Johnny heaved a profound sigh at the prospect of the difficulties that lay in the way of his pet project of house-building, and wished that "that old magician who built the castle with a thousand windows for Aladdin, in a single night, would only be clever enough to lend us his assistance." But upon second thought, he concluded that there would be "no fun" in having our house ready-made for us, and magnanimously declared that if he had the wonderful lamp in his hands that minute, with full power to summon up the obedient genius, and set him to work, he would not do it. "I hope you would make him supply us with a few good axes, Johnny, at least," said Browne. But Johnny was disposed to be very self-denying and high-minded; he did not think he ought to do it; we should take a great deal more pleasure in our house if we made it ourselves, without any magical assistance of any kind. "Now, that you mention axes," said Morton, "it occurs to me that there is an old hatchet-head among the rubbish in the locker of the yawl, and though it is a good deal battered and worn, it could be fitted with a handle and made useful." We all now remembered having seen it, though no one had before thought of it. Arthur suggested that we should make an excursion to Palm-Islet as soon as the heat of the day was over, and the sea-breeze had set in, for the purpose of getting the hatchet, and bringing the boat round to the side of the island where we intended to fix our residence, as we might have occasion for its use. "We can get there before dark," said he, "and pass the night once more at our old quarters on the little island; then we can row back in the fresh of the morning, before sunrise, and be ready to commence our building in earnest." CHAPTER NINETEEN. THE CORAL REEF. JOHNNY AND THE CHAMA--AMATEUR PEARL-DIVING--A SHARK BLOCKADE--CULINARY GENIUS. "Down in the depths of the lonely sea, I work at my mystic masonry; I've crusted the plants of the deep with stone, And given them colouring not their own; And now o'er the ocean fields they spread Their fan-like branches of white and red: Oh! who can fashion a work like me, The mason of God, in the boundless sea."