Guided by the marks made on the trees, William and Ready made rapid progress in their return, and in less than two hours found themselves almost clear of the wood which had taken them nearly eight hours to force their way through the day before.
"I feel the wind now, Ready," observed William, "and we must be nearly through the wood; but it appears to me to be very dark."
"I was just thinking the same," replied Ready. "I should not wonder if there is a storm brewing up; and if so, the sooner we are back again the better."
As they proceeded, the rustling and waving of the boughs of the trees, and ever and anon a gust of wind, followed by a moaning and creaking sound, proved that such was the fact; and as they emerged from the grove, they perceived that the sky, as it became visible to them, was of one dark leaden hue, and no longer of the brilliant blue which it usually had presented to their sight.
"There is indeed a gale coming on," said Ready, as they cleared the wood: "let us go on to the tents as fast as possible, for we must see that all is as secure as we can make it."
The dogs now bounded forward; and at their appearance at the tents Mr. Seagrave and Juno came out, and seeing Ready and William advancing, made known the welcome tidings to Mrs. Seagrave, who, with the children, had remained within. In a moment more William was pressed in his mother's arms.
"I am glad that you are come back, Ready," said Mr. Seagrave, shaking him by the hand after he had embraced William, "for I fear that bad weather is coming on."
"I am sure of it," replied Ready, "and we must expect a blusterous night. This will be one of the storms which are forerunners of the rainy season. However, we have good news for you, and must only take this as a warning to hasten our departure as soon as possible. We shall have fine weather after this for a month or so, although we must expect a breeze now and then. But we must work hard and do our best; and now, if you please, you and Juno, William and I, will go and haul up the boat as far from the beach as we possibly can, for the waves will be high and run a long way up, and our boat will be our main dependence soon."
The four went down as soon as Ready had sawed the ends of the spars which had been cut off, into three rollers, to fix under the keel; with the help afforded by them, the boat was soon hauled up high into the brushwood, where it was considered by Ready to be perfectly safe.
"I meant to have worked upon her immediately," observed Ready; "but I must wait now till the gale is over; and I did hope to have got on board once more, and looked after some things which I have since remembered would have been useful; but I strongly suspect," continued he, looking at the weather, "that we shall never go on board of the poor vessel again. Hear the moaning of the coming storm, sir; look how the sea-birds wheel about and scream, as if to proclaim her doom; but we must not wait here - the tents must be made more secure, for they will have to hold up against no small force of wind, if I mistake not."
Ready, assisted by Mr. Seagrave, now got out some heavy canvas and lines, and commenced putting it as a double cover over the tents, to keep out the rain; they also secured the tents with guys and stays of rope, so as to prevent them being blown down; while Juno with a shovel deepened the trench which had been made round the tents, so that the water might run off more easily. During the time they were at work, Ready had made Mr. Seagrave acquainted with what they had discovered and done during the exploring expedition, and the adventure with the pigs made them all laugh heartily.
As the sun went down, the weather threatened still more; the wind blew strong, and the rocky beach was lashed by the waves and white with spray, while the surf roared as it poured in and broke upon the sand in the cove. The whole family had retired to bed except Ready, who said that he would watch the weather a little before he turned in. The old man walked towards the beach, and leaned against the gunnel of the boat, and there he remained with his keen gray eye fixed upon the distance, which was now one opaque mass, except where the white foam of the waters gleamed through the darkness of the night! "Yes!" thought he; "the winds and the waves are summoned to do his bidding, and evenly do they work together - as one rises, so does the other; when one howls, the other roars in concert - hand in hand they go in their fury and their force. Had they been called up but one week since, where would have been those who have now been, as it were, intrusted to my weak help? The father, the mother, the children, the infant at the breast, and I, the gray-headed old man, - all buried fathoms deep, awaiting our summons; but they were restrained by his will, and by his will we were saved. Will those timbers which bore us here so miraculously hold together till morning? I should think not. What are the iron bolts and fastenings of weak man, compared with the force of God's elements: they will snap as yarns; and by to-morrow's dawn, the fragments of the stout ship will be washing and tossing on the wild surf. Well, it will be a kindness to us, for the waters will perform the labour which we could not; they will break up the timbers for our use, and throw on shore from the hold those articles which we could not reach with our little strength."
A sharp flash of lightning struck upon the old man's eyes, and obstructed his vision for the moment. "The storm will soon be at its height," thought he; "I will watch the tents, and see how they stand up against its force." Then the rain came pattering down, and the wind howled louder than before. In a minute or two the darkness became so intense that he could hardly find his way back to the tents. He turned round, but could not see, for he was blinded by the heavy rain. As nothing could be done, he went into the tent and sheltered himself from the storm, although he would not lie down, lest his services might be required. The others had retired to bed, but with the exception of Tommy and the children, they had not taken off their clothes.
The storm now raged furiously, the lightning was accompanied by loud peals of thunder, and the children awoke and cried with fright, till they were hushed to sleep again. The wind howled as it pressed with all its violence against the tents, while the rain poured off in torrents. One moment the canvas of the tents would bulge in, and the cords which held it strain and crack; at another, an eddy of wind would force out the canvas, which would flap and flap, while the rain found many an entrance. The tent in which Mrs. Seagrave and the children reposed was on the outside of the others, and therefore the most exposed. About midnight the wind burst on them with greater violence than before. A loud crash was heard by Ready and Mr. Seagrave, followed by the shrieks of Mrs. Seagrave and Juno; the pegs of the tent had given way, and the inmates were exposed to the fury of the elements. Ready rushed out, followed by Mr. Seagrave and William. So strong was the wind and beating rain, and such was the darkness, that it was with some difficulty that by their united efforts the women and children could be extricated. Tommy was the first taken up by Ready: his courage had all gone, and he was bellowing furiously. William took Albert in charge and carried him into the other tent, where Tommy sat in his wet shirt roaring most melodiously. Juno, Mrs. Seagrave, and the little girl were at last carried away and taken into the other tent: fortunately no one was hurt, although the frightened children could not be pacified, and joined in chorus with Tommy. Nothing more could be done except to put the children into bed, and then the whole party sat up the remainder of the night listening to the noise of the wind, the roaring of the sea, and the loud patter of the rain against the canvas. At dawn of day, Ready went out, and found that the gale had spent its force, and had already much abated; but it was not one of those bright glorious mornings to which they had been accustomed since their arrival at the island: the sky was still dark, and the clouds were chasing each other wildly; there was neither sun nor blue sky to be seen: it still rained, but only at intervals, and the earth was soft and spongy; the little cove, but the day before so beautiful, was now a mass of foaming and tumultuous waves, and the surf was thrown many yards upon the beach: the horizon was confused - you could not distinguish the line between the water and the sky, and the whole shore of the island was lined with a white foam. Ready turned his eyes to where the ship had been fixed on the rocks: it was no longer there - the whole frame had disappeared; but the fragments of it, and the contents of the holds, were floating about in every direction, or tossing amongst the surf on the beach.
"I thought as much," said Ready, pointing to where the ship had lain, as he turned round and found that Mr. Seagrave had followed him; "look, sir, this gale has broken her up entirely. This is a warning to us not to remain here any longer: we must make the most of the fine weather which we may have before the rainy season sets in."
"I agree with you, Ready," replied Mr. Seagrave, - "and there is another proof of it," pointing to the tent which had been blown down. "It was a mercy that none of them were hurt."
"Very true, sir; but the gale is breaking, and we shall have fine weather to-morrow. Let us now see what we can do with the tent, while William and Juno try if they can get any breakfast."
They set to work. Ready and Mr. Seagrave made it fast with fresh cords and pegs, and very soon had it all ready; but the beds and bedding were wet through. They hauled over the wet canvas, and then left it to go to their breakfast, to which Juno had summoned them.
"We need do no more at present," said Ready, "by night-time it will not be so wet, and we can handle it easier. I see a break in the sky now which promises fine weather soon. And now we had better work hard to-day, for we may save a great many things, which may be dashed to pieces on the rocks, if we do not haul them on the beach."
They went down to the beach. Ready first procured from the stores a good stout rope; and as the waves threw up casks and timbers of the vessel, they stopped them from being washed back again, and either rolled or hauled them up with the rope until they were safely landed. This occupied them for the major part of the day; and yet they had not collected a quarter of the articles that were in their reach, independent of the quantity which floated about out at sea and at the entrance of the cove.
"I think," said Ready, "we have done a good day's work; tomorrow we shall be able to do much more, for the sea is going down, and the sun is showing himself from the corner of that cloud. Now we will go to supper, and then see if we can make ourselves more comfortable for the night."
The tent which had not been blown down was given to Mrs. Seagrave and the children, and the other was fitted up as well as it could be. The bedding being all wet, they procured some sails from the stores, which, being stowed away farther in the grove, had not suffered much from the tempest; and, spreading the canvas, they lay down, and the night passed without any disaster, for the wind was now lulled to a pleasant breeze.
The next morning the sun shone bright - the air was fresh and bracing; but a slight breeze rippled the waters, and there was little or no surf. The various fragments of the wreck were tossed by the little surf that still remained; many things were lying on the beach which had landed during the night, and many more required but a little trouble to secure them. There appeared to be a sort of in draught into the cove, as all the articles which had been floating out at sea were now gradually coming on shore in that direction. Ready and Mr. Seagrave worked till breakfast-time, and had by that time saved a great many casks and packages.
After breakfast they went down again to the beach and resumed their labours. "Look, Ready; what is that?" said William, who was with them, as he pointed to a white-looking mass floating in the cove.
"That, sir, is the poor cow; and if you look again, you will see the sharks are around, making a feast of her: don't you see them?"
"Yes, I do - what a quantity!"
"Yes, there's no want of them, William; so be very careful how you get into the water, and never let Tommy go near it, for they don't care how shallow it is when they see their food. But now, sir," said Ready, "I must leave you and William to do what you can in saving any more of the wreck, while I set to and put the boat in proper repair."
Ready left them at their own employment, and went away for his tools. During this time Mr. Seagrave and William occupied themselves in collecting the different articles thrown on shore, and rolling up the casks as far as they could.
As it would take some days for Ready to put the boat into proper order, Mr. Seagrave determined that he would go to the other side of the island with William, that he might examine it himself; and, as Mrs. Seagrave had no objection to be left with Ready and Juno, on the third day after the gale they set off. William led the way, guiding his footsteps through the grove by the blazing of the cocoa-nut trees; and in two hours they reached their destination.
"Is not this beautiful, father?" said William.
"Yes, indeed it is, my dear boy," replied Mr. Seagrave. "I fancied that nothing could be more beautiful than the spot where we reside, but this surpasses it, not only in variety, but in extent."
"And now let us examine the spring, father," said William, leading the way to the ravine.
The spring was full and flowing, and the water excellent. They then directed their steps towards the sandy beach, and, having walked some time, sat down upon a coral rock.
"Who would have ever imagined, William," said Mr. Seagrave, "that this island, and so many more which abound in the Pacific Ocean, could have been raised by the work of little insects not bigger than a pin's head?"
"Insects, father?" replied William.
"Yes, insects. Give me that piece of dead coral, William. Do you see that on every branch there are a hundred little holes? Well, in every one of these little holes once lived a sea-insect; and as these insects increase, so do the branches of the coral-trees."
"Yes, I understand that; but how do you make out that this island was made by them?"
"Almost all the islands in these seas have been made by the labour and increase of these small animals. The coral grows at first at the bottom of the sea, where it is not disturbed by the winds or waves: by degrees, as it increases, it advances higher and higher to the surface, till at last it comes near to the top of the water; then it is stopped in its growth by the force of the winds and waves, which break it off, and of course it never grows above the water, for if it did the animals would die."
"Then how does it become an island?"
"By very slow degrees; the time, perhaps, much depending upon chance: for instance, a log of wood floating about, and covered with barnacles, may ground upon the coral reefs; that would be a sufficient commencement, for it would remain above water, and then shelter the coral to leeward of it, until a flat rock had formed, level with the edge of the water. The sea-birds are always looking for a place to rest upon, and they would soon find it, and then their droppings would, in course of time, form a little patch above water, and other floating substances would be thrown on it; and land-birds, who are blown out to sea, might rest themselves on it, and the seeds from their stomachs, when dropped, would grow into trees or bushes."
"I understand that."
"Well then, William, you observe there is an island commenced, as it were, and, once commenced, it soon increases, for the coral would then be protected to leeward, and grow up fast. Do you observe how the coral reefs extend at this side of the island, where they are protected from the winds and waves; and how different it is on the weather side, which we have just left? Just so the little patch above water protects the corals to leeward, and there the island increases fast; for the birds not only settle on it, hut they make their nests and rear their young, and so every year the soil increases; and then, perhaps, one cocoa-nut in its great outside shell at last is thrown on these little patches - it takes root, and becomes a tree, every year shedding its large branches, which are turned into mould as soon as they decay, and then dropping its nuts, which again take root and grow in this mould; and thus they continue, season after season, and year after year, until the island becomes as large and as thickly covered with trees as the one we are now standing upon. Is not this wonderful, my dear boy? Is not he a great and good God who can make such minute animals as these work his pleasure, and at the time he thinks fit produce such a beautiful island as this?"
"Indeed he is!" exclaimed William.
"We only need use our eyes, William, and we shall love as well as adore. Look at that shell - is it not beautifully marked? - could the best painter in the world equal its colouring?"
"No, indeed, - I should think not."
"And yet there are thousands of them in sight, and perhaps millions more in the water. They have not been coloured in this way to be admired, like the works of man; for this island has been till now probably without any one upon it, and no one has ever seen them. It makes no difference to Him, who has but to wish, and all is complete."
For a few minutes after this conversation, Mr. Seagrave and William were both silent. Mr. Seagrave then rose from where he was sitting: "Come, William, let us now find our way back again; we have three hours' daylight left, and shall be home in good time."
Everything was now preparing for their removal to the leeward side of the island. Ready had nearly completed the boat; he had given it a thorough repair, and fitted a mast and sail. William and Mr. Seagrave continued to collect and secure the various articles thrown on shore, particularly such as would be injured by their exposure to the weather: these they rolled or carried into the cocoa-nut grove, so as to be sheltered from the sun; but there were so many things thrown on shore day after day, that they hardly knew what they had: but they secured case and cask one after another, waiting for a better opportunity to examine their contents. At last they collected a great many articles together, and, with their shovels, covered them over with sand, it being impossible to get them from the beach without more time than they could spare.
Neither was Mrs. Seagrave, who was now getting quite strong, or Juno, idle. They had made up everything that they could in packages, ready for moving. On the eighth day after the gale, they were ready, and it was arranged that Ready should put into the boat the bedding and canvas of one tent, and should take William with him on his expedition. Having transported this safe, he should return for a load of the most necessary articles, and then the family should walk through the grove to the other side of the island, and remain there with Mr. Seagrave while Ready and William returned for the other tent; and after that, the boat should make as many trips as the weather would permit, till they had brought all the things absolutely required. It was a lovely calm morning when Ready and William pushed off in the boat, which was well loaded; and as soon as they were clear of the cove they hoisted the sail, and went away before the wind along the coast. In two hours they had run to the eastern end of the island, and hauled up close inshore: the point which ran out, and at the end of which there was an inlet, was not a mile from them, and in a very short time they had lowered the sail, and were pulling in for the sandy beach.
"You see, William, it is fortunate for us that we shall always have a fair wind when we come down loaded, and only have to pull our empty boat back again."
"Indeed it is. How many miles do you think it is from the cove to this part of the island?"
"About six or seven, not more: the island, you see, is long and narrow. Now let us get the things out and carry them up, and then we will be back to the cove long before dark."
The boat was soon unloaded, but they had some way to carry up the things. "We shall not mind such a gale as we had the other day when our tents are pitched here, William," said Ready, "for we shall be protected by the whole width of the cocoa-nut grove. We shall hardly feel the wind, although we shall the rain, for that will come down in torrents."
"I must go and see how our spring gets on," said William, "and get a drink from it."
Willy reported the spring to be up to the brim with water, and that he had never drunk water so excellent. They then pushed off the boat, and, after rowing for about two hours or more, found themselves at the entrance of the cove, and Mrs. Seagrave, with Tommy by her side, waving her handkerchief to them.
They very soon pulled in to the beach, and, landing, received the congratulations of the whole party at their first successful voyage, and all expressed their delight at its having proved so much shorter than had been anticipated.
"Tommy will go next time," said Master Tommy.
"By and by, when Tommy grows a little taller," replied Ready.
"Massa Tommy, you come help me to milk the goats," said Juno.
"Yes, Tommy milk the goats," said the little urchin, running afterJuno.
"You must be almost tired of eating nothing but salt meat and biscuit, ma'am," said Ready, as they sat down to their meal; "but when we are all safe on the other side of the island we hope to feed you better. At present it is hard work and hard fare."
"As long as the children are well, I care very little about it; but I must say that, after the last gale, I am as anxious as you to be on the other side of the island, especially after the account William has given me of it. It must be a paradise! When do we set off?"
"Not till the day after to-morrow, ma'am, I should think; for you see I must have another trip for the cooking utensils and the bundles which you have made up. If you will spare Juno to walk through the wood with William to-morrow, we will then have the tent ready for you and the children."
Old Ready had his boat loaded and had made sail for the other side of the island long before the family were up; indeed, before they were dressed he had landed his whole cargo on the beach, and was sitting down quietly taking his breakfast. As soon as he had eaten the beef and biscuit which he had taken with him, he carried up the things which he had brought, and commenced arrangements for setting up the tent, intending to await the arrival of William and Juno, that they might assist him in getting up the spars and canvas over it.
About ten o'clock William made his appearance, leading one of the goats by a string, followed by the others. Juno came after with the sheep, also holding one with a cord; the rest had very quietly joined the procession. "Here we are at last!" said William laughing; "we have had terrible work in the woods, for Nanny would run on one side of a tree when I went on the other, and then I had to let go the string. We fell in with the pigs again, and Juno gave such a squall!"
"I tink 'em wild beast," said Juno. "Ah! what a nice place! Missis will like to live here."
"Yes, it is a very nice place, Juno; and you'll be able to wash here, and never mind about saving the water."
"I am thinking," said William, "how we are to get the fowls here; they are not very wild, but still we cannot catch them."
"I'll bring them with me to-morrow, William."
"But how will you catch them?"
"Wait till they are gone to roost, and then you may catch them when you please."
"And I suppose the pigeons and the pigs must run wild?"
"The best thing we can do with them."
"Then we shall have to shoot them, I suppose?"
"Well, William, so we shall; and the pigeons also, when they have become plentiful, if we remain here so long. We shall soon be well stocked and live in plenty. But now you must help me to get the tent up and everything in order, so that your mamma may find things comfortable on her arrival, for she will be very tired, I dare say, walking through the wood."
"Mamma is much better than she was," replied William. "I think she will soon be quite strong again, especially when she comes to live at this beautiful place."
"We have a great deal of work to do, more than we can get through before the rainy season; which is a pity, but it can't helped; by this time next year we shall be more comfortable."
"Why, what have we to do besides putting up the tents and shifting over here?"
"In the first place we have to build a house, and that will take a long while. Then we ought to make a little garden, and sow the seeds which your father brought from England with him."
"0h! that will be nice; where shall we make it, Ready?"
"We must put a fence across that point of land, and dig up all the brushwood; the mould is very good."
"Then what next?"
"Then we shall want a storehouse for all the things we have got, and all that are in the wood and on the beach: and consider what a many trips we shall have to make with the little boat to bring them all round."
"Yes, that is very true, Ready. Have we anything more to do?"
"Plenty; we have to build a turtle-pond and a fish-pond, and a bathing-place for Juno to wash the children in. But first we must make a proper well at the spring, so as to have plenty of fresh water: now there's enough for a year's hard work at least."
"Well, let us once get mamma and the children here, and we will work hard."
"I should wish very much to see it all done, William," said Ready. "I hope my life will be spared till it is done, at all events."
"But why do you say that, Ready? you are an old man, but you are strong and healthy."
"I am so now; but what does the Book say? - `In the midst of life we are in death'. You are young and healthy, and promise a long life; but who knows but you may be summoned away tomorrow. Can I, then, an old man, worn out with hardships, expect to live long? No - no, William! Still I should like to remain here as long as I can be useful, and then I trust I may depart in peace. I never wish to leave this island; and I have a kind of feeling that my bones will remain on it. God's will be done!"
For some time after Ready had finished, neither of them said a word, but continued their employment, stretching out the canvas of the tent, and fastening it down to the ground with pegs. At last William broke the silence.
"Ready, did you not say your Christian name was Masterman?"
"So it is, William."
"It is a very odd Christian name! You were called after some other person?"
"Yes, I was, William; he was a very rich man."
"Do you know, Ready, I should like very much if you will one day tell me your history - I mean your whole life, from the time you were a boy."
"Well, perhaps I may, William; for there are many parts of my life which would prove a lesson to others: but that must be after we have got through our work."
"How old are you, Ready?"
"I am turned of sixty-four; a very old age for a seaman. I could not obtain employment on board of a vessel if it were not that I am well known to several captains."
"But why do you say `old for a seaman'?"
"Because sailors live faster than other people, partly from the hardships which they undergo, and partly from their own fault in drinking so much spirits; and then they are too often reckless and care nothing for their healths."
"But you never drink spirits now?"
"No, never, William; but in my early days I was as foolish as others. Now, Juno, you may bring in the bedding. We have two or three hours yet, William; what shall we do next?"
"Had we not better make the fireplace all ready for cooking?"
"It was what I was going to propose, if you had not. I shall be here to-morrow long before any of you, and I will take care that supper is ready on your arrival."
"I brought a bottle of water in my knapsack," replied William, "not so much for the water, as because I want to milk the goats and take back the milk for baby."
"You proved yourself not only thoughtful but kind, William: now while you and Juno fetch the stones for the fireplace, I will stow away under the trees the things I have brought in the boat."
"Shall we let the goats and sheep loose, Ready?"
"Oh, yes, - there is no fear of their straying; the herbage here is better than on the other side, and there is plenty of it."
"Well, I will let Nanny go as soon as Juno has milked her. Now, Juno, let us see how many stones we can carry at once."
In an hour the fireplace was made, Ready had done all that he could, the goats were milked and let loose, and then William and Juno set off on their journey back.
Ready went down to the beach. On his arrival there, he observed a small turtle: creeping up softly he got between it and the water, and succeeded in turning it over. "That will do for to-morrow," said he, as he stepped into the boat; and laying hold of the oars, he pulled out of the bay to return to the cove.
Ready arrived at the cove, and proceeded to the tents, where he found the whole party listening to William, who was detailing what had been done. The arrangements for the next day were made as soon as Ready joined them. They then separated for the night, but Ready and William remained until it was dark, to catch the fowls and tie their legs, ready for their being put in the boat the next morning. At daylight all were summoned to dress themselves as soon as possible, as Ready wanted to take down the tent in which Mrs. Seagrave and the children had slept. For, with the exception of Tommy, the others had slept upon some canvas, which they had spread out under the cocoa-nut trees. As soon as Mrs. Seagrave was dressed, the tent was taken down, and, with all the bedding, put into the boat. Then, when they had breakfasted, the plates, knives and forks, and some other necessaries, were also put in; Ready laid the fowls on the top of all, and set off by himself for their new location.
After he was gone, the rest of the party prepared for their journey through the cocoa-nut grove. William led the way, with the three dogs close to his heels, Mr. Seagrave with the baby in his arms, Juno with little Caroline, and Mrs. Seagrave with Master Tommy holding her hand. They cast a last look round at the cove, and the fragments of the wreck and cargo, strewed about in every direction, and then turned into the wood. Ready arrived at the point, and was again on shore in less than two hours after he had set off. As soon as the boat was safe in, he did not wait to land his cargo, but going up to the turtle which he had turned the day before, he killed it, and cleaned it on the beach. He then went to where they had built up the fireplace with stones, made a fire, filled the iron saucepan full of water, and set it on to boil; he then cut up a portion of the turtle, and put it into the pot, with some slices of salt pork, covered it up, and left it to boil; and having hung up the rest of the turtle in the shade, he went back to the beach to unload the boat. He released the poor fowls, and they were soon busy seeking for food.
It was two or three hours before he had carried everything up, for it was a good distance, and some of the articles were heavy, and the old man was not sorry when he had finished his task, and could sit down to rest himself.
"It's almost time they arrived," thought Ready; "they must have started nearly four hours ago." Ready remained a quarter of an hour more watching the fire, and occasionally skimming the top of the pot, when the three dogs came bounding towards him.
"Well, they are not far off now," observed Old Ready.
In six or seven minutes afterwards the party made their appearance, very hot and very fatigued. It appeared that poor little Caroline had been tired out, and Juno had to carry her; then Mrs. Seagrave complained of fatigue, and they had to rest a quarter of an hour; then Tommy, who refused to remain with his mamma, and had been running backwards and forwards from one to the other, had declared that he was tired, and that someone must carry him; but there was no one to carry him, so he began to cry until they stopped for another quarter of an hour till he was rested; then as soon as they went on again he again complained of being tired. William then carried him pickaback for some time, and in so doing he missed the blaze-cut on the trees, and it was a long while before he could find it again; then baby became hungry, and he cried, and little Caroline was frightened at being so long in the wood, and she cried. But finally they got on better, and arrived at last so warm and exhausted, that Mrs. Seagrave went into the tent with the children to repose a little, before she could even look at the place which was to be their future residence.
"I think," said Mr. Seagrave, "that this little journey of to-day has been a pretty good proof of how helpless we should have been without you, Ready."
"I am glad that you are here, sir," replied Ready, "it is a weight off my mind; now you will get on better. I think that after a while you may live very comfortably here; but still we have much to do. As soon as Madam has rested, we will have our dinner and then fix up our own tent, which will be quite enough after such a hard day's work."
"Do you go back to the cove to-morrow, Ready?"
"Yes, sir, we want our stores here; it will take about three trips to empty our storehouses; and as to the other things, we can examine them and bring them down at our leisure. As soon as I have made those three trips in the boat, we can then work here altogether."
"But I can do something in the meantime."
"Oh yes, there is plenty for you to do."
Mr. Seagrave went into the tent, and found his wife much refreshed; but the children had all fallen fast asleep on the beds. They waited another half-hour, and then woke Tommy and Caroline, that they might all sit down to dinner.
"Dear me," exclaimed William, as Ready took the cover off the saucepan, "what is it that you have so good there?"
"It's a treat I have prepared for you all," replied Ready. "I know that you are tired of salt meat, so now you are going to feed like aldermen."
"Why, what is it, Ready?" said Mrs. Seagrave; "it smells very good."
"It is turtle-soup, ma'am; and I hope you will like it; for, if you do, you may often have it, now that you are on this side of the island."
"Indeed, it really is excellent; but it wants a little salt. Have you any salt, Juno?"
"Got a little, ma'am. Very little left," replied Juno.
"What shall we do when all our salt is gone?" said Mrs. Seagrave.
"Juno must get some more," replied Ready.
"How I get salt? - hab none left," replied Juno, looking at Ready.
"There's plenty out there, Juno," said Mr. Seagrave, pointing to the sea.
"I don't know where," said Juno, looking in that direction.
"What do you mean, my dear?" inquired Mrs. Seagrave.
"I only mean if we want salt we can have as much as we please by boiling down salt-water in the kettle, or else making a salt-pan in the rocks, and obtaining it by the sun drying up the water and leaving the salt. Salt is always procured in that way, either by evaporation, or boiling."
"I'll soon arrange that for you, ma'am," said Ready, "and show Juno how to get it when she wants it."
"I am very glad to hear you say so; for I should feel the want of salt very much," replied Mrs. Seagrave, "I really never enjoyed a dinner so much as I have to-day."
The soup was pronounced excellent by everybody. As soon as they had finished, Mrs. Seagrave remained with the children; and Ready and Mr. Seagrave, assisted by Juno and William, got the second tent up, and everything ready for the night. They then all assembled, and returned thanks to God for their having gained their new abode; and, tired out with the fatigue of the day, were soon fast asleep.
Mr. Seagrave was the first up on the ensuing morning; and when Ready came out of the tent, he said to him, "Do you know, Ready, I feel much happier and my mind much more at ease since I find myself here. On the other side of the island everything reminded me that we had been shipwrecked; and I could not help thinking of home and my own country; but here we appear as if we had been long settled, and as if we had come here by choice."
"I trust that feeling will be stronger every day, sir; for it's no use, and indeed sinful, to repine."
"I acknowledge it, and with all humility. What is the first thing which you wish we should set about?"
"I think, sir, the first object is to have a good supply of fresh water; and I therefore wish you and William - Here he is. Good-morning, William - I was saying that I thought it better that Mr. Seagrave and you should clear out the spring while I am away in the boat. I brought another shovel with me yesterday, and you both can work; perhaps we had better go there, as Juno, I see, is getting the breakfast ready. You observe, Mr. Seagrave, we must follow up the spring till we get among the cocoa-nut trees, where it will be shaded from the sun; that is easily done by digging towards them, and watching how the water flows. Then, if you will dig out a hole large enough to sink down in the earth one of the water-casks which lie on the beach, I will bring it down with me this afternoon; and then, when it is fixed in the earth in that way, we shall always have the cask full of water for use, and the spring filling it as fast as we empty it."
"I understand," replied Mr. Seagrave; "that shall be our task while you are absent."
"Now, I have nothing more to do than to speak to Juno about dinner," replied Ready; "and then I'll just take a mouthful, and be off."
Ready directed Juno to fry some pork in the frying-pan, and then to cut off some slices from the turtle, and cook turtle-steaks for dinner, as well as to warm up the soup which was left; and then, with a biscuit and a piece of beef in his hand, he went down to the boat and set off for the cove. Mr. Seagrave and William worked hard; and, by twelve o'clock, the hole was quite large and deep enough, according to the directions Ready had given. They then left their work and went to the tent.
"You don't know how much happier I am now that I am here," said Mrs.Seagrave, taking her husband's hand, as he seated himself by her.
"I trust it is a presentiment of future happiness, my dear," said Mr.Seagrave. "I assure you that I feel the same, and was saying so toReady this morning."
"I feel that I could live here for ever, it is so calm and beautiful; but I miss one thing - there are no birds singing here as at home."
"I have seen no birds except sea-birds, and of them there is plenty.Have you, William?"
"Only once, father. I saw a flight a long way off. Ready was not with me, and I could not tell what they were; but they were large birds, as big as pigeons, I should think. There is Ready coming round the point," continued William. "How fast that little boat sails! It is a long pull, though, for the old man when he goes to the cove."
"Let us go down and help Ready carry up some of the things before dinner," said Mrs. Seagrave.
They did so; and William rolled up the empty water-cask which Ready had brought with him.
The turtle-steaks were as much approved of as the turtle-soup; indeed, after having been so long on salt meat, a return to fresh provisions was delightful.
"And now to finish our well," said William, as soon as dinner was over.
"How hard you do work, William!" said his mother.
"So I ought, mother. I must learn to do everything now."
"And that you will very soon," said Ready.
They rolled the cask to the spring, and, to their astonishment, found the great hole which they had dug not two hours before quite full of water.
"Oh dear," said William, "we shall have to throw all the water out to get the cask down."
"Think a little, William," said Mr. Seagrave, "for the spring runs so fast that it will not be an easy task. Cannot we do something else?"
"Why, father, the cask will float, you know," replied William.
"To be sure it will as it is; but is there no way of making it sink?"
"Oh yes. I know - we must bore some holes in the bottom, and then it will fill and sink down of itself."
"Exactly," replied Ready. "I expected that we should have to do that, and have the big gimlet with me."
Ready bored three or four holes in the bottom of the cask, and as it floated the water ran into it, and by degrees it gradually sank down. As soon as the top of the cask was level with the surface they filled in all round with the spade and shovel, and the well was completed.
The next morning, as soon as breakfast was over, Mr. Seagrave observed: "Now that we have so many things to do, I think, Ready, we ought to lay down a plan of operations; method is everything when work is to be done: now tell me what you propose shall be our several occupations for the next week, for to-morrow is Sunday; and although we have not yet been able to honour the day as we should, I think that now we must and ought to keep it holy."
"Yes, sir," replied Ready. "To-morrow we will rest from our labour, and ask God's blessing upon our endeavours during the six days of the week; and now, as to your proposition, Mr. Seagrave, shall we begin first with the lady?"
"You must not consider that you have ladies with you now, Ready," said Mrs. Seagrave, "at least, not fine ladies. My health and strength are recovering fast, and I mean to be very useful. I propose to assist Juno in all the domestic duties, such as the cookery and washing, to look after and teach the children, mend all the clothes, and make all that is required, to the best of my ability. If I can do more I will."
"I think we may be satisfied with that, Mr. Seagrave," replied Ready. "Now, sir, the two most pressing points, with the exception of building the house, are to dig up a piece of ground, and plant our potatoes and seeds; and to make a turtle-pond, so as to catch the turtle and put them in before the season is over."
"You are right," replied Mr. Seagrave; "but which ought to be done first?"
"I should say the turtle-pond, as it will be only a few days' work for you, Juno, and William. I shall not want your assistance for this next week. I shall fix upon some spot, not far from here, where the trees are thickest in the grove, and cut them down so as to clear out a space in which we will, by and by, build our storerooms; and, as soon as the rainy season has gone by, we can remove all our stores from the other side of the island. It will occupy me the whole of the week, cutting down the trees and sawing them into proper lengths, ready for building the house, and then we must all join our strength and get it up without delay."
"Can you really manage to get it up in time? How soon do you expect the rains will come on?"
"In three or four weeks. After next week, I shall probably have the assistance of two of you, if not of all. Now I think of it, I must return to the cove."
"What for?"
"Don't you recollect, sir, your two-wheeled carriage, packed up in matting, which was thrown on shore in the gale? You laughed when you saw it, and said it would be of little use now; but the wheels and axle will he very useful, as we can make a wide path to the place when I cut down the trees, and wheel out the logs much more easily than we can drag or carry them."
"That is an excellent idea. It will save a great deal of labour."
"I expect that it will, sir. William and I will go away early on Monday morning, and be back before breakfast. To-day we will fix upon the spots where our garden is to be, our turtle-pond to be made, and the trees to be cut down. That shall be our business, Mr. Seagrave; and William and Juno may put things a little more to rights here."
Mr. Seagrave and Ready then walked down to the beach, and, after surveying the reefs for some time, Ready said, "You see, Mr. Seagrave, we do not want too much water for a turtle-pond, as, if it is too deep, there is a difficulty in catching them when we want them: what we want is a space of water surrounded by a low wall of stones, so that the animals cannot escape, for they cannot climb up, although they can walk on the shelving sand with their flippers. Now the reef here is high out of the water, and the space within the reef and the beach is deep enough, and the rocks on the beach nearly fill up that side and prevent them crawling away by the shore. We have, therefore, little more to do than to fill up the two other sides, and then our pond will be complete."
"I see it will not be a long job either, if we can find loose rocks enough," replied Mr. Seagrave.
"Almost all those which are on the beach are loose," replied Ready, "and there are plenty close to us: some of them will be too heavy to carry, but they can be brought here by the aid of handspikes and crowbars. Suppose we make a signal for William and Juno, and set them to work."
Mr. Seagrave called and waved his hat, and Juno and William came down to them. Juno was ordered to go back for two handspikes, while Ready explained to William what was to be done. Having stayed with them and assisted them for some time after Juno had returned with the implements, Mr. Seagrave and Ready proceeded to the point, to fix upon a spot for a garden, leaving William and Juno to continue their labour.
Mr. Seagrave and Ready then continued their way along the beach, until they arrived at the point which the latter had considered as a convenient place to make the garden. They found a sufficiency of mould; and as the point was narrow at its joining on to the mainland, no great length of enclosure would be required.
"You see, sir," said Ready, "we can wait till after the rainy season is over before we put up the fence, and we can prepare it in the meantime, when the weather will permit us to work. The seeds and potatoes will not come up until after the rains are finished; so all we have to do is to dig up the ground, and put them in as fast as we can. We cannot make a large garden this year; but our potatoes we must contrive to get in, if we cannot manage anything else."
"If we have no fence to make," replied Mr. Seagrave, "I think we shall be able to clear away quite enough ground in a week to put in all that we require."
"The first job will be to pull up the small brushwood," said Ready, "and turn up the ground; the larger plants we must leave, if we have not time. Tommy might be of some use here in taking away the shrubs as you pull them up; but we had better now go on to the grove, and choose the spot for cutting down the trees. I have made my mark."
Ready and Mr. Seagrave proceeded in the direction which the former had pointed out, until they arrived at a spot on a rising ground, where the trees were so thick that it was not very easy to pass through them.
"There is the place," said Ready. "I propose to cut all the timber we want for the houses out of this part of the grove, and to leave an open square place, in the centre of which we will build our storerooms. You see, sir, if necessary, with a very little trouble we might turn it into a place of protection and defence, as a few palisades here and there between the trees would make it, what they call in the East Indies, a stockade."
"Very true, but I trust we shall not require it for such a purpose."
"I hope so too, but there is nothing like being prepared; however, we have plenty to do before we can think of that. Now, sir, as dinner is ready, suppose we return, and after dinner we will both commence our tasks."
Juno and William returned to the dinner which Mrs. Seagrave had prepared. They were both very warm with their work, which was very hard, but very eager to finish their task. After dinner was over, Mrs. Seagrave requested her husband, as he was about to go down to the point, with the spade and a small hatchet in his hand, to take Tommy with him, as she had a great deal to do, and could not watch him as well as the baby and Caroline. So Mr. Seagrave took Tommy by the hand, and led him to the point, and made him sit down close to him while he cleared away the brushwood.
Mr. Seagrave worked very hard, and when he had cut down and cleared a portion of the ground, he made Tommy carry away to a little distance, and pile in a heap, the bushes which he had cleared away. When Mr. Seagrave had cleared away a large piece of ground with his hatchet, he then took his spade to dig at the roots and turn up the mould, leaving Tommy to amuse himself. What Tommy did for about an hour, during which Mr. Seagrave worked very diligently, his father did not observe; but all of a sudden he began to cry; and when his father asked him the reason, he did not answer, but only cried the more, until at last he put his hands to his stomach, and roared most lustily. As he appeared to be in very great pain, his father left off work, and led him up to the tent, when Mrs. Seagrave came out, alarmed at his cries. Ready, who had heard Tommy screaming for so long a while, thought that there might be something serious, and left his work to ascertain the cause. When he heard what had passed, he said:
"Depend upon it, the child has eaten something which has made him ill.Tell me, Tommy, what did you eat when you were down there?"
"Berries," roared Tommy.
"I thought as much, ma'am," said Ready. "I must go and see what the berries were." And the old man hastened down to the place where Mr. Seagrave had been at work. In the meantime Mrs. Seagrave was much alarmed lest the child should have poisoned himself, and Mr. Seagrave went to search among the medicines for some castor-oil.
Ready returned just as he came back to the tent with the bottle of castor-oil, and he told Ready that he was about to give Tommy a dose.
"Well, sir," replied Ready, who had a plant in his hand, "I don't think you should give him any, for it appears to me that he has taken too much already. This is, if I recollect right, the castor-oil plant, and here are some of the castor-oil beans which Master Tommy has been eating. Tell me, Tommy, did you eat them?"
"Yes," cried Tommy.
"I thought so: give him a little warm drink, ma'am, and he'll soon be better: it will teach him not to eat berries or beans again."
What Ready said was true; nevertheless Master Tommy was very ill for the whole of the day, and was put early to bed.
The next day, when Mr. Seagrave, William, Juno, and Ready were all at work at their allotted tasks, Mrs. Seagrave was sitting down at the front of the tent, the little baby, Albert, crawling close to her, Caroline trying to work with her needle, and Tommy was making holes in the ground, and putting a small stone into each hole.
"What are you doing, Tommy?" said Mrs. Seagrave.
"I'm making a garden," replied Tommy.
"Making a garden! Then you ought to plant some trees in it."
"No; I'm sowing seeds: look here," replied Tommy, pointing to the stones.
"But these are stones, not seeds."
"Well, but I pretend, and that's the same thing," replied Tommy.
"Not exactly, Tommy; suppose, instead of eating those beans yesterday, you had only pretended to eat them, wouldn't it have been better?"
"I won't eat any more," replied Tommy.
"No, not of those beans; but if you saw anything else which you thought you would like, I am afraid you would eat it, and be as ill and even worse than you were."
"I like cocoa-nuts; why don't we have some? there's plenty upon the trees."
"But who is to climb up so high, Tommy? Can you?"
"No; but why don't Ready climb, or papa, or William?"
"I suppose they will get some by and by, when they are not so busy, but they have no time now."
"I like turtle-soup," replied Tommy.
"William and Juno are making a pond to put turtle in, and then we shall have it oftener; but we cannot have everything we like when we wish for it."
"I like fried fish," said Tommy; "why don't we have fried fish?"
"Because every one is too busy to catch them just now. Tommy, go and bring your brother Albert back; he has crawled too near to Billy, and he butts sometimes."
Tommy went after the baby, who was crawling towards the kid, which had now grown pretty large, and as he took up his brother he kicked at the goat's head.
"Don't do that, Tommy; he'll butt at you, and hurt you."
"I don't care," replied Tommy, holding the baby by one hand while he continued to kick at Billy. Billy, however, would not stand it; he lowered his head, made a butt at Tommy, and he and Albert rolled on the ground one over the other. The baby roared, and Tommy began to whimper. Mrs. Seagrave ran up to them and caught up the baby; and Tommy, alarmed, caught hold of his mother's dress for protection, looking behind him at Billy, who appeared inclined to renew the attack.
"Why don't you mind what is said to you, Tommy? I told you that he would butt you," said Mrs. Seagrave, pacifying the child.
"I don't care for him," replied Tommy, who perceived that the goat was walking away.
"No, you are very brave now that he has gone; but you're a very naughty boy not to mind what is said to you."
"Billy never butts at me, mamma," said Caroline.
"No, my dear, because you do not tease him; but your brother is very fond of teasing animals, and so he gets punished and frightened. It is very wrong of him to do so, especially as he is told by his father and me that he ought not."
"You said I was a good boy when I learnt my lesson this morning," replied Tommy.
"Yes, but you should always be good," replied his mother.
"I can't be always good," said Tommy; "I want my dinner."
"It is dinner-time, Tommy, that is certain, but you must wait until they all come home from their work."
"There's Ready coming, with a bag on his shoulder," replied Tommy.
Ready soon came up to where Mrs. Seagrave was sitting, and laid down the bag. "I've brought you some young cocoa-nuts, and some old ones also, from the trees that I have been cutting down."
"Oh! cocoa-nuts - I like cocoa-nuts!" cried Tommy.
"I told you, Tommy, that we should have some by and by, and they have come sooner than we thought. You are very warm, Ready."
"Yes, ma'am," replied Ready, wiping his face; "it is rather warm work, for there is no breeze in the grove to cool one. Is there anything you want from the other side of the island, for I shall go there directly after dinner?"
"What for?"
"I must bring the wheels to get the timber out; for I must clear it away as I go, until the path is finished. I must have William to help me."
"William will like the trip, I do not doubt. I do not recollect anything in particular that we want, Ready," replied Mrs. Seagrave. "There he comes with Juno, and I see Mr. Seagrave has laid down his spade; so Caroline, dear, take care of Albert, while I get the dinner for them."
Ready assisted Mrs. Seagrave, and the dinner was spread out on the ground, for they had not brought the chairs and tables with them to their new residence, as they thought that they could do without them till the house was built. William reported that Juno and he would have the turtle-pond complete by the next day. Mr. Seagrave had cleared sufficient ground to plant the half-sack of potatoes that they had saved, so that in a day or two they would be able to put all their strength upon the cutting and drawing of the timber.
After dinner, William and Ready set off in the boat, and, before it was dark, returned with the wheels and axle of the carriage, and several other articles to make up their load.
"Now, William," said Ready, "if you are not very sleepy, perhaps you would like to come with me to-night, and see if we cannot turn some of the turtle, for the season is going away fast, and they will leave the island very soon."
As soon as the sun had disappeared, William and Ready went down to the beach, and sat quietly on a rock. In a short time, Ready perceived a turtle crawling on the sand, and, desiring William to follow him without speaking, walked softly down by the water's edge, so as to get between the animal and the sea.
As soon as the turtle perceived them, it made for the water, but they met it; and Ready, seizing hold of one of its fore-flippers, turned it over on its back.
"You see, William, that is the way to turn a turtle: take care that he does not catch you with his mouth, for, if he did, he would bite the piece out. Now the animal cannot get away, for he can't turn over again, and we shall find him here to-morrow morning; so we will now walk along the beach, and see if we cannot find some more."
Ready and William remained till past midnight, and turned sixteen turtle.
"I think that will do, William, for once: we have made a good night's work of it, for we have provided food for many days. Tomorrow we must put them all into the pond."
"How shall we carry such large animals?"
"We need not carry them; we must put some old canvas under them, and haul them along by that means; we can easily do that on the smooth sand."
"Why don't we catch some fish, Ready? We might put them into the turtle-pond."
"They would not stay there long, William, nor could we easily get them out if they did. I have often thought of getting some lines ready, and yet the time has never come, for I feel sleepy after our day's work; but as soon as the house is built, we will have them, and you shall be fisherman-in-chief."
"But the fish will bite at night, will they not?"
"Oh yes, and better than they do in the daytime."
"Well, then, if you will get me a line and show me how, I will fish for an hour or so after the work is done; I know mamma is getting tired of salt meat, and does not think it good for Caroline."
"Well, then, I will get a bit of candle to-morrow night, and fit up two fishing-lines. But I must go with you, William. We don't use much candle, at all events."
"No, we are too glad to go to bed: but there are two or three boxes of one sort or another up in the cove."
The next morning before breakfast all hands were employed in getting the turtle into the pond. After breakfast, William and Juno finished the pond where the walls had not been raised high enough; and, when they returned to dinner, reported that their task was completed. Mr. Seagrave also said that he had, he thought, cleared quite ground enough for the present; and as Mrs. Seagrave wanted Juno to help her to wash the linen that afternoon, it was agreed that William, Ready, and Mr. Seagrave should all go down to the garden, and put in the potatoes.
Ready worked with the spade, while Mr. Seagrave and William cut the potatoes in pieces, so as to have an eye in each piece. When they had finished this work, Mr. Seagrave said - "Now that we have finished cutting the potatoes, let us go and assist Ready in planting them and the seeds which we have brought down with us."
That night Ready sat up for two or three hours working by candle-light (William keeping him company), very busily engaged fitting up the fishing-lines with leads and hooks. At last two were complete.
"What bait must we use, Ready?"
"I should think that the best would be one of the fish out of the shells which are in the sand; but a piece of pork fat will, I dare say, do as well."
"And whereabouts would you fish, Ready?"
"The best place, I should think, would be at the farthermost end of the point, where I got the boat through the reef - the water is deep there close to the rocks."
"I was thinking, Ready, if those gannets and men-of-war birds would be good eating."
"Not very, William; they are very tough and very fishy: we must try for those when we can get nothing better. Now that we have got in the seeds and potatoes, we must all set to to-morrow morning to fell and carry the timber. I think Mr. Seagrave had better use the axe with me; and you and Juno can, when I have shown you how, hang the timber to the axle, and wheel it out to the place where we have decided upon building the house. And now we had better go to bed."
William, however, had made up his mind to do otherwise: he knew that his mother would be very glad to have some fish, and he determined, as the moon shone bright, to try if he could not catch some before he went to bed; so he waited very quietly till he thought Ready was asleep as well as the others, and then went out with the lines, and went down to the beach, where he picked up three or four shells, and, breaking them between two pieces of rock, took out the fish and baited his hooks. He then walked to the point. It was a beautiful night; the water was very smooth, and the moonbeams pierced deep below the surface. William threw in his line, and as soon as the lead touched the bottom he pulled it up about a foot, as Ready had instructed him; and he had not held his line more than half a minute, when it was jerked so forcibly, that not expecting it he was nearly hauled into the water; as it was, the fish was so strong that the line slipped through his hand and scored his fingers; but after a time he was able to pull it in, and he landed on the beach a large silver-scaled fish, weighing nine or ten pounds. As soon as he had dragged it so far away from the edge of the rocks as to prevent its flapping into the water again, William took out the hook and determined to try for another. His line was down as short a time as before, when it was again jerked with violence; but William was this time prepared, and he let out the line and played the fish till it was tired, and then pulled it up, and found that the second fish was even larger than the first. Satisfied with his success, he wound up his lines, and, running a piece of string through the gills of the fish, dragged them back to the tents, and hanged them to the pole, for fear of the dogs eating them; he then went in, and was soon fast asleep. The next morning William was the first up, and showed his prizes with much glee; but Ready was very much displeased with him.
"You did very wrong, William, to run the risk which you did. If you were resolved to catch fish, why did you not tell me, and I would have gone with you? You say, yourself, that the fish nearly hauled you into the water; suppose it had done so, or suppose a small shark instead of one of these gropers (as we call them) had taken the bait, you must have been jerked in; and the rocks are so steep there, that you would not have been able to get out again before a shark had hold of you. Think a moment what would have been the distress of your father and the agony and despair of your poor mother, when this news should have arrived."
"I was very wrong, Ready," replied William, "now that I think of it; but I wanted to surprise and please my mother."
"That reason is almost sufficient to plead your pardon, my dear boy," replied Ready; "but don't do so again. And now let us say no more about it; nobody will know that you have been in danger, and there's no harm done; and you mustn't mind an old man scolding you a little."
"No, indeed, Ready, I do not, for I was very thoughtless; but I had no idea that there was danger."
"There's your mother coming out of her tent," replied Ready. "Good-morning, madam. Do you know what William has done for you last night? Look, here are two beautiful fish, and very excellent eating they are, I can tell you."
"I am quite delighted," replied Mrs. Seagrave.
Tommy clapped his hands and danced about, crying, "Fried fish for dinner;" and Juno said, "Have very fine dinner to-day, Missy Caroline."
After breakfast they all set out for the grove, where Ready had been cutting down the trees, taking with them the wheels and axle, and a couple of stout ropes. Mr. Seagrave and Ready cut down the trees and slung them to the axle, and Juno and William dragged them to the spot where the house was to be built.
They were not sorry when dinner was ready, for it was very hard work.
That night, tired as they were, Ready and William went out, and turned eight more turtle. They continued felling the cocoa-nut trees and dragging the timber for the remainder of the week, when they considered that they had nearly enough, and on Tuesday morning they commenced building the house.