his wont, nor did he give so much as a
single shout, but walked quietly between us with his eye sparkling and a
joyful smile upon his countenance. My reader must not suppose that I
thought all this in the clear and methodical manner in which I have set
it down here. These thoughts did indeed pass through my mind; but they
did so in a very confused and indefinite manner, for I was young at that
time and not much given to deep reflections. Neither did I consider
that the peace whereof I write is not to be found in this world--at
least in its perfection--although I have since learned that, by
religion, a man may attain to a very great degree of it.

I have said that Peterkin walked along the sands between us. We had two
ways of walking together about our island. When we travelled through
the woods we always did so in single file, as by this method we advanced
with greater facility, the one treading in the other's footsteps. In
such cases Jack always took the lead, Peterkin followed, and I brought
up the rear. But when we travelled along the sands, which extended
almost in an unbroken line of glistening white round the island, we
marched abreast, as we found this method more sociable and every way
more pleasant. Jack, being the tallest, walked next the sea, and
Peterkin marched between us, as by this arrangement either of us could
talk to him or he to us, while if Jack and I happened to wish to
converse together we could conveniently do so over Peterkin's head.
Peterkin used to say, in reference to this arrangement, that had he been
as tall as either of us, our order of march might have been the same;
for, as Jack often used to scold him for letting everything we said to
him pass in at one ear and out at the other, his head could, of course,
form no interruption to our discourse.

We were now fairly started. Half-a-mile's walk conveyed us round a bend
in the land which shut out our bower from view, and for some time we
advanced at a brisk pace without speaking, though our eyes were not
idle, but noted everything--in the woods, on the shore, or in the sea--
that was interesting. After passing the ridge of land that formed one
side of our valley--the Valley of the Wreck--we beheld another small
vale lying before us in all the luxuriant loveliness of tropical
vegetation. We had indeed seen it before from the mountain-top, but we
had no idea that it would turn out to be so much more lovely when we
were close to it.