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Farther in the bush, huts, small patches of cultivation, and smoking ovens, have been found by hunters. There are still three runaways in the woods of Tutuila, whither they escaped upon a raft. For the Samoans are not cannibals, do not seem to remember when they were, and regard the practice with a disfavour equal to our own.
Moreover, he was strong for his age, and therefore his stroke was sufficient to match that of the sailor, given more gently for the purpose. Propelled by the two oars, the raft made way with considerable rapidity, not as a boat would have done, but still at the rate of two or three knots to the hour.
Alice eagerly inquired what they were looking at. Walter having told her what the mate said, could with difficulty persuade her to remain on the raft, so anxious was she to climb up to see the object in sight.
The little pilot-fish, after coming within twenty fathoms of the raft, had turned suddenly in the water, and gone back to the sharks; and now it was seen swimming a few feet in advance of them, as if in the act of leading them on!
"It's a big thing Major," the young man said in conclusion, after explaining these details at the dinner-table; "and it's not only a big thing in itself, but it will lead to other contracts equally good." "I should like nothing better than to join you in such an enterprise Billy," replied the Major; "but I don't see how I can go into it just now, with this affair of Winn and the raft on my hands.
"There it is!" answered Fragoso, pointing to a pirogue then coming up to the raft with the corpse. "But what has been the matter, Benito?" asked Manoel. "Has it been the want of air?" "No!" said Benito; "a puraque attacked me! But the noise? the detonation?" "A cannon shot!" replied Manoel. "It was the cannon shot which brought the corpse to the surface."
The soldiers forbear to fire, and watch, with something like dread, the descent of the raft as it passes into the current, and, with many a turn and pitch, whirls on faster and faster. The death-song rises triumphant above the lash of the waves and that distant but awful booming that is to be heard in the canon.
"Do I win?" "No, Bilge," I said sadly, "you lose." But I mustn't dwell on the days that followed the long quiet days of lazy dreaming on the raft, during which I slowly built up my strength, which had been shattered by privation. They were days, dear reader, of deep and quiet peace, and yet I cannot recall them without shedding a tear for the brave man who made them what they were.
But you see, I have been on lost ships afore now, an' I know there is no larboard nor starboard rules when men are skeered. So I shall make my raft to hold the womenfolk, for the boats will be for the sailors mark my word and them that's wise will wait till the press is over and take the rafts." "There are little children," I said; "six of them belonging to that lady and Mr. Lamarque.
One day the girl said to him: "Suppose these men make trouble over that man you killed and those others." "Let them," said Raft, "I'll tell my yarn it's plain enough I'm not going to tell no lies. The chap tried to drive us off, and we lost and near done for, and he hit me a welt on top of all. He got his gruel."
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