Swiss Family Robinson(fiscle part-3 of 2) - Johann David Wyss (desktop ebook reader .TXT) 📗

Part 3 Chapter 3 Pg 48

Our Animals,  Unaccustomed to The Yoke,  Were Not Available For The

Plough.

 

I Therefore Gave Up The Idea For The Present,  And Applied myself,  With

Ernest'S Assistance,  To Completing the Loom,  Which,  Although The

Workmanship Was Clumsy,  I Succeeded in making quite Fit For Use. I Had

Fortunately In my Younger Days Spent Many Hours In the Workshops Of

Weavers And Other Artisans,  And Therefore I Understood More Than Might

Have Been Expected of Their Various Crafts.

 

Paste Or Size Was Required to Smear Over The Threads; But We Could Not

Spare Flour For Such A Purpose,  And I Used isinglass,  Which Kept The

Warp Moist Perfectly Well,  And Spared us The Necessity Of Setting up

The Loom In a Damp Uncomfortable Place,  Which Has Often To Be Done To

Prevent The Overdrying of The Web.

 

Of This Isinglass I Also Made Thin Plates,  To Be Used as Window-Panes;

They Were At Least As Transparent As Horn,  And When Fixed deep In the

Rock And Beyond The Reach Of Rain,  Did Good Service In admitting light.

 

Success Encouraging me To Persevere,  I Next Began Harness-Making; The

Spoils Of The Chase Having furnished us With Plenty Of Leather,  With

Which I Covered light Frames Of Wood,  Using the Hairy Moss Or Lichen

For Stuffing,  And Ere Long The Animals Were Equipped with Saddles,

Stirrups,  Bridles,  Yokes And Collars,  To The Very Great Satisfaction Of

Their Youthful Riders And Drivers.

 

This Occupation Was Followed by A Great Deal Of Work Connected with The

Annual Return Of The Herring shoals Which Now Took Place; To Them

Succeeding,  As On Former Occasions,  Shoals Of Other Fish,  And Many

Seals. More Than Ever Aware Of The Value Of All Of These,  We Did Not

Fail To Make Good Use Of Our Opportunities,  And Captured large Numbers.

 

The Boys Were Getting anxious For Another Shooting expedition; But

Before Undertaking that,  I Wished to Do Some Basket-Making,  As Sacks

Were Beginning to Fail Us,  And There Was Constant Demand For Baskets In

Which To Carry And Keep Our Roots And Fruits. Our First Attempts Were

Clumsy Enough; But,  As Usual,  Perseverance Was Rewarded,  And We

Produced a Good Supply Of All Sorts And Sizes. One Very Large Basket I

Furnished with Openings Through Which To Pass A Strong Stick,  So That

It Might,  When Heavily Laden,  Be Carried by Two Persons.

 

No Sooner Did The Children See The Force Of This Idea,  Than They Got A

Bamboo,  And Popping little Franz Into The Basket,  Carried him About In

Triumph.

 

This Amusement Suggested a Fresh Notion To Fritz. `Oh,  Father,' Cried

He,  `Don'T You Think We Might Make Something like This For Mother,  And

Carry Her Much More Comfortably Than Jolting along In the Cart?'

 

The Boys Shouted with Glee At The Proposal,  And Though Their Mother

Thought The Plan Feasible Enough,  She Confessed that She Did Not Much

Like The Thought Of Sitting in the Middle Of A Basket,  And Just Looking

Part 3 Chapter 3 Pg 49

Out Now And Then Over The Rim.

 

However,  I Assured her It Should Be A Well-Shaped comfortable

Sedan-Chair,  Or Litter; And The Next Question Was How It Should Be

Carried,  Since The Boys Could Not Play The Part Of Indian

Palanquin-Bearers,  Either With Safety To Their Mother,  Or With Any

Pleasure To Themselves.

 

`The Bull And The Buffalo!' Cried jack. `Why Not Use Them For It?

Let'S Go And Try Them Now!'

 

Off Ran The Boys,  And In a Short Time The Basket Was Securely Hung

Between Storm And Grumble. Fritz And Jack Sprang Into Their Saddles,

And Ernest Very Gingerly Deposited himself In the `Cradle',  As Franz

Called it; They Set Forth At A Most Sober Pace,  The Animals,  Who Were

Perfectly Docile,  Appearing only A Little Surprised at The New

Arrangement.

 

`Oh,  It Is So Pleasant,  Mother,  It Is A Delightful Motion,' Cried

Ernest,  As They Passed us. `It Swings And Rocks Really Soothingly.

Quicker,  Fritz! Go Quicker!' And The Trot Pleasing him Equally Well,

The Pace Gradually Quickened,  Till The Animals Were Going along At A

Rate Which Shook And Jolted the Basket About Most Fearfully.

 

Ernest Called and Screamed in vain For A Halt. His Brothers Thought It

Capital Fun To `Shake Up' The `Professor',  And Made The Circuit Of The

Level Ground Near Rockburg,  Finally Pulling up In front Of Us,  Like

Performers Stopping to Receive The Applause Of Spectators.

 

It Was Impossible To Help Laughing,  The Scene Was So Ridiculous,  But

Ernest Was Very Angry With His Brothers,  His Reproaches Provoked high

Words In reply,  And A Quarrel Was Imminent,  But I Interfered,  And

Showed them How Easily A Joke Carried too Far Would Lead To Disputes

And Bad Feeling,  Urging them To Avoid On All Occasions Any Breach Of

The Good Fellowship And Brotherly Love Which Was The Mainstay Of Our

Strength And Happiness.

 

Good Humour Was Soon Restored,  Ernest Himself Helped to Unharness The

Beasts,  And Got Some Handfuls Of Salt And Barley To Reward Their

Exertions,  Saying,  That They Must Have Some More Palanquin-Practise

Another Day.

 

I Was Seated with My Wife And Fritz Beneath The Shade Of The Verandah,

Engaged in wicker-Work,  And Chatting pleasantly,  When Suddenly Fritz

Got Up,  Advanced a Step Or Two,  Gazing fixedly Along The Avenue Which

Led from Jackal River,  Then He Exclaimed:

 

`I See Something so Strange In the Distance,  Father! What In the World

Can It Be? First It Seems To Be Drawn In coils On The Ground Like A

Cable,  Then Uprises As It Were A Little Mast,  Then That Sinks,  And The

Coils Move Along Again. It Is Coming towards The Bridge.'

 

My Wife Took Alarm At This Description,  And Calling the Other Boys,

Retreated into The Cave,  Where I Desired them To Close Up The

Part 3 Chapter 3 Pg 50

Entrances,  And Keep Watch With Firearms At The Upper Windows.

 

These Were Openings We Had Made In the Rock At Some Elevation,  Reached

Within By Steps,  And A Kind Of Gallery Which Passed along The Front Of

The Rooms.

 

Fritz Remained by Me While I Examined the Object Through My Spy-Glass.

 

`It Is,  As I Feared,  An Enormous Serpent!' Cried i. `It Advances

Directly This Way,  And We Shall Be Placed in the Greatest Possible

Danger,  For It Will Cross The Bridge To A Certainty.'

 

`May We Not Attack It,  Father?' Exclaimed the Brave Boy.

 

`Only With The Greatest Caution,' Returned i. `It Is Far Too

Formidable,  And Too Tenacious Of Life,  For Us Rashly To Attempt Its

Destruction. Thank God We Are At Rockburg,  Where We Can Keep In safe

Retreat,  While We Watch For An Opportunity To Destroy This Frightful

Enemy. Go Up To Your Mother Now,  And Assist In preparing the Firearms;

I Will Join You Directly,  But I Must Further Observe The Monster'S

Movements.'

 

Fritz Left Me Unwillingly,  While I Continued to Watch The Serpent,

Which Was Of Gigantic Size,  And Already Much Too Near The Bridge To

Admit Of The Possibility Of Removing that Means Of Access To Our

Dwelling. I Recollected,  Too,  How Easily It Would Pass Through The

Walls. The Reptile Advanced with Writhing and Undulatory Movements,

From Time To Time Rearing its Head To The Height Of Fifteen Or Twenty

Feet,  And Slowly Turning it About,  As Though On The Look-Out For Prey.

 

As It Crossed the Bridge,  With A Slow,  Suspicious Motion,  I Withdrew,

And Hastily Rejoined my Little Party,  Which Was Preparing to Garrison

Our Fortress In warlike Array,  But With Considerable Trepidation,  Which

My Presence Served in a Measure To Allay.

 

We Placed ourselves At The Upper Openings,  After Strongly Barricading

Everything below,  And,  Ourselves Unseen,  Awaited with Beating hearts

The Further Advance Of The Foe,  Which Speedily Became Visible To Us.

 

Its Movements Appeared to Become Uncertain,  As Though Puzzled by The

Trace Of Human Habitation; It Turned in different Directions,  Coiling

And Uncoiling,  And Frequently Rearing its Head,  But Keeping about The

Middle Of The Space In front Of The Cave,  When Suddenly,  As Though

Unable To Resist Doing so,  One After Another The Boys Fired,  And Even

Their Mother Discharged her Gun. The Shots Took Not The Slightest

Effect Beyond Startling the Monster,  Whose Movements Were Accelerated.

Fritz And I Also Fired with Steadier Aim,  But With The Same Want Of

Success,  For The Monster Passing on With A Gliding motion,  Entered the

Reedy Marsh To The Left,  And Entirely Disappeared.

 

A Wonderful Weight Seemed lifted from Our Hearts,  While All Eagerly

Discussed the Vast Length And Awful Though Magnificent Appearance Of

The Serpent. I Had Recognized it As The Boa Constrictor. It Was A Vast

Specimen,  Upwards Of Thirty Feet In length.

Part 3 Chapter 3 Pg 51

 

I Explained to The Children That Its Name In south America Is

Boaguacu; The First Syllable Of That Name,  With The Latin Addition,

Which Indicates That It Kills Its Prey By Pressure,  Or 'Constriction,'

Gives The Name By Which It Is Commonly Known.

 

The Near Neighbourhood Of This Terrific Reptile Occasioned me The

Utmost Anxiety; And I Desired that No One Should Leave The House On Any

Pretence Whatever,  Without My Express Permission.

 

During three Whole Days We Were Kept In suspense And Fear,  Not Daring

To Stir Above A Few Hundred steps From The Door,  Although During all

That Time The Enemy Showed no Sign Of His Presence.

 

In Fact,  We Might Have Been Induced to Think The Boa Had Passed across

The Swamp,  And Found His Way By Some Cleft Or Chasm Through The Wall Of

Cliffs Beyond,  Had Not The Restless Behaviour Of Our Geese And Ducks

Given Proof That He Still Lurked in the Thicket Of Reeds Which They

Were Accustomed to Make Their Nightly Resting place.

 

They Swam Anxiously About,  And With Much Clapping of Wings And

Disturbed cackling,  Showed their Uneasiness; Finally,  Taking wing,  They

Crossed the Harbour,  And Took Up Their Quarters On Shark'S Island.

 

My Quandary Increased,  As Time Passed on. I Could Not Venture To

Attack With Insufficient Force A Monstrous And Formidable Serpent

Concealed in dense Thickets Amidst