When a great stack of the willow wands had been cut, Clay and Jule began roughly braiding them together. In this way two mattresses a foot in thickness and nearly twelve feet square were constructed before noon. During all this time the boys had seen nothing of Chet, of Mose, or of the negroes who had camped on the shore the previous night. They had also overlooked breakfast!
The novelty of their employment had so engaged their attention that they felt no need of food until Teddy appeared on the deck sitting up like a man, begging for his breakfast! Then Alex. threw down the wands he was carrying to Clay, who was doing the weaving at that time, and sprang over to the boat with a chuckle of amusement.
“You’re all right, Teddy Bear!” he cried. “We don’t know enough to eat when we’re hungry, do we? We’ll show ’em what it is to feed up right without delay.”
“What you going to get for dinner?” demanded Jule, putting a hand to his stomach to show how empty it was. “I want a whale fried whole!”
“Get your whale, then,” advised Alex.
“Perhaps you think I can’t!” laughed Jule. “Pass out my line and rod and I’ll show you whether I’m a fisherman or not!”
Alex. did as requested and Jule waded through the mud to where there was a bit of hard ground, next the island, with a little swirl of water close by.
“Watch me now!” he cried.
But the boys did not care to watch him. Case and Clay continued the work of braiding mattresses, and Alex. got out a gun and sat on deck watching for ducks, of which there were plenty in that vicinity. Presently a yell from Jule called the attention of the others to him. He was fighting a fish which seemed to the astonished boys to be not less than ten feet in length, and the fish was pulling him down stream.
“Give me a hand!” the boy shouted. “He’s pulling me in!”