Rollo at Play; Or, Safe Amusements Read online

  BRIDGE BUILDING

  Rollo went on, down the green lane, till he came to the turn-stile, andthen went through into the field. He then followed a winding path untilhe came to the edge of the trees, and there stopped to listen.

  He heard the brook gurgling along over the stones, and that was all atfirst; but presently he began to hear the strokes of an axe. He calledout as loud as he could,

  "Jonas! Jonas!"

  But Jonas did not hear.

  Then he walked along the edge of the woods till he came nearer the placewhere he heard the axe. He found here a little opening among the treesand bushes, so that he could look in. He saw the brook, and over beyondit, on the opposite bank, was Jonas, cutting down a small tree.

  So Rollo walked on until he came to the brook, and then asked Jonas howhe should get over. The brook was pretty wide and deep.

  Jonas said, if he would wait a few minutes, he would build him a bridge.

  "_You_ cannot build a bridge," said Rollo.

  "Wait a little and see."

  So Rollo sat down on a mossy bank, and Jonas, having cut down the smalltree, began to work on a larger one that stood near the bank.

  After he had cut a little while, Rollo asked him why he did not beginthe bridge.

  "I am beginning it," said he.

  Rollo laughed at this, but in a minute Jonas called to him to standback, away from the bank; and then, after a few strokes more, the top ofthe tree began to bend slowly over, and then it fell faster and faster,until it came down with a great crash, directly across the brook.

  "There!" said Jonas, "there is your bridge."

  Rollo looked at it with astonishment and pleasure.

  "Now," said Jonas, "I will come and help you over."

  "No," said Rollo, "I can come over myself. I can take hold of thebranches for a railing."

  So Rollo began to climb along the stem of the tree, holding oncarefully by the branches. When he reached the middle of the stream, hestopped to look down into the water.

  "This is a capital bridge of yours, Jonas," said he. "How beautiful thewater looks down here! O, I see a little fish! He is swimming along by agreat rock. Now he is standing perfectly still. O, Jonas, come and seehim."

  "No," said Jonas, "I must mind my work."

  After a little time, Rollo went carefully on over the bridge, and satdown on the bank of the brook. But he did not have with him the parcelhis mother gave him. He had left it on the other side.

  After he had watched the fishes, and thrown pebble-stones into the brooksome time, he began to be tired, and he asked Jonas what he had betterdo.

  "I think you had better build a wigwam."

  "A wigwam? What is a wigwam?" said Rollo.

  "It is a little house made of bushes such as the Indians live in."

  "O, I could not make a house," said Rollo.

  "I think you could if I should tell you how, and help you a little."

  "But you say _you_ must mind your work."

  "Yes,--I can mind my work and tell you at the same time."

  Rollo thought he should like to build a wigwam very much. Jonas told himthe first thing to be done was to find a good place, where the groundwas level. Rollo looked at a good many places, but at last chose asmooth spot under a great oak tree, which Jonas said he was not going tocut down. It was near a beautiful turn in the brook, where the water wasvery deep.

  Jonas told him that the first thing was to make a little stake, anddrive it down in the middle of his wigwam-ground. Then Rollo recollectedthat he had left his hatchet over on the other side of the brook,together with the parcel his mother gave him; and he was going over toget them, when Jonas told him he would trim up the bridge a little, andthen he could go over more easily.

  So Jonas went upon the bridge, and began to cut away the branches thatwere in the way, leaving enough on each side to take hold of, and tokeep Rollo from falling in. Rollo could then go back and forth easily.He held on with one hand, and carried his hatchet in the other. Then hewent over again, and brought his parcel, and laid it down near the greatoak tree.

  Then he made a little stake, and drove it down in the middle of thewigwam-ground. Then he asked Jonas what he must do next.

  "That is the centre of your wigwam; now you must strike a circle aroundit."

  "What?" said Rollo.

  "Don't you know how to strike a circle?" said Jonas.

  Rollo said he did not, and then Jonas told him to do exactly as heshould say, and that would show him.

  "First," said Jonas, "have you got a string?"

  Rollo felt in his pockets in vain, but he recollected his little parcel,which was tied with a piece of twine, and held it up to ask Jonas ifthat would do. Jonas said it would, and told him to take it offcarefully, and tie one end of it to his centre stake.

  And Rollo did so.

  "Now," said Jonas, "make another little sharp stake for the marker, andtie the other end of the twine to that, near the sharp end."

  Rollo worked busily for some time, and then called out,

  "Jonas, it is done."

  All this time, Jonas was at work in the bushes, at a little distance. Henow came to Rollo's wigwam-ground, and took hold of the marker, and heldit off as far from the middle stake as it would go, and then began tomake a mark on the ground all around the middle stake. Now, as themarker was tied to the middle stake by the string, the mark was equallydistant from the middle stake in every part, and that made it exactlyround. Then Jonas laid down the marker, and pulled out the middle stake;and they looked down and saw that there was a round mark on the ground,about as large as a cart-wheel.

  Then Jonas took the crowbar, and made deep holes all around, in thiscircle, so far apart that Rollo could just step from one to the other.But Rollo could not understand how he could make a house so.

  "I will tell you," said Jonas. "You must now go and get some largebranches of trees, and trim off the twigs from the lower end, and stickthem down in these, holes. I will show you how."

  So Jonas took a large bough, and trimmed the large end, and sharpened ita little, and then he fixed it down in one of these holes, in such amanner that the top of it bent over towards the middle of the circle;then he went back to his work, leaving Rollo to go on with the wigwam.