grove.

"How came you," said Fritz, "to know so much of the queer beasts, trees,
and plants that we have found here?"

"When young," said I, "I used to read all the books that fell in my way;
and those that told of strange lands and what was to be seen in them had
for me as great a charm as they have for Ernest, who has read a great
deal, and knows more of plants than you do."

"Well," said he, "I will do the same if I but get the chance. Can you
tell what is the name of that huge tree on the right? See, there are
balls on the bark."

We went close to it, and found that these balls were of thick gum, which
the sun had made quite hard. Fritz tried to pull one of them off, but
felt that it clung tight to the bark, though he could change its shape
with his warm hands. "Look," said he, "I feel sure that this is the
IN-DI-A RUB-BER which we used to clean our school books." I took a piece
of it in my hand, and said, "To be sure it is. What shall we not find
in this rich land?" I then told him how the men in the New World made
flasks of this gum, in which form it is sent to all parts of the world.
"And I do not see why we should not make boots of it in the same way. We
have but to fill a sock with sand, then put gum all round it, while in a
soft state, till it is as thick as we need, then pour the sand out,
and we shall have made a shoe or a boot that will at least keep out the
damp, and that is more than mine do just now."

Not far from this we came to a bush, the leaves of which were strewn
with a white dust; and close by were two or three more in the same
state. I cut a slit in the trunk of one of these, and found it full of
the white dust, which I knew by the taste to be SA-GO. We took all of
this that we could get out of the tree, for it would add to our stock of
food; and when our bags were full we laid them on the back of the ass,
and set off to find our way back to The Nest.

"Each day brings us fresh wealth," said my wife; "but I think we might
now try to add to our goods." I knew that she had some fear lest we
should one day get lost in the woods, or meet with wild beasts, so I at
once said that we would now stay at home, at least for some days.

My first work was to make some wax lights, for my wife could then mend
our clothes at night, while we sat down to talk. This done, the next
task they gave me was to make a churn. I took a large gourd, made a
small hole in the side, and cut out as much as I could, so a