 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.
IFE 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 experi-
enced 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 shoot-
ing 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 devas-
tation. 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
188 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 gesticula-
tions for us to come up; so I gave Jack a push and rose
immediately.
“A sail! a sail!—Ralph, look; Jack, away on the
THE CORAL ISLAND. 189
horizon there, just over the entrance to the lagoon!â€
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 séeing 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 inten-
tions, 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
190 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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.â€
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; “per-
haps, 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.â€
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.â€
“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.â€
THE CORAL ISLAND. 191
“Nay, but,†said I, “ we will take you down, Peterkin,
if you will only trust us.â€
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.â€
“O Jack, my dear friend,†cried Peterkin, turning
pale, “leave me; I don’t believe they'll think it worth
while to kili me. Go, you and Ralph, and dive into the
cave.â€
“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.â€
“There are five of them,†said 1; “we have no
chance.â€
“Come, then,†cried Peterkin, starting up, and grasp-
ing Jack convulsively by the arm, “let us dive ; I will go.â€
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.
192 THE CORAL ISLAND.
Jack and I seized Peterkin by the arms.
“Now, keep quite still, no struggling,†said Jack, “ or
we are lost.â€
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 be-
tween 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.â€
“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.â€
THE CORAL ISLAND. 193
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, per-
haps 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 inter-
vals 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 sub-
dued 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
13
194, THE CORAL ISLAND.
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.â€
“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 un-
comfortable, to say the least of it.â€
“The pirates will be sure to keep a sharp look-out,â€
said Peterkin, “so, pray, be careful.â€
“No fear,†said I; “good-bye.â€
“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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 195
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 balked of their prey this time at least.â€
“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 fail 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.
Y 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 pairs 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 balked 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,
THE CORAL ISLAND. 197
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 accom-
plish, 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 ad-
dressed 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.â€
“You hear what he says, whelp: where are the other
dogs ?†said the captain.
198 THE CORAL ISLAND.
“Tf you mean my companions,†said I, in a low voice,
“J won’t tell you.â€
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 ?â€
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!â€
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 !â€
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.â€
The men instantly raised me shoulder high, and
hurrying down the rocks, tossed me into the bottom of
4
the boat, where I lay for some time stunned with the -
violence of my fall.
THE CORAL ISLAND. 199
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. Ina
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 every-
thing. 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;
200 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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, how-
ever, 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 to their advantage
to have him at their head.
But my thoughts soon reverted to the dear com-
panions 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 ? â€
THE CORAL ISLAND. 201
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 ery for.â€
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.
“T thought you were made of better stuff,†continued
the captain, angrily. “Id rather have a mad bull-dog
aboard than a water-eyed puppy. But Ill cure you,
lad, or introduce you to the sharks before long. Now
go below, and stay there till I call you.â€
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 imme-
diately 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. With-
out a moment’s hesitation, therefore, I lifted the keg
from the deck and tossed it into the sea! An excla-
mation 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?â€
“Tf 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 ’m dumb.†.
The captain stepped back and regarded me with a
look of amazement.
202 THE CORAL ISLAND.
“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 Iam made of such
stuff as the like of you shall never tame, though you
should do your worst.â€
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 ex-
pected, 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.â€
“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.â€
“Stop your clapper, Jack,†vociferated a third.
“Give the boy a junk o’ meat. Don’t you see he’s
a’most goin’ to kick the bucket ?â€
“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.â€
I did indeed feel somewhat faint, which was owing,
doubtless, to the combined effects of ill-usage and
THE CORAL ISLAND. 203
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 god-
less 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 wonder-
ing at the moody silence he maintained among his com-
rades. He did indeed reply to their questions in a
careless, off-hand tone, but he never volunteered a re-
mark. The only difference between him arid 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 lef: ito
my own Toflactions, 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 nightfall, 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 !â€
“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
204 THE CORAL ISLAND.
a dim soft light over the cabin, which was a small
apartment, and comfortably but plainly furnished.
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 ?â€
“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.â€
“T 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 com-
panions 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.â€
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 ?â€
“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.â€
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
THE CORAL ISLAND. “ 205
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. [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 black-
guards 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, Pll 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 ?â€
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 ?†oe:
The captain smiled as he replied, “I took you of 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.â€
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.
HREE 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 por-
poises 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 surround-
ing universe to be a huge blue liquid ball, and our little
ship the one solitary material speck in all creation, float-
ing 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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 207-
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 stand-
ing at the tiller; but his post for the present was a sine-
cure, 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 ee 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 com-
pany, and knowing that I was a protégé of the captain,
treated me with total indifference. Bloody Bill, it is
true, did the same; but as this was his conduct to every
one else, it was not peculiar in reference to me. Once or
twice I tried to draw him into conversation, but he al-
ways 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?â€
Bill smiled slightly as he replied, “ Why, I s'pose it’s
because I hain’t got nothin’ to say !â€
“ That’s strange,†said I, musingly ; “you look like a
man that could fhink, and such men can usually speak.â€
“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 entertainin’; but I don’t, so I hold my tongue.â€
“Well, Bill, that’s true, and I would rather not hear
208 THE CORAL ISLAND.
you speak at all than hear you speak like the other men;
but I don’t swear, Bill, so you might talk to me some-
‘times, 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.â€
Bill looked at me in surprise, and I thought I observed
a sad expression pass across his sun-burned face.
“ An’ where have you been used to friendly conversa-
tion ?†said Bill, looking down again into the sea; “not
on that Coral Island, I take it?â€
“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.â€
“That's true,†said I. “I am of little use on board,
and I don’t like my comrades; but I can’t help it, and
at any rate I hope to be free again soon.â€
“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.â€
“This trip! _Hark’ee, boy,†said Bill, lowering his
voice, “what said the captain to you the day you came
aboard ?â€
“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.â€
THE CORAL ISLAND. 209
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 —â€
“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 mount-
ing 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 him-
self 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 ap-
pearance 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
14
210 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 â€â€”—that we doubled her speed and would over-
haul 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 rico-
chetting into the air, plunged into the sea a mile be-
yond 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.â€
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 ina most ungainly manner. Another wore nothing but.
the common scanty native garment round the loins anda
THE CORAL ISLAND. 211
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.
“T 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 ?â€
“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 Oleve Branch ;
an’ our cargo is two tons cocoa-nuts, seventy pigs, twenty
cats, and de Gosp’l.â€
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.
“T 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.â€
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.â€
What conversation the captain had with this man I
never heard, but he came on deck again in a quarter of
212 THE CORAL ISLAND.
an hour, and shaking hands cordially with the mis-
sionary, 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 be-
hind 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 supercargo 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.â€
“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 com-
rades armed to the teeth to back you.â€
“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 and 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 and easy; but
where they ha’nt got it, Beelzebub himself could hardly
desire better company.â€
“Well, you ought to be a good judge,†cried another,
laughing, “for you’ve never kept any company but the
worst all your life!â€
THE CORAL ISLAND. 213
“Ralph Rover!†shouted a voice down the hatchway,
“captain wants you, aft.’
Springing up the ladder, I hastened to the cabin, pon-
dering 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 san-
dal-wood ?â€
“Yes, Ralph, she is; but she’s just as really a pirate.
The black flag you saw flying at the peak was no de-
ception.â€
“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 mission-
aries, 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.â€
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 masthead were more than
usually vigilant, as we were not only in danger of being
attacked by the natives, who, I learned from the cap-
214 THE CORAL ISLAND.
tain’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 isl-
anders. 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 aloud 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.â€
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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 215
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 Ill give myself to
the sharks.â€
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 dis-
tinguish 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-
216 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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. For-
tunately 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—Retrospect-
ive meditations interrupted by volcanic agency—The pirates negotiate
with a Feejee chief—Various etceteras that are calculated to surprise and
horrify.
T 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.â€
218 THE CORAL ISLAND.
“How so, Bill?†said I; “would ‘the natives not
receive me?â€
“That they would, lad; but they would eat you too.â€
“Eat me!†said I, in surprise; “I thought the South
Sea islanders never ate anybody except their enemies.â€
“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 ery out, ‘Oh,
that is too horrible! We can’t believe that!’ An’ they
say truth. They can’t believe it ’cause they won't be-
lieve 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.â€
“Why, Bill,†said I, “you told me just now that they
would eat me if they caught me.â€
“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 oftentiifles
as a trader. And thorough-goin’ blackguards some 0’
THE CORAL ISLAND. 219
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 trading with a
friendly chief one day, aboard his vessel. The chief had
swum off to us with the things for trade tied atop 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’, ’m up to the
ways 0 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.â€
220 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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,â€
he continued, in a soliloquizing 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
Pll go and turn in.â€
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 phos-
phorescent waves that gurgled around the rudder, 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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 221
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 with-
out 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 cast 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.â€
As he spoke a shower began to fall, which we quitely.
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 voleano far
e
222 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 inter-
ested 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 con-
siderable 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.â€
“ Have you been there before, then.?†T inquired.
THE CORAL ISLAND. 223
“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
294, THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 em-
barking 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 beauti-
fully 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 per-
son 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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 225
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, per-
chance, 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. Soa
shot was put into it. The chiefs were then directed to
look at a rock about two miles out at sea, and the gun
15
226 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 suppos-
ing 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 ordeyed 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-
\
THE CORAL ISLAND. 227
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 fol-
lowers, 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.
“Tt is beneath his dignity, I believe, to feed himself,â€
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 3 and if
he eats it, he 4s suré® 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
228 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 !â€
“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. “Ive seen a few of these
light-skinned fellows among the Feejeeans. They seem
to me to be of quite a different race.â€
“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.â€
“ 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.â€
“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 dis-
tance 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 agi-
THE CORAL ISLAND. 229
tated, 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.â€
“ 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 ?â€
“ 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 insti-
230 THE CORAL ISLAND.
tution called the Aveoi, 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 shan splin-
ters of bamboo, strangling them with their thumbs, or
burying them alive and stamping them to death while
under the sod.â€
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.â€
“God bless the missionaries ! Y 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!â€
“T would say Amen to that prayer, Ralph, if I could,â€
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,
“T’ve not told you half o’ the abominations I have seen
durin’ my life in these seas. If we pull long together,
lad, T’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.â€
CHAPTER XXV.
The sandal-wood party —WNative children’s games somewhat surprising—
Desperate amusements suddenly and fatally brought to a close—An old
friend recognized—News—Romata’s mad conduct.
EXT day the wood-cutting party went ashore
again, and I accompanied them as before. Dur-
ing 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 fora
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
232 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 numer-
ous 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 simi-
lar 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 them-
selves very much; so I went up to see what they were
doing, and found that they were opening their eyelids
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 eyeball, to keep them
in that position! This seemed to me, I must confess, a
very foolish as well as dangerous amusement. Never-
theless 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,
THE CORAL ISLAND. 233
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 swim:
ming 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 per-
fection the day following, I shall describe it more minutely.
234 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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.â€
«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.
“Tts a very favourite lark with these ’xtr’ornary
critters,†replied Bill, giving a turn to the quid of tobacco
that invariably bulged out of his left cheek. “ Ye see,
Ralph, them fellows take to the water as soon amost 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 0’
swimmin’ on 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 thunderin’ 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!â€
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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 235
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 remoyed nearly all the paint with which his
face had been covered, and as he rose panting to his
feet, I recognized, to my surprise, the features of Tararo,
my old friend of the Coral Island !
Tararo at the same moment recognized 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, re-
collecting that this was not the white man’s mode of
palueauions he grasped me by the hand aud shook: it
violently.
“Hallo, Ralph!†eried Bill, in surprise, “ that chap
seems to have taken a sudden fancy to you, or he must,
be an old acquaintance.â€
\
236 THE CORAL ISLAND,
“Right, Bill,†I replied: “he is indeed an old acquaint-
ance ;†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 fre-
quently during the course of it to me; whereby I con-
cluded 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.â€
“But why does Tararo frown and look so angry ?â€
said I.
“Because the girl’s somewhat obstinate, like most 0’
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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 287
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.â€
“As a long pig!†I exclaimed, in surprise ; “ why,
what does he mean by that?â€
“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.â€
“Ts she on the island now?†I asked eagerly.
“No; she’s at Tararo’s island.â€
“ And where does it lie?â€
“ About fifty or sixty miles to the south’ard o’ this,â€
returned Bill; “ but J-—’
At this moment. we were startled by the cry’ of
“Mao! mao!—a shark! a shark!†which was im-
mediately 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 eyeballs 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
238 . THE CORAL ISLAND.
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.â€
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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 239
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 pro-
cess 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, inter-
mingled with lozenges, squares, circles, and other arbi-
trary 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
240 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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.â€
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 them-
selves,†said I, “ which can restrain such wickedness ?â€
“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.â€
This ferocious deed took place within sight of our
party as we wended our way to the beach, but I could
THE CORAL ISLAND. 241
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.
16
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.
EXT 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
T 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.
THE CORAL ISLAND. 243
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 sar-
castically, 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 whale’s teeth, with my compliments.
Take with you one of the men who can speak the
language.â€
I looked at the gift in some surprise, for it consisted
of six white whale’s 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 ques-
tions; 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,—
244 THE CORAL ISLAND,
“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.â€
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 ecived the
whale’s 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.â€
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 ?â€
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 some-
thing 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.
THE CORAL ISLAND. 245
“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.â€
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,—
“T 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.â€
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 mon-
sters were actually launching their canoe over the living
bodies of their victims. But there was no pity in the
246 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 éyeballs from their sockets,
and sent the life-blood gushing from their mouths.
O 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 !â€â€”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 undertone; but the skylight
being off, I overheard every word that was said.
«T don’t half like it,†said the mate. “It seems to
me that we'll only have hard fightin’ and no pay.â€
“No pay!†repeated the captain, in a voice of sup-
pressed anger. “Do you call a good cargo all for nothing
no pay?â€
THE CORAL ISLAND. 247
“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 ?â€
“Mate,†said the captain, in a low voice, “you talk
like a fresh-water sailor. I can only attribute this shy-
ness 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.â€
“Defied us! did he?†cried the mate, with a bitter
laugh. “Poor, contemptible thing !â€
“ And yet he seems not so contemptible but that you
are afraid to attack him.â€
“Who said I was afraid?†growled the mate sulkily.
“Tm as ready as any man in the ship. But, captain,
what is it that you intend to do?â€
“TJ 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.â€
248 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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.â€
The reader may conceive the horror with which I
heard this murderous conversation. I immediately re-
peated it to Bill, who seemed much perplexed about it.
At length he said,—
“Tl tell you what Ill do, Ralph. Tl 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, “youll be balked at least for
once in your life by Bloody Bill.â€
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 pur-
pose, 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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 249
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.â€
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,’ whis-
pered the mate, as the men stepped out; “we shall want
all our hands. Let Ralph stay.â€
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 heart 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
250 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 !â€
followed by a 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 an 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 @attle. I saw at once
that this was a party who had outflanked our men, and
would speedily attack them in the rear. And so it
_ turned out; for in a short time the shouts increased
THE CORAL ISLAND. 251
tenfold, 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
eries 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 im-
possible. TI 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 recognized 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
252 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 re-
sumed 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 hesi-
tation 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.
HERE is a power of endurance in human beings,
both in their bodies and in their minds, which,
[ 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 sub-
jected 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 nar-
rated was planned, my anxieties and energies had been
so powerfully aroused that I went through the pro-
' tracted 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 thrill-
254: THE CORAL ISLAND.
ing 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 mouth-
ful; 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 prevading 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 contem-
plation 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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 255
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 anx-
iety. 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 his
dress, was torn and soiled with mud.
“O Bill!†said I, with deep anxiety, “what is the
matter with you? You are ill. You must have been
wounded.â€
“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. “T’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.â€
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.
256 THE CORAL ISLAND.
“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,â€
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.â€
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 be-
side 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.â€
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,â€
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 ina
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 in-
vention ; so just as I was givin’ it up and clinchin’ my
teeth to bide the worst o’t and take what should come,
THE CORAL ISLAND. Q57
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. ex-
ploded! Then came such a sereechin’ from the camp
as I never heard in all my life. I rose at once, and
was rushing on with the rest, when the captain called
a halt. =
“¢Vou 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 remem-
bered 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
erushed to death under yon big canoe. Jumpin’ up, I
looked round, and through the trees saw a fire gleamin’
not far off, the light of 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.â€
Bill seemed to be much exhausted after this recital,
and shuddered frequently during the narrative, so I re-
frained 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
; 17
258 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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.â€
“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.â€
“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 positien 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 complica-
tion 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 Ill 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.â€
Bill smiled faintly as I ran on in this strain.
THE CORAL ISLAND: 259
“And what will you do,†said he, “if it comes on to
blow a storm ?â€
This question silenced me, while I considered what I
should do in such a case. At length I laid my hand on
his arm, and said, “ Bill, when a man has done all that
he can do, he ought to leave the rest to God.â€
“OQ 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.
Im dyin’, Ralph; yet I, who have braved death a hun-
dred 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. ut it’s all over with
me, Ralph. I feel that there’s no chance o’ my bein’
saved.â€
“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 ?â€
“No; the last that was in the ship belonged to a
poor boy that was taken aboard against his will. He
died, poor lad—TI think through ill-treatment and fear.
After he was gone the captain found his Bible and flung
it overboard.â€
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 IJ, 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
260 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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.â€
“ Ay, Ralph, I’ve heard the missionaries say that be-
fore now, but what good can it do me? It’s not for me
that; it’s not for the likes o’ me.â€
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.â€
“ Bill,†said I, “‘ Though your sins be red like crimson,
they shall be white as snow.’ ‘Only believe.’ â€
“Only believe!†cried Bill, starting up on his elbow.
“T’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 !â€
The energy with which he said this, and the action
with which it was accompanied, were too much for Bill.
THE CORAL ISLAND. 261
He sank back with a deep groan. As if the very ele-
ments sympathized with this man’s sufferings, a low
moan came sweeping over the sea.
“Hist, Ralph!†said Bill, opening his eyes; “ there’s
a squall coming, lad. Look alive, boy! Clew up the
fore-sail. Drop the main-sail peak. Them squalls come
quick sometimes.â€
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 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.â€
A few seconds afterwards he said, “ Ralph, let me hear
those two texts again.â€
I repeated them.
“ Are ye sure, lad, ye saw them in the Bible ?â€
“ 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. Mean-
while 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
262 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 be-
laying-pin which had served to steady him, and he slid
with stunning violence against the skylight. 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 sharp-
ness of the vessel’s bow and the press of canvas, 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 dis-
covered—Natural phenomenon—A bright day in my history.
T was with feelings of awe, not unmingled with fear,
that I now seated myself on the cabin skylight
and gazed upon the rigid features of my late comrade,
while my mind wandered over his past history and con-
templated with anxiety my present position. Alone,
in the midst of the wide Pacific, having a most imper-
fect knowledge of navigation, and in a schooner requir-
ing 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 leeway the schooner made, I hoped to
hit the Coral Island without much difficulty. In this I
264 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 prepara-
tions for hoisting the top-sails. This was a most ardu-
ous 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 un-
reeved 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, how-
ever, 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 observa-
tion 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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 265
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, there-
fore, I had only to make allowance for the leeway 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 my-
self 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 multi-
form 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 sup-
pose, the pirate captain had brought with him in order
to guide him, and to furnish him with information re-
garding 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
266 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 par-
ticular 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 disap-
peared, 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. [
found, however, that when I went into the dark my hand
shone again; so I took the large glass of the ship’s tele-
scope 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 medusee or jelly-fish which are seen in all parts of
the world.
THE CORAL ISLAND. 267
On the evening of my fourteenth day I was awakened
out of a nap into which I had fallen by a loud ery, 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 daylight, 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 short-
ening 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 magnifi-
cent 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.
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 exclama-
tion 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 CORAL ISLAND. 269
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. Fortu-
nately 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 quickly through, I glanced affection-
ately 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 op-
posite the bower. Running forward, I let go the
anchor, caught up the red-hot poker, applied it to the
brass gun, and saluted the mountains with a bang
270 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 eyeballs
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!â€
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 recognized 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 sputtering 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 embrac-
ing 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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 271
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 clinched
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 par-
ticularly 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!
272 THE CORAL ISLAND.
“T 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 con-
sternation 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 verily believe, all my life before—â€
“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—â€
“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 diffi-
culty 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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 273
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 alto-
gether! 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 again, where he rose
panting to the surface. In short, he had lost his
presence of mind, and—â€
“Nothing of the sort,†cried Peterkin indignantly, “I
had only lost my wind; and if I had not had presence
18
274 THE CORAL ISLAND.
of mind enough to kick as I did, I should have bu’st in
your arms!â€
“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.â€
“TI wish we had,†again interrupted Peterkin, with a
sigh—‘T’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.â€
“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, J 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 shan’t 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 !’
THE CORAL ISLAND. 275
“TI 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 sur-
face 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 hyena 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 com-
pleted 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 lynmg among the
rocks, which seemed to be quite different from the
276 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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.â€
“Tt 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 !â€
“Tll 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.â€
“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.â€
“Just the very thing I was going to: propose,†cried
Peterkin. “TI vote for starting at once.â€
THE CORAL ISLAND. Q77
“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 en-
gaged, 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.â€
“Tm 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 ’m your man
whenever you want me.â€
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?â€
“Go with you?†we repeated in the same breath.
“Can you.doubt it?†said I.
“For a moment,†added Peterkin. 3
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.
278 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 con-
dition—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 star-fish, 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 pug-
nacious as ever. It was indeed so lovely and so in-
teresting 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 penknife, 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.
THE CORAL ISLAND. 279
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.
UR voyage during the next two weeks was most
interesting and prosperous. The breeze con-
tinued 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 make little leeway. 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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 281
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 recognized 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 be-
side him on the cabin skylight, “before we go further
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.â€
“Oh, bother the danger!†cried Peterkin. “I wonder
to hear you, Jack, talk of danger. When a fellow be-
gins 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.â€
“Nay, Peterkin,†replied Jack gravely, “I won’t be
jested out of it. I grant you that when we've once re-
solved 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, were 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’ ?â€
282 THE CORAL ISLAND.
“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 insig-
nificant 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 deter-
mined 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.â€
“Tis a pity,†said Jack, “that the Christian tribe is
so small, for we shall scarcely be safe under their pro-
tection, 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 mission-
ary talks English ?â€
“So I believe.â€
“Then, what I propose is this,†said Jack. “We will
run round to the south side of the island, and cast
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- dived: 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!â€
“Well, that zs the worst of it, certainly. Are you
prepared, then, to take your chance of that ?â€
“Tve been prepared and had my mind made up long
THE CORAL ISLAND. 283
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.â€
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 southward, 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.â€
After returning his salutation, Jack exclaimed, “ You
must be the native missionary teacher of whom I have
heard; are you not?â€
“Tam. I have the joy to be a servant of the Lord
Jesus at this station.â€
“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.â€
“Thank you,†said the teacher, as he followed Jack
to the cabin; “I do not drink wine or any strong
drink.â€
4,
284, THE CORAL ISLAND.
“Oh! then there’s lots of water, and you can have
biscuit.â€
“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?â€
“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.â€
While the vessel was slowly advancing to her anchor-
age, 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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 285
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 ras-
cally chief till the day after.â€
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 neigh-
bouring 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
286 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 ac-
commodate upwards of two thousand persons. It had
six large folding-doors, and twelve windows with Vene-
tian 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!â€
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 a 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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 287
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,—
“TI say, Mister Teacher, why don’t you set traps for
these brutes? Surely you are not fond of them !â€
“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.â€
“ 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.â€
We had not been an hour in the house of this kind-
hearted man when we were convinced of the truth of
288 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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.â€
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 :—
“TI smiled just now when I remembered the fate
of the first cat that was taken to Rarotonga. 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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 289
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.â€
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 ques-
tions 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 !â€
Among other pieces of interesting information that
we obtained was the following, in ropard to coral for-
mations :—
“The islands of the Pacific,†ssid 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
19
290 THE CORAL ISLAND.
and fifteen thousand feet. Those of the second class are
of crystallized 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 foun-
dation 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 sur-
face of the water is reached, these myriads of wonderful
creatures die, Then birds visit the spot, and seeds are
THE CORAL ISLAND. 291
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
Lord, are thy works! in wisdom hast thou made them all.â€
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 fur-
ther 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
292 THE CORAL ISLAND.
and a, Bible, besides some portions of the Scripture trans-
lated 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 first 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 un-
faithful, 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.
THE CORAL ISLAND. 293
«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.’
“T 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 con-
sidered 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. 1
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
294, THE CORAL ISLAND.
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!â€
We were indeed much interested in this account, and
T could not help again in my heart praying God to
prosper those missionary societies that send such in-
estimable 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 ?â€
“Have the missionaries many stations in these seas ?â€
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 prac-
tice of those terrible sins and bloody murders of which
you have already heard. I trust, my friends,†he added,
looking earnestly into our faces—‘“TI 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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 295
which man may not speak. You may also tell them,â€
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 !â€
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 house were up, I sent the people to
fetch coral from the sea. They brought immense quan-
tities. -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 imme-
diately 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
296 THE CORAL ISLAND.
looked upon it with great admiration. The chief then,
tying a string to it, hung it round his neck as an orna-
ment! He afterwards told me that if he had seen it
before he became a Christian, he would have made it
his god!â€
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 overshot arrow. Will you go?â€
“To be sure we will,†said Peterkin.
“Tf they chance to see us well cut and run for it,â€
added. Jack.
“Dear me!†cried Peterkin—“you run! I thought
you would scorn to run from any one.â€
“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.â€
CHAPTER XXXTI.
A strange and bloody battle—The lion bearded in his den—Frightful scenes of
cruelty, and fears for the future.
E 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 mélée, and a more dreadful set of men I
have never seen. They wore grotesque war-caps made
of various substances and decorated with feathers.
298 : THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 woman 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 feel-
ings 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.â€
“Well,†said Jack quietly, “I am not afraid to die in
a good cause.â€
The teacher smiled approvingly at him as he said
this, and after a little further conversation agreed to
THE CORAL ISLAND. 299
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 re-
ligion, 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
300 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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!â€
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 ex-
pression on his naturally grave countenance, while he
assented to the teacher’s remarks and put to him many
earnest questions. Meanwhile the natives who com-
posed 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 after-
wards 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.
THE CORAL ISLAND. 301
“ 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?â€
To this I assented gladly, and Peterkin replied by
laying down a huge bell-mouthed blunderbuss, and divest-
ing 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 con-
ducted. us to a house or shed where a baked pig and a
variety of vegetables were prepared for us. Having par-
taken 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 for-
ward 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 ?â€
“T 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.â€
302 THE CORAL ISLAND.
“Very good,†returned Jack; “then I'll go alone, for
I cannot condemn their doings till I have seen them.â€
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 Buré, 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 inhabit-
ants with the natives of the Christian village, who, to
use the teacher's scriptural expression, were now “ clothed
and in their right mind.â€
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,—
“O 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.â€
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.â€
THE CORAL ISLAND. 303
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 eyeballs 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. Be-
hind 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
304 THE CORAL ISLAND.
posture; and a man, called a “dan-vosa†(orator), ad-
vanced, 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 “ovo,â€
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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 305
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.â€
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 ruth-
less men.
20
CHAPTER XXXII.
An unexpected discovery, and a bold, reckless defiance, with its consequences—
Plans of escape, and heroic resolves.
HEN 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?â€
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.â€
While this was being franclated the chief’s brow
lowered, and we could see plainly that our request met
with no favourable reception. He replied with con-
siderable energy, and at some length.
“ What says he?†inquired Jack.
THE CORAL ISLAND. 307
“T regret to say that he will not listen to the pro-
posal. 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.â€
Jack bit his lip in suppressed anger. “Tell Tararo,â€
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.â€
“Nay, my friend,†said the teacher gently, “I will
not tell him that; we must ‘overcome evil with good.’â€
“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.
“TI 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 recognized the Samoan girl Avatea.
We stood rooted to the earth with surprise and thick-
coming fears.
“OQ 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 !â€
“Ts she?†cried Jack, with a vehement shout, spurn-
ing the teacher aside, and dashing over two natives who
stood in his way, while he rushed towards the heap,
3808 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 !â€
It seemed as though the challenge had been literally
accepted ; for every savage on the ground ran precipi-
tately 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.â€
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?â€
“Villain!†exclaimed Jack passionately, “I may die,
but assuredly I shall not perish alone. I will not sub-
mit until you promise that this girl shall not be injured.â€
“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.â€
“You had better accept these terms,†whispered the
THE CORAL ISLAND. 309
teacher entreatingly. “If you persist in this mad de-
fiance, you will be slain, and Avatea will be lost. Three
days are worth having.â€
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—â€
“Act!†cried Jack, raising himself and tossing back
his hair wildly; “it is mockery to talk of acting when
one is bound hand and foot. How can I act? I cannot
310 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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.â€
“ 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.â€
“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.â€
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.â€
“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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 311
lover. Once there, Avatea would be safe. Now, I sug-
gest that you should abandon your schooner. Do you
think that you can make so great a sacrifice ?â€
“Friend,†replied Jack, “when I make up my mind
to go through with a thing of importance, I can make
any sacrifice.â€
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.â€
“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.â€
“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.â€
« And what'll be the result of that?†inquired Jack.
“TI 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!â€
“But how are we to get hold of Avatea?†inquired
Jack.
“JT have arranged with her to meet us at a particu-
lar 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
312 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 castaway who gains the shore is doomed to die.
You must count the cost, my young friend.â€
“T have counted it,†replied Jack. “If Avatea con-
sents 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.â€
We now set about aetive preparations for the intended
voyage; collected togéther 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 kneel-
ing 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.â€
“J understan’ leet] English,†said Avatea, in a low voice.
THE CORAL ISLAND. 313
“Why, where did you pick up English?†exclaimed
Jack, in amazement; “ you were dumb as a stone when I
saw you last.â€
“ She has learned all she knows of it from me,†said
the teacher, “since she came to the island.â€
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 per-
secutors to think of the danger or risk.
“Then you're willing to go with us, are you?†said
Jack.
“Yis, I willing to go.â€
“And you're not afraid to trust yourself out on the
deep sea so far?â€
“No, I not fraid to go. Safe with Christian.â€
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 XXXITIL
The flight—The pursuit—Despair and its results—The tion bearded in his den
again—Awful danger threatened and wonderfully averted—A terrific storm.
S 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 re-
solved to go ashore 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
sun 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 mufiled oars, so that had any one
observed us at the distance of a few yards, he might
THE CORAL ISLAND. 315
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 ?â€
“Vis, 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. Enos, step into the middle;
—that’s right.â€
“Ts all ready 2†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.â€
“Now, then, in with you and shove off.â€
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 awell of the open sea.
All that night and the whole of the following day
316 THE CORAL ISLAND.
we plied our paddles in almost total silence and with-
out 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 con-
stantly 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.â€
“Hear, hear!†cried Peterkin. “Nobly spoken, Jack.
—Hand me a drop water, RalphWhy, girl, what's
wrong with you? you look just like a black owl
blinking in the sunshine.â€
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.†:
THE CORAL ISLAND. 317
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.â€
. “ Peterkin, you're a villain—a paltry little villain,â€
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.â€
“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.—tI 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 !â€
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
318 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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: with-
out interruption into the following morning. But I can-
not 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 ery 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.
“T 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.â€
THE CORAL ISLAND. 319
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
320 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 in 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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 321
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 un-
usually 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.â€
The teacher shook his head. “Nay, my young
friend, I had better not tell him that; it will only
incense him.â€
“T care not,†replied Jack. “If you don’t tell him
that, you'll tell him nothing, for I won’t say anything
softer,â€
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.â€
As he spoke he rose and signed to several of his
attendants, who seized Jack and Peterkin and me
21
322 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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.â€
“T 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. Per-
haps 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.â€
“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.â€
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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 323
to the hut of Tararo again. But in this we were mis-
taken. 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 thunderstorm. 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, “T am
in time! Now, seek the shelter of the nearest rock.â€
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,
324 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 dwell-
ings! 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 en-
THE CORAL ISLAND. 825
deavoured 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.
OR 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 de-
solation 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 footfall
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 gradu-
ally, 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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 327
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 ?â€
“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.â€
“ 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.â€
Peterkin’s tone was so much altered by the depress-
ing influence of his long imprisonment, that, had I not
known it was he who spoke, I should scarcely have re-
cognized 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,
328 THE CORAL ISLAND.
“Oh, I wonder if we shall ever see our dear island
more !â€
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 re-
fused 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 sur-
prise, 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,
THE CORAL ISLAND. 3829
with his hands clasped before him, and the tears trick-
ling down his dark cheeks. On seeing Jack, who came
out first, he sprang towards him, and clasping him in
his arms, exclaimed,—
“OQ my dear young friend, through the great good-
ness of God you are free!â€
“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.â€
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 per-
fume 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
830 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 truth-
ful. 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 mission-
ary’s face as he advanced quickly to meet us, and he
shook us warmly by the hands.
“T am overjoyed to meet you, my dear young friends,â€
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.â€
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.
“J 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.â€
In the conversation that immediately followed be-
tween us and Tararo, the latter said that the light of
the gospel of Jesus Christ had been sent to the island,
THE CORAL ISLAND. 38l
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 re-
quired. 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 morn-
ing in his war-canoe to treat with Tararo for Avatea.
He is to be married in a few days, and afterwards re-
turns to his island home with his bride!â€
“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.â€
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
_ 882 THE CORAL ISLAND.
risked your life for one who was known to you only for
afew 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.â€
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 !â€
“That’s my idea precisely,†said Peterkin, endeavour-
ing to wink; but he had wept so much of late, poor
fellow, that he found it difficult. “However, [’m not
going away till I see these fellows burn their gods.â€
Peterkin had his wish, for in a few minutes after-
wards fire was put to the pile, the roaring flames as-
cended, and amid the acclamations of the assembled
thousands the false gods of Mango were reduced to
ashes !
CHAPTER XXXV.
Conclusion.
alee 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 inter-
course 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
actions.
334 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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 Raro-
tonga, 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 him-
self to be sincere, for, as we have seen, he persuaded all
his people to do likewise. I use the word “ persuadedâ€
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
THE CORAL ISLAND. 335
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 consulta-
tion 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 canvas.
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
336 THE CORAL ISLAND.
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,â€
and were gradually leaving far behind us the beautiful,
bright green coral islands of the Pacific Ocean.
THE END.
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