Swiss Family Robinson Part 4

'When a variety of duties present themselves for our choice, we should always give the preference to that which can confer the most solid advantage,' I replied. 'The saving of the life of a man is a more exalted action than contributing to the comfort of a few quadrupeds, whom we have already supplied with food for a few days. Also, the sea is so calm at present that we need not fear that the s.h.i.+p will sink or break up entirely before we can return.'

Thus talking, we pushed on until we came to a pleasant grove which stretched down to the water's edge; here we halted to rest, seating ourselves under a large tree, by a rivulet which murmured and splashed along its pebbly bed into the great ocean before us.

A thousand gaily plumaged birds flew twittering above us, and Fritz and I gazed up at them. My son suddenly started up. 'A monkey,' he exclaimed, 'I am nearly sure I saw a monkey.'

As he spoke he sprang round to the other side of the tree, and in doing so stumbled over a small round object which he handed to me, remarking, as he did so, that it was a round bird's nest, of which he had often heard.

'You may have done so,' said I, laughing, 'but you need not necessarily conclude that every round hairy thing is a bird's nest; this, for instance, is not one, but a cocoanut. Do you not remember reading that a cocoanut is enclosed within a round, fibrous covering over a hard sh.e.l.l, which again is surrounded by a bulky green hull? In the one you hold in your hand, the outer hull has been destroyed by time, which is the reason that the twisted fibers of the inner covering are so apparent. Let us now break the sh.e.l.l, and you will see the nut inside.'

Not without difficulty, we split open the nut, but, to our disgust, found the kernel dry and uneatable.

'Hullo,' cried Fritz, 'I always thought a cocoanut was full of delicious sweet liquid, like almond milk.'

'So it is,' I replied, 'when young and fresh, but as it ripens the milk becomes congealed, and in course of time is solidified into a kernel. This kernel then dries as you see here, but when the nut falls on favourable soil, the germ within the kernel swells until it bursts through the sh.e.l.l, and, taking root, springs up a new tree.'

'I do not understand,' said Fritz, 'how the little germ manages to get through this great thick sh.e.l.l, which is not like an almond or hazel-nut sh.e.l.l, that is divided down the middle already.'

'Nature provides for all things,' I answered, taking up the pieces. 'Look here, do you see these three round holes near the stalk; it is through them that the germ obtains egress. Now let us find a good nut if we can.'

As cocoanuts must be over-ripe before they fall naturally from the tree, it was not without difficulty that we obtained one in which the kernel was not dried up. It was a little oily and rancid, but this was not the time to be too particular. We were so refreshed by the fruit that we could defer the repast we called our dinner* until later in the day, and so spare our stock of provisions.

* In this book, 'dinner' refers to the midday meal.

Continuing our way through a thicket, which was so densely overgrown with lianas that we had to clear a pa.s.sage with our hatchets, we again emerged on the seash.o.r.e beyond, and found an open view, the forest sweeping inland, while on the s.p.a.ce before us stood at intervals single trees of remarkable appearance.

These at once attracted Fritz's observant eye, and he pointed to them, exclaiming: 'Oh, what absurd-looking trees, father!

See what strange b.u.mps there are on the trunks.'

We approached to examine them, and I recognized them as calabash trees, the fruit of which grows in this curious way on the stems, and is a species of gourd, from the hard rind of which bowls, spoons, and bottles can be made. 'The savages,' I remarked, 'are said to form these things most ingeniously, using them to contain liquids: indeed, they actually cook food in them.'

'Oh, but that is impossible,' returned Fritz. 'I am quite sure this rind would be burnt through directly if it was set on the fire.'

'I did not say it was set on the fire at all. When the gourd has been divided in two, and the sh.e.l.l or rind emptied of its contents, it is filled with water, into which the fish, or whatever is to be cooked, is put; red-hot stones are added until the water boils; the food becomes fit to eat, and the gourd-rind remains uninjured.'

'That is a very clever plan: very simple too. I daresay I should have hit on it, if I had tried,' said Fritz.

'The friends of Columbus thought it very easy to make an egg stand upon its end when he had shown them how to do it. But now suppose we prepare some of these calabashes, that they may be ready for use when we take them home.'

Fritz instantly took up one of the gourds, and tried to split it equally with his knife, but in vain: the blade slipped, and the calabash was cut jaggedly. 'What a nuisance!' said Fritz, flinging it down, 'The thing is spoiled; and yet it seemed so simple to divide it properly.'

'Stay,' said I, 'you are too impatient, those pieces are not useless. Do you try to fas.h.i.+on from them a spoon or two while I provide a dish.' I then took from my pocket a piece of string, which I tied tightly round a gourd, as near one end of it as I could; then tapping the string with the back of my knife, it penetrated the outer sh.e.l.l. When this was accomplished, I tied the string yet tighter; and drawing the ends with all my might, the gourd fell, divided exactly as I wished.

'That is clever!' cried Fritz. 'What in the world put that plan into your head?'

'It is a plan,' I replied, 'which savages adopt, as I have learned from reading books of travel.'

'Well, it certainly makes a capital soup-tureen, and a soup-plate too,' said Fritz, examining the gourd. 'But supposing you had wanted to make a bottle, how would you have set to work?'

'It would be an easier operation than this, if possible. All that is necessary, is to cut a round hole at one end, then to scoop out the interior, and to drop in several shot or stones; when these are shaken, any remaining portions of the fruit are detached, and the gourd is thoroughly cleaned, and the bottle completed.'

'That would not make a very convenient bottle though, father; it would be more like a barrel.'

'True, my boy; if you want a more shapely vessel, you must take it in hand when it is younger. To give it a neck, for instance, you must tie a bandage round the young gourd while it is still on the tree, and then all will swell but that part which you have checked.' As I spoke, I filled the gourds with sand, and left them to dry; marking the spot that we might return for them on our way back.

'Are the bottle-shaped gourds I have seen in Europe trained similarly?'

'No, they are of another species, and what you have seen is their natural shape.'

For three hours or more we pushed forward, keeping a sharp look-out on either side for any trace of our companions, till we reached a bold promontory, stretching some way into the sea, from whose rocky summit I knew that we should obtain a good and comprehensive view of the surrounding country. With little difficulty we reached the top, but the most careful survey of the beautiful landscape failed to show us the slightest sign or trace of human beings.

Before us stretched a wide and lovely bay, fringed with yellow sands, either side extending into the distance, and almost lost to view in two shadowy promontories; enclosed by these two arms lay a sheet of rippling water, which reflected in its depths the glorious sun above. The scene inland was no less beautiful; and yet Fritz and I both felt a shade of loneliness stealing over us as we gazed on its utter solitude.

'Cheer up, Fritz, my boy,' said I, presently. 'Remember that we chose a settler's life long ago, before we left our own dear country; we certainly did not expect to be so entirely alone--but what matters a few people, more or less? With G.o.d's help, let us endeavour to live here contentedly, thankful that we were not cast upon some bare and inhospitable island. But come, the heat here is getting unbearable; let us find some shady place before we are completely broiled away.'

We descended the hill and made for a clump of palm trees, which we saw at a little distance. To reach this, we had to pa.s.s through a dense thicket of reeds, no pleasant or easy task; for, besides the difficulty of forcing our way through, I feared at every step that we might tread on some venomous snake.

Sending Turk in advance, I cut one of the reeds, thinking it would be a more useful weapon against a reptile than my gun. I had carried it but a little way, when I noticed a thick juice exuding from one end. I tasted it, and to my delight, found it sweet and pleasant. I at once knew that I was standing amongst sugar-canes.

Wis.h.i.+ng Fritz to make the same discovery, I advised him to cut a cane for his defense; he did so, and as he beat the ground before him, the reed split, and his hand was covered with the juice. He carefully touched the cane with the tip of his tongue, then, finding the juice sweet, he did so again with less hesitation; and a moment afterwards sprang back to me, exclaiming, 'Oh, father, sugar-cane, sugar-cane! Taste it. Oh, how delicious, how delightful! Do let us take a lot home to mother,' he continued, sucking eagerly at the cane!

'Gently there,' said I, 'take breath a moment, moderation in all things, remember. Cut some to take home if you like; only don't take more than you can conveniently carry.'

In spite of my warning, my son cut a dozen or more of the largest canes, and stripping them of their leaves, carried them under his arm. We then pushed through the cane-brake, and reached the clump of palms for which we had been making; as we entered it a troop of monkeys, who had been disporting themselves on the ground, sprang up, chattering and grimacing, and before we could clearly distinguish them, were at the very top of the trees.

Fritz was so provoked by their impertinent gestures that he raised his gun, and would have shot one of the poor beasts. 'Stay,' cried I, 'never take the life of any animal needlessly. A live monkey up in that tree is of more use to us than a dozen dead ones at our feet, as I will show you.'

Saying this, I gathered a handful of small stones, and threw them up towards the apes. The stones did not go near them, but influenced by their instinctive mania for imitation, they instantly seized all the cocoanuts within their reach, and sent a perfect hail of them down upon us.

Fritz was delighted with my stratagem, and rus.h.i.+ng forward picked up some of the finest of the nuts. We drank the milk they contained, drawing it through the holes which I pierced. The milk of a cocoanut has not a pleasant flavor, but it is excellent for quenching thirst. What we liked best was a kind of solid cream which adheres to their sh.e.l.ls, and which we sc.r.a.ped off with our spoons.

After this delicious meal, we thoroughly despised the lobster we had been carrying, and threw it to Turk, who ate it gratefully; but far from being satisfied, the poor beast began to gnaw the ends of the sugar-canes, and to beg for cocoanut. I slung a couple of the nuts over my shoulder, fastening them together by their stalks, and Fritz having resumed his burden, we began our homeward march.

I soon discovered that Fritz found the weight of his canes considerably more than he expected: he s.h.i.+fted them from shoulder to shoulder, then for a while carried them under his arm, and finally stopped short with a sigh. 'I had no idea,' he said, 'that a few reeds would be so heavy. How sincerely I pity the poor negroes who are made to carry heavy loads of them! Yet how glad I shall be when my mother and brothers are tasting them.'

'Never mind, my boy,' I said, 'Patience and courage! Do you not remember the story of Aesop and his breadbasket, how heavy he found it when he started, and how light at the end of his journey?

Let us each take a fresh staff, and then fasten the bundle crosswise with your gun.'

We did so, and once more stepped forward. Fritz presently noticed that I from time to time sucked the end of my cane.

'Oh, come,' said he, 'that's a capital plan of yours, father, I'll do that too.'

So saying, he began to suck most vigorously, but not a drop of the juice could he extract. 'How is this?' he asked. 'How do you get the juice out, father?'

'Think a little,' I replied, 'you are quite as capable as I am of finding out the way, even if you do not know the real reason of your failure.'

'Oh, of course,' said he, 'it is like trying to suck marrow from a marrow bone, without making a hole at the other end.'

'Quite right,' I said, 'you form a vacuum in your mouth and the end of your tube, and expect the air to force down the liquid from the other end which it cannot possibly enter.'