Masterman Ready; Or, The Wreck of the Pacific
Page 57
CHAPTER FIFTY SEVEN.
The next morning was one of bustle; there was packing up and everypreparation for departure. Juno was called here and called there, andwas obliged to ask little Caroline to look after the kettle and call toher if it boiled over. Master Tommy, as usual, was in every one's way,and doing more harm than good in his attempts to assist.
At last, Ready, to get rid of him, sent him down with a large bundle tothe beach. Tommy shouldered it with great importance, but when he cameback, looking rather warm with the exertion, and Ready asked him to takedown another, he said he was too tired, and sat down very quietly tillbreakfast-time, before which everything was ready.
Mrs Seagrave and Juno packed up the breakfast and dinner things in abasket after breakfast was over, and then Mr and Mrs Seagrave and thefamily set off on their journey, accompanied by the dogs, through thecocoa-nut grove.
William and Ready lost no time in getting through their work; thecrockery, kitchen utensils, table, and chairs, were the first articlesput into the boat. The goat was then led down, and they set off with afull load, and arrived at the bay long before the party who were walkingthrough the wood. They landed the things on the beach, and then shovedoff again to bring round the bedding, which was all that was left. Bythree o'clock in the afternoon they had arrived at the bay with theirsecond and last load, and found that the other party had been thereabout an hour, and Mr Seagrave and Juno were very busy taking thearticles up from the beach.
"Well, William," said Ready, "this is our last trip for some time, Iexpect; and so much the better, for our little boat must have somethingdone to her as soon as I can find time."
"Yes, indeed, Ready, she has done her work well. Do you know I feel asif I were coming home, now that we are back to the bay. I really feelquite glad that we have left the tents. I found the pigeons among thepeas, Ready, so we must pick them as soon as we can. I think there werenear twenty of them. We shall have pigeon pies next year, I expect."
"If it pleases God that we live and do well," replied Ready, who had hiseyes fixed upon the sea.
Before night everything was in its place again in the house, and ascomfortable as before, and as they were very tired, they went very earlyto bed, having first arranged what they should do in the morning. Atdaylight Ready and William went down to the turtle-pond and speared aturtle, for now the time was coming on for turning the turtle again, andthe pond would soon be filled. Having cut it up and put a portion of itinto the pot, all ready for Mrs Seagrave, as soon as breakfast was overthey proceeded to the storehouse.
After a little consultation with Mr Seagrave, Ready marked out a squareof cocoa-nut trees surrounding the storehouse, so as to leave a spacewithin them of about twenty yards each side, which they considered largeenough for the inclosure. These cocoa-nut trees were to serve as theposts between which were to be fixed other cocoa-nut trees cut down, andabout fourteen feet high, so as to form a palisade or stockade, whichcould not be climbed over, and would protect them from any attack of thesavages.
As soon as the line of trees had been marked out, they set to workcutting down all the trees within the line, and then outside to adistance of ten yards, so as to give them room for their work. Readycut out cross-pieces, to nail from tree to tree, and now they found theadvantage of having saved so many of the large spike nails, withoutwhich they never could have made so good or so quick a job of it. MrSeagrave cut down trees, William and Juno sawed them off at a properlength with one of the cross-cut saws, and then carried them to Ready.They soon had more cut out than he could use, and then they dragged awaythe tops and branches, and piled them at a distance on the ground, touse as winter fuel, while Mr Seagrave helped Ready in fixing up thepalisades. They worked very hard that day, and were not sorry to go tobed. Ready, however, took an opportunity to speak to William.
"I think," said he, "that now we are here again, it will be necessary tokeep a sort of night-watch, in case of accident. I shall not go to bedtill it is quite dark, which it will be by nine o'clock, and shall havemy glass to examine the offing the last thing. You see, there is littlefear of the savages coming here in the night-time, but they may justbefore night or very early in the morning, so one of us must be up againbefore daybreak, that is between two and three o'clock in the morning,to see if there is anything to be seen of them; if there is not, ofcourse we may go to bed again, as they cannot arrive till many hoursafterwards; and we must watch the wind and weather, if it is favourablefor them to come to us, which, indeed, the wind will not be except atthe commencement of the rainy season but it may be very light, and thenthey would not care for its being against them. I've been thinking ofit, William, a great deal, and my idea is, that it will be at thebeginning of the rainy season that we shall have a visit, if we have oneat all; for you see that the wind don't blow regular from one quarter,as it does now, but is variable, and then they can make sail in theircanoes, and come here easily, instead of pulling between thirty andforty miles, which is hard work against wind and current. Still, wemust not be careless and we must keep a good look-out even now. I don'twant to fret your father and Mrs Seagrave with my fears on the subject,but I tell you what I really think, and what we ought to do."
"I agree with you, Ready, and I will take care to be up before daybreak,and examine very carefully with the spy-glass as soon as the day dawns.You take the night part, and I will do the morning part of thewatching."