soning--again pointed the
revolver, this time straight at his wide-open mouth, and again pressed
the trigger. On this occasion the explosion came off all right; then,
while the report still rang in my ears the huge body of the ape, with a
curious writhing motion, crashed down upon me and dashed me violently to
the ground. We fell side by side, I upon my back, and the ape face
downward. A convulsive shudder shook the body for a moment, and then it
lay still. As for me, I remained where I had fallen, breathless, dazed,
and half stunned, until I was aroused by Billy, who, springing ashore,
rushed up to ask anxiously whether I was very much hurt. Fortunately, I
was not; I was scarcely even bruised by my fall, and I scrambled to my
feet not a penny the worse for my rather grim encounter.

I lingered on the beach for nearly half an hour, in the expectation that
some of the natives might possibly return and thus afford me an
opportunity to establish something in the nature of amicable relations
with them; but none of them did; eventually, therefore, I got the boat
afloat again and made sail on our way back to the wreck, abandoning for
the moment all idea of further exploration.

CHAPTER NINE.

WE SETTLE DOWN ON EDEN.

We found the wreck, as of course we had quite expected, in precisely the
same condition as we had left her. As I stowed the boat's sails and
made her securely fast to the wreck it was my fixed intention to
continue our exploration on the following day, but as I sat on deck that
night, smoking a final pipe before turning in, my plans underwent a
certain amount of modification. I had quite come to the conclusion that
the tiny islet that formed the easternmost extremity of the group was
the spot on which we ought to take up our abode in view of our hope of
eventual rescue; and while considering the matter it also occurred to me
that since it was impossible to forecast the duration of our detention
upon the group--it might run to months, for aught that I could tell--a
reasonably comfortable dwelling of some sort--something less susceptible
to the vicissitudes of weather than a mere tent, for instance--was an
absolute necessity. I therefore spent the ensuing four days in planning
such a house as Billy and I might, between us, be able to construct; and
by the end of that time I had got it satisfactorily planned out on
paper. I determined to build it entirely of wood, first, because the
wreck afforded u