The Swiss Family Robinson by Johann David Wyss

A landing, and consequent occupations.

By break of day we were all awake and alert, for hope as well as grief, is unfriendly to lengthened slumbers. When we had finished our morning prayer, I said, We now, my best beloved, with the assistance of heaven, must enter upon the work of our deliverance. The first thing to be done, is to give to each poor animal on board, before we leave them, a hearty meal; we will then put food enough before them for several days; we cannot take them with us; but we will hope it may be possible, if our voyage succeeds, to return and fetch them. Are you now all ready? Bring together whatever we mean to take, whatever is absolutely necessary for our wants. It is my wish that our first cargo should consist of a barrel of gunpowder, three fowling-pieces, and three carbines, with as much small shot and lead and as many bullets as our boat will bear; two pair of pocket pistols and one of large ones, not forgetting a mould to cast balls in: each of the boys and their mother also should have a bag to carry game in; you will find plenty of these in the cabins of the officers. We added a chest containing cakes of portable soup, another full of hard biscuits, an iron pot, a fishing-rod, a chest of nails and another of different utensils, such as hammers, saws, pincers, hatchets, augers, etc. and lastly some sailcloth to make a tent. In short, the boys brought so many things, that we were obliged to reject some of them, though I had already exchanged the worthless ballast for articles of use for our subsistence.