The Swiss family Robinson
of long soft flax ready for spinning, that my enraptured wife ran to
embrace me, to express her thankfulness, requesting me to make her a
wheel without delay, that she might enter upon her favourite work.
At an early period of my life I had practised turnery for my
amusement; now, however, I was unfortunately destitute of the
requisite utensils; but as I had not forgotten the arrangement
and component parts of a spinning-wheel and reel, I by repeated
endeavours found means to accomplish those two machines to her
satisfaction; and she fell so eagerly to spinning, as to allow
herself no leisure even for a walk, and scarcely time to dress our
dinners.
Our first visit was to Tent House, and here we found the ravages of
winter more considerable than even at Falcon’s Stream; the tempest
and rain had beaten down the tent, carried away a part of the
sail-cloth, and made such havoc among our provisions, that by far the
largest portion was spotted with mildew, and the remainder could be
only saved by drying it instantly. Luckily our handsome pinnace had
been for the most part spared; it was still at anchor, ready to serve
us in case of need; but our tub-boat was in too shattered a state to
be of any further service.
In looking over the stores, we were grieved to find the gunpowder,
of which I had left three barrels in the tent, the most damaged.
The contents of two were rendered wholly useless. I thought myself
fortunate in finding the remaining one in tolerable condition, and
derived from this great and irreparable loss a cogent motive to fix
upon winter quarters where our stores, our only wealth, would not be
exposed to such cruel dilapidations.
Fritz and Jack were constant in their endeavours to make me undertake
the excavation of the rock, but I had no hopes of success. Robinson
Crusoe found a spacious cavern that merely required arrangement:
no such cavity was apparent in our rock, which bore the aspect of
extreme solidity and impenetrableness; so that with our limited
powers, three or four summers would scarcely suffice to execute the
design. Still, the earnest desire of a more substantial habitation,
to defend us from the elements, perplexed me incessantly, and I
resolved to make at least the attempt of cutting out a recess that
should protect the gunpowder, the most valuable of all our treasures.
I accordingly set off one day, accompanied by my two boys, leaving
their mother at her spinning with Ernest and Francis. We took with us
pickaxes, chisels, hammers, and iron levers, to try what impression
we could make on the rock. I chose a part nearly perpendicular, and
much better situated than our tent: the view from it was enchanting,
for it embraced the whole range of Safety Bay, the banks of Jackal’s
River, and Family Bridge, and many of the picturesque projections
of the rocks. I marked out with charcoal the opening we wished to
make, and we began the heavy toil of piercing the quarry. We made
so little progress the first day, that, in spite of our courage, we
were tempted to relinquish the undertaking; we persevered, however,
and my hope was somewhat revived as I perceived the stone was of a
softer texture as we penetrated deeper. I concluded from this, that
the ardent rays of the sun striking upon the rock had hardened the
external layer, and that the stone within would increase in softness
as we advanced. When I had cut about a foot in depth, we could loosen
it with a spade like dried mud; this determined me to proceed with
double ardour, and my boys assisted me with a spirit and zeal beyond
their years.
After a few days of assiduous labour, we measured the opening, and
found we had already advanced seven feet into the rock. Fritz removed
the fragments in a barrow, and discharged them in a line before the
place, to form a sort of terrace; I applied my own labour to the
upper part, to enlarge the aperture; Jack, the smallest of the three,
was able to get in and cut away below. He had with him a long iron
bar sharpened at the end, which he drove in with a hammer to loosen
a piece at a time. Suddenly he bawled out, “It is pierced through,
father! Fritz, I have pierced it through!”
“Hah, hah, Master Jack at his jokes again!--But let us hear, what
have you pierced? Is it the mountain? Not peradventure your hand or
foot, Jack?” cried I.
_Jack._--No, no, it is the mountain (the rocks resounding with his
usual shout of joy); huzza, huzza! I have pierced the mountain!
Fritz now ran to him. “Come, let us see then: it is no doubt the
globe at least you have pierced,” said he, in a bantering tone: “you
should have pushed on your tool boldly, till you reached Europe,
which they say is under our feet; I should have been glad to peep
into that hole.”
_Jack._--Well, then, peep you may, but I hardly know what you will
see; come and look how far the iron is gone in, and tell me if it is
all my boasting.
“Come hither, father,” said Fritz, “this is really extraordinary:
his iron bar seems to have got to a hollow place; see, it can be
moved in every direction.” I approached, thinking the incident worth
attention: I took hold of the bar, which was still in the rock, and
working it about, I made a sufficient aperture for one of my sons
to pass, and I observed that in reality the rubbish fell within
the cavity, which I judged, from the falling of the stones, was not
much deeper than the part we stood on. My two lads offered to go
in together and examine it: this, however, I forbade. I even made
them remove from the opening, as I smelled the foul air that issued
abundantly from it, and began myself to feel giddiness in consequence
of having gone too near; so that I was compelled to withdraw quickly,
and inhale a purer air.
Under my direction the boys now hastened to gather some dry moss,
which they made into bundles; they then struck a light and set
fire to them, and threw the moss blazing into the opening; but, as
I had foreseen, the fire was extinguished at the very entrance,
thus proving that the air within was highly mephitic. I now saw
that it was to be rarefied by another and more effectual method. I
recollected that we had brought from the vessel a chest that was full
of grenades, rockets, and other fireworks, which had been shipped for
the purpose of making signals, as well as for amusement. I sought it
hastily, and took some of these, together with an iron mortar for
throwing; out of it I laid a train of gunpowder and set fire to the
end, which reached to where we stood. A general explosion took place,
and an awful report reverberated through the dark recess: the lighted
grenades flew about on all sides like brilliant meteors, rebounding
and bursting with a terrific sound. We then sent in the rockets,
which had also a full effect. They hissed in the cavity like flying
dragons, disclosing to our astonished view its vast extent. We beheld
too, as we thought, numerous dazzling bodies that sparkled suddenly,
as if by magic, and disappeared with the rapidity of lightning,
leaving the place in total darkness.
After having played off our fireworks, I tried lighted straw; to our
great satisfaction, the bundles thrown in were entirely consumed; we
could then reasonably hope nothing was to be feared from the air; but
there still remained the danger of plunging into some abyss, or of
meeting with a body of water. From these considerations, I deemed it
more prudent to defer our entrance into this unknown recess till we
had lights to guide us through it. I dispatched Jack on the buffalo
to Falcon’s Stream to tell his mother and brothers of our discovery,
directing him to return with them, and bring all the tapers that were
left: my intention was to tie them together to the end of a stick,
and proceed with it lighted to examine the cavity.
In three or four hours we saw them coming up in our car of state. I
immediately lighted some of the tapers; but not together, as I had
intended: I preferred each taking one in his right hand, an implement
in his left, another taper in his pocket, flint and steel; and thus
we entered the rock in solemn procession. The most beautiful and
magnificent spectacle presented itself. The sides of the cavern
sparkled like diamonds, the light from our tapers was reflected from
all parts, and had the effect of a grand illumination. Innumerable
crystals of every length and shape hung from the top of the vault,
which, uniting with those of the sides, formed pillars, altars,
entablatures, and a variety of other figures, composing the most
splendid masses. We might have fancied ourselves in the palace of a
fairy, or an illuminated temple.
The floor was level, covered with a white and very fine sand, as if
purposely strewed, and so dry that I could not see the least mark of
humidity anywhere. All this led me to hope the spot would be healthy,
convenient, and eligible for our proposed residence. I now formed
a particular conjecture as to the nature of the crystallizations
shooting out on all sides, and especially from the arch-roof. They
could scarcely be of that species of rock-crystals produced by
the slow filtering of water falling in drops, and coagulating in
succession, and seldom found in excavations exhibiting so dry a
nature, nor even with so many of the crystals perpendicular and
perfectly smooth. I was impatient to evince the truth or falsehood
of this idea by an experiment, and discovered with great joy,
on breaking a portion of one of them, that I was in a grotto of
_sal-gem_, that is, fossil, or rock salt, found in the earth in
solid crystallized masses, generally above a bed of spar or gypsum,
and surrounded by layers of fossils or rock. The discovery of this
fact, which no longer admitted a doubt, pleased us all exceedingly.
The shape of the crystals, their little solidity, and finally their
saline taste, were decisive evidences.
Many schemes were formed for converting this magnificent grotto into
a convenient and agreeable mansion for our abode. We had possession
of the most eligible premises: the sole business was to turn them to
the best account; and how to effect this was our unceasing theme.
Some voted for our immediate establishment there, but they were
opposed by more sagacious counsel, and it was resolved that Falcon’s
Stream should still be our headquarters till the end of the year.
CHAPTER XXX
House in the Salt Rock--Turtles
The lucky discovery of a previously existing cavern in the rock had,
as must be supposed, considerably lessened our labour; excavation
was no longer requisite. I had more room than was wanted for the
construction of our dwelling: to render it habitable was the present
object, and to do this did not seem a difficult task. The upper bed
of the rock, in front of the cavern, through which my little Jack had
dug so easily, was of a soft nature, and to be worked with moderate
effort. I hoped also that, being now exposed to the air and heat of
the sun, it would become by degrees as hard and compact as the first
layer that had given me so much trouble. From this consideration I
began, while it retained its soft state, to make openings for the
doors and windows of the front. This I regulated by the measurement
of those I had fixed in my winding stair-case, which I had removed
for the purpose of placing them in our winter tenement. I had
previously marked out the openings to be cut for the frames, which
were received into grooves for greater convenience and solidity. I
took care not to break the stone taken from the apertures, or at
least to preserve it in large pieces, and these I cut with the saw
and chisel into oblongs an inch and a half in thickness, to serve