The Swiss Family Robinson by Johann David Wyss
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renewed ardour . at_the end of five or six days, when_the surface of_the rock was removed, we_found the stone become easier to work; it then seemed calcarious, and, finally, only a sort of hardened clay, which we_could remove with spades; and we began to hope . after a few_days' more labour, we_found we had advanced about seven feet .Fritz wheeled out the rubbish, and formed a sort of terrace with it before_the opening; while i_was working at_the higher part, jack, as_the least, worked below . one morning he_was hammering an iron bar, which he had pointed at_the end, into_the rock, to loosen the earth, when he suddenly cried out--

"Papa ! papa ! I_have pierced through ! "

" not through your hand, child ? " asked I .

" no, papa ! " cried he; " I_have pierced through_the mountain ! Huzza ! "

Fritz ran in at_the shout, and told him he had better have said at once that he had pierced through_the earth ! but jack persisted that, however his brother might laugh, he_was quite_sure he had felt his iron bar enter an empty space behind .I now came down from my ladder, and, moving the bar, I_felt there_was really a hollow into which the rubbish fell, but apparently very little below the level we were working on . i_took a long pole and probed the cavity, and found that_it must_be of considerable size . my boys wished to_have the opening enlarged and to enter immediately, but this I strictly forbade; for, as I leaned forward to examine it through_the opening, a rush of mephitic air gave_me a sort of vertigo ." come away, children," cried I, in terror; " the air you_would breathe there_is certain death ." I explained to_them that, under certain circumstances, carbonic acid gas was frequently accumulated in caves or grottoes, rendering the air unfit for respiration; producing giddiness of_the head, fainting, and eventually death . I_sent them to collect some hay, which I lighted and threw into_the cave; this_was immediately extinguished; we repeated the experiment several_times with_the same result .I now saw that more active means must_be resorted to .

we had brought from_the vessel a box of fireworks, intended for signals; I threw into_the cave, by a cord, a quantity of rockets, grenades, &c ., and scattered a train of gunpowder from_them; to_this I applied a long match, and we retired to a little distance . this succeeded well; a great explosion agitated the air, a torrent of_the carbonic acid gas rushed through_the opening, and was replaced by_the pure air; we sent in a few more rockets, which flew round like fiery dragons, disclosing to_us the vast extent of_the cave .a shower of stars, which concluded our experiment, made us wish the duration had_been longer . it seemed as_if a crowd of winged genii, carrying each a lamp, were floating about in_that enchanted cavern . when_they vanished, I threw in some more lighted hay, which blazed in_such a lively manner, that I_knew all danger was over from_the gas; but, for fear of deep pits, or pools of water, i_would_not venture in without lights .I therefore despatched jack, on_his buffalo, to report this discovery to_his mother, and bring all the candles she had made .I purposely sent jack on_the errand, for_his lively and poetic turn of mind would, I hoped, invest the grotto with_such charms, that his mother would even abandon her wheel to_come and_see it .

[ illustration: " this succeeded well; a great explosion agitated the air--a torrent of_the carbonic acid gas rushed through_the opening ."]

delighted with_his commission, jack leaped upon his buffalo, and, waving his whip, galloped off with an intrepidity that made my hair stand on end . during his absence, Fritz and I enlarged the opening, to_make it easy of access, removed all the rubbish, and swept a road for mamma . we had just finished, when we heard the sound of wheels crossing the bridge, and_the cart appeared, drawn by_the cow and ass, led by Ernest . jack rode before on_his buffalo, blowing through his hand to imitate a horn, and whipping the lazy cow and ass . he rode up first, and alighted from_his huge courser, to help his mother out .

I then lighted our candles, giving one to each, with a spare candle and flint and steel in_our pockets . we took our arms, and proceeded in a solemn manner into_the rock .I walked first, my sons followed, and their mother came last, with Francis . we had_not gone on above a few steps, when we stopped, struck with wonder and admiration; all was glittering around us; we were in a grotto of diamonds ! from_the height of_the lofty vaulted roof hung innumerable crystals, which, uniting with those on_the walls, formed colonnades, altars, and every sort of Gothic ornament of dazzling lustre, creating a fairy palace, or an illuminated temple .

when we were a little recovered from_our first astonishment, we advanced with more confidence . the grotto was spacious, the floor smooth, and covered with a fine dry sand . from_the appearance of_these crystals, I suspected their nature, and, on breaking off a piece and tasting it, I_found, to my great joy, that we were in a grotto of rock salt, which_is found in large masses in_the earth, usually above a bed of gypsum, and surrounded by fossils . we were charmed with_this discovery, of_which we_could no longer have a doubt . what an advantage this_was to our cattle, and to ourselves ! we_could now procure this precious commodity without care or labour . the acquisition was almost as valuable as_this brilliant retreat was in itself, of_which we were never tired of admiring the beauty . my wife was struck with_our good fortune in opening the rock precisely at_the right spot; but i_was of opinion, that_this mine was of great extent, and_that we_could_not well have missed it . some blocks of salt were scattered on_the ground, which had apparently fallen from_the vaulted roof . i_was alarmed; for such an accident might destroy one of_my children; but, on examination, I_found the mass above too solid to_be detached spontaneously, and I concluded that_the explosion of_the fireworks had given this shock to_the subterranean palace, which had_not_been entered since_the creation of_the world .I feared there might yet be some pieces loosened; I therefore sent out my wife and younger sons .Fritz and I remained, and, after carefully examining the suspected parts, we fired our guns, and watched the effect; one_or_two pieces fell, but the rest remained firm, though we struck with long poles as high as we_could reach . we were now satisfied of_the security of_our magnificent abode, and began to_plan our arrangements for converting it into a convenient and pleasant habitation . the majority were for coming here immediately, but the wiser heads determined that, for_this year, falcon's nest was to_continue our home . there we went every night, and spent the day at tent house, contriving and arranging our future winter dwelling .

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chapter XXX .

the last bed of rock, before we reached the cave which jack had pierced, was so soft, and easy to work, that we had little difficulty in proportioning and opening the place for_our door; I hoped that, being now exposed to_the heat of_the sun, it would soon become as hard as_the original surface . the door was_that we had used for_the staircase at falcon's nest; for as_we only intended to_make a temporary residence of_our old tree, there_was no necessity for solid fittings; and, besides, I intended to close the entrance of_the tree by a door of bark, more effectually to conceal it, in_case savages should visit us .I then laid out the extent of_the grotto at pleasure, for we had ample space . we began by dividing it into two parts; that on_the right of_the entrance was to_be our dwelling; on_the left were, first, our kitchen, then the workshop and_the stables; behind these were the store-rooms and_the cellar . in_order to_give light and air to our apartments, it_was necessary to insert in_the rock the windows we had brought from_the ship; and this cost us many days of labour . the right- hand portion was subdivided into three rooms: the first our own bedroom; the middle, the common sitting- room, and beyond the boys' room . as_we had only three windows, we appropriated one to each bedroom, and_the third to_the kitchen, contenting ourselves, at present, with agrating in_the dining- room .I constructed a sort of chimney in_the kitchen, formed of four boards, and conducted the smoke thus, through a hole made in_the face of_the rock . we_made bur work- room spacious enough for_us to carry on all our manufactures, and it served also for_our cart- house . finally, all the partition-walls were put up, communicating by doors, and completing our commodious habitation . these various labours, the removal of_our effects, and arranging them again, all the confusion of a change when it_was necessary to_be at once workmen and directors, took us a great part of summer; but the recollection of_the vexations we_should escape in_the rainy season gave_us energy .

we passed nearly all our time at tent house, the centre of_our operations; and, besides the gardens and plantations which surrounded it, we_found many advantages which we profited by . large turtles often came to deposit their eggs in_the sand, a pleasant treat for_us; but we raised our desires to_the possession of_the turtles themselves, living, to eat when we chose . as_soon_as we saw one on_the shore, one of_my sons ran to cut off its retreat . we then hastened to assist, turned the creature on its back, passed a long cord through_its shell, and tied it firmly to a post close to_the water . we then placed it on its legs, when of_course it made for_the water, but could only ramble the length of_its cord; it seemed, however, very content, and we had it in readiness when we wanted it . the lobsters, crabs, muscles, and every sort of fish which abounded on_the coast, plentifully supplied our table . one morning, we were struck with an extraordinary spectacle: a large portion of_the sea appeared in a state of ebullition, and immense flocks of marine birds were hovering over it, uttering piercing cries, and plunging into_the waves . from_time to_time the surface, on_which the rising sun now shone, seemed covered with little flames, which rapidly appeared and vanished . suddenly, this extraordinary mass advanced to_the bay; and we ran down, fall of curiosity . we_found, on_our arrival, that_this strange phenomenon was caused by a shoal of herrings . these shoals are so dense, that_they_are often taken for sand-banks, are many leagues in extent, and several feet in depth: they spread themselves over the seas, carrying to barren shores the resources that nature has denied them .

these brilliant, scaly creatures had now entered the bay, and my wife and children were lost in admiration of_the wonderful sight; but I reminded them, that when Providence sends plenty, we ought to_put forth our hands to_take it . I_sent immediately for_the necessary utensils, and organized my fishery .Fritz and jack stood in_the water, and such was_the thickness of_the shoal, that_they filled baskets, taking them up as_you_would water in a pail; they threw them on_the sand; my wife and Ernest cut them open, cleaned them, and rubbed them with salt; I arranged them in small barrels, a layer of herrings and a layer of salt; and when_the barrel was full, the ass, led by Francis, took them up_to_the storehouse . this labour occupied us several_days, and at_the end of_that_time we had a dozen barrels of excellent salt provision against the winter season .

the refuse of_this fishery, which we threw into_the sea, attracted a number of sea-dogs; we killed several for_the sake of_the skin and_the oil, which would_be useful to burn in lamps, or even as an ingredient in soap, which I hoped to_make at some future time .

at_this_time I greatly improved my sledge, by placing it on two small wheels belonging to_the guns of_the ship, making it a light and commodious carriage, and so low, that we_could easily place heavy weights on_it . satisfied with_our labours, we returned very happy to falcon's nest, to_spend our Sunday, and to thank god heartily for all the blessings he had given us .

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chapter XXXI .

we went on with_our labours but slowly, as_many employments diverted us from_the great work .I had discovered that_the crystals of salt in_our grotto had a bed of gypsum for their base, from_which I hoped to obtain a great advantage . i_was fortunate enough to discover, behind aprojecting rock, a natural passage leading to our store- room, strewed with fragments of gypsum . i_took some of it to_the kitchen, and by repeated burnings calcined it, and reduced it to a fine white powder, which I put into casks, and carefully preserved for use . my intention was, to_form our partition-walls of square stones, cemented with_the gypsum .I employed my sons daily to collect this, till we had amassed a large quantity; using some, in_the first place, effectually to_cover our herring-barrels .Four barrels were salted and covered in_this_way; the rest my wife smoked in a little hut of reeds and branches, in_the midst of_which the herrings were laid on sticks, and exposed to_the smoke of a fire of green moss kindled below . this dried them, and gave them the peculiar flavour so agreeable to many .

we were visited by another shoal of fish a month after_that of_the herrings . jack first discovered them at_the mouth of jackal river, where they had apparently come to deposit their eggs among_the scattered stones . they were so large,

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