CHAPTER FIVE.
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 ENLARGEDUPON.
What a joyful thing it is to awaken on a fresh, glorious morning, andfind the rising sun staring into your face with dazzling brilliancy! tohear the birds twittering in the bushes, and to hear the murmuring of arill, or the soft, hissing ripples as they fall upon the seashore! Atany time, and in any place, such sights and sounds are most charming;but more especially are they so when one awakens to them, for the firsttime, in a novel and romantic situation, with the soft, sweet air of atropical climate mingling with the fresh smell of the sea, and stirringthe strange 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.When I awoke on the morning after the shipwreck, I found myself in thismost delightful condition; and as I lay on my back upon my bed ofleaves, gazing up through the branches of the cocoa-nut trees into theclear blue sky, and watched the few fleecy clouds that passed slowlyacross it, my heart expanded more and more with an exulting gladness,the like of which I had never felt before. While I meditated, mythoughts again turned to the great and kind Creator of this beautifulworld, as they had done on the previous day when I first beheld the seaand the coral reef, with the mighty waves dashing over it into the calmwaters 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 couldkeep the second part of my promise to her--namely, that I should neveromit to say my prayers. So I rose quietly lest I should disturb mycompanions, who were still asleep, and stepped aside into the bushes forthis purpose.
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 aparoquet. It was seated on a twig that overhung Peterkin's head, and Iwas speedily lost in admiration of its bright-green plumage, which wasmingled with other gay colours. While I looked I observed that the birdturned its head slowly from side to side and looked downwards, firstwith the one eye and then with the other. On glancing downwards Iobserved that Peterkin's mouth was wide open, and that this remarkablebird was looking into it. Peterkin used to say that I had not an atomof fun in my composition, and that I never could understand a joke. Inregard to the latter, perhaps he was right; yet I think that, when theywere explained to me, I understood jokes as well as most people. But inregard to the former, he must certainly have been wrong, for this birdseemed to me to be extremely funny; and I could not help thinking thatif it should happen to faint, or slip its foot, and fall off the twiginto Peterkin's mouth, he would perhaps think it funny too! Suddenlythe paroquet bent down its head and uttered a loud scream in his face.This awoke him, and with a cry of surprise, he started up, while thefoolish bird flew precipitately away.
"Oh, you monster!" cried Peterkin, shaking his fist at the bird. Thenhe yawned, 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 withdelight, and he uttered a faint "Hurrah!" and yawned again. Then hegazed slowly round, till, observing the calm sea through an opening inthe bushes, he started suddenly up as if he had received an electricshock, uttered a vehement shout, flung off his garments, and rushingover the white sands, plunged into the water. The cry awoke Jack, whorose on his elbow with a look of grave surprise; but this was followedby a quiet smile of intelligence on seeing Peterkin in the water. Withan energy that he only gave way to in moments of excitement, Jackbounded to his feet, threw off his clothes, shook back his hair, andwith a lion-like spring, dashed over the sands and plunged into the seawith such force as quite to envelop Peterkin in a shower of spray. Jackwas a remarkably good swimmer and diver, so that after his plunge we sawno sign of him for nearly a minute, after which he suddenly emerged,with a cry of joy, a good many yards out from the shore. My spiritswere so much raised by seeing all this that I, too, hastily threw off mygarments and endeavoured to imitate Jack's vigorous bound; but I was soawkward that my foot caught on a stump, and I fell to the ground. ThenI slipped on a stone while running over the sand and nearly fell again,much to the amusement of Peterkin, who laughed heartily and called me a"slow coach;" while Jack cried out, "Come along, Ralph, and I'll helpyou!" However, when I got into the water I managed very well; for I wasreally a good swimmer and diver too. I could not, indeed, equal Jack,who was superior to any Englishman I ever saw; but I infinitelysurpassed Peterkin, who could only swim a little, and could not dive atall.
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 divedinto shallower water we expected to have found sand and stones, insteadof which 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; butthe most common kind was a species of branching coral, and some portionswere of a lovely pale-pink colour, others were pure white. Among thisthere grew large quantities of seaweed of the richest hues imaginable,and of the most graceful forms; while innumerable fishes--blue, red,yellow, green, and striped--sported in and out amongst the flower-bedsof this submarine garden, and did not appear to be at all afraid of ourapproaching 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 canscarcely believe 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 hoursat a 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 seaweed and among the rocks. I observed him, also, pick up one ortwo large oysters and retain them in his grasp, as if he meant to takethem up with him; so I also gathered a few. Suddenly he made a grasp ata fish with blue and yellow stripes on its back, and actually touchedits tail, but did not catch it. At this he turned towards me andattempted to smile; but no sooner had he done so than he sprang like anarrow to the surface, where, on following him, I found him gasping andcoughing and spitting water from his mouth. In a few minutes herecovered, and we both turned to swim ashore.
"I declare, Ralph," said he, "that I act
ually 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's capital! There's nothingI'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 ourburning-glass was an admirable one; and while we roasted a few oystersand ate our cocoa-nuts, we held a long, animated conversation about ourplans for the future. What those plans were, and how we carried theminto effect, the reader shall see hereafter.