sufficient, and we formed the boat in a very rounded, barrel-like
shape, in order to have as little twisting of the planks as
possible; for, although we could easily bend them, we could not
easily twist them. Having no nails to rivet the planks with, we
threw aside the ordinary fashion of boat building and adopted one
of our own. The planks were therefore placed on each other's
edges, and sewed together with the tough cordage already mentioned.
They were also thus sewed to the stem, the stern, and the keel.
Each stitch or tie was six inches apart, and was formed thus:
Three holes were bored in the upper plank and three in the lower, -
the holes being above each other, that is, in a vertical line.
Through these holes the cord was passed, and, when tied, formed a
powerful stitch of three ply. Besides this, we placed between the
edges of the planks, layers of cocoa-nut fibre, which, as it
swelled when wetted, would, we hoped, make our little vessel water-
tight. But in order further to secure this end, we collected a
large quantity of pitch from the bread-fruit tree, with which, when
boiled in our old iron pot, we payed the whole of the inside of the
boat, and, while it was yet hot, placed large pieces of cocoa-nut
cloth on it, and then gave it another coat above that. Thus the
interior was covered with a tough water-tight material; while the
exterior, being uncovered, and so exposed to the swelling action of
the water, was we hoped, likely to keep the boat quite dry. I may
add that our hopes were not disappointed.

While Jack was thus engaged, Peterkin and I sometimes assisted him,
but, as our assistance was not much required, we more frequently
went a-hunting on the extensive mud-flats at the entrance of the
long valley which lay nearest to our bower. Here we found large
flocks of ducks of various kinds, some of them bearing so much