e shore, and the tall trees bending
over the water were beaten by the waves. It was not such a shore as is
usually formed by nature, either by extending a vast carpet of sand, or
by grouping masses of rock, but a beautiful border consisting of the
most splendid trees. The bank was raised a little above the level of the
sea, and on this luxuriant soil supported by a granite base, the fine
forest trees seemed to be as firmly planted as in the interior of the
island.

The colonists were then on the shore of an unimportant little harbour,
which would scarcely have contained even two or three fishing boats. It
served as a neck to the new creek of which the curious thing was that
its waters, instead of joining the sea by a gentle slope, fell from a
height of more than forty feet, which explained why the rising tide was
not felt up the stream. In fact, the tides of the Pacific, even at their
maximum of elevation, could never reach the level of the river, and,
doubtless millions of years would pass before the water would have worn
away the granite and hollowed a practicable mouth.

It was settled that the name of Falls River should be given to this
stream. Beyond, towards the north, the forest border was prolonged for a
space of nearly two miles, then the trees became scarcer, and beyond
that again the picturesque heights described a nearly straight line
which ran north and south. On the contrary, all the part of the shore
between Falls River and Reptile End was a mass of wood, magnificent
trees, some straight, others bent, so that the long sea swell bathed
their roots. Now, it was this coast, that is, all the Serpentine
peninsula, that was to be explored, for this part of the shore offered
a refuge to castaways, which the other wild and barren side must have
refused.

[Illustration: THE SEA.]

The weather was fine and clear, and from the height of a hillock on
which Neb and Pencroft had arranged breakfast, a wide view was obtained.
There was, however, not a sail in sight; nothing could be seen along the
shore as far as the eye could reach. But the engineer would take nothing
for granted until he had explored the coast to the very extremity of the
Serpentine peninsula.

Breakfast was soon despatched, and at half-past eleven the captain gave
the signal for departure. Instead of proceeding over the summit of a
cliff or along a sandy beach, the settlers were obliged to remain under
cover of the trees so that they might conti