Part 42 (1/2)
”No, father: he came and proposed it.”
”Tree's getting gradually thinner,” said the doctor. ”Easier to climb.”
”I hope he will be successful,” said Sir John. ”The men will banter him so if he fails.”
”How the tree begins to bend!” said Jack anxiously. ”Why don't you shake it?” he cried, without considering that his words could not be heard. But, oddly enough, just at that moment the idea seemed to have occurred to Ned, who held on with his legs and shook the tree violently.
”You will not do it like that, my fine fellow,” said the captain, coming up; ”and lucky for you that you can't. A crack from one of those nuts would be no joke.”
”Yes, they must be pretty heavy,” said Sir John.
”Heavy enough to kill any one if they fell upon his bare head.”
”Oh, look how the tree's bending over!” cried Jack.
”Yes, he had no business to choose such a slight one,” said the captain, as the tree swayed beneath the man's weight.
”Had I better stop him?” said Sir John.
”I think perhaps you had better not startle him and make him nervous, father. We don't want any accidents.”
”Indeed we don't,” said the doctor; ”better let him be. Why, if he goes on like this the tree will bend over like a fis.h.i.+ng-rod, and he can drop from the top to the ground.”
Then silence fell upon the group, and the sailors ceased to cheer, as, with the elastic rod-like tree bending more and more over, and swaying up and down, Ned climbed on, till the last part of his progress was after the fas.h.i.+on of a sloth, hanging back downward, and at every movement coming nearer, till the great crown of leaves and nuts, which had stood forty feet in the air, was not more than twenty.
”Another two or three feet will do it,” said the doctor; ”but I'm afraid he will not be able to get the nuts off.”
”Oh yes; he can screw them off,” said the captain.
”What I'm afraid of is--”
_Crack_!
A sharp loud snap, and the top of the tree came down, the big leaf.a.ge hiding Ned; but he was standing up close to the broken-off tree, which was now like a thick pole, and rubbing himself hard, with the sailors about him, when the lookers-on reached the spot.
”Oh, Ned!” cried Jack, who was first up.
”Yes, sir, it is 'Oh, Ned!'” replied the man angrily.
”Hurt?” cried the others in a breath.
”Don't know yet, Sir John,” said the man, ”I think my right leg's broke, though.”
”Here, let me see,” cried the doctor eagerly.
”No, it ain't, sir,” said Ned, giving a kick. ”It's the left one.”
”Bah!” roared the doctor; ”how could you stand upon it and kick out like that if it were broken?”
”Right you are, sir; of course I couldn't. But something's broke, for I heard it go. Maybe it's my arms.”
”Maybe it's your head,” said the doctor sarcastically, ”for you are talking in a very crack-brained fas.h.i.+on. Let me buckle your belt round it tightly to hold it together.”