Original subtitles

♫ Come sail around the world with me

♫ Ride on the waves of the deep blue sea

♫ Float to an island where the days are free

♫ Spend some time with my family

♫ The Swiss Family Robinson

♫ Living in the sun

♫ The Swiss Family Robinson

♫ Every day is fun, fun fun

♫ Friends all around me everywhere

♫ Down in the water, up in the air

♫ All of them mean a lot to me

♫ But my very best friends are my family

♫ The Swiss Family Robinson

♫ Living in the sun

♫ The Swiss Family Robinson

♫ Every day is fun, fun, fun

♫ The Swiss Family Robinson

♫ Living in the sun

♫ The Swiss Family Robinson

♫ Every day is fun, fun, fun

♫ Fun, fun, fun

♫ Fun, fun, fun ♫

(peaceful, soft music)

- [Becca] It was another warm, peaceful evening

on the island, and we were all quite snug in our treehouse.

(squeaks)

Everyone was relaxing as we amused ourselves

by the warm glow of the lamplight.

And that's check!

- Hey, wait a second.

- Fritz, I've already beat you once. Now you play fair.

- But it was my turn to move.

- Hm? Oh. Sorry.

- Well, you're not going to win this game.

- Well you haven't won yet.

- You'll see.

- They certainly do enjoy playing chess with each other.

- And it is a good way to keep them out of mischief.

- (gibberish)

- (chitters)

- [Becca] Fritz thinks he's so smart.

Little does he know that I plan to take his king

with my bishop.

Hey, what happened?

- Huh?

- Nothing to worry about. I'll relight the lantern.

Now where'd I put those matches?

- Now don't you try to move any pieces

while the lights are out.

I know just what you're thinking.

- How can you say such a thing?

The thought never entered my mind.

But now that you mention it, here goes.

- (gasp) Now don't you be a cheater.

- (laughs)

Hey. Where'd you go to?

Mercedes?

It's so dark I can't see Mercedes.

- I could have sworn I left those matches right here.

- Please find them quick, Mother.

I'm watching you, so don't you try it.

- Oh I was just joking.

- Now children, please stop that bickering.

Why can't you learn to play together better?

- All right.

- Hm.

Where are they?

At last! I finally found them.

- Hey, what are you up to?

- (laughs)

- Hm. It went out.

This should do it.

There.

Oh no.

Well they don't feel wet.

One more.

- Anna, how many matches have we left in the box?

- One more after this one, I think.

- Well in that case, let me help you get he lantern ready.

- [Anna] Ready? - [Ernest] Ready.

- [Anna] (gasps)

- There's only one more match left?

- Here, Anna. Let me give it a try.

- Here you are.

- Hm? Why, why this just can't be.

You said one match was left but there's none.

- Oh no.

- Now, don't blame yourself.

- Oh dear. What are we going to do?

We have no more matches left, Ernest.

Are you sure that was the last one?

- Definitely none left.

- We should have thought of it earlier.

- Mother, I have some matches.

- Becca, have you been hiding matches from us?

- Of course not.

What about the matches to light our signal fire

to signal ships?

- Those matches are only to be used to signal

a passing ship.

Do you understand me?

- How are we going to have light in our house

if we don't have a fire?

- There's nothing to worry about.

There are other ways to make a fire.

- Father's right.

There's no need to fret.

- How are we going to make a fire?

- Hey, what if we were to use that magnifying glass of ours

to start a fire?

- Good idea.

- You'll see, Becca. It's real simple.

- Oh. I know how a magnifying glass can make a fire.

It gathers the sun's rays and brings them to a single point

that's hot enough to start a fire.

- Mm-hm. Long as we have some sun.

- But that means we'll have to wait until morning

for the sun to come out.

- Mm-hm. That's right.

So, as you can see, there's no way

to light our lantern before morning.

So, let's all turn in now and get a good night's rest.

- I agree.

Becca, let's get ready for bedtime.

- But, our chess game.

Huh?

- [Fritz] Uh-oh.

- I know that you did that on purpose.

- It wasn't my fault.

It's dark.

- (growls) Oh!

- Heh!

- Just you wait. You'll see.

I'll beat you when we play chess tomorrow. Hmph.

The next day we all got up bright and early

to see if we could make a fire

with Fritz's magnifying glass.

It's just not getting hot enough.

- Not enough sunlight's getting through these treetops.

- It's just no use.

The magnifying glass isn't going to be of any help today.

- Jack?

- I'm right over here, Father.

- I am so glad you're here, son.

I just wanted you to help us out by doing me a favor

- Sure, I'll help.

- Do you still have that rock collection of yours?

- Mm-hm.

- I want you to go and get all of your rocks

and bring them here right away.

Understand?

- Are we gonna play with them?

- No, we're going to make a fire.

- All right.

- Now, Fritz, I want you to go and get some coal

and crush it up.

- Will he crushed coal make it easier to start the fire?

- That's it.

- Here they are.

- Mm-hm. This is just what we need.

We'll only use a small piece.

- [Becca] Look, sparks! - [Jack] Golly.

- Pour the coal on that pile of kindling, please.

- All right.

- Well, here goes.

- Hm.

If I make enough sparks, I think it should catch.

- [Becca] Is it going to work?

- It's no use.

- It almost caught fire.

Why do you think it isn't quite catching?

- There just isn't enough flint in this rock

to make enough sparks.

I have a better idea, and I'll need everyone's help.

- [Anna] (humming)

- Here you are, dear.

It's all finished.

- [Ernest] That's fine.

Anna, please steady this. (grunts)

- I'm all finished too.

All the whittling's done.

It's all ready.

- Good job, son.

- That log and bow's going to make a fire?

- It sure is, and you're going to help me.

Now I want you two to each man an opposite end of this bow.

- All right.

- All right.

Now, pull it back and forth.

- Gosh, it's sure moving.

- I get it.

The friction of the log spinning back and forth

creates heat.

- And that'll make a fire?

- The wood's going to get hotter and hotter

until the heat will end up lighting the coal dust.

- Look. It's starting to smolder.

- Just keep at it.

- Look at that!

- We did it! We lit the coal!

- Thank goodness.

Now I can make us a nice hot stew.

(crackling)

- That stew certainly smells good.

- Mm-hm. There's nothing like a fire

for food, warmth, and for bringing your family

closer together.

- Yes, fire is an amazing thing.

Without fire to cook our meals,

we'd have to eat raw fish.

How would you like that, Becca?

- Raw fish?

I don't think I could eat that.

That's yucky.

- Did you know in ancient times fires were used

as places to meet?

They'd gather around a fire and tell stories to each other.

- Gosh, how fun.

- So fire helped bring people together.

They would use the fire to cook their food,

and it would keep them warm.

- Those aren't the only reasons, Fritz.

It wasn't just for staying warm or eating,

but also to talk and share their ideas with each other.

- So lots was learned around fires.

- Mm-hm. It's where people for generations

probably got their first lessons.

- Just like going to school nowadays.

- That's it exactly.

There were no schools,

so children would learn their lessons

sitting around a fire.

- I see. All that because of a fire.

(light, cheerful music)

- Delicious stew.

- It was delicious.

- Fritz, would you please fetch the lantern now?

I think we'd better light it before the fire goes out.

- Yes, Mother.

That stew gave me so much energy.

I'll climb the ladder in record time.

- I can hardly move after all that stew.

- (slurp) Looks like Fritz has found a new source of power.

- Fritz, you climbed that ladder faster than a monkey.

- That's why I like bananas so much. (laughs)

- I'll make a monkey out of you tonight after we play chess.

- Really? Well I guess we'll see who makes a monkey

out of whom.

- I beat you before and I betcha I'll do it again.

- Well, I have my doubts about that.

(gasps)

- Fritz, just hang on!

(shatter)

- Oh no. The lantern's broken.

(mournful music)

The glass has shattered into a thousand pieces.

- It's my fault.

- There's no use blaming yourself.

It was just an accident and that's that.

Besides, we're running out of lamp oil.

We couldn't use it much longer.

- We're just thankful that you weren't hurt.

Now I want you to be more careful on that ladder, Fritz.

- All right. I promise, I'll be more careful.

- [Becca] Since the lantern had been broken,

Fritz and I didn't get to play chess that night.

Father sent us all to bed early,

and poor Mercedes had no one to play with.

- Mom, I can't sleep.

- Just try to close your eyes and relax.

- All right.

- (grunts) Boy, I can't find a way to get to sleep either.

It's just too early. (sigh)

I tried counting sheep but that doesn't seem to work.

- I know just what you mean.

When you're not really tired,

it's hard to try to fall asleep.

But Father wants to get an early start in the morning

so I guess it's best to be in bed early.

I still wish we had some sort of light

so we could stay up for a little while.

- If we only had some light.

Hmm. Gosh, look at that!

It's some kinda light.

- Hm? Becca?

- (laughs)

It's moonlight.

Come on, Fritz.

You can get up.

Let's play some chess.

Oh no.

Well, too bad. (yawn)

The next morning, everyone was up early.

(peaceful flute music)

- How long will you be gone, dear?

- We shouldn't be gone much longer than half a day.

It all depends on how long it takes us

to find what we need.

- Just what are you looking for, Father?

- I think I know a way of making a light

we can use in our treehouse.

- I'll come and help you.

- Me too.

- No, Jack. I want you to stay right here.

- Jack, it's a lot more important that you stay right here

and take care of your mother.

And Becca you're in charge of making a fire

in the afternoon, all right?

- All right, Father.

I'll do it just the way we did yesterday.

- Ernest, take care of yourself and Fritz.

We'll be expecting to see you back here before nightfall.

- We'll be back before you know it.

Good-bye.

Come on, Fritz.

- You two be careful out there.

- We will.

- What are they going to find to replace our lantern?

- I have no idea.

- Maybe fireflies.

- Fireflies? (laughs)

That's funny.

There's a story that Confucius was too poor

to have a lantern so he used fireflies.

And he used their light to study by.

- Mm-hm. That's a great idea!

I can see it now.

My own little firefly.

- You can't do that.

- Oh? Are you sure of that?

My light's fading.

Oh no!

You know it doesn't seem like one firefly

would give off enough light.

How many fireflies do you think it would take?

- I would guess thousands.

I know i would take quite a few,

because you have to remember that a single firefly

does not give off that much light,

and that you would need a great number of them

to produce a constant glow.

- I wonder, thousands of fireflies!

- This certainly is good light.

- It's as good as a lamp.

Fireflies are bits of light, and suddenly I found myself

remembering other bits of light from home.

I thought about the snowflakes in the winter,

and how even at night they looked like bits of light,

all glowing white.

Oh my.

You know I never thought I'd say this,

but I miss having snow.

- Boy, this fruit sure has a waxy feel to it, doesn't it?

- You're right son, and that waxiness just might

be useful to us.

- Do you think this'll be enough?

- This'll be plenty.

Come on, son. Let's go home.

- [Anna] Becca?

Do you have everything we need to start the fire?

- Yes, Mother.

- I wanna help too.

- Now, can you hold this?

- Sure.

I'm ready.

- Jack, you can help pull.

- Ready.

- Let's get started.

- This sure is fun.

- Just keep it up and we'll have a fire in no time.

- Whenever I need a fire started in the future,

I know just who to ask.

- Look. It's starting to smoke.

Keep pulling, Jack.

- It's not working.

It didn't take this long to light last time.

- I just don't understand it.

- My arms are too tired.

- It's just no use.

No matter how hard I pull, it won't light.

- I think something's missing.

Didn't your father put powder in that notch

before he started?

- You're right, Mom.

I forgot the most important part, powdered coal.

Here we go! Come on, Jack.

- Keep pulling, children. Don't stop.

It's glowing.

Quick, get a stick.

- We did it! - [Jack] Yay!

- Our own fire. We did it!

(barking)

- Hey, just what are you after, Brewster?

They're back!

Welcome home, Father.

- Becca, do you have that fire going?

- I sure do, just like you told me to.

- Well, we'll put it to good use.

- What kind of fruit is that, Ernest?

- This fruit only grows in the tropics,

but I don't remember its proper name.

- It almost smells like some kind of a soap plant.

- I know I shouldn't be fussy,

but if that tastes like it smells,

I don't want to eat it.

- It's not to eat, but we are going to use it up.

- Huh?

- I think it's boiled long enough now.

Becca, hand me that basket, please.

- [Becca] Here you are.

- [Ernest] Thank you, dear.

- We boiled the wax out of this fruit

and made a waxy soup.

Now it's time to strain out all the fruit.

- Ah.

- Now we'll just take this off the fire.

And we'll let it cool.

And in a minute you'll see a little layer

forming on the top.

Fritz, are you beginning to see a change yet?

- Mm-hm.

- [Ernest] All right. Just a minute.

Watch carefully.

Now it looks like it's getting solid.

- It seems to have cooled.

- [Ernest] Mm-hm. Very observant, Becca.

Now we separate this from the water.

And melt it by heating it again.

Fritz, I want you to split a piece of bamboo in half.

Now use the knife to make a notch at the end of it

that a string can pass through.

That's it. Now the other end.

Now stretch some string tight between the notches.

- All right. I see.

Like this.

- [Ernest] Good.

Now the wax is melted and ready to pour.

Now hold it upright and cover your hand with a thick cloth.

That's it. Hold it steady.

We'll let it cool and see what happens.

- Look. It's hardening.

- You can let go of that string now.

- So, what do I do now?

- Take it out of the bamboo.

- Wow! Look at that. My goodness!

It's a candle!

- [Jack] Uh-oh.

- What's the matter with the candle?

- It melted.

- Hm. The wax is fine, but it just didn't harden

long enough to stay a candle.

- [Fritz] It feels as hard as a candle now.

- Ernest, the candlemakers back home would dip a string

in wax many times to make a candle.

That way the wax had a chance to harden.

- That sounds like very good advice.

We're only going to use the bamboo for the final step.

This time, we'll build our candle from the inside out.

Are you ready?

- Ready.

It's solid.

- [Ernest] And a little more.

- It's solid and getting thick.

- That looks fine.

Looks like we're ready for the final step.

- (laughs)

- (laughs)

- Do you suppose it's ready yet, Dad?

- Sure. Open it.

Now let's hope it works this time.

(taps)

- We've made ourselves a candle.

- Mm-hm.

- We really did it.

Thanks to all of us. - [Jack] Yay yay yay yay!

- Since it's starting to get dark.

- Oh.

- [Becca] And so that night our treehouse was filled

with the warm glow of candlelight.

(cheering)

- Candlelight reminds me of happy times,

like birthdays and Christmas.

It not only lights up the room,

but it brightens our spirits as well.

- Right.

- All right, Fritz.

It's time for us to play chess.

- You said it.

Let's go!

- [Ernest] There'll be no chess tonight.

Tonight it's study time.

- [Becca] Huh? - [Fritz] Huh?

- We wouldn't have this light unless we'd learned

many things, so you two are going to gain your own knowledge

by studying for two hours every night.

- Oh no!

(peaceful flute music)

(chittering)

- Becca, I'm surprised at you.

Remember the story of how poor Confucius

wanted to learn so much that he studied by firefly light?

I thought you'd want to learn more about the world too.

- (sigh) Golly, I bet Confucius liked to play chess

once in a while too.

But I knew Mother and Father were right about learning more.

They only wanted the best for us.

But it wasn't easy watching Mercedes playing chess

while Fritz and I had to study.

(sigh) Oh well.

(happy accordion music)

♫ Come sail around the world with me

♫ Ride on the waves of the deep blue sea

♫ Float to an island where the days are free

♫ Spend some time with my family

♫ The Swiss Family Robinson

♫ Living in the sun ♫