The Island Home Part 12

Just as I was at last sinking into unconsciousness, Johnny, sitting up among the leaves in which he was half buried, inquired softly, "Max, are you awake!" I spoke to him, to let him know that he was not alone. "I can't get asleep," said he, "every thing looks so beautiful and so strange. It seems to me I never saw the moon and the stars so big and so bright."

"You must keep your eyes shut, and not look at the moon, if you want to get asleep."

"But the trees keep rustling so; just as if they were whispering softly to one another; and then the sound of the waves on the reef is so sad and mournful, that it sets me to thinking all sorts of strange things.

I wonder whether there are any wild animals on the island!" I a.s.sured him that it was quite improbable, and that no dangerous animals of any kind were ever found on the islands of the Pacific. This, however, did not seem to satisfy him entirely, and I began to suspect that his mind was running on the jackalls, tiger-cats, and hyenas of the Swiss Family Robinson. A question or two which he presently asked, showed that I had guessed correctly, and I hastened to meet the difficulty, by reminding him that "their island, (if indeed it was an island at all, and not a part of the mainland), was situated near the coast of New Holland, from which animals might pa.s.s over to it by swimming."

"Why, I thought," said Johnny, "that there were no wild animals in New Holland, except kangaroos and opossums: my book of beasts, birds, and fishes, says so."

This was a fact in Natural History which I was not prepared to gainsay; especially when backed by so redoubtable an authority as "the book of beasts, birds, and fishes." For a moment I was taken all aback; but being loathe to give up my little companion a prey to imaginary jackalls, tiger-cats, and hyenas, I rallied again, resolved upon one more desperate effort for his deliverance.

"Well," said I, "the fact is, we don't know exactly where the Swiss Family Robinson's island really was--it is altogether uncertain. It may have been near Java, or Ceylon, or the coast of India, in which case, all those Asiatic beasts could easily have got there--that is, if the two places were close enough together. Now we know that we are somewhere in the middle of the Pacific, a vast distance from any continent, or any of the great Indian islands, so that large animals here are out of the question, unless they have taken a swim of a thousand miles or so."

This seemed to be pretty decisive; and I think it settled the jackalls, tiger-cats, and hyenas, effectually, for Johnny said no more on the subject, except to remark, that, even if they _could_ swim that distance, they would stand a bad chance with the sharks and other sea-monsters; to which I added, as a final clincher, that in any event they would be sure to starve on the voyage, unless they should bring a large supply of provisions along. "Well," said he, after a minute's silence, "I'm not afraid of anything; but somehow or other I feel very wide awake to-night, and not in the least sleepy."

"Shut your eyes," said I, "and think of a great wheel, whirling round and round, with a regular and even motion, and never stopping, until you have counted it go round a hundred times."

Johnny laughed softly to himself, as though pleased with this device, and was quite still for a minute or two; then he spoke again.

"It has gone round a hundred times, but towards the end it got a-going dreadfully fast; it _would_ go fast in spite of all I could do."

"Never mind the wheel, then," said I, "but think of the huge lazy swells in a calm, rising and falling, rising and falling, as they did when we lay rocking in the boat, all those long days and nights, out on the sea."

"Well, I'll try--but I don't believe it will be of any use."

"Don't look at the moon, and don't speak to me again--unless for something very particular--and now good night."

"Good night!" and he nestled down among his leaves again. In a very few minutes the deep and regular breathing of the little patient, proved the efficacy of my sleeping prescription, and announced that his troubles for that night were over.

CHAPTER SIXTEEN.

DOMESTIC EMBARRa.s.sMENTS.

A DESERT ISLAND BREAKFAST--PERSUASIVE REASONING--ROMANCE AND REALITY-- THE PRINCE AND PRINCESS.

"Now my co-mates, and brothers in exile, Hath not long custom made this life more sweet Than that of painted pomp? Are not these woods More free from peril than the envious court?

Here feel we but the penalty of Adam, The seasons' difference; as the icy fang And churlish chiding of the winter's wind."

The next morning "the Islanders," or some of them, at least, were stirring early; and the first thing that attracted my attention, on opening my eyes, was a busy group, consisting of Max, Eiulo, and Johnny, gathered round a fire at a little distance, and engaged in some apparently very interesting operation. A savoury smell at the same time saluted my olfactory organs, and on approaching the scene of action, to investigate the matter more closely, I found my finny prize of the preceding evening undergoing a somewhat primitive style of cookery, of which Max appeared to be the chief director and superintendent. A number of large oysters were also roasting in the embers; and from these last proceeded the grateful and appetising odour referred to.

"Good morning!" cried Max; "you see we have breakfast nearly ready; and a breakfast, too, that will be a positive luxury, after so long a course of cocoa-nut diet; how Browne will exult at the sight of it; how his eyes will open--to say nothing of his mouth! And don't we deserve a vote of thanks for our early labours for the general good?"

Morton and Browne at this moment emerged from their respective heaps of leaves, and, after rather more than the usual amount of yawning and stretching of limbs, came towards the fire.

"Fee, faw, fo, fum!" cried Morton, snuffing the agreeable smell of the cookery in progress, "I trust we're not too late for breakfast, and that there is something more than the savour of good victuals left."

"You are in good time," said Johnny, bustling about the fire with an air of official dignity, "the first bell hasn't rung yet."

"But why has Shakespeare such a long face?" said Max; "has camping out caused a reminiscence of rheumatism!"

"Bad dreams, horrible dreams!" answered Browne, shaking his head solemnly, "which came of lying staring at the moon last night, until I fell asleep:"--then throwing himself into an att.i.tude, he commenced declaiming with a tragic air--

"'O, I have pa.s.sed a miserable night, So full of fearful dreams, of ugly sights, That as I am a Christian, faithful man, I would not pa.s.s another such a night Though 'twere to buy a world of happy days, So full of dismal terror was the time.'"

"Bravo!" cried Max, applauding furiously, "I like to see that; it's what I call coming out strong under discouraging circ.u.mstances. Here are we, six forlorn castaways, on a desert island, somewhere, (no one knows where), in the Pacific Ocean; and, instead of moping, and sulking, and bemoaning our hard fate, we wake up of a fine morning, quite bright and cheerful, and one of the six, (or seven, more correctly speaking), goes to work spouting Shakespeare, carrying us back to old times, and making us feel, (as Morton would say), like 'happy schoolboys again.'"

"What's all this?" cried Arthur, coming forward with a puzzled air, "what is Max making a speech about? has he taken the stump as a candidate for the presidency of the island?"

"He needn't do that," said Browne, "we're not going to have any presidents, or other republican trumpery here; I have formally taken possession of the island in the name of Victoria; and it is therefore a colony of Great Britain; I shall apply, at the first convenient opportunity, for letters patent, making me colonial governor."

"Tory, monarchist!" cried Max, "recant at once, or you sha'n't taste a mouthful of my breakfast."

"Do you think I'll sell my loyalty for a mess of pottage! No, I'm for a well-regulated monarchy: hurrah for Victoria!"

"Down with the Britisher!" cried Johnny, entering into the spirit of the scene, and tugging at Browne's coat-tails; "make him hurrah for the stars and stripes, or else don't give him any of our oysters!"

"You're surely not going back to the principles of the dark ages--you won't attack the right of private judgement, and persecute for opinion's sake."

"The right of private judgment, indeed!" answered Max, with great contempt. "I hold that no person can have a right, on any pretence whatever, to entertain erroneous opinions on important subjects, affecting the welfare of mankind. If a man does entertain such opinions, it is the duty of those who know better to convince him of the error by the most effectual arguments at their command. It is, therefore, my duty to open your eyes to the blessings of liberal inst.i.tutions. I have here, (pointing towards the incipient breakfast), the most powerful means to a.s.sist and quicken your perception of the truth. Shall I not use those means?"

"The line of argument which you indicate is exceedingly forcible, (how delightfully those oysters smell!) I really think I begin to perceive some of the advantages of republicanism already."

"With the right of private judgment, properly understood," resumed Max, "I should be reluctant to interfere. You will, I presume, enjoy the exercise of so precious a privilege, even with a cocoa-nut breakfast, which you can probably obtain, by requesting Prince Eiulo to scale one of yonder tufted trees."

"How clear the matter becomes with a little reflection," observed Browne "(this camping out in the open air gives one a famous appet.i.te). In fact your reasoning is almost irresistible, (that fish looks particularly nice), and really I begin to think I can safely profess myself a good republican--until after breakfast at any rate."

Max's culinary operations being at last completed, Johnny placed a huge sh.e.l.l to his lips, and sounded a long blast by way of announcement that breakfast was ready. The fish was served up in a fresh palm-leaf, and Johnny declared with much complacency, that not all the crockery-stores in New York, could furnish a platter of such royal dimensions. The leaves of the hibiscus, served admirably for plates; for knives and forks, we used the strong stalks, or central fibres, of cocoa-nut leaflet; which, with fingers in reserve for an emergency, answered at least as well as the chopsticks of the Chinese. Upon the whole, it cannot be denied that our table-service, simple as it was, has its advantages: it involved no necessity for any washing of dishes, no anxiety on the score of broken crockery, and we could indulge in the extravagance of a new dinner set every day, or even at every meal, for that matter, if so disposed.

The fish proved most excellent, resembling the striped ba.s.s in flavour and appearance: as to the oysters, they were unanimously voted equal to Shrewsburys.

"Ah!" sighed Max, "if we had now but a cup of coffee and a hot roll, those inestimable blessings of civilisation, we could almost forget that we are on a desert island."

"Wait until the bread-fruit ripens," said Arthur, "and we shall have a tolerably fair subst.i.tute for your 'hot rolls.' Eiulo will show us the most approved mode of preparing it, and we shall find it nearly equal to the wheaten loaf."

"All that Max seems to think about, is the eating," said Browne, swallowing the last remaining oyster, "but I begin to feel troubled about another matter: see, I am getting fairly out at the elbows, and neither 'coffee and rolls,' nor roast-beef and plum-pudding in indefinite quant.i.ties, would afford me any satisfaction, compared to the possession of a supply of clothing, or even a few changes of linen--in fact, comrades, what are we to do? There is danger that we shall all become savages: I begin to feel a loss of self-respect already."

"We shall have to go into the manufacturing business, I suppose," said Arthur. "I have often watched the whole process of making tappa, or native cloth, from the bark of the paper-mulberry; it is quite simple, and I have no doubt we can succeed in it; I have talked with Eiulo on the subject and find that he understands the process thoroughly."

"But are there any paper-mulberries on the island!" inquired Morton.

"I have not seen any," answered Arthur. "If there are none, the bark of the bread-fruit tree will answer nearly as well: the cloth made from it is as strong and durable, though not so fine."

"For the present, and before we go into home manufactures," said Max, "I advise Shakespeare, in order to avoid the loss of his remaining self-respect in consequence of wearing foul linen, to betake himself to the beach, wash his garments, and take a bath until they dry in the sun, which is the course I intend to pursue myself."

"And what are we going to do for shoes, I wonder!" said Johnny, "mine are badly cracked and torn, and nearly worn out: we shall all have to go barefoot!" and he looked aghast at the thought.

"We must kill a shark by-and-bye," said Arthur, "when we have nothing more pressing to do; and we can make leggins, or moccasins, from the skin."