d a boat in which to
escape.

The casks of flour I floated ashore were very little the worse for their
immersion; in fact, the water had only soaked through to the depth of a
couple of inches, forming a kind of protecting wet crust, and leaving the
inner part perfectly dry and good. Much of this flour, however, was
afterwards spoiled by weevils; nor did my spreading out the precious
grain in the sunlight on tarpaulins and sails save it from at least
partial destruction. I also brought ashore bags of beans, rice, and
maize; cases of preserved milk and vegetables, and innumerable other
articles of food, besides some small casks of oil and rum. In fact, I
stripped the ship's interior of everything, and at the end of nine months
very little remained of her on the rocks but the bare skeleton of the
hull. I moved all the things out day by day according to the tides.

In a large chest that came ashore from the captain's cabin I found a
stock of all kinds of seeds, and I resolved to see whether I could grow a
little corn. Jensen himself had put the seeds aboard in order to plant
them on some of the islands near which we might be compelled to anchor
for some length of time. Another object was to grow plants on board for
the amusement of the Malays. The seeds included vegetables, flowers, and
Indian corn, the last named being in the cob. The Malays are very fond
of flowers, and the captain told them that they might try and cultivate
some in boxes on board; but when he saw that this would mean an
additional drain upon his supply of fresh water he withdrew the
permission. I knew that salt water would not nourish plants, and I was
equally certain I could not spare fresh water from my own stock for this
purpose.

Nevertheless, I set my wits to work, and at length decided upon an
interesting experiment. I filled a large turtle shell with sand and a
little clay, and thoroughly wetted the mixture with turtle's blood, then
stirring the mass into a puddle and planting corn in it.

The grain quickly sprouted, and flourished so rapidly, that within a very
short time I was able to transplant it--always, however, nourishing it
with the blood of turtles. This most satisfactory result induced me to
extend my operation, and I soon had quaint little crops of maize and
wheat growing in huge turtle shells; the wheat-plants, however, did not
reach maturity.

For a long time I was content with the simple awning I have described as
a