Notwithstanding the gigantic plan suggested by the enterprising characters of Fritz and Jack, I had little hope of being able to effect the excavation of a dwelling in the side of the rock. Robinson Crusoe is supposed to have found a spacious cavern that merely required arrangement; no such cavity was apparent in our rock, which bore the aspect of primitive existence, and was of extreme hardness; so that with our limited powers, three or four summers would scarcely suffice to execute the design. Still, the earnest desire of a more substantial habitation to defend us from the elements, perplexed me incessantly, and I resolved to make at least the attempt of cutting out a recess that should contain the gunpowder, the most valuable of all our treasures; by which means it would be secured against injury from the vicissitudes of the weather. With this resolution I set off one day, accompanied by my two valiant workmen Fritz and Jack, leaving their mother at her spinning with her assistants Ernest and Francis. We took with us pickaxes, chisels, hammers, and iron levers, to try what impression we could make on the rock. I chose a part nearly perpendicular, and much better situated than our tent: the view from it was enchanting; for it embraced the whole range of Safety Bay, the banks of Jackal’s Stream and Family Bridge, and many of the picturesque projections of the rocks. I marked out with charcoal the circumference of the opening we wished to make, and we began the heavy toil of piercing the quarry. We made so little progress the first day, that in spite of all our courage we were tempted to relinquish the undertaking; we persevered however, and my hope was somewhat revived as I perceived the stone was of a softer texture as we penetrated deeper: we concluded from this, that the ardent rays of the sun striking upon the rock had hardened the external layer, and that the stone within would increase in softness as we advanced, and we admitted a ray of hope that the substance would prove to be a species of calcareous stone. When I had cut about a foot in depth, we could loosen it with the spade like dried mud; this determined me to proceed with double ardour, and my boys assisted me in the task with a zeal beyond their years.
After a few days of assiduous labour we measured the opening, and found we had already advanced seven feet into the rock. Fritz removed the fragments in a barrow, and discharged them in a line before the place to form a sort of terrace; I applied my own labour to the upper part to enlarge the aperture; Jack, the smallest of the three, was able to get in and cut away below. He had with him a long iron bar sharpened at the end, which he drove in with a hammer to loosen a large piece; suddenly he bawled out: It is pierced through, father! Fritz, I have pierced it through!
Hah, hah, master Jack at his jokes again!—But let us hear, what have you pierced? Is it the mountain? Not peradventure your hand or foot, Jack? cried I:
Jack.—No, no, it is the mountain; (the rocks resounding with his usual shout of joy) huzza, huzza, I have pierced the mountain!
Fritz now ran to him. Come, let us see then; it is no doubt the globe at least you have pierced, said he, in a bantering tone: you should have pushed on your tool boldly, till you reached Europe, which they say is under our feet; I should have been glad to peep into that hole.
Jack.—Well, then, peep you may, I can assure you, but I hardly know what you will see; now come and look how far the iron is gone in, and tell me if it is all my boasting;—if there were not a hollow space behind, how could it penetrate the rock so easily?
Come hither, father, said Fritz, this is really extraordinary; his iron bar seems to have got to a hollow place; see, it can be moved in every direction. I approached, thinking the incident worth attention: I took hold of the bar, which was still in the rock, and pressing it forcibly from one side to another, I made a sufficient aperture for one of my sons to pass, and I observed that in reality the rubbish fell within the cavity, the extent of which I could not ascertain, but I judged from the falling of the stones that it was not much deeper than the part we stood on. My two lads offered to go in together and examine it: this, however, I firmly opposed: I even made them remove from the opening, as I smelled the mephitic air that issued abundantly from it, and began myself to feel giddiness in consequence of having gone too near; so that I was compelled to withdraw quickly, and inhale a purer air. Beware, my dear children, said I in terror, of entering such a perilous cavern; life might be suddenly extinguished there.
Jack.—What, lose our lives, father! do you think then it contains lions or tigers? Only give me a gun, and let me speak a word to them.
Fritz.—How can you think such animals could live there? Father may indeed fear that it is inhabited by serpents or vipers.
Jack.—And what should hinder us, pray, from killing serpents and vipers?