Part 25

Henceforth, all burdens, wood, coal, provisions, and the colonists themselves were hoisted by this very simple system, which replaced the primitive ladder that no one thought of regretting. Top showed himself particularly delighted with this improvement, for he had not, and could not have, master Jup's skill in climbing rungs, and many a time he had had to make the ascent of Granite House on Nab's back, or even on that of the orangutan.

About this time also, Cyrus Smith attempted to manufacture glass, and he had first to adapt the old pottery furnace to this new purpose.

This presented rather great difficulties; but after several unsuccessful attempts, he finally succeeded in setting up a glassworks, which Gideon Spilett and Herbert, the engineer's natural assistants, did not leave for several days.

As for the substances entering into the composition of glass, they are solely sand, chalk, and soda (carbonate or sulfate). Now, the shore supplied the sand, the lime supplied the chalk, the sea plants supplied the soda, the pyrites supplied the sulfuric acid, and the soil supplied the coal for heating the furnace to the required temperature. Cyrus Smith therefore found himself in the necessary conditions to operate.

The tool whose manufacture offered the most difficulty was the glassmaker's "rod," a tube of iron, five to six feet long, which serves to gather at one end the matter kept in a state of fusion. But by means of a strip of iron, long and thin, which was rolled like a gun barrel, Pencroff succeeded in making this rod, and it was soon in working order.

On March 28, the furnace was heated vigorously. One hundred parts of sand, thirty-five of chalk, forty of sulfate of soda, mixed with two or three parts of powdered charcoal, composed the substance, which was placed in crucibles of refractory earth. When the high temperature of the furnace had reduced it to a liquid state or rather to a pasty state, Cyrus Smith "gathered" with the rod a certain quantity of this paste; he turned and returned it on a metal plate previously arranged, so as to give it the proper shape for blowing; then he passed the rod to Herbert, telling him to blow through the other end.

"Like blowing soap bubbles?" asked the young boy.

"Exactly," replied the engineer.

And Herbert, puffing out his cheeks, blew so well into the rod, taking care to turn it constantly, that his breath dilated the vitreous mass.

Other quantities of molten substance were added to the first, and there soon resulted a bubble measuring a foot in diameter. Then Cyrus Smith took the rod from Herbert's hands, and, imparting to it a pendulum motion, he finally elongated the malleable bubble, so as to give it a cylindro-conical shape.

The blowing operation had therefore produced a cylinder of glass terminated by two hemispherical caps, which were easily detached by means of a sharp iron wetted with cold water; then, by the same process, this cylinder was split lengthwise, and, after being made malleable by a second heating, it was spread upon a plate and smoothed with a wooden roller.

The first pane was thus manufactured, and it sufficed to repeat the operation fifty times to have fifty panes. Hence the windows of Granite House were soon fitted with diaphanous plates, perhaps not very white, but sufficiently transparent.

As for the glassware, glasses and bottles, it was but child's play. They were accepted, moreover, as they came from the end of the rod. Pencroff had asked the favor of "blowing" in his turn, and it was a pleasure for him, but he blew so hard that his products assumed the most amusing shapes, which elicited his admiration.

During one of the excursions made about this time, a new tree was discovered, whose products came to increase still further the food resources of the colony.

Cyrus Smith and Herbert, while hunting, had one day ventured into the forest of the Far-West, on the left of the Mercy, and, as always, the young boy was asking a thousand questions of the engineer, to which the latter replied with all his heart. But it is with hunting as with every occupation here below, and when one does not put the requisite zeal into it, there are many reasons for not succeeding.

Now, as Cyrus Smith was no hunter and, on the other hand, Herbert was talking chemistry and physics, that day many a kangaroo, capybara, or agouti passed within good range, which nevertheless escaped the young boy's rifle. It followed, therefore, that, the day being already advanced, the two hunters were very likely to have made a useless excursion, when Herbert, stopping and uttering a cry of joy, exclaimed:

"Ah! Mr. Cyrus, do you see that tree?"

And he pointed to a shrub rather than a tree, for it consisted only of a simple stem, covered with a scaly bark, which bore leaves striped with small parallel veins.

"And what is this tree that resembles a small palm?" asked Cyrus Smith.

"It is a 'cycas revoluta,' of which I have the picture in our dictionary of natural history!"

"But I see no fruit on this shrub?"

"No, Mr. Cyrus," replied Herbert, "but its trunk contains a flour that nature provides us already ground."

"Then it is the bread tree?"

"Yes! The bread tree."

"Well, my child," replied the engineer, "there is a precious discovery, while waiting for our wheat harvest. To work, and heaven grant you have not been mistaken!"

Herbert had not been mistaken. He broke the stem of a cycas, which was composed of a glandular tissue and enclosed a certain quantity of farinaceous pith, traversed by woody bundles, separated by rings of the same substance arranged concentrically. Mixed with this starch was a mucilaginous juice of unpleasant taste, but which it would be easy to expel by pressure. This cellular substance formed a real flour of superior quality, extremely nourishing, and which, formerly, the Japanese laws forbade exporting.

Cyrus Smith and Herbert, after carefully studying the portion of the Far-West where these cycas grew, took landmarks and returned to Granite House, where they made known their discovery.

The next day, the colonists went to gather, and Pencroff, more and more enthusiastic about his island, said to the engineer:

"Mr. Cyrus, do you believe there are castaway islands?"

"What do you mean by that, Pencroff?"

"Why, I mean islands created specially so that one may conveniently be shipwrecked on them, and on which poor devils can always manage to get along!"

"That is possible," replied the engineer, smiling.

"That is certain, sir," replied Pencroff, "and it is no less certain that Lincoln Island is one of them!"

They returned to Granite House with an ample harvest of cycas stems. The engineer set up a press to extract the mucilaginous juice mixed with the starch, and he obtained a considerable quantity of flour which, under Nab's hand, was transformed into cakes and puddings. It was not yet true wheat bread, but they were almost touching it.

About this time also, the onagga, the goats and the sheep of the corral supplied daily the milk necessary to the colony. Hence the cart, or rather a sort of light gig that had replaced it, made frequent trips to the corral, and when it was Pencroff's turn to make his round, he took Jup and made him drive, which Jup, cracking his whip, accomplished with his habitual intelligence.

Everything therefore prospered, as well at the corral as at Granite House, and truly the colonists, if it were not that they were far from their country, had nothing to complain of. They were so well accustomed to this life, moreover, so used to this island, that they would not have left its hospitable soil without regret!

And yet, so much does love of country hold the heart of man, if some vessel had unexpectedly appeared in sight of the island, the colonists would have made signals to it, they would have attracted it, and they would have departed!... Meanwhile, they lived this happy existence, and they had rather the fear than the desire that some event should come to interrupt it.

But who could flatter himself to have ever fixed fortune and to be safe from its reverses!

Be that as it may, this Lincoln Island, which the colonists had already inhabited for more than a year, was often the subject of their conversation, and, one day, an observation was made which was to bring later grave consequences.

It was April 1, a Sunday, Easter day, which Cyrus Smith and his companions had sanctified by rest and prayer. The day had been fine, such as might be an October day in the northern hemisphere.

All, toward evening, after dinner, were gathered under the veranda, at the edge of the Grand-View plateau, and they watched night rise on the horizon. Some cups of that infusion of elderberries, which replaced coffee, had been served by Nab. They were talking of the island and its isolated situation in the Pacific, when Gideon Spilett was led to say:

"My dear Cyrus, since you possess that sextant found in the case, have you taken again the position of our island?"

"No," replied the engineer.

"But it would perhaps be proper to do so, with this instrument which is more perfect than that which you employed."

"What is the use?" said Pencroff. "The island is well where it is!"

"No doubt," resumed Gideon Spilett, "but it may have happened that the imperfection of the apparatus has injured the correctness of the observations, and since it is easy to verify their exactness..."

"You are right, my dear Spilett," replied the engineer, "and I should have made this verification earlier, although, if I have committed some error, it should not exceed five degrees in longitude or latitude."

"Eh! Who knows?" resumed the reporter. "Who knows if we are not much nearer an inhabited land than we believe?"

"We shall know tomorrow," replied Cyrus Smith, "and but for so many occupations that have left me no leisure, we should know it already."

"Bah!" said Pencroff. "Mr. Cyrus is too good an observer to have been mistaken, and if it has not moved from its place, the island is well where he put it!"

"We shall see."

It followed, therefore, that the next day, by means of the sextant, the engineer made the necessary observations to verify the coordinates he had already obtained, and here was the result of his operation: his first observation had given for the situation of Lincoln Island: in west longitude: from 150 degrees to 155 degrees; in south latitude: from 30 degrees to 35 degrees.

The second gave exactly: in west longitude: 150 degrees 30 minutes; in south latitude: 34 degrees 57 minutes.

Thus, despite the imperfection of his apparatus, Cyrus Smith had operated with such skill that his error had not exceeded five degrees.

"Now," said Gideon Spilett, "since, at the same time as a sextant, we possess an atlas, let us see, my dear Cyrus, the position that Lincoln Island exactly occupies in the Pacific."

Herbert went to fetch the atlas, which, it is known, had been published in France, and of which, consequently, the nomenclature was in the French language.

The map of the Pacific was unfolded, and the engineer, compass in hand, prepared to determine its situation.

Suddenly, the compass stopped in his hand, and he said:

"But there already exists an island in this part of the Pacific!"

"An island?" cried Pencroff.

"Ours, no doubt?" replied Gideon Spilett.

"No," resumed Cyrus Smith. "This island is situated at 153 degrees longitude and 37 degrees 11 minutes latitude, that is to say, two and a half degrees farther west and two degrees farther south than Lincoln Island."

"And what is this island?" asked Herbert.

"Tabor Island."

"An important island?"

"No, a little islet lost in the Pacific, and which has perhaps never been visited!"

"Well, we shall visit it," said Pencroff.

"We?"

"Yes, Mr. Cyrus. We shall build a decked boat, and I undertake to command her. -- At what distance are we from this Tabor Island?"

"At about a hundred and fifty miles to the northeast," replied Cyrus Smith.

"A hundred and fifty miles! And what is that?" replied Pencroff. "In forty-eight hours and with a good wind, it will be done!"

"But what for?" asked the reporter.

"One does not know. Got to see!"

And upon this answer, it was decided that a boat should be constructed, so as to be able to put to sea toward the month of October next, at the return of the fine season.

CHAPTER X

When Pencroff had a project in his head, he had and left himself no rest until it was executed. Now, he wished to visit Tabor Island, and, as a boat of a certain size was necessary for this crossing, it was necessary to construct said boat.

Here is the plan which was settled by the engineer, in agreement with the sailor.

The boat would measure thirty-five feet of keel and nine feet of beam, -- which would make a fast sailer, if its floors and waterlines were successful, -- and should not draw more than six feet, a sufficient draft to hold it against drift. It would be decked its whole length, pierced with two hatches giving access to two cabins separated by a bulkhead, and rigged as a sloop, with a brigantine, jib, staysail, spritsail, foresail, very manageable sail plan, easily taken in case of squalls, and very favorable for sailing close to the wind. Finally, its hull would be constructed with flush planking, that is to say that the planks would be flush instead of overlapping, and as for its frame, it would be applied hot after the adjustment of the planks which would be mounted on false ribs. What wood would be employed in the construction of this boat? Elm or fir, which abounded in the island? It was decided for the fir, a wood somewhat "splitting," according to the carpenters' expression, but easy to work, and which supports immersion in water as well as elm.

These details settled, it was agreed that, since the return of the fine season would not take place before six months, Cyrus Smith and Pencroff would work alone at the boat. Gideon Spilett and Herbert were to continue hunting, and neither Nab, nor master Jup, his helper, would abandon the domestic works devolved upon them. As soon as the chosen trees were felled, they were cut up, sawn into planks, as long sawyers would have done. A week later, in the recess which existed between the Chimneys and the wall, a stocks was prepared, and a keel, thirty-five feet long, furnished with a sternpost at the rear and a stem at the front, stretched upon the sand.

Cyrus Smith had not marched blindly in this new task. He knew about naval construction as about almost all things, and it was on paper that he had first sought the lines of his boat. Moreover, he was well served by Pencroff, who, having worked some years in a shipyard at Brooklyn, knew the practice of the trade. It was therefore only after severe calculations and mature reflections that the false ribs were fitted on the keel.

Pencroff, it will readily be believed, was all fire to bring his new enterprise to a successful end, and he would not have wished to abandon it for an instant. A single operation had the privilege of drawing him away, but for one day only, from his construction yard. This was the second wheat harvest, which took place on April 15. It had succeeded like the first, and gave the proportion of grain announced in advance.

"Five bushels! Mr. Cyrus," said Pencroff, after scrupulously measuring his riches.

"Five bushels," replied the engineer, "and, at a hundred and thirty thousand grains per bushel, that makes six hundred and fifty thousand grains."

"Well! We shall sow all this time," said the sailor, "except a small reserve, however!"

"Yes, Pencroff, and, if the next harvest gives a proportional yield, we shall have four thousand bushels."

"And we shall eat bread?"

"We shall eat bread."

"But it will be necessary to make a mill?"

"We shall make a mill."

The third wheat field was therefore incomparably more extended than the first two, and the earth, prepared with extreme care, received the precious seed. This done, Pencroff returned to his work.

Meanwhile, Gideon Spilett and Herbert hunted in the surroundings, and they ventured rather deeply into the still unknown parts of the Far-West, their rifles loaded with ball, ready for any bad encounter. It was an inextricable tangle of magnificent trees pressed one against the other as if space had failed them. The exploration of these wooded masses was extremely difficult, and the reporter never risked it without carrying the pocket compass, for the sun barely pierced the thick branches, and it would have been difficult to find his way back. It naturally happened that game was rarer in these places, where it would not have had a sufficient liberty of movement. However, three large herbivores were killed during this last fortnight of April. They were koulas, of which the colonists had already seen a specimen north of the lake, which let themselves be stupidly killed among the large branches of the trees on which they had sought refuge. Their skins were brought back to Granite House, and, with the help of sulfuric acid, they were subjected to a sort of tanning which rendered them usable. A discovery, precious from another point of view, was also made during one of these excursions, and that one was due to Gideon Spilett.

It was April 30. The two hunters had plunged into the southwest of the Far-West, when the reporter, preceding Herbert by some fifty paces, arrived in a sort of clearing, on which the trees, more spaced, let penetrate some rays.

Gideon Spilett was at first surprised by the odor exhaled by certain plants with straight, cylindrical, and branching stems, which produced flowers arranged in clusters and very small seeds. The reporter pulled up one or two of these stems and came back to the young boy, to whom he said:

"Look what this is, Herbert?"

"And where did you find this plant, Mr. Spilett?"

"There, in a clearing, where it grows very abundantly."

"Well! Mr. Spilett," said Herbert, "there is a find which assures you all the rights to Pencroff's gratitude!"

"It is then tobacco?"

"Yes, and, if it is not of first quality, it is nonetheless tobacco!"

"Ah! That good Pencroff! Will he be pleased! But he will not smoke it all, the devil! And he will leave us our share!"

"Ah! An idea, Mr. Spilett," replied Herbert. "Let us say nothing to Pencroff, take the time to prepare these leaves, and, one fine day, a pipe all stuffed will be presented to him!"

"Understood, Herbert, and that day our worthy companion will have nothing more to desire in this world!"

The reporter and the young boy made a good provision of the precious plant, and they returned to Granite House, where they introduced it "by fraud," and with as much precaution as if Pencroff had been the strictest of customs officers.

Cyrus Smith and Nab were taken into confidence, and the sailor suspected nothing, during all the rather long time which was necessary to dry the thin leaves, to chop them, to submit them to a certain torrefaction on hot stones. That demanded two months; but all these manipulations could be done unknown to Pencroff, for, occupied with the construction of the boat, he came up to Granite House only at rest time.

Once more, however, and whatever he might think of it, his favorite task was interrupted on May 1, by a fishing adventure, in which all the colonists had to take part. For some days, one could observe at sea, two or three miles offshore, an enormous animal which swam in the waters of Lincoln Island. It was a whale of the largest size, which, very likely, must belong to the austral species, called "Cape whale."

"What good fortune it would be to seize it!" cried the sailor. "Ah! If we had a proper boat and a harpoon in good state, how I would say: 'Let us run at the beast, for she is worth the trouble of taking!'"

"Eh! Pencroff," said Gideon Spilett, "I should have liked to see you handle the harpoon. That must be curious!"

"Very curious and not without danger," said the engineer; "but, since we have not the means to attack this animal, it is useless to occupy oneself with it."

"I am astonished," said the reporter, "to see a whale under this relatively high latitude."

"Why so, Mr. Spilett?" replied Herbert. "We are precisely on that part of the Pacific which English and American fishermen call the 'whale-field,' and it is here, between New Zealand and South America, that the whales of the southern hemisphere are met in greatest number."

"Nothing is truer," replied Pencroff, "and what surprises me, myself, is that we have not seen more of them. After all, since we cannot approach them, it matters little!"

And Pencroff returned to his work, not without uttering a sigh of regret, for, in every sailor, there is a fisherman, and if the pleasure of fishing is in direct ratio to the size of the animal, one may judge what a whaler feels in presence of a whale!

And if it had been only the pleasure! But one could not disguise that such a prey would have been very profitable to the colony, for the oil, the fat, the whalebones could be employed to many uses!

Now, it happened thus, that the signaled whale seemed not to wish to abandon the waters of the island.

Therefore, whether from the windows of Granite House, or from the Grand-View plateau, Herbert and Gideon Spilett, when they were not hunting, Nab, while supervising his stoves, did not leave the telescope and observed all the movements of the animal. The cetacean, deeply engaged in the vast Union Bay, plowed it rapidly from Cape Mandible to Cape Claw, pushed by its prodigiously powerful caudal fin, on which it leaned and moved by starts with a speed which sometimes went as high as twelve miles an hour. Sometimes also, it approached so near the islet, that one could distinguish it completely.

It was indeed the austral whale, which is entirely black, and whose head is more depressed than that of the northern whales.

One saw it also reject by its blowholes, and to a great height, a cloud of vapor... or of water, for -- strange as the fact may seem -- naturalists and whalers are not yet agreed on this subject.

Is it air, is it water which is thus driven out? It is generally admitted that it is vapor, which, suddenly condensing at contact with the cold air, falls back as rain.

However, the presence of this marine mammal preoccupied the colonists. It annoyed especially Pencroff and gave him distractions during his work.

He ended by having a desire for this whale, like a child for an object that is forbidden him. At night, he dreamed of it aloud, and certainly, if he had had means to attack it, if the shallop had been in state to keep the sea, he would not have hesitated to set out in pursuit of it.

But what the colonists could not do, chance did for them, and on May 3, cries from Nab, posted at the window of his kitchen, announced that the whale was stranded on the shore of the island.

Herbert and Gideon Spilett, who were about to set out hunting, abandoned their rifle, Pencroff threw down his axe, Cyrus Smith and Nab joined their companions, and all directed themselves rapidly toward the place of stranding.

“Stories of the world, in your language.”