Books: The Little Savage
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Captain Marryat >> The Little Savage
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"Very well," replied I. "I will tell you everything, but it will
take a long while."
"We shall have plenty of time to spare, my dear boy, I fear, before
we leave this place; so, never mind time--tell me everything."
I commenced my narrative, but I was interrupted.
"Have you never been able to call your own mother to your memory?"
said she.
"I think I can now, since I have seen you, but I could not before. I
now can recollect a person dressed like you, kneeling down and
praying by my side; and I said before, the figure has appeared in my
dreams, and much oftener since you have been here."
"And your father?"
"I have not the slightest remembrance of him, or anybody else except
my mother."
I then proceeded, and continued my narrative until it was time to go
to bed; but as I was very circumstantial, and was often interrupted
by questions, I had not told a quarter of what I had to say.
Chapter XXVII
Mrs Reichardt had promised to give me a history of the Bible; and
one day, when the weather kept us both at home, she thus commenced
her narrative:--
"The Bible is a history of God's doings for the salvation of man. It
commences with the fall of man by disobedience, and ends with the
sacrifice made for his reinstatement. As by one man, Adam, sin came
into the world, so by one man, Jesus Christ, was sin and death
overcome. If you will refer to the third chapter of Genesis, at the
very commencement of the Bible, you will find that at the same time
that Adam receives his punishment, a promise is made by the Lord,
that the head of the serpent shall hereafter be bruised. The whole of
the Bible, from the very commencement, is an announcement of the
coming of Christ; so that as soon as the fault had been committed,
the Almighty, in his mercy, had provided a remedy. Nothing is unknown
or unforeseen by God.
"Recollect, Frank, that the Bible contains the history of God's
doings, but it does not often tell us why such things were done. It
must be sufficient for us to know that such was the will of God; when
he thinks proper, he allows us to understand his ways, but to our
limited capacities, most of his doings are inscrutable. But, are we
to suppose that, because we, in our foolishness, cannot comprehend
his reasons, that therefore they must be cavilled at? Do you
understand me, Frank?"
"Yes," replied I; "I do pretty well."
"As I pointed out to you the other day, you see the blade of grass
grow, and you see it flower, but how it does so you know not. If then
you are surrounded all your life with innumerable things which you
see but cannot comprehend--when all nature is a mystery to you--even
yourself--how can you expect to understand the dealings of God in
other things? When, therefore, you read the Bible, you must read it
with faith."
"What is faith? I don't quite understand, mother."
"Frank, I have often told you of many things that are in England,
where you one day hope to go. Now, if when you arrive in England, you
find that everything that I have told you is quite true, you will be
satisfied that I am worthy of belief."
"Yes."
"Well, suppose some one were to tell you something relative to any
other country, which you could not understand, and you came to me and
asked me if such were the case, would you, having found that I told
you truth with regard to England, believe that what you had been told
of this other country was true, if I positively asserted that it was
so?"
"Of course I should, mother."
"Well, then, Frank, that would be faith; a belief in things not only
not seen, but which you cannot understand. But to go on, I mention
this because some people are so presumptuous as to ask the why and
the wherefore of God's doings, and attempt to argue upon their
justice, forgetting that the little reason they have is the gift of
God, and that they must be endowed with intellect equal to the
Almighty, to enable them to know and perceive that which he decides
upon. But if God has not permitted us to understand all his ways,
still, wherever we can trace the finger of God, we can always
perceive that everything is directed by an all-wise and beneficent
hand; and that, although the causes appear simple, the effects
produced are extraordinary and wonderful. We shall observe this as we
talk over the history of the Jews, in the Bible. But, I repeat, that
we must study the whole of the Bible with faith, and not be
continually asking ourselves, 'Why was this done?' If you will turn
to the ninth chapter of the Epistle to the Romans, you will see what
the Apostle Paul says on the subject: 'Nay but, O man, who art thou
that repliest against God?' Shall the thing formed say to him that
formed it, 'Why hast thou made me thus?' Do you not understand in
what spirit the Bible should be read?"
"Yes, I do. We must read it as the Word of God, and believe all that
we read in it."
"Exactly;--now we will proceed. After Adam's fall, the earth became
so wicked that God destroyed it, leaving but Noah and his family to
re-people it; and as soon as this was done, the Almighty prepared for
his original intention for the future salvation of men. He selected
Abraham, who was a good man, and who had faith, to be the father of a
nation chosen for his own people--that was the Jewish nation. He told
him that his seed should multiply as the stars in the heavens, and
that all the nations of the earth should be blessed in him; that is,
that from his descendants should Christ be born, who should be the
salvation of men. Abraham's great-grandchildren were brought into
Egypt, to live apart in the land of Goshen. You have read the history
of Joseph and his brethren?"
"Oh yes; I know that well."
"Well, the Almighty wished the Jews should be a nation apart from
others, and for that purpose he brought them into Egypt. But observe,
Frank, by what simple and natural causes this was effected. It was by
a dream of Joseph's, which, when he told them of it, irritated his
brothers against him; they sold him as a slave, and he was sent into
Egypt. There, having explained the dream of Pharaoh, he was made a
ruler over Egypt, and saved that country from the famine which was in
every other land. His brothers come down to buy corn, and he
recognises them. He sends for his father and all the family, and
establishes them in the land of Goshen, as shepherds, apart from the
Egyptians. Here they multiplied fast; but after Joseph's elevation
they were cruelly treated by the Egyptians, who became afraid of
their rapid increase, and eventually the Kings of Egypt gave orders
that all the male children of the Jews should be destroyed. It was at
this time, when they were so oppressed and cruelly treated by the
Egyptians, that God interfered and sent for Moses. Moses, like all
the rest of the Jews, knew nothing of the true God, and was difficult
to persuade, and it was only by miracles that he was convinced."
"Why did God keep the Jews apart from the Egyptians, and have them
thrown in bondage?"
"Because he wished to prepare them to become his own peculiar
people. By their being descended from Abraham, and having never
intermarried with other nations, they had become a pure race; by
being in bondage and severely treated, they had suffered and become
united as a people. They knew no Gods but those worshipped by the
Egyptians, and these Gods it was now the intention of the Almighty to
confound, and prove to the Jews as worthless. At the same time he
worked with his own nation in mystery, for when Moses asked him what
God he was to tell his people that he was, the Almighty only replied
by these words--_I am_; having no name like all the false Gods
worshipped by the Egyptians. He was now about to prove, by his
wonderful miracles, the difference between himself and the false Gods."
"What are miracles?"
"A miracle is doing that which man has no power of doing, proving
that the party who does it is superior to man: for instance--to
restore a dead man to life is a miracle, as none but God, or those
empowered by God could do. Miracles were necessary, therefore, to
prove to the Jews that the Almighty was the true God, and were
resorted to by him in this instance, as well as in the coming of Our
Saviour, when it was also necessary to prove that he was the Son of
God. When the Almighty sent Moses to Pharaoh to demand that the
Israelites should have permission to sacrifice in the desert, he
purposely hardened the heart of Pharaoh that he might refuse the
request."
"But why did he so?"
"Because he wanted to prove to the Israelites that he was the only
true God and had Pharaoh consented to their going away, there would
have been no opportunity of performing those miracles by which the
Israelites were to be delivered, and by which they were to
acknowledge him as their God."
Mrs Reichardt often renewed this conversation, till I became
acquainted with Scriptural History.
Chapter XXVIII
The following morning, I went with Nero to take a couple of fish out
of the pool. As soon as Nero had caught them, he went into the other
part of the bathing pool to amuse himself, while I cleaned the fish,
which I generally did before I went up to the cabin, giving him the
heads and insides for his share, if I did not require any portion for
the birds. Nero was full of play that morning, and when I threw the
heads to him, as he frolicked in the water, he brought them out to
the rocks, but instead of eating them, as usual, he laid them at my
feet. I threw them in several times, and he continued to bring them
out, and my mother, coming down to me, was watching him.
"I think," said she, "you must teach Nero to fetch and carry like a
dog--try. Instead of the heads, throw in this piece of wood;" which
she now broke off the boat-hook staff.
I did so, and Nero brought it out, as he had done the heads of the
fish. I patted and coaxed the animal, and tried him again several
times with success.
"Now," said my mother, "you must accustom him to certain words when
you send him for anything. Always say, 'Fetch it, Nero!' and point
with your finger."
"Why am I to do that, mother?" I asked.
"Because the object to be gained is, not that the animal should
fetch out what you throw in, but what you send it to bring out which
you have not thrown in. Do you understand?"
"Yes," replied I. "You mean if there were anything floating near on
the sea, I should send him for it."
"Exactly. Then Nero would be of some use."
"I will soon teach him," replied I; "to-morrow I will send him into
the sea after the piece of spar. I've no fear that he will go away
now."
"I was thinking last night, Frank, whether they had taken the pail
with them in the boat."
"The pail," said I; "I know where it is, but I quite forgot it. We
left it up the ravine the last day we planted the potatoes."
"We did so, now I recollect. I will go for it while you get the
breakfast ready."
We had now been for many weeks on a fish diet, and I must confess
that I was tired of it, which was not the case when I lived upon the
dried birds during the whole of the year. Why so I cannot tell, but
I was soon to learn to relish fish, if I could obtain them.
It was not often that the wind blew direct on the shore, but coming
from the northward and eastward, it was in a slanting direction, but
occasionally, and chiefly about the time of the Equinoxes, the gales
came on very heavy from the eastward, and then the wash of the seas
upon the rocky coast was tremendous. Such was the case about this
time. A fierce gale of wind from the eastward raised a sea which
threw the surf and spray high over the loftiest of the rocks, and the
violence of the wind bore the spray far inland. The gale had come on
in the evening, and my mother and I, when we rose in the morning,
were standing on the platform before the cabin, admiring the grandeur
of the scene, but without the least idea that it was to be productive
of so much misery to ourselves. My mother pointed out to me some
passages in the Psalms and Old Testament bearing strongly upon the
scene before us; after a time I called Nero, and went down with him
to take fish out of the pool for our day's consumption. At that time
we had a large supply in the pool--more than ever, I should say.
When I arrived at the pool, I found the waves several feet in height
rolling in over the ledges, and the pool one mass of foam, the water
in it being at least two or three feet higher than usual; still it
never occurred to me that there was any mischief done, until I had
sent Nero in for the fish, and found that, after floundering and
diving for some time, he did not bring out one. My mind misgave me,
and I ordered him in again. He remained some time and then returned
without a fish, and I was then satisfied that from the rolling in of
the waves, and the unusual quantity of the water in the pool, the
whole of the fish had escaped, and that we were now without any
provisions or means of subsistence, until the weather should settle,
and enable us to catch some more.
Aghast at the discovery, I ran up to the cabin, and called to my
mother, who was in her bedroom.
"Oh, mother, all the fish have got out of the pool, and we have
nothing to eat. I told you we should be starved."
"Take time, Frank, and take breath," replied she, "and then tell me
what has happened, to cause this alarm and dismay, that you appear to
be in."
I explained to her what had happened, and that Nero could not find
one fish.
"I fear that what you say must be correct," replied she; "but we
must put our trust in God. It is his will, and whatever he wills
must be right."
I cannot say I was Christian enough at the time to acknowledge the
truth of her reply, and I answered, "If God is as good and as
gracious as you say, will he allow us to starve? Does he know that
we are starving?" continued I.
"Does he know, Frank?" replied my mother; "what does the Bible say--
that not a sparrow falls to the ground without his knowledge; and of
how much more worth are you than many sparrows? Shame upon you,
Frank!"
I was abashed but not satisfied, I therefore replied quietly, "We
have nothing to eat, mother."
"Granted that we have lost all our fish, Frank, still we are not yet
starving; the weather may moderate tomorrow, and we may catch some
more, or even if it should not till the day afterwards, we can bear
to be two days without food. Let us hope for the best and put our
trust in God--let us pray to him and ask him for his assistance. He
can rebuke these stormy waters--he can always find means of helping
those who put confidence in him, and will send us aid when all hope
appears gone. Pray, Frank, as I will do, fervently, and believing
that your prayer is heard--pray with faith, and your prayer will be
answered."
"It is not always so," replied I; "you have told me of many people
who have died of starvation."
"I grant it, and for all wise purposes they were permitted so to do,
but the Almighty had reasons for permitting it, unknown to us, but
which you may depend upon it, were good. We cannot fathom his
decrees. He may even now decide that such is to be our fate; but if
so, depend upon it, Frank, all is right, and what appears to you now
as cruel and neglectful of you, would, if the future could be looked
into by us, prove to have been an act of mercy."
"Do you think, then, that we shall starve?"
"I do not--I have too much faith in God's mercy, and I do not think
that he would have preserved our lives by preventing the men from
taking us into the boat, if we were now to starve. God is not
inconsistent; and I feel assured that, forlorn as our present
position appears to be, and tried as our faith in him may be, we
shall still be preserved, and live to be monuments of his gracious
love and kindness."
These words of my mother and the implicit confidence which she
appeared to have, much revived me. "Well," said I, "I hope you are
right, my dear mother, and now I think of it," continued I,
brightening up at the idea, "if the worst come to the worst, we can
eat the birds; I don't care much for them now, and if I did, you
should not starve, mother."
"I believe you would not hesitate to sacrifice the birds, Frank, but
a greater sacrifice may be demanded of you."
"What?" inquired I; and then after a little thought, I said, "You
don't mean Nero, mother?"
"To tell the truth, I did mean Nero, Frank, for the birds will not
be a support for more than a day or two."
"I never could kill Nero, mother," replied I gloomily, and walking
away into the cabin, I sat down very melancholy at the idea of my
favourite being sacrificed; to me it appeared quite horrible, and my
mother having referred to it, made her fall very much in my good
opinion. Alas! I was indeed young and foolish, and little thought
what a change would take place in my feelings. As for the birds, as I
really did not care for them, I resolved to kill two of them for our
day's meal, and returning to the platform I had laid hold of the two
that were there and had seized both by the neck, when my mother asked
me what I was going to do.
"Kill them, and put them in the pot for our dinner," replied I.
"Nay, Frank! you are too hasty. Let us make some little sacrifice,
even for the poor birds. We surely can fast one day without very
great suffering. To-morrow will be time enough."
I dropped the birds from my hand, tacitly consenting to her
proposal. It was not, however, for the sake of the birds that I did
so, but because one day's respite for the birds would be a day's
respite for Nero.
"Come," said my mother, "let us go into the cabin and get some work.
I will alter some of the clothes for you. What will you do?"
"I don't know," replied I, "but I will do whatever you tell me."
"Well, then, I perceive that the two fishing-lines are much worn,
and they may break very soon, and then we shall be without the means
of taking fish, even if the weather is fine, so now we will cut off
some of the whale line, and when it is unravelled, I will show you
how to lay it up again into fishing line; and, perhaps, instead of
altering the clothes, I had better help you, as fishing-lines are now
of more consequence to us than anything else."
This was an arrangement which I gladly consented to. In a short time
the whale line was unravelled, and my mother showed me how to lay it
up in three yarns, so as to make a stout fishing line. She assisted,
and the time passed away more rapidly than I had expected it would.
"You are very clever, mother," said I.
"No, my child, I am not, but I certainly do know many things which
women in general are not acquainted with; but the reason of this is,
I have lived a life of wandering, and occasional hardships. Often
left to our own resources, when my husband and I were among
strangers, we found the necessity of learning to do many things for
ourselves, which those who have money usually employ others to do for
them; but I have been in situations where even money was of no use,
and had to trust entirely to myself. I have therefore always made it
a rule to learn everything that I could; and as I have passed much of
my life in sailing over the deep waters, I obtained much useful
knowledge from the seamen, and this of laying up fishing lines is one
of the arts which they communicated to me. Now, you see, I reap the
advantage of it."
"Yes," replied I; "and so do I. How lucky it was that you came to
this island!"
"Lucky for me, do you mean, Frank?"
"No, mother! I mean how lucky for me."
"I trust that I have been sent here to be useful, Frank, and with
that feeling I cheerfully submit to the will of God. He has sent me
that I may be useful to you, I do not doubt; and if by my means you
are drawn towards him, and, eventually, become one of his children, I
shall have fulfilled my mission."
"I do not understand you quite, mother."
"No, you cannot as yet, but everything in season," replied she,
slowly musing; "'First the blade, then the ear, and then the full
corn in the ear,'"
"Mother," said I, "I should like to hear the whole story of your
life. You know I have told you all that I know about myself. Now
suppose you tell me your history, and that of your husband. You did
say that perhaps, one day you would. Do you recollect?"
"Yes, I do recollect that I did make a sort of promise, Frank, and I
promise you now that some day I will fulfil it; but I am not sure
that you will understand or profit by the history now, so much as you
may bye-and-bye."
"Well, but mother, you can tell me the story twice, and I shall be glad
to hear it again, so tell it to me now, to amuse me, and bye-and-bye
that I may profit by it."
My mother smiled, which she very seldom did, and said--
"Well, Frank, as I know you would at any time give up your dinner to
listen to a story, and as you will have no dinner to-day, I think it
is but fair that I should consent to your wish. Who shall I begin
with--with my husband or with myself?"
"Pray begin with your own history," replied I.
Chapter XXIX
"I am the daughter of a parish clerk in a small market town near the
southern coast of England, within a few miles of a large seaport."
"What is a parish clerk?" I asked, interrupting my mother at the
commencement of her promised narrative.
"A parish clerk," she replied, "is a man who is employed in the
parish or place to which he belongs, to fulfil certain humble duties
in connection with the church or place of worship where the people
meet together to worship God."
"What does he do there?" I inquired.
"He gives out the psalms that are to be sung, leads the congregation
in making their responses to the minister appointed to perform the
services of the church; has the custody of the registry of births,
deaths, and burials of the inhabitants, and the care of the church
monuments, and of other property belonging to the building. In some
places he also fulfils the duties of bell-ringer and grave-digger;
that is to say, by ringing a large bell at the top of the church, he
summons the people to their devotions, during their lives, and digs a
hole in consecrated ground, surrounding the sacred building, to
receive their bodies when dead."
I mused on this strange combination of offices, and entertained a
notion of the importance of such a functionary, which I afterwards
found was completely at variance with the real state of the case.
"My father," she resumed, "not only fulfilled all these duties, but
contrived to perform the functions of schoolmaster to the parish
children."
"What are parish children?" I asked eagerly. "I know what children
are, as Jackson represented to me that I was the child of my father
and mother, but what makes children, parish children?"
"They are the children of the poor," Mrs Reichardt replied, "who,
not being able to afford them instruction, willingly allow them to be
taught at the expense of the people of the parish generally."
I thought this a praiseworthy arrangement. I knew nothing of poors-rates,
and the system of giving relief to the poor of the parish, so long
used in England, afterwards explained to me, but the kindness and
wisdom of this plan of instruction became evident to my understanding.
I was proceeding to ask other questions, when my mother stopped them
by saying, that if I expected her to get through her story, I must
let her proceed without further interruption; for many things would
be mentioned by her which demanded explanation, for one so completely
unaware of their existence as myself, and that it would be impossible
to make me thoroughly acquainted with such things within any reasonable
time; the proper explanations, she promised, should follow. She then
proceeded.
"My father, it may be thought, had enough on his hands, but in an
obscure country town, it is not unusual for one man to unite the
occupations of several, and this was particularly the case with my
father, who, in addition to the offices I have enumerated, was the
best cattle-doctor and bone-setter within ten miles; and often earned
his bread at different kinds of farmer's work, such as thatching,
hedging, ditching and the like. Nevertheless, he found time to read
his Bible, and bring up his only daughter religiously. This daughter
was myself."
"What had become of your mother?" I asked, as I thought it strange
Mrs Reichardt should only mention one parent.
"She had died very soon after my birth," she answered, "and I was
left at first to the care of a poor woman, who nursed me; as soon,
however, as I could run about, and had exhibited some signs of
intelligence, my father began to get so partial to me, that he very
reluctantly allowed me to go out of his sight. He took great pains in
teaching me what he knew, and though the extent of his acquirements
was by no means great, it was sufficient to lay a good foundation,
and establish a desire for more comprehensive information, which I
sought every available means to obtain.
"I remember that at a very early age I exhibited an extraordinary
curiosity for a child; constantly asking questions, not only of my
father, but of all his friends and visitors, and, as they seemed to
consider me a quick and lively child, they took pleasure in
satisfying my inquisitive spirit. In this way I gained a great deal
of knowledge, and, by observation of what passed around me, a great
deal more.
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