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Robinson Crusoe

Daniel Defoe

CHAPTER IV - FIRST WEEKS ON THE ISLAND



WHEN I waked it was broad day, the weather clear, and the storm
abated, so that the sea did not rage and swell as before.  But that
which surprised me most was, that the ship was lifted off in the
night from the sand where she lay by the swelling of the tide, and
was driven up almost as far as the rock which I at first mentioned,
where I had been so bruised by the wave dashing me against it.
This being within about a mile from the shore where I was, and the
ship seeming to stand upright still, I wished myself on board, that
at least I might save some necessary things for my use.

When I came down from my apartment in the tree, I looked about me
again, and the first thing I found was the boat, which lay, as the
wind and the sea had tossed her up, upon the land, about two miles
on my right hand.  I walked as far as I could upon the shore to
have got to her; but found a neck or inlet of water between me and
the boat which was about half a mile broad; so I came back for the
present, being more intent upon getting at the ship, where I hoped
to find something for my present subsistence.

A little after noon I found the sea very calm, and the tide ebbed
so far out that I could come within a quarter of a mile of the
ship.  And here I found a fresh renewing of my grief; for I saw
evidently that if we had kept on board we had been all safe - that
is to say, we had all got safe on shore, and I had not been so
miserable as to be left entirety destitute of all comfort and
company as I now was.  This forced tears to my eyes again; but as
there was little relief in that, I resolved, if possible, to get to
the ship; so I pulled off my clothes - for the weather was hot to
extremity - and took the water.  But when I came to the ship my
difficulty was still greater to know how to get on board; for, as
she lay aground, and high out of the water, there was nothing
within my reach to lay hold of.  I swam round her twice, and the
second time I spied a small piece of rope, which I wondered I did
not see at first, hung down by the fore-chains so low, as that with
great difficulty I got hold of it, and by the help of that rope I
got up into the forecastle of the ship.  Here I found that the ship
was bulged, and had a great deal of water in her hold, but that she
lay so on the side of a bank of hard sand, or, rather earth, that
her stern lay lifted up upon the bank, and her head low, almost to
the water.  By this means all her quarter was free, and all that
was in that part was dry; for you may be sure my first work was to
search, and to see what was spoiled and what was free.  And, first,
I found that all the ship's provisions were dry and untouched by
the water, and being very well disposed to eat, I went to the bread
room and filled my pockets with biscuit, and ate it as I went about
other things, for I had no time to lose.  I also found some rum in
the great cabin, of which I took a large dram, and which I had,
indeed, need enough of to spirit me for what was before me.  Now I
wanted nothing but a boat to furnish myself with many things which
I foresaw would be very necessary to me.

It was in vain to sit still and wish for what was not to be had;
and this extremity roused my application.  We had several spare
yards, and two or three large spars of wood, and a spare topmast or
two in the ship; I resolved to fall to work with these, and I flung
as many of them overboard as I could manage for their weight, tying
every one with a rope, that they might not drive away.  When this
was done I went down the ship's side, and pulling them to me, I
tied four of them together at both ends as well as I could, in the
form of a raft, and laying two or three short pieces of plank upon
them crossways, I found I could walk upon it very well, but that it
was not able to bear any great weight, the pieces being too light.
So I went to work, and with a carpenter's saw I cut a spare topmast
into three lengths, and added them to my raft, with a great deal of
labour and pains.  But the hope of furnishing myself with
necessaries encouraged me to go beyond what I should have been able
to have done upon another occasion.

My raft was now strong enough to bear any reasonable weight.  My
next care was what to load it with, and how to preserve what I laid
upon it from the surf of the sea; but I was not long considering
this.  I first laid all the planks or boards upon it that I could
get, and having considered well what I most wanted, I got three of
the seamen's chests, which I had broken open, and emptied, and
lowered them down upon my raft; the first of these I filled with
provisions - viz. bread, rice, three Dutch cheeses, five pieces of
dried goat's flesh (which we lived much upon), and a little
remainder of European corn, which had been laid by for some fowls
which we brought to sea with us, but the fowls were killed.  There
had been some barley and wheat together; but, to my great
disappointment, I found afterwards that the rats had eaten or
spoiled it all.  As for liquors, I found several, cases of bottles
belonging to our skipper, in which were some cordial waters; and,
in all, about five or six gallons of rack.  These I stowed by
themselves, there being no need to put them into the chest, nor any
room for them.  While I was doing this, I found the tide begin to
flow, though very calm; and I had the mortification to see my coat,
shirt, and waistcoat, which I had left on the shore, upon the sand,
swim away.  As for my breeches, which were only linen, and open-
kneed, I swam on board in them and my stockings.  However, this set
me on rummaging for clothes, of which I found enough, but took no
more than I wanted for present use, for I had others things which
my eye was more upon - as, first, tools to work with on shore.  And
it was after long searching that I found out the carpenter's chest,
which was, indeed, a very useful prize to me, and much more
valuable than a shipload of gold would have been at that time.  I
got it down to my raft, whole as it was, without losing time to
look into it, for I knew in general what it contained.

My next care was for some ammunition and arms.  There were two very
good fowling-pieces in the great cabin, and two pistols.  These I
secured first, with some powder-horns and a small bag of shot, and
two old rusty swords.  I knew there were three barrels of powder in
the ship, but knew not where our gunner had stowed them; but with
much search I found them, two of them dry and good, the third had
taken water.  Those two I got to my raft with the arms.  And now I
thought myself pretty well freighted, and began to think how I
should get to shore with them, having neither sail, oar, nor
rudder; and the least capful of wind would have overset all my
navigation.

I had three encouragements - 1st, a smooth, calm sea; 2ndly, the
tide rising, and setting in to the shore; 3rdly, what little wind
there was blew me towards the land.  And thus, having found two or
three broken oars belonging to the boat - and, besides the tools
which were in the chest, I found two saws, an axe, and a hammer;
with this cargo I put to sea.  For a mile or thereabouts my raft
went very well, only that I found it drive a little distant from
the place where I had landed before; by which I perceived that
there was some indraft of the water, and consequently I hoped to
find some creek or river there, which I might make use of as a port
to get to land with my cargo.

As I imagined, so it was.  There appeared before me a little
opening of the land, and I found a strong current of the tide set
into it; so I guided my raft as well as I could, to keep in the
middle of the stream.

But here I had like to have suffered a second shipwreck, which, if
I had, I think verily would have broken my heart; for, knowing
nothing of the coast, my raft ran aground at one end of it upon a
shoal, and not being aground at the other end, it wanted but a
little that all my cargo had slipped off towards the end that was
afloat, and to fallen into the water.  I did my utmost, by setting
my back against the chests, to keep them in their places, but could
not thrust off the raft with all my strength; neither durst I stir
from the posture I was in; but holding up the chests with all my
might, I stood in that manner near half-an-hour, in which time the
rising of the water brought me a little more upon a level; and a
little after, the water still-rising, my raft floated again, and I
thrust her off with the oar I had into the channel, and then
driving up higher, I at length found myself in the mouth of a
little river, with land on both sides, and a strong current of tide
running 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 in time to see some ships at sea, and therefore resolved to
place myself as near the coast as I could.

At length I spied a little cove on the right shore of the creek, to
which with great pain and difficulty I guided my raft, and at last
got so near that, reaching ground with my oar, I could thrust her
directly in.  But here I had like to have dipped all my cargo into
the sea 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 on shore, would lie so high, and the other sink
lower, as before, that it would endanger my cargo again.  All that
I could do was to wait till the tide was at the highest, keeping
the raft with my oar like an anchor, to hold 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 I found water enough -
for my raft drew about a foot of water - I thrust her upon that
flat piece of ground, and there fastened or moored her, by sticking
my two broken oars into the ground, one on one side near one end,
and one on the other side near the other end; and thus I lay till
the 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
my habitation, and where to stow my goods to secure them from
whatever might happen.  Where I was, I yet knew not; whether on the
continent or on an island; whether inhabited or not inhabited;
whether in danger of wild beasts or not.  There was a hill not
above a mile from me, which rose up very steep and high, and which
seemed to overtop some other hills, which lay as in a ridge from it
northward.  I took out one of the fowling-pieces, and one of the
pistols, and a horn of powder; and thus armed, I travelled for
discovery up to the top of that hill, where, after I had with great
labour and difficulty got to the top, I saw any fate, to my great
affliction - viz. that I was in an island environed every way with
the sea: no land to be seen except some rocks, which lay a great
way off; and two small islands, less than this, which lay about
three leagues to the west.

I found also that the island I was in was barren, and, as I saw
good reason 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, and what not.  At my coming back, I shot at a great bird
which I saw sitting upon a tree on the side of a great wood.  I
believe it was the first gun that had been fired there since the
creation of the world.  I had no sooner fired, than from all parts
of the wood there arose an innumerable number of fowls, of many
sorts, making a confused screaming and crying, and every one
according to his usual note, but not one of them of any kind that I
knew.  As for the creature I killed, I took it to be a kind of
hawk, its colour and beak resembling it, but it had no talons or
claws more than common.  Its flesh was carrion, and fit for
nothing.
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