Swiss Family Robinson Part 7

I at once hoisted a white flag, and in reply, the flag on sh.o.r.e was thrice dipped. Oh, what a weight seemed lifted from my heart as I saw the signal!

'Fritz,' I said, 'now that I have had a sight of your mother, my next concern is for the animals on board. Let us endeavour to save the lives of some of them, at least, and to take them with us.'

'Would it be possible to make a raft,' suggested Fritz, 'and get them all on it and in that way take them to sh.o.r.e?'

'But how could we induce a cow, an a.s.s, and a sow either to get upon a raft or, when there to remain motionless and quiet? The sheep and goats one might perhaps find means to remove, they being of a more docile temper; but for the larger animals, I am at a loss as to how to proceed.'

'We could tie a long rope around the sow's neck,' Fritz now proposed, 'and throw her without ceremony into the sea. Her immense bulk will be sure to sustain her above water, and by the rope, we can draw her after the boat.'

'An excellent idea,' I replied, 'but unfortunately it is of no use but for the pig;* and she is the one I care least about preserving.' In fact, I had an idea how to proceed, but I desired to allow Fritz to invent a solution.

* In fact all of the animals would have been able to float, though swimming against the strong current would have been difficult. The solution chosen does not address this problem at all.

'Well,' said Fritz, 'I can think of nothing else, unless indeed we make them such swimming-belts as you made for the children.'

'Really, my boy, that idea is worth having. I am not joking, indeed,' I continued, as I saw him smile, 'we may get every one of the animals ash.o.r.e in that way.'

So saying, I caught a fine sheep, and proceeded to put our plan into execution. I first fastened a broad piece of linen round its belly, and to this attached some corks and empty tins; then with Fritz's help, I flung the animal into the sea--it sank, but a moment afterwards rose and floated famously.

'Hurrah!' exclaimed Fritz, 'we will treat them all like that.' We then rapidly caught the other animals and provided them one after the other with a similar contrivance. The cow and a.s.s gave us more trouble than did the others. For them we required something more buoyant than the mere cork; we at last found some empty casks and fastened two to each animal by thongs pa.s.sed under its belly.

This done, the whole herd were ready to start, and we brought the a.s.s to one of the ports to be the first to be launched. After some maneuvering we got him in a convenient position, and then a sudden heave sent him plunging into the sea. He sank, and then, buoyed up by the casks, emerged head and back from the water.

The cow, sheep and goats followed him one after the other, and then the sow alone remained. She seemed, however determined not to leave the s.h.i.+p; she kicked, struggled and squealed so violently, that I really thought we should be obliged to abandon her. Indeed, we found it necessary to put a muzzle on her to prevent her from biting before we could tie a large piece of cork under her body. At length, after much trouble, we succeeded in sending her out of the port after the others, and when once in the water, such was the old lady's energy that she quickly distanced them, and was the first to reach the sh.o.r.e.

We had fastened to the horns or neck of each animal a cord with a float attached to the end, and now embarking, we gathered up these floats, set sail, and steered for sh.o.r.e, drawing our herd after us. I saw, now, how impossible it would have been for us to have succeeded in our enterprise without the aid of a sail; the weight of the goods sank the boat so low in the water that none of our exertions would have allowed us to row such a distance. But with the sail, we proceeded so completely to our satisfaction that were able to get some biscuits and enjoyed a midday meal; then, while Fritz amused himself with his monkey, I took up my gla.s.s and tried to make out how our dear ones on sh.o.r.e were employing themselves.

As I was thus engaged, a sudden shout from Fritz surprised me. I glanced up; there stood Fritz with his gun to his shoulder, pointing it at a huge shark. The monster was making for one of the finest sheep; he turned on his side to seize his prey; as the white of his belly appeared Fritz fired. The shot took effect, and our enemy disappeared, leaving a trace of blood on the calm water.

'Well done, my boy,' I cried, 'you will become a crack shot one of these days; but I trust you will not often have such dangerous game to shoot.' Fritz's eyes sparkled at his success and my praise, and reloading his gun, carefully watched the water. But the shark did not again appear, and borne onwards by the breeze, we quickly neared the sh.o.r.e. Steering the boat to a convenient landing place, I cast off the ropes which secured the animals, and let them get ash.o.r.e as best they might.

There was no sign of my wife or children when we stepped on land, but a few moments afterwards they appeared, and with a shout of joy ran towards us.

We were thankful to be once more united, and after asking and replying to a few preliminary questions, proceeded to release our herd from their swimming belts, which, though so useful in the water, were exceedingly inconvenient on sh.o.r.e. My wife was astonished at the apparatus. 'How clever you are,' said she.

'I am not the inventor,' I replied, 'the honour is due to Fritz. He not only thought of this plan for bringing off the animals, but saved one at least of them from a most fearful death.' And I then told them how bravely he had encountered the shark. My wife was delighted with her son's success, but declared that she would dread our trips to the vessel more than ever, knowing that such savage fish inhabited the waters.

Fritz, Ernest and I began the work of unloading our craft, while Jack, seeing that the poor donkey was still enc.u.mbered with his swimming-belt, tried to free him from it. But the donkey would not stand quiet, and the child's fingers were not strong enough to loosen the cordage; finally, therefore, he scrambled upon the animal's back, and urging him on with hand and foot, trotted towards us.

'Come, my boy,' I said, 'no one must be idle here, even for a moment; you will have riding practise enough hereafter; dismount and come and help us.'

Jack was soon on his feet. 'But I have not been idle all day,' he said, 'look here!' and he pointed to a belt round his waist. It was a broad belt of yellow skin in which he had stuck a couple of pistols and a knife. 'And see,' he added, 'what I have made for the dogs. Here, Juno, Turk,' the dogs came bounding up at his call, and I saw that they were each supplied with a collar of the same skin, in which were fastened nails, which bristled round their necks in a most formidable manner.

'Capital, capital! my boy,' said I, 'but where did you get your materials, and who helped you?'

'Except in sewing,' said my wife, 'he had little a.s.sistance, and as for the materials, Fritz's jackal supplied us with the skin, and the needles and thread came out of my wonderful bag. You little think how many useful things may be had from that same bag; it is woman's duty and nature, you know, to see after trifles.'

Fritz evidently did not approve of the use to which his jackal's hide had been devoted, and holding his nose, begged his little brother to keep at a distance. 'Really, Jack,' he said, 'you should have cured the hide before you used it, the smell is disgusting, don't come near me.'

'It's not the hide that smells at all,' retorted Jack, 'it is your nasty jackal itself that you left in the sun.'

'Now, boys,' said I, 'no quarrelling here; do you, Jack, help your brother to drag the carcase to the sea, and if your belt smells after that you must take it off and dry it better.'

The jackal was dragged off, and we then finished our work of unloading our boat. When this was accomplished we started for our tent, and finding there no preparation for supper, I said, 'Fritz, let us have a Westphalian ham.'

'Ernest,' said my wife, smiling, 'let us see if we cannot conjure up some eggs.'

Fritz got out a splendid ham and carried it to his mother triumphantly, while Ernest set before me a dozen white b.a.l.l.s with parchment-like coverings.

'Turtles' eggs!' said I. 'Well done, Ernest, where did you get them?'

'That,' replied my wife, 'shall be told in due course when we relate our adventures; now we will see what they will do towards making a supper for you; with these and your ham I do not think we shall starve.'

Leaving my wife to prepare supper, we returned to the sh.o.r.e and brought up what of the cargo we had left there; then, having collected our herd of animals (except for the sow, which ran away, and the ducks and geese which deserted us for a nearby marshy swamp), we returned to the tent.

The meal which awaited us was as unlike the first supper we had there enjoyed as possible. My wife had improvised a table of a board laid on two casks, on this was spread a white damask tablecloth, on which were placed knives, forks, spoons and plates for each person. A tureen of good soup first appeared, followed by a capital omelette, then slices of the ham; and finally some Dutch cheese, b.u.t.ter and biscuits, with a bottle of the captain's canary wine, completed the repast.

While we thus regaled ourselves, I related to my wife our adventures, and then begged she would remember her promise and tell me all that had happened in my absence.

Chapter 3

'I will spare you a description,' said my wife, 'of our first day's occupations; truth to tell, I spent the time chiefly in anxious thought and watching your progress and signals. I rose very early this morning, and with the utmost joy perceiving your signal that all was right, hastened to reply to it, and then while my sons yet slumbered, I sat down and began to consider how our position could be improved.

'"For it is perfectly impossible," said I to myself, "to live much longer where we are now. The sun beats burningly the livelong day on this bare rocky spot, our only shelter is this poor tent, beneath the canvas of which the heat is even more oppressive than on the open sh.o.r.e. Why should not I and my little boys exert ourselves as well as my husband and Fritz? Why should not we too try to accomplish something useful?

'"If we could but exchange this melancholy and unwholesome abode for a pleasant shady dwelling-place, we should all improve in health and spirits. Among those delightful woods and groves where Fritz and his father saw so many charming things, I feel sure there must be some little retreat where we could establish ourselves comfortably; there must be, and I will find it."

'By this time the boys were up, and I observed Jack very quietly and busily occupied with his knife about the spot where Fritz's jackal lay.

Watching his proceedings, I saw that he had cut two long narrow strips of the animal's skin, which he cleaned and sc.r.a.ped very carefully, and then taking a handful of great nails out of his pocket, he stuck them through the skin points outwards, after which he cut strips of canvas sailcloth twice as broad as the thongs, doubled them, and laid them on the raw side of the skin so as to cover the broad flat nail heads.

'At this point of the performance, Master Jack came to me with the agreeable request that I would kindly st.i.tch the canvas and (moist) skin together for him. I gave him needles and thread, but could not think of depriving him of the pleasure of doing it himself.

'However, when I saw how good-humouredly he persevered in the work with his awkward unskilful fingers, I took pity upon him, and conquering the disgust I felt, finished lining the skin dog-collars he had so ingeniously contrived. After this I was called upon to complete in the same way a fine belt of skin he had made for himself. I advised him to think of some means by which the skin might be kept from shrinking.

'Ernest, although rather treating Jack's manufacture with ridicule, proposed a sensible-enough plan, which Jack forthwith put in execution.

He nailed the skin, stretched flat, on a board, and put it in the sun to dry.

'My scheme of a journey was agreed to joyously by my young companions.

Preparations were instantly set on foot: weapons and provisions provided: the two elder boys carrying guns, while they gave me charge of the water flask, and a small hatchet.

'Leaving everything in as good order as we could at the tent, we proceeded towards the stream, accompanied by the dogs. Turk, who had accompanied you on your first expedition, seemed immediately to understand that we wished to pursue the same route, and proudly led the way.

'As I looked at my two young sons, each with his gun, and considered how much the safety of the party depended on these little fellows, I felt grateful to you, dear husband, for having acquainted them in childhood with the use of firearms.

'Filling our water-jar, we crossed the stream, and went on to the height from whence, as you described, a lovely prospect is obtained, at the sight of which a pleasurable sensation of buoyant hope, to which I had long been a stranger, awoke within my breast.