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17 - The Further Adventures of Robinson Crusoe - Daniel Defoe · Classic Adventure Books - Daily

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Speaker 1: Chapter sixteen, Safe arrival in England. It was talking one
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Speaker 1: night with a certain prince, one of the vanished ministers
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Speaker 1: of state belonging to the Tsar, that the discourse of
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Speaker 1: my particular case began. He had been telling the abundance
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Speaker 1: of fine things, of the greatness, the magnificence, the dominions,
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Speaker 1: and the absolute power of the Emperor of the Russians.
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Speaker 1: I interrupted him and told him I was a greater
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Speaker 1: and more powerful prince than ever the Tsar was, though
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Speaker 1: my dominion were not so large or my people so many.
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Speaker 1: The Russian Grande looked a little surprised, and, fixing his
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Speaker 1: eyes steadily upon me, began to wonder what I meant.
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Speaker 1: I said his wonder would cease when I had explained
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Speaker 1: myself and told him the story at large of my
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Speaker 1: living in the island, and then how I managed both
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Speaker 1: myself and the people that were under me, just as
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Speaker 1: I have since minuted it down. They were exceedingly taken
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Speaker 1: with the story, and especially the Prince, who told me
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Speaker 1: with a sigh that the true greatness of life was
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Speaker 1: to be made masters of ourselves, that he would not
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Speaker 1: have exchanged such a state of life as mine to
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Speaker 1: be Tsar of Muscovy, and that he found more felicity
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Speaker 1: in the retirement he seemed to be banished to there
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Speaker 1: than ever he found in the highest authority. He enjoyed
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Speaker 1: in the court of his master, the Czar, that the
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Speaker 1: height of human wisdom was to bring our tempers down
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Speaker 1: to our circumstances, and to make a calm within under
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Speaker 1: the weight of the greatest storms. Without when he came
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Speaker 1: first hither, he said, he used to tear the hair
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Speaker 1: from his head and the clothes from his back, as
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Speaker 1: others had done before him. But a little time and
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Speaker 1: consideration had made him look into himself as well as
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Speaker 1: round him to things. Without that he found the mind
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Speaker 1: of man, if it was but once brought to reflect
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Speaker 1: upon the state of universal life, and how little this
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Speaker 1: world was concerned in its true felicity, was perfectly capable
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Speaker 1: of making a felicity for itself, fully satisfying to itself,
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Speaker 1: and suitable to its best ends and desires, with but
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Speaker 1: very little assistance from the world. That being now deprived
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Speaker 1: of all the fancied felicity which he enjoyed in the
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Speaker 1: full exercise of worldly pleasures, he said he was at
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Speaker 1: leisure to look upon the dark side of them, where
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Speaker 1: he found all manner of deformity, and was now convinced
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Speaker 1: that virtue only makes a man truly wise, rich and great,
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Speaker 1: and preserves him in the way to a superior happiness
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Speaker 1: in a future state. And in this he said, they
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Speaker 1: were more happy in their banishment than all their enemies were,
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Speaker 1: who had the full possession of all the wealth and
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Speaker 1: power they had left behind them. Nor, sir, says he,
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Speaker 1: do I bring my mind to this politically from the
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Speaker 1: necessity of my circumstances, which some call miserable. But if
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Speaker 1: I know anything of myself, I would not now go back,
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Speaker 1: though thus are my master should call me and reinstate
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Speaker 1: me in all my former grandeur. He spoke this with
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Speaker 1: so much warmth in his temper, so much earnestness and
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Speaker 1: motion of his spirits, that it was evident was the
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Speaker 1: true sense of his soul. There was no room to
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Speaker 1: doubt his sincerity. I told him, I once thought myself
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Speaker 1: a kind of monarch in my old station, of which
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Speaker 1: I had given him an account, But that I thought
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Speaker 1: he was not only a monarch, but a great conqueror,
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Speaker 1: for he that had got a victory over his own
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Speaker 1: exorbitant desires, and the absolute dominion over himself. He whose
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Speaker 1: reason entirely governs his will, is certainly greater than he
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Speaker 1: that conquers a city. I had been here eight months
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Speaker 1: and a dark, dreadful winter. I thought it, the cold
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Speaker 1: so intense that I could not so much as look
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Speaker 1: abroad without being wrapped in furs, and a kind of
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Speaker 1: mask of fur before my face, with only a hole
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Speaker 1: for breath and two for sight. The little daylight we
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Speaker 1: had was for three months not above five hours a day,
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Speaker 1: and six at most, only that, the snow lying on
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Speaker 1: the ground continually, and the weather being clear, it was
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Speaker 1: never quite dark. Our horses were kept, or rather starved,
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Speaker 1: under ground. And as for or our servants, whom we
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Speaker 1: hired here to look after ourselves and horses, we had
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Speaker 1: every now and then their fingers and toes to thaw
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Speaker 1: and take care of, lest they should mortify and fall off.
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Speaker 1: It is true within doors we were warm, the houses
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Speaker 1: being closed, the walls thick, the windows small, and the
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Speaker 1: glass all double. Our food was chiefly the flesh of deer,
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Speaker 1: dried and cured in the season. Bread good enough, but
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Speaker 1: baked as biscuits, dried fish of several sorts, and some
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Speaker 1: flesh of mutton and of buffaloes, which is pretty good meat.
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Speaker 1: All the stores of provisions for the winter are laid
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Speaker 1: up in the summer and well cured. Our drink was
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Speaker 1: water mixed with aquavitai instead of brandy, and for a
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Speaker 1: treat meat instead of wine, which, however, they have very good.
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Speaker 1: The hunters who venture abroad all weathers frequently brought us
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Speaker 1: in fine venison, and sometimes bear's flesh, but we did
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Speaker 1: not much care for the last. We had a good
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Speaker 1: stock of tea with which we treated our fe friends,
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Speaker 1: and we lived cheerfully and well, all things considered. It
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Speaker 1: was now March, the days grown considerably longer, and the
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Speaker 1: weather at least tolerable, so the other travelers began to
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Speaker 1: prepare sledges to carry them over the snow, and to
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Speaker 1: get things ready to be going. But my measures, being fixed,
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Speaker 1: as I have said, for archangel and not for Muscovy
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Speaker 1: or the Baltic, I made no motion, knowing very well
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Speaker 1: that the ships from the south do not set out
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Speaker 1: for that part of the world till May or June,
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Speaker 1: and that if I was there by the beginning of August,
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Speaker 1: it would be as soon as any ships would be
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Speaker 1: ready to sail. Therefore I made no haste to be
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Speaker 1: gone as others did. In a word, I saw a
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Speaker 1: great many people, nay, all the travelers, go away before me.
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Speaker 1: It seems every year they go from Thence to Muscovy
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Speaker 1: for trade, to carry furs and buy necessaries, which they
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Speaker 1: bring back with them to furnish their shops. Also, others
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Speaker 1: went on the same errand to archangel in the month
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Speaker 1: of May. I began to make all ready to pack up.
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Speaker 1: And as I was doing this, it occurred to me that,
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Speaker 1: seeing all these people were banished by the Tsar to Siberia,
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Speaker 1: and yet when they came there were left at liberty
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Speaker 1: to go whither they would. Why they did not then
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Speaker 1: go away to any part of the world wherever they
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Speaker 1: thought fit? And I began to examine what should hinder
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Speaker 1: them from making such an attempt. But my wonder was
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Speaker 1: over when I entered upon that subject with the person
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Speaker 1: I have mentioned, who answered me. Thus, consider, first, sir,
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Speaker 1: said he the place where we are, and secondly the
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Speaker 1: condition we are in, and especially the generality of the
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Speaker 1: people who are banished. Thither we are surrounded with stronger
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Speaker 1: things than bars, or bolts on the north side an
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Speaker 1: unnavigable ocean, where ship never sailed and boat never swam.
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Speaker 1: Every other way we have above a thousand miles to
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Speaker 1: pass through the Tsar's own dominion, and by ways utterly
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Speaker 1: impassable except by the roads made by the government, and
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Speaker 1: through the towns garrisoned by his troops in shore. But
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Speaker 1: we could neither pass undiscovered by the road, nor subsist
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Speaker 1: any other way, so that it is in vain to
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Speaker 1: attempt it. I was silenced at once and found that
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Speaker 1: they were in a prison every jot as secure as
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Speaker 1: if they had been locked up in the castle at Moscow. However,
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Speaker 1: it came into my thoughts that I might certainly be
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Speaker 1: made an instrument to procure the escape of this excellent person,
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Speaker 1: and that whatever hazard I ran, I would certainly try
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Speaker 1: if I could carry him off. Upon this, I took
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Speaker 1: an occasion one evening to tell him my thoughts. I
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Speaker 1: represented to him that it was very easy for me
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Speaker 1: to carry him away, there being no guard over him
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Speaker 1: in the country, and as I was not going to
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Speaker 1: Moscow but to our Angel, and that I went in
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Speaker 1: the retinue of a caravan by which I was not
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Speaker 1: obliged to lie in the stationary towns in the desert,
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Speaker 1: but could encamp every night where I would we might
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Speaker 1: easily pass uninterrupted to arch Angel, where I would immediately
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Speaker 1: secure him on board an English ship and carry him
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Speaker 1: safe along with me. And as to his subsistence and
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Speaker 1: other particulars, it should be my care till he could
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Speaker 1: better supply himself. He heard me very attentively, and looked
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Speaker 1: earnestly on me all the while I spoke. Nay, I
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Speaker 1: could see in his very face that what I said
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Speaker 1: put his spirits into an exceeding ferment. His color frequently changed,
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Speaker 1: his eyes looked red, and his heart fluttered till it
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Speaker 1: might be even perceived in his countenance. Nor could he
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Speaker 1: immediately answer me when I had done, and as it were,
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Speaker 1: hesitated what he would say to it. But after he
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Speaker 1: had paused a little, he embraced me and said, how
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Speaker 1: unhappy we are, unguarded creatures as we are, that even
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Speaker 1: our greatest acts of friendship are made snares unto us,
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Speaker 1: and we are made tempters of one another. He then
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Speaker 1: heartily thanked me for my offers of service, but withstood
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Speaker 1: resolutely the arguments I used to urge him to set
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Speaker 1: himself free. He declared in earnest terms that he was
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Speaker 1: fully bent on remaining where he was, rather than seek
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Speaker 1: to return to his former miserable greatness, as he called it,
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Speaker 1: where the seeds of pride, ambition, avarice, and luxury might revive,
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Speaker 1: take root, and again overwhelm him. Let me remain, dear sir,
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Speaker 1: he said, in conclusion, Let me remain in this blessed confinement,
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Speaker 1: banished from the crimes of life, rather than purchase a
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Speaker 1: show of freedom at the expense of the liberty of
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Speaker 1: my reason and at the future happiness which I now
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Speaker 1: have in my view. But should then I fear quickly
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Speaker 1: lose sight of For I am but flesh, a man,
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Speaker 1: a mere man, and have passions and affections as likely
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Speaker 1: to possess and overthrow me as any man. Oh be
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Speaker 1: not my friend and tempter her both together. If I
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Speaker 1: was surprised before, I was quite dumb now, and stood
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Speaker 1: silent looking at him, and indeed admiring what I saw.
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Speaker 1: The struggle in his soul was so great that, though
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Speaker 1: the weather was extremely cold, it put him into a
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Speaker 1: most violent heat. So I said a word or two
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Speaker 1: that I would leave him to consider of it and
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Speaker 1: wait on him again. And then I withdrew to my
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Speaker 1: own apartment. About two hours after, I heard somebody at
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Speaker 1: or near the door of my room, and I was
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Speaker 1: going to open the door, but he had opened it
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Speaker 1: and come in. My dear friend, says he. You had
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Speaker 1: almost overset me, But I am recovered. Do not take
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Speaker 1: it ill that I do not close with your offer.
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Speaker 1: I assure you it is not for want of sense
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Speaker 1: of the kindness of it in you, and I came
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Speaker 1: to make the most sincere acknowledgment of it to you.
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Speaker 1: But I hope I have got the victory over myself.
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Speaker 1: My Lord, said I. I hope you are fully satisfied
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Speaker 1: that you do not resist the call of heaven. Sir
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Speaker 1: said he. If it had been from heaven, the same
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Speaker 1: power would have influenced me to have accepted it. But
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Speaker 1: I hope and am fully satisfied that it is from
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Speaker 1: Heaven that I decline it. And I have infinite satisfaction
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Speaker 1: in the parting that you shall leave me an honest man. Still,
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Speaker 1: though not a freeman, I had nothing to do but
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Speaker 1: to acquiesce and make professions to him of my having
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Speaker 1: no end in it. But a sincere desire to serve him.
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Speaker 1: He embraced me very passionately and assured me he was
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Speaker 1: sensible of that and should always acknowledge it. And with
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Speaker 1: that he offered me a very fine present of sables,
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Speaker 1: too much indeed for me to accept from a man
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Speaker 1: in his circumstances, and I would have avoided them, but
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Speaker 1: he would not be refused. The next morning I sent
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Speaker 1: my servant to his lordship with a small present of
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Speaker 1: tea and two pieces of China damask, and four little
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Speaker 1: wedges of japan gold, which did not all weigh above
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Speaker 1: six ounces or thereabouts, but were far short of the
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Speaker 1: value of his sables, which when I came to England
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Speaker 1: I found worth near two hundred pounds. He accepted the
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Speaker 1: tea and one piece of the damask, and one of
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Speaker 1: the pieces of gold, which had a fine stamp upon it.
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Speaker 1: Of the Japanese coinage, which I found he took for
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Speaker 1: the rarity of it, but would not take any more,
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Speaker 1: and he sent word by my servant that he desired
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Speaker 1: to speak with me. When I came to him, he
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Speaker 1: told me I knew what had passed between us, and
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Speaker 1: hoped I would not move him any more. In that affair,
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Speaker 1: but that since I had made such a generous offer
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Speaker 1: to him, he asked me if I had kindness enough
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Speaker 1: to share the same to another person, that he would
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Speaker 1: name to me in whom he had a great share
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Speaker 1: of concern. In a word, he told me it was
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Speaker 1: his only son, who, though I had not seen him,
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Speaker 1: was in the same condition with himself, and above two
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Speaker 1: hundred miles from him on the other side of the Obie,
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Speaker 1: but that if I consented, he would send for him.
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Speaker 1: I made no hesitation, but told him I would do it.
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Speaker 1: I made some ceremony in letting him understand that it
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Speaker 1: was wholly on his account, and that, seeing I could
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Speaker 1: not prevail on him, I would show my respect to
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Speaker 1: him by my concern for his son. He sent the
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Speaker 1: next day for his son, and in about twenty days
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Speaker 1: he came back with the messenger, bringing six or seven
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Speaker 1: horses loaded with very rich furs, which in the whole
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Speaker 1: amounted to a very great value. His servants brought the
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Speaker 1: horses into the town, but left the young lord at
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Speaker 1: a distance till night, when he came incognito into our apartment,
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Speaker 1: and his father presented him to me, and in short
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Speaker 1: we concerted the manner of our traveling, and everything proper
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Speaker 1: for the journey. I had bought a considerable quantity of sables,
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Speaker 1: black fox skins, fine ermines, and such other furs as
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Speaker 1: are very rich in that city, in exchange for some
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Speaker 1: of the goods I had brought from China, in particular
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Speaker 1: for the clothes and nutmegs, of which I sold the
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Speaker 1: greatest part here and the rest afterwards at Archangel, for
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Speaker 1: a much better price than I could have got at London.
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Speaker 1: And my partner, who was sensible of the prophet, and
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Speaker 1: whose business, more particularly than mine was merchandise, was mightily
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Speaker 1: pleased with our stay. On account of the traffic we
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Speaker 1: made here. It was the beginning of June when I
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Speaker 1: left this remote place. We were now reduced to a
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Speaker 1: very small caravan, having only thirty two horses and camels
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Speaker 1: in all, which passed for mine, though my new guest
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Speaker 1: was proprietor of eleven of them. It was natural also
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Speaker 1: that I should take more servants with me than I
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Speaker 1: had before, And the young Lord passed for my steward,
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Speaker 1: what great man I passed for myself, I know not.
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Speaker 1: Neither did it concern me to inquire we had here
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Speaker 1: the worst and the largest desert to pass over that
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Speaker 1: we met with in our whole journey. I call it
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Speaker 1: the worst because the way was very deep in some
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Speaker 1: places and very uneven in others. The best we had
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Speaker 1: to say for it was that we thought we had
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Speaker 1: no troops of tartars or robbers to fear, as they
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Speaker 1: never came on this side of the river Obie, or
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Speaker 1: at least very seldom. But we found it otherwise. My
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Speaker 1: young lord had a faithful Siberian servant who was perfectly
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Speaker 1: acquainted with the country and led us by private roads,
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Speaker 1: so that we avoided coming into the principal towns and
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Speaker 1: soars cities upon the Great Road, such as two men
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Speaker 1: Soloy Kamaskoy and several others, because the Muscovite garrisons which
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Speaker 1: are kept there are very curious and strict in their
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Speaker 1: observation upon travelers and searching lest any of the banished
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Speaker 1: persons of notes should make their escape that way into Muscovy.
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Speaker 1: But by this means we were kept out of the cities,
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Speaker 1: so our whole journey was a desert, and we were
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Speaker 1: obliged to encamp and lie in our tents when we
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Speaker 1: might have had a very good accommodation in the cities
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Speaker 1: on the way. This the young Lord was sensible of that.
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Speaker 1: He would not allow us to lie abroad when we
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Speaker 1: came to several cities on the way, but lay abroad
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Speaker 1: himself with his servant in the woods, and met us
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Speaker 1: always at the appointed places. We had just entered Europe,
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Speaker 1: having passed the River Kama, which in these parts is
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Speaker 1: the boundary between Europe and Asia, and the first city
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Speaker 1: on the European side was called Soloy Kamaskoy, that is,
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Speaker 1: the great city on the River Kama. And here we
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Speaker 1: thought to see some evident alteration in the people, but
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Speaker 1: we were mistaken, for as we had a vast desert
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Speaker 1: to pass, which is near seven hundred miles long in
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Speaker 1: some places, but not above two hundred miles over where
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Speaker 1: we passed it. So till we came past that horrible
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Speaker 1: place we found very little difference between that country and
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Speaker 1: Mogul Tartary. The people are mostly Pagans, their houses and
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Speaker 1: towns full of idols, and their way of living holy barbarous,
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Speaker 1: except in those cities and villages near them, where they
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Speaker 1: are Christians, as they call themselves of the Greek Church,
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Speaker 1: but have their religion, mingled with so many relics of superstition,
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Speaker 1: that it is scarce to be known in some places
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Speaker 1: from mere sorcery and witchcraft. In passing this forest, after
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Speaker 1: all our dangers were, to our imagination escaped, I thought, indeed,
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Speaker 1: we must have been plundered and robbed, and perhaps murdered
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Speaker 1: by a troop of thieves. Of What country they were,
16:55
Speaker 1: I am yet at a loss to know. But they
16:58
Speaker 1: were all on horseback, ried bows and arrows, and were
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Speaker 1: at first about forty five in number. They came so
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Speaker 1: near to us as to be within two musket shot,
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Speaker 1: and asking no questions, surrounded us with their horses and
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Speaker 1: looked very earnestly upon us twice. At length they placed
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Speaker 1: themselves just in our way, upon which we drew up
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Speaker 1: into a little line before our camels. Being not above
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Speaker 1: sixteen men in all thus drawn up, we halted and
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Speaker 1: sent out the Siberian servant, who attended his lord to
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Speaker 1: see who they were. His master was the more willing
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Speaker 1: to let him go, because he was not a little
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Speaker 1: apprehensive that they were a Siberian troop. Sent out after him.
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Speaker 1: The man came up near them with a flag of truce,
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Speaker 1: and called to them, but though he spoke several of
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Speaker 1: their languages, or dialects of languages, rather he could not
17:47
Speaker 1: understand a word they said. However, after some signs to
17:51
Speaker 1: him not to come near them at his peril, the
17:53
Speaker 1: fellow came back no wiser than he went, only that
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Speaker 1: by their dress, he said, he believed them to be
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Speaker 1: some Tartars of Kalmuk or of the Circassian hordes, and
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Speaker 1: that there must be more of them upon the great desert,
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Speaker 1: though he never heard that any of them were seen
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Speaker 1: so far north before. This was small comfort to us, however,
18:12
Speaker 1: we had no remedy. There was on our left hand,
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Speaker 1: at about a quarter of a mile distance a little
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Speaker 1: grove and very near the road. I immediately resolved we
18:21
Speaker 1: should advance to those trees and fortify ourselves as well
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Speaker 1: as we could there. For first I considered that the
18:28
Speaker 1: trees would in a great measure cover us from their arrows,
18:32
Speaker 1: and in the next place they could not come to
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Speaker 1: charge us in a body. It was indeed my old
18:37
Speaker 1: Portuguese pilot who proposed it, and who had this excellency
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Speaker 1: attending him, that he was always readiest and most apt
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Speaker 1: to direct and encourage us in cases of the most danger.
18:47
Speaker 1: We advanced immediately with what speed we could, and gained
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Speaker 1: that little wood. The tartars or thieves, for we knew
18:55
Speaker 1: not what to call them, keeping their stand and not
18:58
Speaker 1: attempting to hinder us. When we came thither, we found
19:01
Speaker 1: to our great satisfaction that it was a swampy piece
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Speaker 1: of ground, and on the one side of a very
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Speaker 1: great spring of water, which, running out in a little brook,
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Speaker 1: was a little farther joined by another of the like size,
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Speaker 1: and was, in short the source of a considerable river,
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Speaker 1: called afterwards the Virtzka. The trees which grew about this
19:21
Speaker 1: spring were not above two hundred but very large and
19:24
Speaker 1: stood pretty thick, so that as soon as we got
19:27
Speaker 1: in we saw ourselves perfectly safe from the enemy, unless
19:31
Speaker 1: they attacked us on foot. While we stayed here waiting
19:35
Speaker 1: the motion of the enemy some hours without perceiving that
19:38
Speaker 1: they made any movement, our Portuguese, with some help, cut
19:42
Speaker 1: several arms of trees half off and laid them hanging
19:45
Speaker 1: across from one tree to another, and in a manner
19:48
Speaker 1: fenced us in. About two hours before night, they came
19:52
Speaker 1: down directly upon us, and though we had not perceived it,
19:55
Speaker 1: we found they had been joined by some more, so
19:58
Speaker 1: that they were near four score horse, whereof however, we
20:02
Speaker 1: fancied some were women. They came on till they were
20:05
Speaker 1: within half shot of our little wood, when we fired
20:08
Speaker 1: one musket without ball, and called to them in the
20:11
Speaker 1: Russian tongue to know what they wanted, and bade them
20:14
Speaker 1: keep off. But they came on with a double fury
20:16
Speaker 1: up to the wood side, not imagining we were so
20:19
Speaker 1: barricaded that they could not easily break in. Our old
20:22
Speaker 1: pilot was our captain as well as our engineer, and
20:25
Speaker 1: desired us not to fire upon them till they came
20:28
Speaker 1: within pistol shot, that we might be sure to kill,
20:31
Speaker 1: and that when we did fire, we should be sure
20:34
Speaker 1: to take good aim. We bade him give the word
20:36
Speaker 1: of command, which he delayed so long that they were
20:39
Speaker 1: some of them within two pike's length of us. When
20:41
Speaker 1: we let fly. We aimed so true that we killed
20:44
Speaker 1: fourteen of them, and wounded several others, as also several
20:48
Speaker 1: of their horses, for we had all of us loaded
20:51
Speaker 1: our pieces with two or three bullets apiece. At least.
20:55
Speaker 1: They were terribly surprised with our fire and retreated immediately
20:59
Speaker 1: about one hundred rods from us, in which time we
21:02
Speaker 1: loaded our pieces again, and seeing them keep that distance,
21:06
Speaker 1: we sallied out and caught four or five of their horses,
21:09
Speaker 1: whose riders we supposed were killed, and coming up to
21:12
Speaker 1: the dead, we judged they were tartars, but knew not
21:15
Speaker 1: how they came to make an excursion such an unusual length.
21:19
Speaker 1: About an hour after they again made a motion to
21:22
Speaker 1: attack us, and rode round our little wood to see
21:25
Speaker 1: where they might break in, but finding us always ready
21:28
Speaker 1: to face them, they went off again, and we resolved
21:32
Speaker 1: not to stir For that night. We slept little, but
21:36
Speaker 1: spent the most part of the night in strengthening our
21:38
Speaker 1: situation and barricading the entrances into the wood, and keeping
21:43
Speaker 1: a strict watch. We waited for daylight, and when it came,
21:46
Speaker 1: it gave us a very unwelcome discovery. Indeed, for the enemy,
21:50
Speaker 1: who we thought were discouraged with the reception they met with,
21:54
Speaker 1: were now greatly increased and had set up eleven or
21:57
Speaker 1: twelve huts or tents, as if they were resolved to
22:00
Speaker 1: besiege us and this little camp they had pitched upon
22:04
Speaker 1: the open plain about three quarters of a mile from us.
22:08
Speaker 1: I confess I now gave myself over for lost and
22:11
Speaker 1: all that I had. The loss of my effects did
22:14
Speaker 1: not lie so near me, though very considerable, as the
22:17
Speaker 1: thoughts of falling into the hands of such barbarians at
22:20
Speaker 1: the latter end of my journey, after so many difficulties
22:24
Speaker 1: and hazards as I had gone through, and even in
22:26
Speaker 1: sight of our port where we expected safety and deliverance.
22:30
Speaker 1: As to my partner, he was raging and declared that
22:33
Speaker 1: to lose his goods would be his ruin, and that
22:36
Speaker 1: he would rather die than be starved. And he was
22:39
Speaker 1: for fighting to the last drop. The young lord, a
22:42
Speaker 1: most gallant youth, was for fighting to the last also,
22:46
Speaker 1: and my old pilot was of opinion that we were
22:49
Speaker 1: able to resist them all in the situation we were
22:51
Speaker 1: then in. Thus we spent the day in debates of
22:54
Speaker 1: what we should do. But towards evening we found that
22:57
Speaker 1: the number of our enemies still increased, And he did
23:00
Speaker 1: not know but by the morning they might still be
23:02
Speaker 1: a greater number. So I began to inquire of those
23:05
Speaker 1: people we had brought from Toubolski, if there were no
23:08
Speaker 1: private ways by which we might avoid them in the night,
23:11
Speaker 1: and perhaps retreat to some town, or get help to
23:14
Speaker 1: guard us over the desert. The young lord's Siberian servant
23:18
Speaker 1: told us, if we designed to avoid them and not fight,
23:21
Speaker 1: he would engage to carry us off in the night
23:24
Speaker 1: to a way that went north toward the river Petruz,
23:27
Speaker 1: by which he made no question, but we might get
23:29
Speaker 1: away and the Tartars never discover it. But he said
23:33
Speaker 1: his lord had told him he would not retreat, but
23:35
Speaker 1: would rather choose to fight. I told him he mistook
23:38
Speaker 1: his lord for that he was too wise a man
23:41
Speaker 1: to love fighting for the sake of it. That I
23:43
Speaker 1: knew he was brave enough by what he had showed already,
23:46
Speaker 1: but that he knew better than to desire seventeen or
23:49
Speaker 1: eighteen men to fight five hundred unless an unavoidable necessity
23:53
Speaker 1: forced them to it, And that if he thought it
23:56
Speaker 1: possible for us to escape in the night, we had
23:58
Speaker 1: nothing else to do but to attempt it. He answered,
24:02
Speaker 1: if his lordship gave him such orders, he would lose
24:04
Speaker 1: his life if he did not perform it. We soon
24:07
Speaker 1: brought his lord to give that order, though privately, and
24:10
Speaker 1: we immediately prepared for putting it in practice, and first
24:15
Speaker 1: as soon as it began to be dark. We kindled
24:18
Speaker 1: a fire in our little camp, which we kept burning
24:21
Speaker 1: and prepared so as to make it burn all night,
24:23
Speaker 1: that the Tartars might conclude we were still there, but
24:27
Speaker 1: as soon as it was dark and we could see
24:29
Speaker 1: the stars, for our guide would not stir. Before having
24:32
Speaker 1: all our horses and camels ready loaded, we followed our
24:35
Speaker 1: new guide, who I soon found steered himself by the
24:39
Speaker 1: north star, the country being level for a long way.
24:43
Speaker 1: After we had traveled two hours very hard, it began
24:46
Speaker 1: to be lighter still, not that it was dark all night,
24:49
Speaker 1: but the moon began to rise, so that, in short,
24:52
Speaker 1: it was rather lighter than we wished it to be.
24:55
Speaker 1: But by six o'clock the next morning we had got
24:57
Speaker 1: above thirty miles, having almost spoiled our horses. Here, we
25:01
Speaker 1: found a Russian village named Kmazinskoy, where we rested and
25:05
Speaker 1: heard nothing of the Kalmuk Tartars that day. About two
25:09
Speaker 1: hours before night, we set out again and traveled till
25:12
Speaker 1: eight the next morning, though not quite so hard as before,
25:16
Speaker 1: And about seven o'clock we passed a little river called
25:19
Speaker 1: Kurtza and came to a good large town inhabited by
25:23
Speaker 1: Russians called Ozomis. There we heard that several troops of
25:26
Speaker 1: Kalmuks had been abroad upon the desert, but that we
25:30
Speaker 1: were now completely out of danger of them, which was
25:32
Speaker 1: to our great satisfaction. Here we were obliged to get
25:36
Speaker 1: some fresh horses, and, having need enough of rest, we
25:39
Speaker 1: stayed five days, and my partner and I agreed to
25:43
Speaker 1: give the honest Siberian who conducted us thither the value
25:46
Speaker 1: of ten pistoles. In five days more, we came to Vyussima,
25:51
Speaker 1: upon the river Vizogda, and running into the Dvina. We
25:54
Speaker 1: were there very happily near the end of our travels
25:57
Speaker 1: by land, that river being navig in seven days passage
26:01
Speaker 1: to Archangel. From hence we came to Lavrymskoy the third
26:05
Speaker 1: of July, and, providing ourselves with two luggage boats and
26:09
Speaker 1: a barge for our own convenience, we embarked the seventh
26:13
Speaker 1: and arrived all safe at Archangel the eighteenth, having been
26:16
Speaker 1: a year, five months and three days on the journey,
26:19
Speaker 1: including our stay of about eight months at Tubolski. We
26:23
Speaker 1: were obliged to stay at this place six weeks for
26:26
Speaker 1: the arrival of the ships, and must have tarried longer,
26:29
Speaker 1: had not a Hamburger come in above a month sooner
26:32
Speaker 1: than any of the English ships. When, after some consideration
26:36
Speaker 1: that the city of Hamburg might happen to be as
26:38
Speaker 1: good a market for our goods as London, we all
26:41
Speaker 1: took freight with him, and having put our goods on board,
26:45
Speaker 1: it was most natural for me to put my steward
26:47
Speaker 1: on board to take care of them, by which means
26:50
Speaker 1: my young lord had a sufficient opportunity to conceal himself,
26:54
Speaker 1: never coming on shore again all the time we stayed there,
26:57
Speaker 1: And this he did that he might not be seen
27:00
Speaker 1: in the city, where some of the Moscow merchants would
27:03
Speaker 1: certainly have seen and discovered him. We then set sail
27:07
Speaker 1: from Archangel the twentieth of August the same year, and
27:10
Speaker 1: after no extraordinary bad voyage, arrived safe in the Elba
27:14
Speaker 1: the eighteenth of September. Here my partner and I found
27:18
Speaker 1: a very good sale for our goods, as well those
27:21
Speaker 1: of China, as the sables et cetera of Siberia, and
27:24
Speaker 1: dividing the produce, my share amounted to three thousand, four
27:28
Speaker 1: hundred seventy five pounds seventeen shillings three pence, including about
27:33
Speaker 1: six hundred pounds worth of diamonds, which I purchased at Bengal.
27:37
Speaker 1: Here the young Lord took his leave of us and
27:40
Speaker 1: went up the Elba in order to go to the
27:42
Speaker 1: court of Vienna, where he resolved to seek protection and
27:45
Speaker 1: could correspond with those of his father's friends who were
27:48
Speaker 1: left alive. He did not part without testimonials of gratitude
27:52
Speaker 1: for the service I had done him, and for my
27:55
Speaker 1: kindness to the Prince his father. Two conclude. Having stayed
28:00
Speaker 1: near four months in Hamburg, I came from thence by
28:03
Speaker 1: Land to the Hague, where I embarked in the packet,
28:06
Speaker 1: and arrived in London the tenth of January seventeen o five,
28:10
Speaker 1: having been absent from England ten years and nine months,
28:14
Speaker 1: and here resolving to harass myself no more. I am
28:18
Speaker 1: preparing for a longer journey than all these, having lived
28:21
Speaker 1: seventy two years a life of infinite variety, and learned
28:25
Speaker 1: sufficiently to know the value of retirement and the blessing
28:29
Speaker 1: of ending our days in peace. End of Chapter sixteen.
28:34
Speaker 1: End of the Further Adventures of Robinson Crusoe by Daniel
28:37
Speaker 1: Defoe