The Young Marooners on the Florida Coast

by John Henry Goldfrap

  CHAPTER XXX

  BEST CURE FOR UNAVAILING SORROW--MARY'S ADVENTURE WITH A BEAR--NOVELDEFENCE--PROTECTING THE TENT

  It was natural that the youthful company should be much cast down bythis misfortune. But recent experiences had taught them many valuablelessons, and had caused them to practise, more fully than they wouldhave otherwise, those wise maxims which had formed no small part oftheir education. While Robert and Mary were yet anguished with theirsense of disappointment, Harold cheerfully remarked:

  "I have often heard your father say, 'There are two kinds of ill that itis worth no wise man's while to fret about:--Ills that _can be_ helped,for then why do we not help them? and, Ills that _cannot be_ helped, forthen what is the use of fretting?' I have also heard him say that '_thebest cure for ills that cannot be helped is to set about doing somethinguseful_.'"

  "But what can we do more than we have already tried to do?" askedRobert, in a questioning tone.

  "Not much, I confess," was Harold's reply; "yet we can be on the lookoutfor something. Yes," he continued, pointing, as they walked, to one ofthe turkey pens which they had not visited for several days, "there issomething now. Very likely that trap has caught, and possibly the poorcreature that is in it, is now suffering more in body for want of foodand water, than we are in mind. Let us go and see."

  They turned aside accordingly, and found within the trap a fine younghen in a half-famished condition. She scarcely noticed them until theywere within a few paces of her, and then ran with feeble steps aroundthe pen, twitting mournfully, but without strength to fly. Robertproposed to let her go, saying that there would be no use in carryinghome a starved bird; but to this Mary objected. She was beginning tobelieve with Harold that they were destined to stay a long time on theisland. "I think," said she, "we had better take her home, and make acoop for her, and let her be the beginning of a stock of poultry. Wecan get some ducks, too, I have no doubt, and that will be so nice."

  The picture which she drew was so comfortable and pleasant, that theyagreed to put it into instant execution. They would make for her not acoop merely, but a poultry yard and house, and stock it for her withturkeys, ducks, and brant; and she and Frank should feed them everymorning on acorns and chopped venison, and then they would live likeprinces. The only particular difficulty that suggested itself in thecase was, that wild turkeys cannot be tamed. There is such an innatelove of freedom in their very blood, that even those which are raisedfrom the egg by tame hens will soon forsake the yard for the forest.

  These little pleasant plans (for after all it is _little things_ thatmake life pleasant or unpleasant), occupied their minds, and soonemployed their hands; for immediately on their return home theycommenced upon Mary's poultry house, and marked out also the limits ofthe adjoining yard. This occupied them for the two remaining days ofthat week, and it was not until the Monday following that they commencedworking upon their boats.

  In the midst of that week, however, another incident occurred, whichthreatened to be fearful enough in its consequences, and caused anotherinterruption to their work. Robert, Harold, and Sam, were engaged uponthe fallen tree; Mary was preparing their dinner, and Frank, havingfound a large beetle, was employed in driving down sticks into theground, on the plan of the picket fence, "making," as he professed, "ahouse for his turkey." He had begun to feel hungry; and as the odour ofthe broiling venison floated to his olfactories, he suddenly becameravenous. He left his beetle half penned, and was on his way to ask hissister for a mouthful or two before dinner, when directly behind thetent he saw a great black object approaching the spot where Mary stood.

  He looked a moment, uncertain what it could be, then gave a scream."Run, sister! run!" he said. "Come here! Look! look!" She looked, butsaw nothing, for the tent intervened. As Frank said "run!" he set theexample, and reaching a small tree about six inches in diameter, climbedit as nimbly as a squirrel, crying as he ran, "Come here! Come here!"

  Mary was astonished. She was sure from the tones of his voice that hewas in earnest, yet she saw no danger, and hesitated what to do.Observing him, however, climb the tree, calling earnestly to her, shewas about to follow, when in a moment it was too late. An enormous bearcame from behind the tent, snuffing the odour of the meat, and lookingvery hungry. Almost as soon as it discovered her, it rose upon its hindlegs, seeming surprised to meet a human being, and came forward with aheavy growl. Had any one been present to help, Mary would probably havescreamed and fainted, but thrown upon her own resources she ran to thefire and seized a burning brand. Then another and very fortunatethought came to her mind. The dipper, or water ladle, was in her hand;and as she drew the brand from the fire, she dipped a ladle full of theboiling, greasy water, and threw it into the breast, and upon thefore-paws of the growling beast.

  That expedient saved her life. The bear instantly dropped upon allfours, and began most piteously to whine and lick its scalded paws.Mary seeing the success of her experiment, dipped another ladle full,and threw it in its face. The bear now uttered a perfect yell of pain,and turning upon its hind legs, ran galloping past the tent, as ifexpecting every moment to feel another supply of the hot stuff upon itsback.

  All this time Frank was calling from his tree, "Come here, sister! Hecan't get you here! Come! come!" And Mary was about to go; but thebear was no sooner out of sight, than she felt very sick. BeckoningFrank to come to her, she ran towards the tent, intending to fire offone of the guns, as a signal for the large boys to return; but erereaching the door her sight failed, her brain reeled, and she fellprostrate upon the earth. Frank looked all round, and seeing that thebear was "clear gone," sprang lightly from the tree, and ran to herassistance. He had once before seen her in a fainting fit, andrecollecting that Robert had poured water in her face, and set him tofanning her, and chafing her temples and the palms of her hands, hefirst poured a dipper full of cold water on her face, then seizing theconch, blew the signal of alarm, till the woods rang again.

  This soon brought the others. Harold came rushing into the tent, and bythe time that Robert arrived, he had loosened Mary's dress, and wasrubbing her hands and wrists, while Frank fanned her, and told the taleof her fighting the bear with hot water. The boys were powerfullyexcited. Harold's eye turned continually to the woods, and he calledMum, and patted him with one hand, while he helped Mary with the other.

  "Let me attend to her now," said Robert. "I see by your eye that youwish to go. But if you will only wait a minute, I think sister will besufficiently well for me to go with you."

  "I am well enough now," she faintly replied. "You need not stay on myaccount. Do kill him. He can't be far away. Oh, the horrible"--shecovered her eyes with both hands, and shuddered.

  "But will you not be afraid to have us leave you?" asked Robert.

  "No, no; not if you go to kill that terrible creature. Do go, before hegets away."

  Sam had in the meantime hobbled in, and the boys needed no otherencouragement. Frank showed them the direction taken by the bear, andthey set out instantly in pursuit. Mum had already been smellingaround, and exhibiting signs of rage. Now he started off on a brisktrot. They followed him to a moist, mossy place, where the bearappeared to have rolled on the damp ground, and drawn the wet mossaround it to alleviate the pain of the fire; then to another low place,where he showed by his increasing excitement that the game was near athand. Indeed, they could hear every minute a half whine, half growl,which proved that the troubled beast was there in great pain, andconscious of their approach. But it did not long remain. Seeming toknow that it had brought upon itself a terrible retribution, byattacking the quiet settlement, it broke from the cover, and ran to alarge oak, in the edge of the neighbouring hammock, and when the boysarrived, they found it climbing painfully, a few feet above ground. Itshuge paws convulsively grasped the trunk, and it made desperate effortsto ascend, as if confident that climbing that tree was its only refuge,and yet finding this to fail it in its t
ime of need. Both boys preparedto shoot, but Harold beckoned to Robert.

  "Let me try him in the ear with a rifle ball, while you keep yourbarrels ready in case he is not killed."

  He advanced within ten paces, rested his rifle deliberately against atree, took aim without the quivering of a muscle. Robert saw him draw a"bead sight" on his victim, and knew that its fate was sealed. Therewas a flash, a sharp report, and the heavy creature fell to the earth,like a bag of sand, and the dark blood, oozing from ears and nose,proved that its sufferings and its depredations were ended for ever.

  "He will give us plenty of fresh pork, the monster!" said Harold,endeavouring to quell his emotions, by taking a utilitarian view of thecase, and, in consequence, making a singular medley of remarks, "Whatclaws and teeth! I don't wonder that Mary fainted! She is a bravegirl!"

  "Yes, indeed," replied Robert; "there is not one girl in a thousand thatcould have stood her ground so well. And that notion of fighting withhot water--ha! ha! I must ask where she got it. It is capital. Onlysee here, Harold, how this fellow's foot is scalded; this is the secretof his climbing so badly."

  Mary's hot water had done its work effectually. The bear was terriblyscalded on its paws, breast, face, and back of its head. The boys bledit, as they did their other game, by cutting through the jugular veinand carotid artery; but wishing to relieve Mary's mind as soon aspossible, they returned to inform her that her enemy was dead.

  "And pray tell me, sister," said Robert merrily, after recounting thescene just described, "where did you learn your new art of fightingbears?"

  "From cousin Harold," she replied.

  "From me, cousin!" Harold repeated. "Why, I never heard of such a thingin my life. How _could_ I have told you?"

  "You said one day," Mary continued, "that wild beasts are afraid offire, and that they cannot endure the pain of a burn. Now when I tookup the brand to defend myself, according to your rule, I remembered that_hot water_ hurts the most, and that moreover I could _throw_ it. Butif you had not mentioned the one, I should not have thought of theother."

  "I think you deserve a patent," said Harold, patting her pale cheek."You have beat the whole of us, not excepting Robert, who was a perfecthero in his day; for he conquered a panther with duck-shot, but you haveconquered a bear with a ladle. Why, cousin Mary, if ever we return to acivilized country we shall have to publish you for a heroine."

  She smiled at these compliments, but remarked that she was not heroineenough to covet another such trial; for that she was a coward after all.

  "And you, Master Frank," said Robert, whose pleasurable feeling exciteda disposition to teaze, "you climbed into a tree."

  "Indeed I did," replied Frank, "as fast as I could, and tried to getsister Mary there too. But she would stay and fight the bear with hotwater. Sister, why did you not come?"

  "I did not know why you called," she answered. "I did not see anything,and did not know which way to run."

  "I think, cousin," remarked Harold, "that if you had run when Frankcalled, you would have saved yourself the battle. The bear was afteryour meat, not after you; and if you had only been willing to give upthat dinner, which you defended so stoutly, he would probably have eatenit, and let you alone."

  With this lively chatting, Mary was so much cheered, that she joinedthem at dinner, and partook slightly of the choice bits that her brotherand cousin pressed upon her. The afternoon was spent in preparing theflesh of their game. They treated it in every respect as they wouldpork, except that the animal was flayed; and they found the flesh wellflavoured and pleasant. The parings and other fatty parts were byrequest turned over to Sam, who prepared from them a soft and usefulgrease. The skin was stretched in the sun to dry, after which it wassoaked in water, cleansed of all impurities, and rubbed well with saltand saltpetre (William had put up a quantity), and finally with thebear's own grease. After it had been nicely cured, Harold made a presentof it to Mary, who used it as a mattress so long as she lived upon theisland.

  Warned so impressively to protect their habitation against wild beasts,the boys spent the rest of the week in erecting a suitable enclosure.They planted a double row of stakes around the tent and kitchen, fillingup the interstices with twigs and short poles. The fence was higherthan their heads, and there was a rustic gateway so contrived that at alittle distance it looked like part of the fence itself.