The Life and Adventures of Robinson Crusoe (1808)

by Daniel Defoe

encouraging myself a little, with considering thatthe power and presence of God was every where, and was able to protectme; upon this I stepped forward again, and by the light of thefirebrand, holding it up a little over my head, I saw lying on theground a most monstrous frightful old he-goat, just making his will, aswe say, gasping for life, and dying indeed of a mere old age.

  I stirred him a little to see if I could get him out, and he essayed toget up, but was not able to raise himself; and I thought with myself, hemight even lie there; for if he had frightened me so, he would certainlyfright, any of the savages, if any of them should be so hardy as to comein there, while he had any life in him.

  I was now recovered from my surprise, and began to look round me, when Ifound the cave was but very small; that is to say, it might be abouttwelve feet over, but in no manner of shape, either round or square, nohands having ever been employed in making it but those of mere nature: Iobserved also, that there was a place at the farther side of it thatwent in farther, but so low, that it required me to creep upon my handsand knees to get into it, and whither it went I knew not; so having nocandle, I gave it over for some time, but resolved to come again thenext day, provided with candles and a tinder-box, which I had made ofthe lock of one of the muskets, with some wildfire in the pan.

  Accordingly, the next day, I came provided with six large candles of myown making, for I made very good candles now of goats tallow; and goinginto this low place, I was obliged to creep upon all fours, as I havesaid, almost ten yards; which, by the way, I thought was a venture boldenough, considering that I knew not how far it might go, or what wasbeyond it. When I was got through the streight, I found the roof rosehigher up, I believe near twenty feet; but never was such a glorioussight seen in the island, I dare say, as it was, to look round the sidesand roof of this vault or cave. The walls reflected an hundred thousandlights to me from my two candles; what it was in the rock, whetherdiamonds, or any other precious stones, or gold, which I rather supposedit to be, I knew not.

  The place I was in was a most delightful cavity, or grotto, of its kind,as could be expected, though perfectly dark; the floor was dry andlevel, and had a sort of small loose gravel upon it; so that there wasno nauseous creature to be seen; neither was there any damp or wet onthe sides of the roof: the only difficulty in it was the entrance,which, however, as it was a place of security, and such a retreat as Iwanted, I thought that was a convenience; so that I was really rejoicedat the discovery, and resolved, without any delay, to bring some ofthose things which I was most anxious about to this place; particularly,I resolved to bring hither my magazine of powder, and all my spare arms,viz. two fowling-pieces (for I had three in all) and three muskets; (forof them I had eight in all) so I kept at my castle only five, whichstood ready mounted, like pieces of cannon, on my utmost fence, andwere ready also to take out upon any expedition.

  Upon this occasion of removing my ammunition, I was obliged to open thebarrel of powder which I took up out of the sea, and which had been wet;and I found, that the water had penetrated about three or four inchesinto the powder on every side, which, caking and growing hard, hadpreserved the inside like a kernel in a shell; so that I had near sixtypounds of very good powder in the centre of the cask; and this was anagreeable discovery to me at that time; so I carried all away thither,never keeping above two or three pounds of powder with me in my castle,for fear of a surprise of any kind; I also carried thither all the leadI had left for bullets.

  I fancied myself now like one of the ancient giants, which were said tolive in caves and holes in the rocks, where none could come at them; forI persuaded myself while I was here, if five hundred savages were tohunt me, they could never find me out; or if they did, they would notventure to attack me here.

  The old goat, which I found expiring, died in the mouth of the cave thenext day after I made this discovery; and I found it much easier to diga great hole there, and throw him in, and cover him with earth, than todrag him out: so I interred him there, to prevent offence to my nose.

  I was now in my twenty-third year of residence in this island, and wasso naturalized to the place, and to the manner of living, that could Ihave but enjoyed the certainty that no savages would come to the placeto disturb me, I could have been content to have capitulated forspending the rest of my time there, even to the last moment, till I hadlaid me down and died, like the old goat, in the cave: I had alsoarrived to some little diversions and amusements, which made the timepass more pleasantly with me a great deal than it did before; as, first,I had taught my Pol, as I noted before, to speak; and he did it sofamiliarly, and talked so articulately and plain, that it was verypleasant to me; and he lived with me no less than six-and-twenty years:how long he might live afterwards I knew not; though I know they have anotion in the Brasils, that they live an hundred years; perhaps some ofmy Polls may be alive there still, calling after poor Robin Crusoe tothis day; I wish no Englishman the ill luck to come there and hear them;but if he did, he would certainly believe it was the devil. My dog was avery pleasant and loving companion to me for no less than sixteen yearsof my time, and then died of mere old age; as for my cats, theymultiplied, as I have observed, to that degree, that I was obliged toshoot several of them at first, to keep them from devouring me, and allI had; but at length, when the two old ones I brought with me were gone,and after some time continually driving them from me, and letting themhave no provision with me, they all ran wild into the woods, except twoor three favourites, which I kept tame, and whose young, when they hadany, I always drowned, and these were part of my family: besides these,I always kept two or three household kids about me, which I taught tofeed out of my hand; and I had also more parrots which talked prettywell, and would all call Robin Crusoe, but none like my first; nor,indeed, did I take the pains with any of them that I had done with him:I had also several tame sea-fowls, whose names I know not, which Icaught upon the shore, and cut their wings; and the little stakes, whichI had planted before my castle wall, being now grown up to a good thickgrove, these fowls all lived among these low trees, and bred there,which was very agreeable to me; so that, as I said above, I began to bevery well contented with the life I led, if it might but have beensecured from the dread of savages.

  But it was otherwise directed; and it might not be amiss for all peoplewho shall meet with my story to make this just observation from it, viz.How frequently, in the course of our lives, the evil, which in itselfwe seek most to shun, and which, when we are fallen into, is the mostdreadful to us, is oftentimes the very means or door of our deliverance,by which alone we can be raised again from the affliction we are falleninto. I could give many examples of this in the course of myunaccountable life; but in nothing was it more particularly remarkable,than in the circumstances of my last years of solitary residence inthis island.

  It was now the month of December, as I said above, in my twenty-thirdyear; and this being the southern solstice, for winter I cannot call it,was the particular time of my harvest, and required my being pretty muchabroad in the fields; when going out pretty early in the morning, evenbefore it was thorough daylight, I was surprised with seeing a light ofsome fire upon the shore, at a distance from me of about two miles,towards the end of the island, where I had observed some savages hadbeen, as before; but not on the other side; but, to my great affliction,it was on my side of the island.

  I was indeed terribly surprised at the sight, and stopped short withinmy grove, not daring to go out, lest I might be surprised; and yet I hadno more peace within, from the apprehensions I had, that if thesesavages, in rambling over the island, should find my corn standing, orcut, or any of my works and improvements, they would immediatelyconclude that there were people in the place, and would then never giveover till they found me out. In this extremity I went back directly tomy castle, pulled up the ladder after me, having made all things withoutlook as wild and natural as I could.

  Then I prepared myself within, putting myself in a posture of defence; Iloaded all my cannon, as I called th
em, that is to say, my muskets,which were mounted upon my new fortification, and all my pistols, andresolved to defend myself to the last gasp; not forgetting seriously torecommend myself to the divine protection, and earnestly to pray to Godto deliver me out of the hands of the barbarians; and in this posture Icontinued about two hours, but began to be mighty impatient forintelligence abroad, for I had no spies to send out.

  After sitting awhile longer, and musing what I should do in this case, Iwas not able to bear sitting in ignorance longer; so setting up myladder to the side of the hill, where there was a flat place, as Iobserved before, and then pulling the ladder up after me, I set it upagain, and mounted to the top of the hill; and pulling out myperspective glass, which I had taken on purpose, I laid me down flat onmy belly on the ground, and began to look for the place. I presentlyfound there were no less than nine naked savages sitting round a smallfire they had made; not to warm them, for they had no need of that, theweather being