no more could be done to the Neshamony, previously to
putting her into the water When our two mariners ceased the business of
the day, therefore, it was with the understanding that they would turn
out early in the morning, wedge up, and launch. An hour of daylight
remaining, Mark went up to the Summit to select a few melons, and to
take a look at the state of the plantations and gardens. Before
ascending the hill, the young man walked through his garden in the
crater, where everything was flourishing and doing well. Many of the
vegetables were by this time fit to eat, and there was every prospect of
there being a sufficient quantity raised to meet the wants of two or
three persons for a long period ahead. The sight of these fruits of his
toil, and the luxuriance of the different plants, caused a momentary
feeling of regret in Mark at the thought of being about to quit the
place for ever. He even fancied he should have a certain pleasure in
returning to the Reef; and once a faint outline of a plan came over his
mind, in which he fancied that he might bring Bridget to this place, and
pass the rest of his life with her, in the midst of its peace and
tranquillity. This was but a passing thought, however, and was soon
forgotten in the pictures that crowded on his mind, in connection with
the great anticipated event of the next day.

While strolling about the little walks of his garden, the appearance of
verdure along the edge of the crater, or immediately beneath the cliff,
caught Mark's eye. Going hastily to the spot, he found that there was a
long row of plants of a new sort, not only appearing above the ground,
but already in leaf, and rising several inches in height. These were the
results of the seeds of the oranges, lemons, limes, shaddocks, figs, and
other fruits of the tropics, that he had planted there as an experiment,
and forgotten. While his mind was occupied with other things, these
seeds had sent forth their shoots, and the several trees were growing
with the rapidity and luxuriance that distinguish vegetation within the
tropics. As Mark's imagination pictured what might be the effects of
cultivation and care on that singular spot, a sigh of regret mingled
with his hopes for the future, as he recollected he was so soon to
abandon the place for ever; while on the Summit, too, this feeling of
regret was increased, rather than diminished. So much of the grass-seed
had taken, and the roots had already so far extende