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05 - Robinson Crusoe - Daniel Defoe · Classic Adventure Books Library

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Chapter five, Builds a House. The Journal, September thirtieth, sixteen fifty
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nine. I poor miserable Robinson Crusoe, being shipwrecked during a dreadful storm,
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and the offing came on shore on this dismal, unfortunate island, which I
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call the Island of despair. All the rest of the ship's company being drowned,
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and myself almost dead, all the rest of the day I spent in
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inflicting myself at the dismal circumstances I was brought to. That is, I
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had neither food, house, clothes, weapon, nor place to fly to,
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and in despair of any relief, saw nothing but death before me,
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either that I should be devoured by wild beasts, murdered by savagees, or
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starved to death for want of food. At the approach of night, I
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slept in a tree for fear of wild creatures, but slept soundly, though
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it rained all night October first. In the morning I saw, to my
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great surprise the ship had floated with the high tide and was driven on shore
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again, much nearer than island, which, as it was, some comfort
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on one hand for seeing her set upright and not broken to pieces. I
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hoped if the wind abated, I might get on board and get some food
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and necessaries out of her for my relief. So on the other hand,
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it renewed my grief at the loss of my comrades, who I imagined if
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we had stayed on board, might have saved the ship, or at least
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that they would not have been all drowned as they were, And that had
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the men been saved, we might perhaps have built us a boat out of
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the ruins of the ship, to have carried us to some other part of
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the world. I spent great part of this day in perplexing myself on these
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things, but at length, seeing the ship almost dry, I went upon
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the sand as near as I could, and then swam on board. This
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day also it continued raining, though with no wind at all, from the
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first of October to the twenty fourth. All of these days entirely spent in
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my several voyages to get all I could out of the ship, which I
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brought on shore every tide of flood upon rafts. Much rain also in the
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days, though with some intervals of fair weather, but it seems this was
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the rainy season. October twentieth I overset my raft and all the goods I
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had got upon it. But being in shoal water, and the things being
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chiefly heavy, I recovered many of them when the tide was out October twenty
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fifth. It rained all night and all day, with some gusts of wind,
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during which time the ship broke in pieces, the wind blowing a little
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harder than before, and was no more to be seen except the wreck of
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her, and that only at low water. I spent this day in covering
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and securing the goods which I had saved, that the rain might not spoil
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them. October twenty sixth I walked about the shore almost all day to find
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out a place to fix my habitation, greatly concerned to secure myself from any
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attack in the night, either from wild beasts or men. Towards night I
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fixed upon a proper place under a rock, and marked out a semicircle for
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my encampment, which I resolved to strengthen with a work wall or fortification made
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of double piles, lined within with cables and without with turf. From the
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twenty sixth to the thirtieth I worked very hard in carrying all my goods to
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my new habitation, though some part of the time, it rained exceedingly hard.
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The thirty first, in the morning, I went out into the island
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with my gun to seek for some food and discover the country. When I
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killed a she goat and her kid followed me home, which I afterwards killed
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also because it would not feed. November first, I set up my tent
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under a rock and lay there for the first night, making it as large
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as I could good with stakes driven in to swing my hammock. Upon November
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second, I set up all my chests and boards and the pieces of timber
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which made my rafts, and with them formed a fence round me a little
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within the place I had marked out for my fortification. November third, I
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went out with my gun and killed two fowls like ducks, which were very
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good food, and in the afternoon went to work to make me a table.
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November fourth, this morning I began to order my times of work,
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of going out with my gun, time of sleep, and time of diversion.
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That is, every morning I walked out with my gun for two or
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three hours if it did not rain, then employed myself to work till about
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eleven o'clock, then eat what I had to live on, and from twelve
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two, I lay down to sleep, the weather being excessively hot, and
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then in the evening to work again. The working part of this day and
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of the next were wholly employed in making my table, for I was yet
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but a very sorry workman, though time and necessity made me a complete natural
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mechanic soon after, as I believe they would do anyone else. November fifth,
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this day, went abroad with my gun and my dog and killed a
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wild cat, her skin pretty soft, but her flesh good for nothing.
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Every creature that I killed I took of the skins and preserved them. Coming
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back to the seashore, I saw many sorts of sea fowls, which I
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did not understand, but was surprised and almost frightened with two or three seals,
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which, while I was gazing at, not well knowing what they were,
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got into the sea and escaped me for that time. November sixth,
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after my morning walk, I went to work with my table again and finished
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it, though not by my liking, nor was it long before I learned
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to mend it. November seventh, Now it began to be settled fair weather.
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The seventh, eighth, ninth, and tenth, and part of the
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twelfth and the eleventh was Sunday. I took wholly up to make me a
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chair, and with much ado brought it to a tolerable shape, but never
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to please me, and even in the making I pulled it in pieces several
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times. Note I soon neglected my keeping Sundays for omitting my mark for them
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on my post. I forgot which was which. November thirteenth. This day
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it rained, which refreshed me exceedingly and cooled the earth. But it was
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accompanied with terrible thunder and lightning, which frightened me dreadfully, for fear of
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my powder. As soon as it was over, I resolved to separate my
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stock of powder into as many little parcels as possible, that it might not
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be in danger. November fourteenth, fifteenth, and sixteenth. These three days
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I spent in making little square chests or boxes, which might hold about a
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pound or two pounds at most of powder, and so putting the powder in.
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I stowed it in places as secure and remote from one another as possible.
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On one of these three days I killed a large bird that was good
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to eat, but I knew not what to call it. November seventeenth,
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This day I began to dig behind my tent into the rock to make room
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for my further conveniency. Note three things I wanted exceedingly for this work,
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that is, a pickaxe, a shovel, and a wheelbarrow or basket.
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So I desisted from my work and began to consider how to supply that onet
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and make me some tools. As for the pick axe, I made use
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of the iron crows, which were proper enough, though heavy. But the
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next thing was a shovel or spade. This was so absolutely necessary that indeed
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I could do nothing effectually without it. But what kind of one to make
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I knew not November eighteenth, the next day, in searching the woods,
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I found a tree of that wood or like it, which in the Brazils
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they call the iron tree for its exceeding hardness. Of this, with great
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labor, and almost spoiling my axe, I cut a piece and brought it
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home, too, with difficulty enough, for it was exceedingly heavy. The
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excessive hardness of the wood, and my having no other way, made me
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a long while upon this machine, for I worked it effectually by little and
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little, into the form of a shovel or spade, the handle exactly shaped
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like ours in England, only that the board part, having no iron shod
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upon it at the bottom, it would not last me for so long.
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However, it served well enough for the uses which I had occasion to put
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it to. But never was a shovel I believe, made after that fashion,
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or so long in making I was still deficient, for I wanted a
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basket or a wheelbarrow. A basket I could not make by any means,
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having no such things as twigs that would bend to make wickerwear, at least
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none yet found. And as to a wheelbarrow, I fancied I could make
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all but the wheel, but that I had no notion of, neither did
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I know how to go about it. Besides, I had no possible way
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to make the iron gudgeons for the spindle or axis of the wheel to run
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in, so I gave it over. And so for carrying away the earth
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which I dug out of the cave, I made me a thing like a
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hod which the laborers carry mortar in when they served the brick layers. This
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is not so difficult to me as the making of the shovel. And yet
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this and the shovel, and the attempt which I made in vain to make
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a wheelbarrow took me took me up no less than four days, I mean,
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always accepting my morning walk with my gun, which I seldom failed and
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very seldom failed, also bringing home something fit to eat. November twenty third,
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my other work having now stood still because of my making these tools.
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When they were finished, I went on and working every day as my strength
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and time allowed. I spent eighteen days entirely in widening and deepening my cave
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that it might hold my goods commodiously. Note During all this time I worked
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to make this room or cave spacious enough to accommodate me as a warehouse or
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magazine, a kitchen, a dining room, and a cellar as for my
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lodging. I kept to the tent, except that sometimes in the wet season
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of the year, it rained so hard that I could not keep myself dry,
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which caused me afterwards to cover all my place within my pail with long
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poles in the form of rafters leaning against the rock, and load them with
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flags and large leaves of trees like a thatch. December tenth I began now
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to think my cave or vault finished, when on a sudden it seems I
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had made it too large. A great quantity of earth fell down from the
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top on one side, so much that, in short itf frightened me,
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and not without reason too, for if I had been under it, I
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had never wanted a grave digger. I had now a great deal of work
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to do over again, for I had the loosed earth all to carry out,
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and which was of more importance, I had the ceiling to prop up
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so that I might be sure no more would come down. December eleventh.
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This day I went to work with it accordingly, and got two shores or
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posts pitched upright to the top, with two pieces of boards across over each
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post. This I finished the next day, and setting more posts up with
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boards. In about a week more. I had the roof secured, and
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the posts standing in rows served me for partitions to part off the house December
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seventeenth. From this day to the twentieth I placed shelves and knocked up nails
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on the posts to hang everything up that could be hung up, And now
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I began to be in some order within doors. December twentieth. Now I
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carried everything into the cave and began to furnish my house and set up some
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pieces of boards like a dresser to order my victuals upon. But boards began
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to be very scarce with me. Also, I made me another table.
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December twenty fourth, much rain all day and all night, no stirring out.
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December twenty fifth, rain all day. December twenty sixth no rain,
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and the earth much cooler than before, and pleasanter. December twenty seventh killed
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a young goat and lamed another, so that I caught it and led it
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home in a string. And when I had it at home, I bound
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and splintered up its leg, which was broken not te bene. I took
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such care of it that it lived, and the leg grew well and as
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strong as ever. But by my nursing it so long it grew tame and
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fed upon the little green at my door, and would not go away.
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This was the first time that I entertained a thought of breeding up some tame
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creatures that I might have food when my powder and shot was all spent.
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December twenty eighth, twenty ninth, thirtieth, and thirty first, great heats
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and no breeze, so that there was no stirring abroad except in the evening
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for food. This time I spent in putting all my things in order within
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doors. January first, very hot still, but I went abroad early and
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late with my gun, and lay still in the middle of the day this
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evening. Going farther into the valleys which lay towards the center of the island,
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I found there were plenty of goats, though exceedingly shy and hard to
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come at. However, I resolved to try if I could not bring my
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dog to hunt them down. January second. Accordingly, the next day I
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went out with my dog and set him upon the goats. But I was
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mistaken, for they all faced about upon the dog, and he knew his
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danger too well, for he would not come near them. January third,
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I began my fence or wall, which, being still jealous of my being
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attacked by somebody, I resolved to make very thick and strong. No te
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bene this wall. Being described before, I purposely admit what was said in
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the journal, it is sufficient to observe that I was no less time than
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from the second of January to the fourteenth of April working finishing and perfecting this
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wall. Though it was no more than about twenty four yards in length,
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being a half circle from one place in the rock to another place about eight
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yards from it, the door of the cave being in the center behind it.
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All this time I worked very hard, the rains hindering me many days,
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nay sometimes weeks together, but I thought I should never be perfectly secure
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till this wall was finished. And it is scarce credible what inexpressible labor everything
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was done with, especially the bringing of piles out of the woods and driving
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them into the ground, for I made them much bigger than I needed to
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have done. When this wall was finished and the outside double fenced with a
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turf wall raised up close to it, I perceived myself that if any people
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were to come on shore there, they would not perceive anything like a habitation.
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And it was very well I did so, as may be observed hereafter
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upon a very remarkable occasion. During this time, I made my rounds in
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the woods for game every day when the rain permitted me, and made frequent
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discoveries in these walks of something or other to my advantage. Particularly, I
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found a kind of wild pigeons which build not as wood pigeons in a tree,
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but rather as house pigeons in the holes of the rocks, and taking
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some young ones I endeavored to bring them up, came and did so.
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But when they grew older they flew away, which perhaps was at first for
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one of feeding them, for I had nothing to give them. However,
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I frequently found their nests and got their young ones, which were very good
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meat. And now in the managing of my household affairs, I found myself
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wanting in many things which I thought at first it was impossible for me to
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make, as indeed with some of them it was. For instance, I
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could never make a cask to be whooped. I had a small runlet or
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two, as I observed before, but I could not ever arrive at the
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capacity of making one by them, though I spent many weeks about it.
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I could never put in the heads or join the staves so true to one
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another as to make them hold water. So I gave that also over In
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the next place, I was at a great loss for candles, so that
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as soon as ever it was dark, which was generally by seven o'clock,
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I was obliged to go to bed. I remembered the lump of beeswax with
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which I made candles in my African adventure. But I had none of that.
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Now. The only remedy I had was that when I killed a goat,
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I saved the tallow, which, with a little dish made of clay,
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which I baked up in the sun, and to which I added a
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wick of some oakum, I made me a lamp. And this gave me
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light, though not a clear, steady light like a candle. In the
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middle of all my labors, it happened that rummaging my things, I found
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a little bag, which, as I hinted before, had been filled with
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corn for the feeding of poultry, not for this voyage, but before,
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as I suppose, when the ship came from Lisbon, the little remainder of
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corn that had been in the bag was all devoured by the rats, and
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I saw nothing in the bag but husts and dust, And, being willing
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to have the bag for some other use, I think it was to put
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my powder in. When I divided it for fear of the lightning, or
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some such use, I shook the husts of corn out of it. On
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one side of my fortification under the rock. It was a little before the
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great rains just now mentioned that I threw this stuff away, taking no notice,
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and not so much as remembering that I had thrown anything there, When
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about a month after or thereabouts, I saw some few stalks of something green
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shooting out of the ground, which I fancied might be some plant I had
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not seen. But I was surprised and perfectly astonished when after a little longer
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time I saw about ten or twelve years come out which were perfect green barley,
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of the same kind as our European nay as our English barley. It
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is impossible to express the astonishment and confusion of my thoughts on this occasion.
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I had hitherto acted upon no religious foundation at all. Indeed, I had
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very few notions of religion in my head, nor had entertained any sense of
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anything that had befallen me otherwise than as chance, or as we lightly say,
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what pleases God, without so much as inquiring into the end of providence
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in these things, or his order in governing events for the world. But
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after I saw barley growing there in a climate which I knew was not proper
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for corn, and especially that I knew not how it came there, it
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startled me strangely, and I began to suggest that God had miraculously caused his
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grain to grow without any help of seed sown, and that it was so
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directed purely for my sustenance on that wild, miserable place. This touched my
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heart a little and brought tears out of my eyes, and I began to
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bless myself that such a prodigy of nature should happen upon my account. And
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this was the more strange to me, because I saw near it, still,
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all along by the side of the rock, some other straggling stalks,
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which proved to be stalks of rice, and which I knew because I had
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seen it grow in Africa when I was ashore there. Only thought these the
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pure productions of providence for my support, but not doubting that there was more
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in the place, I went all over that part of the island where I
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had been before, peering in every corner and under every rock, to see
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for more of it, but I could not find any. At last it
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occurred to my thoughts that I shook a bag of chickens meat out in that
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place, And then the wonder began to cease, and I must confess my
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religious thankfulness to God's providence began to abate too. Upon the discovering that all
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this was nothing but what was common. Though I ought to have been as
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thankful for so strange and unforeseen a providence as if it had been miraculous.
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For it was really the work of providence to me that should order, or
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a point, that ten or twelve grains of corn should remain unspoiled when the
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rats had destroyed all the rest, as if it had been dropped from heaven.
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As also that I should throw it out in that particular place, where
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it, being in the shade of a high rock, it sprang up immediately,
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whereas if I had thrown it anywhere else at that time it had been
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burnt up and destroyed. I carefully saved the ears of this corn, you
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may be sure, in their season, which was about the end of June,
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and laying up every corn, I resolved to sow them all again,
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hoping in time to have some quantity sufficient to supply me with bread. But
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it was not till the fourth year that I could allow myself the least grain
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of this corn to eat, and even then, but sparingly, as I
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shall say afterwards, in its order, for I lost all that I sowed
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the first season by not observing the proper time, for I sowed it just
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before the dry season, so that it never came up at all, at
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least not as it would have done. Of which in its place, besides
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this barley there were as above twenty or thirty stalks of rice, which I
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preserve with the same care and for the same use, or to the same
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purpose, to make me bread or rather food, for I found ways to
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cook it without baking, though I did that also after some time. But
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to return to my journal, I worked excessive hard these three or four months
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to get my wall done, and the fourteenth of April I closed it up,
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contriving to go into it not by a door, but over the wall
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by a ladder, that there might be no sign on the outside of my
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habitation. April sixteenth, I finished my life ladder. So I went up
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the ladder to the top, and then pulled it up after me and let
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it down. In the inside. This was a complete enclosure to me,
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for within I had room enough, and nothing could come at me from without
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unless it could first mount my wall. The very next day, after this
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wall was finished, I had almost all my labor overthrown at once, and
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myself killed the case was this. As I was busy in the inside behind
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my tent, just at the entrance into my cave, I was terribly frighted
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with the most dreadful, surprising thing. Indeed, for all of a sudden
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I found the earth come crumbling down from the roof of my cave, and
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from the edge of the hill over my head. In two of the posts
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I had set up in the cave cracked in a frightful manner. I was
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heartily scared, but thought nothing of it, of what was really the cause,
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only thinking that the top of my cave had fallen in, as some
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of it had done before, and for fear I should be buried in it,
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I ran forward to my ladder, and, not thinking myself safe there,
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neither I got over my wall, for fear of the pieces of the
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hill which I expected might roll down upon me. I had no sooner step
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to ground than I plainly saw. It was a terrible earthquake, for the
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ground I stood on shook three times at about eight minutes distance, with three
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such shocks as would have overturned the strongest building that could be supposed to have
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stood on the earth, and a great piece of the top of a rock,
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which stood about half a mile from me, next to the sea,
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fell down with such a terrible noise as I never heard in all my life.
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I perceived also the very sea was put into violent motion by it,
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and I believed the shocks were stronger under the water than on the island.
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I was so much amazed with the thing itself, having never felt the like,
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nor discoursed with anyone that had that. I was like one dead or
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stupefied, and the motion of the earth made my stomach sick, like one
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that was tossed at sea. But the noise of the falling of the rock
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awakened me as it were, and rousing me from the stupefied condition I was
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in filled me with horror, and I thought of nothing then but the hill
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falling upon my tent and all my household goods, and bearing all at once.
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And this sunk my very soul within me A second time. After the
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third chap was over, and I felt no more for some time, I
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began to take courage, and yet I had not hard enough to go over
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my wall again, for fear of being buried alive, but sat still upon
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the ground, greatly cast down and disconsolate, not knowing what to do.
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All this while I had not the least serious religious thought. Nothing but the
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common Lord have mercy upon me, And when it was over, that went
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away too. While I sat thus, I found the air overcast and grow
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cloudy, and as if it would rain. Soon after that, the wind
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arose by little and little, so that in less than half an hour it
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blew a most dreadful hurricane. The sea was all of a sudden covered over
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with foam and froth. The shore was covered with the breach of the water,
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the trees were torn up by the roots, and a terrible storm it
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was. This held about three hours and then began to abate, and in
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two hours more it was quite calm and began to rain very hard. All
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this while I sat upon the ground, very much terrified and dejected. When
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on a sudden it came into my thoughts that these winds and rain being the
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consequences of the earthquake. The earthquake itself was spent and over, and I
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might venture into my cave again. With this thought, my spirits began to
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revive, and the rain also helping to persuade me. I went in and
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sat down in my tent, but The rain was so violent that my tent
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was ready to be beaten down with it, and I was forced to go
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into my cave, though very much afraid and uneasy for fear it would fall
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in my head. This violent rain forced me to a new work, that
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is, to cut a hole through my new fortification like a sink, to
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let the water go out, which would else have flooded my cave. After
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I had been in my cave for some time and found still no more shocks
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of the earthquake follow I began to be more composed and now to support my
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spirits, which indeed wanted it very much, I went to my little store
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and took a small sup of rum, which however I did then and always
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very sparingly, knowing I could have no more. When that was gone.
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It continued raining all that night in great part of the day, so that
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I could not stir abroad. But my mind, being more composed, I
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began to think of what I had best do, concluding that if the island
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was subject to these earthquakes, there would be no living for me in the
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cave. But I must consider of building a little hut in an open space,
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which I might surround with a wall, as I had done before,
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and so make myself secure from wild beasts or men. For I concluded if
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I stayed where I was, I should certainly, one time or other,
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be buried alive. With these thoughts, I resolved to remove my tent from
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the place where it stood, which was just under the hanging precipice of the
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hill, and which if it should be shaken again, would certainly fall upon
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my tent. And I spent the next two days, being the nineteenth and
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twentieth of April, in contriving where and how to remove my habitation. The
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fear of being swallowed up alive made me that I never slept in quiet,
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and yet the apprehension of lying abroad without any fence was almost equal to it.
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But still, when I looked about and saw how everything was put in
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order, how pleasantly concealed I was, and how safe from danger, it
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made me very loath to remove. In the meantime, occurred to me that
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it would require a vast deal of time for me to do this, and
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that I must be contented to venture where I was till I had formed a
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camp for myself and had secured it so as to remove to it. So
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with this resolution I composed myself for a time and resolved that I would go
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to work with all speed to build me a wall with piles and cables,
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et cetera, in a circle as before, and set my tent up in
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it when it was finished, but that I would venture to stay where I
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was till it was finished and fit to remove. This was the twenty first
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April twenty second. The next morning I began to consider of means to put
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this resolve into execution. But I was at a great loss about my tools.
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I had three large axes and abundance of hatchets where we carried the hatchets
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for traffic with the Indians. But with much chopping and cutting knotty hard wood,
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they were all full of notches and dull. And though I had a
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grindstone, I could not turn it and grind my tools too. This cost
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me as much thought as a statesman would have bestowed upon a grand point of
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politics, or a judge upon the life and death of a man. At
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length, I contrived a wheel with a string to turn it with my foot,
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that I might have both my hands at liberty. Note I had never
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seen any such thing in England, or at least not to take notice how
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it was done, though since I have observed it is very common there.
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Besides that my grindstone was very heavy and large. This machine cost me a
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full weeks work to bring it to perfection. April twenty eighth and twenty ninth.
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These two whole days I took up in grinding my tools, my machine
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for turning my grindstone, performing very well. April thirtieth, having perceived my
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bread had been low a great while now, I took a survey of it
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and reduced myself to one biscuit cake a day, which made my heart very
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heavy. May first in the morning, looking towards the seaside, the tide
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being low, I saw something lye on the shore, bigger than ordinary,
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and it looked like a cask. When I came to it, I found
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a small barrel and two or three pieces of the wreck of the ship,
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which were driven on shore by the late hurricane. And looking towards the wreck
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itself, I thought it seemed to lie higher out of the water than it
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used to. I examined the barrel which was driven on shore, and soon
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found that it was a barrel of gunpowder, but it had taken water,
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and the powder was caked as hard as a stone. However, I rolled
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it farther on shore for the present, and went on upon the sands as
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near as I could, to the wreck of the ship, to look for
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more. End of Chapter five.