in his chest some
papers containing a variety of vegetable seed. We accordingly scraped a
spot clear for a vegetable garden, and it was surprising how quickly
many of them sprang up and became fit for food. Thus I may say that we
were furnished with many of the necessaries of life.

We were somewhat scantily supplied with kitchen utensils; our saucepan,
or boiling-pot, especially, had seen much service. Silva showed us how
we might boil our fish without it. He collected a quantity of very fine
grass, and set to work to plait a large basket. So neatly did he put it
together, that, after he had soaked it in water, he filled it up to the
brim and not a drop ran out. Then he put the fish in; and lighting a
fire, heated a number of large stones. These, as soon as they were hot,
he kept putting into the basket. As soon as he supposed that all their
caloric had left them, he hooked them out with a forked stick. In this
way, by keeping the water boiling by a constant supply of hot stones, he
thoroughly cooked the fish. I should think anything which does not
require much boiling might be cooked in the same way.

Thanks to the example set us by Mr Brand, we were never idle. Of
course a good deal of our time was occupied in procuring provisions, as
is generally the case with those living in a savage state. We had not
made any excursion to a distance for some time, when one day Jerry, Ben,
and I, set out to take a long walk. After proceeding for about two
hours, we saw before us a bay, with a wide sandy beach. Ben put his
hand on our shoulders and pointed eagerly at the bay. The shore was
covered with a number of black spots.

"What are those?" I asked.

"Turtle," he answered; "won't we have a fine feast of, them!"

We approached the bay carefully, following Ben's footsteps. There must
have been a hundred fine, large, green turtle, basking in the sun before
us--enough to make the mouth of an alderman water. Ben crept up to the
nearest, a fine fat fellow, and catching him by the flapper turned him
over on his back, where he lay helplessly kicking, but unable to stir.
Jerry and I, watching how he did it, turned over several more, though
our united strength only enabled us to do it. We had got over a dozen
or more when we came to a big fellow who was too heavy for us. We had
got him almost over, when down he came again on his belly, and, very
naturally, not appreciating the honour of being turned into turtle-s