up, helpless, save that the huge
claw waved about aimlessly. At that, the bo'sun drew us off, though the
man who had attacked the crab desired to make an end of it, averring that
we should get some very good eating out of it; but to this the bo'sun
would not listen, telling him that it was yet capable of very deadly
mischief, did any but come within reach of its prodigious mandible.

And after this, he bade them look no more for shellfish; but take out the
two fishing-lines which we had, and see if they could catch aught from
some safe ledge on the further side of the hill upon which we had made
our camp. Then he returned to his mending of the boat.

It was a little before the evening came down upon the island, that the
bo'sun ceased work; and, after that, he called to the men, who, having
made an end of their fuel carrying, were standing near, to place the
full breakers--which we had not thought needful to carry to the new
camp on account of their weight--under the upturned boat, some holding
up the gunnel whilst the others pushed them under. Then the bo'sun laid
the unfinished batten along with them, and we lowered the boat again
over all, trusting to its weight to prevent any creature from meddling
with aught.

After that, we made at once to the camp, being wearifully tired, and with
a hearty anticipation of supper. Upon reaching the hilltop, the men whom
the bo'sun had sent with the lines, came to show him a very fine fish,
something like to a huge king-fish, which they had caught a few minutes
earlier. This, the bo'sun, after examining, did not hesitate to pronounce
fit for food; whereupon they set-to and opened and cleaned it. Now, as I
have said, it was not unlike a great king-fish, and like it, had a mouth
full of very formidable teeth; the use of which I understood the better
when I saw the contents of its stomach, which seemed to consist of
nothing but the coiled tentacles of squid or cuttlefish, with which, as I
have shown, the weed-continent swarmed. When these were upset upon the
rock, I was confounded to perceive the length and thickness of some of
them; and could only conceive that this particular fish must be a very
desperate enemy to them, and able successfully to attack monsters of a
bulk infinitely greater than its own.

After this, and whilst the supper was preparing, the bo'sun called to
some of the men to put up a piece of the spare canvas upon a couple of
the reeds, so as to make a screen again