since it would make intelligent
communication between him and them difficult, at all events for a time;
sailors, however, have a way peculiar to themselves of making their
requirements understood by foreigners, and he had little doubt of his
ability to overcome that difficulty ere long. Indeed, on that same day,
after the men had eaten and drank to their hearts' content, Leslie
contrived to convey to their understanding the fact that he expected
them to build a hut for themselves; and he indicated the precise spot,
at a considerable distance from the camp, where he wished it to be. As
soon as they clearly understood what his desires were, they went off
into the bush and, armed with a small tomahawk lent them by Leslie,
proceeded to cut down some forty or fifty young and pliant saplings, the
butt-ends of which they sharpened to a point, and then thrust
vertically, into the ground in a circle some twelve feet in diameter.
They then brought the tops of the saplings all together and bound them;
thus producing a skeleton structure exactly shaped like a bee-hive.
This skeleton they then strengthened by interweaving it with stout
lianas--or "monkey-rope," as the sailors call the long, tough stems of
the creepers that interlace themselves about the trees in tropical
countries. This done, they again vanished into the bush; quickly
returning with two generous loads of the leaves of a species of palm,
wherewith they quickly and deftly thatched the entire hut, and thus
completed it. The entire structure occupied but a couple of hours in
the making; yet it had all the appearance of being a thoroughly
comfortable and weather-proof dwelling. As soon as the hut was finished
Leslie demanded back the tomahawk; but although he shrewdly suspected
that they understood well enough what he wanted, they affected not to do
so, keeping a tight hold upon the implement all through the discussion,
until Dick simplified matters by seizing the holder by the arm and
gently but firmly forcing it from his grasp. He then handed them a
generous supply of fish, as an evening ration, and motioned them to
withdraw to their hut, which they did, not over willingly, as Leslie
thought. That same night he went to work and manufactured a canvas belt
for Flora, to hold a brace of revolvers and a cartridge pouch; and the
next morning early he took a small piece of board, some nine inches
square, painted it to represent a target, and nailed it to a tree.
Then,