He hastened to make him a rude fireplace and oven of stones. He
hollowed out a place in the ground and lined and covered it with large
flat stones. On one side he built up a chimney to draw up the smoke
and make the fire burn brightly. He brought wood and some dry fungus
or mushroom. This he powdered and soon had fire caught in it. He
kindled in this way the wood in his stove and soon had a hot fire.
The first thing he did in the way of cooking was to roast some rabbit
meat on a spit or forked stick held in his hand over the fire. Nothing
Robinson had ever eaten was to be compared to this.
"I can do many things now," thought Robinson. "My work will not be
nearly so hard. My fire will be my servant and help me make my tools
as well as cook my food. I can now cook my corn and rice."
XXVIII
ROBINSON MAKES BASKETS
Robinson still continued anxious about his food supply when he could
no longer gather it fresh from the fields and forest. Corn had again
become ripe. He had found in a wet, marshy place some wild rice-plants
loaded with ripened grain. As he now had fire he only had to have some
way of storing up grains and he would not lack for food. He knew that
grain stored away must be kept dry and that he must especially provide
against dampness in his cave or in his bower.
If he only had some baskets. These would be just the thing. But how
was he to get them? Robinson had never given a thought to either
material or the method of making them.
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