The Swiss family Robinson
smiling, “for who can tell what may yet pop out of it for your good
pleasure?”
I now placed the child on the ass’s back, fixing the enchanted bag in
such a way as to support him, and I tied them together with so many
cords, that the animal might even have galloped without danger of his
falling off.
We packed and placed in the tent everything we were to leave, and for
greater security, fastened down the ends of the sail-cloth, at the
entrance, by driving stakes through them into the ground. We ranged
a number of vessels, both full and empty, round the tent, to serve
as a rampart, and thus we confided to the protection of Heaven our
remaining treasures. At length, we set ourselves in motion: each of
us, great and small, carried a gun upon his shoulder, and a game-bag
at his back. My wife led the way with her eldest son, the cow and the
ass immediately behind them; the goats, conducted by Jack, came next;
the little monkey was seated on the back of his nurse, and made a
thousand grimaces. After the goats came Ernest, conducting the sheep,
while I, in my capacity of general superintendent, followed behind,
and brought up the rear; the dogs for the most part pranced backwards
and forwards, like adjutants to a troop of soldiers. Our march was
slow, and there was something solemn and patriarchal in the spectacle
we exhibited; I fancied we must resemble our forefathers journeying
in the deserts, accompanied by their families and their possessions.
On the other side of the river we experienced an inconvenience wholly
unexpected. The tempting aspect of the grass, which grew here in
profusion, drew off our animals, who strayed from us to feed upon
it; so that, without the dogs, we should not have been able to bring
them back to the line of our procession. The active creatures were
of great use to us on this occasion; and when everything was restored
to proper order, we were able to continue our journey. For fear,
however, of a similar occurrence, I directed our march to the left,
along the seaside, where the produce of the soil was not of a quality
to attract them.
But scarcely had we advanced a few steps on the sands, when our two
dogs, which had strayed behind among the grass, set up a sort of
howl, as if engaged in an encounter with some formidable animal.
Fritz in an instant raised his gun to his cheek, and was ready to
fire; Ernest, always somewhat timid, drew back to his mother’s side;
Jack ran bravely after Fritz with his gun upon his shoulder; while
I, fearing the dogs might be attacked by some dangerous wild beast,
prepared myself to advance to their assistance. But youth is always
full of ardour: and in spite of my exhortations to proceed with
caution, the boys, eager for the event, made but three jumps to the
place from which the noise proceeded. In an instant Jack had turned
to meet me, clapping his hands, and calling out, “Come quickly,
father, come quickly, here is a monstrous porcupine!”
I soon reached the spot, and perceived that it was really as he said,
bating a little exaggeration. The dogs were running to and fro with
bleeding noses about the animal; and when they approached too near
him, he made a frightful noise, and pierced them with his quills so
deeply and suddenly that the pain the wounds occasioned made them
howl violently.
While we were looking on, Jack determined on an attack, which
succeeded well. He took one of the pistols which he carried in his
belt, and aimed it so exactly at the head of the porcupine, that he
fell dead the instant he fired, and before we had a notion of what he
was about. We now all got round the extraordinary animal, on whom
nature has bestowed a strong defence by arming his body all over with
long spears. The boys were at a loss what means to use for carrying
away his carcass. They thought of dragging it along the ground;
but as often as they attempted to take hold, there was nothing but
squalling, and running to show the marks made by his quills on their
hands.--“We must leave him behind,” said they, “but it is a great
pity.”
While the boys were talking, my wife and I had hastened to relieve
the dogs, by examining the wounds which had been inflicted by the
quills. Fritz had run on before with his gun, hoping he should meet
with some animal of prey. We followed him at our leisure, taking
care not to expose our health by unnecessary fatigue; till at last,
without further accident or adventure, we arrived at the place of
the giant trees. Such indeed we found them, and our astonishment
exceeded all description.--“Good heavens! what trees! what a height!
what trunks! I never heard of any so prodigious!” exclaimed one and
all.--“Nothing can be more rational than your admiration,” answered
I, measuring them with my eyes as I spoke. “I must confess I had
not myself formed an idea of the reality. To you be all the honour,
my dear wife, of the discovery of this agreeable abode, in which we
shall enjoy so many comforts and advantages. The great point we have
to gain is the fixing a tent large enough to receive us all in one
of these trees, by which means we shall be perfectly secure from the
invasion of wild beasts. I defy even one of the bears, who are so
famous for mounting trees, to climb up by a trunk so immense, and so
destitute of branches.”
We began now to release our animals from their burdens, having first
thrown our own on the grass. We next used the precaution of tying
their two fore-legs together with a cord, that they might not go far
away or lose themselves. We restored the fowls to liberty; and then
seating ourselves upon the grass, we held a family council on the
subject of our future establishment. I was myself somewhat uneasy
on the question of our safety during the ensuing night; for I was
ignorant of the nature of the extensive country I beheld around me,
and what chance there might be of our being attacked by different
kinds of wild beasts. I accordingly observed to my wife, that I would
make an endeavour for us all to sleep in the tree that very night.
While I was deliberating with her on the subject, Fritz had stolen
away to a short distance, and we heard the report of a gun. This
would have alarmed me, if at the same moment we had not recognized
Fritz’s voice crying out, “I touched him! I touched him!” and in
a moment we saw him running towards us, holding a dead animal of
uncommon beauty by the paws.--“Father, father, look, here is a superb
tiger-cat,” said he, proudly raising it in the air, to show it to
the best advantage.--“Bravo! bravo!” cried I: “bravo, Nimrod the
undaunted! Your exploit will call forth the gratitude of our cocks,
hens, and pigeons, for you have rendered them what they cannot fail
to think an important service. If you had not killed this animal,
he would no doubt have demolished in one night our whole stock of
poultry. One idea occurs to me: skin the animal carefully, so as
not to injure it, particularly the parts which cover the fore-legs
and the tail. You may then make yourself a belt with it, like your
brother Jack’s. The odd pieces will serve to make some cases to
contain our utensils for the table, such as knives, forks and spoons.
Go then, boy, and put away its head, and we will see how to set about
preparing the skin.”
The boys left me no moment of repose till I had shown them how
to take off the skins of the animals without tearing them. In
the meanwhile Ernest looked about for a flat stone as a sort of
foundation for a fireplace, and little Francis collected some pieces
of dry wood for his mother to light a fire. Ernest was not long in
finding what he wanted, and then he ran to join us, and give us his
assistance, or rather to reason, right or wrong, on the subject of
skinning animals; and then on that of trees, making various comments
and inquiries respecting the real name of those we intended to
inhabit.--“It is my opinion,” said he, “that they are, really and
simply, enormously large hazel trees; see if the leaf is not of
exactly the same form.”--“But that is no proof,” interrupted I; “for
many trees bear leaves of the same shape, but nevertheless are of
different kinds.”
Presently little Francis came running, with his mouth crammed full of
something, and calling out, “Mamma, mamma! I have found a nice fruit
to eat, and I have brought you home some of it!”
“Little glutton!” replied his mother, quite alarmed, “what have you
got there? For Heaven’s sake, do not swallow, in this imprudent
manner, the first thing that falls in your way; for by this means
you may be poisoned, and then you would die.” She made him open his
mouth, and took out with her finger what he was eating with so keen a
relish. With some difficulty she drew out the remains of a fig.--“A
fig!” exclaimed I: “where did you get this fig?”
_Francis._--I got it among the grass, papa; and there are a great
many more. I thought it must be good to eat, for the fowls and the
pigeons, and even the pig, came to the place, and ate them in large
quantities.
_Father._--“You see then, my dear,” said I to my wife, “that our
beautiful trees are fig-trees, at least the kind which are thus
named at the Antilles.” I took this occasion to give the boys another
lesson on the necessity of being cautious, and never to venture
on tasting anything they met with, till they had seen it eaten by
birds and monkeys. At the word monkeys, they all ran to visit the
little orphan, whom they found seated on the root of a tree, and
examining with the oddest grimaces the half-skinned tiger-cat,
which lay near him. Francis offered him a fig, which he first
turned round and round, then smelled at it, and concluded by eating
it voraciously.--“Bravo! bravo! Mr. Monkey,” exclaimed the boys,
clapping their hands; “so then these figs are good to eat!”
In the meanwhile my wife had been busy in making a fire, putting on
the pot, and preparing for our dinner. The tiger-cat was bestowed
upon the dogs, who waited impatiently to receive it. While our dinner
was dressing, I employed my time in making some packing-needles with
some of the quills of the porcupine, which the boys had contrived to
draw from his skin, and bring home. I put the point of a large nail
into the fire till it was red-hot; then taking hold of it with some
wet linen in my hand, by way of guard, I with great ease perforated
the thick end of the quills with it. I had soon the pleasure of
presenting my wife with a large packet of long, stout needles, which
were the more valuable in her estimation as she had formed the
intention of contriving some better harness for our animals, and had
been perplexed how to set about it without some larger needles.
I had singled out the highest fig-tree; and while we were waiting
for dinner, I made the boys try how high they could throw a stick or
stone into it. I also tried myself; but the lowest branches were so
far from the ground, that none of us could touch them. I perceived,
therefore, that we should want some new inventions for fastening the
ends of my ladder to them. I allowed a short pause to my imagination,
during which I assisted Jack and Fritz in carrying the skin of the
tiger-cat to a near rivulet, where we confined it under water with
some large stones. After this we returned and dined heartily on some
slices of ham and bread and cheese, under the shade of our favourite
trees.
CHAPTER X
Construction of a Ladder
Our repast ended, I observed to my wife that we should be obliged
to pass the night on the ground. I desired her to begin preparing
the harness for the animals, that they might go to the seashore, and
fetch pieces of wood, or other articles which might be useful to us.