occasionally they do by hunting the sheep and by night raids on the geese.

The rats came from the _Henry B. Paul_ which was wrecked on Tristan in
1882. Only about half-a-dozen got ashore, which Mr. Dodgson urged the men
to kill, pointing out what trouble they would cause if not destroyed, but
the men thought a few rats wouldn't hurt, and did nothing.



CHAPTER IV


The last chapter has related some things that obviously came later to our
knowledge. I now return to the order of my diary and letters.

_Monday, April_ 9, 1906.--Betty Cotton came in early this morning to look
after our wants. She was going to get us an early cup of tea, but at my
suggestion made it breakfast. Later on Graham and I wandered on to the
common. It was such a beautiful morning, and the sea like a mill-pond. We
found many of the women washing clothes, and had a talk with several of
them. The men had gone off early in three boats to fetch some of the
luggage from where it had been landed about eight miles away. They were
not back much before noon. Most of the women went down to meet them, and
as each boat came in assisted in dragging it up. It was a most picturesque
sight to see some half-dozen carts, each drawn by a pair of bullocks,
wending their way down to the beach to fetch up the luggage which was
lying on the shore. The small carts were slowly filled, and then the oxen
were piloted up a most rough and rocky road by boys who guided them with
their whips. Betty, Ellen and I watched it all from the cliff. A good deal
of the luggage was piled in Betty's sitting-room, and the rest taken to