Part 15

Cyrus Smith spoke wisely, and, without raising any further objection, Pencroff prepared to carry out his orders.

The facade of Granite House was therefore to be lit by means of five windows and a door, serving what constituted the actual "apartment," and by means of a large bay window and bull's-eye lights that would allow light to pour abundantly into that marvelous nave intended to serve as the great hall. This facade, situated at a height of eighty feet above the ground, faced east, and the rising sun saluted it with its first rays. It extended along that portion of the curtain wall comprised between the projecting angle overlooking the mouth of the Mercy and a line drawn perpendicularly above the heap of rocks that formed the Chimneys.

Thus the bad winds, that is to say those from the northeast, struck it only obliquely, for it was protected by the very orientation of the projecting angle.

Moreover, and pending the making of the window sashes, the engineer intended to close the openings with thick shutters that would let in neither wind nor rain, and which he could conceal if need be.

The first task was therefore to cut these openings. Work with the pick on that hard rock would have been too slow, and it is known that Cyrus Smith was a man of great expedients. He still had a certain quantity of nitro-glycerine at his disposal, and he put it to useful employment. The effect of the explosive substance was suitably localized, and, under its force, the granite burst open at the very spots chosen by the engineer. Then, the pick and the spade finished the ogival design of the five windows, the vast bay, the bull's-eyes and the door; they smoothed the frames, whose profiles were rather capriciously determined, and, a few days after the beginning of the works, Granite House was widely lit by that eastern light, which penetrated even to its most secret depths.

According to the plan settled by Cyrus Smith, the apartment was to be divided into five compartments opening onto the sea: on the right, an entrance served by a door to which the ladder would lead, then a first room-kitchen, thirty feet wide, a dining room, measuring forty feet, a sleeping chamber, of equal width, and finally a "guests' room," demanded by Pencroff, which bordered the great hall.

These rooms, or rather this suite of rooms, which formed the apartment of Granite House, were not to occupy the whole depth of the cavity. They were to be served by a corridor arranged between them and a long storeroom, in which the utensils, the provisions, the reserves, would find ample place. All the products gathered on the island, those of the flora as well as those of the fauna, would be there in excellent conditions of preservation, and completely sheltered from dampness. Space was not lacking, and each object could be methodically arranged. Besides, the colonists still had at their disposal the small grotto situated above the great cavern, which would serve as the attic of the new dwelling.

This plan being settled, nothing remained but to put it into execution. The miners became brickmakers again; then the bricks were brought and deposited at the foot of Granite House.

Hitherto Cyrus Smith and his companions had had access to the cavern only by the old drain. This mode of communication obliged them first to climb onto the Grand View plateau by making a detour along the river bank, to descend two hundred feet by the passage, then to climb as much again when they wished to return to the plateau. Hence, considerable loss of time and fatigue. Cyrus Smith therefore resolved to proceed without delay to the making of a stout rope ladder, which, once drawn up, would render the entrance to Granite House absolutely inaccessible.

This ladder was made with extreme care, and its sides, formed of the fibers of the "curry-jonc" plaited by means of a winch, had the solidity of a thick cable. As for the rungs, it was a sort of red cedar, with light and resistant branches, that supplied them, and the apparatus was worked masterfully by Pencroff.

Other ropes were likewise manufactured with vegetable fibers, and a sort of crude pulley was installed at the door. In this way, the bricks could be easily hoisted to the level of Granite House. The transport of materials was thus much simplified, and the interior fitting-up proper began at once. Lime was not lacking, and some thousands of bricks were there, ready to be used. The framework of the partitions, very rudimentary moreover, was easily erected, and, in a very short time, the apartment was divided into rooms and storeroom, according to the agreed plan.

These various works proceeded rapidly, under the direction of the engineer, who himself handled the hammer and the trowel. No kind of labor was foreign to Cyrus Smith, who thus set the example to intelligent and zealous companions. They worked with confidence, gaily even, Pencroff always having a word to raise a laugh, now carpenter, now ropemaker, now mason, and communicating his good humor to all that little world. His faith in the engineer was absolute. Nothing could have shaken it.

He believed him capable of undertaking anything and succeeding at everything. The question of clothes and shoes, — a grave question assuredly, — that of lighting during the winter nights, the bringing into cultivation of the fertile portions of the island, the transformation of that wild flora into a civilized flora, all seemed easy to him, with Cyrus Smith's help, and all would be done in due time. He dreamed of canalized rivers, facilitating the transport of the wealth of the soil, of quarries and mines to be opened, of machines suited to all industrial practices, of railways, yes, railways! whose network would certainly one day cover Lincoln Island.

The engineer let Pencroff talk. He did not dampen the exaggerations of that brave heart. He knew how contagious confidence is, he even smiled to hear him speak, and said nothing of the anxieties that the future sometimes inspired in him. Indeed, in that part of the Pacific, apart from the passage of ships, he might fear never being rescued. It was therefore on themselves, on themselves alone, that the colonists must count, for the distance of Lincoln Island from any other land was such that to venture upon a boat, of necessarily mediocre construction, would be a grave and perilous thing.

"But, as the sailor said, they surpassed by a hundred cubits the Robinsons of old, for whom everything was a miracle to be wrought."

And indeed, they "knew," and the man who "knows" succeeds where others would vegetate and inevitably perish.

During these works, Harbert distinguished himself. He was intelligent and active, he understood quickly, executed well, and Cyrus Smith became more and more attached to that boy. Harbert felt for the engineer a lively and respectful friendship. Pencroff plainly saw the close sympathy forming between those two beings, but he was not at all jealous.

Nab was Nab. He was what he would always be, courage, zeal, devotion, self-abnegation personified. He had the same faith in his master as Pencroff, but he manifested it less noisily. When the sailor grew enthusiastic, Nab always seemed to answer him: "But nothing is more natural." Pencroff and he liked each other much, and had soon begun to use the familiar "tu" with one another.

As for Gideon Spilett, he took his share of the common work, and was not the clumsiest, — at which the sailor was always somewhat surprised. A "journalist" clever, not only at understanding everything, but at executing everything!

The ladder was definitively installed on May 28.

It counted no fewer than a hundred rungs on that perpendicular height of eighty feet which it measured. Cyrus Smith had been able, happily, to divide it into two parts, by taking advantage of a projection of the wall which jutted out at some forty feet above the ground. This projection, carefully leveled with the pick, became a sort of landing to which the first ladder was fixed, its hanging part thus diminished by half, and a rope allowed it to be drawn up to the level of Granite House. As for the second ladder, it was secured both at its lower end, which rested on the projection, and at its upper end, attached to the door itself. In this way, the ascent became notably easier.

Besides, Cyrus Smith counted on later installing a hydraulic lift which would spare the inhabitants of Granite House all fatigue and loss of time.

The colonists promptly accustomed themselves to using this ladder. They were nimble and dexterous, and Pencroff, in his capacity as sailor, used to running on the ratlines of the shrouds, could give them lessons. But he had to give some also to Top. The poor dog, with his four paws, was not built for that exercise. But Pencroff was so zealous a master that Top ended by executing his ascents properly, and soon climbed the ladder as his fellows commonly do in circuses. If the sailor was proud of his pupil, it cannot be told. But yet, more than once, Pencroff carried him on his back, at which Top never complained.

It will be observed here that during these works, which were nevertheless actively conducted, for the bad season was approaching, the question of food had not been neglected. Every day, the reporter and Harbert, become decidedly the purveyors of the colony, employed some hours in hunting. They still exploited only the woods of the Jacamar, on the left of the river, for, lacking bridge and boat, the Mercy had not yet been crossed. All those immense forests to which the name of Far-West forests had been given were therefore not explored. This important excursion was reserved for the first fine days of next spring. But the woods of the Jacamar were sufficiently well stocked with game; kangaroos and wild boars abounded there, and the iron-tipped spears, the bow and arrows of the hunters did wonders. Moreover, Harbert discovered, toward the southwest angle of the lagoon, a natural warren, a sort of slightly damp meadow, covered with willows and aromatic herbs that perfumed the air, such as thyme, wild thyme, basil, savory, all odorous species of the labiate family, of which rabbits are so fond. On the reporter's observation that, since the table was set for rabbits, it would be astonishing if the rabbits were lacking, the two hunters attentively explored this warren. In any case, it produced in abundance useful plants, and a naturalist would have had there the occasion to study many specimens of the vegetable kingdom. Harbert thus gathered a certain quantity of shoots of basil, rosemary, balm, betony, etc.... which possess diverse therapeutic properties, some pectoral, astringent, febrifugal, others anti-spasmodic or anti-rheumatic. And when, later, Pencroff asked what all that harvest of herbs would serve for:

"To tend us, to treat us when we are ill," answered the young boy.

"Why should we be ill, since there are no doctors on the island?" replied Pencroff very seriously.

To that there was nothing to answer, but the young boy nevertheless made his harvest, which was very well received at Granite House. All the more so that to these medicinal plants he was able to add a considerable quantity of didymous monardas, which are known in North America under the name of "Oswego tea," and produce an excellent beverage. Finally, that day, by searching well, the two hunters arrived at the true site of the warren. The ground there was perforated like a skimmer.

"Burrows!" cried Harbert.

"Yes," replied the reporter, "I see them well."

"But are they inhabited?"

"That is the question."

The question was not long in being resolved. Almost immediately, hundreds of little animals, resembling rabbits, fled in all directions, and with such speed that Top himself could not have outrun them. Hunters and dog ran in vain, these rodents easily escaped them. But the reporter was well resolved not to leave the place before capturing at least half a dozen of these quadrupeds. He wished to stock the larder with them at first, reserving the taming of those taken later. With some snares set at the mouth of the burrows, the operation could not fail to succeed. But at that moment, no snares, nor aught to make them. They must therefore resign themselves to visiting each burrow, to probing it with the stick, to doing by force of patience what could not be done otherwise. Finally, after an hour of digging, four rodents were taken in their holes. They were rabbits rather similar to their European congeners, and which are commonly known under the name of "American rabbits."

The product of the hunt was therefore brought back to Granite House, and it appeared at the evening meal. The hosts of that warren were not to be despised, for they were delicious. This was a precious resource for the colony, and one that seemed inexhaustible.

On May 31, the partitions were finished. Nothing remained but to furnish the rooms, which would be the work of the long winter days. A fireplace was established in the first room, which served as kitchen. The flue intended to carry the smoke outside gave some work to the improvised stove-fitters. It appeared simpler to Cyrus Smith to make it of brick earth; as it was not to be thought of to give it exit through the upper plateau, a hole was pierced in the granite above the window of said kitchen, and it was to this hole that the flue, obliquely directed, led like that of a sheet-iron stove. Perhaps, no doubt even, with the great east winds which beat directly on the facade, the chimney would smoke, but those winds were rare, and, besides, master Nab, the cook, did not look too closely into the matter.

When these interior fittings were completed, the engineer occupied himself with blocking up the orifice of the old drain which led to the lake, so as to forbid all access by that way. Blocks of rock were rolled to the opening and firmly cemented. Cyrus Smith did not yet realize the project he had formed of drowning this orifice under the waters of the lake by bringing them back to their first level by a dam. He contented himself with concealing the obstruction by means of grasses, shrubs or brushwood, which were planted in the interstices of the rocks, and which next spring was to develop with exuberance.

Nevertheless, he utilized the drain so as to bring to the new dwelling a trickle of the fresh waters of the lake. A small cut, made below their level, produced this result, and this diversion of a pure and unfailing source gave a yield of twenty-five to thirty gallons per day.

Water was therefore never to fail at Granite House. Finally, all was finished, and it was time, for the bad season was arriving. Thick shutters allowed closing the windows of the facade, pending the engineer having had time to manufacture window glass.

Gideon Spilett had very artistically arranged, in the projections of the rock, around the windows, plants of varied species, as well as long floating grasses, and in this way the openings were framed with a picturesque verdure of charming effect.

The inhabitants of the solid, healthy and safe dwelling could therefore but be delighted with their work.

The windows allowed their gaze to extend over a boundless horizon, which the two Mandible capes closed to the north and Cape Claw to the south.

All Union Bay spread magnificently before them. Yes, those brave colonists had reason to be satisfied, and Pencroff did not stint praise for what he humorously called "his fifth-floor apartment above the entresol!"

CHAPTER XX

The winter season truly began with that month of June, which corresponds to the month of December of the northern hemisphere. It opened with showers and gusts which succeeded one another without respite. The guests of Granite House could appreciate the advantages of a dwelling that the inclemencies could not reach.

The Shelter of the Chimneys would indeed have been insufficient against the rigors of a wintering, and it was to be feared that the great tides, driven by the offshore winds, might again break in there. Cyrus Smith even took some precautions, in anticipation of this eventuality, so as to preserve as much as possible the forge and the furnaces installed there.

During all that month of June, the time was employed in diverse works, which excluded neither hunting nor fishing, and the reserves of the larder could be abundantly maintained. Pencroff, as soon as he should have leisure, proposed to establish traps from which he expected the greatest good. He had manufactured snares of woody fibers, and there was not a day that the warren did not furnish its contingent of rodents. Nab employed almost all his time in salting or smoking meats, which secured him excellent preserves.

The question of clothing was then very seriously discussed. The colonists had no other garments than those they wore when the balloon cast them onto the island. These garments were warm and sturdy, they had taken extreme care of them as well as of their linen, and they kept them in perfect state of cleanliness, but all that would soon need replacing. Besides, if the winter were rigorous, the colonists would suffer much from the cold.

On this subject, the ingenuity of Cyrus Smith was at fault. He had had to provide for the most pressing, create the dwelling, secure the food, and the cold might surprise him before the question of clothing was resolved. They must therefore resign themselves to passing this first winter without complaining too much.

When the fine season came, they would make a serious hunt of those mouflons, whose presence had been signaled during the exploration of Mount Franklin, and, once the wool was gathered, the engineer would well know how to manufacture warm and sturdy stuffs... How? he would think about it.

"Well, we shall just have to toast our shins at Granite House!" said Pencroff. "Fuel abounds, and there is no reason to spare it."

"Besides," replied Gideon Spilett, "Lincoln Island is not situated under a very high latitude, and it is probable that the winters there are not harsh. Did you not tell us, Cyrus, that this thirty-fifth parallel corresponded to that of Spain in the other hemisphere?"

"No doubt," replied the engineer, "but certain winters are very cold in Spain! Snow and ice, nothing is lacking there, and Lincoln Island may be as rigorously tried. However, it is an island, and, as such, I hope the temperature there will be more moderate."

"And why, Mr. Cyrus?" asked Harbert.

"Because the sea, my child, may be considered as an immense reservoir, in which the heats of summer are stored. Winter come, it restores these heats, which assures the regions near the oceans a mean temperature, less high in summer, but less low in winter."

"We shall see," replied Pencroff. "I ask to be no more anxious about the cold that will or will not be. What is certain is that the days are already short and the evenings long. If we were to treat a little the question of lighting."

"Nothing is easier," replied Cyrus Smith.

"To treat?" asked the sailor.

"To solve."

"And when shall we begin?"

"Tomorrow, by organizing a seal hunt."

"To manufacture candle?"

"Fie, Pencroff, wax candle."

Such was, indeed, the engineer's project; a realizable project, since he had lime and sulfuric acid, and the amphibians of the islet would furnish him the grease necessary for its manufacture.

It was June 4. It was Whitsunday, and there was unanimous accord to observe that feast. All work was suspended, and prayers rose toward heaven. But these prayers were now thanksgivings. The colonists of Lincoln Island were no longer the miserable shipwrecked men cast on the islet. They no longer asked, they gave thanks.

The next day, June 5, in rather uncertain weather, they set out for the islet. They had again to take advantage of low tide to ford the channel, and, on this subject, it was agreed that they would construct, somehow or other, a boat which would render communications easier, and would also permit ascending the Mercy, at the time of the great exploration of the southwest of the island, which was postponed to the first fine days.

The seals were numerous, and the hunters, armed with their iron-tipped spears, easily killed half a dozen of them. Nab and Pencroff skinned them, and brought back to Granite House only their grease and their skin, that skin being destined for the manufacture of sturdy shoes.

The result of this hunt was this: about three hundred pounds of grease which were to be entirely employed in the manufacture of candles.

The operation was extremely simple, and, if it did not yield absolutely perfect products, at least they were usable. Cyrus Smith would have had at his disposal only sulfuric acid, which, by heating this acid with neutral fatty bodies, — in the case the seal grease, — he could isolate the glycerine; then, from the new combination, he would easily have separated the olein, the margarine and the stearine, by using boiling water. But, in order to simplify the operation, he preferred to saponify the grease by means of lime.

He obtained in this way a calcareous soap, easy to decompose by sulfuric acid, which precipitated the lime in the state of sulfate and set free the fatty acids. Of these three acids, oleic, margaric and stearic, the first, being liquid, was driven off by sufficient pressure. As for the other two, they formed the very substance that was to serve for molding the candles.

The operation lasted no more than twenty-four hours.

The wicks, after several trials, were made of vegetable fibers, and, dipped in the liquefied substance, they formed true stearic candles, molded by hand, to which only the bleaching and polishing were lacking. They did not offer, doubtless, that advantage which wicks, impregnated with boric acid, have of vitrifying as they burn, and of consuming entirely; but Cyrus Smith having manufactured a fine pair of snuffers, these candles were greatly appreciated during the evening gatherings of Granite House.

During all that month, work was not lacking inside the new dwelling. The carpenters had employment. Tools were perfected, which were very rudimentary. They were also completed. Scissors, among other things, were manufactured, and the colonists could finally cut their hair, and if not shave, at least trim their beards to their fancy.

Harbert had none, Nab had scarce any, but their companions were bristling with them in a manner to justify the making of said scissors.

The manufacture of a hand saw, of the kind called a pit saw, cost infinite pains, but finally an instrument was obtained which, vigorously handled, could divide the woody fibers of the wood.

Tables were therefore made, seats, closets, which furnished the principal rooms, bedsteads, whose whole bedding consisted of eelgrass mattresses. The kitchen, with its boards, on which rested the earthenware utensils, its brick stove, its scouring stone, had a very good appearance, and Nab officiated there gravely, as if he had been in a chemist's laboratory.

But the carpenters soon had to be replaced by joiners. Indeed, the new drain, created by blasts of the mine, rendered necessary the construction of two small bridges, one on the Grand View plateau, the other on the beach itself.

“Stories of the world, in your language.”