Chapter 23 Chapter 1 of Man on a Deserted Island, Part 2

It had been exactly seven months since the adventurer in the balloon landed on Lincoln Island.During this period, although they searched everywhere, they never found anyone.On a deserted island there never even rises a wisp of smoke to indicate human habitation, nor is there a trace of human labor to prove that it has been inhabited, either past or recent.The settlers were compelled by all the facts to think that there was not only no one now on the desert island but themselves, but that there had never been any.Now, those complex inferences have been overturned by a tiny metal bullet.This bullet was found on a harmless rodent!It came from a gun, no doubt about it, but who but man has such a weapon?

His companions were astonished when Pencroft laid the cartridges on the table.Although the appearance of the bullet was unremarkable, they immediately thought of all the possible consequences of this incident.They all panicked as if they had seen a ghost during the day. Cyrus.Smith did not hesitate to relate some of the associations which this sudden and strange event had bound to arouse in him.He took the cartridge, turned it over and over in his fingers, and then turned to Pencroft and asked: Are you sure Siri, who was wounded by this bullet, was no more than three months old? No more, Mr. Smith, replied Pencroft, who was still suckling when I found him in the trap.

Well, said the engineer, it was enough to see that someone had shot on Lincoln Island within three months. And hit the little animal, although it didn't die, it was injured.Ji Ding.Spilett added. There is no doubt about it, Cyrus.We should infer from this, said Smith, that the island had been inhabited before our arrival, or else had landed here within three months.Did these people come on purpose or by accident, did they land by boat or land in distress?This can only be understood in the future.As to who they were, Europeans or Malays, enemies or friends, we have no way of guessing, and we do not know whether they have left the island.But these issues are too important to ignore.

No, never!Never!cried the sailor, jumping up from the table, there is no one on Lincoln Island but us!I can bet!This island is not big, if there were people here, we would have found them long ago! Otherwise it would be strange.Herbert said. I think it would be all the more strange if this Desiree had been born with a bullet in its stomach, commented the correspondent! Unless, said Neb gravely, Pencroft You see, Neb, interrupted Pencroft, if I have a bullet in my jaw, shall I not find it for five or six months?Where can it hide?he asked, and opened his mouth, showing his thirty-two teeth. Take a good look, Neb, and if you can find a hole, I'll let you pull out six!

Neb's assumption is of course untenable, Smith said, though he was full of thoughts, and could not help smiling. We can be sure that someone has shot on the island within three months at most.My thoughts are: these people landed not so long ago, maybe they just passed by, because when we look down on the island from the top of Mount Franklin, if there are people here, we must have seen them, or they would have seen them. Will definitely see us.So these people may have been killed only a few weeks ago, blown to the coast by the storm.But no matter what, it is very important for us to make this issue clear.

I think we should be more careful.said the correspondent. That is what I would advise you, Cyrus.Smith said, maybe pirates landed on the island! Mr. Smith, asked the sailor, what do you think we build a punt before we go?After building a boat, we can not only go upstream, but also look around the whole island along the coast at will.It doesn't work without preparation. Your opinion is very good, Pencroft, replied the engineer, but we cannot wait.It takes at least a month to build a boat. Yes, but it is a regular ship, replied the sailor, and we don't need ships for sailing.In five days at most, I can build a flat-bottomed boat fit for sailing the Mercy.

Build a boat in five days?cried Neb. Yes, Neb.An Indian boat. wooden?Black people still don't believe it. Of wood, replied Pencroft, or rather of bark.I repeat, Mr. Smith, it will be done in five days! In five days, then, do it.replied the engineer. But during this period we must be very careful.Herbert said. Be very careful indeed, my friends, replied Smith, and I beseech you, at the same time, not to stray too far from Granite House when hunting. They finished their lunch in a tense and serious atmosphere, to Pencroft's disappointment. The inhabitants came to the conclusion that the island was inhabited or had been inhabited by others besides themselves.As the bullets showed, this had become an indisputable fact, and the discovery made the immigrants tremble.

Cyrus.Smith and Keating.Spilett talked long on the matter before going to sleep.They asked themselves, did this matter have anything to do with the engineer's miraculous rescue and the strange things that had happened to them so many times?Cyrus.After much deliberation, Smith finally said: In a word, would you like to hear my opinion, my dear Spilett? Yes, Cyrus. Well, here's my guess: No matter how carefully we scoured the island, we weren't going to find anything. The next day Pencroft set to work.He didn't intend to build a boat with decks and sides, but just a simple flat-bottomed boat suitable for navigating on the Mercy River. birthplace.As long as the pieces of bark are connected together, it can become a light boat. If it encounters natural obstacles and must be carried, it will not be cumbersome.Pencroft proposed to fasten the bark with nails, so that the barge would be impermeable.

In order to obtain tough bark to build a boat, the tree must first be selected.Many of the tall birch trees that had been brought down in the last storm had just the right bark for them.Some trees fell to the ground, and it was only necessary to peel off their bark, but this was the most difficult job, for they had not enough tools.But they overcame many difficulties after all. With the help of engineers, the sailors worked non-stop.Ji Ding.Spilett and Herbert were not idle either, they were responsible for supplying food for the whole team.The correspondent had to admire the boy Herbert for his skill with the bow and harpoon.In addition, Herbert showed great courage and veritable good judgment.The two hunters followed Cyrus.Smith's views did not go farther than two miles around Granite Palace.There are a large number of agouti, capybaras, kangaroos, sirens, etc. on the edge of the forest. Even if the traps are not as effective in cold weather, the rabbit farm can still supply the daily food needs of the residents of Lincoln Island.

On the twenty-sixth of October, during the hunting trip, Herbert, as usual, talked with Gideon.Spilett speaks of the bullet problem and the engineer's reasoning.He said: But, Monsieur Spilett, do you not find it strange that, had the wrecks landed on the island, they should never have come near the Palace of Granite? Of course it would be strange if they were still here, replied the correspondent, but not so strange if they were no longer here! So do you think these people have left the desert island?Herbert asked back. Probably so, boy.If they stay here long, especially if they are still here, they will always give out.

But if they could get out of here, said the boy, then they would not be counted as victims. Yes, Herbert, they were at least so-called temporary victims.It is probable that the storm had brought them to the island, but their ship was not damaged, and so they went away as soon as the storm passed. It seems to me that it is true, said Herbert, that Mr. Smith seems to be more afraid of people on the island than he wants them to be. In a word, the correspondent replied, the only people who frequented the nearby sea were the Malays, and these were villains, and it was best to avoid them. Mr. Spilett, said Herbert, perhaps one day we may find traces of their landing. Of course, boy.Just find a tent left over, or a pile of ashes, and we'll be on track, and that's what we'll be looking for on our next expedition. On the day of the conversation, they were in the forest near the Mercy River.The woods here are very beautiful.Among the trees stood several pine-trees, which the natives of New Zealand call Calipines, reaching a height of almost two hundred feet. I have an idea, Monsieur Spilett, said Herbert, that if one climbs up a callistan, one can see farther and wider around. That's a good idea, replied the correspondent, but can you climb such a tall tree? Might as well give it a try.replied Herbert. The nimble boy landed on the first few branches with a single leap.Climbing this Cali pine is not difficult due to the well-crossed branches.In a few minutes he had climbed to the top of the tree and was high above the vast green plain. From this commanding place, he looked all over the south of the island, from Cape Claw in the southeast to Cape Reptile in the southwest.Mount Franklin towers over the island's northwest, obscuring a large portion of the horizon. From this lofty lookout, Herbert could see all the unexplored parts of the island, which might be the hiding places of the strangers they suspected. The boy watched carefully.There was nothing at sea, and no ships could be seen either on the horizon or around the island.One part of the coast, however, was blocked by many trees, so that there might be a ship there, especially when she was near the shore without her mast, so that Herbert would not be able to see her. There was nothing to be seen in the Far West Forest either.The trees formed an impenetrable barrier, many square miles wide, so dense that there was not a single gap in between.It was impossible even to look all the way down the Mercy River, or to determine in which part of the mountains its source lay.There may be other streams going west, but they cannot be seen. After all, if Herbert had ignored all traces of the bivouac, could he not have seen even a wisp of smoke?In the clear atmosphere, even a trace of extremely thin smoke is very easy to detect. For a moment, Herbert seemed to feel that there was a thin wisp of smoke in the west, but a closer look proved that he was wrong.He tries to see in all directions, and his eyes are very keen.But sure, there's nothing there. Herbert descended from Calisone, and the hunters returned to Granite Palace.Cyrus.After listening to the boy's report, Smith shook his head without saying a word.Obviously, no conclusion can be drawn on this question until the whole island has been thoroughly searched. Two days later, on October 28, another incomprehensible thing happened. Herbert and Neb were walking along the coast, about two miles from Granite Palace, when they happened to catch a beautiful specimen of the Squirrel.This is an edible green turtle of the Midas species, so named because its shell and flesh are green. Herbert saw the turtle as it crawled out of the rocks into the sea. Help, Neb, help!he shouted. Neb came running. What a handsome fellow!Neb said: But how shall we catch it? It's not easy?Neb, replied Herbert, just turn it over, and it will never get away.Take your harpoon and do what I do, so do you. Sensing danger, the reptile shrank its head and feet into the hard shell and plastron, and remained as still as a stone. Herbert and Neb thrust their sticks under the turtle's body, and with a combined effort, they turned it over in a moment.The three-foot-long turtle weighed at least four hundred kilograms. very nice!cried Neb, that Pencroft must be overjoyed when he sees it. Indeed, Pencroft must have been delighted, for this turtle eats seaweed, and its meat is extremely delicious.At this time, the turtle's head is exposed. It has a long upper jaw, and the front is small and flat. Starting from the huge temporal fossa hidden under the upper jaw, the head gradually becomes thicker. Now, what to do with our captives?Says Neb, we can't drag it back to Granite Palace! Anyway, it won't turn over, so let's leave it here, answered Herbert, and we'll come back with the wagon later. That's a great idea. Herbert took pains to put stones on both sides of the turtle, sandwiching it, just in case; Neb thought it unnecessary.Then the two hunters returned to Granite Palace along the beach exposed by the low tide.Herbert, desiring to surprise Pencroft, deliberately said nothing about the fact that they had turned over a fine stuffed turtle on the sand.Two hours later, he and Neb drove the cart back to the place where they kept the turtle, but the top-quality stuffed turtle was gone! Neb and Herbert looked at each other at first, then they looked around again.Yes, that's where the turtles are placed.The boy also found the rocks he used to trap the turtles, so he was sure he hadn't made a mistake. All right!Then, said Neb, the turtle could turn itself over. Maybe.replied Herbert, completely bewildered, staring blankly at the stones on the beach. Pencroft will be unhappy! Mr. Smith probably had trouble explaining why the turtle had disappeared.Herbert thought to himself. Listen, Neb is afraid of being laughed at, and will not bring it up again, we will not talk about it. No, Neb, we must talk.replied Herbert. The cart is useless now.The two pulled the empty cart and walked towards the Granite Palace. The engineers and sailors were at work on the shipyard, and Herbert, on his return, gave an account of what had happened. well!fool!At least fifty meals lost, cried the sailor! But, Pencroft, replied Neb, we are not to blame for the turtle's disappearance.As I said, we turned it over! That means you didn't turn it over thoroughly enough!said the Stubborn Sailor. Not thorough enough?cried Herbert. So he told again how he had carefully built the turtle in between the stones. That's so strange!replied Pencroft. Mr. Smith, said Herbert, I don't think a turtle can ever get up if it's on its back, especially a big turtle, don't it? yes kid.Cyrus.Smith said. How did it escape? How far out of the sea do you keep the turtles?asked the engineer, who had stopped working to reflect on the matter. Less than fifty feet.replied Herbert. Was it low tide? Yes, Mr. Smith. Well, the engineer replied, what the turtle could not do on the beach, he might be able to do in the water.At high tide, it can turn over, and then it goes back to the depths of the sea without haste. Ah, what fools we are!cried Neb. Yes, that's what I called you just now!The sailor replied. Cyrus.Smith's explanation is of course reasonable.But does he think this interpretation is correct?I'm afraid not.