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“We can never at this rate,” said Koree, “construct boats enough to cross
this water. We have already toiled many days and only one man has yet
crossed and returned.”
“Even if we could get our boats ready,” replied Pounder, “we could not
rely on them to carry us safely across. Duco waited long for a good wind,
and when it came it blowed him in many directions before landing him on
the opposite shore. If we entered such vessels, we would be scattered and
lost.”
“Let us go back,” said Oko, “or we will lose all.”
Koree at this moment observed that several of the logs had floated
together, and were being driven about in a cluster. The boys were amusing
themselves by jumping from one to another, and all were being carried
along by the flood.
“If we could fasten those logs together,” he said, “they would hold many
of us, and by making several such collections we could all get across.”
This was a new idea which was immediately acted upon by the Ammi. It did
not take our early ancestors long to adopt a suggestion or introduce an
improvement. From the thought to the act was only a step, and, though
most steps were failures, they made so many that occasionally they
achieved a success.
“Collect all the logs,” he said, “and get willows and bark to fasten them
together.”
They were, therefore, soon busy collecting the logs that were in the
water, and rolling others from the land with their clubs, which they used
as levers, thus learning incidentally an important mechanical principle.
With their hatchets of flint they chopped off branches, shaped the timber
into the desired form, and even felled trees for their bark or trunks. It
was obvious that a raft would soon be constructed and set afloat.
They had shortly before built in a similar manner a small bridge near
their dwellings to enable them to cross to a dry point in the Swamp; and,
seeing a flood carry it away, (when it floated on the water), they were
not wholly unprepared to see this new raft also float.
“If one log floats why will not more?” asked Koree.
“If our bridge floated away, this also will do so,” replied another; and
they thenceforth called it the “floating bridge.”
The raft was soon finished, and a large number of men and women at once
rushed upon it, so many, indeed, that it began to sink.
This was looked upon as a failure, and the disappointment of the whole
human race was no less than when Fulton’s first steamer failed to move.
“The thing will not float,” observed Oko.
“It floated,” replied Duco, “until we all got upon it. If some would get
off it would float again.”
“But we must all cross over, or none,” replied Abroo, the Family-man.
“Let us build more rafts,” interposed Koree, “and in several of them we
can all cross.”
“Instead of this,” said Abroo, the Family-man, “let part of our hosts
cross at once, when this structure can be brought back for the others to
cross. I and my party will cross first.”
This was agreed to, except that, instead of Abroo and his clan, Duco was
chosen to take charge of the first load.
The next difficulty was in getting the raft started. It lay motionless
with its load.
“Wait till the wind rises,” said Koree.
Presently a gust struck them, but it had no effect in starting them.
“Let us push the thing with our clubs,” said Duco, at which all applied
themselves vigorously.
The raft was easily moved in this way, and continued to go as long as
they could reach bottom; but in deep water it stood still, or floated at
the mercy of the waves. Pounder tried to move it by sitting on one log
and pushing with his feet against another. Others beat the water, which
had a little effect. Duco then discovered that by pushing in the opposite
direction against the water they could make it move; and soon they were
paddling in the modern fashion. During much of the way the water was
shallow enough to permit them to use their clubs as poles, or, to get
out and push; so that they were soon far out from land and going in the
right direction.
They would now have reached the opposite shore but for Pounder, who
kept pushing in the way just described thinking he was forcing along
the raft. By reason of his vigorous efforts he snapped the bands which
held the logs together. The raft broke in pieces and he was the first to
fall through into the water. He went down between the logs which he was
pushing apart. Others fell into the water with him, but most remained
on one part or other of the raft; for it broke into nearly equal parts.
Pounder floundered awhile in the water; but, being accustomed to that,
through his previous plunges from the log, he soon got hold of one of the
rafts and lifted himself out of the water.
“These things can’t be depended on,” he said, as he regained his place on
board.
They had now two rafts instead of one, and they pushed and paddled on
each. Pounder, instead of sitting on one log and pushing against another,
next took a seat on one log and pushed with his feet against a knot
on the same log, and believed he was rendering the principal aid in
propelling the raft.
It was easier to proceed with two small rafts than one large one, and
accordingly both were soon landed on the opposite shore, but not till
several of the passengers had fallen overboard and the craft had been
badly damaged.
This was the first water voyage made by the human race. After repairing
their vessels they returned and brought over the remaining hosts, but
not without similar mishaps. Gimbo, the grandfather of Sosee, fell,
with others, into the water, and was nearly drowned. Only by standing on
tiptoes could he keep his head above water until he was rescued, when he
made the following observation:
“The water is the only place where it is better to walk on two feet than
on four.”
Having now crossed the lake it was proposed by Oko that they keep the
rafts. “We spent too much work on them,” he said, “to throw them away.”
“We cannot take them with us,” replied Koree.
“We may want them when we return,” interposed Duco; “so let us fasten
them where we can find them.”
“And let us leave somebody here to watch them,” said Oko, apprehensive
lest some of their property should be lost.
Like the ships of the Greeks on the coast of Troy these rafts were,
accordingly, made fast, so that they should be ready for the return
voyage of the warriors at the close of the war.