We had made many improvements to our homes at Falconhurst and Tentholm.
But there was one more improvement that my wife wanted us to make at Falconhurst.
"I think that our nest in the tree is perfect," she said.
"But I'd like to be able to reach it without climbing that dreadful ladder.
Can you build a flight of steps?"
"We might be able to build a staircase inside the trunk of the tree," I replied.
"I've often suspected that the trunk is hollow.
Didn't you say that you've noticed bees coming from a hole in the tree?"
Before my wife could reply, little Franz piped up.
"Oh yes! I went to look at them, and one stung me.
I almost cried but I didn't."
"Brave boy!" I said. "Let's see if the tree is really hollow."
Led by Jack, the boys were soon peeping into the hole.
They tapped the tree to see if it sounded hollow.
In their eagerness they forgot who lived in the tree.
The bees, disturbed by all this activity, swarmed out and attacked the boys.
"Ow! Ow! Ow!" cried Jack.
"Nasty bees!" said Fritz as he tried to swat them away.
My wife and I pulled the boys away from the angry bees.
They had all been stung on their hands and faces.
Before we built a staircase, we removed the bees to a new nesting place in a large gourd.
We made good use of the honey and wax that they left behind in the tree.
Then we began working on the stairs.
At the base of the tree, we made an opening for a door.
We attached a door we'd taken earlier from the captain's cabin.
Next we cleared out the rotted wood from the center of the trunk and put up a stout sapling to provide a center pole.
With planks from the wreck, we then fashioned steps.
As we worked, we cut windows in the trunk for light and air.
When we reached the top of the center pole, we added another sapling to reach the floor of our home above.
We even included two handrails!
This task took us a whole month, during which we also had to care for our animals.
By now several of the goats and sheep had produced offspring.
To keep these frisky youngsters from straying, we tied bells around their necks.
Juno produced a fine litter of puppies.
Jack introduced his little jackal, Fangs, to the litter, and, to his delight, Juno adopted the wild dog.
The other pets were also flourishing and learning new tasks.
After giving us much trouble, Storm, the buffalo, was now capable of carrying both people and things.
Fritz was so busy teaching his eagle, Pounce, to hunt live prey that he gave Knips to Ernest.
Knips was not allowed to remain idle, as Ernest decided that he should be taught to do something useful.
He and Jack made a small basket that fit on the monkey's back.
Then Ernest taught Knips to climb coconut and other tall trees and to bring down the fruit in the basket.
Jack tried to teach Fangs to retrieve, but the jackal kept eating everything it caught.
Meanwhile I was determined to have some waterproof boots before the start of the rainy season.
To make a mold, I filled a pair of socks with sand and coated them with a thin layer of clay.
Then I brushed on several layers of rubber.
When that had dried, I broke the mold and added some buffalo-hide soles.
"These are wonderful!" said Fritz as he tried on my boots.
"Can you make me a pair?"
"Me too!" cried all the other boys.
I was delighted to fill their orders, and soon everyone in the family had a pair of comfortable, durable waterproof boots.
The boys had long been complaining about having to walk to the stream and bring back heavy buckets of water.
So our next job was to build a dam with a series of pipes to carry the water to Falconhurst.
One day, as we were finishing this task, we were startled by the roaring or bellowing of a wild beast.
The sound was so strange that I couldn't imagine what animal had made it.
"Perhaps it's a lion," offered Jack.
"No, a gorilla," said Fritz.
"More likely a hyena," said Ernest.
"Whatever it is," I said, "we must be ready when it arrives.
All of you, hurry to the nest while I secure the door."
I left the dogs outside to protect our animals, closed the door, and joined my family.
Every eye was on watch. Every gun was loaded.
The dreadful sound came nearer.