The Swiss Family Robinson by Johann David Wyss
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I_knew to_be the karata .I pointed out to_the boys its beautiful red flowers; the leaves are an excellent application to wounds, and thread is made from_the filaments, and_the pith of_the stem is used by_the savage tribes for tinder .

when I showed the boys, by experiment, the use of_the pith, they thought the tinder- tree would_be almost as useful as_the potatoes .

" at all events," I_said, " it_will_be more useful than_the pine-apples; your mother will_be thankful for thread, when her enchanted bag is exhausted ."

" how happy it_is for_us," said she, " that you_have devoted yourself to reading and study . in_our ignorance we_might_have passed this treasure, without suspecting its value ."

Fritz inquired of what use in_the_world all the rest of_these prickly plants could_be, which wounded every_one that came near .

" all these have their use, Fritz," said I; " some contain juices and gums, which are daily made use of in medicine; others are useful in_the arts, or in manufactures . the Indian fig, for instance, is a most interesting tree . it grows in_the most arid soil . the fruit is said to_be sweet and wholesome ."

in a moment, my little active jack was climbing the rocks to gather some_of_these figs; but he had_not remarked that_they were covered with thousands of slender thorns, finer than_the finest needles, which terribly wounded his fingers . he returned, weeping bitterly and dancing with pain .Having rallied him a little for_his greediness, I extracted the thorns, and then showed him how to open the fruit, by first cutting off the pointed end, as it lay on_the ground; into_this I fixed a piece of stick, and then pared it with my knife . the novelty of_the expedient recommended it, and_they were soon all engaged eating the fruit, which they declared was very_good .

in_the mean time, I_saw Ernest examining one_of_the figs very attentively ."Oh ! papa ! " said he, " what a singular sight; the fig is covered with a small red insect . I_cannot shake them off . can they be the cochineal ? " I recognized at once the precious insect, of_which I explained to my sons the nature and use ." it_is with_this insect," said I, " that_the beautiful and rich scarlet dye is made . it_is found in America, and_the Europeans give its weight in gold for_it ."

thus discoursing on_the wonders of nature, and_the necessity of increasing our knowledge by observation and study, we arrived at tent house, and found it in_the same state as_we left it .

we all began to collect necessaries .Fritz loaded himself with powder and shot, I opened the butter- cask, and my wife and little Francis filled the pot . Ernest and jack went to_try and secure the geese and ducks; but they had become so wild that_it would_have_been impossible, if Ernest had_not thought of an expedient . he tied pieces of cheese, for bait, to threads, which he floated on_the water . the voracious creatures immediately swallowed the cheese and were drawn out by_the thread . they were then securely tied, and fastened to_the game-bags, to_be carried home on_our backs . as_the bait could_not_be recovered, the boys contented themselves with cutting off the string close to_the beak, leaving them to digest the rest .

our bags were already loaded with potatoes, but we filled up the spaces between_them with salt; and, having relieved Turk of_his armour, we placed the heaviest on_his back . i_took the butter- pot; and, after replacing everything, and closing our tent, we resumed our march, with_our ludicrous incumbrances . the geese and ducks were very noisy in their adieu to_their old marsh; the dogs barked; and we all laughed so excessively, that we forgot our burdens till we sat down again under our tree . my wife soon had her pot of potatoes on_the fire . she then milked the cow and goat, while I set the fowls at liberty on_the banks of_the river . we then sat down to asmoking dish of potatoes, ajug of milk, and butter and cheese . after supper we had prayers, thanking god especially for_his new benefits; and we then sought our repose among_the leaves .

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chapter XV .

I had observed on_the shore, the preceding day, a quantity of wood, which i_thought would suit to_make a sledge, to convey our casks and heavy stores from tent house to falcon's nest . at dawn of day I woke Ernest, whose inclination to indolence I wished to overcome, and leaving the rest asleep, we descended, and harnessing the ass to a strong branch of a tree that was lying near, we proceeded to_the shore .I had no difficulty in selecting proper pieces of wood; we sawed them the right length, tied them together, and laid them across the bough, which the patient animal drew very contentedly . we added to_the load a small chest we discovered half buried in_the sand, and we returned homewards, Ernest leading the ass, and I assisted by raising the load with a lever when we met with any obstruction . my wife had_been rather alarmed; but seeing the result of_our expedition, and hearing of_the prospect of a sledge, she was satisfied .I opened the chest, which contained only some sailors' dresses and some linen, both wetted with sea- water; but likely to_be very useful as our own clothes decayed . I_found Fritz and jack had_been shooting ortolans; they had killed about fifty, but had consumed so_much powder and shot, that I checked a prodigality so imprudent in_our situation .I taught them to_make snares for_the birds of_the threads we drew from_the karata leaves we had brought home . my wife and her two younger sons busied themselves with_these, while I, with my two elder boys, began to construct the sledge . as_we were working, we heard a great noise among_the fowls, and Ernest, looking about, discovered the monkey seizing and hiding the eggs from_the nests; he had collected a good store in a hole among_the roots, which Ernest carried to_his mother; and Knips was punished by being tied up, every morning, till the eggs were collected .

our work was interrupted by dinner, composed of ortolans, milk, and cheese . after dinner, jack had climbed to_the higher branches of_the trees to_place his snares, and found the pigeons were making nests .I then told him to look often to_the snares, for fear our own poor birds should_be taken; and, above all, never in future to fire into_the tree .

"Papa," said little Francis, " can we not sow some gunpowder, and then we_shall_have plenty ? " this proposal was received with shouts of laughter, which greatly discomposed the little innocent fellow . professor Ernest immediately seized the opportunity to_give a lecture on_the composition of gunpowder .

at_the end of_the day my sledge was finished . two long curved planks of wood, crossed by three pieces, at a distance from each_other, formed the simple conveyance . the fore and hind parts were in_the form of horns, to_keep the load from falling off . two ropes were fastened to_the front, and my sledge was complete . my wife was delighted with it, and hoped i_would now set out immediately to tent house for_the butter- cask . I_made no objection to_this; and Ernest and I prepared to_go, and leave Fritz in charge of_the family .

* * * * *

chapter XVI .

when we were ready to set out, Fritz presented each of us with a little case he had made from_the skin of_the margay . they were ingeniously contrived to contain knife, fork, and spoon, and a small hatchet . we then harnessed the ass and_the cow to_the sledge, took a flexible bamboo cane for a whip, and, followed by Flora, we departed, leaving Turk to guard the tree .

we went by_the shore, as_the better road for_the sledge, and crossing family bridge, were soon at tent house . after unharnessing the animals, we began to load . we took the cask of butter, the cheese, and_the biscuit; all the rest of_our utensils, powder, shot, and Turk's armour, which we had left there . these labours had so occupied us, that we had_not observed that_our animals, attracted by_the pasturage, had crossed the bridge, and wandered out of sight . I_sent Ernest to seek them, and in_the mean time went to_the bay, where I discovered some convenient little hollows in_the rock, that seemed cut out for baths .I called Ernest to_come, and till he arrived, employed myself in cutting some rushes, which i_thought might_be useful . when my son came, I_found he had ingeniously removed the first planks from_the bridge, to_prevent the animals straying over again . we then had a very pleasant bath, and Ernest being out first, I_sent him to_the rock, where the salt was accumulated, to_fill a small bag, to_be transferred to_the large bags on_the ass . he had_not_been absent long, when I heard him cry out, "Papa ! papa ! a huge fish ! I_cannot hold it; it_will break my line ." I ran to_his assistance, and found him lying on_the ground on_his face, tugging at his line, to_which an enormous salmon was attached, that had nearly pulled him into_the water .I let it have a little more line, then drew it gently into a shallow, and secured it . it appeared about fifteen pounds weight; and we pleased ourselves with_the idea of presenting this to our good cook . Ernest said, he remembered having remarked how this place swarmed with fish, and he_took care to bring his rod with_him; he had taken about a dozen small fishes, which he had in_his handkerchief, before he_was overpowered by_the salmon .I cut the fishes open, and rubbed the inside with salt, to preserve them; then placing them in a small box on_the sledge, and adding our bags of salt, we harnessed our animals, and set off homewards .

when we were about half- way, Flora left us, and, by her barking, raised a singular animal, which seemed to leap instead of ran . the irregular bounds of_the animal disconcerted my aim, and, though very near, I missed it . Ernest was more fortunate; he fired at it, and killed it . it_was an animal about_the size of a sheep, with_the tail of a tiger; its head and skin were like those of a mouse, ears longer than_the hare; there_was a curious pouch on_the belly; the fore legs were short, as_if imperfectly developed, and armed with strong claws, the hind legs long, like a pair of stilts . after Ernest's pride of victory was a little subdued, he fell back on_his science, and began to examine his spoil .

" by its teeth," said he, " it should belong to_the family of rodentes_, or gnawers; by its legs, to_the jumpers_; and by its pouch, to_the opossum tribe ."

this gave_me the right clue ." then," said I, " this must_be the animal Cook first discovered in new Holland, and it_is called the kangaroo ."

we now tied the legs of_the animal together, and, putting a stick through, carried it to_the sledge very carefully, for Ernest was anxious to preserve the beautiful skin . our animals were heavily laden; but, giving them a little rest and some fresh grass, we once more started, and in a short time reached falcon's nest .

my wife had_been employed during our absence in washing the clothes of_the three boys, clothing them in_the mean time from_the sailor's chest we had found a few_days before . their appearance was excessively ridiculous, as_the garments neither suited their age nor size, and caused great mirth to_us all; but my wife had preferred this disguise to_the alternative of_their going naked .

we now began to display our riches, and relate our adventures . the butter and_the rest of_the provisions were very welcome, the salmon still more so, but the sight of_the kangaroo produced screams of admiration .Fritz displayed a little jealousy, but soon surmounted it by an exertion of_his nobler feelings; and only the keen eye of a father could_have discovered it . he congratulated Ernest warmly, but could_not help begging to accompany me next_time .

"I promise you that," said I, " as a reward for_the conquest you_have achieved over your jealousy of your brother . but, remember, I_could_not have given you a greater proof of_my confidence, than in leaving you to protect your mother and brothers .a noble mind finds its purest joy in_the accomplishment of_its duty, and to_that willingly sacrifices its inclination . but," I added, in a low tone, lest i_should distress my wife, "I propose another expedition to_the vessel, and you_must accompany me ."

we then fed our tired animals, giving them some salt with their grass, a great treat to_them . some salmon was prepared for dinner, and_the rest salted . after dinner, I hung up the kangaroo till next_day, when we intended to salt and smoke the flesh . evening arrived, and an excellent supper of fish, ortolans, and potatoes refreshed us; and, after thanks to god, we retired to rest .

* * * * *

chapter XVII .

I rose early, and descended the ladder, a little uneasy about_my kangaroo, and found i_was but just in_time to save it, for_my dogs had so enjoyed their repast on_the entrails, which I had given them the night before, that_they wished to appropriate the rest . they had succeeded in tearing off the head, which_was in their reach, and were devouring it in a sort of growling partnership . as_we had no store- room for_our provision, I decided to administer a little correction, as awarning to_these gluttons . I_gave them some smart strokes with a cane, and_they fled howling to_the stable under the roots . their cries roused my wife, who came down; and, though she_could_not but

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