least my provisions might be devoured on shore; but when I came back, I
found no sign of any visitor, only there sat a creature like a wild cat
upon one of the chests, which, when I came towards it, ran away a little
distance, and then stood still; she sat very composed and unconcerned,
and looked full in my face, as if she had a mind to be acquainted with
me; I presented my gun at her, but as she did not understand it, she was
perfectly unconcerned at it, nor did she offer to stir away; upon which
I tossed her a bit of biscuit, though by the way I was not very free of
it, for my store was not great: however, I spared her a bit, I say, and
she went to it, smelled of it, and ate it, and looked, as pleased, for
more; but I thanked her, and could spare no more; so she marched off.
Having got my second cargo on shore, though I was fain to open the
barrels of powder, and bring them by parcels, for they were too heavy,
being large casks, I went to work to make me a little tent with the sail
and some poles which I cut for that purpose; and into this tent I
brought every thing that I knew would spoil, either with rain or sun;
and I piled all the empty chests and casks up in a circle round the
tent, to fortify it from any sudden attempt, either from man or beast.
When I had done this, I blocked up the door of the tent with some boards
within; and an empty chest set up an end without, and spreading one of
the beds upon the ground, laying my two pistols just at my head, and my
gun at length by me, I went to bed for the first time, and slept very
quietly all night, for I was very weary and heavy, as the night before I
had slept little, and had laboured very hard all day, as well to fetch
all those things from the ship as to get them on shore.
I had the biggest magazine of all kinds now that ever were laid up, I
believe, for one man; but I was not satisfied still; for while the ship
sat upright in that posture, I thought I ought to get every thing out of
her that I could; so every day at low water I went on board, and
brought away something or other; but particularly the third time I went,
I brought away as much of the rigging as I could, as also all the small
ropes and rope-twine I could get, with a piece of spare canvass, which
was to mend the sails upon occasion, and the barrel of wet gunpowder; in
a word, I brought away all the sails first and last, only that I was
fain to cut them in pieces, and bring as much at a time as I could; for
they were no more useful to be sails, but as mere canvass only.
But that which comforted me more still, was, that at last of all, after
I had made five or six such voyages as these, and thought I had nothing
more to expect from the ship that was worth my meddling with; I say,
after all this, I found a great hogshead of bread, and three large
runlets of rum or spirits, and a box of sugar, and a barrel of fine
flower; this was surprising to me, because I had given over expecting
any more provisions, except what was spoiled by the water: I soon
emptied the hogshead of that bread, and wrapped it up, parcel by parcel,
in pieces of the sails, which I cut out; and in a word, I got all this
safe on shore also.
The next day I made another voyage; and now, having plundered the ship
of what was portable and fit to hand out, I began with the cables; and
cutting the great cable into pieces, such as I could move, I got two
cables and a hawser on shore, with all the iron-work I could get; and
having cut down the spritsail-yard, and the mizen-yard, and every thing
I could to make a large raft, I loaded it with all those heavy goods,
and came away: but my good luck began now to leave me; for this raft was
so unwieldy and so overladen, that after I had entered the little cove
where I had landed the rest of my goods, not being able to guide it so
handily as I did the other, it overset, and threw me and all my cargo
into the water. As for myself, it was no great harm, for I was near the
shore; but as to my cargo, it was great part of it lost, especially the
iron, which I expected would have been of great use to me: however,
when the tide was out, I got most of the pieces of cable ashore, and
some of the iron, though with infinite labour; for I was fain to dip for
it into the water, a work which fatigued me very much. After this, I
went every day on board, and brought away what I could get.
I had been now thirteen days on shore, and had been eleven times on
board the ship; in which time I had brought away all that one pair of
hands could well be supposed capable to bring, though I believe, verily,
had the calm weather held, I should have brought away the whole ship,
piece by piece; but preparing the twelfth time to go on board, I found
the wind began to rise; however, at low water I went on board, and
though I thought I had rummaged the cabin so effectually, as that
nothing more could be found, yet I discovered a locker with drawers in
it, in one of which I found two or three razors, and one pair of large
scissars, with some ten or a dozen of good knives and forks; in another
I found about thirty-six pounds value in money, some European coin, some
Brasil, some pieces of eight, some gold, some silver.
I smiled to myself at the sight of this money. “O drug!” said I, aloud,
“what art thou good for? thou art not worth to me, no not the taking off
of the ground; one of those knives is worth all this heap; I have no
manner of use for thee; even remain where thou art, and go to the bottom
as a creature whose life is not worth saving.” However, upon second
thoughts, I took it away, and wrapping all this in a piece of canvass, I
began to think of making another raft; but while I was preparing this, I
found the sky overcast, and the wind began to rise, and in a quarter of
an hour it blew a fresh gale from the shore. It presently occurred to
me, that it was in vain to pretend to make a raft with the wind off
shore, and that it was my business to be gone before the tide of flood
began, otherwise I might not be able to reach the shore at all;
accordingly I let myself down into the water, and swam cross the
channel which lay between the ship and the sands, and even that with
difficulty enough, partly with the weight of things I had about me, and
partly the roughness of the water, for the wind rose very hastily, and
before it was quite high water it blew a storm.
But I was gotten home to my little tent, where I lay with all my wealth
about me very secure. It blew very hard all that night, and in the
morning when I looked out, behold no more ship was to be seen. I was a
little surprised, but recovered myself with this satisfactory
reflection, viz. that I had lost no time, nor abated no diligence to get
every thing out of her that could be useful to me, and that indeed there
was little left in her that I was able to bring away, if I had had
more time.
I now gave over any more thoughts of the ship, or of any thing out of
her, except what might drive on shore from her wreck, as indeed divers
pieces of her afterwards did; but those things were of small use to me.
My thoughts were now wholly employed about securing myself against
either savages, if any should appear, or wild beasts, if any were in the
island; and I had many thoughts of the method how to do this, and what
kind of dwelling to make; whether I should make me a cave in the earth,
or a tent upon the earth: and, in short, I resolved upon both, the
manner and description of which it may not be improper to give an
account of.
I soon found the place I was in was not for my settlement, particularly
because it was upon a low moorish ground near the sea, and I believed
would not be wholesome, and more particularly because there was no fresh
water near it; so I resolved to find a more healthy and more convenient
spot of ground.
I consulted several things in my situation which I found would be proper
for me: 1st, Health, and fresh water, I just now mentioned, 2dly,
Shelter from the heat of the sun. 3dly, Security from ravenous
creatures, whether man or beast. 4thly, A view to the sea, that, if God
sent any ship in sight, I might not lose any advantage for my
deliverance, of which I was not willing to banish all my
expectation yet.
In search of a place proper for this, I found a little plain on the side
of a rising hill, whose front towards this little plain was steep as a
house-side, so that nothing could come down upon me from the top: on the
side of this rock there was a hollow place worn a little way in like the
entrance or door of a cave, but there was not really any cave or way
into the rock at all.
On the flat of the green, just before this hollow place, I resolved to
pitch my tent: this plain was not above an hundred yards broad, and
about twice as long, and lay like a green before my door, and at the end
of it descended irregularly every way down into the low grounds by the
sea-side. It was on the N.N.W. side of the hill, so that I was sheltered
from the heat every day, till it came to a W. and by S. sun, or
thereabouts, which in those countries is near the setting.
Before I set up my tent, I drew a half-circle before the hollow place,
which took in about ten yards in its semi-diameter from the rock, and
twenty yards in its diameter, from its beginning and ending.
In this half circle I pitched two rows of strong stakes, driving them
into the ground till they stood very firm, like piles, the biggest end
being out of the ground about five foot and a half, and sharpened on the
top; the two rows did not stand above six inches from one another.
Then I took the pieces of cable which I had cut in the ship, and laid
them in rows one upon another, within the circle between these two rows
of stakes, up to the top, placing other stakes in the inside, leaning
against them, about two foot and a half high, like a spur to a post; and
this fence was so strong, that neither man or beast could get into it or
over it: this cost me a great deal of time and labour, especially to cut
the piles in the woods, bring them to the place, and drive them into
the earth.
The entrance into this place I made to be not by a door, but by a short
ladder, to go over the top: which ladder, when I was in, I lifted over
after me: and so I was completely fenced in, and fortified, as I
thought, from all the world, and consequently slept secure in the night,
which otherwise I could not have done, though, as it appeared afterward,
there was no need of all this caution from the enemies that I
apprehended danger from.
Into this fence or fortress, with infinite labour, I carried all my
riches, all my provisions, ammunition, and stores, of which you have the
account above; and I made me a large tent, which, to preserve me from
the rains, that in one part of the year are very violent there, I made
double, viz. one smaller tent within, and one larger tent above it, and
covered the uppermost with a large tarpaulin which I had saved among
the sails.
And now I lay no more for awhile in the bed which I had brought on
shore, but in a hammock, which was indeed a very good one, and belonged
to the mate of the ship.
Into this tent I brought all my provisions, and every thing that would
spoil by the wet; and having thus enclosed all my goods, I made up the
entrance, which till now I had left open, and so passed and repassed, as
I said, by a short ladder.
When I had done this, I began to work my way into the rock, and bringing
all the earth and stones that I dug down, out through my tent, I laid
them up within my fence in the nature of a terrace, that so it raised
the ground within about a foot and a half; and thus I made me a cave
just behind my tent, which served me like a cellar to my house.
It cost me much labour, and many days, before all these things were
brought to perfection, and therefore I must go back to some other things
which took up some of my thoughts. At the same time it happened, after
I had laid my scheme for the setting up my tent, and making the cave,
that a storm of rain falling from a thick dark cloud, a sudden flash of
lightning happened, and after that a great clap of thunder, as is
naturally the effect of it. I was not so much surprised with the
lightning, as I was with a thought which darted into my mind as swift as
the lightning itself; O my powder! my very heart sunk within me, when I
thought, that at one blast all my powder might be destroyed; on which,
not my defence only, but the providing me food, as I thought, entirely
depended; I was nothing near so anxious about my own danger; though, had
the powder took fire, I had never known who had hurt me.
Such impression did this make upon me, that, after the storm was over, I
laid aside all my works, my building, and fortifying, and applied myself
to make bags and boxes to separate the powder, and to keep it a little
and a little in a parcel, in hope, that, 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; and I think my powder, which in all was about two hundred
and forty pounds 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; and the rest I hid up and down in holes among the rocks, so
that no wet might come to it, marking very carefully where I laid it.
In the interval of time while this was doing, I went out once at least
every day with my gun, as well to divert myself, as to see if I could
kill any thing fit for food, and as near as I could to acquaint myself
with what the island produced. The first time I went out I presently
discovered that there were goats in the island, which was a great
satisfaction to me; but then it was attended with this misfortune to me,
viz. that they were so shy, so subtle, and so swift of foot, that it
was the most difficult thing in the world to come at them. But I was not
discouraged at this, not doubting but I might now and then shoot one, as
it soon happened; for after I had found their haunts a little, I laid
wait in this manner for them: I observed, if they saw me in the vallies,
though they were upon the rocks, they would run away as in a terrible
fright; but if they were feeding in the vallies, and I was upon the
rocks, they took no notice of me; from whence I concluded, that by the
position of their optics, their sight was so directed downward, that
they did not readily see objects that were above them; so afterward I
took this method; I always climbed the rocks first, to get above them,
and then had frequently a fair mark. The first shot I made among these
creatures 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; and not only
so; but when I carried the old one with me upon my shoulders, the kid
followed me quite to my enclosure; upon which 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; 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 saved my provisions (my bread especially) as much as
possibly I could.
Having now fixed my habitation, I found it absolutely necessary to
provide a place to make a fire in, and fuel to burn; and what I did for
that, as also how I enlarged my cave, and what conveniencies I made, I
shall give a full account of in its place; but 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; for 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 a great way, viz. 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, and in this desolate manner, I should end my life.
The tears would run plentifully down my face when I made these
reflections; and sometimes I would expostulate with myself, why
Providence should thus completely ruin his creatures, and render them so
absolutely miserable, so without help abandoned, 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; and 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, expostulating with the t’other way,
thus: “Well, you are in a desolate condition, ’tis true, but pray
remember, where are the rest of you? Did not you come eleven of you into
the boat? Where are the ten? Why were they not saved 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 attended them.
Then it occurred to me again, how well I was furnished for my
subsistence, and what would have been my ease if it had not happened,
which was an hundred thousand to one, that the ship floated from the
place where she first struck, and was driven so near the shore that I
had time to get all these things out of her. What would have been my
case, if I had been 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, loud (though to myself), “what
should I have done without a gun, without ammunition, without any tools
to make any thing, or to work with; without clothes, bedding, a tent, or
any manner of covering?” and that 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; so that I had a
tolerable view of subsisting, without any want, as long as I lived; for
I considered from the beginning how I should provide for the accidents
that might happen, and for the time that was to come, even not only
after my ammunition should be spent, but even after my health or
strength should decay.
I confess I had not entertained any notion of my ammunition being
destroyed at one blast, I mean my powder being blown up by lightning;
and this made the thoughts of it so surprising to me when it lightned
and thundered, as I observed just now.
And now, being about to enter 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,
I first set foot upon this horrid island, when the sun being, to us, in
its autumnal equinox, was almost just over my head, for 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; but to prevent this, I cut it with my knife upon a large post, in
capital letters, and 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 one;
and thus I kept my calendar, or weekly, monthly, and yearly reckoning
of time.
In the next place we are to observe, that among the many things which I
brought out of the ship in the several voyages, which, as above
mentioned, I made to it, I got several things of less value, but not all
less useful to me, which I omitted setting down before; as in
particular, pens, ink, and paper, several parcels in the captain’s,
mate’s, gunner’s, and carpenter’s keeping, three or four compasses, some
mathematical instruments, dials, perspectives, 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 Portuguese
books also, and among them two or three popish prayer-books, and several
other books; all which I carefully secured. And I must not forget, that
we had in the ship a dog and two cats, of whose eminent history I may
have occasion to say something in it’s place; for I carried both the
cats with me; and as for the dog, he jumped out of the ship of himself,
and swam on shore to me the day after I went on shore with my first
cargo, and was a trusty servant to me many years; I wanted nothing that
he could fetch me, nor any company that he could make up to me; I only
wanted to have him talk to me, but that he could not do. As I observed
before, I found pen, ink, and paper, and I husbanded them to the utmost;
and I shall shew, that 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 that I could devise.
And this put me in mind that I wanted many things, notwithstanding all
that I had amassed together; and of these, this of ink was one, as also
spade, pickaxe, and shovel, to dig or remove the earth; needles, pins,
and thread. As for linen, I soon learnt to want that without much
difficulty.
This want of tools made every work I did go on heavily, and it was near
a whole year before I had entirely finished my little pale or surrounded
habitation: the piles or 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; so that I spent sometimes two days in cutting
and bringing home one of those posts, and a third day in driving it into
the ground; for which purpose I got a heavy piece of wood at first, but
at last bethought myself of one of the iron crows, which however, though
I found it, yet it made driving those posts or piles very laborious and
tedious work.
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 that 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 seriously my condition, and the circumstance I
was reduced to, and I drew up the state of my affairs in writing, not so
much to leave them to any that were to come after me, for I was like to
have but few heirs, as to deliver my thoughts from daily poring upon
them, and afflicting my mind; and 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; and I stated it very impartially, like debtor and
creditor, the comforts I enjoyed against the miseries I suffered, thus:
_Evil_. _Good_.
I am cast upon a horrible But I am alive, and
desolate island, void not drowned, as all my
of all hope of recovery. ship’s company was.
I am singled out and But I am singled out
separated, as it were, too from all the ship’s
from all the world to be crew to be spared from
miserable. death; and He that
miraculously saved me from
death, can deliver me
from this condition.
I am divided from But I am not starved
mankind, a solitaire, one and perishing on a barren
banished from human society. place, affording no sustenance.
I have not clothes to But I am in a hot climate,
cover me. where if I had
clothes I could hardly wear
them.
I am without any defence But I am cast on an
or means to resist island, where I see no
any violence of man or wild beasts to hurt me,
beast. as I saw on the coast of
Africa: and what if I
had been shipwrecked
there?
I have no soul to speak But God wonderfully
to, or relieve me. sent the ship in near
enough to the shore, that
I have gotten out so many
necessary things as will
either supply my wants,
or enable me to supply
myself even as long as I
live.
Upon the whole, here was an undoubted testimony, that there was scarce
any condition in the world so miserable, but there was something
_negative_ or something _positive_ to be thankful for in it; and let
this stand as a direction from the experience of the most miserable of
all conditions in this world, that we may always find in it something to
comfort ourselves from, and to set, in the description of good and evil,
on the credit side of the account.
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 say, giving
over these things, 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 described my habitation, which was a tent under the side
of a rock, surrounded with a strong pale of posts and cables; but I
might now rather call it a wall, for I raised a kind of wall up against
it of turfs, about two foot thick on the outside; and after some time, I
think it was a year and 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.