Paul and Virginia . 80 PAUL AND VIRGINIA. enfolded within its leaves, is well adapted for food ; but,although the stock of the tree is not thicker than a mans leg, it grows to above sixty feet inheight. The wood of the tree, indeed,is composed only of very finefilaments ; but the bark is so hardthat it turns the edge of thehatchet, and Paul was not fur-nished even witha knife. At lengthhe thought of set-ting fire to thepalm tree; but anew difficulty oc-curred : he hadno steel withwhich to strikefire, and, althoughthe whole islandis covered withrocks, I do notbelieve it is possible to find a si
Paul and Virginia . 80 PAUL AND VIRGINIA. enfolded within its leaves, is well adapted for food ; but,although the stock of the tree is not thicker than a mans leg, it grows to above sixty feet inheight. The wood of the tree, indeed,is composed only of very finefilaments ; but the bark is so hardthat it turns the edge of thehatchet, and Paul was not fur-nished even witha knife. At lengthhe thought of set-ting fire to thepalm tree; but anew difficulty oc-curred : he hadno steel withwhich to strikefire, and, althoughthe whole islandis covered withrocks, I do notbelieve it is possible to find a single flint. Necessity,however, is fertile in expedients, and the most useful. PAUL AND VIRGINIA. 81 inventions have arisen from men placed in the most destitutesituations. Paul determined to kindle a fire after the manner ofthe negroes. With the sharp end of a stone he madea small hole in the branch of a tree that was quite dry,and which he held between his feet: he then, with theedge of the same stone, brought to a point another drybranch of a different sort of wood, and, afterward, placingthe piece of pointed wood in the small hole of the branchwhich he held with his feet, and turning it rapidly betweenhis hands, in a few minutes smoke and sparks of fireissued from the point of contact. Paul then heapedtogether dried grass and branches, and set fire to the footof the palm tree, which soon fell to the ground with atremendous crash. The fire was further useful to himin stripping off the long, thick, and pointed leaves withinwhich the cabbage was enclosed. Having thus succeededin obtaining this fruit, they ate part of it raw and partdressed upon the ashes, which
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