The Eerie Adventures of the Lycanthrope Robinson Crusoe (3 page)

It was my great misfortune that in all these adventures I did not ship myself as a sailor. I might have learnt the duty and office of a foremast-man. I might, in time, have qualified myself for a mate or lieutenant, if not for a master. But as it was always my fate to choose for the worse, so I did here. Having money in my pocket and good cloathes upon my back, I would always go on board in the habit of a gentleman, and so I neither had any business in the ship or learnt to do any.

It was my lot first of all to fall into pretty good company in London, which does not always happen to such loose and unguided young fellows as I then was. I fell acquainted with the master of a ship who had been on the coast of Guinea. He was resolv’d to go again, having had very good success there. Hearing me say I had a mind to see the world, he told me if I would go the voyage with him I should be at no expense. I should be his messmate and his companion. If I could carry any thing with me, I should have all the advantage of it that the trade would admit.

I embraced the offer and entered into a strict friendship with this captain, who was an honest and plain-dealing man. I went the voyage with him and carried a small investment with me, which, by the honesty of my friend the captain, I increased very considerably. For I carried about £40 in such toys and trifles as the captain directed me to buy. This £40 I had mustered together by the assistance of some of my relations whom I corresponded with, and who, I believe, got my father, or at least my mother, to contribute so much as that to my first adventure.

This was the only voyage which was successful in all my adventures, which I owe to the integrity and honesty of my friend the captain. Under him also I got a competent knowledge of the mathematics and rules of navigation, learnt how to keep an account of the ship's course, take an observation, and, in short, to understand some things that were needful to be understood by a sailor. In a word, this voyage made me both a sailor and a merchant, for I brought home five pounds nine ounces of gold-dust for my adventure, which yielded me in London at my return almost £300. This fill’d me with those aspiring thoughts which have so completed my ruin.

Yet even in this voyage I had my misfortunes too. I was continually sick, being thrown into a violent calenture by the excessive heat of the climate, our principal trading being upon the coast, from the latitude of 15 degrees north even to the line itself. I also pass’d no less than six moons on board, and while four were hid in my cabin by the fierce fever which even quell'd the beast, two I spent in the deep bowels of the ship’s brig clapped in irons. True, plain iron could not contain the beast, but my father had shewn me, as a lad, how a few silver coins can be placed within knots and against locks, and thus they are render’d incorruptible before the beast’s fearsome strength.

I was now set up for a Guinea trader. My friend, to my great misfortune, dying soon after his arrival, I resolv’d to go the same voyage again and I embarked in the same vessel, once again after the last night of the full moon. Alas! I fell into terrible misfortunes in this voyage.

Our ship, making her course between the Canary Islands and the African shore, was surprised in the grey of the morning by a Turkish rover of Sallee who gave chase to us with all the sail she could make. We crowded as much canvas as our yards would spread or our masts carry, but finding the pirate gained upon us, and would come up with us in a few hours, we prepared to fight.

He came up with us, bringing to just athwart our quarter, and we brought eight of our guns to bear on that side and poured in a broadside upon him. This then made him sheer off after returning fire and pouring in also his small-shot from near 200 men which he had on board. However, we had not a man touched, all our men keeping close.

He prepared to attack us again and we to defend ourselves. Laying us on board the next time upon our other quarter, he entered sixty men upon our decks who fell to cutting and hacking the sails and rigging. We plied them with small-shot, half-pikes, powder-chests, and such, and cleared our deck of them twice. During this fighting, I wish’d I could call out the beast as my father has told me his father could, but alas! I was still young and foolish, and the nights of the full moon were still more than a week away.

However, to cut short this melancholy part of our story, our ship being disabled, three of our men killed and eight wounded, we were obliged to yield. We were carried into Sallee, a port belonging to the Moors. I was not carried up to the emperor's court, as the rest of our prisoners were, but was kept by the captain of the rover as his proper prize and made his slave.

At this surprising change of my circumstances, from a merchant to a miserable slave, I was perfectly overwhelmed. I looked back upon my father's prophetic discourse to me, that I should be miserable and have none to relieve me. Now the hand of Heaven had overtaken me and I was undone without redemption. But this was but a taste of the misery I was to go through.

As my new patron, or master, had taken me home to his house, so I was in hopes he would take me with him when he went to sea again, believing it would sometime or other be his fate to be taken by a Spanish or Portugal man of war and then I should be set at liberty. But this hope of mine was soon taken away, for my patron, it seem'd, knew the signs of my nature and had kept me thus for himself. The day of the first moon, stout manakles, plated with silver, were brought, and in my patron’s courtyard I was strip’d naked and chayn’d to a fountain. Many wise men and vizeers came to view me and study me, for they had heard of
almustazeb
, which was their word for the beast.

The moon rose and the mantle of the beast came upon me. When this happens, my flesh is burned with unseen fire and great aches and pains fill my limbs and jaw. The world is as if seen thru a lens darken'd with smoke, and heard as if a heavy woolen blanket wrapt round my head. Yet always I have no more freedom than a helpless passenger on a storm-wrack’d ship with a mad captain, and that captain is the beast. I could see the wise men as they discust my change and the beast before them, but their words were but noise, and to my intoxicated mind they look’d like good, succulent meat does to a starv’d man. I could remember they did feed the beast a young lamb, but also prickt its flesh and pluckt its fur and sketch’d it for their scrolls.

The three nights pass’d, and I was left chayn’d thru-out, yet during the day my needs were cared for. I was given wine and shayde and fish and good flat bread which they call’d
peetah
. Here I meditated nothing but my escape and what method I might take to effect it, but found no way that had the least probability in it.

On the morning after the third night of the moon, I was freed of the silver manakles, which had left welts and blisters on my flesh, and my cloathes return’d to me. I was then order’d by my patron to look after his little garden, and do the common drudgery of slaves about his house. When he came home from his cruise, were he absent for a time, he order'd me to lie in the cabin to look after the ship.

Thus it was for four weeks, until the moon was close again. Then the manakles appear’d once more and I was chayn’d naked yet again where the other slaves could not see me. Two of the wise men return’d to witness my changes again, and with them three new scholars and a new vizeer I had not lay’d eyes on before.

This, then, is how each of my months pass’d in Sallee. The wise men would study the beast each night of the moon, and I would feel the pain and rage of it at being chayn'd and unable to run free as was its nature. The scholars would discourse with me during the day, and many of them spoke Spanish, of which I spoke only a little, and good King’s English, of which I could of course speak freely, and they would ask many questions, viz. what was my name and my age and for how long I had carry’d the beast within me, and of my history and family, and if they carry’d the beast as well. But my father had long instructed not to speak of family, and so these questions I would not answer.

Many times in these conversations would come mention of a great book or work, which they called
Nekri Nomikan
. I asked of the nature of this work, but depending on which of the wise men I asked, each would give a different answer. One vizeer call’d it a book of history which told of things like the
almustazeb
, while another spoke of it as like a Bible, but for the worship of dark, heathen gods. Still another told it as a book of magick written by a sorcerer who had been driven mad by the writing of it.

After about two years of this life, an odd circumstance presented itself which put the thought of making some attempt for my liberty again in my head. My patron used once or twice a week, sometimes oftener, to go out into the road a-fishing. He always took me (when it was between moons) and a young Moresco with him. We made him very merry, and I proved very dexterous in catching fish, insomuch that sometimes he would send me with one of his kinsmen and the youth to catch a dish of fish for him.

Having the long-boat of our English ship, he ordered the carpenter of his ship to build a little cabin in the middle of the long-boat, like that of a barge, with a place to stand behind it to steer. She sail'd with a shoulder-of-mutton sail, and the boom gibbed over the top of the cabin, which lay very snug and low, and had in it room for him to lie and a table to eat on, with some small lockers.

It happened he had appointed to go out in this boat with two or three Moors of some distinction and had therefore sent on board a larger store of provisions than ordinary, and had order'd me to get ready three fuzees with powder and shot, for they design'd some sport of fowling as well as fishing.

I got all things ready as he had directed and waited the next morning with the boat washt clean, her ensign and pendants out, and every thing to accommodate his guests. By and by my patron came on board alone and told me his guests had put off going, upon some business that fell out. He order'd me with the man and boy, as usual, to go out with the boat and catch them some fish, for his friends were to sup at his house, and commanded as soon as I got some fish I should bring it home to his house.

This moment my former notions of deliverance darted into my thoughts, for now I found I was like to have a little ship at my command. My master being gone, I prepar’d to furnish myself for a voyage.

My first contrivance was to make a pretence to speak to this Moor, to get something for our subsistence on board. I told him we must not presume to eat of our patron's bread.

He said, "That is true." So he brought a large basket of rusk, or bisket of their kind, and three jars with fresh water into the boat. I knew where my patron's case of bottles stood and I conveyed them into the boat while the Moor was on shore, as if they had been there before for our master. I conveyed also a great lump of bees-wax into the boat, which weighed above half a hundred weight, with a parcel of twine or thread, a hatchet, a saw, and a hammer. His name was Ismael, whom they call Moley. So I called him. "Moley," said I, "our patron's guns are on board the boat. Can you not get a little powder and shot? It may be we may kill some alcamies for ourselves, for I know he keeps the gunner's stores in the ship."

"Yes," says he. "I'll bring some." Accordingly he brought a great leather pouch which held about a pound and a half of powder, and another with shot, and put all into the boat. At the same time I had found some powder of my master's in the great cabin, with which I fill’d one of the large bottles in the case, which was almost empty, pouring what was in it into another. Thus furnished with every thing needful, we sailed out of the port to fish. The castle, which is at the entrance of the port, knew who we were and took no notice of us.

We were not above a mile out of the port before we hauled in our sail and set us down to fish. The wind blew from the north, which was contrary to my desire. Had it blown southerly, I had been sure to have made the coast of Spain and at least reached to the bay of Cadiz. But my resolutions were, blow which way it would, I would be gone from that horrid place where I was prickt each moon and leave the rest to fate.

After we had fished some time and catched nothing, I said to the Moor, "This will not do. Our master will not be thus served. We must stand farther off."

Ismael, thinking no harm, agreed and set the sails. As I had the helm I run the boat out near a league farther, and then brought her to as if I would fish. Giving the boy the helm, I stept forward to where the Moor was and I took him by surprise, with my arm under his waist, and toss'd him clear overboard.

He rose immediately, for he swam like a cork, and begged to be taken in. He swam so strong after the boat he would have reached me very quickly. I stept into the cabin and, fetching one of the fowling-pieces, I presented it at him. Said I to he, "You swim well enough to reach to the shore and the sea is calm. Make the best of your way to shore and I will do you no harm. But if you come near the boat I'll shoot you through the head, for I am resolv’d to have my liberty."

So Ismael turned himself about, and swam for the shore, and I make no doubt but he reached it with ease.

When he was gone I turned to the boy, whom they called Xury, and said to him, "Xury, if you will be faithful to me I'll make you a great man. But if you will not swear by Mahomet and your father's beard to be true to me, I must throw you into the sea too."

The boy smiled in my face and spoke so innocently I could not mistrust him. He swore to be faithful to me and go all over the world with me.

While I was in view of Ismael, I stood out directly to sea with the boat, rather than stretching to windward, so that they might think me gone towards the Straits' mouth (as indeed any one that had been in their wits must have been supposed to do), for who would have supposed we were sailed on to the southward to the Barbarian coast, where whole nations of Negroes were sure to surround us with the canoes, and destroy us? Where we could never once go on shore but we should be devour'd by savage creatures, or more merciless savages of human kind?