At various periods Jack and I had conveyed cocoa-nuts and other fruits,
besides rolls of cocoa-nut cloth, to this submarine cave, partly for
amusement, and partly from a feeling that we might possibly be driven
one day to take shelter here from the savages. Little did we imagine
that the first savages who would drive us into it would be white
savages, perhaps our own countrymen. We found the cocoa-nuts in good
condition, and the cooked yams, but the bread-fruits were spoiled. We
also found the cloth where we had left it, and on opening it out there
proved to be sufficient to make a bed; which was important, as the rock
was damp. Having collected it all together, we spread out our bed,
placed our torch in the midst of us, and ate our supper. It was indeed
a strange chamber to feast in; and we could not help remarking on the
cold, ghastly appearance of the walls, and the black water at our side,
with the thick darkness beyond, and the sullen sound of the drops that
fell at long intervals from the roof of the cavern into the still
water, and the strong contrast between all this and our bed and supper,
which, with our faces, were lit up with the deep red flame of the
torch.
We sat long over our meal, talking together in subdued voices, for we
did not like the dismal echoes that rang through the vault above when
we happened to raise them. At last the faint light that came through
the opening died away, warning us that it was night and time for rest.
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