The wooding party under Paul Lizard, as soon as they had collected all the axes and large knives to be found, went off to the wood at a short distance from the landing-place. The cutter was quickly unloaded. The doctor, in the meantime, had been surveying the island across the harbour with a spy-glass. “I see several dark objects moving up the bank,” he observed. “I have no doubt they are seals; and, if so, we may hope to obtain an ample supply of fresh meat. We shall find clubs of more use than our guns,” he added; “make haste, and get some ready.” As soon as the clubs were cut from some small trees growing near the beach, the doctor, fearing that the seals might return to the water before they could get up to them, hurried his companions into the boat, which pulled away across the harbour. The launch had been hauled alongside the rocks, and as soon as she was unloaded, Harry and the boatswain set to work to erect a tent. The mast served as the ridge pole, and the spars and oars formed supports over these, while the sails of the two boats were spread and secured to the ground by stones placed along the lower edges. Besides this, the canvas was made fast with lashings and ropes to the poles. A tent of tolerable dimensions was thus formed, sufficiently large to protect all the women and children.
“Should rain come on, there is something it wants,” observed Mrs Rumbelow, who had been very active in bringing up the things from the boats. “We must spread a flooring of some sort. It will not do for Mrs Morley and the young ladies to lie on the bare ground.” Saying this, and summoning the other women, she hurried off to the wood. In a short time she and her attendants returned with loads of spruce fir-tops. These were spread over the ground at one end of the tent. The cutter’s foresail had been triced up, and served as a partition. “There, marm,” she said, addressing Mrs Morley; “we have fitted up a room for you, and the two young ladies, and Mrs Twopenny, where you may be tolerably private; I wish it were a better one. You have not been accustomed to this sort of rough life; but I and most of the other women have seen something of it before, and can manage very well in the rest of the tent. I only hope the children won’t disturb you at night.”
Mrs Morley warmly thanked her.
“Bless you, marm,” answered Mrs Rumbelow, “we have only done our duty. We could never do too much for our poor colonel’s lady; so pray, marm, don’t talk of thanks.”
Mrs Morley and the other ladies gladly took possession of that portion of the tent prepared for them, feeling truly thankful that they could rest without the dread of awaking and finding the dark seas tossing and foaming around them. As soon as the tent was set up, the boatswain and most of the other men joined the party in the wood, to collect the boughs and the thickest bushes they could find. With these they erected a number of wigwams, within which all the men might lie down and find shelter. Mrs Rumbelow would not yet let her attendants rest, but back again they went to the wood, and returned laden with as much fuel as they could carry. A large fire soon blazed up.
“I wish we had some seal-flesh ready for cooking,” observed the boatswain to her as she began busily to employ herself in roasting the last of the penguins, and the few remaining eggs which had been brought from the rock. “This sort of work makes one hungry.”
“If the doctor and the rest have any luck, we shall soon have as much as you and all hands can stow away,” she answered. “We’ll keep the fire blazing for them.”
The cutter had meantime made her way across the harbour towards the island. As she drew near it, the doctor and his party distinguished several large animals, apparently asleep, high on the beach.
“Why, I do believe they are lions!” exclaimed Peter Patch, as a huge monster, one of the nearest, lifted up its head and stared at the intruders with its large eyes. The creature’s mouth was of a prodigious size, furnished with teeth, four of which were of great length. It had long bristles on its lips, and from the neck and shoulders stood up a thick mane of coarse hair. As they continued to advance, it lifted up its head just as a dog would do, opening wide its mouth as if ready to attack them with its enormous teeth.
“I say, Dicey, surely the doctor is not going in to fight these savage creatures,” whispered Peter. “Why they will tear us to pieces and gobble us up in five minutes.”