The Eerie Adventures of the Lycanthrope Robinson Crusoe (8 page)

It happen'd, after I had laid my scheme for setting up my tent and making the cave, that a storm of rain falling from a thick, dark cloud, a sudden flash of lightning came, and after that, a great clap of thunder, as is naturally the effect of it. I was not so much surpris'd with the lightning as I was with a thought, one which darted into my mind as swift as the lightning itself: O my powder! My very heart sunk within me when I thought at one blast all my powder might be destroyed. Tho’ had the powder took fire, I would have never known who had hurt me.

Such impression did this make upon me, after the storm was over, I laid aside all my works and applied myself to make bags and boxes to separate the powder, in hope whatever might come it might not all take fire at once, and to keep it so apart that it should not be possible to make one part fire another. I finished this work in about a fortnight. I think my powder, which in all was about 240 lb. weight, was divided in not less than a hundred parcels. As to the barrel that had been wet, I did not apprehend any danger from that, so I placed it in my new cave, which, in my fancy, I called my kitchen. The rest I hid up and down in holes among the rocks so no wet might come to it, marking where I laid it.

In the interval of time while this was doing, I went out at least once every day with my gun, as well to divert myself as to see if I could kill any thing fit for food, and to acquaint myself with what the island produced. The first time I went out, I presently discovered there were goats upon the island, which was a great satisfaction to me, and I observ'd this was the creature the beast had fed upon during those first nights on the island. Then it was attended with this misfortune to me. They were so shy, so subtle, and so swift of foot, it was the most difficult thing in the world to come at them. I was not discouraged at this, not doubting but I might now and then shoot one, as it soon happened. The first shot I made among these creatures, I killed a she-goat, which had a little kid by her which she gave suck to, which grieved me heartily. But when the old one fell, the kid stood stock still by her, ‘till I came and took her up. Not only so, but when I carried the old one with me upon my shoulders, the kid followed me quite to my enclosure. I laid down the dam and took the kid in my arms and carried it over my pale, in hopes to have bred it up tame. But it would not eat, and stood in terror of the beast's scent. So I was forced to kill it and eat it myself. These two supplied me with flesh a great while, for I ate sparingly and preserved my provisions (my bread especially) as much as I could.

This was also of great relief, for my father had always taught me that the beast must hunt and it must feed, for these things are in its nature. While all of our family are wont to chayn our beasts at some time or another, if it is not allow'd to follow its nature it becomes more angry and vengeful towards those it lives within. I had worry'd with nothing to hunt and eat, the beast would destroy all that I laboured to build up here on this island.

Having now fixed my habitation, I found it necessary to provide a place to make a fire in and fuel to burn. What I did for that, as also how I enlarged my cave and what conveniences I made, I shall give a full account of in its proper place. I must first give some little account of myself and of my thoughts about living, which, it may well be supposed, were not a few.

I had a dismal prospect of my condition. As I was not cast away upon that island without being driven, as is said, by a violent storm, quite out of the course of our intended voyage and some hundreds of leagues out of the ordinary course of the trade of mankind, I had great reason to consider it as a determination of Heaven that in this desolate place I should end my life. The tears would run plentifully down my face when I made these reflections. Sometimes I would expostulate with myself why Providence should thus completely ruin its creatures and render them so miserable, so abandoned without help, so entirely depressed, that it could hardly be rational to be thankful for such a life.

But something always returned swift upon me to check these thoughts, and to reprove me. Particularly, one day, walking with my gun in my hand by the sea side, I was very pensive upon the subject of my present condition, when reason, as it were, expostulated with me t’other way.

"Well, you are in a desolate condition, ‘tis true. But, pray remember, where are the rest of you? Were there not eleven on the ship? Did not nine of them escape into the boat? Where are the nine? Why were not they sav’d and you lost? Why were you singled out? Is it better to be here or there?" And then I pointed to the sea. All evils are to be considered with the good that is in them, and with what worse attends them.

Then it occurr’d to me again how well I was furnished for my subsistence, and what would have been my case if it had not happened (which was a hundred thousand to one) that the ship floated from the place where she first struck, and was driven so near to the shore I had time to get all these things out of her? What would have been my case if I had to have lived in the condition in which I at first came on shore, without necessaries of life, or necessaries to supply and procure them?

"Particularly," said I aloud, tho’ to myself, "what should I have done without a gun, without ammunition, without any tools to make any thing or to work with? Without cloathes, bedding, a tent, or any manner of covering?" And now I had all these to a sufficient quantity, and was in a fair way to provide myself in such a manner as to live without my gun, when my ammunition was spent. I had a tolerable view of subsisting without any want as long as I lived. I considered from the beginning how I should provide for the accidents that might happen, and for the time that was to come, not only after my ammunition should be spent, but even after my health or strength should decay.

And now entering into a melancholy relation of a scene of silent life, such, perhaps, as was never heard of in the world before, I shall take it from its beginning and continue it in its order. It was, by my account, the 30th of September, when, in the manner as above said, the beast first set foot upon this horrid island. The sun being to us in its autumnal equinox, was almost just over my head. I reckoned myself, by observation, to be in the latitude of 9 degrees 22 minutes north of the line.

After I had been there about ten or twelve days, it came into my thoughts that I should lose my reckoning of time for want of books, and pen and ink, and should even forget the Sabbath days from the working days. To prevent this, I cut it with my knife upon a large post in capital letters. Making it into a great cross, I set it up on the shore where I first landed, viz.
‘I came on shore here on the 30th of September, 1659.’
Upon the sides of this square post I cut every day a notch with my knife, and every seventh notch was as long again as the rest, and every first day of the month as long again as that long, and every full moon marked by a second notch across that one for the day. Thus I kept my kalendar, or weekly, monthly, and yearly reckoning of time.

But it happened among the many things which I brought out of the ship in the several voyages I made to it, I got several things of less value, but not at all less useful to me, which I found some time after rummaging in the chests. In particular, pens, ink, and paper. Several parcels in the captain's, mate's, gunner's, and carpenter's keeping. Three or four compasses (which point'd in many directions, but ne'er north in the many years on this island), some mathematical instruments, perspective glasses , charts, and books of navigation, all which I huddled together, whether I might want them or no. Also I found three very good bibles, which came to me in my cargo from England and which I had packed up among my things. Some Portugueze books also, and, among them, two or three popish prayer books, and several other books, all which I secured.

As I observ’d before, I found pens, ink, and paper, and I husbanded them to the utmost. I shall show, while my ink lasted, I kept things very exact, but after that was gone I could not, for I could not make any ink by any means I could devise.

And this put me in mind that I wanted many things, notwithstanding all I had amassed together. Of these, this of ink was one. Also a spade, pick-axe, and shovel, to dig or remove the earth. Needles, pins, and thread. As for linen, I soon learned to want that without much difficulty.

This want of tools made every work I did go on heavily. It was near a whole year before I had finished my little pale and surrounded my habitation. The stakes, which were as heavy as I could well lift, were a long time in cutting and preparing in the woods, and more by far in bringing home. I spent sometimes two days in cutting and bringing home one of those posts, and a third day in driving it into the ground. But what need I have been concerned at the tediousness of any thing I had to do, seeing I had time enough to do it in? Nor had I any other employment if that had been over, at least I could foresee, except the ranging the island to seek for food, which I did, more or less, every day.

I now began to consider my condition, and the circumstance I was reduced to. I drew up the state of my affairs in writing, not so much to leave them to any that were to come after me as to deliver my thoughts from daily poring upon them and afflicting my mind. As my reason began now to master my despondency, I began to comfort myself as well as I could, and to set the good against the evil, that I might have something to distinguish my case from worse. I stated very impartially, like debtor and creditor, the comforts I enjoyed against the miseries I suffered, thus:

EVIL.

1) I am cast upon a horrible, desolate island, void of all hope of recovery.

2) I am singled out and separated, as it were, from all the world to be miserable.

3) I am divided from mankind, a solitaire, one banished from human society.

4) I am without any defence, or means to resist any violence.

5) I have no soul to speak to, or relieve me.

6) I am afflicted with the memories of what the beast has done.

GOOD

1) But I am alive and not drowned, as all my ship's company were.

2) But I am singled out too from all the ship's crew to be spared from death. He that miraculously saved me from death can deliver me from this condition.

3) But was I not divided such before by the beast? I am not starved and perishing in a barren place, affording no sustenance.

4) But I am cast on an island where the beast can inflict violence on no others.

5) But I have got out so many necessary things from the wreck as will either supply my wants, or enable me to supply myself, even as long as I live.

6) But I have been given time to reflect and repent, in a place where the beast can hurt no other.

Upon the whole, here was an undoubted testimony that there was scarce any condition in the world so miserable but there was something positive to be thankful for in it.

Having now brought my mind a little to relish my condition, and given over looking out to sea to see if I could spy a ship, I began to apply myself to accommodate my way of living, and to make things as easy to me as I could.

I have already describ’d my habitation, which was a tent under the side of a rock, surrounded with a strong pale of posts and cables. I might now rather call it a wall, for I raised a kind of wall against it of turfs, about two feet thick on the outside. After some time (I think it was a year and a half) I raised rafters from it, leaning to the rock, and thatched or covered it with boughs of trees and such things as I could get to keep out the rain, which I found at some times of the year very violent.

I have already observ’d how I brought all my goods into this pale, and into the cave which I had made behind me. But I must observe, too, at first this was a confused heap of goods which, as they lay in no order, so they took up all my place. I had no room to turn myself. So I set myself to enlarge my cave and work farther into the earth. It was a loose, sandy rock which yielded to the labour I bestowed on it. I worked sideways, to the right hand, into the rock, and then turning to the right again worked quite out, and made me a door to the outside of my fortification.

This gave me not only egress and regress, as it were, a back-way to my tent and to my storehouse, but gave me room to stow my goods.

And now I began to apply myself to make such necessary things as I found I most wanted, particularly a chair and a table. Without these I was not able to enjoy the few comforts I had in the world. I could not write, or eat, or do several things with so much pleasure without a table, so I went to work.

And here I must needs observe, that every man may be, in time, master of every mechanic art. I had never handled a tool in my life. Yet, in time, by labour, application, and contrivance, I found, at last, I wanted nothing but I could have made, especially if I had had tools. However, I made abundance of things even without tools, and some with no more tools than an adze and a hatchet, which perhaps were never made that way before and that with infinite labour.

For example, if I wanted a board, I had no other way but to cut down a tree, set it on an edge before me, and hew it flat on either side with my axe till I had brought it to be as thin as a plank, and then dub it smooth with my adze. It is true, by this method I could make but one board of a whole tree, but this I had no remedy for but patience, any more than I had for a prodigious deal of time and labour which it took me up to make a plank or board. But my time or labour was little worth, and so it was as well employed one way as another.

However, I made me a table and a chair, as I observ’d above, in the first place. This I did out of the short pieces of boards I brought on my raft from the ship. But when I wrought out some boards, as above, I made large shelves of the breadth of a foot and a half, one over another, all along one side of my cave to lay all my tools, nails, and iron-work on. In a word, to separate every thing at large in their places that I might easily come at them. I knocked pieces into the wall of the rock to hang my guns and all things that would hang up. Had my cave been seen, it looked like a general magazine of all necessary things. I had every thing so ready at my hand, it was a great pleasure to me to see all my goods in such order and to find my stock of all necessaries so great.