by Daniel Defoe
the water still rising, my raft floatedagain, and I thrust her off with the oar I had into the channel, andthen driving up higher, I at length found myself in the mouth of alittle river, with land on both sides, and a strong current or tiderunning up. I looked on both sides for a proper place to get to shore,for I was not willing to be driven too high up the river; hoping, intime, to see some ship at sea, and therefore resolved to place myself asnear the coast as I could.
At length I spied a little cove on the right shore of the creek, towhich, with great pain and difficulty, I guided my raft, and at last gotso near, as that reaching ground with my oar, I could thrust herdirectly in; but here I had like to have dipped all my cargo into thesea again; for that shore lying pretty steep, that is to say, sloping,there was no place to land, but where one end of my float, if it ran onshore, would lie so high, and the other sink lower, as before, that itwould endanger my cargo again. All that I could do, was to wait till thetide was at the highest, keeping the raft with my oar like an anchor, tohold the side of it fast to the shore, near a flat piece of ground,which I expected the water would flow over; and so it did. As soon as Ifound water enough, for my raft drew about a foot of water, I thrust herupon that flat piece of ground, and there fastened or moored her, bysticking my two broken oars into the ground; one on one-side, near oneend, and one on the other side, near the other end: and thus I lay tillthe water ebbed away, and left my raft and all my cargo safe on shore.
My next work was to view the country, and seek a proper place for myhabitation, and where to stow my goods, to secure them from whatevermight happen. Where I was, I yet knew not; whether on the continent, oron an island; whether inhabited, or not inhabited; whether in danger ofwild beasts, or not. There was a hill, not above a mile from me, whichrose up very steep and high, and which seemed to overtop some otherhills, which lay as in a ridge from it, northward. I took out one of thefowling-pieces, and one of the pistols, and a horn of powder; and thusarmed, I travelled for discovery up to the top of that hill; where,after I had, with great labour and difficulty, got up to the top, I sawmy fate, to my great affliction, viz. that I was in an island, environedevery way with the sea, no land to be seen, except some rocks, which laya great way off, and two small islands, less than this, which lay aboutthree leagues to the west.
I found also that the island I was in was barren, and, as I saw goodreason to believe, uninhabited, except by wild beasts, of whom, however,I saw none; yet I saw abundance of fowls, but knew not their kinds;neither, when I killed them, could I tell what was fit for food, andwhat not. At my coming back, I shot at a great bird, which I saw sittingupon a tree, on the side of a great wood. I believe it was the first gunthat had been fired there since the creation of the world: I had nosooner fired, but from all the parts of the wood there arose aninnumerable number of fowls, of many sorts, making a confused screaming,and crying, every one according to his usual note; but not one of themof any kind that I knew. As for the creature I killed, I took it to be akind of a hawk, its colour and beak resembling it, but had no talons orclaws more than common. Its flesh was carrion, and fit for nothing.
Contented with this discovery, I came back to my raft, and fell to workto bring my cargo on shore, which took me up the rest of that day: whatto do with myself at night I knew not, nor indeed where to rest: for Iwas afraid to lie down on the ground, not knowing but some wild beastmight devour me; though, as I afterwards found, there was really no needfor those fears.
However, as well as I could, I barricadoed myself round with the chestsand boards that I had brought on shore, and made a kind of a hut forthat night's lodging. As for food, I yet saw not which way to supplymyself, except that I had seen two or three creatures, like hares, runout of the wood where I shot the fowl.
I now began to consider, that I might yet get a great many things out ofthe ship, which would be useful to me, and particularly some of therigging and sails, and such other things as might come to land; and Iresolved to make another voyage on board the vessel, if possible. And asI knew that the first storm that blew must necessarily break her all inpieces, I resolved to set all other things apart, till I got every thingout of the ship that I could get. Then I called a council, that is tosay, in my thoughts, whether I should take back the raft; but thisappeared impracticable: so I resolved to go as before, when the tide wasdown; and I did so, only that I stripped before I went from my hut;having nothing on but a chequered shirt, a pair of linen drawers, and apair of pumps on my feet.
I got on board the ship as before, and prepared a second raft; andhaving had experience of the first, I neither made this so unwieldy, norloaded it so hard, but yet I brought away several things very useful tome: as, first, in the carpenter's stores, I found two or three bags ofnails and spikes, a great screw-jack, a dozen or two of hatchets; and,above all, that most useful thing called a grind-stone. All these Isecured together, with several things belonging to the gunner;particularly two or three iron crows, and two barrels of musket bullets,seven muskets, and another fowling-piece, with some small quantity ofpowder more; a large bag-full of small shot, and a great roll ofsheet-lead; but this last was so heavy, I could not hoist it up to getit over the ship's side.
Besides these things, I took all the men's clothes that I could find,and a spare fore-top sail, a hammock, and some bedding; and with this Iloaded my second raft, and brought them all safe on shore, to my verygreat comfort.
I was under some apprehensions, during my absence from the land, that atleast my provisions might be devoured on shore: but when I came back, Ifound no sign of any visitor; only there sat a creature like a wild cat,upon one of the chests, which, when I came towards it, ran away a littledistance, and then stood still. She sat very composed and unconcerned,and looked full in my face, as if she had a mind to be acquainted withme. I presented my gun to her, but, as she did not understand it, shewas perfectly unconcerned at it, nor did she offer to stir away; uponwhich I tossed her a bit of biscuit, though, by the way, I was not veryfree of it, for my store was not great: however, I spared her a bit, Isay, and she went to it, smelled of it, and ate it, and looked (aspleased) for more; but I thanked her, and could spare no more: so shemarched off.
Having got my second cargo on shore--though I was fain to open thebarrels of powder, and bring them by parcels, for they were too heavy,being large casks--I went to work to make me a little tent, with thesail, and some poles, which I cut for that purpose; and into this tent Ibrought every thing that I knew would spoil either with rain or sun; andI piled all the empty chests and casks up in a circle round the tent, tofortify it from any sudden attempt either from man or beast.
When I had done this, I blocked up the door of the tent with some boardswithin, and an empty chest set up on end without; and spreading one ofthe beds upon the ground, laying my two pistols just at my head, and mygun at length by me, I went to bed for the first time, and slept veryquietly all night, for I was very weary and heavy; for the night beforeI had slept little, and had laboured very hard all day, as well to fetchall those things from the ship, as to get them on shore.
I had the biggest magazine of all kinds now that ever was laid up, Ibelieve, for one man: but I was not satisfied still: for while the shipsat upright in that posture, I thought I ought to get every thing out ofher that I could: so every day, at low water, I went on board, andbrought away something or other; but particularly the third time I went,I brought away as much of the rigging as I could, as also all the smallropes and rope-twine I could get, with a piece of spare canvass, whichwas to mend the sails upon occasion, and the barrel of wet gunpowder.In a word, I brought away all the sails first and last; only that I wasfain to cut them in pieces, and bring as much at a time as I could; forthey were no more useful to be sails, but as mere canvass only.
But that which comforted me still more, was, that, last of all, after Ihad made five or six such voyages as these, and thought I had nothingmore to expect from the ship that was worth my meddling with; I say,after all this, I found a great hogshead of brea
d, and three largerunlets of rum or spirits, and a box of sugar, and a barrel of fineflour; this was surprising to me, because I had given over expecting anymore provisions, except what was spoiled by the water. I soon emptiedthe hogshead of that bread, and wrapped it up, parcel by parcel, inpieces of the sails, which I cut out; and, in a word, I got all thissafe on shore also.
The next day I made another voyage, and now having plundered the ship ofwhat was portable and fit to hand out, I began with the cables, andcutting the great cable into pieces, such as I could move, I got twocables and a hawser on shore, with all the iron-work I could get; andhaving cut down the spritsail-yard, and the mizen-yard, and every thingI could, to make a large raft, I loaded it with all those heavy goods;and came away; but my good luck began now to leave me; for this raft wasso unwieldy, and so overladen, that after I was entered the little cove,where I had landed the rest of my goods, not being able to guide it sohandily as I did the other, it