We left the palace at once, and came to the shore, where we made some rafts, each large enough to carry three men. We waited till day before getting on them, for we hoped that by morning the howling, which we still heard, would cease, and that the giant would be dead; and if that happened we meant to stay in the island, and not to risk our lives upon the rafts. But day had scarcely appeared when we saw our cruel enemy, with two giants, almost of the same size, leading him; and a great number were coming before him at a quick pace. We waited no longer to take to our rafts, and put to sea with all the speed we could. The giants, seeing this, took up great stones, and, running to the shore, entered the water up to the middle, and threw so exactly that they sank all the rafts but that I was upon; and all my comrades, except the two with me, were drowned. We rowed with all our might, and got out of the reach of the giants. The next morning, after a night of fear, we were thrown upon an island, where we landed with much joy, and found good fruit, which refreshed us greatly. At night we went to sleep on the seashore, but were awakened by the noise of a serpent of surprising length and thickness, whose scales made a rustling noise as it moved itself along. It swallowed up one of my comrades, in spite of his loud cries and his efforts to save himself. Dashing him several times against the ground, it crushed him, and we could hear it gnaw and tear the poor fellow's bones, though we had fled far off. The next day, to our great terror, we saw the serpent again. "O Heaven, to what dangers are we exposed!" I cried. "We escape from a giant and the waves, only to meet with this!" The next night, having satisfied our hunger with fruit, we mounted a tall tree, hoping to pass the night in safety. But soon the serpent came hissing to its foot, raised itself up against the trunk, and, reaching my comrade, who sat lower than I, swallowed him at once and went off. In the morning when I came down, I was ready to throw myself into the sea in my despair. But I resisted this impulse, and collected a great quantity of small wood, brambles, and dry thorns, and, making them up into fagots, made a wide circle with them round the tree, and also tied some of them to the branches over my head. Within this circle I shut myself up when night came, with such satisfaction as I could get from having neglected nothing that could save me. The serpent failed not to come at the usual hour, but was prevented from reaching me by the rampart I had made. He lay below me till day, like a cat watching in vain for a mouse that has reached a place of safety. When day appeared he retired, but I dared not to leave my fort until the sun arose.