He had packed up with their things a couple of extra blankets, which they subsequently found of great comfort in the cold weather, in addition to their rugs; a wide piece of tarpaulin to cover their hut with; a few short spars and spare timber; and, lastly, a clock--not to speak of the valuable whale-boat which he had thought of just as he was going away and had presented to them all standing, with oars, mast and sails in complete trim.
"I declare," said Fritz, "he has been better than a father to us all through.

I never heard of such good nature in my life!" "Nor I," responded Eric, equally full of gratitude.

"Celia, too, before I left Providence, gave me a nice little housewife, wherewith I shall mend all our things when they want repairing, besides which, she made ma a present of quite a little library of books." "And I've brought all mine as well," said Fritz, unrolling a large package as he spoke.
"We'll not be hard up for reading, at any rate," remarked Eric, laughing joyously.

"Food for the mind as well as food for the body, eh ?" "Yes," said Fritz; "plenty of both." "But, how on earth shall we ever be able to get through all this lot of grub ?" "Ah, we won't find it a bit too much," said Fritz.
"What, for only us two, brother ?" exclaimed Eric in astonishment.
"You forget it has got to last us more than a year, for certain; while, should the _Pilot's Bride_ not visit us again next autumn, it will be all we may have to depend on for twice that length of time." "Oh, I forgot that." "If you could see the pile of rations which one regiment alone of men manages to consume in a week, the same as I have, Eric, you would not wonder so much at the amount of our supplies." "But think, brother, a regiment is very different to two fellows like us!" "Just calculate, laddie," answered the other, "the food so many men would require for only one day; and then for us two, say, for seven hundred days--where's the difference ?" "Ah, I see," said Eric, reflecting for a moment.

"Perhaps there won't be too much, after all, eh ?" "Wait till this time next year, and see what we shall have left then, laddie!" "But, remember the goats and pigs on the top of the mountain which the Tristaner spoke to us about.