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XIII
ROBINSON EXPLORES THE ISLAND
After Robinson made his hunting bag he was anxious to set off on his
journey of exploring the island. So he arose very early next morning.
"Before it is hot," thought he, "I will be quite a distance on my
journey." He ate a couple of bananas, scooped up a few handfuls of
water from the spring, stuck a few ears of corn in his hunting bag,
took his stick in his hand and went forth. As he left his cave the
thought struck him: "What if I could not find my cave again? How can
I manage so that I can come back to it? I will go away in one direction
and return the same way; but suppose I were to lose the way?"
Then he noticed his shadow pointing like a great finger from the sea
toward the land. He could direct himself by that. He kept his shadow
in front of him. He had noticed, too, that the wind always blew north
of the point where the sun rose. This helped him. But sometimes the
wind died down.
He had to climb over many rocks and pierce many thickets. At each step
he saw a rich growth of plants, stems, leaves, flowers, but nothing
to eat, no fruits, or nuts. At length he came to a tree as high as
a small church steeple.
[Illustration: COCOANUT PALM TREE]
Then he thought of what his father had once said about the trees in
strange countries. "Many are as tall as a church steeple and the nuts
are as big as one's head." He looked again. Yes, there they hung among
the leaves, concealed high above in the crown! But _so_ high, it
was well that Robinson had learned to climb while on board the ship.
He quickly laid down his hunting bag and clambered up the smooth stem
of the high tree, a palm. He picked off a nut and threw it down and
then several more, and climbed down again.
But the nuts were very hard. How should he open them? He had brought
along his sharp stone with which he had stripped off the inner bark.
With this he forced off the thick outer shell. But now came the hard
nut within, and how hard it was! Striking it was of no use.
Then he threw a great stone on the nut. The shell was crushed and a
snow-white kernel lay before him. It tasted like almond. With
astonishment Robinson saw in the middle of the nut a large empty space
which must have been filled with fluid as the inside was wet. He
wished that he had the juice to drink, for he was very thirsty. With
this in view, he examined another and riper nut, and the outside came
off more easily. But how could he break it and at the same time save
the juice? He studied the hull of the cocoanut on all sides. At the
ends were three little hollows. He attempted first to bore in with
his fingers, but he could not. "Hold!" he cried. "Maybe I can cut them
there with the point of my stone knife." This was done without trouble
and out of the hole flowed the sweet, white juice.
Robinson put a couple of nuts in his hunting bag, and also the shells
from the broken nuts. "Now," he thought, "I shall no longer have to
drink from my hand." With this thought he went on his way.
As Robinson came to a rock in his path, out jumped what Robinson took
to be a rabbit. He ran after him to catch him, but the rabbit was much
the swifter. So Robinson hastened home, but before he reached it the
stars were shining with their lustrous light. Tired Robinson stretched
his limbs on his bed of grass and leaves and slept soundly.
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Babbitt by Sinclair Lewis
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