ABANDONED
BY JULES VERNE
LONDON: J. M. DENT & CO.
NEW YORK: E. P. DUTTON & CO.
INTRODUCTION
The present romance, the second in the Mysterious Island triad, was
originally issued in Paris with the title of -L'Abandonné-. Jules
Verne's list of stories already ran then to some twenty volumes--a
number which has since grown to almost Dumasien proportions.
-L'Abandonné-, like its two companion tales, ran its course as a
serial through the -Magasin Illustré- of education and recreation,
before its issue as a boy's story-book. Its success in both forms
seems to have established a record in the race for popularity and
a circulation in both the French and English fields of current
literature. The present book was translated into English by the late
W. H. G. Kingston; and is printed in EVERYMAN'S LIBRARY by special
exclusive arrangement with Messrs. Sampson Low, Marston & Co., Ltd.
1909
The list of tales and favourite romances by Jules Verne includes the
following:--
Five Weeks in a Balloon, 1870; A Journey to the Centre of the
Earth, translated by J. V., 1872; tr. F. A. Malleson, 1876;
Twenty Thousand Leagues under the Sea, 1873; tr. H. Frith,
1876; From the Earth to the Moon, and a Trip Round it, tr. Q.
Mercier and E. G. King, 1873; The English at the North Pole,
1873; Meridiana: Adventures of Three English and Three
Russians, 1873; Dr. Ox's Experiment and other Stories, 1874; A
Floating City, 1874; The Blockade Runners, 1874; Around the
World in Eighty Days, tr. G. M. Towle and N. D'Anvers, 1874,
1876; tr. H. Frith, 1879; The Fur Country, or Seventy Degrees
North Latitude, tr. N. D'Anvers, 1874; tr H. Frith, 1879; The
Mysterious Island, tr. W. H. G. Kingston, 1875; The Survivors
of the -Chancellor-: Diary of J. R. Kazallon, tr E. Frewer,
1875; Martin Paz, tr. E. Frewer, 1876; Field of Ice, 1876;
Child of the Cavern, tr. W. H. G. Kingston, 1877, Michael
Strogoff, tr. W. H. G. Kingston, 1877; A Voyage Round the
World, 1877; Hector Senvadac, tr. E. Frewer, 1878; Dick Sands,
the Boy Captain, tr. E. Frewer, 1879; Celebrated Travels and
Travellers: The Great Navigators of the Eighteenth Century,
tr. Dora Leigh, N. D'Anvers, etc., 1879-81; Tribulations of a
Chinaman, tr. E. Frewer, 1880; The Begum's Fortune, tr. W. H.
G. Kingston, 1880; The Steam House, tr. A. D. Kingston, 1881;
The Giant Raft, W. J. Gordon, 1881; Godfrey Morgan, 1883; The
Green Ray, tr. M. de Hauteville, 1883; The Vanished Diamond,
1885; The Archipelago on Fire, 1886; Mathias Sandorf, 1886;
Kérabân the Inflexible, 1887; The Lottery Ticket, 1887;
Clipper of the Clouds, 1887; The Flight to France, or Memoirs
of a Dragoon, 1888; North against South: Story of the American
Civil War, 1888; Adrift in the Pacific, 1889; Cesar Cacabel,
1891; The Purchase of the North Pole, 1891; A Family without a
Name, 1891; Mistress Branican, 1892; Claudius Bombarnac, 1894;
Foundling Mick, 1895; Clovis Dardentor, 1897; For the Flag,
tr. Mrs. C. Hoey, 1897; An Antarctic Mystery, 1898.
Jules Verne's works are published in an authorised and
illustrated edition by Messrs. Sampson Low, Marston & Co.,
Ltd.
------------------------------------------------------------------
THE ABANDONED
CHAPTER I
Conversation on the Subject of the Bullet -- Construction of
a Canoe -- Hunting -- At the Top of a Kauri -- Nothing to
attest the Presence of Man -- Neb and Herbert's Prize --
Turning a Turtle -- The Turtle disappears -- Cyrus Harding's
Explanation.
It was now exactly seven months since the balloon voyagers had been
thrown on Lincoln Island. During that time, notwithstanding the
researches they had made, no human being had been discovered. No smoke
even had betrayed the presence of man on the surface of the island. No
vestiges of his handiwork showed that either at an early or at a late
period had man lived there. Not only did it now appear to be
uninhabited by any but themselves, but the colonists were compelled to
believe that it never had been inhabited. And now, all this
scaffolding of reasonings fell before a simple ball of metal, found in
the body of an inoffensive rodent! In fact, this bullet must have
issued from a firearm, and who but a human being could have used such
a weapon?
When Pencroft had placed the bullet on the table, his companions
looked at it with intense astonishment. All the consequences likely to
result from this incident, notwithstanding its apparent
insignificance, immediately took possession of their minds. The sudden
apparition of a supernatural being could not have startled them more
completely.
Cyrus Harding did not hesitate to give utterance to the suggestions
which this fact, at once surprising and unexpected, could not fail to
raise in his mind. He took the bullet, turned it over and over, rolled
it between his finger and thumb; then, turning to Pencroft, he
asked,--
"Are you sure that the peccary wounded by this bullet was not more
than three months old?"
"Not more, captain," replied Pencroft. "It was still sucking its
mother when I found it in the trap."
"Well," said the engineer, "that proves that within three months a
gun-shot was fired in Lincoln Island."
"And that a bullet," added Gideon Spilett, "wounded, though not
mortally, this little animal."
"That is unquestionable," said Cyrus Harding, "and these are the
deductions which must be drawn from this incident: that the island was
inhabited before our arrival, or that men have landed here within
three months. Did these men arrive here voluntarily or involuntarily,
by disembarking on the shore or by being wrecked? This point can only
be cleared up later. As to what they were, Europeans or Malays,
enemies or friends of our race, we cannot possibly guess; and if they
still inhabit the island, or if they have left it, we know not. But
these questions are of too much importance to be allowed to remain
long unsettled."
"No! a hundred times no! a thousand times no!" cried the sailor,
springing up from the table. "There are no other men than ourselves on
Lincoln Island! By my faith! The island isn't large, and if it had
been inhabited, we should have seen some of the inhabitants long
before this!"
"In fact, the contrary would be very astonishing," said Herbert.
"But it would be much more astonishing, I should think," observed the
reporter, "that this peccary should have been born with a bullet in
its inside!"
"At least," said Neb seriously, "if Pencroft has not had--"
"Look here, Neb," burst out Pencroft. "Do you think I could have a
bullet in my jaw for five or six months without finding it out? Where
could it be hidden?" he asked opening his mouth to show the
two-and-thirty teeth with which it was furnished. "Look well, Neb, and
if you find one hollow tooth in this set, I will let you pull out half
a dozen!"
"Neb's supposition is certainly inadmissible," replied Harding, who,
notwithstanding the gravity of his thoughts, could not restrain a
smile. "It is certain that a gun has been fired in the island, within
three months at most. But I am inclined to think that the people who
landed on this coast were only here a very short time ago, or that
they just touched here; for if, when we surveyed the island from the
summit of Mount Franklin, it had been inhabited, we should have seen
them or we should have been seen ourselves. It is therefore probable
that within only a few weeks castaways have been thrown by a storm on
some part of the coast. However that may be, it is of consequence to
us to have this point settled."
"I think that we should act with caution," said the reporter.
"Such is my advice," replied Cyrus Harding, "for it is to be feared
that Malay pirates have landed on the island!"
"Captain," asked the sailor, "would it not be a good plan, before
setting out, to build a canoe in which we could either ascend the
river, or, if we liked, coast round the island? It will not do to be
unprovided."
"Your idea is good, Pencroft," replied the engineer, "but we cannot
wait for that. It would take at least a month to build a boat."
"Yes, a real boat," replied the sailor; "but we do not want one for a
sea voyage, and in five days at the most, I will undertake to
construct a canoe fit to navigate the Mercy."
"Five days," cried Neb, "to build a boat?"
"Yes, Neb; a boat in the Indian fashion."
"Of wood?" asked the negro, looking still unconvinced.
"Of wood," replied Pencroft, "or rather of bark. I repeat, captain,
that in five days the work will be finished!"
"In five days, then, be it," replied the engineer.
"But till that time we must be very watchful," said Herbert.
"Very watchful indeed, my friends," replied Harding; "and I beg you to
confine your hunting excursions to the neighbourhood of Granite
House."
The dinner ended less gaily than Pencroft had hoped.
So, then, the island was, or had been, inhabited by others than the
settlers. Proved as it was by the incident of the bullet, it was
hereafter an unquestionable fact, and such a discovery could not but
cause great uneasiness amongst the colonists.
Cyrus Harding and Gideon Spilett, before sleeping, conversed long
about the matter. They asked themselves if by chance this incident
might not have some connection with the inexplicable way in which the
engineer had been saved, and the other peculiar circumstances which
had struck them at different times. However Cyrus Harding, after
having discussed the pros and cons of the question, ended by saying,--
"In short, would you like to know my opinion, my dear Spilett?"
"Yes, Cyrus."
"Well, then, it is this: however minutely we explore the island, we
shall find nothing."
The next day Pencroft set to work. He did not mean to build a boat
with boards and planking, but simply a flat-bottomed canoe, which
would be well suited for navigating the Mercy--above all, for
approaching its source, where the water would naturally be shallow.
Pieces of bark, fastened one to the other, would form a light boat;
and in case of natural obstacles, which would render a portage
necessary, it would be easily carried. Pencroft intended to secure the
pieces of bark by means of nails, to insure the canoe being
water-tight.
It was first necessary to select the trees which would afford a strong
and supple bark for the work. Now the last storm had brought down a
number of large birch trees, the bark of which would be perfectly
suited for their purpose. Some of these trees lay on the ground, and
they had only to be barked, which was the most difficult thing of all,
owing to the imperfect tools which the settlers possessed. However,
they overcame all difficulties.
Whilst the sailor, seconded by the engineer, thus occupied himself
without losing an hour, Gideon Spilett and Herbert were not idle. They
were made purveyors to the colony. The reporter could not but admire
the boy, who had acquired great skill in handling the bow and spear.
Herbert also showed great courage and much of that presence of mind
which may justly be called "the reasoning of bravery." These two
companions of the chase, remembering Cyrus Harding's recommendations,
did not go beyond a radius of two miles round Granite House; but the
borders of the forest furnished a sufficient tribute of agouties,
capybaras, kangaroos, peccaries, etc.; and if the result from the
traps was less than during the cold, still the warren yielded its
accustomed quota, which might have fed all the colony in Lincoln
Island.
Often during these excursions, Herbert talked with Gideon Spilett on
the incident of the bullet, and the deductions which the engineer drew
from it, and one day--it was the 26th of October--he said,--
"But, Mr. Spilett, do you not think it very extraordinary that, if any
castaways have landed on the island, they have not yet shown
themselves near Granite House?"
"Very astonishing if they are still here," replied the reporter, "but
not astonishing at all if they are here no longer!"
"So you think that these people have already quitted the island?"
returned Herbert.
"It is more than probable, my boy; for if their stay was prolonged,
and above all, if they were still here, some accident would have at
last betrayed their presence."
"But if they were able to go away," observed the lad, "they could not
have been castaways."
"No, Herbert; or, at least, they were what might be called provisional
castaways. It is very possible that a storm may have driven them to
the island without destroying their vessel, and that, the storm over,
they went away again."
"I must acknowledge one thing," said Herbert, "it is that Captain
Harding appears rather to fear than desire the presence of human
beings on our island."
"In short," responded the reporter, "there are only Malays who
frequent these seas, and those fellows are ruffians which it is best
to avoid."
"It is not impossible, Mr. Spilett," said Herbert, "that some day or
other we may find traces of their landing."
"I do not say no, my boy. A deserted camp, the ashes of a fire, would
put us on the track, and this is what we will look for in our next
expedition."
The day on which the hunters spoke thus, they were in a part of the
forest near the Mercy, remarkable for its beautiful trees. There,
among others, rose, to a height of nearly 200 feet above the ground,
some of those superb coniferæ, to which, in New Zealand, the natives
give the name of Kauris.
"I have an idea, Mr. Spilett," said Herbert. "If I were to climb to
the top of one of these kauris, I could survey the country for an
immense distance round."
"The idea is good," replied the reporter; "but could you climb to the
top of those giants?"
"I can at least try," replied Herbert.
The light and active boy then sprang on the first branches, the
arrangement of which made the ascent of the kauri easy, and in a few
minutes he arrived at the summit, which emerged from the immense plain
of verdure.
From this elevated situation his gaze extended over all the southern
portion of the island, from Claw Cape on the south-east, to Reptile
End on the south-west. To the north-west rose Mount Franklin, which
concealed a great part of the horizon.
But Herbert, from the height of his observatory, could examine all the
yet unknown portion of the island which might have given shelter to
the strangers whose presence they suspected.
The lad looked attentively. There was nothing in sight on the sea, not
a sail, neither on the horizon nor near the island. However, as the
bank of trees hid the shore, it was possible that a vessel, especially
if deprived of her masts, might lie close to the land and thus be
invisible to Herbert.
Neither in the forests of the Far West was anything to be seen. The
wood formed an impenetrable screen, measuring several square miles,
without a break or an opening. It was impossible even to follow the
course of the Mercy, or to ascertain in what part of the mountain it
took its source. Perhaps other creeks also ran towards the west, but
they could not be seen.
But at last, if all indication of an encampment escaped Herbert's
sight, could he not even catch a glimpse of smoke, the faintest trace
of which would be easily discernible in the pure atmosphere?
For an instant Herbert thought he could perceive a slight smoke in the
west, but a more attentive examination showed that he was mistaken. He
strained his eyes in every direction, and his sight was excellent. No,
decidedly there was nothing there.
Herbert descended to the foot of the kauri, and the two sportsmen
returned to Granite House. There Cyrus Harding listened to the lad's
account, shook his head and said nothing. It was very evident that no
decided opinion could be pronounced on this question until after a
complete exploration of the island.
Two days after--the 28th of October--another incident occurred, for
which an explanation was again required.
Whilst strolling along the shore about two miles from Granite House,
Herbert and Neb were fortunate enough to capture a magnificent
specimen of the order of chelonia. It was a turtle of the species
Midas, the edible green turtle, so called from the colour both of its
shell and fat.
Herbert caught sight of this turtle as it was crawling among the rocks
to reach the sea.
"Help, Neb, help!" he cried.
Neb ran up.
"What a fine animal!" said Neb; "but how are we to catch it?"
"Nothing is easier, Neb," replied Herbert. "We have only to turn the
turtle on its back, and it cannot possibly get away. Take your spear
and do as I do."
The reptile, aware of danger, had retired between its carapace and
plastron. They no longer saw its head or feet, and it was motionless
as a rock.
Herbert and Neb then drove their sticks underneath the animal, and by
their united efforts managed without difficulty to turn it on its
back. The turtle, which was three feet in length, would have weighed
at least four hundred pounds.
"Capital!" cried Neb; "this is something which will rejoice friend
Pencroft's heart."
In fact, the heart of friend Pencroft could not fail to be rejoiced,
for the flesh of the turtle, which feeds on wrack-grass, is extremely
savoury. At this moment the creature's head could be seen, which was
small, flat, but widened behind by the large temporal fossæ hidden
under the long roof.
"And now, what shall we do with our prize?" said Neb. "We can't drag
it to Granite House!"
"Leave it here, since it cannot turn over," replied Herbert, "and we
will come back with the cart to fetch it."
"That is the best plan."
However, for greater precaution, Herbert took the trouble, which Neb
deemed superfluous, to wedge up the animal with great stones, after
which the two hunters returned to Granite House, following the beach,
which the tide had left uncovered. Herbert, wishing to surprise
Pencroft, said nothing about the "superb specimen of a chelonian"
which they had turned over on the sand, but, two hours later, he and
Neb returned with the cart to the place where they had left it. The
"superb specimen of a chelonian" was no longer there!
Neb and Herbert stared at each other first, then they stared about
them. It was just at this spot that the turtle had been left. The lad
even found the stones which he had used, and therefore he was certain
of not being mistaken.
"Well!" said Neb, "these beasts can turn themselves over, then?"
"It appears so," replied Herbert, who could not understand it at all,
and was gazing at the stones scattered on the sand.
"Well, Pencroft will be disgusted!"
"And Captain Harding will perhaps be very perplexed how to explain
this disappearance" thought Herbert.
"Look here," said Neb, who wished to hide his ill-luck, "we won't
speak about it."
"On the contrary, Neb we must speak about it," replied Herbert.
And the two, taking the cart, which there was now no use for, returned
to Granite House.
Arrived at the dockyard, where the engineer and the sailor were
working together Herbert recounted what had happened.
"Oh! the stupids!" cried the sailor, "to have let at least fifty meals
escape!"
"But, Pencroft," replied Neb, "it wasn't our fault that the beast got
away, as I tell you, we had turned it over on its back!"
"Then you didn't turn it over enough!" returned the obstinate sailor.
[Illustration: TURNING A TURTLE]
"Not enough!" cried Herbert.
And he told how he had taken care to wedge up the turtle with stones.
"It is a miracle, then!" replied Pencroft.
"I thought, captain," said Herbert, "that turtles, once placed on
their backs, could not regain their feet, especially when they are of
a large size?"
"That is true, my boy," replied Cyrus Harding.
"Then how did it manage?"
"At what distance from the sea did you leave this turtle?" asked the
engineer, who, having suspended his work, was reflecting on this
incident.
"Fifteen feet at the most," replied Herbert.
"And the tide was low at the time?"
"Yes, captain."
"Well," replied the engineer, "what the turtle could not do on the
sand it might have been able to do in the water. It turned over when
the tide overtook it, and then quietly returned to the deep sea."
"Oh! what stupids we were!" cried Neb.
"That is precisely what I had the honour of telling you before!"
returned the sailor.
Cyrus Harding had given this explanation, which, no doubt, was
admissible. But was he himself convinced of the accuracy of this
explanation? It cannot be said that he was.
CHAPTER II
First Trial of the Canoe -- A Wreck on the Coast -- Towing --
Flotsam Point -- Inventory of the Case: Tools, Weapons,
Instruments, Clothes, Books, Utensils -- What Pencroft misses
-- The Gospel -- A Verse from the Sacred Book.
On the 9th of October the bark canoe was entirely finished. Pencroft
had kept his promise, and a light boat, the shell of which was joined
together by the flexible twigs of the crejimba, had been constructed
in five days. A seat in the stern, a second seat in the middle to
preserve the equilibrium, a third seat in the bows, rowlocks for the
two oars, a scull to steer with, completed the little craft, which was
twelve feet long, and did not weigh more than 200 pounds.
The operation of launching it was extremely simple. The canoe was
carried to the beach and laid on the sand before Granite House, and
the rising tide floated it. Pencroft, who leapt in directly,
manoeuvred it with the scull and declared it to be just the thing for
the purpose to which they wished to put it.
"Hurrah!" cried the sailor, who did not disdain to celebrate thus his
own triumph. "With this we could go round--"
"The world?" asked Gideon Spilett.
"No, the island. Some stones for ballast, a mast, and a sail, which
the captain will make for us some day, and we shall go splendidly!
Well, captain--and you, Mr. Spilett; and you, Herbert; and you,
Neb--aren't you coming to try our new vessel? Come along! we must see
if it will carry all five of us!"
This was certainly a trial which ought to be made. Pencroft soon
brought the canoe to the shore by a narrow passage among the rocks,
and it was agreed that they should make a trial of the boat that day
by following the shore as far as the first point at which the rocks of
the south ended.
As they embarked, Neb cried,--
"But your boat leaks rather, Pencroft."
"That's nothing, Neb," replied the sailor; "the wood will get
seasoned. In two days there won't be a single leak, and our boat will
have no more water in her than there is in the stomach of a drunkard.
Jump in!"
They were soon all seated, and Pencroft shoved off. The weather was
magnificent, the sea as calm as if its waters were contained within
the narrow limits of a lake. Thus the boat could proceed with as much
security as if it was ascending the tranquil current of the Mercy.
Neb took one of the oars, Herbert the other, and Pencroft remained in
the stern in order to use the skull.
The sailor first crossed the channel, and steered close to the
southern point of the islet. A light breeze blew from the south. No
roughness was found either in the channel or the green sea. A long
swell, which the canoe scarcely felt, as it was heavily laden, rolled
regularly over the surface of the water. They pulled out about half a
mile distant from the shore, that they might have a good view of Mount
Franklin.
Pencroft afterwards returned towards the mouth of the river. The boat
then skirted the shore, which, extending to the extreme point, hid all
Tadorn's Fens.
This point, of which the distance was increased by the irregularity of
the coast, was nearly three miles from the Mercy. The settlers
resolved to go to its extremity, and only go beyond it as much as was
necessary to take a rapid survey of the coast as far as Claw Cape.
The canoe followed the windings of the shore, avoiding the rocks which
fringed it, and which the rising tide began to cover. The cliff
gradually sloped away from the mouth of the river to the point. This
was formed of granite rocks, capriciously distributed, very different
from the cliff at Prospect Heights, and of an extremely wild aspect.
It might have been said that an immense cartload of rocks had been
emptied out there. There was no vegetation on this sharp promontory,
which projected two miles from the forest, and it thus represented a
giant's arm stretched out from a leafy sleeve.
The canoe, impelled by the two oars, advanced without difficulty.
Gideon Spilett, pencil in one hand and note-book in the other,
sketched the coast in bold strokes. Neb, Herbert, and Pencroft
chatted, whilst examining this part of their domain, which was new to
them, and, in proportion as the canoe proceeded towards the south, the
two Mandible Capes appeared to move, and surround Union Bay more
closely.
As to Cyrus Harding, he did not speak; he simply gazed, and by the
mistrust which his look expressed, it appeared that he was examining
some strange country.
In the meanwhile, after a voyage of three quarters of an hour, the
canoe reached the extremity of the point, and Pencroft was preparing
to return, when Herbert, rising, pointed to a black object, saying,--
"What do I see down there on the beach?"
All eyes turned towards the point indicated.
"Why," said the reporter, "there is something. It looks like part of a
wreck half buried in the sand."
"Ah!" cried Pencroft, "I see what it is!"
"What?" asked Neb.
"Barrels, barrels, which perhaps are full," replied the sailor.
"Pull to the shore, Pencroft!" said Cyrus.
A few strokes of the oar brought the canoe into a little creek, and
its passengers leapt on shore.
Pencroft was not mistaken. Two barrels were there, half buried in the
sand, but still firmly attached to a large chest, which, sustained by
them, had floated to the moment when it stranded on the beach.
"There has been a wreck, then, in some part of the island," said
Herbert.
"Evidently," replied Spilett.
"But what's in this chest?" cried Pencroft, with very natural
impatience. "What's in this chest? It is shut up, and nothing to open
it with! Well, perhaps a stone--"
And the sailor, raising a heavy block, was about to break in one of
the sides of the chest, when the engineer arrested his hand.
"Pencroft," said he, "can you restrain your impatience for one hour
only?"
"But, captain, just think! Perhaps there is everything we want in
there!"
"We shall find that out, Pencroft," replied the engineer; "but trust
to me, and do not break the chest, which may be useful to us. We must
convey it to Granite House, where we can open it easily and without
breaking it. It is quite prepared for a voyage, and, since it has
floated here, it may just as well float to the mouth of the river."
"You are right, captain, and I was wrong, as usual," replied the
sailor.
The engineer's advice was good. In fact, the canoe probably would not
have been able to contain the articles possibly enclosed in the chest,
which doubtless was heavy, since two empty barrels were required to
buoy it up. It was, therefore, much better to tow it to the beach at
Granite House.
And now, whence had this chest come? That was the important question
Cyrus Harding and his companions looked attentively around them, and
examined the shore for several hundred steps. No other articles or
pieces of wreck could be found. Herbert and Neb climbed a high rock to
survey the sea, but there was nothing in sight--neither a dismasted
vessel nor a ship under sail.
However, there was no doubt that there had been a wreck Perhaps this
incident was connected with that of the bullet? Perhaps strangers had
landed on another part of the island? Perhaps they were still there?
But the thought which came naturally to the settlers was, that these
strangers could not be Malay pirates, for the chest was evidently of
American or European make.
All the party returned to the chest, which was of an unusually large
size. It was made of oak wood, very carefully closed and covered with
a thick hide, which was secured by copper nails. The two great
barrels, hermetically sealed, but which sounded hollow and empty, were
fastened to its sides by strong ropes knotted with a skill which
Pencroft directly pronounced sailors alone could exhibit. It appeared
to be in a perfect state of preservation, which was explained by the
fact that it had stranded on a sandy beach, and not among rocks. They
had no doubt whatever, on examining it carefully, that it had not been
long in the water, and that its arrival on this coast was recent. The
water did not appear to have penetrated to the inside, and the
articles which it contained were no doubt uninjured.
[Illustration: FLOTSAM AND JETSAM]
It was evident that this chest had been thrown overboard from some
dismasted vessel driven towards the island, and that, in the hope that
it would reach the land, where they might afterwards find it, the
passengers had taken the precaution to buoy it up by means of this
floating apparatus.
"We will tow this chest to Granite House," said the engineer, "where
we can make an inventory of its contents, then, if we discover any of
the survivors from the supposed wreck, we can return it to those to
whom it belongs. If we find no one--"
"We will keep it for ourselves!" cried Pencroft "But what in the world
can there be in it?"
The sea was already approaching the chest, and the high tide would
evidently float it. One of the ropes which fastened the barrels was
partly unlashed and used as a cable to unite the floating apparatus
with the canoe. Pencroft and Neb then dug away the sand with their
oars, so as to facilitate the moving of the chest, towing which the
boat soon began to double the point to which the name of Flotsam Point
was given.
The chest was heavy, and the barrels were scarcely sufficient to keep
it above water. The sailor also feared every instant that it would get
loose and sink to the bottom of the sea. But happily his fears were
not realised, and an hour and a half after they set out--all that time
had been taken up in going a distance of three miles--the boat touched
the beach below Granite House.
Canoe and chest were then hauled up on the sand, and as the tide was
then going out, they were soon left high and dry. Neb, hurrying home,
brought back some tools with which to open the chest in such a way
that it might be injured as little as possible, and they proceeded to
its inventory. Pencroft did not try to hide that he was greatly
excited.
The sailor began by detaching the two barrels, which, being in good
condition, would of course be of use. Then the locks were forced with
a cold chisel and hammer, and the lid thrown back. A second casing of
zinc lined the interior of the chest, which had been evidently
arranged that the articles which it enclosed might under any
circumstances be sheltered from damp.
"Oh!" cried Neb, "suppose it's jam!".
[Illustration: UNPACKING THE MARVELLOUS CHEST]
"I hope not," replied the reporter.
"If only there was--" said the sailor in a low voice.
"What?" asked Neb, who overheard him.
"Nothing!"
The covering of zinc was torn off and thrown back over the sides of
the chest, and by degrees numerous articles of very varied character
were produced and strewn about on the sand. At each new object
Pencroft uttered fresh hurrahs, Herbert clapped his hands, and Neb
danced--like a nigger. There were books which made Herbert wild with
joy, and cooking utensils which Neb covered with kisses!
In short, the colonists had reason to be extremely satisfied, for this
chest contained tools, weapons, instruments, clothes, books; and this
is the exact list of them as stated in Gideon Spilett's note-book:--
Tools:--3 knives with several blades, 2 woodmen's axes, 2 carpenter's
hatchets, 3 planes, 2 adzes, 1 twibil or mattock, 6 chisels, 2 files,
3 hammers, 3 gimlets, 2 augers, 10 bags of nails and screws, 3 saws of
different sizes, 2 boxes of needles.
Weapons:--2 flint-lock guns, 2 for percussion caps, 2 breech-loader
carbines, 5 boarding cutlasses, 4 sabres, 2 barrels of powder, each
containing twenty-five pounds; 12 boxes of percussion caps.
Instruments:--1 sextant, 1 double opera-glass, 1 telescope, 1 box of
mathematical instruments, 1 mariner's compass, 1 Fahrenheit
thermometer, 1 aneroid barometer, 1 box containing a photographic
apparatus, object-glass, plates, chemicals, etc.
Clothes:--2 dozen shirts of a peculiar material resembling wool, but
evidently of a vegetable origin; 3 dozen stockings of the same
material.
Utensils:--1 iron pot, 6 copper saucepans, 3 iron dishes, 10 metal
plates, 2 kettles, 1 portable stove, 6 table-knives.
Books:--1 Bible, 1 atlas, 1 dictionary of the different Polynesian
idioms, 1 dictionary of natural science, in six volumes; 3 reams of
white paper, 2 books with blank pages.
"It must be allowed," said the reporter, after the inventory had been
made, "that the owner of this chest was a practical man! Tools,
weapons, instruments, clothes, utensils, books--nothing is wanting! It
might really be said that he expected to be wrecked, and had prepared
for it beforehand."
"Nothing is wanting, indeed," murmured Cyrus Harding thoughtfully.
"And for a certainty," added Herbert, "the vessel which carried this
chest and its owner was not a Malay pirate!"
"Unless," said Pencroft, "the owner had been taken prisoner by
pirates--"
"That is not admissible," replied the reporter. "It is more probable
that an American or European vessel has been driven into this quarter,
and that her passengers, wishing to save necessaries at least,
prepared this chest and threw it overboard."
"Is that your opinion, captain?" asked Herbert.
"Yes, my boy," replied the engineer, "that may have been the case. It
is possible that at the moment, or in expectation of a wreck, they
collected into this chest different articles of the greatest use in
hopes of finding it again on the coast--"
"Even the photographic box!" exclaimed the sailor incredulously.
"As to that apparatus," replied Harding, "I do not quite see the use
of it; and a more complete supply of clothes or more abundant
ammunition would have been more valuable to us as well as to any other
castaways!"
"But isn't there any mark or direction on these instruments, tools, or
books, which would tell us something about them?" asked Gideon
Spilett.
That might be ascertained. Each article was carefully examined,
especially the books, instruments and weapons. Neither the weapons nor
the instruments, contrary to the usual custom, bore the name of the
maker; they were, besides, in a perfect state, and did not appear to
have been used. The same peculiarity marked the tools and utensils;
all were new, which proved that the articles had not been taken by
chance and thrown into the chest, but, on the contrary, that the
choice of the things had been well considered and arranged with care.
This was also indicated by a second case of metal which had preserved
them from damp, and which could not have been soldered in a moment of
haste.
As to the dictionaries of natural science and Polynesian idioms, both
were English, but they neither bore the name of the publisher nor the
date of publication.
The same with the Bible printed in English, in quarto, remarkable in a
typographical point of view, and which appeared to have been often
used.
The atlas was a magnificent work, comprising maps of every country in
the world, and several planispheres arranged upon Mercator's
projection, aid of which the nomenclature was in French--but which
also bore neither date nor name of publisher.
There was nothing, therefore, on these different articles by which
they could be traced and nothing consequently of a nature to show the
nationality of the vessel which must have recently passed these
shores.
But, wherever the chest might have come from, it was a treasure to the
settlers on Lincoln Island. Till then, by making use of the
productions of nature, they had created everything for themselves,
and, thanks to their intelligence, they had managed without
difficulty. But did it not appear as if Providence had wished to
reward them by sending them these productions of human industry? Their
thanks rose unanimously to Heaven.
However, one of them was not quite satisfied: it was Pencroft. It
appeared that the chest did not contain some thing which he evidently
held in great esteem, for in proportion as they approached the bottom
of the box, his hurrahs diminished in heartiness, and, the inventory
finished, he was heard to mutter these words--
"That's all very fine, but you can see that there is nothing for me in
that box!"
This led Neb to say,--
"Why, friend Pencroft, what more do you expect?"
"Half a pound of tobacco," replied Pencroft seriously, "and nothing
would have been wanting to complete my happiness."
No one could help laughing at this speech of the sailor's.
[Illustration: PENCROFT'S SUPERSTITION]
But the result of this discovery of the chest was, that it was more
than ever necessary to explore the island thoroughly. It was therefore
agreed that the next morning at break of day they should set out, by
ascending the Mercy so as to reach the western shore. If any castaways
had landed on the coast, it was to be feared they were without
resources, and it was therefore the more necessary to carry help to
them without delay.
During the day the different articles were carried to Granite House,
where they were methodically arranged in the great hall.
This day--the 29th of October--happened to be a Sunday, and, before
going to bed, Herbert asked the engineer if he would not read them
something from the Gospel.
"Willingly," replied Cyrus Harding.
He took the sacred volume, and was about to open it, when Pencroft
stopped him, saying,--
"Captain, I am superstitious. Open at random and read the first verse
which your eye falls upon. We will see if it applies to our
situation."
Cyrus Harding smiled at the sailor's idea, and, yielding to his wish,
he opened exactly at a place where the leaves were separated by a
marker.
Immediately his eyes were attracted by a cross which, made with a
pencil, was placed against the eighth verse of the seventh chapter of
the Gospel of St. Matthew. He read the verse, which was this:--
"For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth."
CHAPTER III
The Start -- The rising Tide -- Elms and different Plants --
The Jacamar -- Aspect of the Forest -- Gigantic Eucalypti --
The Reason they are called "Fever Trees" -- Troops of Monkeys
-- A Waterfall -- The Night Encampment.
The next day, the 30th of October, all was ready for the proposed
exploring expedition, which recent events had rendered so necessary.
In fact, things had so come about that the settlers in Lincoln Island
no longer needed help for themselves, but were even able to carry it
to others.
It was therefore agreed that they should ascend the Mercy as far as
the river was navigable. A great part of the distance would thus be
traversed without fatigue, and the explorers could transport their
provisions and arms to an advanced point in the west of the island.
It was necessary to think not only of the things which they should
take with them, but also of those which they might have by chance to
bring back to Granite House. If there had been a wreck on the coast,
as was supposed, there would be many things cast up, which would be
lawfully their prizes. In the event of this, the cart would have been
of more use than the light canoe, but it was heavy and clumsy to drag,
and therefore more difficult to use; this led Pencroft to express his
regret that the chest had not contained, besides "his half-pound of
tobacco," a pair of strong New Jersey horses, which would have been
very useful to the colony!
The provisions, which Neb had already packed up, consisted of a store
of meat and of several gallons of beer, that is to say, enough to
sustain them for three days, the time which Harding assigned for the
expedition. They hoped besides to supply themselves on the road, and
Neb took care not to forget the portable stove.
The only tools the settlers took were the two woodmen's axes, which
they could use to cut a path through the thick forests, as also the
instruments, the telescope and pocket-compass.
For weapons they selected the two flint-lock guns, which were likely
to be more useful to them than the percussion fowling-pieces, the
first only requiring flints which could be easily replaced, and the
latter needing fulminating caps, a frequent use of which would soon
exhaust their limited stock. However, they took also one of the
carbines and some cartridges. As to the powder, of which there was
about fifty pounds in the barrel, a small supply of it had to be
taken, but the engineer hoped to manufacture an explosive substance
which would allow them to husband it. To the firearms were added the
five cutlasses well sheathed in leather, and, thus supplied, the
settlers could venture into the vast forest with some chance of
success.
It is useless to add that Pencroft, Herbert, and Neb, thus armed, were
at the summit of their happiness, although Cyrus Harding made them
promise not to fire a shot unless it was necessary.
At six in the morning the canoe put off from the shore; all had
embarked, including Top, and they proceeded to the mouth of the Mercy.
The tide had begun to come up half an hour before. For several hours,
therefore, there would be a current, which it was well to profit by,
for later the ebb would make it difficult to ascend the river. The
tide was already strong, for in three days the moon would be full, and
it was enough to keep the boat in the centre of the current, where it
floated swiftly along between the high banks without its being
necessary to increase its speed by the aid of the oars. In a few
minutes the explorers arrived at the angle formed by the Mercy, and
exactly at the place where, seven months before, Pencroft had made his
first raft of wood.
After this sudden angle the river widened and flowed under the shade
of great evergreen firs.
The aspect of the banks was magnificent. Cyrus Harding and his
companions could not but admire the lovely effects so easily produced
by nature with water and trees. As they advanced the forest element
diminished. On the right bank of the river grew magnificent specimens
of the ulmaceæ tribe, the precious elm, so valuable to builders, and
which withstands well the action of water. Then there were numerous
groups belonging to the same family, amongst others one in particular,
the fruit of which produces a very useful oil. Further on, Herbert
remarked the lardizabala, a twining shrub which, when bruised in
water, furnishes excellent cordage; and two or three ebony trees of a
beautiful black, crossed with capricious veins.
From time to time, in certain places where the landing was easy, the
canoe was stopped, when Gideon Spilett, Herbert, and Pencroft, their
guns in their hands, and preceded by Top, jumped on shore. Without
expecting game, some useful plant might be met with, and the young
naturalist was delighted with discovering a sort of wild spinage,
belonging to the order of chenopodiaceæ, and numerous specimens of
cruciferæ, belonging to the cabbage tribe, which it would certainly
be possible to cultivate by transplanting. There were cresses,
horse-radish, turnips, and lastly, little branching hairy stalks,
scarcely more than three feet high, which produced brownish grains.
"Do you know what this plant is?" asked Herbert of the sailor.
"Tobacco!" cried Pencroft, who evidently had never seen his favourite
plant except in the bowl of his pipe.
"No, Pencroft," replied Herbert; "this is not tobacco, it is mustard."
"Mustard be hanged!" returned the sailor; "but if by chance you happen
to come across a tobacco-plant, my boy, pray don't scorn that!"
"We shall find it some day!" said Gideon Spilett.
"Well!" exclaimed Pencroft, "when that day comes, I do not know what
more will be wanting in our island!"
These different plants, which had been carefully rooted, up, were
carried to the canoe, where Cyrus Harding had remained buried in
thought.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84
85
86
87
88
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140
141
142
143
144
145
146
147
148
149
150
151
152
153
154
155
156
157
158
159
160
161
162
163
164
165
166
167
168
169
170
171
172
173
174
175
176
177
178
179
180
181
182
183
184
185
186
187
188
189
190
191
192
193
194
195
196
197
198
199
200
201
202
203
204
205
206
207
208
209
210
211
212
213
214
215
216
217
218
219
220
221
222
223
224
225
226
227
228
229
230
231
232
233
234
235
236
237
238
239
240
241
242
243
244
245
246
247
248
249
250
251
252
253
254
255
256
257
258
259
260
261
262
263
264
265
266
267
268
269
270
271
272
273
274
275
276
277
278
279
280
281
282
283
284
285
286
287
288
289
290
291
292
293
294
295
296
297
298
299
300
301
302
303
304
305
306
307
308
309
310
311
312
313
314
315
316
317
318
319
320
321
322
323
324
325
326
327
328
329
330
331
332
333
334
335
336
337
338
339
340
341
342
343
344
345
346
347
348
349
350
351
352
353
354
355
356
357
358
359
360
361
362
363
364
365
366
367
368
369
370
371
372
373
374
375
376
377
378
379
380
381
382
383
384
385
386
387
388
389
390
391
392
393
394
395
396
397
398
399
400
401
402
403
404
405
406
407
408
409
410
411
412
413
414
415
416
417
418
419
420
421
422
423
424
425
426
427
428
429
430
431
432
433
434
435
436
437
438
439
440
441
442
443
444
445
446
447
448
449
450
451
452
453
454
455
456
457
458
459
460
461
462
463
464
465
466
467
468
469
470
471
472
473
474
475
476
477
478
479
480
481
482
483
484
485
486
487
488
489
490
491
492
493
494
495
496
497
498
499
500
501
502
503
504
505
506
507
508
509
510
511
512
513
514
515
516
517
518
519
520
521
522
523
524
525
526
527
528
529
530
531
532
533
534
535
536
537
538
539
540
541
542
543
544
545
546
547
548
549
550
551
552
553
554
555
556
557
558
559
560
561
562
563
564
565
566
567
568
569
570
571
572
573
574
575
576
577
578
579
580
581
582
583
584
585
586
587
588
589
590
591
592
593
594
595
596
597
598
599
600
601
602
603
604
605
606
607
608
609
610
611
612
613
614
615
616
617
618
619
620
621
622
623
624
625
626
627
628
629
630
631
632
633
634
635
636
637
638
639
640
641
642
643
644
645
646
647
648
649
650
651
652
653
654
655
656
657
658
659
660
661
662
663
664
665
666
667
668
669
670
671
672
673
674
675
676
677
678
679
680
681
682
683
684
685
686
687
688
689
690
691
692
693
694
695
696
697
698
699
700
701
702
703
704
705
706
707
708
709
710
711
712
713
714
715
716
717
718
719
720
721
722
723
724
725
726
727
728
729
730
731
732
733
734
735
736
737
738
739
740
741
742
743
744
745
746
747
748
749
750
751
752
753
754
755
756
757
758
759
760
761
762
763
764
765
766
767
768
769
770
771
772
773
774
775
776
777
778
779
780
781
782
783
784
785
786
787
788
789
790
791
792
793
794
795
796
797
798
799
800
801
802
803
804
805
806
807
808
809
810
811
812
813
814
815
816
817
818
819
820
821
822
823
824
825
826
827
828
829
830
831
832
833
834
835
836
837
838
839
840
841
842
843
844
845
846
847
848
849
850
851
852
853
854
855
856
857
858
859
860
861
862
863
864
865
866
867
868
869
870
871
872
873
874
875
876
877
878
879
880
881
882
883
884
885
886
887
888
889
890
891
892
893
894
895
896
897
898
899
900
901
902
903
904
905
906
907
908
909
910
911
912
913
914
915
916
917
918
919
920
921
922
923
924
925
926
927
928
929
930
931
932
933
934
935
936
937
938
939
940
941
942
943
944
945
946
947
948
949
950
951
952
953
954
955
956
957
958
959
960
961
962
963
964
965
966
967
968
969
970
971
972
973
974
975
976
977
978
979
980
981
982
983
984
985
986
987
988
989
990
991
992
993
994
995
996
997
998
999
1000