The Coral Island: A Tale of the Pacific Ocean
Page 5
CHAPTER V.
Morning, and cogitations connected therewith--We luxuriate in the sea,try our diving powers, and make enchanting excursions among the coralgroves at the bottom of the ocean--The wonders of the deep enlarged upon.
What a joyful thing it is to awaken, on a fresh glorious morning, andfind the rising sun staring into your face with dazzling brilliancy!--tosee the birds twittering in the bushes, and to hear the murmuring of arill, or the soft hissing ripples as they fall upon the sea-shore! Atany time and in any place such sights and sounds are most charming, butmore especially are they so when one awakens to them, for the fist time,in a novel and romantic situation, with the soft sweet air of a tropicalclimate mingling with the fresh smell of the sea, and stirring thestrange leaves that flutter overhead and around one, or ruffling theplumage of the stranger birds that fly inquiringly around, as if todemand what business we have to intrude uninvited on their domains. WhenI awoke on the morning after the shipwreck, I found myself in this mostdelightful condition; and, as I lay on my back upon my bed of leaves,gazing up through the branches of the cocoa-nut trees into the clear bluesky, and watched the few fleecy clouds that passed slowly across it, myheart expanded more and more with an exulting gladness, the like of whichI had never felt before. While I meditated, my thoughts again turned tothe great and kind Creator of this beautiful world, as they had done onthe previous day, when I first beheld the sea and the coral reef, withthe mighty waves dashing over it into the calm waters of the lagoon.
While thus meditating, I naturally bethought me of my Bible, for I hadfaithfully kept the promise, which I gave at parting to my belovedmother, that I would read it every morning; and it was with a feeling ofdismay that I remembered I had left it in the ship. I was much troubledabout this. However, I consoled myself with reflecting that I could keepthe second part of my promise to her, namely, that I should never omit tosay my prayers. So I rose quietly, lest I should disturb my companions,who were still asleep, and stepped aside into the bushes for thispurpose.
On my return I found them still slumbering, so I again lay down to thinkover our situation. Just at that moment I was attracted by the sight ofa very small parrot, which Jack afterwards told me was called a paroquet.It was seated on a twig that overhung Peterkin's head, and I was speedilylost in admiration of its bright green plumage, which was mingled withother gay colours. While I looked I observed that the bird turned itshead slowly from side to side and looked downwards, fist with the oneeye, and then with the other. On glancing downwards I observed thatPeterkin's mouth was wide open, and that this remarkable bird was lookinginto it. Peterkin used to say that I had not an atom of fun in mycomposition, and that I never could understand a joke. In regard to thelatter, perhaps he was right; yet I think that, when they were explainedto me, I understood jokes as well as most people: but in regard to theformer he must certainly have been wrong, for this bird seemed to me tobe extremely funny; and I could not help thinking that, if it shouldhappen to faint, or slip its foot, and fall off the twig into Peterkin'smouth, he would perhaps think it funny too! Suddenly the paroquet bentdown its head and uttered a loud scream in his face. This awoke him,and, with a cry of surprise, he started up, while the foolish bird flewprecipitately away.
"Oh you monster!" cried Peterkin, shaking his fist at the bird. Then heyawned and rubbed his eyes, and asked what o'clock it was.
I smiled at this question, and answered that, as our watches were at thebottom of the sea, I could not tell, but it was a little past sunrise.
Peterkin now began to remember where we were. As he looked up into thebright sky, and snuffed the scented air, his eyes glistened with delight,and he uttered a faint "hurrah!" and yawned again. Then he gazed slowlyround, till, observing the calm sea through an opening in the bushes, hestarted suddenly up as if he had received an electric shock, uttered avehement shout, flung off his garments, and, rushing over the whitesands, plunged into the water. The cry awoke Jack, who rose on his elbowwith a look of grave surprise; but this was followed by a quiet smile ofintelligence on seeing Peterkin in the water. With an energy that heonly gave way to in moments of excitement, Jack bounded to his feet,threw off his clothes, shook back his hair, and with a lion-like spring,dashed over the sands and plunged into the sea with such force as quiteto envelop Peterkin in a shower of spray. Jack was a remarkably goodswimmer and diver, so that after his plunge we saw no sign of him fornearly a minute; after which he suddenly emerged, with a cry of joy, agood many yards out from the shore. My spirits were so much raised byseeing all this that I, too, hastily threw off my garments andendeavoured to imitate Jack's vigorous bound; but I was so awkward thatmy foot caught on a stump, and I fell to the ground; then I slipped on astone while running over the mud, and nearly fell again, much to theamusement of Peterkin, who laughed heartily, and called me a "slowcoach," while Jack cried out, "Come along, Ralph, and I'll help you."However, when I got into the water I managed very well, for I was reallya good swimmer, and diver too. I could not, indeed, equal Jack, who wassuperior to any Englishman I ever saw, but I infinitely surpassedPeterkin, who could only swim a little, and could not dive at all.
While Peterkin enjoyed himself in the shallow water and in running alongthe beach, Jack and I swam out into the deep water, and occasionallydived for stones. I shall never forget my surprise and delight on firstbeholding the bottom of the sea. As I have before stated, the waterwithin the reef was as calm as a pond; and, as there was no wind, it wasquite clear, from the surface to the bottom, so that we could see downeasily even at a depth of twenty or thirty yards. When Jack and I divedin shallower water, we expected to have found sand and stones, instead ofwhich we found ourselves in what appeared really to be an enchantedgarden. The whole of the bottom of the lagoon, as we called the calmwater within the reef, was covered with coral of every shape, size, andhue. Some portions were formed like large mushrooms; others appearedlike the brain of a man, having stalks or necks attached to them; but themost common kind was a species of branching coral, and some portions wereof a lovely pale pink colour, others pure white. Among this there grewlarge quantities of sea-weed of the richest hues imaginable, and of themost graceful forms; while innumerable fishes--blue, red, yellow, green,and striped--sported in and out amongst the flower-beds of this submarinegarden, and did not appear to be at all afraid of our approaching them.
On darting to the surface for breath, after our first dive, Jack and Irose close to each other.
"Did you ever in your life, Ralph, see anything so lovely?" said Jack, ashe flung the spray from his hair.
"Never," I replied. "It appears to me like fairy realms. I can scarcelybelieve that we are not dreaming."
"Dreaming!" cried Jack, "do you know, Ralph, I'm half tempted to thinkthat we really are dreaming. But if so, I am resolved to make the mostof it, and dream another dive; so here goes,--down again, my boy!"
We took the second dive together, and kept beside each other while underwater; and I was greatly surprised to find that we could keep down muchlonger than I ever recollect having done in our own seas at home. Ibelieve that this was owing to the heat of the water, which was so warmthat we afterwards found we could remain in it for two and three hours ata time without feeling any unpleasant effects such as we used toexperience in the sea at home. When Jack reached the bottom, he graspedthe coral stems, and crept along on his hands and knees, peeping underthe sea-weed and among the rocks. I observed him also pick up one or twolarge oysters, and retain them in his grasp, as if he meant to take themup with him, so I also gathered a few. Suddenly he made a grasp at afish with blue and yellow stripes on its back, and actually touched itstail, but did not catch it. At this he turned towards me and attemptedto smile; but no sooner had he done so than he sprang like an arrow tothe surface, where, on following him, I found him gasping and coughing,and spitting water from his mouth. In a few minutes he recovered, and weboth turned to swim ashore.
"I declare, Ralph," said he, "that
I actually tried to laugh underwater."
"So I saw," I replied; "and I observed that you very nearly caught thatfish by the tail. It would have done capitally for breakfast if youhad."
"Breakfast enough here," said he, holding up the oysters, as we landedand ran up the beach. "Hallo! Peterkin, here you are, boy. Split openthese fellows while Ralph and I put on our clothes. They'll agree withthe cocoa nuts excellently, I have no doubt."
Peterkin, who was already dressed, took the oysters, and opened them withthe edge of our axe, exclaiming, "Now, that _is_ capital. There'snothing I'm so fond of."
"Ah! that's lucky," remarked Jack. "I'll be able to keep you in goodorder now, Master Peterkin. You know you can't dive any better than acat. So, sir, whenever you behave ill, you shall have no oysters forbreakfast."
"I'm very glad that our prospect of breakfast is so good," said I, "forI'm very hungry."
"Here, then, stop your mouth with that, Ralph," said Peterkin, holding alarge oyster to my lips. I opened my mouth and swallowed it in silence,and really it was remarkably good.
We now set ourselves earnestly about our preparations for spending theday. We had no difficulty with the fire this morning, as our burning-glass was an admirable one; and while we roasted a few oysters and ateour cocoa nuts, we held a long, animated conversation about our plans forthe future. What those plans were, and how we carried them into effect,the reader shall see hereafter.