Chapter 4 Chapter Four

Suddenly the correspondent sprang up, and telling the sailor to wait for him where he was, he climbed the cliff in the same direction as Neb had climbed hours before.Desperate to know the whereabouts of his friend, he hastily quickened his pace, and immediately rounded the corner of the cliff and disappeared.Herbert wanted to go with him. Don't go, boy, said the sailor, we'll get a place to sleep, and try to get something better than shellfish.They need something to eat when they come back.Everyone has their own job. Let's do it right now.Herbert said. Well, said the sailor, come on, we're going to make a good arrangement.We were tired, cold, and hungry, so we had to find a place to live, a fire to build, and something to eat.There is firewood in the forest and eggs in the bird's nest, just find a place to live.

Very well, said Herbert, I will look for a cave, and I am sure I will find one that will accommodate us. Well, said Pencroft, go, boy. The two of them walked to the bottom of the huge rocky wall of the beach, the tide was already far away, and instead of going north, they went south.Pencroft, on landing, noticed a narrow pass a few hundred paces away, which he thought might be the outlet of a river or brook.Now they need to settle beside such a freshwater river; on the other hand, the current may also take Cyrus.Smith rushed to the shore here. As has been said before, the cliff is three hundred feet high, and there is no hollow in it from top to bottom, and the waves seldom rush under it, so there is not even a crack to accommodate them.The cliff is a solid and sheer granite rock, not even the sea can eat it away.Countless seagulls are circling on the top of the cliff, the most of which are webbed birds, their beaks are flat and long, and they chirp endlessly. They are not afraid at all when they see people. Maybe this is the first time humans have violated their territory.Among these birds, Pencroft recognized one species, the great gull, which is commonly called a poultry, and innumerable little ravenous gulls, which hid themselves in the crevices of the granite cliffs.A shot at them would surely kill many of them, and of course there must be a gun first, but neither Pencroft nor Herbert had any.Besides, the meat of these seagulls was unpalatable, and even their eggs smelled bad. Herbert took a few steps to the left, and suddenly came across a pile of rocks covered with seaweed. This place is about to be flooded.On these rocks and among the wet and slippery seaweed, there are clams everywhere, which will not be easily missed by the hungry.Herbert called Pencroft, and the sailor came running hastily.

how!Are they all mussels?Sailor shouted, this can replace the bird's eggs! Not mussels, replied Herbert, examining the molluscs on the rocks, but crabs. Is it tasty?asked Pencroft. very delicious. Let's have some crabs then. The sailor trusted Herbert; the boy not only loved natural history, but was proficient in it.His father once encouraged him to study in this area and let him sit in on the lectures of famous professors in Boston. Those professors liked this bright and studious boy very much.He had proved the usefulness of natural history more than once in the past, and he was not mistaken this time.These crabs have oval shells, and they cling to rocks in groups, motionless.They are perforated molluscs that can burrow through the hardest rocks; their shells are rounded at the ends, a feature not found in normal mussels.

Pencroft and Herbert feasted on crab crabs, half-opened in the sun.They ate like clams.The taste of the crab is very spicy, and it is very delicious without any seasoning. They were fed for the time being, but after eating these sweet-smelling molluscs, they felt thirstier and had to drink water.In this particularly rough country, it seemed impossible to fail to find fresh water.Pencroft and Herbert picked up many crabs, filled their pockets and handkerchiefs, and returned to the foot of the cliff. They walked about two hundred paces, and came to the pass from which Pencroft had thought that some water might flow, though whether it was fresh water was not certain.The stone wall here seemed to have been cracked by a violent earthquake, and at the bottom of the stone wall was a small stream, which formed a rather sharp bend at the end of the stream.The current was a hundred feet wide, with banks not twenty feet high.The river flows very quickly between the walls of granite.Stone walls fell over the mouth of the river, and then, suddenly, the river turned a corner and disappeared in the undergrowth half a mile away.

Here's the water, there's the firewood we need!Now, Herbert, said Pencroft, we only want a place to live. The river water is crystal clear.The sailors believed that the river water was sweet and palatable at this time, that is, when the sea water had not flowed in with the high tide.With this important question settled, Herbert searched for caves in which to hide, but the smooth and steep walls were everywhere, so that the search was in vain. However, where the river mouth is higher than the water level after high tide, the violent vibration of the earth piled up a large pile of rocks, not ordinary caves.

Pencroft and Herbert burrowed into the rocks, and walked a long way along the sandy road, where the light was not very dark, for the sunlight could enter through the cracks in the stones; Sunshine, the wind also came in, forming a general draft; with the wind, the cold outside also came in.However, the sailors believed that if some of the cracks in the rocks were blocked with sand and stones, the grottoes could be inhabited.Its floor plan resembles the ampersand in print, which is the abbreviation of the Latin word and.Indeed, if only the upper opening were shut up from the strong west and south winds, they could make use of it for shelter below.

We have business to do, said Pencroft, and if we can find Mr. Smith he will make good use of the labyrinth. We shall find him, Pencroft, cried Herbert, and let him see a decent house here when he comes back.If we build the fire in the left passage and leave a hole for the smoke, it will work. That's easy, boy, replied the sailor, the grotto is enough for us.Let's do it, but first we need some firewood.I think you can use branches to block these stone crevices, otherwise it will sound like ghosts when the wind blows in. Herbert and Pencroft left the grotto, turned the corner, and climbed up the left bank of the river.The water here was very turbulent, and a dead tree rushed down the river.The rising tide now visible must push it back very far with force.So the sailors considered that they could use the ebb and flow of the tide to transport heavier things.

After walking for a quarter of an hour, the sailor and boy came to the corner where the river bends to the left.Here, the river flows through a beautiful forest.Although it is already autumn, the trees still maintain their green color.This coniferous tree covers all regions of the globe, from the cooler northern regions to the tropics.The young naturalist especially recognized the fragrant Himalayan firs, and among these beautiful firs were interspersed fir trees, with their thick and broad umbrella-shaped branches stretching out all around.As they passed through the tall grass, the dead branches crackled like fire-crackers at Pencroft's feet.

"Son," he said to Herbert, "though I don't know the names of these trees, at least we may call them firewood, which is what we need most at present." Let's get some more back.As Herbert answered, he began to collect them. Gathering firewood was effortless, the ground was covered with dead branches, and they didn't even have to go to the trees to break them.Although there is fuel, the method of transportation cannot be thought of for a while.The firewood is dry and must burn quickly; more should be brought back!According to Herbert's estimate, there was not enough for two people to take away.

Boy, said the sailor, there must be some way of moving the wood, and there must be a way of everything.If only we had a cart or a boat, it would be easy. But we have the river.Herbert said. Yes, said Pencroft, the river is our automatic conveyance, and we can make a raft. But now, said Herbert, our line of transport is going in the wrong direction, and the tide is rising! Just wait until the tide goes out, replied the sailor, and then we can carry the fuel to the grotto by the river.Let's get the raft ready first. The sailor led Herbert straight to the river.Each of them moved the bundles of firewood as best he could.They found a large number of dead branches in the grass by the river, and no one had probably been here before.Pencroft immediately set to work on the raft.Part of the embankment protrudes into the river, weakening the water and forming a small harbor.Here the sailor and the boy arranged some thick logs and tied them together with climbing vines.This creates a raft.They piled all the firewood they had gathered on it, and indeed, twenty men couldn't carry all the firewood.In an hour the work was done, and the raft was moored to the shore, till the tide went out.

It was several hours before the ebb of the tide, and Pencroft and Herbert, after consulting, resolved to climb up to the heights, and have a better view of their surroundings. A full two hundred feet from the bend of the river, one end of the wall slops down, slowly reaches the edge of the forest, and then flattens out.This is a natural ladder.Herbert and the sailor went up, being strong and strong, and in a few minutes reached the top of the hill, and then came to the place overlooking the mouth of the river. Ascending the hill, the first thing they saw was the ocean which they had crossed with great peril.They looked at the northern part of the coast with excitement.Cyrus.That's where Smith went missing!They hoped to see what was left of the balloon, on which Smith was likely still clinging.But there was nothing, only the vast and boundless ocean around.There was also no one on the coast.The correspondent and Neb were nowhere to be seen.Maybe at this point they were too far away to see. It always seems to me, exclaimed Herbert, that a man as able as Smith is not drowned like the common man.He must have landed somewhere, don't you think so, Pencroft? The sailor shook his head silently.It seemed to him that he would never see Cyrus again.Smith, but he did not want to discourage Herbert, so said: Of course, of course, the engineer can get out of danger even when no one else can do anything. During that time, he carefully observed the seashore.Below is a sandy beach, which stretches out until the right side of the mouth is stopped by the rolling surf, and the exposed rocks lie in the waves like amphibious monsters.The sea beyond the reef glistens in the sun.The southern horizon is concealed by a prominent promontory, and it is impossible to see whether the land stretches out in that direction, or whether it extends to the southeast and southwest, making the coast a long peninsula.At the northern extremity of the harbour, the outline of the coast stretches far into a great arc.The seashore there is flat, with no cliffs, only a large stretch of sandy beach exposed after low tide.Pencroft and Herbert then turned back and walked westward.The first thing they noticed was the snow-capped mountain six or seven miles away.From within two miles of the coast to the place where the slope begins to slope, there are large trees growing, and there are many evergreen trees dotted inside, so it looks like a large green shade without feeling monotonous.From the edge of the forest to the sea was a plain, covered here and there with bushes.The glade on the left shone with the waters of the brook; along this meandering brook it traced back to the spurs of the hills, from which it seemed to have its headwaters.Just where the sailors anchored the raft, it began to flow from between the lofty granite walls; It turned into stones again, and the stones turned into gravel again, extending to the end of the cape. Are we on an island?murmured the sailor. In any case, the island seemed large enough.the boy replied. No matter how big it is, an island is still an island!said Pencroft. But this important question has yet to be answered.To solve this problem, we must look at it more comprehensively.Whether it is an island or a mainland, the land here looks fertile, the scenery is beautiful, and the products are rich. Yes, said Pencroft, it is a blessing in misfortune to have such a place. Thank goodness.Herbert said he was devoutly grateful to Heaven. Pencroft and Herbert had observed for a long time the land where they had fallen, but it was difficult to conceive of their future fate after such a fleeting glance. Then they walked back along the southern ridge of the granite mesa, bordered by a grotesque jagged boulder.Thousands of birds lived in the cavities; and Herbert, jumping from the stone, startled the flock. ah!It's not a sea-gull, he cried, and it's not a sand-gull! So what is it?asked Pencroft. I think it may be pigeons! By the way, but these are wild pigeons, or mountain pigeons. There are two black stripes on their wings, white tails, and blue-gray feathers, so I can recognize them. The meat of wild pigeons is delicious. The eggs must be more delicious, let's see how many eggs there are in their nests! We won't give them time to hatch unless they hatch poached eggs!said Pencroft enthusiastically. Now what are you going to cook your poached eggs with?said Herbert, with your hat? Hurrah!The sailor answered, I would not do such tricks.We have no choice but to eat some bubble eggs, let me solve the hardest eggs! Pencroft and Herbert searched carefully the cavities in the granite rock, and found some eggs in some caves.They picked up several dozen and packed them in sailor's handkerchiefs.When the high tide was approaching, Pencroft and Herbert descended from the hill, and walked back towards the river.It was already one o'clock in the afternoon when we reached the river.The tide has turned back.Now they must take advantage of the ebb tide to carry the timber to the mouth of the river.Pencroft did not want to steer the raft himself, nor could he let the raft drift unattended, although there were no ropes and cables, but a sailor would not be helpless because of this; The rattan is twisted into a rope several fathoms long.He fastened this rattan rope to the rear of the raft, and holding the other end with his hand, Herbert spread the raft with a long pole, and kept it afloat on the current.The work was done so successfully that a large quantity of firewood was carried away with the current.The river bank is very flat, and there is no need to worry about the raft spinning in the water.Before two o'clock in the afternoon, they were at the mouth of the river, only a few paces from the grotto.