August 18, 2025 • 45 mins
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Speaker 1 (00:01):
Chapter fourteen, A dream realized. Having brought all my things
on shore and secured them, I went back to my
boat and rowed or paddled her along the shore to
her old harbor, where I laid her up and made
the best of my way to my old habitation, where
(00:21):
I found everything safe and quiet. I began now to
repose myself, live after my old fashion, and take care
of my family affairs. And for a while I lived
easy enough, only that I was more vigilant than I
used to be, looked out oftener, and did not go
(00:42):
abroad so much. And if at any time I did
stir with any freedom, it was always to the east
part of the island, where I was pretty well satisfied
the savages never came, and where I could go without
so many precautions and such a load of arms and
ammunition as I always carried with me if I went
(01:05):
the other way. I lived in this condition near two
years more. But my unlucky head, that was always to
let me know it was born to make my body miserable,
was all these two years filled with projects and designs.
How if it were possible, I might get away from
(01:28):
this island. For sometimes I was for making another voyage
to the wreck, though my reason told me there was
nothing left there worth the hazard of my voyage, sometimes
for a ramble one way, sometimes another. And I believe
verily if I had had the boat that I went
(01:49):
from Celia, I should have ventured to see bound anywhere
I knew, not whither I have been in all my circumstances.
A memento to those who are touched with the general
plague of mankind, whence for aught I know one half
(02:10):
of their misri's flow. I mean that of not being
satisfied with the station wherein God and Nature hath placed them.
For not to look back upon my primitive condition and
the excellent advice of my father, the opposition to which was,
as I may call it, my original sin. My subsequent
(02:32):
mistakes of the same kind had been the means of
my coming into this miserable condition. For had that providence,
which so happily seated me at the Brazils as a planter,
blessed me with confined desires, and I could have been
contented to have gone on gradually, I might have been
(02:54):
by this time, I mean, in the time of my
being in this island, one of the most considerable planters
in the Brazils. Nay, I am persuaded that by the
improvements I had made in that little time I lived there,
and the increase I should probably have made if I
had remained, I might have been worth a one hundred
(03:17):
thousand moidores. And what business had I to leave a
settled fortune, a well stocked plantation, improving and increasing, to
turn supercargo to Guinea to fetch negroes, when patience and
time would have so increased our stock at home that
(03:37):
we could have bought them at our own door, from
those whose business it was to fetch them. And though
it had cost us something more, yet the difference of
that price was by no means worth saving that so
great a hazard. But as this is usually the fate
of young heads, so reflection upon the folly of it
(04:00):
is as commonly the exercise of more years, or of
the dear bought experience of time. So it was with
me now, And yet so deep had the mistake taken
root in my temper, that I could not satisfy myself
in my station, but was continually pouring upon the means
(04:22):
and possibility of my escape from this place, and that
I may with greater pleasure to the reader bring on
the remaining part of my story. It may not be
improper to give him some account of my first conceptions
on the subject of this foolish scheme of my escape,
and how and upon what foundation I acted. I am
(04:48):
now to be supposed retired into my castle after my
late voyage to the wreck. My frigate laid up and
secured under water as usual, and my condition restored to
what it was before. I had more wealth, indeed than
I had before, but was not at all the richer,
(05:10):
for I had no more use for it than the
Indians of Peru had before the Spaniards came there. It
was one of the nights in the rainy season in March,
the four and twentieth year of my first setting foot
in this island of solitude. I was lying in my
bed or hammock, awake, very well in health, had no pain,
(05:34):
no distemper, no uneasiness of body, nor any uneasiness of
mind more than ordinary, but could by no means close
my eyes, that is, so as to sleep, no not
a wink all night long. Otherwise than as follows, it
(05:54):
is impossible to set down the innumerable crowd of thoughts
that whirled through through that great thoroughfare of the brain
the memory. In this night's time, I ran over the
whole history of my life in miniature, or by abridgment,
as I may call it, to my coming to this island,
(06:15):
and also of that part of my life since I
came to this island. In my reflections upon the state
of my case since I came on shore on this island,
I was comparing the happy posture of my affairs in
the first years of my habitation here with the life
of anxiety, fear, and care, which I had lived in
(06:36):
ever since I had seen the print of a foot
in the sand. Not that I did not believe the
savages had frequented the island even all the while, and
might have been several hundreds of them at times on
shore there, but I had never known it and was
incapable of any apprehensions about it. My satisfaction perfect, though
(07:01):
my danger was the same, and I was as happy
in not knowing my danger as if I had never
really been exposed to it. This furnished my thoughts with
many very profitable reflections, and particularly this one. How infinitely
good that providence is which has provided in its government
(07:24):
of mankind such narrow bounds to his sight and knowledge
of things. And though he walks in the midst of
so many thousand dangers, the sight of which, if discovered
to him, would distract his mind and sink his spirits,
he has kept serene and calm by having the events
(07:44):
of things hid from his eyes, and knowing nothing of
the dangers which surround him. After these thoughts had for
some time entertained me, I came to reflect seriously upon
the real danger I had been in for so many
years in this very island, and how I had walked
about in the greatest security and with all possible tranquility,
(08:09):
even when perhaps nothing but the brow of a hill,
a great tree, or the casual approach of night had
been between me and the worst kind of destruction, that is,
that of falling into the hands of cannibals and savages,
who would have seized on me with the same view
as I would on a goat or turtle, and have
(08:30):
thought of it no more a crime to kill and
devour me than I did of a pigeon or a curlew.
I would unjustly slander myself if I should say I
was not sincerely thankful to my great preserver, to whose
singular protection I acknowledged with great humanity all these unknown
(08:52):
deliverances were due, and without which I must inevitably have
fallen into their merciless hands. When these thoughts were over,
my head was for some time taken up to considering
the nature of these wretched creatures, I mean, the savages,
and how it came to pass in the world that
the wise governor of all things should give up any
(09:15):
of his creatures to such inhumanity, nay, to something so
much more below even brutality itself, as to devour its
own kind. But as this ended in some at that
time fruitless speculations, it occurred to me to inquire what
(09:36):
part of the world these wretches lived in, how far
off the coast was from, whence they came, what they
ventured over so far from home, for what kind of
boats they had? And why I might not order myself
and my business so that I might be able to
go over thither as they were come to me. I
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never so much as troubled myself to consider what I
should do with myself when I went thither. What would
become of me if I fell into the hands of
those savages, or how I should escape them if they
attacked me. No, nor so much as how it was
possible for me to reach the coast and not to
be attacked by some or other of them, without any
(10:22):
possibility of delivering myself. And if I should not fall
into their hands, what I should do for provision, or
whither I should bend my course. None of these thoughts
I say so much as came in my way. But
my mind was wholly bent upon the notion of my
passing over in my boat to the mainland. I looked
(10:46):
upon my present condition as the most miserable that could
possibly be. That I was not able to throw myself
into anything but death that could be called worse. And
if I reached the shore of the main I might
perhaps meet with relief, or I might coast along as
I did on the African shore till I came to
(11:09):
some inhabited country, and where I might find some relief.
And after all, perhaps I might fall in with some
Christian ship that might take me in. And if the
worst came to the worst, I could but die, which
would put an end to all these miseries at once. Pray.
Note all this was the fruit of a disturbed mind
(11:33):
and impatient temper, made desperate as it were, by the
long continuance of my troubles and the disappointments I had
met in the wreck I had been on board of,
and where I had been so near obtaining what I
so earnestly longed for somebody to speak to and to
learn some knowledge from them of the place where I was,
(11:54):
and of the probable means of my deliverance. I was
agitated wholly by these thoughts. All my calm of mind,
in my resignation to providence and waiting, the issue of
the dispositions of heaven seemed to be suspended, and I had,
as it were, no power to turn my thoughts to
(12:16):
anything but to the project of a voyage to the main,
which came upon me with such force and such an
impetuosity of desire, that it was not to be resisted.
When this had agitated my thoughts for two hours or more,
with such violence that it set my very blood into
(12:37):
a ferment, and my pulse beat as if I had
been in a fever, merely with the extraordinary fervor of
my mind about it nature, as if I had been
fatigued and exhausted with the very thoughts of it threw
me into a sound sleep. One would have thought I
(12:59):
should have dreamed of it, but I did not, nor
of anything relating to it. But I dreamed that I
was going out in the morning as usual from my castle.
I saw upon the shore two canoes and eleven savages
coming to land, and that they brought with them another savage,
whom they were going to kill in order to eat him.
(13:19):
When on a sudden the savage that they were going
to kill jumped away and ran for his life. And
I thought in my sleep that he came running into
my little thick grove before my fortification to hide himself,
and that I, seeing him alone, and not perceiving that
the others sought him that way, showed myself to him, and,
(13:43):
smiling upon him, encouraged him. That he kneeled down to me,
seeming to pray me to assist him, upon which I
showed him my ladder, made him go up, and carried
him into my cave, and he became my servant. And
that as soon as I had got this man, I
(14:04):
said to myself, now I may certainly venture to the mainland,
for this fellow will serve me as a pilot, and
will tell me what to do, and whither to go
for provisions, and whither not to go for fear of
being devoured, what places to venture to, and what to shun.
(14:26):
I waked with this thought, and was under such inexpressible
impressions of joy at the prospect of my escape and
my dream, that the disappointments which I felt upon coming
to myself and finding that it was no more than
a dream, were equally extravagant the other way, and threw
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me into a very great dejection of spirits. Upon this, however,
I made this conclusion that my only way to go
about to attempt an escape was to endeavor to get
a savage into my possession, and if possible, it should
(15:07):
be one of their prisoners, whom they had condemned to
be eaten, and should bring hither to kill. But these
thoughts still were attended with this difficulty, that it was
impossible to effect this without attacking a whole caravan of
them and killing them all. And this was not only
a very desperate attempt, and might miscarry. But on the
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other hand, I had greatly scrupled the lawfulness of it
to myself and my heart trembled at the thoughts of
shedding so much blood, though it was for my deliverance.
I need not repeat the arguments which occurred to me
against this, they being the same mentioned before. But though
(15:50):
I had other reasons to offer now, that is that
those men were enemies to my life and would devour
me if they could, that it was self preservation in
the highest degree to deliver myself from this death of
a life, and was acting in my own defense as
much as if they were actually assaulting me, and the like.
(16:13):
I say, though these things argued for it, yet the
thoughts of shedding human blood for my deliverance were very
terrible to me, and such as I could by no
means reconcile myself too for a great while. However, at last,
after many secret disputes with myself, and after great perplexities
(16:35):
about it, for all these arguments one way and another
struggled in my head a long time, the eager, prevailing
desire of deliverance at length mastered all the rest, and
I resolved, if possible to get one of these savages
into my hands cost what it would. My next thing
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was to contrive how to do it, and this indeed
was very difficult to resolve on. But as I could
pitch upon no probable means for it, so I resolved
to put myself upon the watch to see them when
they came on shore, and leave the rest to the event,
taking such measures as the opportunity should present. Let what
(17:22):
would be with these resolutions in my thoughts. I set
myself upon the scout as often as possible, and indeed
so often that I was heartily tired of it. For
it was above a year and a half that I waited,
and for a great part of that time went out
to the west end and to the southwest corner of
(17:43):
the island almost every day to look for canoes. But
none appeared. This was very discouraging and began to trouble
me much, though I cannot say that it did in
this case, as it had done some time before, where
off the edge of my desire to the thing. But
the longer it seemed to be delayed, the more eager
(18:06):
I was for it. In a word, I was not
at first so careful to shun the sight of these
savages and avoid being seen by them, as I was
now eager to be upon them. Besides, I fancied myself
able to manage one, nay two, or three savages if
(18:26):
I had them, so as to make them entirely slaves
to me, to do whatever I should direct them, and
to prevent their being able at any time to do
me any hurt. It was a great while that I
pleased myself with this affair, but nothing still presented itself.
All my fancies and schemes came to nothing, for no
(18:49):
savages came near me for quite a while. After a
year and a half later, I entertained these notions, and
by long musings had, as it were, resolved them into nothing.
For want of an occasion to put them into execution.
I was surprised one morning by seeing no less than
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five canoes all on shore together on my side of
the island, and the people who belonged to them all
landed and out of my sight. The number of them
broke all my measures. For seeing so many, and knowing
that they always came four or six or sometimes more
in a boat, I could not tell what to think
(19:33):
of it, or how to take my measures to attack
twenty or thirty men single handed. So lay still in
my castle, perplexed and discomforted, however, I put myself into
the same position for an attack that I had formerly provided,
and was just ready for action if anything had presented.
(19:56):
Having waited a good while listening to here, if they
made any noise at length, being very impatient, I set
my guns at the foot of my ladder and clambered
up to the top of the hill by my two
stages as usual, standing so however, that my head did
not appear above the hill, so that they could not
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perceive me by any means. Here I observed, by the
help of my prospective glass, that they were no less
than thirty in number, that they had a fire kindled,
and that they had meat dressed. How they cooked it,
I knew not nor what it was, But they were
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all dancing in I know not how many barbarous gestures
and figures their own way round the fire. While I
was thus looking on them, I perceived by my perspective
two miserable wretches dragged from the boats, where it seens
they were laid by, and were now brought out for
(21:03):
the slaughter. I perceived one of them immediately fall being
knocked down, I suppose with a club or wooden sword,
for that was their way and two or three others
were at work immediately cutting him open for their cookery,
while the other victim was left standing by himself that
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they should be ready for him. In that very moment,
this poor wretch, seeing himself a little at liberty and
unbound nature, inspired him with hopes of life, and he
started away from them and ran with incredible swiftness along
the sands directly towards me, I mean towards that part
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of the coast where my habitation was. I was dreadfully frightened,
I must acknowledge when I perceived him run my way,
and especially when, as I thought, I saw him pursued
by the whole body. Now, I expected that part of
my dream was coming to pass, and that he would
certainly take shelter in my grove. But I could not depend,
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by any means upon my dream that the other savages
would not pursue him thither and find him there. However,
I kept my station, and my spirits began to recover
when I found that there was not above three men
that followed him, and still more, I was encouraged when
I found out that he outstripped them exceedingly in running
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and gaining ground on them, so that if he could
but hold out for half an hour, I saw easily
he would fairly get away from them. All there was
between them and my castle the creek which I mentioned
often in the first part of my story, where I
landed my cargoes out of the ship, and this I
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saw plainly he must necessarily swim over, or the poor
wretch would be taken there. But when the savage escaping
came thither, he made nothing of it, though the tide
was then up, but plunging in, swam through in about
thirty strokes or thereabouts, landed and ran with exceeding swiftness
(23:21):
and strength. When the three persons came to the creek,
I found that two of them could swim, but the
third could not, and that standing on the other side,
he looked at the others, but went no farther, and
soon after went softly back again, which, as it happened,
was very well for him. In the end I observed
(23:44):
that the two who swam were yet more than twice
as strong swimming over the creek as the fellow was
that fled from them. It came very warmly upon my thoughts,
and indeed irresistibly that now was the time to get
me a servant and perhaps a companion or assistant, and
that I was plainly called by providence to save this
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poor creature's life. I immediately ran down the ladders with
all possible expedition, fetched my two guns, for they were
both at the foot of the ladders, as I observed before,
and getting up again with the same haste to the
top of the hill, I crossed towards the sea, and,
having a very short cut and all downhill, placed myself
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in the way between the pursuers and the pursued, hallowing
aloud to him that fled, who, looking back, was at
first perhaps as much frightened at me as at them.
But I beckoned with my hand for him to come back,
and in the meantime I slowly advanced towards the two
that followed, then, rushing at once upon the foremost, I
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knocked him down with the stock of my piece. I
was loathed to fire, because I would not have the
rest here, though at that distance it would not have
been easily heard, and being out of sight of the smoke, too,
they would not have known what to make of it.
Having knocked this fellow down, the other who pursued him
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stopped as if he had been frightened, and I advanced
towards him. But as I came nearer, ARE perceived presently
he had a bow and arrow and was fitting it
to shoot at me. So I was then obliged to
shoot at him first, which I did, and killed him
at the first shot. The poor savage, who fled but
(25:39):
had stopped though he saw both his enemies fallen and
killed as he thought, yet was so frightened with the
fire and noise of my piece that he stood stock still,
and neither came forward nor went backward, though he seemed
rather inclined still to fly than to come on. I
(26:00):
halloed him again and made signs to come forward, which
he easily understood, and came a little way, then stopped again,
and then a little farther, and stopped again. And I
could then perceive that he stood trembling, as if he
had been taken prisoner and had just been to be killed,
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as his two enemies were. I reckoned to him again
to come to me, and gave him all the signs
of encouragement that I could think of, and he came
nearer and nearer, kneeling down every ten or twelve steps
in token of acknowledgment for saving his life. I smiled
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at him and looked pleasantly, and beckoned to him to
come still nearer. At length he came close to me,
and then he kneeled down again, kissed the ground, and
laid his head upon the ground, and, taking me by
the foot, set my foot upon his head. This, it seems,
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was in token of swearing to be my slave forever.
I took him up and made much of him, and
encouraged him all I could. But there was no more
work to do yet, for I perceived the savage whom
I had knocked down was not killed, but stunned with
the blow, and began to come to himself. So I
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pointed to him and showed him, the savage that he
was not dead. Upon this he spoke some words to me,
and though I could not understand them, yet, I thought
they were pleasant to hear, for they were the first
sound of a man's voice that I had heard my
own accepted for above twenty five years. But there was
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no time for such reflections. Now. The savage who was
knocked down recovered himself so far as to sit up
upon the ground, and I perceived that the savage began
to be afraid. But when I saw that, I presented
my other piece at the man, as if I would
shoot him. Upon this, my savage, for so I call him,
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now made a motion to me to lend him my sword,
which hung naked in a belt by my side, which
I did. He no sooner had it, But he runs
to his enemy and at one blow cut off his
head so cleverly. No executioner in Germany could have done
it sooner or better, which I thought very strange, for
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one who I had reason to believe never saw a
sword in his life before, except their own wooden swords. However,
it seems as if I learned afterwards, they made their
wooden swords so sharp, so heavy, and the wood is
so hard that they will even cut off heads with them,
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eye and arms, And that at one blow too. When
he had done this, he comes laughing to me and
sign of triumph, and brought me the sword again, and
with abundance of gestures which I did not understand, laid
it down with the head of the savage that he
had killed just before me. But that which astonished him
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most was to know how I killed the other Indians
so far off, so pointing to him, he made signs
to me to let him go to him, and I
bade him go as well as I could. When he
came to him, he stood like one amazed, looking at him,
turning him first on one side, then on the other,
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looked at the wound the bullet had made, which it
seems was just in his breast where it had made
a hole, and no great quantity of blood had followed,
but he had bled inwardly, for he was quite dead.
He took up his bow and arrows and came back.
So I turned to go away and beckoned him to
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follow me, making signs to him that more might come
after them. Upon this, he made signs to me that
he should bury them with sand, that they might not
be seen by the rest if they followed, And so
I made signs to him to do so. He fell
to work, and in an instant he had scraped a
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hole in the sand with his hands big enough to
bury the first in, and then dragged him into it
and covered him, and did so by the other also.
I believe he had buried them both in a quarter
of an hour. Then, calling away, I carried him not
to my castle, but quite away to my cave on
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the farther part of the island, so I did not
let my dream come to pass in that part that
he came to my grove for shelter. Here I gave
him bread and a bunch of raisins to eat, and
a draft of water, which I found he was indeed
in great distress, for from his running, And having refreshed him,
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I made signs for him to go and lie down
to sleep, showing him a place where I had laid
some rice straw and a blanket upon it, which I
used to sleep upon myself sometimes. So the poor creature
laid down and went to sleep. He was a comely,
handsome fellow, perfectly well made, with straight, long limbs, not
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too large, tall and well shaped, and as I reckon,
about twenty six years of age, he had a very
good countenance, not a fierce and surly aspect, but seemed
to have something very manly in his face. And yet
he had all the sweetness and softness of a European
in his countenance, too, especially when he smiled. His hair
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was long and black, not curled like wool, his forehead
very high and large, and a great vivacity and sparkling
sharpness in his eyes. The color of his skin was
not quite black, but very tawny, and yet not an
ugly yellow, nauseous tawny, as the Brazilians and Virginians and
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other natives of America are, but of a bright kind
of a dun olive color that had in it something
very agreeable, though not very easy to describe. His face
was round and plump, his nose small, not flat like
the Negroes, a very good mouth, thin lips, and fine teeth,
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well set, and as white as ivory. After he had
slumbered rather than slept, about half an hour, he awoke
again and came out of the cave to me, for
I had been milking my goats, which I had in
the enclosure just by. When he espied me. He came
running to me, laying himself down again upon the ground,
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with all the signs of a humble, thankful disposition, making
a great many antique gestures to show it. At last
he lay his head flat upon the ground close to
my foot, and sets my other foot upon his head,
as he had done before. And after this made all
the signs to me of subjection, servitude, and submission imaginable
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to let me know how he would serve me so
long as he lived. I understood him in many things,
and let him know I was very well pleased with him.
In a little time, I began to speak to him
and teach him to speak to me. And first I
let him know his name should be Friday, which was
the day I saved his life. I called him so
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for the memory of the time. I likewise taught him
to say master, and then let him know that was
to be my name. I likewise taught him to say
yes and no, and to know the meaning of them.
I gave him some milk in an earthen pot and
let him see me drink it before him, and sought
(34:08):
my bread in it. Gave him a cake of bread
to do the like, which he quickly complied with and
made signs that it was very good for him. I
kept there with him all that night, but as soon
as it was day, I beckoned to him to come
with me and let him know I would give him
some clothes, at which he seemed very glad, for he
(34:30):
was stark naked. As he went by the place where
he had buried the two men, he pointed exactly to
the place and showed me the marks that he had
made to find them again, making signs to me that
we should dig them up and eat them. At this
I appeared very angry, expressed my abhorrence of it, made
(34:52):
as if I would vomit at the thoughts of it,
and beckoned him with my hands to come away, which
he did immediately with great submission. I then led him
up to the top of the hill to see if
his enemies were gone, and pulling out my glass, I
looked and saw plainly the place where they had been,
but no appearance of them or their canoes, so that
(35:14):
it was plain they were gone, and had left their
two comrades behind them, without any search after them. But
I was not content with this discovery. But having now
more courage and consequently more curiosity, I took my man
Friday with me, giving him the sword in his hand,
(35:36):
with the bow and arrows at his back, which I
found he could use very dexterously, making him carry one
gun for me and I two for myself, and away
we marched to the place where these creatures had been,
for I had a mind now to get some further
intelligence of them. When I came to the place, my
(35:57):
very blood ran chill in my veins, and my heart
sunk within me at the horror of the spectacle. Indeed,
it was a dreadful sight. At least it was so
to me, though Friday made nothing of it. The place
was covered with human bones, the ground dyed with their blood,
(36:18):
in great pieces of flesh left there and here half eaten, mangled,
and scorched, in short, all the tokens of the triumphant
feast they had been making there after a victory over
their enemies. I saw three skulls, five hands, and the
(36:39):
bones of three or four legs and feet, and abundance
of other parts of bodies. And Friday, by his signs,
made me understand that they had brought over four prisoners
to feast upon, that three of them were eaten up,
and that he pointing to himself, was the fourth. That
there had been a great bat between them and their
(37:01):
next king, of whose subjects it seems he had been one,
And that they had taken a great number of prisoners,
all which were carried to several places by those who
had taken them in the fight, in order to feast
upon them, as was done here by these wretches, upon
those they brought hither. I caused Friday to gather all
(37:25):
the skulls, bones, flesh, and whatever remained, and lay them
together in a heap, and make a great fire upon it,
and burn them all to ashes. I found Friday had
still a hankering stomach after some of the flesh, and
was still a cannibal in his nature. But I showed
so much abhorrence at the very thoughts of it, and
(37:46):
at the least appearance of it, that he durst not
discover it, for I had, by some means let him
know that I would kill him if he offered it.
When he had done this, came back to our castle,
and there I fell to work for my man Friday.
And first I gave him a pair of linen trousers
(38:08):
which I had out of the poor gunner's chest I mentioned,
which I found in the wreck, in which with a
little alteration, fitted him very well. And then I made
him a jerkin of goat's skin, as well as my
skill would allow, for I was now grown a tolerably
good tailor. And I gave him a cap, which I
(38:29):
made of hair skin, very convenient and fashionable enough, and
thus he was clothed for the present tolerably well, and
was mighty well pleased to see himself clothed, almost as
well as his master. It is true he went awkwardly
in these clothes at first. Wearing the drawers was very
(38:51):
awkward to him, and the sleeves of the westcot galled
his shoulders and the inside of his arms, but little
easing them where he had complained they hurt, and using
himself to them, he took to them at length very well.
The next day, after I came home to my hutch
(39:12):
with him, I began to consider where I should lodge him,
and that I might do well for him and yet
be perfectly easy myself. I made a little tent for
him in the vacant place between my two fortifications, in
the inside of the last and in the outside of
the first. As there was a door or entrance there
(39:34):
into my cave, I made a formal framed doorcase and
a door to it of boards, and set it up
in the passage, a little within the entrance, and causing
the door to open up in the inside. I barred
it up in the night, taking in my ladders too,
so that Friday could no way come at me In
the inside of my innermost wall without making so much
(39:58):
noise and getting over that it must needs awaken me.
For my first wall had now a complete roof over
it of long poles, covering all my tent, and leaning
up to the side of the hill, which was again
laid across with smaller sticks instead of laths, and being
thatched over a great thickness with the rice straw, which
(40:21):
was strong like reeds. And at the whole or place
which was left to go in or out by the latter,
I had placed a kind of trap door, which if
it had been attempted on the outside, would not have
opened at all, but would have fallen down and made
a great noise. As to weapons, I took them all
into my side every night, but I needed none of
(40:45):
all this precaution, For never man had a more faithful, loving,
sincere servant than Friday was to me, without passions, sullenness,
or designs, perfectly obliged and engaged. His very affections were
tied to me like those of a child to a father,
And I dare say he would have sacrificed his life
(41:09):
to save mine upon any occasion whatsoever. That many testimonies
he gave of this put it out of doubt, and
soon convinced me that I needed use no precautions for
my safety. On his account. This frequently gave me occasion
to observe, and that with wonder, that, however, it had
(41:31):
pleased God, in his providence and in the government of
the works of his hands, to take from so great
a part of the world of his creatures the best
uses to which their faculties and the powers of their
souls are adapted. Yet that He has bestowed upon them
the same powers, the same reason, the same affections, the
(41:51):
same sentiments of kindness and obligation, the same passions and
resentments of wrongs, the same sense of gratitude, sincerity, fidelity,
and all the capacities of doing good and receiving good
that He has given to us, And that when He
pleases to offer them occasions of exerting these, they are
(42:16):
as ready, nay more ready, to apply them to the
right uses for which they were bestowed, than we are.
This made me very melancholy sometimes in reflecting as to
the several occasions presented, How mean a use we make
of all these, even though we have those powers enlightened
(42:39):
by the great lamp of instruction, the spirit of God,
and by the knowledge of His word, added to our understanding.
And why it has pleased God to hide the like
saving knowledge from so many millions of souls, who, if
I might judge, by this poor savage, would make a
much better use of it than we did. From Hence,
(43:03):
I sometimes was led too far to invade the sovereignty
of Providence, and as it were, harragn the justice of
so arbitrary a disposition of things that should hide that
sight from some and reveal it to others, and yet
expect a light duty from both. But I shut it
(43:26):
up and checked my thoughts with this conclusion. First that
we did not know by what light and law these
should be condemned, but that as God was necessarily and
by the nature of his being infinitely holy and just,
so it could not be. But if these creatures were
(43:46):
all sentenced to absence from himself, it was on account
of sending against that light, which, as the scripture says,
was a law to themselves, and by such rules as
their consciences acknowledged to be just, though the foundation was
not discovered to us. And secondly, that still, as we
(44:08):
are all the clay in the hand of the Potter,
no vessel could say to him, why hast thou formed me? Thus?
But to return to my new companion. I was greatly
delighted with him, and made it my business to teach
him everything that was proper, to make him useful, handy,
(44:31):
and helpful, but especially to make him speak and understand
me when I spoke. And he was the aptest scholar
that ever was, and particularly was so merry, so constantly diligent,
and so pleased when he could but understand me or
(44:53):
make me understand him, that it was very pleasant for
me to talk to him. Now, my life began to
so easy that I began to say to myself that
could I but have been safe from more savages? I
cared not if I was never to remove from the
place where I lived. End of Chapter fourteen.
Chapter fourteen, A dream realized. Having brought all my things
on shore and secured them, I went back to my
boat and rowed or paddled her along the shore to
her old harbor, where I laid her up and made
the best of my way to my old habitation, where
(00:21):
I found everything safe and quiet. I began now to
repose myself, live after my old fashion, and take care
of my family affairs. And for a while I lived
easy enough, only that I was more vigilant than I
used to be, looked out oftener, and did not go
(00:42):
abroad so much. And if at any time I did
stir with any freedom, it was always to the east
part of the island, where I was pretty well satisfied
the savages never came, and where I could go without
so many precautions and such a load of arms and
ammunition as I always carried with me if I went
(01:05):
the other way. I lived in this condition near two
years more. But my unlucky head, that was always to
let me know it was born to make my body miserable,
was all these two years filled with projects and designs.
How if it were possible, I might get away from
(01:28):
this island. For sometimes I was for making another voyage
to the wreck, though my reason told me there was
nothing left there worth the hazard of my voyage, sometimes
for a ramble one way, sometimes another. And I believe
verily if I had had the boat that I went
(01:49):
from Celia, I should have ventured to see bound anywhere
I knew, not whither I have been in all my circumstances.
A memento to those who are touched with the general
plague of mankind, whence for aught I know one half
(02:10):
of their misri's flow. I mean that of not being
satisfied with the station wherein God and Nature hath placed them.
For not to look back upon my primitive condition and
the excellent advice of my father, the opposition to which was,
as I may call it, my original sin. My subsequent
(02:32):
mistakes of the same kind had been the means of
my coming into this miserable condition. For had that providence,
which so happily seated me at the Brazils as a planter,
blessed me with confined desires, and I could have been
contented to have gone on gradually, I might have been
(02:54):
by this time, I mean, in the time of my
being in this island, one of the most considerable planters
in the Brazils. Nay, I am persuaded that by the
improvements I had made in that little time I lived there,
and the increase I should probably have made if I
had remained, I might have been worth a one hundred
(03:17):
thousand moidores. And what business had I to leave a
settled fortune, a well stocked plantation, improving and increasing, to
turn supercargo to Guinea to fetch negroes, when patience and
time would have so increased our stock at home that
(03:37):
we could have bought them at our own door, from
those whose business it was to fetch them. And though
it had cost us something more, yet the difference of
that price was by no means worth saving that so
great a hazard. But as this is usually the fate
of young heads, so reflection upon the folly of it
(04:00):
is as commonly the exercise of more years, or of
the dear bought experience of time. So it was with
me now, And yet so deep had the mistake taken
root in my temper, that I could not satisfy myself
in my station, but was continually pouring upon the means
(04:22):
and possibility of my escape from this place, and that
I may with greater pleasure to the reader bring on
the remaining part of my story. It may not be
improper to give him some account of my first conceptions
on the subject of this foolish scheme of my escape,
and how and upon what foundation I acted. I am
(04:48):
now to be supposed retired into my castle after my
late voyage to the wreck. My frigate laid up and
secured under water as usual, and my condition restored to
what it was before. I had more wealth, indeed than
I had before, but was not at all the richer,
(05:10):
for I had no more use for it than the
Indians of Peru had before the Spaniards came there. It
was one of the nights in the rainy season in March,
the four and twentieth year of my first setting foot
in this island of solitude. I was lying in my
bed or hammock, awake, very well in health, had no pain,
(05:34):
no distemper, no uneasiness of body, nor any uneasiness of
mind more than ordinary, but could by no means close
my eyes, that is, so as to sleep, no not
a wink all night long. Otherwise than as follows, it
(05:54):
is impossible to set down the innumerable crowd of thoughts
that whirled through through that great thoroughfare of the brain
the memory. In this night's time, I ran over the
whole history of my life in miniature, or by abridgment,
as I may call it, to my coming to this island,
(06:15):
and also of that part of my life since I
came to this island. In my reflections upon the state
of my case since I came on shore on this island,
I was comparing the happy posture of my affairs in
the first years of my habitation here with the life
of anxiety, fear, and care, which I had lived in
(06:36):
ever since I had seen the print of a foot
in the sand. Not that I did not believe the
savages had frequented the island even all the while, and
might have been several hundreds of them at times on
shore there, but I had never known it and was
incapable of any apprehensions about it. My satisfaction perfect, though
(07:01):
my danger was the same, and I was as happy
in not knowing my danger as if I had never
really been exposed to it. This furnished my thoughts with
many very profitable reflections, and particularly this one. How infinitely
good that providence is which has provided in its government
(07:24):
of mankind such narrow bounds to his sight and knowledge
of things. And though he walks in the midst of
so many thousand dangers, the sight of which, if discovered
to him, would distract his mind and sink his spirits,
he has kept serene and calm by having the events
(07:44):
of things hid from his eyes, and knowing nothing of
the dangers which surround him. After these thoughts had for
some time entertained me, I came to reflect seriously upon
the real danger I had been in for so many
years in this very island, and how I had walked
about in the greatest security and with all possible tranquility,
(08:09):
even when perhaps nothing but the brow of a hill,
a great tree, or the casual approach of night had
been between me and the worst kind of destruction, that is,
that of falling into the hands of cannibals and savages,
who would have seized on me with the same view
as I would on a goat or turtle, and have
(08:30):
thought of it no more a crime to kill and
devour me than I did of a pigeon or a curlew.
I would unjustly slander myself if I should say I
was not sincerely thankful to my great preserver, to whose
singular protection I acknowledged with great humanity all these unknown
(08:52):
deliverances were due, and without which I must inevitably have
fallen into their merciless hands. When these thoughts were over,
my head was for some time taken up to considering
the nature of these wretched creatures, I mean, the savages,
and how it came to pass in the world that
the wise governor of all things should give up any
(09:15):
of his creatures to such inhumanity, nay, to something so
much more below even brutality itself, as to devour its
own kind. But as this ended in some at that
time fruitless speculations, it occurred to me to inquire what
(09:36):
part of the world these wretches lived in, how far
off the coast was from, whence they came, what they
ventured over so far from home, for what kind of
boats they had? And why I might not order myself
and my business so that I might be able to
go over thither as they were come to me. I
(09:59):
never so much as troubled myself to consider what I
should do with myself when I went thither. What would
become of me if I fell into the hands of
those savages, or how I should escape them if they
attacked me. No, nor so much as how it was
possible for me to reach the coast and not to
be attacked by some or other of them, without any
(10:22):
possibility of delivering myself. And if I should not fall
into their hands, what I should do for provision, or
whither I should bend my course. None of these thoughts
I say so much as came in my way. But
my mind was wholly bent upon the notion of my
passing over in my boat to the mainland. I looked
(10:46):
upon my present condition as the most miserable that could
possibly be. That I was not able to throw myself
into anything but death that could be called worse. And
if I reached the shore of the main I might
perhaps meet with relief, or I might coast along as
I did on the African shore till I came to
(11:09):
some inhabited country, and where I might find some relief.
And after all, perhaps I might fall in with some
Christian ship that might take me in. And if the
worst came to the worst, I could but die, which
would put an end to all these miseries at once. Pray.
Note all this was the fruit of a disturbed mind
(11:33):
and impatient temper, made desperate as it were, by the
long continuance of my troubles and the disappointments I had
met in the wreck I had been on board of,
and where I had been so near obtaining what I
so earnestly longed for somebody to speak to and to
learn some knowledge from them of the place where I was,
(11:54):
and of the probable means of my deliverance. I was
agitated wholly by these thoughts. All my calm of mind,
in my resignation to providence and waiting, the issue of
the dispositions of heaven seemed to be suspended, and I had,
as it were, no power to turn my thoughts to
(12:16):
anything but to the project of a voyage to the main,
which came upon me with such force and such an
impetuosity of desire, that it was not to be resisted.
When this had agitated my thoughts for two hours or more,
with such violence that it set my very blood into
(12:37):
a ferment, and my pulse beat as if I had
been in a fever, merely with the extraordinary fervor of
my mind about it nature, as if I had been
fatigued and exhausted with the very thoughts of it threw
me into a sound sleep. One would have thought I
(12:59):
should have dreamed of it, but I did not, nor
of anything relating to it. But I dreamed that I
was going out in the morning as usual from my castle.
I saw upon the shore two canoes and eleven savages
coming to land, and that they brought with them another savage,
whom they were going to kill in order to eat him.
(13:19):
When on a sudden the savage that they were going
to kill jumped away and ran for his life. And
I thought in my sleep that he came running into
my little thick grove before my fortification to hide himself,
and that I, seeing him alone, and not perceiving that
the others sought him that way, showed myself to him, and,
(13:43):
smiling upon him, encouraged him. That he kneeled down to me,
seeming to pray me to assist him, upon which I
showed him my ladder, made him go up, and carried
him into my cave, and he became my servant. And
that as soon as I had got this man, I
(14:04):
said to myself, now I may certainly venture to the mainland,
for this fellow will serve me as a pilot, and
will tell me what to do, and whither to go
for provisions, and whither not to go for fear of
being devoured, what places to venture to, and what to shun.
(14:26):
I waked with this thought, and was under such inexpressible
impressions of joy at the prospect of my escape and
my dream, that the disappointments which I felt upon coming
to myself and finding that it was no more than
a dream, were equally extravagant the other way, and threw
(14:47):
me into a very great dejection of spirits. Upon this, however,
I made this conclusion that my only way to go
about to attempt an escape was to endeavor to get
a savage into my possession, and if possible, it should
(15:07):
be one of their prisoners, whom they had condemned to
be eaten, and should bring hither to kill. But these
thoughts still were attended with this difficulty, that it was
impossible to effect this without attacking a whole caravan of
them and killing them all. And this was not only
a very desperate attempt, and might miscarry. But on the
(15:30):
other hand, I had greatly scrupled the lawfulness of it
to myself and my heart trembled at the thoughts of
shedding so much blood, though it was for my deliverance.
I need not repeat the arguments which occurred to me
against this, they being the same mentioned before. But though
(15:50):
I had other reasons to offer now, that is that
those men were enemies to my life and would devour
me if they could, that it was self preservation in
the highest degree to deliver myself from this death of
a life, and was acting in my own defense as
much as if they were actually assaulting me, and the like.
(16:13):
I say, though these things argued for it, yet the
thoughts of shedding human blood for my deliverance were very
terrible to me, and such as I could by no
means reconcile myself too for a great while. However, at last,
after many secret disputes with myself, and after great perplexities
(16:35):
about it, for all these arguments one way and another
struggled in my head a long time, the eager, prevailing
desire of deliverance at length mastered all the rest, and
I resolved, if possible to get one of these savages
into my hands cost what it would. My next thing
(16:58):
was to contrive how to do it, and this indeed
was very difficult to resolve on. But as I could
pitch upon no probable means for it, so I resolved
to put myself upon the watch to see them when
they came on shore, and leave the rest to the event,
taking such measures as the opportunity should present. Let what
(17:22):
would be with these resolutions in my thoughts. I set
myself upon the scout as often as possible, and indeed
so often that I was heartily tired of it. For
it was above a year and a half that I waited,
and for a great part of that time went out
to the west end and to the southwest corner of
(17:43):
the island almost every day to look for canoes. But
none appeared. This was very discouraging and began to trouble
me much, though I cannot say that it did in
this case, as it had done some time before, where
off the edge of my desire to the thing. But
the longer it seemed to be delayed, the more eager
(18:06):
I was for it. In a word, I was not
at first so careful to shun the sight of these
savages and avoid being seen by them, as I was
now eager to be upon them. Besides, I fancied myself
able to manage one, nay two, or three savages if
(18:26):
I had them, so as to make them entirely slaves
to me, to do whatever I should direct them, and
to prevent their being able at any time to do
me any hurt. It was a great while that I
pleased myself with this affair, but nothing still presented itself.
All my fancies and schemes came to nothing, for no
(18:49):
savages came near me for quite a while. After a
year and a half later, I entertained these notions, and
by long musings had, as it were, resolved them into nothing.
For want of an occasion to put them into execution.
I was surprised one morning by seeing no less than
(19:11):
five canoes all on shore together on my side of
the island, and the people who belonged to them all
landed and out of my sight. The number of them
broke all my measures. For seeing so many, and knowing
that they always came four or six or sometimes more
in a boat, I could not tell what to think
(19:33):
of it, or how to take my measures to attack
twenty or thirty men single handed. So lay still in
my castle, perplexed and discomforted, however, I put myself into
the same position for an attack that I had formerly provided,
and was just ready for action if anything had presented.
(19:56):
Having waited a good while listening to here, if they
made any noise at length, being very impatient, I set
my guns at the foot of my ladder and clambered
up to the top of the hill by my two
stages as usual, standing so however, that my head did
not appear above the hill, so that they could not
(20:19):
perceive me by any means. Here I observed, by the
help of my prospective glass, that they were no less
than thirty in number, that they had a fire kindled,
and that they had meat dressed. How they cooked it,
I knew not nor what it was, But they were
(20:41):
all dancing in I know not how many barbarous gestures
and figures their own way round the fire. While I
was thus looking on them, I perceived by my perspective
two miserable wretches dragged from the boats, where it seens
they were laid by, and were now brought out for
(21:03):
the slaughter. I perceived one of them immediately fall being
knocked down, I suppose with a club or wooden sword,
for that was their way and two or three others
were at work immediately cutting him open for their cookery,
while the other victim was left standing by himself that
(21:24):
they should be ready for him. In that very moment,
this poor wretch, seeing himself a little at liberty and
unbound nature, inspired him with hopes of life, and he
started away from them and ran with incredible swiftness along
the sands directly towards me, I mean towards that part
(21:46):
of the coast where my habitation was. I was dreadfully frightened,
I must acknowledge when I perceived him run my way,
and especially when, as I thought, I saw him pursued
by the whole body. Now, I expected that part of
my dream was coming to pass, and that he would
certainly take shelter in my grove. But I could not depend,
(22:09):
by any means upon my dream that the other savages
would not pursue him thither and find him there. However,
I kept my station, and my spirits began to recover
when I found that there was not above three men
that followed him, and still more, I was encouraged when
I found out that he outstripped them exceedingly in running
(22:35):
and gaining ground on them, so that if he could
but hold out for half an hour, I saw easily
he would fairly get away from them. All there was
between them and my castle the creek which I mentioned
often in the first part of my story, where I
landed my cargoes out of the ship, and this I
(22:57):
saw plainly he must necessarily swim over, or the poor
wretch would be taken there. But when the savage escaping
came thither, he made nothing of it, though the tide
was then up, but plunging in, swam through in about
thirty strokes or thereabouts, landed and ran with exceeding swiftness
(23:21):
and strength. When the three persons came to the creek,
I found that two of them could swim, but the
third could not, and that standing on the other side,
he looked at the others, but went no farther, and
soon after went softly back again, which, as it happened,
was very well for him. In the end I observed
(23:44):
that the two who swam were yet more than twice
as strong swimming over the creek as the fellow was
that fled from them. It came very warmly upon my thoughts,
and indeed irresistibly that now was the time to get
me a servant and perhaps a companion or assistant, and
that I was plainly called by providence to save this
(24:06):
poor creature's life. I immediately ran down the ladders with
all possible expedition, fetched my two guns, for they were
both at the foot of the ladders, as I observed before,
and getting up again with the same haste to the
top of the hill, I crossed towards the sea, and,
having a very short cut and all downhill, placed myself
(24:31):
in the way between the pursuers and the pursued, hallowing
aloud to him that fled, who, looking back, was at
first perhaps as much frightened at me as at them.
But I beckoned with my hand for him to come back,
and in the meantime I slowly advanced towards the two
that followed, then, rushing at once upon the foremost, I
(24:54):
knocked him down with the stock of my piece. I
was loathed to fire, because I would not have the
rest here, though at that distance it would not have
been easily heard, and being out of sight of the smoke, too,
they would not have known what to make of it.
Having knocked this fellow down, the other who pursued him
(25:15):
stopped as if he had been frightened, and I advanced
towards him. But as I came nearer, ARE perceived presently
he had a bow and arrow and was fitting it
to shoot at me. So I was then obliged to
shoot at him first, which I did, and killed him
at the first shot. The poor savage, who fled but
(25:39):
had stopped though he saw both his enemies fallen and
killed as he thought, yet was so frightened with the
fire and noise of my piece that he stood stock still,
and neither came forward nor went backward, though he seemed
rather inclined still to fly than to come on. I
(26:00):
halloed him again and made signs to come forward, which
he easily understood, and came a little way, then stopped again,
and then a little farther, and stopped again. And I
could then perceive that he stood trembling, as if he
had been taken prisoner and had just been to be killed,
(26:22):
as his two enemies were. I reckoned to him again
to come to me, and gave him all the signs
of encouragement that I could think of, and he came
nearer and nearer, kneeling down every ten or twelve steps
in token of acknowledgment for saving his life. I smiled
(26:42):
at him and looked pleasantly, and beckoned to him to
come still nearer. At length he came close to me,
and then he kneeled down again, kissed the ground, and
laid his head upon the ground, and, taking me by
the foot, set my foot upon his head. This, it seems,
(27:02):
was in token of swearing to be my slave forever.
I took him up and made much of him, and
encouraged him all I could. But there was no more
work to do yet, for I perceived the savage whom
I had knocked down was not killed, but stunned with
the blow, and began to come to himself. So I
(27:23):
pointed to him and showed him, the savage that he
was not dead. Upon this he spoke some words to me,
and though I could not understand them, yet, I thought
they were pleasant to hear, for they were the first
sound of a man's voice that I had heard my
own accepted for above twenty five years. But there was
(27:45):
no time for such reflections. Now. The savage who was
knocked down recovered himself so far as to sit up
upon the ground, and I perceived that the savage began
to be afraid. But when I saw that, I presented
my other piece at the man, as if I would
shoot him. Upon this, my savage, for so I call him,
(28:07):
now made a motion to me to lend him my sword,
which hung naked in a belt by my side, which
I did. He no sooner had it, But he runs
to his enemy and at one blow cut off his
head so cleverly. No executioner in Germany could have done
it sooner or better, which I thought very strange, for
(28:30):
one who I had reason to believe never saw a
sword in his life before, except their own wooden swords. However,
it seems as if I learned afterwards, they made their
wooden swords so sharp, so heavy, and the wood is
so hard that they will even cut off heads with them,
(28:51):
eye and arms, And that at one blow too. When
he had done this, he comes laughing to me and
sign of triumph, and brought me the sword again, and
with abundance of gestures which I did not understand, laid
it down with the head of the savage that he
had killed just before me. But that which astonished him
(29:14):
most was to know how I killed the other Indians
so far off, so pointing to him, he made signs
to me to let him go to him, and I
bade him go as well as I could. When he
came to him, he stood like one amazed, looking at him,
turning him first on one side, then on the other,
(29:37):
looked at the wound the bullet had made, which it
seems was just in his breast where it had made
a hole, and no great quantity of blood had followed,
but he had bled inwardly, for he was quite dead.
He took up his bow and arrows and came back.
So I turned to go away and beckoned him to
(29:58):
follow me, making signs to him that more might come
after them. Upon this, he made signs to me that
he should bury them with sand, that they might not
be seen by the rest if they followed, And so
I made signs to him to do so. He fell
to work, and in an instant he had scraped a
(30:20):
hole in the sand with his hands big enough to
bury the first in, and then dragged him into it
and covered him, and did so by the other also.
I believe he had buried them both in a quarter
of an hour. Then, calling away, I carried him not
to my castle, but quite away to my cave on
(30:43):
the farther part of the island, so I did not
let my dream come to pass in that part that
he came to my grove for shelter. Here I gave
him bread and a bunch of raisins to eat, and
a draft of water, which I found he was indeed
in great distress, for from his running, And having refreshed him,
(31:04):
I made signs for him to go and lie down
to sleep, showing him a place where I had laid
some rice straw and a blanket upon it, which I
used to sleep upon myself sometimes. So the poor creature
laid down and went to sleep. He was a comely,
handsome fellow, perfectly well made, with straight, long limbs, not
(31:27):
too large, tall and well shaped, and as I reckon,
about twenty six years of age, he had a very
good countenance, not a fierce and surly aspect, but seemed
to have something very manly in his face. And yet
he had all the sweetness and softness of a European
in his countenance, too, especially when he smiled. His hair
(31:51):
was long and black, not curled like wool, his forehead
very high and large, and a great vivacity and sparkling
sharpness in his eyes. The color of his skin was
not quite black, but very tawny, and yet not an
ugly yellow, nauseous tawny, as the Brazilians and Virginians and
(32:13):
other natives of America are, but of a bright kind
of a dun olive color that had in it something
very agreeable, though not very easy to describe. His face
was round and plump, his nose small, not flat like
the Negroes, a very good mouth, thin lips, and fine teeth,
(32:35):
well set, and as white as ivory. After he had
slumbered rather than slept, about half an hour, he awoke
again and came out of the cave to me, for
I had been milking my goats, which I had in
the enclosure just by. When he espied me. He came
running to me, laying himself down again upon the ground,
(32:58):
with all the signs of a humble, thankful disposition, making
a great many antique gestures to show it. At last
he lay his head flat upon the ground close to
my foot, and sets my other foot upon his head,
as he had done before. And after this made all
the signs to me of subjection, servitude, and submission imaginable
(33:24):
to let me know how he would serve me so
long as he lived. I understood him in many things,
and let him know I was very well pleased with him.
In a little time, I began to speak to him
and teach him to speak to me. And first I
let him know his name should be Friday, which was
the day I saved his life. I called him so
(33:47):
for the memory of the time. I likewise taught him
to say master, and then let him know that was
to be my name. I likewise taught him to say
yes and no, and to know the meaning of them.
I gave him some milk in an earthen pot and
let him see me drink it before him, and sought
(34:08):
my bread in it. Gave him a cake of bread
to do the like, which he quickly complied with and
made signs that it was very good for him. I
kept there with him all that night, but as soon
as it was day, I beckoned to him to come
with me and let him know I would give him
some clothes, at which he seemed very glad, for he
(34:30):
was stark naked. As he went by the place where
he had buried the two men, he pointed exactly to
the place and showed me the marks that he had
made to find them again, making signs to me that
we should dig them up and eat them. At this
I appeared very angry, expressed my abhorrence of it, made
(34:52):
as if I would vomit at the thoughts of it,
and beckoned him with my hands to come away, which
he did immediately with great submission. I then led him
up to the top of the hill to see if
his enemies were gone, and pulling out my glass, I
looked and saw plainly the place where they had been,
but no appearance of them or their canoes, so that
(35:14):
it was plain they were gone, and had left their
two comrades behind them, without any search after them. But
I was not content with this discovery. But having now
more courage and consequently more curiosity, I took my man
Friday with me, giving him the sword in his hand,
(35:36):
with the bow and arrows at his back, which I
found he could use very dexterously, making him carry one
gun for me and I two for myself, and away
we marched to the place where these creatures had been,
for I had a mind now to get some further
intelligence of them. When I came to the place, my
(35:57):
very blood ran chill in my veins, and my heart
sunk within me at the horror of the spectacle. Indeed,
it was a dreadful sight. At least it was so
to me, though Friday made nothing of it. The place
was covered with human bones, the ground dyed with their blood,
(36:18):
in great pieces of flesh left there and here half eaten, mangled,
and scorched, in short, all the tokens of the triumphant
feast they had been making there after a victory over
their enemies. I saw three skulls, five hands, and the
(36:39):
bones of three or four legs and feet, and abundance
of other parts of bodies. And Friday, by his signs,
made me understand that they had brought over four prisoners
to feast upon, that three of them were eaten up,
and that he pointing to himself, was the fourth. That
there had been a great bat between them and their
(37:01):
next king, of whose subjects it seems he had been one,
And that they had taken a great number of prisoners,
all which were carried to several places by those who
had taken them in the fight, in order to feast
upon them, as was done here by these wretches, upon
those they brought hither. I caused Friday to gather all
(37:25):
the skulls, bones, flesh, and whatever remained, and lay them
together in a heap, and make a great fire upon it,
and burn them all to ashes. I found Friday had
still a hankering stomach after some of the flesh, and
was still a cannibal in his nature. But I showed
so much abhorrence at the very thoughts of it, and
(37:46):
at the least appearance of it, that he durst not
discover it, for I had, by some means let him
know that I would kill him if he offered it.
When he had done this, came back to our castle,
and there I fell to work for my man Friday.
And first I gave him a pair of linen trousers
(38:08):
which I had out of the poor gunner's chest I mentioned,
which I found in the wreck, in which with a
little alteration, fitted him very well. And then I made
him a jerkin of goat's skin, as well as my
skill would allow, for I was now grown a tolerably
good tailor. And I gave him a cap, which I
(38:29):
made of hair skin, very convenient and fashionable enough, and
thus he was clothed for the present tolerably well, and
was mighty well pleased to see himself clothed, almost as
well as his master. It is true he went awkwardly
in these clothes at first. Wearing the drawers was very
(38:51):
awkward to him, and the sleeves of the westcot galled
his shoulders and the inside of his arms, but little
easing them where he had complained they hurt, and using
himself to them, he took to them at length very well.
The next day, after I came home to my hutch
(39:12):
with him, I began to consider where I should lodge him,
and that I might do well for him and yet
be perfectly easy myself. I made a little tent for
him in the vacant place between my two fortifications, in
the inside of the last and in the outside of
the first. As there was a door or entrance there
(39:34):
into my cave, I made a formal framed doorcase and
a door to it of boards, and set it up
in the passage, a little within the entrance, and causing
the door to open up in the inside. I barred
it up in the night, taking in my ladders too,
so that Friday could no way come at me In
the inside of my innermost wall without making so much
(39:58):
noise and getting over that it must needs awaken me.
For my first wall had now a complete roof over
it of long poles, covering all my tent, and leaning
up to the side of the hill, which was again
laid across with smaller sticks instead of laths, and being
thatched over a great thickness with the rice straw, which
(40:21):
was strong like reeds. And at the whole or place
which was left to go in or out by the latter,
I had placed a kind of trap door, which if
it had been attempted on the outside, would not have
opened at all, but would have fallen down and made
a great noise. As to weapons, I took them all
into my side every night, but I needed none of
(40:45):
all this precaution, For never man had a more faithful, loving,
sincere servant than Friday was to me, without passions, sullenness,
or designs, perfectly obliged and engaged. His very affections were
tied to me like those of a child to a father,
And I dare say he would have sacrificed his life
(41:09):
to save mine upon any occasion whatsoever. That many testimonies
he gave of this put it out of doubt, and
soon convinced me that I needed use no precautions for
my safety. On his account. This frequently gave me occasion
to observe, and that with wonder, that, however, it had
(41:31):
pleased God, in his providence and in the government of
the works of his hands, to take from so great
a part of the world of his creatures the best
uses to which their faculties and the powers of their
souls are adapted. Yet that He has bestowed upon them
the same powers, the same reason, the same affections, the
(41:51):
same sentiments of kindness and obligation, the same passions and
resentments of wrongs, the same sense of gratitude, sincerity, fidelity,
and all the capacities of doing good and receiving good
that He has given to us, And that when He
pleases to offer them occasions of exerting these, they are
(42:16):
as ready, nay more ready, to apply them to the
right uses for which they were bestowed, than we are.
This made me very melancholy sometimes in reflecting as to
the several occasions presented, How mean a use we make
of all these, even though we have those powers enlightened
(42:39):
by the great lamp of instruction, the spirit of God,
and by the knowledge of His word, added to our understanding.
And why it has pleased God to hide the like
saving knowledge from so many millions of souls, who, if
I might judge, by this poor savage, would make a
much better use of it than we did. From Hence,
(43:03):
I sometimes was led too far to invade the sovereignty
of Providence, and as it were, harragn the justice of
so arbitrary a disposition of things that should hide that
sight from some and reveal it to others, and yet
expect a light duty from both. But I shut it
(43:26):
up and checked my thoughts with this conclusion. First that
we did not know by what light and law these
should be condemned, but that as God was necessarily and
by the nature of his being infinitely holy and just,
so it could not be. But if these creatures were
(43:46):
all sentenced to absence from himself, it was on account
of sending against that light, which, as the scripture says,
was a law to themselves, and by such rules as
their consciences acknowledged to be just, though the foundation was
not discovered to us. And secondly, that still, as we
(44:08):
are all the clay in the hand of the Potter,
no vessel could say to him, why hast thou formed me? Thus?
But to return to my new companion. I was greatly
delighted with him, and made it my business to teach
him everything that was proper, to make him useful, handy,
(44:31):
and helpful, but especially to make him speak and understand
me when I spoke. And he was the aptest scholar
that ever was, and particularly was so merry, so constantly diligent,
and so pleased when he could but understand me or
(44:53):
make me understand him, that it was very pleasant for
me to talk to him. Now, my life began to
so easy that I began to say to myself that
could I but have been safe from more savages? I
cared not if I was never to remove from the
place where I lived. End of Chapter fourteen.
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