Johann David Wyss

“ Surely beautiful combs, boxes, and a number of ornamental things are made of tortoise-shell, and if so, it seems a pity to use it for a water-trough.”
“Your turtle, Fritz, is only fit for eating, its shell is worthless as regards ornament; whereas the species whose shell is prized so much is unfit for food. Tortoise-shell is subjected to the action of heat, the outer layer peels off, leaving a beautifully marked, semi-transparent surface, which is susceptible of a very high polish.”
The sledge quickly received its second load from the raft. ”

“ The two first are poisonous if eaten raw, yet they are preferred to the third, which is harmless, because they are so much more fruitful, and the flour produced is excellent if the scrapings are carefully pressed.”
“What is the good of pressing them, father?” inquired Ernest.
“It is in order to express the sap, which contains the poison. The dry pith is wholesome and nourishing. Still, I do not mean to taste my cakes, until I have tried their effect on our fowls and the ape.” ”

“ No one was tempted by the look of the flour to stop and taste it, for in truth it looked much like wet sawdust.
“Cassava bread is highly esteemed in many parts of the New World, and I have even heard that some Europeans there prefer it to the wheaten bread of their own country. There are various species of manioc. One sort grows quickly, and its roots ripen in a very short time. Another kind is of somewhat slower growth. The roots of the third kind do not come to maturity for two years. ”

“ In the West Indies, cakes called cassava bread are made from it; and, already having potatoes, we shall be very independent if we can succeed in preparing flour from these roots. Great care must be taken in the manufacture to express the juice, otherwise the flour may be injurious and even poisonous.
“If we can collect a sufficient quantity, we will attempt bread-making. ”

“ In that case we shall have to spend the whole of to-morrow in baking cakes.”
“Not at all,” I replied; “once dry, the flour in barrels will keep fresh a long time. We shall use a great deal of this, however, as you shall see.”
“Do you think we might begin now, father?” said Fritz. “There does not seem the least moisture remaining.” ”

“ The boys are most anxious to know what sort of wine it will prove to be.”
As the simplest method of ascertaining this, I inserted a straw at the vent-hole, and presently announced that in all my life I had never enjoyed a more delicious draught of canary sack. The mother was immensely pleased to find that her exertions in my behalf had not been thrown away, and the boys pressed round me, armed with straws, and begging for a taste. ”

“ Jack and Ernest disappear—Fritz and I start for the wreck—The boys' ambuscade—We form a raft—Ransack the vessel—Again embark—A turtle in sight—Fritz harpoons it—The turtle acts as “Steam Tug”—Safe ashore—Return home—Jack's clay field—A fresh discovery—The mother's cellar—A trip to the wreck—The pinnace—Jack's raid on the Lilliputians—A secret revealed—A new method of grinding flour—Wholesome or poisonous?—Bread-making in earnest. ”