it — I think we ought to follow Dinah's plan and light a fire," said Philip at last. "We've got to run the risk of the enemy seeing it and coming to find us. But we simply must do something to help anyone searching for us. We can keep a look-out for the enemy, and hide if they come."
"Hide! Where can we hide?" asked Dinah scornfully. "There isn't a single place on this island for anyone to hide!"
"No, that's true," said Jack. "No caves, no trees, except for those few little birches — and the cliffs too steep to explore. We really are in a fix!"
"Can't we do anything to help Bill?" asked Lucy-Ann dolefully. "I keep on and on thinking of him."
"So do I," said Jack. "But I don't see that we can do much to help ourselves, let alone Bill. Now — if we could escape from here — or wireless for help and get some of Bill's friends along — it would be something. But there doesn't seem anything at all to do except stay here and wait."
"There's plenty of food, anyway," said Dinah. "Stacks of tinned stuff, and biscuits and potted meat, and Nestle's milk and sardines. . . ."
"I think we'd better strip the boat of them," said Jack. "I'm surprised the enemy didn't take what they could with them. Maybe they'll come back for them — so we'll take them first. We can hide them down some of the puffin burrows."
"Let's have a bit of breakfast now," said Philip, feeling better now that they had all talked the matter over and made a few plans. "Open some tins and get some ginger-beer. Come on."
They all felt better still when they had had something to eat and drink. They had put a cover over the poor smashed wireless. They couldn't bear to look at it.
Jack went up on deck when they had finished their meal. It was very close again, and even the wind seemed warm. The sun shone through a thin veiling of cloud, and had a reddish hue. "That storm is still about," said Jack. "Come on, everyone. Let's get to work before it comes."
It was decided that Philip and Dinah should hunt for driftwood to make a fire up on the cliff. "We don't know that those aeroplanes we sometimes see belong to the enemy," said Philip. "If they don't, they may see our signal and come to circle round. Then they will send help. One might come today, even. So we'll get a fire alight. We'll bank it with dry seaweed. That will smoulder well and send up plenty of smoke."
Jack and Lucy were to carry things from the boat to the tents in Sleepy Hollow. "Take all the tins and food you can," said Philip. "If the enemy happened to come back at night and take it, we'd be done. We should starve! As it is, we've got heaps to last us for weeks."
The four children worked very hard indeed. Jack and Lucy carried sacks of tins from the boat to Sleepy Hollow. For the time being they bundled them in a heap by the tents. Kiki examined them with interest, and pecked at one or two.
"It's a good thing your beak isn't a tin-opener, Kiki," said Jack, making the first little joke that day, to try and make Lucy-Ann smile. "We shouldn't have much food left if it was."
Philip and Dinah were also very busy. They took a sack each from the boat and wandered along the shore to pick up bits of wood. They found plenty at the tide-line and filled their sacks. Then they dragged them to the top of the cliff. Huffin and Puffin went with them, solemn as ever, sometimes walking, sometimes flying.
Philip emptied his sack of wood on a good spot. He began to build a fire. Dinah went off to fill her sack with dry seaweed. There was plenty.
Soon Jack and Lucy-Ann, emptying their own sacks in Sleepy Hollow, saw a spire of smoke rising up from the cliff-top. "Look!" said Jack. "They've got it going already! Good work!"
The wind bent the smoke over towards the east. It was good thick smoke, and the children felt sure that it could be seen from quite a distance.
"One of us had always better be up here, feeding the fire, and keeping
"Hide! Where can we hide?" asked Dinah scornfully. "There isn't a single place on this island for anyone to hide!"
"No, that's true," said Jack. "No caves, no trees, except for those few little birches — and the cliffs too steep to explore. We really are in a fix!"
"Can't we do anything to help Bill?" asked Lucy-Ann dolefully. "I keep on and on thinking of him."
"So do I," said Jack. "But I don't see that we can do much to help ourselves, let alone Bill. Now — if we could escape from here — or wireless for help and get some of Bill's friends along — it would be something. But there doesn't seem anything at all to do except stay here and wait."
"There's plenty of food, anyway," said Dinah. "Stacks of tinned stuff, and biscuits and potted meat, and Nestle's milk and sardines. . . ."
"I think we'd better strip the boat of them," said Jack. "I'm surprised the enemy didn't take what they could with them. Maybe they'll come back for them — so we'll take them first. We can hide them down some of the puffin burrows."
"Let's have a bit of breakfast now," said Philip, feeling better now that they had all talked the matter over and made a few plans. "Open some tins and get some ginger-beer. Come on."
They all felt better still when they had had something to eat and drink. They had put a cover over the poor smashed wireless. They couldn't bear to look at it.
Jack went up on deck when they had finished their meal. It was very close again, and even the wind seemed warm. The sun shone through a thin veiling of cloud, and had a reddish hue. "That storm is still about," said Jack. "Come on, everyone. Let's get to work before it comes."
It was decided that Philip and Dinah should hunt for driftwood to make a fire up on the cliff. "We don't know that those aeroplanes we sometimes see belong to the enemy," said Philip. "If they don't, they may see our signal and come to circle round. Then they will send help. One might come today, even. So we'll get a fire alight. We'll bank it with dry seaweed. That will smoulder well and send up plenty of smoke."
Jack and Lucy were to carry things from the boat to the tents in Sleepy Hollow. "Take all the tins and food you can," said Philip. "If the enemy happened to come back at night and take it, we'd be done. We should starve! As it is, we've got heaps to last us for weeks."
The four children worked very hard indeed. Jack and Lucy carried sacks of tins from the boat to Sleepy Hollow. For the time being they bundled them in a heap by the tents. Kiki examined them with interest, and pecked at one or two.
"It's a good thing your beak isn't a tin-opener, Kiki," said Jack, making the first little joke that day, to try and make Lucy-Ann smile. "We shouldn't have much food left if it was."
Philip and Dinah were also very busy. They took a sack each from the boat and wandered along the shore to pick up bits of wood. They found plenty at the tide-line and filled their sacks. Then they dragged them to the top of the cliff. Huffin and Puffin went with them, solemn as ever, sometimes walking, sometimes flying.
Philip emptied his sack of wood on a good spot. He began to build a fire. Dinah went off to fill her sack with dry seaweed. There was plenty.
Soon Jack and Lucy-Ann, emptying their own sacks in Sleepy Hollow, saw a spire of smoke rising up from the cliff-top. "Look!" said Jack. "They've got it going already! Good work!"
The wind bent the smoke over towards the east. It was good thick smoke, and the children felt sure that it could be seen from quite a distance.
"One of us had always better be up here, feeding the fire, and keeping
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