One  day,  while  Peterkin  and  I  were  seated  beside
our  table,  on  which  dinner  was  spread,  Jack  came
up  from  the  beach,  and,  flinging  down  his  axe,
exclaimed —

"  There,  lads,  the  boat's  finished  at  last !  So  we've
nothing  to  do  now  but  shape  two  pair  of  oars,  and
then  we  may  put  to  sea  as  soon  as  we  like."

This  piece  of  news  threw  us  into  a  state  of  great
joy ;  for,  although  we  were  aware  that  the  boat  had
been  gradually  getting  near  its  completion,  it  had
taken  so  long  that  we  did  not  expect  it  to  be  quite
ready  for  at  least  two  or  three  weeks.  But  Jack
had  wrought  hard  and  said  nothing,  in  order  to
surprise  us.
"My  dear  fellow,"  cried  Peterkin,  "you're  a
perfect  trump.  But  why  did  you  not  tell  us  it
was  so  nearly  ready?  Won't  we  have  a  jolly  sail
to-morrow,  eh  ?  "

"  Don't  talk  so  much,  Peterkin,"  said  Jack;  "  and,
pray  hand  me  a  bit  of  that  pig."

"  Certainly,  my  dear,"  cried  Peterkin,  seizing  the
axe.  "  What  part  will  you  have  ?  A  leg,  or  a  wing,
or  a  piece  of  the  breast — which  ?  "

"  A  hind  leg,  if  you  please,"  answered  Jack ;  "  and,
pray,  be  so  good  as  to  include  the  tail."

"  With  all  my  heart,"  said  Peterkin,  exchanging
the  axe  for  his  hoop-iron  knife,  with  which  he  cut  off
the  desired  portion.  "  I'm  only  too  glad,  my  dear
boy,  to  see  that  your  appetite  is  so  wholesale,  and
there's  no  chance  whatever  of  its  dwindling  down  into
re-tail  again,  at  least,  in  so  far  as  this  pig  is  con-


152  The  Coral  Island.
