Part 19 (2/2)
”No, Missy; I tell Massa Too away directly”
”Goodness! where can he be?” exclai up shells on the beach, arden I will go and see”
”I see hier; ”he in the boat, and boat go to sea!”
It was but too true: there was Tommy in the boat, and the boat had drifted fro the breakers
Williarave and Ready, and at a distance by Mrs Seagrave and Juno; indeed, there was no time to be lost, for the as off the shore, and in a short time the boat would have been out to sea
William, as soon as he arrived at the beach, threw off his hat and jacket and dashed into the water He was already up to his ht hio back iood, as you do not understand the thing so well as I do; and go I will, so there will be double risk for nothing Mr Seagrave, order him back He will obey you I insist upon it, sir”
”Williarave, ”come back immediately, I command you”
William obeyed, but before he was clear of the water Ready had swam across to the first rocks on the reef, and was now dashi+ng through the pools between the rocks, towards the boat
”Oh, father!” said Williaive myself Look, father, one - two - three sharks, here, close to us He has no chance See, he is again in deep water God protect hirave, whose as now by his side, after glancing his eye a moment at the sharks, which ithin a few feet of the beach, had kept his gaze steadily upon Ready's e of deep water between the rocks heon a reef on the other side, where the water was shallow It was a ained the reef, and had his hands upon the rocks, and was cli on therave faintly
”Yes; now I think he is,” replied Mr Seagrave, as Ready had gained a footing on the rocks, where the water was but a little above his ankles ”I think there is no deep water between him and the boat”
In another unnel of the boat
”He is in the boat,” cried William ”Thank God!”
”Yes, we rave ”Look at thoseto the sharks; ”how quick they swim to and fro; they have scented their prey on the water It is fortunate they are here”
”See, he has the boat-hook, and is pushi+ng the boat off the reef into the deep water Oh! he is quite safe now”
Such, however, was not the case The boat had been beating on the rocks of the reef, and had knocked a hole in her bottom, and as soon as Ready had forced the boat into deep water, she began to fill immediately Ready pushed as hard as he could with the boat-hook, and tearing off his neck-cloth, forced as much as he could of it into the hole This saved them; but the boat was up to the thwarts ater, and the least motion on the part of Ready, or even Tommy, would have upset her immediately, and they had still to pass the deep water between the reef and the beach, where the sharks were swier, called out to thee stones at the sharks as fast as they could, to drive therave and Willia of the stones had the desired effect The sharks say, and Ready passed through to the beach, and the boat grounded just as she was up to the gunnel in water, and about to turn over He handed out Tohtened that he could not cry
As soon as Ready landed, Willia, ”Thank God, you are safe, Ready!” Mrs Seagrave, overpowered by her feelings, sank her head upon Williao, William,” observed Ready, as they walked up to the house, preceded by Mr and Mrs Seagrave ”How htless boy! However, one can't put old heads on young shoulders, and so Toh, as far as fright goes,” replied Williaain by himself”
”No, I think not But now, William, you sa nearly I amped in the boat; indeed, it was only by histhe question merely as far as our endeavours could help us, do you think that if you had gained the boat instead of ht her to the beach as I did?”
”No, Ready; I never could have ed her so skilfully as you did, and therefore I ot on shore”
”Well, William, as I am an old sailor and you are not, therefore it is not vanity which ed the boat so well as I did Now, as I had not three or four seconds to spare, you, as you say, must have been swaht in desiring your father to order you back”
”Certainly, Ready; but Tommy is my brother, and I felt that it was more my duty than yours to risk , William; but you have other duties, which are, to look after your father and mother, and be a comfort and solace to them Your life is rave, and a year or two makes no difference, but your life is, I hope, ofthe prayers were sscene of the day, they all retired early to bed
Chapter LIX
When To as to his inducereat surprise he replied, that he wanted to go round to the tents again, to see if the bananas were ripe; that he intended to eat soht not be found out
”I suspect, Tory before you ate any bananas if we had not perceived you,” said Ready
”I won't go into the boat any more,” said Tommy
”I rather think you will keep to that resolution, Torave; ”however, I er you were in yourself, and in which you placed others by your folly”
The stockade was now alood deal of consultation; at last, it was agreed that it would be better to have a door of stout oak plank, but with second door-posts inside, about a foot apart from the door, bethich could be inserted short poles one above the other, so as to barricade it within when required This wouldas any other portion of the stockade As soon as this was all co-house, by taking away the wattles of cocoa-nut boughs on the sides, and filling thes of cocoa-nut trees
Before the as ended the stockade and door were coan to fell trees, to form the sides of the house This was rapid work; and while Mr Seagrave, Williaht them on the wheels to the side of the stockade, all ready cut to their proper lengths, Ready was e the house with a part of the deal planks which they had brought round froed to break off for two days, to collect all their crops froht more passed away in continual hard work, but the house was at last finished, and very co in It was : theand eating roo-roorave and the children, and the other for the male portion of the family
”See, William,” said Ready, when they were alone, ”e have been able to do by means of those deal planks; why, to have floored this house, and run up the partitions, would have taken us half a year if we had had to saw the wood”
”Yes; and what a comfort it is to have so many shelves about When shall we shi+ft into this house?”
”The sooner the better We have plenty of work still to do, but we can work outside of the stockade”
”And what do you propose to do with the old house?” said William
”We had better put some of our stores of least value in it for the present, until we can fit up another storehouse inside the stockade”
”Then we'll put those casks in, for they take up a great deal of rooe one, William; we shall want that I shall fix it up in a corner”