Godfrey went first, but it can easily be believed that his companion
found the attempt to cover step rather tiring. Moving from one tree to
another they advanced towards the shore without risk of discovery. Here
the clumps of bushes hid them from the opposite bank, there even their
heads disappeared amid the luxurious vegetation. But no matter where
they were, an arrow from a bow or a stone from a sling might at any
moment reach them. And so they had to be constantly on their guard.
However, in spite of the recommendations which were addressed to him,
Tartlet, tripping against an occasional stump, had two or three falls
which might have complicated matters. Godfrey was beginning to regret
having brought such a clumsy assistant. Indeed, the poor man could not
be much help to him. Doubtless he would have been worth more left behind
at Will Tree; or, if he would not consent to that, hidden away in some
nook in the forest. But it was too late. An hour after he had left the
sequoia group, Godfrey and his companion had come a mile--only a
mile--for the path was not easy beneath the high vegetation and between
the luxuriant shrubs. Neither one nor the other of our friends had seen
anything suspicious.
Hereabouts the trees thinned out for about a hundred yards or less, the
river ran between naked banks, the country round was barer.
Godfrey stopped. He carefully observed the prairie to the right and left
of the stream.
Still there was nothing to disquiet him, nothing to indicate the
approach of savages. It is true that as they could not but believe the
island inhabited, they would not advance without precaution, in fact
they would be as careful in ascending the little river as Godfrey was in
descending it. It was to be supposed therefore that if they were
prowling about the neighbourhood, they would also profit by the shelter
of the trees or the high bushes of mastics and myrtles which formed such
an excellent screen.
It was a curious though very natural circumstance that, the farther they
advanced, Tartlet, perceiving no enemy, little by little lost his
terror, and began to speak with scorn of "those cannibal
laughing-stocks." Godfrey, on the contrary, became more anxious, and it
was with greater precaution than ever that he crossed the open space and
regained the shadow of the trees. Another hour led them to the place
where the banks, beginning to feel the effects of the sea's vicinity,
were only bordered with stunted shrubs, or sparse grasses.
Under these circumstances it was difficult to keep hidden or rather
impossible to proceed without crawling along the ground.
This is what Godfrey did, and also what he advised Tartlet to do.
"There are not any savages! There are not any cannibals! They have all
gone!" said the professor.
"There are!" answered Godfrey quickly, in a low voice, "They ought to be
here! Down Tartlet, get down! Be ready to fire, but don't do so till I
tell you."
Godfrey had said these words in such a tone of authority that the
professor, feeling his limbs give way under him, had no difficulty in at
once assuming the required position.
And he did well!
In fact, it was not without reason that Godfrey had spoken as he had.
From the spot which they then occupied, they could see neither the
shore, nor the place where the river entered the sea. A small spur of
hills shut out the view about a hundred yards ahead, but above this near
horizon a dense smoke was rising straight in the air.
Godfrey, stretched at full length in the grass, with his finger on the
trigger of his musket, kept looking towards the coast.
"This smoke," he said, "is it not of the same kind that I have already
seen twice before? Should I conclude that savages have previously landed
on the north and south of the island, and that the smoke came from fires
lighted by them? But no! That is not possible, for I found no cinders,
nor traces of a fireplace, nor embers! Ah! this time I'll know the
reason of it."
And by a clever reptilian movement, which Tartlet imitated as well as he
could, he managed, without showing his head above the grass, to reach
the bend of the river.
Thence he could command, at his ease, every part of the bank through
which the river ran.
An exclamation could not but escape him! His hand touched the
professor's shoulder to prevent any movement of his! Useless to go
further! Godfrey saw what he had come to see!
A large fire of wood was lighted on the beach, among the lower rocks,
and from it a canopy of smoke rose slowly to the sky. Around the fire,
feeding it with fresh armfuls of wood, of which they had made a heap,
went and came the savages who had landed the evening before. Their canoe
was moored to a large stone, and, lifted by the rising tide, oscillated
on the ripples of the shore.
Godfrey could distinguish all that was passing on the sands without
using his glasses. He was not more than two hundred yards from the fire,
and he could even hear it crackling. He immediately perceived that he
need fear no surprise from the rear, for all the blacks he had counted
in the proa were in the group.
Ten out of the twelve were occupied in looking after the fire and
sticking stakes in the ground with the evident intention of rigging up a
spit in the Polynesian manner. An eleventh, who appeared to be the
chief, was walking along the beach, and constantly turning his glances
towards the interior of the island, as if he were afraid of an attack.
Godfrey recognized as a piece of finery on his shoulders the red stuff
of his flag.
The twelfth savage was stretched on the ground, tied tightly to a post.
Godfrey recognized at once the fate in store for the wretched man. The
spit was for him! The fire was to roast him at! Tartlet had not been
mistaken, when, the previous evening, he had spoken of these folks as
cannibals!
It must be admitted that neither was he mistaken in saying that the
adventures of Crusoes, real or imaginary, were all copied one from the
other!
Most certainly Godfrey and he did then find themselves in the same
position as the hero of Daniel Defoe when the savages landed on his
island. They were to assist, without doubt, at the same scene of
cannibalism.
Godfrey decided to act as this hero did! He would not permit the
massacre of the prisoner for which the stomachs of the cannibals were
waiting! He was well armed. His two muskets--four shots--his two
revolvers--a dozen shots--could easily settle these eleven rascals, whom
the mere report of one of the fire-arms might perhaps be sufficient to
scatter. Having taken his decision he coolly waited for the moment to
interfere like a thunder-clap.
He had not long to wait!
Twenty minutes had barely elapsed, when the chief approached the fire.
Then by a gesture he pointed out the prisoner to the savages who were
expecting his orders.
Godfrey rose. Tartlet, without knowing why, followed the example. He did
not even comprehend where his companion was going, for he had said
nothing to him of his plans.
Godfrey imagined, evidently, that at sight of him the savages would
make some movement, perhaps to rush to their boat, perhaps to rush at
him.
They did nothing. It did not even seem as though they saw him; but at
this moment the chief made a significant gesture. Three of his
companions went towards the prisoner, unloosed him, and forced him near
the fire.
He was still a young man, who, feeling that his last hour had come,
resisted with all his might.
Assuredly, if he could, he would sell his life dearly. He began by
throwing off the savages who held him, but he was soon knocked down, and
the thief, seizing a sort of stone axe, jumped forward to beat in his
head.
Godfrey uttered a cry, followed by a report. A bullet whistled through
the air, and it seemed as though the chief were mortally wounded, for he
fell on the ground.
At the report, the savages, surprised as though they had never heard the
sound of fire-arms, stopped. At the sight of Godfrey those who held the
prisoner instantly released him.
Immediately the poor fellow arose, and ran towards the place where he
perceived his unexpected liberator.
At this moment a second report was heard.
It was Tartlet, who, without looking--for the excellent man kept his
eyes shut--had just fired, and the stock of the musket on his right
shoulder delivered the hardest knock which had ever been received by the
professor of dancing and deportment.
But--what a chance it was!--a second savage fell close to his chief.
The rout at once began. Perhaps the savages thought they had to do with
a numerous troop of natives whom they could not resist. Perhaps they
were simply terrified at the sight of the two white men who seemed to
keep the lightning in their pockets. There they were, seizing the two
who were wounded, carrying them off, rushing to the proa, driving it by
their paddles out of the little creek, hoisting their sail, steering
before the wind, making for the Flag Point promontory, and doubling it
in hot haste.
Godfrey had no thought of pursuing them. What was the good of killing
them? They had saved the victim. They had put them to flight, that was
the important point. This had been done in such a way that the cannibals
would never dare to return to Phina Island.
All was then for the best. They had only to rejoice in their victory, in
which Tartlet did not hesitate to claim the greatest share.
Meanwhile the prisoner had come to his rescuer. For an instant he
stopped, with the fear inspired in him by superior beings, but almost
immediately he resumed his course. When he arrived before the two
whites, he bowed to the ground; then catching hold of Godfrey's foot, he
placed it on his head in sign of servitude.
One would almost have thought that this Polynesian savage had also read
Robinson Crusoe!
CHAPTER XVIII.
WHICH TREATS OF THE MORAL AND PHYSICAL EDUCATION OF A SIMPLE NATIVE OF
THE PACIFIC.
Godfrey at once raised the poor fellow, who lay prostrate before him. He
looked in his face.
He was a man of thirty-five or more, wearing only a rag round his loins.
In his features, as in the shape of his head, there could be recognized
the type of the African negro. It was not possible to confound him with
the debased wretches of the Polynesian islands, who, with their
depressed crania and elongated arms, approach so strangely to the
monkey.
Now, as he was a negro from Soudan or Abyssinia who had fallen into the
hands of the natives of an archipelago of the Pacific, it might be that
he could speak English or one or two words of the European languages
which Godfrey understood. But it was soon apparent that the unhappy man
only used an idiom that was absolutely incomprehensible--probably the
language of the aborigines among whom he had doubtless arrived when very
young. In fact, Godfrey had immediately interrogated him in English,
and had obtained no reply. He then made him understand by signs, not
without difficulty, that he would like to know his name.
After many fruitless essays, the negro, who had a very intelligent and
even honest face, replied to the demand which was made of him in a
single word,--
"Carefinotu."
"Carefinotu!" exclaimed Tartlet. "Do you hear the name? I propose that
we call him 'Wednesday,' for to-day is Wednesday, and that is what they
always do in these Crusoe islands! Is he to be allowed to call himself
Carefinotu?"
"If that is his name," said Godfrey; "why should he not keep it?"
And at the moment he felt a hand placed on his chest, while all the
black's physiognomy seemed to ask him what his name was.
"Godfrey!" answered he.
The black endeavoured to say the word, but although Godfrey repeated it
several times, he could not succeed in pronouncing it in an intelligible
fashion. Then he turned towards the professor, as if to know his name.
"Tartlet," was the reply of that individual in a most amiable tone.
"Tartlet!" repeated Carefinotu.
And it seemed as though this assemblage of syllables was more agreeable
to his vocal chords, for he pronounced it distinctly.
The professor appeared to be extremely flattered. In truth he had reason
to be.
Then Godfrey, wishing to put the intelligence of the black to some
profit, tried to make him understand that he wished to know the name of
the island. He pointed with his hand to the woods and prairies and
hills, and then the shore which bound them, and then the horizon of the
sea, and he interrogated him with a look.
Carefinotu did not at first understand what was meant, and imitating the
gesture of Godfrey he also turned and ran his eyes over the space.
"Arneka," said he at length.
"Arneka?" replied Godfrey, striking the soil with his foot so as to
accentuate his demand.
"Arneka!" repeated the negro.
This told Godfrey nothing, neither the geographical name borne by the
island, nor its position in the Pacific. He could not remember such a
name; it was probably a native one, little known to geographers.
However, Carefinotu did not cease from looking at the two white men, not
without some stupor, going from one to the other as if he wished to fix
in his mind the differences which characterized them. The smile on his
mouth disclosed abundant teeth of magnificent whiteness which Tartlet
did not examine without a certain reserve.
"If those teeth," he said, "have never eaten human flesh may my fiddle
burst up in my hand."
"Anyhow, Tartlet," answered Godfrey; "our new companion no longer looks
like the poor beggar they were going to cook and feed on! That is the
main point!"
What particularly attracted the attention of Carefinotu were the weapons
carried by Godfrey and Tartlet--as much the musket in the hand as the
revolver in the belt.
Godfrey easily understood this sentiment of curiosity. It was evident
that the savage had never seen a fire-arm. He said to himself that this
was one of those iron tubes which had launched the thunder-bolt that had
delivered him? There could be no doubt of it.
Godfrey, wishing to give him, not without reason, a high idea of the
power of the whites, loaded his gun, and then, showing to Carefinotu a
red-legged partridge that was flying across the prairie about a hundred
yards away, he shouldered it quickly, and fired. The bird fell.
At the report the black gave a prodigious leap, which Tartlet could not
but admire from a choregraphic point of view. Then repressing his fear,
and seeing the bird with broken wing running through the grass, he
started off and swift as a greyhound ran towards it, and with many a
caper, half of joy, half of stupefaction, brought it back to his master.
Tartlet then thought of displaying to Carefinotu that the Great Spirit
had also favoured him with the power of the lightning; and perceiving a
kingfisher tranquilly seated on an old stump near the river was bringing
the stock up to his cheek, when Godfrey stopped him with,--
"No! Don't fire, Tartlet!"
"Why not?"
"Suppose that by some mishap you were not to hit the bird, think how we
would fall in the estimation of the nigger!"
"And why should I not hit him?" replied Tartlet with some acerbity. "Did
I not, during the battle, at more than a hundred paces, the very first
time I handled a gun, hit one of the cannibals full in the chest?"
"You touched him evidently," said Godfrey; "for he fell. But take my
advice, Tartlet, and in the common interest do not tempt fortune twice!"
The professor, slightly annoyed, allowed himself to be convinced; he
threw the gun on to his shoulder with a swagger, and both our heroes,
followed by Carefinotu, returned to Will Tree.
There the new guest of Phina Island met with quite a surprise in the
habitation so happily contrived in the lower part of the sequoia. First
he had to be shown, by using them while he looked on, the use of the
tools, instruments, and utensils. It was obvious that Carefinotu
belonged to, or had lived amongst savages in the lowest rank of the
human scale, for fire itself seemed to be unknown to him. He could not
understand why the pot did not take fire when they put it on the blazing
wood; he would have hurried away from it, to the great displeasure of
Tartlet, who was watching the different phases of the cooking of the
soup. At a mirror, which was held out to him, he betrayed consummate
astonishment; he turned round, and turned it round to see if he himself
were not behind it.
"The fellow is hardly a monkey!" exclaimed the professor with a
disdainful grimace.
"No, Tartlet," answered Godfrey; "he is more than a monkey, for his
looks behind the mirror show good reasoning power."
"Well, I will admit that he is not a monkey," said Tartlet, shaking his
head as if only half convinced; "but we shall see if such a being can be
of any good to us."
"I am sure he will be!" replied Godfrey.
In any case Carefinotu showed himself quite at home with the food placed
before him. He first tore it apart, and then tasted it; and then I
believe that the whole breakfast of which they partook the--agouti soup,
the partridge killed by Godfrey, and the shoulder of mutton with camas
and yamph roots--would hardly have sufficed to calm the hunger which
devoured him.
"The poor fellow has got a good appetite!" said Godfrey.
"Yes," responded Tartlet; "and we shall have to keep a watch on his
cannibal instinct."
"Well, Tartlet! We shall make him get over the taste of human flesh if
he ever had it!"
"I would not swear that," replied the professor. "It appears that once
they have acquired this taste--"
While they were talking, Carefinotu was listening with extreme
attention. His eyes sparkled with intelligence. One could see that he
understood what was being said in his presence. He then spoke with
extreme volubility, but it was only a succession of onomatopoeias
devoid of sense, of harsh interjections with -a- and -ou- predominant,
as in the majority of Polynesian idioms.
Whatever the negro was, he was a new companion; he might become a
devoted servant, which the most unexpected chance had sent to the hosts
of Will Tree.
He was powerful, adroit, active; no work came amiss to him. He showed a
real aptitude to imitate what he saw being done. It was in this way
that Godfrey proceeded with his education. The care of the domestic
animals, the collection of the roots and fruits, the cutting up of the
sheep or agouties, which were to serve for food for the day, the
fabrication of a sort of cider they extracted from the wild manzanilla
apples,--he acquitted himself well in all these tasks, after having seen
them done.
Whatever Tartlet thought, Godfrey felt no distrust in the savage, and
never seemed to regret having come across him. What disquieted him was
the possible return of the cannibals who now knew the situation of Phina
Island.
From the first, a bed had been reserved for Carefinotu in the room at
Will Tree, but generally, unless it was raining, he preferred to sleep
outside in some hole in the tree, as though he were on guard over the
house.
During the fortnight which followed his arrival on the island,
Carefinotu many times accompanied Godfrey on his shooting excursions.
His surprise was always extreme when he saw the game fall hit at such a
distance; but in his character of retriever, he showed a dash and daring
which no obstacles, hedge or bush, or stream, could stop.
Gradually, Godfrey became greatly attached to this negro. There was only
one part of his progress in which Carefinotu showed refractoriness; that
was in learning the English language. Do what he might he could not be
prevailed upon to pronounce the most ordinary words which Godfrey, and
particularly Professor Tartlet tried to teach him.
So the time passed. But if the present was fairly supportable, thanks to
a happy accident, if no immediate danger menaced them, Godfrey could not
help asking himself, if they were ever to leave this island, by what
means they were to rejoin their country! Not a day passed but he thought
of Uncle Will and his betrothed. It was not without secret apprehension
that he saw the bad season approaching, which would put between his
friends and him a barrier still more impassable.
On the 27th of September a circumstance occurred deserving of note.
If it gave more work to Godfrey and his two companions, it at least
assured them of an abundant reserve of food.
Godfrey and Carefinotu were busied in collecting the mollusks, at the
extreme end of Dream Bay, when they perceived out at sea an innumerable
quantity of small moving islets which the rising tide was bringing
gently to shore. It was a sort of floating archipelago, on the surface
of which there walked, or flew, a few of those sea-birds, with great
expanse of wing, known as sea-hawks.
What then were these masses which floated landwards, rising and falling
with the undulations of the waves?
Godfrey did not know what to think, when Carefinotu threw himself down
on his stomach, and then drawing his head back into his shoulders,
folded beneath him his arms and legs, and began to imitate the movements
of an animal crawling slowly along the ground.
Godfrey looked at him without understanding these extraordinary
gymnastics. Then suddenly--
"Turtles!" he exclaimed.
Carefinotu was right. There was quite a square mile of myriads of
turtles, swimming on the surface of the water.
About a hundred fathoms from the shore the greater part of them dived
and disappeared, and the sea-hawks, finding their footing gone, flew up
into the air in large spirals. But luckily about a hundred of the
amphibians came on to the beach.
Godfrey and the negro had quickly run down in front of these creatures,
each of which measured at the least from three to four feet in diameter.
Now the only way of preventing turtles from regaining the sea is to turn
them on their backs; and it was in this rough work that Godfrey and
Carefinotu employed themselves, not without great fatigue.
The following days were spent in collecting the booty. The flesh of the
turtle, which is excellent either fresh or preserved, could perhaps be
kept for a time in both forms. In preparation for the winter, Godfrey
had the greater part salted in such a way as to serve for the needs of
each day. But for some time the table was supplied with turtle soup, on
which Tartlet was not the only one to regale himself.
Barring this incident, the monotony of existence was in no way ruffled.
Every day the same hours were devoted to the same work. Would not the
life become still more depressing when the winter season would oblige
Godfrey and his companions to shut themselves up in Will Tree? Godfrey
could not think of it without anxiety. But what could he do?
Meanwhile, he continued the exploration of the island, and all the time
not occupied with more pressing tasks he spent in roaming about with his
gun. Generally Carefinotu accompanied him, Tartlet remaining behind at
the dwelling. Decidedly he was no hunter, although his first shot had
been a master-stroke!
Now on one of these occasions an unexpected incident happened, of a
nature to gravely compromise the future safety of the inmates of Will
Tree.
Godfrey and the black had gone out hunting in the central forest, at the
foot of the hill which formed the principal ridge of Phina Island. Since
the morning they had seen nothing pass but two or three antelopes
through the high underwood, but at too great a distance for them to fire
with any chance of hitting them.
As Godfrey was not in search of game for dinner, and did not seek to
destroy for destruction's sake, he resigned himself to return
empty-handed. If he regretted doing so it was not so much for the meat
of the antelope, as for the skin, of which he intended to make good use.
It was about three o'clock in the afternoon. He and his companion after
lunch were no more fortunate than before. They were preparing to return
to Will Tree for dinner, when, just as they cleared the edge of the
wood, Carefinotu made a bound; then precipitating himself on Godfrey, he
seized him by the shoulders, and dragged him along with such vigour that
resistance was impossible.
After going about twenty yards they stopped. Godfrey took breath, and,
turning towards Carefinotu, interrogated him with a look.
The black, exceedingly frightened, stretched out his hand towards an
animal which was standing motionless about fifty yards off.
It was a grizzly bear, whose paws held the trunk of a tree, and who was
swaying his big head up and down, as if he were going to rush at the two
hunters.
Immediately, without pausing to think, Godfrey loaded his gun, and fired
before Carefinotu could hinder him.
Was the enormous plantigrade hit by the bullet? Probably. Was he killed?
They could not be sure, but his paws unclasped, and he rolled at the
foot of the tree. Delay was dangerous. A struggle with so formidable an
animal might have the worst results. In the forests of California the
pursuit of the grizzly is fraught with the greatest danger, even to
professional hunters of the beast.
And so the black seized Godfrey by the arms to drag him away in the
direction of Will Tree, and Godfrey, understanding that he could not be
too cautious, made no resistance.
CHAPTER XIX.
IN WHICH THE SITUATION ALREADY GRAVELY COMPROMISED BECOMES MORE AND MORE
COMPLICATED.
The presence of a formidable wild beast in Phina Island was, it must be
confessed, calculated to make our friends think the worst of the
ill-fortune which had fallen on them.
Godfrey--perhaps he was wrong--did not consider that he ought to hide
from Tartlet what had passed.
"A bear!" screamed the professor, looking round him with a bewildered
glare as if the environs of Will Tree were being assailed by a herd of
wild beasts. "Why, a bear? Up to now we had not even got a bear in our
island! If there is one there may be many, and even numbers of other
ferocious beasts--jaguars, panthers, tigers, hyænas, lions!"
Tartlet already beheld Phina Island given over to quite a menagerie
escaped from their cages.
Godfrey answered that there was no need for him to exaggerate. He had
seen one bear, that was certain. Why one of these animals had never been
seen before in his wanderings on the island he could not explain, and it
was indeed inexplicable. But to conclude from this that wild animals of
all kinds were prowling in the woods and prairies was to go too far.
Nevertheless, they would have to be cautious and never go out unarmed.
Unhappy Tartlet! From this day there commenced for him an existence of
anxieties, emotions, alarms, and irrational terrors which gave him
nostalgia for his native land in a most acute form.
"No!" repeated he. "No! If there are animals--I have had enough of it,
and I want to get off!"
He had not the power.
Godfrey and his companions then had henceforth to be on their guard. An
attack might take place not only on the shore side or the prairie side,
but even in the group of sequoias. This is why serious measures were
taken to put the habitation in a state to repel a sudden attack. The
door was strengthened, so as to resist the clutches of a wild beast. As
for the domestic animals Godfrey would have built a stable to shut them
up in at least at night, but it was not easy to do so. He contented
himself at present with making a sort of enclosure of branches not far
from Will Tree, which would keep them as in a fold. But the enclosure
was not solid enough nor high enough to hinder a bear or hyæna from
upsetting it or getting over it.
Notwithstanding the remonstrances made to him, Carefinotu persisted in
watching outside during the night, and Godfrey hoped thus to receive
warning of a direct attack.
Decidedly Carefinotu endangered his life in thus constituting himself
the guardian of Will Tree; but he had understood that he could thus be
of service to his liberators, and he persisted, in spite of all Godfrey
said to him, in watching as usual over the general safety.
A week passed without any of these formidable visitors appearing in the
neighbourhood. Godfrey did not go very far from the dwelling, unless
there was a necessity for his doing so. While the sheep and goats grazed
on the neighbouring prairie, they were never allowed out of sight.
Generally Carefinotu acted as shepherd. He did not take a gun, for he
did not seem to understand the management of fire-arms, but one of the
hunting-knives hung from his belt, and he carried an axe in his right
hand. Thus armed the active negro would not have hesitated to throw
himself before a tiger or any animal of the worst description.
However, as neither a bear nor any of his congeners had appeared since
the last encounter Godfrey began to gather confidence. He gradually
resumed his hunting expeditions, but without pushing far into the
interior of the island. Frequently the black accompanied him; Tartlet,
safe in Will Tree, would not risk himself in the open, not even if he
had the chance of giving a dancing lesson. Sometimes Godfrey would go
alone, and then the professor had a companion to whose instruction he
obstinately devoted himself.
Yes! Tartlet had at first thought of teaching Carefinotu the most
ordinary words in the English language, but he had to give this up, as
the negro seemed to lack the necessary phonetic apparatus for that kind
of pronunciation. "Then," had Tartlet said, "if I cannot be his
professor, I will be his pupil!"
And he it was who attempted to learn the idiom spoken by Carefinotu.
Godfrey had warned him that the accomplishment would be of little use.
Tartlet was not dissuaded. He tried to get Carefinotu to name the
objects he pointed at with his hand. In truth Tartlet must have got on
excellently, for at the end of fifteen days he actually knew fifteen
words! He knew that Carefinotu said "birsi" for fire, "aradore" for the
sky, "mervira" for the sea, "doura" for a tree, &c. He was as proud of
this as if he had taken the first prize for Polynesian at some
examination!
It was then with a feeling of gratitude that he wished to make some
recognition of what had been done for him, and instead of torturing the
negro with English words, he resolved on teaching him deportment and the
true principles of European choregraphy.
At this Godfrey could not restrain his peals of laughter. After all it
would pass the time away, and on Sunday, when there was nothing else to
do, he willingly assisted at the course of lectures delivered by the
celebrated Professor Tartlet of San Francisco. Indeed, we ought to have
seen them! The unhappy Carefinotu perspired profusely as he went through
the elementary exercises. He was docile and willing, nevertheless; but
like all his fellows, his shoulders did not set back, nor did his chest
throw out, nor did his knees or his feet point apart! To make a Vestris
or a Saint Leon of a savage of this sort!
The professor pursued his task in quite a fury. Carefinotu, tortured as
he was, showed no lack of zeal. What he suffered, even to get his feet
into the first position can be imagined! And when he passed to the
second and then to the third, it was still more agonizing.
"But look at me, you blockhead!" exclaimed Tartlet, who added example to
precept. "Put your feet out! Further out! The heel of one to the heel of
the other! Open your knees, you duffer! Put back your shoulders, you
idiot! Stick up your head! Round your elbows!"
"But you ask what is impossible!" said Godfrey.
"Nothing is impossible to an intelligent man!" was Tartlet's invariable
response.
"But his build won't allow of it."
"Well, his build must allow of it! He will have to do it sooner or
later, for the savage must at least know how to present himself properly
in a drawing-room!"
"But, Tartlet, he will never have the opportunity of appearing in a
drawing-room!"
"Eh! How do you know that, Godfrey?" replied the professor, drawing
himself up. "Do you know what the future may bring forth?"
This was the last word in all discussions with Tartlet. And then the
professor taking his kit would with the bow extract from it some squeaky
little air to the delight of Carefinotu. It required but this to excite
him. Oblivious of choregraphic rules, what leaps, what contortions, what
capers!
And Tartlet, in a reverie, as he saw this child of Polynesia so demean
himself, inquired if these steps, perhaps a little too characteristic,
were not natural to the human being, although outside all the principles
of his art.
But we must leave the professor of dancing and deportment to his
philosophical meditations, and return to questions at once more
practical and pressing.
During his last excursions into the plain, either by himself or with
Carefinotu, Godfrey had seen no wild animal. He had even come upon no
traces of such. The river to which they would come to drink bore no
footprint on its banks. During the night there were no howlings nor
suspicious noises. Besides the domestic animals continued to give no
signs of uneasiness.
"This is singular," said Godfrey several times; "but I was not mistaken!
Carefinotu certainly was not! It was really a bear that he showed me! It
was really a bear that I shot! Supposing I killed him, was he the last
representative of the plantigrades on the island?"
It was quite inexplicable! Besides, if Godfrey had killed this bear, he
would have found the body where he had shot it. Now they searched for it
in vain! Were they to believe then that the animal mortally wounded had
died far off in some den. It was possible after all, but then at this
place, at the foot of this tree, there would have been traces of blood,
and there were none.
"Whatever it is," thought Godfrey, "it does not much matter; and we must
keep on our guard."
With the first days of November it could be said that the wet season had
commenced in this unknown latitude. Cold rains fell for many hours.
Later on probably they would experience those interminable showers which
do not cease for weeks at a time, and are characteristic of the rainy
period of winter in these latitudes.
Godfrey had then to contrive a fireplace in the interior of Will
Tree--an indispensable fireplace that would serve as well to warm the
dwelling during the winter months as to cook their food in shelter from
the rain and tempest.
The hearth could at any time be placed in a corner of the chamber
between big stones, some placed on the ground and others built up round
them; but the question was how to get the smoke out, for to leave it to
escape by the long chimney, which ran down the centre of the sequoia,
proved impracticable.
Godfrey thought of using as a pipe some of those long stout bamboos
which grew on certain parts of the river banks. It should be said that
on this occasion he was greatly assisted by Carefinotu. The negro, not
without effort, understood what Godfrey required. He it was who
accompanied him for a couple of miles from Will Tree to select the
larger bamboos, he it was who helped him build his hearth. The stones
were placed on the ground opposite to the door; the bamboos, emptied of
their pith and bored through at the knots, afforded, when joined one to
another, a tube of sufficient length, which ran out through an aperture
made for it in the sequoia bark, and would serve every purpose, provided
it did not catch fire. Godfrey soon had the satisfaction of seeing a
good fire burning without filling the interior of Will Tree with smoke.
He was quite right in hastening on these preparations, for from the 3rd
to the 10th of November the rain never ceased pouring down. It would
have been impossible to keep a fire going in the open air. During these
miserable days they had to keep indoors and did got venture out except
when the flocks and poultry urgently required them to do so. Under these
circumstances the reserve of camas roots began to fail; and these were
what took the place of bread, and of which the want would be immediately
felt.
Godfrey then one day, the 10th of November, informed Tartlet that as
soon as the weather began to mend a little he and Carefinotu would go
out and collect some. Tartlet, who was never in a hurry to run a couple
of miles across a soaking prairie, decided to remain at home during
Godfrey's absence.
In the evening the sky began to clear of the heavy clouds which the west
wind had been accumulating since the commencement of the month, the rain
gradually ceased, the sun gave forth a few crepuscular rays. It was to
be hoped that the morning would yield a lull in the storm, of which it
was advisable to make the most.
"To-morrow," said Godfrey, "I will go out, and Carefinotu will go with
me."
"Agreed!" answered Tartlet.
The evening came, and when supper was finished and the sky, cleared of
clouds, permitted a few brilliant stars to appear, the black wished to
take up his accustomed place outside, which he had had to abandon during
the preceding rainy nights. Godfrey tried to make him understand that he
had better remain indoors, that there was no necessity to keep a watch
as no wild animal had been noticed; but Carefinotu was obstinate. He
therefore had to have his way.
The morning was as Godfrey had foreseen, no rain had fallen since the
previous evening, and when he stepped forth from Will Tree, the first
rays of the sun were lightly gilding the thick dome of the sequoias.
Carefinotu was at his post, where he had passed the night. He was
waiting. Immediately, well armed and provided with large sacks, the two
bid farewell to Tartlet, and started for the river, which they intended
ascending along the left bank up to the camas bushes.
An hour afterwards they arrived there without meeting with any
unpleasant adventure.
The roots were rapidly torn up and a large quantity obtained, so as to
fill the sacks. This took three hours, so that it was about eleven
o'clock in the morning when Godfrey and his companion set out on their
return to Will Tree.
Walking close together, keeping a sharp look-out, for they could not
talk to each other, they had reached a bend in the small river where
there were a few large trees, grown like a natural cradle across the
stream, when Godfrey suddenly stopped.
This time it was he who showed to Carefinotu a motionless animal at the
foot of a tree whose eyes were gleaming with a singular light.
"A tiger!" he exclaimed.
He was not mistaken. It was really a tiger of large stature resting on
its hind legs with its forepaws on the trunk of a tree, and ready to
spring.
In a moment Godfrey had dropped his sack of roots. The loaded gun passed
into his right hand; he cocked it, presented it, aimed it, and fired.
"Hurrah! hurrah!" he exclaimed.
This time there was no room for doubt; the tiger, struck by the bullet,
had bounded backwards. But perhaps he was not mortally wounded, perhaps
rendered still more furious by his wound he would spring on to them!
Godfrey held his gun pointed, and threatened the animal with his second
barrel.
But before Godfrey could stop him, Carefinotu had rushed at the place
where the tiger disappeared, his hunting-knife in his hand.
Godfrey shouted for him to stop, to come back! It was in vain. The
black, resolved even at the risk of his life to finish the animal which
perhaps was only wounded, did not or would not hear.
Godfrey rushed after him.
When he reached the bank, he saw Carefinotu struggling with the tiger,
holding him by the throat, and at last stabbing him to the heart with a
powerful blow.
The tiger then rolled into the river, of which the waters, swollen by
the rains, carried it away with the quickness of a torrent. The corpse,
which floated only for an instant, was swiftly borne off towards the
sea.
A bear! A tiger! There could be no doubt that the island did contain
formidable beasts of prey!
Godfrey, after rejoining Carefinotu, found that in the struggle the
black had only received a few scratches. Then, deeply anxious about the
future, he retook the road to Will Tree.
CHAPTER XX.
IN WHICH TARTLET REITERATES IN EVERY KEY THAT HE WOULD RATHER BE OFF.
When Tartlet learnt that there were not only bears in the island, but
tigers too, his lamentations again arose. Now he would never dare to go
out! The wild beasts would end by discovering the road to Will Tree!
There was no longer any safety anywhere! In his alarm the professor
wanted for his protection quite a fortification! Yes! Stone walls with
scarps and counterscarps, curtains and bastions, and ramparts, for what
was the use of a shelter under a group of sequoias? Above all things, he
would at all risks, like to be off.
"So would I," answered Godfrey quietly.
In fact, the conditions under which the castaways on Phina Island had
lived up to now were no longer the same. To struggle to the end, to
struggle for the necessaries of life, they had been able, thanks to
fortunate circumstances. Against the bad season, against winter and its
menaces, they knew how to act, but to have to defend themselves against
wild animals, whose attack was possible every minute, was another thing
altogether; and in fact they could not do it.
The situation, already complicated, had become very serious, for it had
become intolerable.
"But," repeated Godfrey to himself, without cessation, "how is it that
for four months we did not see a single beast of prey in the island, and
why during the last fortnight have we had to encounter a bear and a
tiger? What shall we say to that?"
The fact might be inexplicable, but it was none the less real.
Godfrey, whose coolness and courage increased, as difficulties grew, was
not cast down. If dangerous animals menaced their little colony, it was
better to put themselves on guard against their attacks, and that
without delay.
But what was to be done?
It was at the outset decided that excursions into the woods or to the
sea-shore should be rarer, and that they should never go out unless well
armed, and only when it was absolutely necessary for their wants.
"We have been lucky enough in our two encounters!" said Godfrey
frequently; "but there may come a time when we may not shoot so
straight! So there is no necessity for us to run into danger!"
At the same time they had not only to settle about the excursions, but
to protect Will Tree--not only the dwelling, but the annexes, the
poultry roost, and the fold for the animals, where the wild beasts could
easily cause irreparable disaster.
Godfrey thought then, if not of fortifying Will Tree according to the
famous plans of Tartlet, at least of connecting the four or five large
sequoias which surrounded it.
If he could devise a high and strong palisade from one tree to another,
they would be in comparative security at any rate from a surprise.
It was practicable--Godfrey concluded so after an examination of the
ground--but it would cost a good deal of labour. To reduce this as much
as possible, he thought of erecting the palisade around a perimeter of
only some three hundred feet. We can judge from this the number of trees
he had to select, cut down, carry, and trim until the enclosure was
complete.
Godfrey did not quail before his task. He imparted his projects to
Tartlet, who approved them, and promised his active co-operation; but
what was more important, he made his plans understood to Carefinotu, who
was always ready to come to his assistance.
They set to work without delay.
There was at a bend in the stream, about a mile from Will Tree, a small
wood of stone pines of medium height, whose trunks, in default of beams
and planks, without wanting to be squared, would, by being placed close
together, form a solid palisade.
It was to this wood that, at dawn on the 12th of November, Godfrey and
his two companions repaired. Though well armed they advanced with great
care.
"You can have too much of this sort of thing," murmured Tartlet, whom
these new difficulties had rendered still more discontented, "I would
rather be off!"
But Godfrey did not take the trouble to reply to him.
On this occasion his tastes were not being consulted, his intelligence
even was not being appealed to. It was the assistance of his arms that
the common interest demanded. In short, he had to resign himself to his
vocation of beast of burden.
No unpleasant accident happened in the mile which separated the wood
from Will Tree. In vain they had carefully beaten the underwood, and
swept the horizon all around them. The domestic animals they had left
out at pasture gave no sign of alarm. The birds continued their frolics
with no more anxiety than usual.
Work immediately began. Godfrey, very properly did not want to begin
carrying until all the trees he wanted had been felled. They could work
at them in greater safety on the spot.
Carefinotu was of great service during this toilsome task. He had become
very clever in the use of the axe and saw. His strength even allowed him
to continue at work when Godfrey was obliged to rest for a minute or so,
and when Tartlet, with bruised hands and aching limbs, had not even
strength left to lift his fiddle.
However, although the unfortunate professor of dancing and deportment
had been transformed into a wood-cutter, Godfrey had reserved for him
the least fatiguing part, that is, the clearing off of the smaller
branches. In spite of this, if Tartlet had only been paid half a dollar
a day, he would have stolen four-fifths of his salary!
For six days, from the 12th to the 17th of November, these labours
continued. Our friends went off in the morning at dawn, they took their
food with them, and they did not return to Will Tree until evening. The
sky was not very clear. Heavy clouds frequently accumulated over it. It
was harvest weather, with alternating showers and sunshine; and during
the showers the wood-cutters would take shelter under the trees, and
resume their task when the rain had ceased.
On the 18th all the trees, topped and cleared of branches, were lying
on the ground, ready for transport to Will Tree.
During this time no wild beast had appeared in the neighbourhood of the
river. The question was, were there any more in the island, or had the
bear and the tiger been--a most improbable event--the last of their
species?
Whatever it was, Godfrey had no intention of abandoning his project of
the solid palisade so as to be prepared against a surprise from savages,
or bears, or tigers. Besides, the worst was over, and there only
remained to take the wood where it was wanted.
We say "the worst was over," though the carriage promised to be somewhat
laborious. If it were not so, it was because Godfrey had had a very
practical idea, which materially lightened the task; this was to make
use of the current of the river, which the flood occasioned by the
recent rains had rendered very rapid, to transport the wood. Small rafts
could be formed, and they would quietly float down to the sequoias,
where a bar, formed by the small bridge, would stop them. From thence to
Will Tree was only about fifty-five paces.
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