Jethou | Page 9

cheek, so that I knew that he, too, was
greatly moved at losing me for such a long period. A firm grip of the
hand told without words how we, father and son, loved each other, and
to hide my emotion I tumbled over the bulwarks into the dingy, and
was pulled ashore by a couple of hands, amid the hearty cheers of the
men who stood on deck. They gave me a salute of twelve guns (fired
from two revolvers).
I stood on the rocky shore and waved a tablecloth tied to a boat-hook
till the vessel was hull down on the horizon, and then turned my face to
my island home, not feeling nearly so happy as I had anticipated a

month before. Alone! I felt as if the whole world had departed from me,
and that I was the sole survivor of the human race.
[Illustration: Decorative chapter heading]
CHAPTER III.
FIRST THOUGHTS AND IMPRESSIONS--A TOUR OF THE
ISLAND AND DESCRIPTION.
As I walked up the rocky path leading to the house, I must confess I felt
anything but sprightly. I felt that Crusoe life, after all, was not all
caviare. I was very depressed, and must admit a few tears, as the whole
force of what I had undertaken presented itself vividly to my mind.
What if I met with an accident? What if I were taken ill? Suppose
someone put in at night and cut my throat for the sake of plunder? Who
would help me? Who would know of my position? Might I not die any
one of a hundred deaths without the fact being known for weeks,
perhaps months? What did this idiotic idea of mine amount to after all?
Where was the pleasure? Would it not be better to be home in dear old
Barton with my skiff and pretty Priscilla?
Such were some of my thoughts, but my depression I cannot so readily
sprinkle on paper, and will not try to describe it. Let it suffice that I was
depressed, and deeply too.
I felt thirsty, so wandered to the house and sat down and poured myself
out a bottle of Bass, and as I drank it, became aware of the presence of
my dog, who placed his muzzle in my hand and looked into my face
with positively tears in his dear old eyes. Why, after all, I was not alone.
No, here was a friend indeed (teste Byron), who would be ever by my
side in weal and woe. "Poor dog, are you hungry then?" Yes he was,
and by the bye, why should I not try something? We ate; and in half an
hour--such is the changeableness of the human mind--I was as happy as
a sand-boy (whatever that may be), as I wandered by the sunny shore.
I would make a tour of inspection of my estate; and, reader, if you will
kindly accompany me, I will show you the different sights of my little

island.
Jethou, I must premise, is about half a mile long by a quarter wide. It
rises steeply from the sea all round, except at the North end, where the
slope is somewhat gentle. It is a dome-shaped mass, rising at the
summit to a height of nearly three hundred feet. It may serve to give a
good idea of its form if I liken it to a huge dish cover (a Britannia metal
one, if you will, for it is crown property), as it is very symmetrical
when viewed from a distance. It is, in fact, a huge bosom-like hill,
around which three paths are cut; the first varying from fifty to a
hundred feet above the sea, the second averages one hundred and fifty
feet above high water, and another runs round perhaps fifty feet higher
still. These paths at certain points are connected by other paths, so that
one may readily get from one elevation to another, except where the
island is unusually steep, when zig-zag paths have to be negotiated. In
one part seven or eight zig-zags have to be walked to rise to an
elevation of about sixty or seventy feet, so steep is the south end of the
island. At the north-west rises a curious pyramidal mass of granite,
about one hundred and twenty feet above high water, called Creviçon,
which may be reached on foot at low tide or even quarter flood; but
after the tide once gets above the boulders it comes in like a mill race,
rising at times during certain winds as much as seven feet within the
hour; so that one may be cut off from the main island in a very few
minutes, as it would be madness to try and cross during a heavy sea,
whatever excellent swimming powers one might