A pleasant expedition was planned for the next day. Our visit
being principally for wooding and watering, both of which it was
necessary for us to do ourselves, Captain Count showed his usual
promptitude in commencing at once. Permission having been
obtained and, I suppose, paid for, we set out with two boats and
a plentiful supply of axes for a well-wooded promontory to
prepare a store of wood. Wood chopping is not usually looked
upon as a sailor's pastime; but we had had considerable
experience during the voyage, as a result of which most of us
could swing an axe in fine style. But the Kanakas beat us all
hollow. Delighted to get ashore again, pleased with the fine
axes as children with new toys, they laid about them in grand
style, the young trees falling right and left in scores. Anybody
would have judged that we were working piece-work, at so much a
cord, the pile grew so fast. There was such a quantity collected
that, instead of lightering it off in the boats, which is very
rough and dirty usage for them, I constructed a sort of raft
with four large spars arranged in the form of an oblong, placing
an immense quantity of the smaller stuff in between. Upright
sticks were rudely lashed here and there, to keep the pile from
bobbing out underneath, and thus loaded we proceeded slowly to
the ship with sufficient wood for our wants brought in one
journey.
Pages:
411
412
413
414
415
416
417
418
419
420
421
422
423
424
425
426
427
428
429
430
431
432
433
434
435