"Not very well; I have had some bad dreams."

"Well you sang me some beautiful songs," replied I.

"Yes, I recollect," said he; "but I fell asleep at last."

"Yes, you refused to sing any more, and went off in a loud snore."

Jackson got out of his bed-place, and I gave him his meal. We talked
during the whole day about singing, and I hummed the air which had
pleased me most.

"You have got the air pretty correct," said he; "you must have an ear
for music. Have you ever tried to sing?"

"No, never; you know I have not."

"You might have tried when I was not with you. Try now. I will sing a
tune, and then do you repeat it after me."

He did so, and I repeated it.

"Very good," said he. "Let's try the compass of your voice."

He ran up the gamut, and I followed him.

"I think you can go higher than I can," said he, "however you go quite
high enough, so now I'll give you a singing lesson."

Thus were we occupied at intervals during the whole day, for Jackson
would not allow me to try my voice too much at first. As the evening
fell, he again asked me to fetch some liquor, and as I had three quart
wine bottles, as I before mentioned, which I had found in the chest, I
took them down to fill, as it would save me many trips, and be more
convenient in every respect.

I brought them up full, and Jackson stopped them up with some of the
rags which I had torn to bind round his wrist, and put them all three
in his bed-place.

"That will be a much better arrangement," said he, "as now I can pour
out the liquor into the pannikin as I want it; besides, I mean to take
a little water with it in future. It's not quite so good with water,
but it lasts longer, and one don't go to sleep so soon. Well, I little
thought that I should have such a comfort sent me after all my
sufferings. I don't so much care now about staying here. Go and fetch
some water in the pannikin."

That night was a repetition of the first. Jackson sang till he was
intoxicated, and then fell fast asleep, not talking or saying a word,
and I was disappointed, for I remained awake to catch anything he might
say. It would be tedious to repeat what took place for about a
month;--suffice it to say it was very rarely, during that time, that
Jackson said anything in his sleep, or drunken state, and what he did
say I could make nothing of. He continued, in the daytime, to give me
lessons in singing, and I could now sing several songs very correctly.
At night, he returned to his usual habit, and was more or less
intoxicated before the night was over. I perceived, however, that this
excess had a great effect upon his constitution, and that he had become
very pale and haggard. Impatient as I felt to find out the truth, I
concealed my feelings towards him (which had certainly very much
changed again since the discovery I had made and the suspicions I had
formed) and I remained on the best of terms with him, resolving to wait
patiently. He had spoken once, and therefore I argued that he would
speak again, nor was I wrong in my calculations.

One night, after he had finished his usual allowance of liquor, and had
composed himself for sleep, I observed that he was unusually restless,
changing his position in his bed-place every few minutes, and, at last,
he muttered, "Captain James. Well, what of Captain James, eh?"

A thought struck me that he might reply to a question.

"How did he die?" said I, in a low clear voice.

"Die?" replied Jackson, "he fell down the cliff. Yes, he did. You can't
say I killed him. No--never put my finger on him."

After that, he was silent for some time, and then he recommenced.

"She always said that I destroyed them both, but I did not--only
one--yes, one, I grant--but I hated him--no, not for his diamonds--no,
no--if you said his wife indeed--love and hate."

"Then you killed him for love of his wife, and hate of himself?"

"Yes, I did. Who are you that have guessed that? Who are you? I'll have
your life."

As he said this, he started up in his bed-place, awakened by his dream,
and probably by my voice, which he had replied to.

"Who spoke?" said he. "Frank Henniker, did you speak?"

I made no reply, but pretended to be sound asleep, as he still sat up,
as if watching me. I feigned a snore.

"It could not have been him," muttered Jackson, "he's quite fast.
Mercy, what a dream!"

He then sank down in his bed-place, and I heard the gurgling noise
which told me that he had put the bottle of liquor to his mouth, and
was drinking out of it. From the time that the gurgling lasted, he must
have taken a great deal. At last, all was quiet again.

"So I have discovered it at last," said I, as my blood boiled at what I
had heard. "He did murder my father. Shall I kill him while he sleeps?"
was the first thought that came into my troubled mind. "No, I won't do
that. What then, shall I tax him with it when he is awake, and then
kill him?" but I thought, that, as he was blind, and unable to defend
himself, it would be cowardly, and I could not do that. What then was I
to do? and as I cooled down, I thought of the words of the Bible, that
we were to return good for evil; for Jackson, of whom, when I read it,
I asked why we were told to do so, had explained it to me, and
afterwards when I came to the part which said, "Vengeance is mine,
saith the Lord," he had told me that there was punishment for the
wicked hereafter, and that was the reason why we were not to obey the
Jewish law of "an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth," which I had
referred to. This portion of the Bible he had well explained, and
certain it is that it prevented my raising my hand against him that
night. Still, I remained in a state of great excitement; I felt that it
would be impossible for me to be any longer on good terms with him, and
I revolved the question in my mind, till at last, worn out by
excitement, I fell fast asleep.

A short time before daylight, I started up at what I thought was a
faint cry, but I listened, and hearing nothing more, I again fell
asleep, and it was broad daylight when I arose; my first thoughts were
naturally of Jackson, and I looked at where he lay, but he was no
longer there--his bed-place was empty. I was astonished, and after a
moment's thought, I recollected the cry I had heard in the night, and I
ran out of the cabin and looked around me, but I could see nothing of
him. I then went to the edge of the flat rock upon which the cabin was
built and looked over it; it was about thirty feet from this rock to
the one below, and nearly perpendicular. I thought that he must have
gone out in the night, when intoxicated with liquor, and have fallen
down the precipice; but I did not see him as I peered over. "He must
have gone for water," thought I, and I ran to the corner of the rock,
where the precipice was much deeper, and looking over, I perceived him
lying down below without motion or apparent life. I had, then, judged
rightly. I sat down by the side of the pool of water quite overpowered;
last night I had been planning how I should destroy him, and now he lay
dead before me without my being guilty of the crime. "Vengeance is
mine, saith the Lord," were the words that first escaped my lips; and I
remained many minutes in deep thought. At last it occurred to me that
he might not yet be dead; I ran down the cliff, and, clambering over
the rocks, arrived breathless at the spot where Jackson lay. He groaned
heavily as I stood by him.

"Jackson," said I, kneeling down by him, "are you much hurt?" for all
my feelings of animosity had vanished when I perceived his unhappy
condition. His lips moved, but he did not utter any sound. At last he
said, in a low voice, "Water." I hastened back as fast as I could to
the cabin, got a pannikin half full of water, and poured a little rum
in it out of the bottle. This journey and my return to him occupied
some ten minutes. I put it to his lips, and he seemed to revive. He was
a dreadful object to look at. The blood from a cut on his head had
poured over his face and beard, which were clotted with gore. How to
remove him to the cabin I knew not. It would be hardly possible for me
to carry him over the broken rocks which I had climbed to arrive at
where he lay; and there was no other way but what was longer, and just
as difficult. By degrees he appeared to recover; I gave him more of the
contents of the pannikin, and at last he could speak, although with
great pain and difficulty. As he did so he put his hand to his side. He
was indeed a ghastly object, with his sightless eyeballs, his livid
lips, and his face and beard matted with blood.

"Do you think you could get to the cabin, if I helped you?" said I.

"I shall never get there--let me die where I am," said he.

"But the cut on your head is not very deep," replied I.

"No, I don't feel it;--but--my side--I bleed inwardly--I am--broken to
pieces," said he, pausing and gasping between each word.

I looked at his side, and perceived that it was already black and much
swollen. I offered him more drink, which he took eagerly, and I then
returned for a further supply. I filled two of the wine-bottles with
water and a small drop of spirits as before, and went back to where he
lay. I found him more recovered, and I had hopes that he might still do
well, and I told him so.

"No, no," replied he; "I have but a few hours to live--I feel that. Let
me die here, and die in peace."

He then sank into a sort of stupor, occasioned, I presume, by what I
had given him to drink, and remained quite quiet, and breathing
heavily. I sat by him waiting till he should rouse up again; for more
than an hour I was in a very confused state of mind, as may well be
imagined, after what had passed in the night.

Chapter XII

What I most thought of was obtaining from him, now that he was dying,
the full truth as to the deaths of my father and mother.

Jackson remained so long in this state of stupor, I feared that he
would die before I could interrogate him; but this, as it proved, was
not to be the case. I waited another hour, very impatiently I must
acknowledge, and then I went to him and asked him how he felt. He
replied immediately, and without that difficulty which he appeared
before to have experienced.

"I am better now--the inward bleeding has stopped; but still I cannot
live--my side is broken in, I do not think there is a rib that is not
fractured into pieces, and my spine is injured, for I cannot move or
feel my legs; but I may live many hours yet, and I thank God for His
mercy in allowing me so much time--short indeed to make reparation for
so bad a life, but still nothing is impossible with God."

"Well, then," replied I, "if you can speak, I wish you would tell me
the truth relative to my father's death, and also about the death of
others; as for my father I know that you murdered him--for you said so
last night in your sleep."

After a pause, Jackson replied--"I am glad that I did, and that you
have told me so--I wished to make a full confession even to you, for
confession is a proof of repentance. I know that you must hate me, and
will hate my memory, and I cannot be surprised at it; but look at me
now, Frank, and ask your own heart whether I am not more an object of
pity than of hatred. 'Vengeance is mine, saith the Lord!' and has not
His vengeance fallen upon me even in this world? Look at me; here I am,
separated from the world that I loved so much, with no chance of ever
joining it--possessed of wealth which would but a few months ago have
made me happy--now blind, crushed to pieces by an avenging God, in
whose presence I must shortly appear to answer for all my
wickedness--all my expectations overthrown, all my hopes destroyed, and
all my accumulated sins procuring me nothing, but, it may be, eternal
condemnation. I ask you again, am I not an object of pity and
commiseration?"

I could but assent to this, and he proceeded.

"I will now tell you the truth. I did tell the truth up to the time of
your father and mother's embarkation on board of the brig, up to when
the gale of wind came on which occasioned eventually the loss of the
ship. Now give me a little drink.

"The vessel was so tossed by the storm, and the waves broke over her so
continually, that the between-decks were full of water, and as the
hatches were kept down, the heat was most oppressive. When it was not
my watch I remained below, and looked out for another berth to sleep
in. Before the cabin bulkheads on the starboard side, the captain had
fitted up a sort of sail-room to contain the spare sails in case we
should require them. It was about eight feet square, and the sails were
piled up in it, so as to reach within two feet of the deck overhead;
though the lower ones were wetted with the water, above they were dry,
and I took this berth on the top of the sails as my sleeping place. Now
the state-room in which your father and mother slept was on the other
side of the cabin bulkhead, and the straining and rolling of the vessel
had opened the chinks between the planks, so that I could see a great
deal of what was done in the state-room, and could hear every word
almost that was spoken by them. I was not aware of this when I selected
this place as my berth, but I found it out on the first night, the
light of the candle shining through the chinks into the darkness by
which I was surrounded outside. Of course, it is when a man is alone
with his wife that he talks on confidential subjects; that I knew well,
and hoped by listening to be able to make some discovery;--what, I had
no idea of; but, with the bad feelings which stimulated me, I
determined not to lose an opportunity. It was not till about a week
after I had selected this berth, that I made any discovery. I had had
the watch from six to eight o'clock, and had gone to bed early. About
nine o'clock your father came into the state-room. Your mother was
already in bed. As your father undressed, your mother said, 'Does not
that belt worry you a great deal, my dear?'

"'No,' replied your father, 'I am used to it now; it did when I first
put it on, but now I have had it on four days, I do not feel it. I
shall keep it on as long as this weather lasts; there is no saying what
may happen, and it will not do to be looking for the belt at a moment's
warning.'

"'Do you think then that we are in danger?'

"'No, not particularly so, but the storm is very fierce, and the vessel
is old and weak. We may have fine weather in a day or two, or we may
not; at all events, when property of value is at stake, and that
property not my own, I should feel myself very culpable, if I did not
take every precaution.'

"'Well--I wish we were safe home again, my dear, and that my father had
his diamonds, but we are in the hands of God.'

"'Yes, I must trust to Him,' replied your father.

"This circumstance induced me to look through one of the chinks of the
bulkhead, so that I could see your father, and I perceived that he was
unbuckling a belt which was round his body, and which no doubt
contained the diamonds referred to. It was of soft leather, and about
eight inches wide, sewed lengthways and breadthways in small squares,
in which I presumed the diamonds were deposited. After a time your
mother spoke again.

"'I really think, Henniker, that I ought to wear the belt.'

"'Why so, my dear?'

"'Because it might be the means of my preservation in case of accident.
Suppose now, we were obliged to abandon the vessel and take to the
boats; a husband, in his hurry, might forget his wife, but he would not
forget his diamonds. If I wore the belt, you would be certain to put me
in the boat.'

"'That observation of yours would have force with some husbands, and
some wives,' retorted your father; 'but as I have a firm belief in the
Scriptures, it does not affect me. What do the Proverbs say? "The price
of a virtuous woman is far above rubies;" and a good ruby is worth even
more in the market than a diamond of the same size.'

"'Well, I must comfort myself with that idea,' replied your mother,
laughing.

"'Supposing we be thrown upon some out-of-the-way place,' said your
father, 'I shall then commit the belt to your charge. It might soon be
discovered on my person, whereas, on yours, it would stand every chance
of being long concealed. I say this because, even in a desert, it would
be dangerous to have it known by unscrupulous and unprincipled men that
anyone had so much wealth about him.'

"'Well,' replied your mother, 'that is also comfortable for me to hear,
for you will not leave me behind, because I shall be necessary to
conceal your treasure.'

"'Yes,' replied your father, laughing, 'there is another chance for
you, you see.'

"Your father then extinguished the light, and the conversation was not
renewed; but I had heard enough. Your father carried a great treasure
about his person--wealth, I took it for granted, that if I once could
obtain, and return to England, would save me from my present position.
My avarice was hereby excited, and thus another passion equally
powerful, and equally inciting to evil deeds, was added to the hate
which I already had imbibed for your father. But I must leave off now."

Jackson drank a little more, and then remained quiet, and as I had had
no food that day, I took the opportunity of returning to the cabin,
with the promise that I would be back very soon. In half an hour I
returned, bringing with me the Bible and Prayer-book, as I thought that
he would ask me to read to him after he had made his confession. I
found him breathing heavily, and apparently asleep, so I did not wake
him. As I looked at him, and recalled to mind his words, "Am not I an
object of pity?" I confessed that he was, and then I asked myself the
question, Can you forgive him who was the murderer of your father?
After some reflection, I thought that I could. Was he not already
punished? Had not the murder been already avenged? It was not possible
to retain animosity against one so stricken, so broken to pieces, and
my heart smote me when I looked at his disabled hand, and felt that I,
boy as I was, had had a share in his marring. At last he spoke.

"Are you there, Frank?"

"Yes," replied I.

"I have had a little sleep," said he.

"Do you feel easier?" inquired I kindly.

"Yes, I feel my side more numbed, and so it will remain till
mortification takes place. But let me finish my confession; I wish to
relieve my mind, not that I shall die to-night, or perhaps to-morrow,
but still I wish it over. Come nearer to me, that I may speak in a
lower voice, and then I shall be able to speak longer."

I did so, and he proceeded.

"You know how we were cast upon this island, and how I behaved at
first. When I afterwards took my place with the others, my evil
thoughts gradually quitted me, and I gave up all idea of any injury to
your father. But this did not last long. The deaths of so many, and at
last the captain your father and your mother being the only ones left
on the island besides myself, once more excited my cupidity. I thought
again of the belt of diamonds, and by what means I should gain
possession of it; and the devil suggested to me the murders of the
captain and of your father. I had ascertained that your father no
longer carried the belt on his person when we all used to bathe at the
bathing-pool; it was, therefore, as your father had proposed, in your
mother's keeping. Having once made up my mind, I watched every
opportunity to put my intentions into execution. It was the custom for
one of us to fish every morning, as your mother would not eat the dried
birds, if fish could be procured, and I considered that the only chance
I had of executing my horrible wish was when your father went to fish
off the rocks. We usually did so off the ledge of rocks which divide
the bathing-pool from the sea, but I found out another place, where
more fish, and of a better quality, were to be taken, which is off the
high wall of rocks just below. You know where I mean, I have often sent
you to fish there, but I never could go myself since your father's
death. Your father took his lines there, and was hauling in a large
fish, when I, who had concealed myself close to where he stood, watched
the opportunity as he looked over the rock to see if the fish was clear
of the water, to come behind him and throw him off into the sea. He
could not swim, I knew, and after waiting a minute or two, I looked
over and saw his body, just as it sank, after his last struggles. I
then hastened away, and my guilty conscience induced me to ascend the
ravine, and collect a faggot of firewood to bring home, that no
suspicions might be entertained; but my so doing was the very cause of
suspicion, as you will afterwards perceive. I returned with the wood,
and the captain observed, when I came up to the cabin:

"'Why, it's something new for you to collect wood out of your turn,
Jackson. Wonders will never cease.'

"'The fact is, that I am becoming very amiable,' replied I, hardly
knowing what to say, and afraid to look either of them in the face, for
your mother, with you on her lap, was standing close by.

"'Has my husband caught any fish, do you know, Jackson?' said your
mother, 'for it is high time that he came home.'

"'How can I tell?' replied I. 'I have been up the ravine for wood.'

"'But you were down on the rock two hours ago,' replied your mother,
'for Captain James saw you coming away.'

"'That I certainly did,' replied the captain. 'Had he caught any fish
when you were with him?'

"They must have perceived my confusion when I said, 'Yes, I was on the
rocks, but I never went near Henniker, that I'll swear.'

"'You must have been near him, even when I saw you,' replied the
captain.

"'I never looked at him, if I was,' replied I.

"'Well, then, one of us had better go down and see what he is about,'
said the captain. 'Shall I leave Jackson with you?'

"'Yes, yes,' replied your mother, much agitated, 'for I have my
forebodings; better leave him here.'

"The captain hastened down to the rocks, and in a quarter of an hour
returned very much heated, saying, 'He is not there!'

"'Not there?' replied I, getting up, for I had seated myself in silence
on the rock during the captain's absence: 'that's very odd.'

"'It is,' replied the captain. 'Jackson, go and try if you see anything
of him, while I attend to Mrs Henniker.'

"Your mother, on the captain's return, had bowed her head down to her
knees, and covered her face with her hands. I was glad of an excuse to
be away, for my heart smote me as I witnessed her condition.

"I remained away half-an-hour, and then returned, saying that I could
see nothing of your father.

"Your mother was in the cabin, and the captain went in to her, while I
remained outside with all the feelings of Cain upon my brow.

"That was a dreadful day for all parties--no food was taken. Your
mother and the captain remained in the cabin, and I dared not, as
usual, go in to my own bed-place. I lay all night upon the rocks--sleep
I could not; every moment I saw your father's body sinking, as I had
seen it in the morning. The next morning the captain came out to me. He
was very grave and stern, but he could not accuse me, whatever his
suspicions might have been. It was a week before I saw your mother
again, for I dared not intrude into her presence; but, finding there
was no accusation against me, I recovered my spirits, and returned to
the cabin, and things went on as before."

Chapter XIII

"One thing, however, was evident, that your mother had an aversion--I
may say a horror--of me, which she could not conceal. She said nothing,
but she never could look at me; and to any question I put, would seldom
make reply. Strange to say this treatment of hers produced quite a
different effect from what might have been anticipated, and I felt my
former love for her revive. Her shrinking from me made me more familiar
towards her, and increased her disgust. I assumed a jocose air with
her, and at times Captain James considered it his duty to interfere and
check me. He was a very powerful man, and in a contest would have
proved my master; this I knew, and this knowledge compelled me to be
more respectful to your mother in his presence, but when his back was
turned I became so disgustingly familiar, that at last your mother
requested that whether fishing or collecting wood, instead of going out
by turns we should both go, and leave her alone. This I could not well
refuse, as Captain James would in all probability have used force if I
had not consented, but my hatred to him was in consequence most
unbounded. However, an event took place which relieved me from the
subjection which I was under, and left me alone with you and your
mother. Now I must rest a little. Wait another hour, and you shall know
the rest."

It was now late in the evening, but there was a bright moon which shone
over head, and the broad light and shadow made the rocks around us
appear peculiarly wild and rugged. They towered up one above the other
till they met the dark blue of the sky in which the stars twinkled but
faintly, while the moon sailed through the ether, without a cloud to
obscure her radiance. And in this majestic scenery were found but two
living beings--a poor boy and a mangled wretch--a murderer--soon to
breathe his last, and be summoned before an offended God. As I remained
motionless by his side, I felt, as I looked up, a sensation of awe, but
not of fear; I thought to myself--"And God made all this and all the
world besides, and me and him. The Bible said so:" and my speculation
then was as to what God must be, for although I had read the Bible, I
had but a confused idea, and had it been asked me, as it was of the man
in the chariot by Philip, "Understandest thou what thou readest?" I
most certainly should have answered, No. I remained for nearly two
hours in this reverie, and at last fell asleep with my back against the
rock. I was, however, wakened up by Jackson's voice, when he asked in a
low tone for water.

"There it is," said I, handing it to him. "Have you called long?"

"No," replied he; "I asked but once."

"I have been asleep," said I.

As soon as he had drunk, he said--

"I will finish now; my side begins to burn."

He then proceeded--

"It was about four months after your father's death that Captain James
and I went together to the ravine to collect firewood. We passed under
the wall of rock, which you know so well, and went through the gap, as
we call it, when Captain James left the water-course and walked along
the edge of the wall. I followed him; we both of us had our pieces of
rope in our hands with which we tied the faggots. Of a sudden his foot
slipped, and he rolled down to the edge of the rock, but catching hold
of a small bush which had fixed its roots in the rocks, he saved
himself when his body was hanging half over the precipice.

"'Give me the end of your rope,' said he to me, perfectly collected,
although in such danger.

"'Yes,' replied I, and I intended so to do, as I perceived that if I
refused he could still have saved himself by the bush to which he clung.

"But the bush began to loosen and give way, and Captain James
perceiving it cried out--

"'Quick, quick, the bush is giving way!'

"This assertion of his determined me not to give him the rope. I
pretended to be in a great hurry to do so, but entangled it about my
legs, and then appeared occupied in clearing it, when he cried again--

"'Quick!'--and hardly had he said the word when the root of the bush
snapped, and down he fell below.

"I heard the crash as he came to the rock beneath. See the judgment of
God--am I not now precisely in his position, lying battered and crushed
as he was? After a time I went down to where he lay, and found him
expiring. He had just strength to say 'God forgive you,' and then he
died. It was murder, for I could have saved him and would not, and yet
he prayed to God to forgive me. How much happier should I have felt if
he had not said that. His 'God forgive you' rang in my ears for months
afterwards. I returned to the cabin, and with a bold air stated to your
mother what had happened, for I felt I could say, this time, I did not
do the deed. She burst out into frantic exclamations, accusing me of
being not only his murderer but the murderer of her husband. I tried
all I could do to appease her, but in vain. For many weeks she was in a
state of melancholy and despondency, that made me fear for her life;
but she had you still to bestow her affections upon, and for your sake
she lived. I soon made this discovery. She was now wholly in my power,
but I was awed by her looks even, for a time. At last I became bolder,
and spoke to her of our becoming man and wife; she turned from me with
abhorrence. I then resorted to other means. I prevented her from
obtaining food; she would have starved with pleasure, but she could not
bear to see you suffer. I will not detail my cruelty and barbarity
towards her; suffice to say, it was such that she pined away, and about
six months after the death of the captain she died, exhorting me not to
injure you, but if ever I had an opportunity, to take you to your
grandfather. I could not refuse this demand, made by a woman whom I as
certainly killed by slow means as I had your father by a more sudden
death. I buried her in the guano, by the side of the others. After her
death my life was a torture to me for a long while. I dared not kill
you, but I hated you. I had only one consolation, one hope, which
occasionally gave me satisfaction; the consolation, if so it could be
called, was--that I had possession of the diamonds; the hope--that I
should one day see England again. You see me now--are they not all
avenged?"

I could not but feel the truth of Jackson's last sentence. They were
indeed avenged.

After a short pause, he said to me--

"Now, Frank, I feel that the mortification in my side is making great
progress, and, in a short time I shall be in too great pain to talk to
you. I have made a full confession of my crimes; it is all the
reparation I can make to you. Now, can you forgive me? for I shall die
very miserable if you do not. Just look at me. Can you feel resentment
against one in my wretched state? Recollect that you pray to be
forgiven as you forgive others. Give me your answer."

"I think--yes, I feel that I can forgive you, Jackson," replied I. "I
shall soon be left alone on this island, and I am sure I should be much
more miserable than I shall be, if I do not forgive you. I do forgive
you."

"Thanks; you are a good boy, and may God bless you. Is it not nearly
daylight?"

"Yes, it is. I shall soon be able to read the Bible or Prayer-book to
you. I have them both here."

"The pain is too severe, and becomes worse every minute. I shall not be
able to listen to you now; but I shall have some moments of quiet
before I die; and then--"

Jackson groaned heavily, and ceased speaking.

For many hours he appeared to suffer much agony, which he vented in low
groans; the perspiration hung on his forehead in large beads, and his
breathing became laborious. The sun rose and had nearly set again
before Jackson spoke; at last he asked for some drink.

"It is over now," said he faintly. "The pain is subsiding, and death is
near at hand. You may read to me now; but, first, while I think of it,
let me tell you where you will find your father's property."

"I know," replied I; "in your bed-place under the board. I saw you
remove it when you did not see me."

"True. I have no more to say; it will all be over soon. Read the burial
service over me after I am dead; and now, while still above, read me
what you think I shall like best; for I cannot collect myself
sufficiently to tell you what is most proper. Indeed I hardly know. But
I can pray at times. Read on."

I did so, and came upon the parable of the prodigal son.

"That suits me," said Jackson. "Now let me pray. Pray for me, Frank."

"I don't know how," replied I; "you never taught me."

"Alas, no!"

Jackson was then silent. I saw his pale lips move for some time. I
turned away for a few moments; when I came back to him, he was no more!
His jaw had fallen; and this being the first time that I had ever faced
death, I looked upon the corpse with horror and dismay.

After a few minutes I left the body, and sat down on a rock at some
distance from it, for I was somewhat afraid to be near to it. On this
rock I remained till the sun was sinking below the horizon; when,
alarmed at the idea of being there when it was dark, I took up my books
and hastened back to the cabin. I was giddy from excitement, and not
having tasted food for many hours. As soon as I had eaten, I lay down
in my bed-place, intending to reflect upon what I was to do, now that I
was alone; but I was in a few moments fast asleep, and did not wake
until the sun was high. I arose much refreshed, and, seeing my Bible
and Prayer-book close to my bed-place, I recollected my promise to
Jackson that I would read the burial service over his body. I found the
place in the Prayer-book, for I had read it more than once before; and,
having just looked over it, I went with my book to where the body lay.
It presented a yet more hideous spectacle than it had the night before.
I read the service and closed the book. "What can I do?" thought I. "I
cannot bury him in the guano. It will be impossible to carry the body
over these rocks." Indeed, if it had been possible, I do not think I
could have touched it. I was afraid of it. At last I determined that I
would cover it up with the fragments of rocks which lay about in all
directions, and I did so. This occupied me about two hours, and then,
carrying the bottles with me, I gladly hastened away from the spot,
with a resolution never to revisit it. I felt quite a relief when I was
once more in the cabin. I was alone, it was true, but I was no longer
in contact with the dead. I could not collect my thoughts or analyse my
feelings during the remainder of the day. I sat with my head resting on
my hand, in the attitude of one thinking; but at the same time my mind
was vacant. I once more lay down to sleep, and the following morning I
found myself invigorated, and capable of acting as well as thinking. I
had a weight upon my spirits which I could not at first account for;
but it arose from the feeling that I was now alone, without a soul to
speak to or communicate with; my lips must now be closed till I again
fell in with some of my fellow-creatures--and was that likely? We had
seen some of them perish not far from us, and that was all, during a
period of many years.

Chapter XIV

I was now, by Jackson's account, nearly fourteen years old. During
fourteen years but one vessel had been seen by us. It might be fourteen
more, or double that time might elapse, before I should again fall in
with any of my fellow-creatures. As these thoughts saddened me, I felt
how much I would have sacrificed if Jackson had remained alive, were it
only for his company; I would have forgiven him anything. I even then
felt as if, in the murderer of my father, I had lost a friend.

That day I was so unsettled I could not do anything; I tried to read,
but I could not; I tried to eat, but my appetite was gone, I sat
looking at the ocean as it rolled wave after wave, sometimes wondering
whether it would ever bring a fellow-creature to join me; at others I
sat, and for hours, in perfect vacuity of thought. The evening closed
in; it was dark, and I still remained seated where I was. At last I
returned to my bed, almost brokenhearted; but fortunately I was soon
asleep, and my sorrows were forgotten.

Another morning was gladdened with a brilliant sun, the dark blue ocean
was scarcely ruffled by the breeze that swept over it, and I felt my
spirits much revived, and my appetite returned. After taking a meal, I
remembered what Jackson had told me about the belt with the diamonds,
and I went up to his bed-place, and turning out the bird's skins and
feathers, I raked up the gravel, which was not more than two inches
deep, and came to the board. I lifted it up, and found underneath a
hole, about a foot deep, full of various articles. There were the watch
and sleeve buttons of the mate, some dollars wrapped in old rags, a
tobacco-box, an old pipe, a brooch with hair forming initials, some
letters which were signed J. Evelyn, and which I perceived were from my
grandfather, and probably taken by Jackson after my mother's death. I
say letters, because they were such, as I afterwards found out, but I
had not then ever seen a letter, and my first attempt to decipher
written hand was useless, although I did manage to make out the
signature. There was in the tobacco-box a plain gold wedding-ring,
probably my mother's; and there was also a lock of long dark hair,
which I presumed was hers also. There were three or four specimens of
what I afterwards found out to be gold and silver ores, a silver
pencil-case, and a pair of small gold ear-rings. At the bottom of the
hole was the belt; it was of soft leather, and I could feel a hard
substance in it sewed in every square, which of course I presumed were
the diamonds, but I did not cut one of the divisions open to see what
was in them. It had on the upper part of it, in very plain writing,
"The property of Mr J. Evelyn, 33, Minories, London." I examined all
these articles one after another, and having satisfied my curiosity, I
replaced them in the hole for a future survey. I covered the hole with
the board, and put back the gravel and the feathers into the bed-place.
This occupied me about two hours, and then I again took my former
position on the rocks, and remained in a state of listless inactivity
of body and mind the remainder of that day.

This state of prostration lasted for many days--I may say for weeks,
before it was altogether removed. I could find no pleasure in my books,
which were taken up, and after a few moments laid aside. It was now
within a month of the time that the birds should come to the island. I
was in no want of them for sustenance; there were plenty left, but I
almost loathed the sight of food. The reader may inquire how it was
that I knew the exact time of the arrival of the birds? I reply that
the only reckoning ever kept by Jackson and me was the arrival of the
full moons, and we also made a mark on the rock every time that the
moon was at the full. Thirteen moons were the quantity which we
reckoned from the time of the birds appearing on the island one year,
until their re-appearance the next; and twelve moons had now passed. At
length, tired with everything, tired of myself, and I may say, almost
tired of life, I one day took it into my head that I would take some
provisions with me and a bottle to hold water, and go up the ravine,
and cut firewood which should last me a long while; and that I would
remain up there for several days, for I hated the sight of the cabin
and of all that was near to it. The next day I acted upon this
resolution, and slinging my dry provisions on my shoulder, I set off
for the ravine. In an hour I had gained it; but not being in a hurry to
cut wood, I resolved upon climbing higher up, to see if I could reach
the opposite side of the island; that is, at least, get over the brow
of the hill, to have a good view of it. I continued to climb until I
had gained a smooth grassy spot, which was clear of brushwood; and as I
sat down to rest myself, I observed some blue flowers which I had never
seen before, indeed I did not know that there was a flower on the
island. As I afterwards discovered, they were one of the varieties of
Gentianellas. I looked at them, admired them, and felt quite an
affection for them; they were very pretty, and they were, as well as
myself, alone. Jackson, when I was pointing out the English cottages in
the landscapes of "Mavor's Natural History," had told me a great deal
about gardening in England, and how wild flowers and trees were
transplanted and improved by culture; how roses and other plants were
nailed up the walls, as I had observed in the engravings, and how they
were watered and kept; and as I sat down looking at the flower, the
thought occurred to me, Why should I not take it with me, and keep it
for myself? I can water it, and take care of it. I resolved that I
would do so, for I already looked upon the plant as a treasure. I took
it up carefully with my American knife, leaving sufficient mould about
the roots, and then I proceeded to ascend the hill; but before I had
gone another hundred yards, I found at least a dozen more of these
plants in flower, all finer than the one I had dug up, and three or
four others very different from these, which were also quite new to me.
I was puzzled what to do; I put down the plants I had dug up and
continued my ascent, not having made up my mind. After half-an-hour's
climbing, I gained the summit, and could perceive the ocean on the
other side, and the other half of the island lying beneath me. It was
very grand from the height I stood on, but I observed little difference
between one side of the island and the other; all was rugged barren
rock as on my side, with the exception of the portion close to me; this
had brushwood in the ravine, which appeared to be a sort of cleft
through the island. All was silent and solitary; not a bird was to be
seen, and nothing that had life could I discover. I was about to
return, when I thought I might as well go down the ravine facing me for
a little way, and see what there was in it. I did so, and discovered
some other plants that I had not seen on my side of the island. There
were also some fern trees, and some twining plants running up them, and
I thought to myself, Why, these plants are what I saw in the picture of
the English cottages, or very like them. I wonder if they would run up
my cabin? and then all at once the idea came to me that I would plant
some of them round the cabin, and that I would make a garden of
flowers, and have plants of my own. The reader can hardly imagine the
pleasure that this idea gave me; I sat down to ruminate upon it, and
felt quite happy for the time. I now recollected, however, that the
cabin was built on the rock, and that plants would only grow in the
earth. At first this idea chilled me, as it seemed to destroy all my
schemes, but I resolved that I would bring some earth to the rock, and
make my garden in that way. I at first thought of the guano, but
Jackson had told me that it was only used in small proportions to
enrich the soil, and would kill plants if used by itself. After an
hour's consideration, during which I called to mind all that Jackson
had told me on the subject, I made up my mind I would return to the
cabin, and on my return ascertain how low down the ravine I could
obtain earth for my garden; I would then carry the earth to the cabin,
make a soil ready for the plants and flowers, and then, when all was
ready, I would go up the ravine, collect what I could, and make my
garden. I did so. I found that I could get soil about one-third of the
way up the ravine, a quarter of a mile below where the brushwood grew;
and having ascertained that, I returned to the cabin, threw down my
provisions which were to have lasted me a week, and as it was late, I
decided that I would not commence operations until the following day.

I took out of the chest a duck frock, and tying up the sleeves and
collar, so as to form a bag of the body of the frock, I set off the
next morning to begin my task. That day I contrived to carry to the
cabin ten or twelve bags of mould, which I put round it in a border
about four feet wide, and about a foot deep. It occupied me a whole
week to obtain the quantity of earth necessary to make the bed on each
side of the cabin; it was hard work, but it made me cheerful and happy
to what I had been before. I found that the best cure for melancholy
and solitude was employment, so I thus obtained valuable knowledge as
well as the making of my garden. When I had finished carrying the
mould, I started off for the ravine with two bags to hold the plants
which I might collect, and after a day's toil, I returned with my bags
full of small shrubs, besides a bundle of creepers to plant against the
sides of the cabin. The following day was occupied in planting
everything I had procured. I was sorry to see that the leaves and
flowers hung down, but I watered them all before I went to bed. The
next morning I was delighted to perceive that they had all recovered
and were looking quite fresh. But my garden was not full enough to
please me, and I once more went up the ravine, selecting other plants
which had no flowers on them, and one or two other shrubs, which I had
not before observed. When these were planted and watered, my garden
looked very gay and full of plants, and then I discovered the mould
came down for want of support at the edges; I therefore went and picked
up pieces of rock of sufficient size to make a border and hold up the
mould, and now all was complete, and I had nothing to do but to go on
watering them daily. This I did, and recollecting what Jackson had said
about the guano, I got a bag of it, and put some to each plant. The
good effect of this was soon observable, and before the birds came, my
garden was in a very flourishing condition.

I cannot express to the reader the pleasure I derived from this little
garden. I knew every plant and every shrub, and talked to them as if
they were companions, while I watered and tended them, which I did
every night and morning, and their rapid growth was my delight. I no
longer felt my solitude so irksome as I had done. I had something to
look after, to interest me, and to love; they were alive as well as I
was; they grew, and threw out leaves and flowers; they were grateful
for the care I bestowed upon them, and became my companions and friends.

I mentioned before that during the latter portion of the time I was
with Jackson, he had taught me to sing several songs. Feeling tired, in
my solitude, of not hearing the human voice, I found myself at first
humming over, and afterwards singing aloud, the various airs I had
collected from him. This afforded me much pleasure, and I used to sing
half the day. I had no one to listen to me, it is true, but as my
fondness for my garden increased, I used to sit down and sing to the
flowers and shrubs, and fancy that they listened to me. But my stock of
songs was not very large, and at last I had repeated them so often that
I became tired of the words. It occurred to me that the Prayer-book had
the Psalms of David at the end of it, set to music. I got the book, and
as far as the airs that I knew would suit, I sang them all; never were
Psalms, probably, sung to such tunes before, but it amused me, and
there was no want of variety of language.

Every three or four days I would go up the ravine, and search carefully
for any new flower or shrub which I had not yet planted in my garden,
and when I found one, as I often did, it was a source of great delight.

Chapter XV

At last the birds came, and I procured some of their eggs, which were a
very agreeable change, after living so long upon dried meat. My want of
occupation occasioned me also to employ some of my time in fishing,
which I seldom had done while Jackson was alive; and this created a
variety in my food, to which, for a long while, I had been a stranger.
Jackson did not care for fish, as to cook it we were obliged to go up
the ravine for wood, and he did not like the trouble. When the birds
came, I had recourse to my book on Natural History, to read over again
the accounts of the Man-of-War birds, Gannets, and other birds
mentioned in it; and there was a vignette of a Chinaman with tame
cormorants on a pole, and in the letter-press an account of how they
were trained and employed to catch fish for their masters. This gave me
the idea that I would have some birds tame, as companions, and, if
possible, teach them to catch fish for me; but I knew that I must wait
till the young birds were fit to be taken from the nest.

I now resolved that during the time the birds were mating, I would go
to the ravine and remain there several days, to collect bundles of
firewood. The firewood was chiefly cut from a sort of low bush, like
the sallow or willow, fit for making baskets, indeed fit for anything
better than firewood; however, there were some bushes which were of a
harder texture, and which burnt well. It was Jackson who told me that
the former were called willow and used for making baskets, and he also
shewed me how to tie the faggots up by twisting the sallows together.
They were not, however, what Jackson said they were--from after
knowledge, I should say that they were a species of Oleander or
something of the kind.

Having roasted several dozen of eggs quite hard, by way of provision, I
set off one morning, and went to the ravine. As Jackson had said
before, I had to walk under a wall of rock thirty feet high, and then
pass through a water-course to get up to the ravine, which increased
the distance to where the shrubs grew, at least half a mile. It was
over this wall that the captain fell and was killed, because Jackson
would not assist him. I gained the thicket where the bushes grew, and
for three days I worked very hard, and had cut down and tied about
fifty large faggots, when I thought that I had collected enough to last
me for a long while; but I had still to carry them down, and this was a
heavy task, as I could not carry more than one at a time. It occurred
to me that if I threw my faggots over the wall opposite to where they
had been cut down, I should save myself nearly a mile of carriage, as
otherwise I had to walk all the way to the water-course which divided
the wall of rock, and then walk back again. Indeed, where I cut down
the wood was not more than a quarter of a mile from the bathing-pool,
and all down hill. I was delighted at this idea, which I wondered had
never occurred to Jackson, and I commenced putting it into execution.
The top of the wall of rock was slippery from the constant trickling of
the water over the surface, but this was only in some places. I carried
my faggots down one by one, and threw them over, being careful not to
lose my footing in so doing. I had carried all but three or four, and
had become careless, when, on heaving one over, my heels were thrown
up, and before I could recover myself I slid down the remainder of the
ledge and was precipitated down below, a distance of more than thirty
feet. I must have remained there many hours insensible, but at last I
recovered and found myself lying on the faggots which I had thrown
down. It was my falling on the faggots, instead of the hard rock, which
had saved my life. I rose as soon as I could collect my scattered
senses. I felt very sore and very much shaken, and the blood was
running out of my mouth, but there were no bones broken. I was,
however, too ill to attempt anything more that day. I walked home at a
very slow pace and went to bed. A sound sleep restored me, and in a day
or two I was quite recovered. I watered my plants, which I found
drooping, as if they had grieved at my being so long away from them,
and then I returned to where my faggots had been left; and to lighten
my labour I resolved to carry them down to the bathing-pool and stack
them up there on the rocks near to it. I mention this for reasons that
the reader will comprehend bye-and-bye. This occupied me two days, for
I was not inclined, after my fall, to work hard; and very glad was I
when the labour was over.

The young birds were now hatched, but I had to wait four or five weeks
before they were fit to be taken. I began again to find solitude
tedious. The flowers in my garden had all bloomed and withered, and
there was not so much to interest me. I recommenced reading the Bible,
and the narratives in the Old and New Testaments again afforded me
pleasure. I hardly need say to the reader that I read the Bible as I
would have read any other book--for amusement, and not for instruction.
I had learnt little from Jackson--indeed, as regards the true nature of
the Christian religion, I may say, nothing at all. I do not believe
that he knew anything about it himself. It is true that the precepts in
the New Testament struck me, and that I was more interested about Our
Saviour than anybody else; but I could not comprehend him, or his
mission. In short, I read in darkness; and I may say that I almost knew
the Bible by heart without understanding it.--How could I? How many
thousands are there who do the same, without having an excuse to offer
for their blindness!

At last the time for taking the birds arrived, and I had then
sufficient employment to keep me from being melancholy. I collected
quite as many as we had done when Jackson and I had to be provided for;
and with my new knives my labour was comparatively easy. As soon as I
had completed my provision, I went back to take the young birds which
already I had selected and left for that purpose. It was high time, for
I found that when I went to take them they were ready to fly. However,
after a good battle with the old birds (for I had taken six young
ones--two from each nest, which arrayed a force of six old ones against
me, who fought very valiantly in defence of their offspring), I
succeeded in carrying them off, but followed by the old birds, who now
screamed and darted close to me as they came pursuing me to the cabin.
As soon as I got safe back, I took the young birds into the cabin,
tying each of them by the leg with a piece of fishing line, and the
other end of the line I fastened to some pieces of rock which I had
collected ready on the platform outside of the cabin. The old birds
continued to persecute me till it was dark, and then they went away,
and I, tired with my day's labour, was not sorry to go to sleep.

When I woke up the next morning, I found the old birds on the platform,
in company with the young ones, I presume trying to persuade them to
fly away with them; but the lines on their legs prevented that. They
did not leave at my approach for some little while; at last they all
took wing, and went off to sea; but in the course of a few minutes they
returned with some small fish in their mouths, with which they fed
their young ones. They continued to do this for the two following days,
when there was a general break up, announcing the departure of the main
body, which, after much soaring and wheeling in the air, flew off in a
northerly direction. The six parent birds, who were with their young
ones at the cabin, appeared for some time very uneasy, flying round and
round and screaming wildly; at last they soared in the air with loud
shrieks, and flew away after the main body, which was still in
sight--their love for their young overpowered by their instinctive
habits. I was not sorry when they were gone, as I wanted to have my new
family all to myself. I went down to the rocks and caught a fish, which
was large enough to supply them for three or four days. I fed them with
the inside of the fish, and they ate it very heartily. For several days
they appeared very uneasy; but gradually they settled, and not only
appeared to know me, but to welcome my coming, which was to me a source
of great pleasure.

I now neglected my flowers for the birds, which were the more animated
of the two; and I sat down for hours on the platform with my six
companions, who I must own were not over-lively and intelligent, but
they were alive, and had eyes. They seldom roused up, unless I brought
them fish, of which they had a supply four times a day, and then they
would stand on their legs and open their beaks far apart, each waiting
for its share. They were a great happiness to me, and I watched their
gradual increase of plumage and of size, which was very rapid. I gave
them all names out of my Natural History book. One was Lion, then
Tiger, Panther, Bear, Horse, and Jackass (at the time that I named
them, the last would have been very appropriate to them all); and as I
always called them by their names as I fed them, I soon found, to my
great joy, that they knew them well enough. This delighted me. I read
my books to them by way of amusement; I sang my songs to them; I talked
to them; I would even narrate the various histories out of the Bible to
them, such as that of Joseph and his brethren, &c., and the stolid air
with which the communications were received made me almost imagine they
were listened to.

After a time, I took the line off the legs of two of them, with the
precaution of first cutting their wings, and these two became much more
lively, following me into the cabin and generally staying there during
the night. As I found that no attempt was made to escape, I let them
all loose, after having cut their wings, and they all behaved equally
well with the two first to which I had given their liberty.

The perfect obedience and good behaviour of my new companions again
gave me leisure that was not altogether desirable, as it left a vacuum
to fill up. But I returned to my garden. I could do no more at present
but water my plants and look at the increased daily growth of the
climbers, as they now boldly ascended the sides of the cabin; but I
thought it was high time to go up into the ravine and about the island,
to see if I could not add to my collection.

One morning I set off up the ravine. I was not successful, so I
contented myself with carrying, by the long road, those faggots which I
had left behind me on the day when I fell over the precipice. This
labour I finished, and then returned to the cabin, where I was met by
my birds with half-extended wings and open mouths, as if they were very
glad to see me, and very hungry into the bargain. I ought to observe
that my birds appeared now to separate into pairs, male and female, as
their difference of plumage denoted. Lion and Horse were always side by
side, as were Jackass and Bear, and Tiger and Panther. I now fed them
one by one, calling them by name, to which they immediately responded,
and if anyone came who was not called, it was switched for its trouble.

The next morning I set off on another voyage of discovery after plants,
and this time I resolved upon trying what I could find among the
crevices of the rocks, for I had seen at a distance what appeared to me
to be a very pretty flower on the ledge of one of the clefts. I did not
go up the ravine this time, but commenced climbing the rocks behind
where the cabin was built. It was hard work, but I was not easily
discouraged, and after a couple of hours I arrived at a level which I
had in view when I commenced my labour, and here I was amply rewarded,
for I found several plants quite new to me, and a variety of ferns,
which I thought very beautiful, although they had no flowers. The
scene, from where I stood, was awful and beautiful. I looked down upon
the rocks below, and the cabin, which appeared very small, and I
thought that I could see my birds like dots upon the platform. It was a
bright day and smooth water, I could clearly distinguish the other
islands in the distance, and I thought that I saw something like a
white speck close to them--perhaps it was a vessel. This made me
melancholy, and I could not help asking myself whether I was to remain
all my life upon the island, alone, or if there were any chance of my
ever being taken off it. As I looked down upon the cabin, I was
surprised at the steepness of the rocks which I had climbed, and felt
alarmed, as if I never should be able to get back again. But these
thoughts were soon chased away. I turned from the seaward, and looked
inland. I found that on one side of me there was a chasm between the
rocks, the bottom of which was so far down that I could not see it; and
on the other side the rock rose up as straight as a wall. My attention
was soon diverted by discovering another plant, and I now commenced my
task of digging them all up. I obtained, with the ferns, about twenty
new varieties, which I made up in a bundle ready for carrying down
slung round my neck, for I knew that I should require both hands to
descend with. Then I sat down to rest myself a little before I
commenced my return, and after I had been seated a few minutes, I
thought I would sing a song by way of amusement.

Chapter XVI

I have before said that, tired of repeating the words of the songs
which Jackson had taught me, I had taken those of Psalms in metre, at
the end of the Prayer-book, by way of variety; and, as far as metre
went, they answered very well, although people would have been
surprised to have heard Psalms sung to such quick and varied measure.
The Psalm I chose this time was the first--"How blest is he who ne'er
consents;" and I began accordingly; but when I came to the end of the
line, to my astonishment I heard a plaintive voice, at a distance,
repeat after me "con-sents." I looked round. I thought I must have been
deceived, so I continued--"By ill advice to walk." This time I could
not be mistaken--"to walk" was repeated by the same voice as plainly as
possible. I stopped singing, lost in wonder. There must be somebody on
the island as well as myself, thought I; for I never had heard an echo
before, except when it thundered, and such echoes I had put down as a
portion of the thunder. "Who's there?" cried I. "Who's there?" replied
the voice. "It's me!" "It's me!" was the answer. I did not know what to
make of it. I cried out again and again, and again and again I heard
what I said repeated, but no answer to my questions. I thought I was
insulted by somebody, and yet, when I listened, the voice that spoke
came from the face of the rock on the other side of the chasm, and no
one could be there without my seeing them. This made me think that I
was mistaken, and that there could not be anybody, but still I could
not solve the mystery. At last I became frightened, and as the sun was
now setting, I determined to get back to the cabin. I did so, and went
down much faster than I had gone up, for as it grew dark I became the
more alarmed. The only thing that re-assured me was the softness and
plaintiveness of the voice--not like Jackson's, but as of someone who
would not think of injuring me.

Although I was, generally speaking, quiet and content with my isolated
position, yet it was only when I was employed or amused with my
favourites. At times, I could not find anything to do, and was overcome
by weariness. I would then throw away my books, and remain for hours
thinking upon the probability of my ever again seeing a fellow
creature; and a fit of melancholy would come over me, which would last
many days. I was in one of these moods, when it occurred to me, that,
although I had seen the other side of the island from the summit, I had
not gone down to the beach to explore it; and I resolved that I would
do so, making a trip of three or four days. When my knives had become
blunt, Jackson had told me how to sharpen them, by rubbing the blades
upon a hard flat piece of rock, wetted with water. This I had found to
answer very well, and I now determined I would try and sharpen one of
the old axes in the same way, so as to make it serviceable, for I was
very much afraid of breaking my knives in cutting down the brushwood,
and I knew how much more rapidly it could be done with an axe. I picked
out a large stone, suitable for the purpose, and with a kid of water at
hand, I set-to to sharpen the axe. It was a long job, but in a day or
two I had succeeded admirably, and the axe was in good order. I then
thought how I could leave my birds for so many days, as they would
require food. At last, I considered that if I caught two large fish and
cut them up, they would be sufficient for their sustenance. I did so,
and provided with a packet of dried birds for food, tied up in a duck
frock, with my Natural History book for amusement, a pannikin to get
water in, my axe on my shoulder, and my knives by my side--I first
kissed all the birds, and told them to remain quiet and good till I
came back--I set off on a bright clear morning on my tour of
examination.

In a couple of hours I had gained the summit of the island, and
prepared for my descent, by sitting down and eating my dinner. I
observed that, as before, the water on the other side of the island was
quite smooth, compared to what it was on the side where I resided. It
was, in fact, from the prevailing winds during the year, the lee side
of the island. Having rested myself sufficiently, I commenced my
descent, which I accomplished in little less time than it took me to
ascend from the other side. As I neared the rocks by the shore, I
thought I perceived something occasionally moving about on them. I was
not mistaken, for as I came closer, I found that there were several
large animals lying on the rocks, and occasionally dropping into the
sea close to them.

The sight of anything living was to me of great interest. I determined
to get nearer, and ascertain what animals they were. At last, by
creeping along from rock to rock, I arrived to within forty yards of
them. I recollected some animals of the same shape in my book of
Natural History, which, fortunately, I had with me in the duck frock,
and sitting down behind the rock, I pulled it out, and turned over the
pages until I came to a print which exactly answered to their
appearance. It was the Seal. Having satisfied myself on that point, I
read the history of the animal, and found that it was easily tamed, and
very affectionate when taken young, and also might be easily killed by
a blow on the nose. These, at least, were for me the two most important
pieces of information. It occurred to me that it would be very pleasant
to have a young seal for a playmate (for the Gannets, after all, were
not very intelligent), and I resolved to obtain one if I could. I put
down my duck frock with my provisions behind the rock, and taking my
axe in my hand, I cautiously advanced to where the animals lay. There
were about twenty of them all together on one rock, but they were all
large, and seemed to be about five or six feet long. I could not see a
small one anywhere, so I walked in behind the rocks farther to the
right, towards another rock, where I saw another batch of them lying.
As I neared them, I saw by herself a seal with a young one by her side,
not more than two feet long. This was what I wanted. They lay at some
distance from the water, upon a low rock. I watched them for some time,
and was much amused at the prattling which passed between the old and
the young one. I thought that to obtain the young one, I must of course
kill the old one, for I perceived that it had large teeth. I considered
it advisable to get between them and the water, that they might not
escape me, and I contrived so to do before I made my appearance. As
soon as the old one perceived me running to them, it gave a shrill cry,
and then floundered towards the water; as we came close together, it
showed its teeth, and rose upon its flappers to defend itself and its
young one, which kept close to its side; but a blow on its nose with
the axe rendered it motionless, and apparently dead. Delighted with my
success, I seized hold of the young one and took it in my arms, and was
carrying it away, when I found myself confronted with the male seal,
which, alarmed by the cry of the female, had come to her assistance. It
was much larger than the female, with more shaggy hair about the neck
and shoulders, and apparently very fierce. I could not pass it, as it
was in shore of me, and I had just time to drop the young seal, and
leap behind a rock on one side, with my axe all ready. The animal
reared itself on the rock to pass over to me, when I saluted it with a
blow on the head, which staggered it. I had lost my presence of mind by
the creature coming upon me so unexpectedly, and my blow was not well
aimed, but before it could recover the first blow, another on its nose
tumbled it over, to all appearance lifeless. I then hastened to gain
the other side of the rock, where I had left the young seal, and found
that it had crept to its mother's body, and was fondling it. I took it
in my arms, and retreated to where I had left my duck frock, and
throwing everything else out, I put the animal in, and tied up the end,
so that it could not escape. I then sat down to recover myself from the
excitement occasioned by this first engagement I had ever been in,
quite delighted with my newly-acquired treasure.

I then thought what I should do. It was now within an hour of dark, and
was too late to return to the other side of the island, or I would have
done so, as I was anxious to get my seal home. At last I decided that I
would go farther from the beach, and take up my quarters for the night.
I collected my provision, and with my seal under my arm, I walked away
about one hundred yards from the water's edge, and took up a position
under a large rock; here I ate my supper, and then untied the line
which closed up the frock, and had a parting look at my little friend
before I went to sleep. He had struggled a good deal at first, but was
now quiet, although he occasionally made attempts to bite me. I coaxed
him and fondled him a good deal, and then put him into his bag again,
and made him secure, which appeared to annoy him very much, as he was
not half as quiet in a bag as he was when I held him in my lap. I then
took my book to read over again the history of the seal, and I found
that their skins were valuable, and also that they gave a great deal of
oil, but I had no use for oil, though I thought that their skins might
be very comfortable in my bed-place. I shut my book and lay down to
sleep, but I could not obtain any till near daylight, I had been so
excited, and was so anxious about my treasure. The sun shining in my
eyes woke me up; I found my seal was lying very quiet; I touched him to
see that he was not dead, and the cry that he gave assured me to the
contrary. I then walked back to where I had left the bodies of the
parents. I found on examination that they were both dead, and also that
their furs were very beautiful, and I resolved that I would have their
skins. But here was a difficulty. If I took off the skins, I could not
carry them with me, and I was anxious to get the young one home, lest
it should die of hunger, so I decided that I would first take home the
young one, give it food and warm it, and then return and skin the old
ones.

I therefore made my breakfast, and leaving the remainder of my
provision in a cleft in the rock, that I might not have the trouble of
bringing it again, I set off on my return, and used such diligence that
I was back at the cabin by noon. I found my birds all well, and
apparently quite satisfied with the provision that I had left them, for
they were most of them asleep, and those that were awake did not notice
my arrival.

"Ah," thought I, "you only like me for what I give you; next time I go
away I will leave you hungry, and then when you see me come back, you
will all flutter your wings with gladness."

I was puzzled where to put my seal so as to keep him safe: at last I
decided upon opening the seaman's chest and putting him in that. I did
so, and gave him a piece of fish which the birds had not eaten. The
little creature devoured it eagerly, and I took my lines and went down
to catch some fish for a further supply. In half an hour I returned
with two large fish, and I then took the seal out of the chest and fed
him again. He ate very heartily; and I was glad to perceive that he
appeared much tamer already. I threw some of the insides of the fish to
the birds, who were now become of very inferior interest to me. Having
fed my animals, I then thought of myself, and, as I took my meal, I
arranged that the next morning I would go over to the other side of the
island, skin the two seals, and spread out the skins on the rocks to
dry, and would leave them there till I had a better opportunity of
bringing them to the cabin; at present I could not be away from my new
acquaintance, which I wished to make tame and fond of me. Having fed
him again in the morning, I put down the lid of the chest, and then
started for the lee side of the island.

Chapter XVII

I arrived early, skinned both the seals, and dragged the skins up from
the water-side, though with difficulty, especially that of the large
one, to the rock where I had taken up my quarters the night before.
Here I spread them out to dry, putting large pieces of rock upon the
edges, that they might not be blown away. It was nearly dusk when I had
finished, but I set off, and an hour after dark arrived at the cabin;
for now that I knew my way so well, I got over the ground twice as fast
as I did before. I crawled into my bed-place in the dark, and slept
soundly after my fatigue. I awoke the next morning with the plaintive
cry of my seal in the chest, and I hastened to get some fish to feed
him with. I took him out and fed him; and was astonished how tame the
little animal had become already. He remained very quietly with me
after he had been fed, nestling close to my side, as if I had been his
mother, and even making a half attempt to follow me when I left him.

My birds appeared very dull and stupid, and I observed also that they
were very dirty, and always rushed to the kid when it was full of
water, trying to get into it. This made me think that they required
bathing in salt water, and I took one down to the bathing-pool, with a
long line to its leg, and put it in. The manner in which the poor
creature floundered, and dipped and washed itself, for several minutes,
proved my supposition correct; so, after allowing it half an hour for
its recreation, I took it back, and went down with the others until
they had all indulged in the luxury of a bath; and from that time, as I
took them down almost every day, it was astonishing how much brighter
and sleeker their plumage became.

I remained a week in the cabin, taming my seal, which now was quite
fond of me; and one night, as I was going to bed, he crawled into my
bed-place, and from that time he was my bed-fellow. At the end of a
week I went over to the other side of the island, and contrived to
carry up the two skins to the summit. It was a hard day's work. The day
afterwards I conveyed them to the cabin, and, as they were quite dry, I
put them into my bed-place to lie down upon, as I did not like the
smell of the birds' feathers, although I had so long been accustomed to
them.

And now, what with my seal, my birds, and my garden, and the occupation
they gave me, the time passed quickly away, until, by my reckoning, it
was nearly the period for the birds to come again. I observed, as the
time drew near, that my birds were uneasy. They had paired, as I
mentioned before, and when their plumage was complete, it was evident
that they had paired male and female, as I had supposed. They had not
been tethered for a long while, and appeared to me now very much
inclined to fly, especially the male birds. At first I thought that I
would cut all their wings, as I was fearful that they would join the
other birds on their arrival, but observing that they were so fond of
their mates, I resolved to cut the wing of the females only, as I did
not think that the male birds would leave them. I did so, and took my
chance; for since I had the seal for a companion, I did not care so
much for the birds as before. At last the birds came, and took
possession of the guano-ground as usual, and I went for fresh eggs; at
the same time I found that my females were scratching, as if they would
make their nests, and a few days afterwards they began to lay. I then
thought that as soon as they had young ones they would wish to go away,
so I took the eggs that were laid, to prevent them, but I found that as
fast as I took away the eggs they laid more, and this they did for
nearly two months, supplying me with fresh eggs long after the wild
birds had hatched, and left the island. The male birds, at the time
that the females first laid their eggs, tried their wings in short
flights in circles, and then flew away out to sea. I thought that they
were gone, but I was deceived, for they returned in about a quarter of
an hour, each with a fish in its beak, which they laid down before
their mates. I was much pleased at this, and I resolved that in future
they should supply their own food, which they did; and not their own
food only, but enough for the seal and me also when the weather was
fine, but when it was rough, they could not obtain any, and then I was
obliged to feed them. The way I obtained from them the extra supply of
fish was, that when they first went out, I seized, on their return, the
fish which they brought, and as often as I did this they would go for
more, until the females were fed.

But I had one difficulty to contend with, which was, that at the time
the birds could not obtain fish, which was when the weather was rough,
I could not either, as they would not take the bait. After some
cogitation, I decided that I would divide a portion of the bathing-pool
farthest from the shore, by a wall of loose rock which the water could
flow through, but which the fish could not get out of, and that I would
catch fish in the fine weather to feed the seal and the birds when the
weather was rough and bad. As soon as I had finished curing my stock of
provisions and got it safely housed in the cabin, I set to work to make
this wall, which did not take me a very long while, as the water was
not more than two feet deep, and the pool about ten yards across. As
soon as it was finished, I went out every day, when it was fine, and
caught as many fish as I thought I might require, and put them into
this portion of the bathing-pool. I found the plan answer well, as the
fish lived, but I had great difficulty in getting them out when I
wanted them, for they would not take the bait.

As my birds were no longer a trouble to me, but rather, on the
contrary, a profit, I devoted my whole time to my seal. I required a
name for him, and reading in the book of Natural History that a certain
lion was called Nero, I thought it a very good name for a seal, and
bestowed it on him accordingly, although what Nero meant I had no idea
of. The animal was now so tame that he would cry if ever I left him,
and would follow me as far as he could down the rocks, but there was
one part of the path leading to the bathing-pool which was too
difficult for him, and there he would remain crying till I came back. I
had more than once taken him down to the bathing-pool to wash him, and
he was much pleased when I did. I now resolved that I would clear the
path of the rocks, that he might be able to follow me down the whole
way, for he had grown so much that I found him too heavy to carry. It
occupied me a week before I could roll away and remove the smaller
rocks, and knock off others with the axe, but I finished it at last,
and was pleased to find that the animal followed me right down and
plunged into the water. He had not been down since I had made the wall
of rock to keep the fish in, and as soon as he was in, he dived and
came out with one of the fish, which he brought to land. "So now,"
thought I, "I shall know how to get the fish when I want them--I shall
bring you down, Nero." I may as well here observe that Nero very soon
obeyed orders as faithfully as a dog. I had a little switch, and when
he did wrong, I would give him a slight tap on the nose. He would shake
his head, show his teeth, and growl, and then come fondly to me. As he
used to follow me every day down to the pool, I had to break him off
going after the fish when I did not want them taken, and this I
accomplished. No one who had not witnessed it, could imagine the
affection and docility of this animal, and the love I had for him. He
was my companion and playmate during the day, and my bedfellow at
night. We were inseparable.

It was at the latter portion of the second year of my solitude that a
circumstance occurred, that I must now relate. Nero had gone down to
the pool with me, and I was standing fishing off the rocks, when he
came out of the pool and plunged into the sea, playing all sorts of
gambols, and whistling with delight. I did not think anything about it.
He plunged and disappeared for a few minutes, and then would come up
again close to where my line was, but he disturbed the fish and I could
not catch any. To drive him farther off, I pelted him with pieces of
rock, one of which hit him very hard, and he dived down. After a time I
pulled up my line, and whistling to him to return, although I did not
see him, I went away to the cabin, fully expecting that he would soon
follow me, for now he could walk (after his fashion) from the cabin to
the pool as he pleased. This was early in the morning, and I busied
myself with my garden, which was now in great luxuriance, for I had
dressed it with guano; but observing about noon that he had not
returned, I became uneasy, and went down to the pool to look for him.
He was not there, and I looked on the sea, but could not perceive him
anywhere. I called and whistled, but it was of no use, and I grew very
much alarmed at the idea that my treasure had deserted me. "It could
not be because I threw the pieces of rock at him," thought I; "he would
not leave me for that." I remained for two or three hours, watching for
him, but it was all in vain; there was no seal--no Nero,--my heart sank
at the idea of the animal having deserted me, and for the first time in
my life, as far as I can recollect, I burst into a flood of tears. For
the first time in my life, I may say, I felt truly miserable--my whole
heart and affections were set upon this animal, the companion and
friend of my solitude, and I felt as if existence were a burden without
him. After a while, I retraced my steps to the cabin, but I was
miserable, more so than I can express. I could not rest quiet. Two
hours before sunset, I went down again to the rocks, and called till I
was hoarse. It was all in vain; night closed in, and again I returned
to the cabin, and threw myself down in my bed-place in utter despair.

"I thought he loved me," said I to myself, "loved me as I loved him; I
would not have left him in that way." And my tears burst out anew at
the idea that I never should see my poor Nero again.

The reader may think that my grief was inordinate and unwarrantable,
but let him put himself in my position--a lad of sixteen, alone on a
desolate island, with only one companion--true, he was an animal, and
could not speak, but he was affectionate; he replied to all my
caresses; he was my only companion and friend, the only object that I
loved or cared about. He was intelligent, and I thought loved me as
much as I loved him, and now he had deserted me, and I had nothing else
that I cared about or that cared for me. My tears flowed for more than
an hour, till at last I was wearied and fell asleep.

Chapter XVIII

It was early in the morning, and yet dark, when I felt something touch
me. I started up--a low cry of pleasure told me at once that it was
Nero, who was by my side. Yes, it was Nero, who had come back, having
climbed up again the steep path to the cabin, to return to his master.
Need I say that I was overjoyed, that I hugged him as if he had been a
human being, that I wept over him, and that in a few minutes afterwards
we were asleep together in the same bed-place. Such was the fact, and
never was there in my after life, so great a transition from grief to
joy.

"Oh! now, if you had left me,"--said I to him, the next morning, when I
got up; "you naughty seal, to frighten me and make me so unhappy as you
did!" Nero appeared quite as happy as I was at our reunion, and was
more affectionate than ever.

I must now pass over many months in very few words, just stating to the
reader what my position was at the end of three years, during which I
was alone upon the island. I had now arrived at the age of near
seventeen, and was tall and strong for my years. I had left off wearing
my dress of the skins of birds, having substituted one of the seaman's
shirts, which I had found in the chest. This, however, was the whole of
my costume, and although, had it been longer it would have been more
correct, still, as I had no other companion but Nero, it was not
necessary to be so very particular, as if I had been in society. During
these three years, I think I had read the Bible and Prayer-book, and my
Natural History book, at least five or six times quite through, and
possessing a retentive memory, could almost repeat them by heart; but
still I read the Bible as a sealed book, for I did not understand it,
having had no one to instruct me, nor any grace bestowed upon me. I
read for amusement, and nothing more.

My garden was now in a most flourishing condition, the climbing plants
had overrun the cabin, so as to completely cover the whole of the roof
and every portion of it, and they hung in festoons on each side of the
door-way. Many of the plants which I had taken up small, when I moved
them, had proved to be trees, and were now waving to the breeze, high
above the cabin roof; and everything that I had planted, from continual
watering and guano, had grown most luxuriantly. In fact, my cabin was
so covered and sheltered, that its original form had totally
disappeared, it now looked like an arbour in a clump of trees, and from
the rocks by the bathing-pool it had a very picturesque appearance.

I had, of course, several times gone up the ravine, and now that my axe
had become useful, I had gradually accumulated a large stock of wood
down by the bathing-pool, more than I could use for a long while, as I
seldom lighted a fire, but the cutting it was employment, and
employment was to me a great source of happiness. I had been several
times to the other side of the island, and had had more encounters with
the seals, of which I killed many, for I found their skins very
comfortable and useful in the cabin. I had collected about three dozen
of the finest skins, which were more than I required, but I had taken
them for the same reason that I had collected the firewood, for the
sake of employment, and in this instance, I may add, for the sake of
the excitement which the combats with the seals afforded me.

I have not narrated any of these conflicts, as I thought that they
might weary the reader, I must, however, state what occurred on one
occasion, as although ludicrous, it nearly cost me my life. I had
attacked a large male seal, with a splendid fur, for I always looked
out for the best skinned animals. He was lying on a rock close to the
water, and I had gone into the water to cut him off and prevent his
escape by plunging in, as he would otherwise have done; but as I aimed
the usual blow at his nose, my foot slipped on the wet rock, and I
missed the animal, and at the same time fell down on the rock with the
axe in my hand. The animal, which was a male of the largest size,
seized hold of my shirt (which I then wore) with his teeth, and,
plunging with me into the sea, dived down into the deep water. It was
fortunate that he had seized my shirt instead of my body, and also that
I could swim well. He carried me along with him--the shirt, for a few
seconds, drawn over my head, when, disembarrassing myself of the
garment, by slipping my head and arms out, I left it in his possession,
and regained the surface of the water, almost suffocated. It was
fortunate that I did not wear sleeve-buttons; had I had them, I could
not have disengaged myself, and must have perished. I climbed the rock
again, and turning round, I perceived the seal on the surface, shaking
the shirt in great wrath. This was a sad discomfiture, as I lost not
only my shirt but my axe, which I dropped when I was dragged into the
water; nothing was saved except my knife, which I carried by a lanyard
round my neck. Why I mention this circumstance particularly, is, that
having felt great inconvenience for want of sleeve-buttons to hold the
wristbands of my shirt together, I had thought of making use of those
of the mate, which the reader may recollect had been given with his
watch into Jackson's care, to take home to his wife; but on second
consideration I thought it very possible I might lose them, and decided
that the property was in trust, and that I had no right to risk it.
This correct feeling on my part, therefore, was probably the saving of
my life.

I have only now to mention my birds, and of them I can merely say that
they went on as before; they bathed constantly, at the right season
they laid eggs, the male birds caught fish and brought them to the
cabin, and they were just as stupid and uninteresting as they were at
first; however, they never left me, nor indeed shewed any intention to
leave me, after the first season of the birds returning to the island.
They were useful but not very ornamental, and not at all interesting to
one who had such an intelligent companion as Nero.

Having now brought up my history, in a few words, until the time
referred to, I come to the narrative of what occurred to produce a
change in my condition. I have said that in the chest there was a
spy-glass, but it had been wetted with salt-water, and was useless.
Jackson had tried to shew me how to use it, and had shewn me correctly,
but the glasses were dimmed by the wet and subsequent evaporation from
heat. I had taken out all the glasses and cleaned them, except the
field-glass as it is called, but that being composed of two glasses,
the water had penetrated between them, and it still remained so dull
that nothing could be distinguished through it, at the time that
Jackson was shewing me how to use the instrument; it was therefore put
on one side as useless. A year afterwards, I took it out, from
curiosity, and then I discovered that the moisture between the two
glasses had been quite dried up, and that I could see very clearly
through it, and after a little practice I could use it as well as
anybody else. Still I seldom did use it, as my eyesight was
particularly keen, and I did not require it, and as for any vessel
coming off the island, I had gradually given up all thoughts of it. It
was one evening when the weather was very rough and the sea much
agitated, that I thought I saw something unusual on the water, about
four miles distant. I supposed at first it might be a spermaceti whale,
for numbers used to play round the island at certain seasons, and I
used to watch their blowing and their gambols, if I may use the term,
and Jackson often told me long stories about the whale fisheries; but a
ray of the setting sun made the object appear white, and I ran for the
glass, and made out that it was a boat or a very small vessel, with a
sail out, and running before the gale right down to the island. I
watched it till it was dark with much interest, and with thoughts of
various kinds chasing each other; and then I began to consider what was
best to do. I knew that in an hour the moon would rise, and as the sky
was not cloudy, although the wind and sea were high, I should probably
be able to see it again. "But they never can get on shore on this side
of the island," thought I, "with so much sea. Yes they might, if they
ran for the bathing-pool." After thinking a while, I decided that I
would go down to the bathing-pool, and place lighted faggots on the
rocks on each side of the entrance, as this would shew them where to
run for, and how to get in. I waited a little longer, and then taking
my spy-glass and some tinder with me, I went down to the pool, carried
two faggots to the rocks on each side, and having set them on fire and
taken up others to replace them as soon as they were burnt out, I sat
down with my spy-glass to see if I could make out where the boat might
be.

As the moon rose, I descried her now within a mile of the island, and
her head directed towards the beacon lights made by the burning
faggots. I threw another faggot on each and went down for a further
supply. The gale had increased, and the spray now dashed over the rocks
to where the faggots were burning, and threatened to extinguish them,
but I put on more wood and kept up a fierce blaze. In a quarter of an
hour I could distinguish the boat; it was now close to the island,
perhaps three hundred yards distant, steering not directly for the
lights, but more along shore. The fact was that they had hauled up, not
knowing how they could land until they had observed the two lights
clear of each other, and then they understood why they had been made;
and a moment afterwards they bore up right for the entrance to the
bathing-pool, and came rushing on before the rolling seas. I still
trembled for them, as I knew that if the sea receded at the time that
they came to the ledge of rocks at the entrance, the boat would be
dashed to pieces, although their lives might be saved, but fortunately
for them, it was not so--on the contrary, they came in borne up on a
huge wave which carried them clear over the ledge, right up to the wall
of rock which I had made across the pool, and then the boat grounded.

"Hurrah! well done, that," said a voice from the boat. "Lower away the
sail, my lads; all's right."

The sail was lowered down, and then, by the light of the fire, I
discovered that there were several people in the boat. I had been too
much excited to say anything; indeed, I did not know what to say. I
only felt that I was no more alone, and the reader may imagine my joy
and delight.

Chapter XIX

As soon as the sail was lowered, the men leaped over the sides of the
boat into the water, and waded to the rocks.

"Who are you?" said one of the men, addressing me, "and how many of you
are there here?"

"There is no one on the island but myself," replied I; "but I'm so glad
that you have come."

"Are you? Then perhaps you'll tell us how to get something to eat, my
hearty?" replied he.

"Oh yes, wait a little, and I'll bring you plenty," replied I.

"Well, then, look smart, that's a beauty, for we are hungry enough to
eat you, if you can find us nothing better."

I was about to go up to the cabin for some birds, when another man
called out--

"I say--can you get us any water?"

"Oh yes, plenty," replied I.

"Well then, I say, Jim, hand us the pail out of the boat."

The one addressed did so, and the man put it into my hands, saying,
"Bring us that pail, boy, will you?" I hastened up to the cabin, filled
the pail full of water, and then went for a quantity of dried birds,
with which I hastened down again to the bathing-pool; I found the men
had not been idle, they had taken some faggots off the stack and made a
large fire under the rocks, and were then busy making a sort of tent
with the boat's sails.

"Here's the water, and here's some birds," said I, as I came up to them.

"Birds! what birds?" said the man who had first spoken to me, and
appeared to have control over the rest. He took one up and examined it
by the light of the fire, exclaiming, "Queer eating, I expect."

"Why, you didn't expect a regular hotel when you landed, did you,
mate?" said one of the men.

"No, if I had, I would have called for a glass of grog," replied he. "I
suspect I might call a long while before I get anyone to bring me one
here."

As I knew that Jackson called the rum by the name of grog, I said,
"There's plenty of grog, if you want any."

"Is there, my hearty,--where?"

"Why, in that cask that's in the water on the other side of your little
ship," replied I. "I can draw you some directly."

"What! in that cask? Grog floating about in salt water, that's too bad.
Come here all of you--You're in earnest, boy--no joking I hope, or you
may repent it."

"I'm not joking," said I--"there it is."

The man, followed by all the rest, excepting one of the party, waded
into the water, and went to the cask of rum.

"Take care," said I, "the spiles are in."

"So I see--never fear, my hearty--come now all of us." So saying, the
whole of them laid hold of the cask by the chains, and lifting it up,
they carried it clean out of the water, and placed it on the rocks by
the side of the pool.

"Hand us the little kid out of the boat, Jim," said the man; "we'll
soon see if it's the right stuff."

He took out the spiles, drew off some of the liquor, and tasting it,
swore it was excellent. It was then handed round, and all the men took
some.

"We're in luck to-night; we're fallen upon our legs," said the first
man. "I say, Jim, put them dried chickens into the pitch-kettle along
with some taters out of the bag--they'll make a good mess; and then
with this cask of grog to go to, we shan't do badly."

"I say, old fellow," said he, turning to me, "you're a regular trump.
Who left you on shore to get all ready for us?"

"I was born here," replied I.

"Born here! well, we'll hear all about that to-morrow--just now, we'll
make up for lost time, for we've had nothing to eat or drink since
Wednesday morning. Look alive, my lads! get up the hurricane-house.
Jim, put the pail of water into the kettle, and send the islander here
for another pailful, for grog."

The pail was handed to me, and I soon returned with it full, and, as I
did not see that they had a pannikin, I brought one down and gave it to
them.

"You're a fine boy," said the mate; (as I afterwards found out that he
was). "And now, I say, where do you hold out? Have you a hut or a cave
to live in?"

"Yes," replied I; "I have a cabin, but it is not large enough for all
of you."

"No, no! we don't want to go there--we are very well where we are,
alongside of the cask of rum, but you see, my lad, we have a woman
here."

"A woman!" said I; "I never saw a woman. Where is she?"

"There she is, sitting by the fire."

I looked round, and perceived that there was one of the party wrapped
up in a blanket, and with a wide straw hat on the head, which
completely concealed the form from me. The fact is, that the woman
looked like a bundle, and remained by the fire quite as inanimate. At
my saying that I never saw a woman, the man burst into a loud laugh.

"Why, did you not say that you were born on the island, boy?" said the
mate at last. "Were you born without a mother?"

"I cannot recollect my mother--she died when I was very young; and
therefore I said, that I had never seen a woman."

"Well, that's explained; but you see, my lad--this is not only a woman,
but a very particular sort of a woman; and it will not do for her to
remain here after we have had our supper--for after supper, the men may
take a drop too much, and not behave themselves; so I asked you about
your cabin, that you might take her there to sleep. Can you do that?"

"Yes," replied I; "I will take her there, if she wishes to go."

"That's all right then, she'll be better there than here, at all
events. I say, boy, where did you leave your trousers?"

"I never wear any."

"Well then, if you have any, I advise you to put them on, for you are
quite old enough to be breeched."

I remained with them while the supper was cooking, asking all manner of
questions, which caused great mirth. The pitch kettle, which was a
large iron pot on three short legs, surprised me a good deal, I had
never seen such a thing before, or anything put on the fire. I asked
what it was, and what it was made of. The potatoes also astonished me,
as I had never yet seen an edible root.

"Why, where have you been all your life?" said one of the men.

"On this island," replied I, very naively.

I waded into the water to examine the boat as well as I could by the
light of the fire, but I could see little, and was obliged to defer my
examination till the next day. Before the supper was cooked and eaten,
I did, however, gain the following information.

That they were a portion of the crew of a whaler, which had struck on a
reef of rocks about seventy miles off, and that they had been obliged
to leave her immediately, as she fell on her broadside a few minutes
afterwards; that they had left in two boats, but did not know what had
become of the other boat, which parted company during the night. The
captain and six men were in the other boat, and the mate with six men
in the one which had just landed--besides the lady.

"What's a lady?" said I.

"I mean the woman who sits there; her husband was killed by some of the
people of the Sandwich Isles, and she was going home to England. We
have a consort, another whaler, who was to have taken our cargo of oil
on board, and to have gone to England with that and her own cargo, and
the missionary's wife was to have been sent home in her."

"What's a missionary?" inquired I.

"Well, I don't exactly know; but he is a preacher who goes out to teach
the savages."

By this time the supper was cooked, and the odour from the pitch kettle
was more savoury than anything that I had ever yet smelt. The kettle
was lifted off the fire, the contents of it poured into a kid, and
after they had given a portion in the small kid to the woman, who still
remained huddled up in the blanket by the fire, they all sat round the
large kid, and commenced their supper.

"Come, boy, and join us," said the mate, "you can't have had your
supper; and as you've found one for us, it's hard but you should share
it with us."

I was not sorry to do as he told me, and I must say that I never
enjoyed a repast so much in my life.

"I say, boy, have you a good stock of them dried chickens of yours?"
said the mate.

"Yes, I have a great many, but not enough to last long for so many
people."

"Well, but we can get more, can't we?"

"No!" replied I, "not until the birds come again, and that will not be
for these next five moons."

"Five moons! what do you mean?"

"I mean, five full moons must come, one after another."

"Oh, I understand; why then we must not remain on the island."

"No," replied I, "we must all go, or we shall starve; I am so glad that
you are come, and the sooner you go the better. Will you take Nero with
you?"

"Who is Nero?"

"Nero--my seal--he's very tame."

"Well, we'll see about it; at all events," said he, turning to the
other men, "we must decide upon something, and that quickly, for we
shall starve if we remain here any time."

It appeared that they had left the whaler in such a hurry, that they
had only had time to throw into the boat two breakers of water, four
empty breakers to fill with saltwater for ballast to the boat, and the
iron pitch kettle, with a large sack of potatoes.

As soon as supper was finished, they went to the cask for the rum, and
then the mate said to me--

"Now I'll go and speak to the woman, and you shall take her to sleep in
your cabin."

During the whole of this time the woman, as the mate called her, had
never spoken a word. She had taken her supper, and eaten it in silence,
still remaining by the fire, huddled up in the blanket. On the mate
speaking to her, she rose up, and I then perceived that she was much
taller than I thought she could have been; but her Panama hat still
concealed her face altogether.

"Now then, my lad," said the mate, "shew the lady where she is to
sleep, and then you can join us again if you like."

"Will you come with me?" said I, walking away.

The woman followed me up the path. When we arrived at the platform
opposite the cabin, I recollected Nero, whom I had ordered to stay
there till my return.

"You won't be afraid of the seal," said I, "will you? he is very
good-natured. Nero, come here."

It was rather dark as Nero came shuffling up, and I went forward to
coax him, for he snarled a little at seeing a stranger.

"Have you no light at hand?" said my companion, speaking for the first
time in a very soft, yet clear voice.

"No, I have not, but I will get some tinder, and make a fire with one
of the faggots, and then you will be able to see."

"Do so, then, my good lad," replied she.

I thought her voice very pleasing.

I soon lighted the faggot and enabled her to see Nero (who was now
quite quiet) and also the interior of the cabin.

She examined the cabin and the bed-places, and then said,

"Where do you sleep?"

I replied by shewing her my bed-place. "And this," said I, pointing to
the one opposite, "was Jackson's, and you can sleep in that. Nero
sleeps with me. Here are plenty of seal skins to keep you warm if you
are cold. Are your clothes wet?"

"No, they are quite dry now," replied she; "if you will get me some
seal skins, I will lie down on them, for I am very tired."

I spread five or six skins one on the other, in Jackson's bed-place,
and then I went out and threw another faggot on the fire, that we might
have more light.

"Do you want anything else?" said I.

"Nothing, I thank you. Are you going to bed now?"

"I was meaning to go down again to the men, but now I think of it, I do
not like to leave you alone with Nero, as he might bite you. Are you
afraid of him?"

"No, I'm not much afraid, but still I have no wish to be bitten, and I
am not used to sleep with such animals, as you are."

"Well then, I'll tell you how we'll manage it. I will take some skins
outside, and sleep there. Nero will not leave me, and then you won't be
afraid. The weather is clearing up fast, and there's very little wind
to what there was--besides, it will be daylight in three or four hours."

"As you please," was the reply.

Accordingly I took some seal skins out on the platform, and spreading
them, I lay down upon them, wishing her good-night, and Nero soon
joined me, and we were both fast asleep in a few minutes.

Chapter XX

Nero, who was an early riser, woke me up at day-break, or I should have
slept much longer; for I had been tired out with the fatigue and
excitement of the night before. As soon as I was up, I looked into the
cabin, and found the woman was fast asleep; her straw hat was off, but
she had lain down in her clothes. Her black hair was hanging about her
shoulders. Having only seen Jackson with his bushy beard, I had been
somewhat surprised when I first saw the men on their landing so
comparatively clear of hair on their face; my astonishment at the clear
white skin of a woman--and in this instance, it was peculiarly white
and pallid--was very great. I also perceived how much more delicate her
features were than those of the men; her teeth, too, were very white,
and Jackson's were discoloured and bad; I longed to see her eyes, but
they were closed. Any other difference I could not perceive, as she had
drawn the blanket close up to her chin.

"This is then a woman," said I to myself: "yes, and it's very like what
I used to see in my dreams." I looked a little longer, and then,
hearing Nero coming into the cabin behind me, and afraid that she would
awake, I made a hasty retreat.

I remained at this part of the cabin considering what I should do. I
thought I would light a fire, and go down for a fish to broil on the
embers for her breakfast, so I called Nero to come down with me. On
arriving at the pool, I found all the seamen fast asleep under the tent
they had made with the boat's sails; and they appeared to be much the
same as Jackson used to be after he had got drunk the night before; I
presumed therefore, that such was their state, and was not far wrong.
Nero went into the pool and brought out a fish, as I ordered him, and I
then walked to the boat to examine it. This took me half an hour, and I
was sorry that none of the men were awake, that so I might ask any
questions I wished. I examined the pitch-kettle, and the boat's sails,
and the breakers. Breakers are small casks, holding about six to seven
gallons of water, and are very handy for boats. I remained about an
hour, and then went back to the cabin, carrying a faggot on my
shoulder, Nero following with the fish in his mouth. We were met by the
woman, who came out of the cabin; she no longer had the blanket round
her, for it was a beautiful bright morning, and very warm.

"Nero is bringing you your breakfast," said I, "so you ought to like
him."

"I dare say I shall, if we are to be companions in future," replied she.

"Do you want anything?" said I.

"Yes, a little water, if you can get me some."

I filled the kid from the spring, put it down by her, and then took out
the inside of the fish, and fed the birds, who were crowding round me.

The woman washed her face and hands, braided up her hair, and then sat
down on the rock. In the meantime, I had lighted my faggot, cleaned the
fish, and waited till the wood was burnt to ashes before I put the fish
on the fire. Having then nothing to do, I thought that reading would
amuse the woman, and I went in for the Bible.

"Shall I read to you?" said I.

"Yes," replied she, with some astonishment in her looks.

I read to her the history of Joseph and his brethren, which was my
favourite story in the Bible.

"Who taught you to read?" said she, as I shut the book, and put the
fish on the embers.

"Jackson," said I.

"He was a good man, was he not?" replied she.

I shook my head. "No, not very good," said I, at last. "If you knew all
about him, you would say the same; but he taught me to read."

"How long have you been on this island?" said she.

"I was born on it, but my father and mother are both dead, and Jackson
died three years ago--since that I have been quite alone, only Nero
with me."

She then asked me a great many more questions, and I gave her a short
narration of what had passed, and what Jackson had told me; I also
informed her how it was I procured food, and how we must soon leave the
island, now that we were so many, or the food would not last out till
the birds came again.

By this time the fish was cooked, and I took it off the fire and put it
into the kid, and we sat down to breakfast; in an hour or so, we had
become very sociable.

I must however now stop a little to describe her. What the men had told
me was quite true. She had lost her husband, and was intending to
proceed to England. Her name was Reichardt, for her husband was a
German, or of German family. She was, as I have since ascertained,
about thirty-seven years old, and very tall and elegant; she must have
been very handsome when she was younger, but she had suffered much
hardship in following her husband as she had done, through all the
vicissitudes of his travels.

Her face was oval; eyes black and large; and her hair black as the
raven's wing; her features were small and regular; her teeth white and
good; but her complexion was very pallid, and not a vestige of colour
on her cheeks. As I have since thought, it was more like a marble
statue than anything I can compare her to. There was a degree of
severity in her countenance when she did not smile, and it was seldom
that she did. I certainly looked upon her with more awe than regard,
for some time after I became acquainted with her; and yet her voice was
soft and pleasant, and her manners very amiable; but it must be
remembered I had never before seen a woman. After breakfast was over, I
proposed going down to where the seamen lay, to see if they were awake,
but I told her I thought that they would not be.

"I will go with you, as I left a basket with some things of mine in the
boat, and it will be as well to bring them up at once."

We therefore set off together, I having ordered Nero to stay in the
cabin. On our arrival at the pool we found the men still fast asleep;
and by her directions I went into the water to the boat, and brought
out a basket and a small bundle which she pointed out.

"Shall I wake them?" said I.

"No, no," replied she; "so long as they sleep, they will be doing no
harm. But," said she, "we may as well take some potatoes up with us;
fill both these handkerchiefs," continued she, taking two out of the
bundle. I did so, and she took one and I the other, and we returned to
the cabin.

"Are these all the birds that you have for food?" said she, looking at
the pile in the cabin.

"Yes," replied I. "But what are we to do with the potatoes?"

"We can roast them by the fire if we like," said she; "but at present
we had better take them into the cabin. Did you plant all these flowers
and creepers which grow over the cabin?"

"Yes," replied I. "I was alone and had nothing to do, so I thought I
would make a garden."

"They are very pretty. Now that I am back, you can go down to the men
if you please, and tell them, when they wake up, that I wish to have
the smallest of the boat's sails, to make a screen of. Tell the mate,
he is the most civil."

"I will," said I. "Is there anything else?"

"Yes, bring up a few more potatoes; they will let you take them if you
say that I told you."

"Shall I take Nero with me?"

"Yes, I do not want his company, for I am a little afraid of him."

I called Nero, who came after me, and went down to the pool, when I
found that the men had all woke up, and were very busy, some lighting a
fire, some washing potatoes, and some trying to catch the fish in the
pool.

"Oh, here he is. Come, boy, what have you got for our breakfast? We've
been trying to catch some of these fish, but they're as quick as eels."

"Nero will soon catch you what you want," replied I. "Here, Nero, in."

Nero plunged in, and soon brought out a fish, and I then sent him in
for another.

"Thanks, lad," said the mate; "that will be enough for our breakfast.
That seal of yours is a handy fellow, and well trained."

While the other men were getting breakfast, one of them went up to
Nero, I believe with the intention of making friends with him, but Nero
rejected his advances, and showed his sharp teeth, snapping at him
several times. The man became angry, and caught up a piece of rock to
throw at the seal. He aimed at the animal's nose, and narrowly missed
hitting it. Had he done so, he would probably have killed it. This made
me very angry, and I told the man not to do so again; upon this, he
caught up another, and was about to throw it, when I seized him by the
collar with my left hand, and with my right drawing my American knife,
I threatened to stab him with it, if he attacked the beast. The man
started back, and in so doing, fell over a piece of rock, on his back.
This quarrel brought the mate to us, along with two or three of the
men. My knife was still lifted up, when the mate said--

"Come, my hearty, no knives, we don't allow them. That's not English.
Put it up, no one shall hurt the beast, I promise you. Bob, you fool,
why couldn't you leave the animal alone? You forget you are among
savages, here."

At this, the other men burst out into a laugh.

"Yes," observed one; "I can swear, when I get back, that the natives of
this island are savages, who eat raw flesh, have seals for playmates,
and don't wear clothes enough for common decency."

This made them laugh more, and the man who had attacked Nero, and who
had got upon his legs again, joined with the others; so all was again
good-humour. The men sat down to their breakfast, while I examined the
boat again, and afterwards asked many questions, with which they were
much amused, every now and then observing, "Well, he is a savage!"

After they had breakfasted, I made Nero catch another fish and sent him
up to the cabin with it, as I was afraid that the man might do him an
injury, and then told the mate that the woman had desired me to bring
up some potatoes.

"Take them," said he; "but you have nothing to carry them up with.
Here, fill the pail, and I will go to the cabin with you."

"She told me that I was to ask you for a small boat's sail, to hang up
as a screen."

"Well, she shall have the boat's mizen. We don't want it. I'll carry it
up."

The mate threw the sail and yard over his shoulder, and followed me up
to the cabin. On our arrival, we found the missionary's wife sitting on
the platform, Nero lying not far from her, with the fish beside him.
The mate took off his hat, and saluted my new companion, saying, "That
he hoped she was comfortable last night."

"Yes," replied she, "as much so as I could expect; but I turned this
good lad out of his cabin, which I do not wish to do again, and
therefore I requested the sail for a screen. Now, John Gough, what do
you intend to do?" continued she.

The mate replied, "I came up here to see what quantity of provisions
the lad might have. By his account, it will not last more than a month,
and it will take some time before we can reach where we are likely to
fall in with any vessel. Stay here we cannot, for we shall only eat the
provision and lose time, therefore, the sooner we are off the better."

"If you take all the provision, of course you will take the lad with
you?" replied she.

"Of course we will."

"And my chest, and my seal?" inquired I.

"Yes, your chest, certainly, but as for your seal, I do not know what
to say to that--he will be starved in the boat, and if you give him his
liberty, he will do well enough."

"What you say is very true," replied the woman. "I am afraid, boy, that
you will have to part with your friend. It will be better for both of
you."

I made no reply, for it cut me to the heart to think of parting with
Nero; but still I had sense enough to perceive that what they said was
right.

The mate then went into the cabin, and examined the heap of dried birds
which I had collected, and having made his calculation, said that there
were sufficient for three weeks, but not more.

"And when do you think of leaving this island?" inquired the woman.

"The day after to-morrow, if I can persuade the men, madam," replied
he; "but you know they are not very easy to manage, and very
thoughtless, especially now that they have so unexpectedly fallen in
with liquor."

"That I admit," replied she; "but as they will probably take the liquor
in the boat, that will not make so great a difference."

"I shall go down and speak to them now they're all sober," replied the
mate, "and will let you know in the evening, or to-morrow morning,
perhaps, will be better." The mate then saluted her by touching his
hat, and left us.

Chapter XXI

There was one thing which had made a great impression on me in the
conversation with the men in the morning. They called me a Savage, and
said that I had not sufficient clothes on; and as I observed that they
were all dressed in jackets and trousers, which covered them from head
to foot, I took it for granted that my shirt, which was all that I
wore, was not a sufficient clothing. This had never occurred to me
before, nor can the reader be surprised at it. I had been like our
first parents in Eden--naked but not ashamed--but now that I had
suddenly come in contact with my fellow-men, I felt as if something
were amiss. The consequence was, that I went to the chest and got out a
pair of white trousers, and put them on. I thought them very
uncomfortable and very unnecessary articles, but others wore them, and
I felt that I must do so also. They were rather long for me, but I
rolled up the bottoms of the legs, as I observed that the seamen did,
and then came out on the platform, where the missionary's wife was
still seated, looking out upon the waves as they lashed the rocks. She
immediately observed the addition that I had made to my dress, and said,

"That is a great improvement. Now you look like other people. What is
your name? you have not told me."

When I had answered the question, I said to her--

"I have brought up more of the potatoes, as you call them; what am I to
do with them?"

"First tell me, have you any spot that you know about the island where
there is mould--that is, earth, like you have in your garden--where we
can plant them?"

"Yes," replied I, "there is some up there," and I pointed to one-third
up the ravine. "I brought all this earth from there, and there is
plenty of it; but what is the good of planting them?"

"Because," said she, "one of the potatoes planted will, in a very short
time, grow, and then it will produce perhaps thirty or forty potatoes
at its roots as large as these; they are excellent things for food, and
where there is nothing else to be had, may be the means of preserving
life."

"Well, that may be," replied I, "and if we were going to remain on the
island, it would be well to plant them, but as we are going away the
day after to-morrow, what's the use of it? I know that they are very
nice, for I had some for supper last night."

"But are we only to think of ourselves in this world, and not of
others?" replied she. "Suppose, two or three years hence, another boat
were to be cast away on this island, and not find, as we have, you
here, with provisions ready for them, they would starve miserably;
whereas, if we plant these potatoes, they may find plenty of food and
be saved. Only think how glad your father and mother would have been to
have found potatoes on the island when they were thrown on it. We must
not live only for ourselves, but we must think and try to do good to
others--that is the duty of a Christian."

"I think you are very right," replied I, "and a very kind person too.
If you wish it I will go and plant the potatoes this day. How am I to
plant them?"

"They have a shovel in the boat," said she, "for I saw them throwing
the water out with it. Go down and get it, and then I will go with you
and show you."

I went down and the mate gave me the shovel, which I carried up to her.
I found her cutting the potatoes into pieces, and she showed me how she
cut them, leaving an eye in each piece, and explained the reason for
it. I was soon very busy cutting away alongside of her, and before long
the pail of potatoes was all ready to be planted.

We then walked to the ravine, and she showed me how to use the shovel,
and I made the holes. Before noon we had planted all that we had cut,
but we had still the two handkerchiefs full that we had at first
brought up with us. We returned to the cabin, and I prepared the fish
for dinner. After it was on the embers, she wished to have the screen
put up beside her bed-place.

"Go down to the mate," said she, "and ask him for the hammer and three
or four nails. I know they have them in the boat."

"I may as well take them down some birds for their dinner," replied I,
"for they will want them."

"Yes, do so; and then come back to me as soon as you can."

The mate gave me the hammer, an article I had never seen before, and
five or six nails, with which I returned to the cabin, and nailed up
the sail as a screen.

"Now you will be able to sleep in your own bed-place to-night," said
she.

I made no reply, but I could not imagine why I could not have done so
the night before, for I had only gone out of the cabin that she might
not be frightened by Nero being so close to her.

After we had eaten our dinner, she said to me--

"How could you contrive to live on this island, if you had no dried
birds?"

"How?" replied I; "why, very badly. I might catch fish; but there are
times in the year when you can catch no fish, they won't take bait,
neither will they when the weather is rough. Besides, I have only two
lines, and I might lose them both--then what would become of me? I
should starve."

"Well, then, you see under all circumstances, it was just as well to
plant the potatoes, for other people may come here and be in your
position."

"Yes, that is true, but we shall not be here long now, and you don't
know how glad I am to go. I want to see all the things that I have read
about in my books. I want to go to England and look for somebody; but
you don't know all that I know; some day I will tell you
all--everything. I am so tired of living here by myself--nothing to
say--no one to talk to--no one to care for, except Nero, and he can't
speak. I can't bear the idea of parting with him though."

"Would you rather stay on the island with Nero, than go away without
him?"

"No," replied I; "go I must, but still I do not like to part with him.
He is the only friend that I ever had, that I can remember."

"When you have lived longer, and mixed more with the world, my poor
boy, you will then find how many sacrifices you will be obliged to
make, much more serious than parting with an animal that you are
attached to. I suppose you expect to be very happy if ever you get back
to England?"

"Of course I do; why should I not be?" replied I; "I shall be always
happy."

The Missionary's wife shook her head. "I fear not. Indeed, I think if
you live long enough, you will acknowledge that the happiest of your
days were passed on this barren rock."

"Jackson said otherwise," replied I. "He was always grieving at being
on the island, and not able to get back to England, and he told me so
many stories about England, and what is done there, and what a
beautiful place it is, that I'm sure I shall like it better than being
here, even if I had somebody with me."

"Well, you are in the hands of God, and you must put your trust in him.
He will do with you as he thinks best for you--that you know, as you
read your Bible."

"No, I didn't know that," replied I. "God lives beyond the stars, a
long way off."

"Is that all you have gained by reading your Bible?" inquired she,
looking me in the face.

"No, not all," replied I; "but I do not understand a great deal that I
read, I want some one to tell me. I am so glad you came with the men in
the boat, for I never saw a woman before. I used to see somebody in my
dreams, and now I know it was a woman. It was my mother, but I have not
seen her for a long while now, and I have nobody but Nero."

"My poor boy, you have a father in heaven."

"Yes," replied I; "I know he is in heaven, and so is my mother, for
Jackson said that they were both very good."

"I mean your Heavenly Father, God. Do you not say in the Lord's Prayer,
'Our Father which art in heaven.' You must love him."

I was about to reply, when John Gough, the mate, came up, and told my
companion that he had been speaking to the men, and they had agreed
that the day after the next they would, if the weather permitted, leave
the island; that they had examined the boat, and found it required very
little repair, and that all would be ready the next day.

"I hope that they will not overload the boat," said she.

"I fear that they will, but I must do all I can to prevent it. The cask
of rum was rather an unfortunate discovery, and we had been better
without it. Leave it they will not, so we must put out of the boat all
that we can possibly do without, for we shall be nine of us, and that
will be plenty of weight with the addition of the cask."

"You promised to take my chest, you remember," said I.

"Yes, I will do so if I possibly can; but recollect, I may not be able
to keep my promise--for now that they have the liquor, the men do not
obey me as they did before, ma'am," said the mate. "Perhaps he had
better take the best of his clothes in a bundle, in case they should
refuse to take in the chest; and I must say that, loaded as the boat
will be, they will be much to blame if they do not refuse, for the boat
is but small for stowage, and there's all the provisions to put in her,
which will take up a deal of room."

"That is very true," replied the woman. "It will be better to leave the
chest here, for I do not think that the boat will hold it. You must not
mind your chest, my good boy; it is of no great value."

"They take my rum and all my birds, and they ought to take both me and
my chest."

"Not if it takes up too much room," replied the woman. "You cannot
expect it. The wishes of one person must give way to the wishes of
many."

"Why they would have starved if it had not been for me," replied I,
angrily.

"That's very true, boy," replied the mate; "but you have to learn yet,
that might is right; and recollect that what you did this morning has
not made you any great favourite with them."

"What was that?" inquired my companion.

"Only that he nearly drove his knife through one of the men, that's
all," replied the mate; "English sailors ar'n't fond of knives."

He then touched his hat, and went down again to the pool, desiring me
to follow him with a kid for our share of the supper. I did so, and on