akes, sir, got
closer in to get warm, and he overdid it. He's cooked; and just you
smell, sir."

"Ugh! throw it away."

"But it smells 'licious, sir. It does really."

"It makes me feel sick, Ned--the idea's horrible. Why it will have
spoiled all the potatoes."

"Don't make me feel sick, sir; makes me feel hungry. You've no idea how
good it smells."

"What! a horrible reptile?"

"So's a turtle, sir; and you won't say turtle-soup isn't good."

"But a snake, and perhaps poisonous, Ned?"

"We shouldn't eat his head, sir. Don't see why you might not just as
well eat a snake as an eel, sir."

"Throw it away!" cried Jack sharply.

"All right, sir, you're master.--Good-bye, good victuals!" Ned added in
an undertone.--"Won't have hurt the taters, sir, there was all this
thick layer of ashes between."

"Are they burnt up?"

"No, sir, just right, and floury as can be. Look at that."

It was getting too dark to see much; but Jack made out that the little
round vegetable was all floury where it was broken.

The whole cooking was raked out, the ashes scattered away, and Ned
proceeded to take out his knife and hand it to his young master, with
instructions to cut out his shirt-sleeves just at the shoulder.

"I shall be warm enough without them, sir," he said. "There: now we'll
just tie up the ends, and here we have a good bag apiece to carry the
taters in. Nothing like having a bit of string in your pocket, sir. I
wonder whether Robinson Crusoe had a bit o' string when he was wrecked;
I 'spose he would have, because he could have twisted up a bit out of
the old ropes. It's always useful, sir. There you are, now. I'll tie
the bags together, and swing 'em over my shoulder, one on each side."

"I'll carry one."

"You shall have 'em both, sir, when I'm tired and want a bit of a rest.
Now then, ready, sir?"

"Yes."

"Then shoulder arms: march!" They made for the ridge of lava, climbed
upon it without much difficulty, and began to ascend the gradual slope
it formed, till they were shut in by the trees rising on either side,
when the darkness became so intense that their progress was very slow,
and they had to depend a good deal upon their spears used as
alpenstocks. But one great need urged them on, and it chased away the
thoughts of pursuit, and of the risks they were running. This need
acted as a spur, which kept them crawling up the solidified river for
fully a couple of hours, which were divers