LIFE AND ADVENTURES OF ROBINSON CRUSOE. "Seignior," says the Spaniard, "had we poor Spaniards They then gave me an account how the savages whom they lived amongst expected them to go out with them into their wars; and, it was true, that as they had firearms with them, had they not had the disaster to lose their ammunition, they could have been serviceable not only to their friends, but have made themselves terrible both to friends and enemies: but being without powder and shot, and yet in a coudition that they could not in reason decline to go out with their landlords to their wars; so when they came into the field of battle, they were in a worse condition than the savages themselves, for they had neither bows nor arrows, nor could they use those the savages gave them. So they could do nothing but stand still and be wounded with arrows, till they came up to the teeth of their enemy; and then, indeed, the three halberds they had were of use to them; and they would often drive a whole little army before them with those halberds, and sharpened sticks put into the muzzles of their muskets. But, for all this, they were sometimes surrounded with multitudes, and in great danger from their arrows, till at last they found the way to make themselves large targets of wood, which they covered with skins of wild beasts, whose names they knew not, and these covered them from the arrows of the savages: that, notwithstanding these, they were sometimes in great danger; and five of them once were knocked down together with the clubs of the savages, which was the time when one of them was taken prisoner, that is to say, the Spaniard whom I relieved. At first they thought he had been killed; but when they afterwards heard he was taken prisoner, they were under the greatest grief imaginable, and would willingly have all ventured their lives to have rescued him. They told me that when they were so knocked down, the rest of their company rescued them, and stood over them fighting till they were come to themselves, all but him whom they thought had been dead; and then they made their way with their halberds and pieces, standing close together in a line, through a body of above a thousand savages, beating down all that came in their way, got the victory over their enemies, but to their great sorrow, because it was with the loss of their friend, whom the other party, finding alive, carried off, with some others, as I gave an account before. They described, most affectionately, how they were surprised with joy at the return of their friend and companion in misery, who they thought had been devoured by wild beasts of the worst kind, wild men; and yet, how more and more they were surprised with the account he gave Will Atkins, with abundance of frankness and good Upon these frank and open declarations of friendship, we appointed the next day to dine all together; and, indeed, we made a splendid feast. I caused the ship's cook and his mate to come on shore and dress our After this feast, at which we were very innocently Then I presented to them the people I had brought Then I brought them out all my store of tools, and lay their goods in, and to eat and drink in. And now the other two Englishmen removed their habitation to the same place; and so the island was divided into three colonies, and no more, viz. the Spaniards, with old Friday and the first servants, at my old habitation under the hill, which was, in a word, the capital city, and where they had so enlarged and extended their works, as well under as on the outside of the hill, that they lived, though perfectly concealed, yet full at large. Never was there such a little city in a wood, and so hid, in any part of the world; for I verily believe that a thousand men might have ranged the island a month, and, if they had not known there was such a thing, and looked on purpose for it, they would not have found it. Indeed, the trees stood so thick and so close, and grew so fast woven one into another, that nothing but cutting them down first could discover the place, except the only two narrow entrances where they went in and out could be found, which was not very easy; one of them was close down at the water's edge, on the side of the creek, and it was afterwards above two hundred yards to the place: and the other was up a ladder at twice, as I have already described it; and they had also a large wood, thickly planted, on the top of the hill, containing above an acre, which grew apace, and concealed the place from all discovery there, with only one narrow place between two trees, not easily to be discovered, to enter on that side. The other colony was that of Will Atkins, where there were four families of Englishmen, I mean those I had left there, with their wives and children; three savages that were slaves, the widow and the children of the Englishman that was killed, the young man and the maid, and, by the way, we made a wife of her before we went away. There were besides the two carpenters and the tailor, whom I brought with me for them: also the smith, who was a very necessary man to them, especially as a gunsmith, to take care of their arms; and my other man, whom I called Jack-of-all-trades, who was in himself as good almost as twenty men; for he was not only a very ingenious fellow, but a very merry fellow, and before I went away we married him to the honest maid that came with the youth in the ship I mentioned before. And now I speak of marrying, it brings me naturally to say something of the French ecclesiastic that I had brought with me out of the ship's crew whom I took up at sea. It is true this man was a Roman, and perhaps it may give offence to some hereafter, if I leave anything extraordinary upon record of a man whom, before I begin, I must (to set him out in just colours) represent in terms very much to his disadvantage, in the account of Protestants; as, first, that he was a Papist; secondly, a Popish priest; and, thirdly, a French Popish priest. But justice demands of me to give him a due character; and I must say, he was a grave, sober, pious, and most religious person; exact in his life, extensive in his charity, and exemplary in almost everything he did. What then can any one say against being very sensible of the value of such a man, notwithstanding his profession? though it may be my opinion, perhaps, as well as the opinion of others who shall read this, that he was mistaken. The first hour that I began to converse with him after he had agreed to go with me to the East Indies, I found reason to delight exceedingly in his conversation; and he first began with me about religion in the most obliging manner imaginable. "Sir," says he," you have not only under God (and at that he crossed his breast) saved my life, but you have admitted me to go this voyage in your ship, and by your obliging civility, have taken me into your family, giving me an opportunity of free conversation. Now, sir, you see by my habit what my profession is, and I guess by your nation what yours is; I may think is is my duty, and doubtless it is so, to use my utmost endeavours, on all occasions, to bring all the gouls I can to the knowledge of the truth, and to embrace the Catholic doctrine; but as I am here under your permission, and in your family. I am bound in justice to your kindness, as well as in decency and good manners, to be under your government; and therefore I shall not, without your leave, enter into any debate on the points of religion in which we may not agree, further than you shall give me leave." I told him his carriage was so modest that I could not but acknowledge it; that it was true we were such people as they call heretics, but that he was not the first Catholic I had conversed with, without falling into inconveniences, or carrying the questions to any height in debate; that he should not find himself the worst used for being of a different opinion from us, and if we did not converse without any dislike on either side, it should be his fault, not ours. He replied that he thought all our conversation might be easily separated from disputes; that it was not his business to cap principles with every man he conversed with; and that he rather desired me to converse with him as a gentleman than as a religionist; and that, if I would give him leave at any time to discourse upon religious subjects, he would readily comply with it, and that he did not doubt but I would allow him also to defend his own opinions as well as he could; but that, without my leave, he would not break in upon me with any such thing. He told me further, that he would not cease to do all that became him, in his office as a priest, as well as a private Christian, to procure the good of the ship, and the safety of all that was in her; and though, perhaps, we would not join with him, and he could not pray with us, he hoped he might pray for us, which he would do upon all occasions. In this manner we conversed; and as he was of the most obliging, gentlemanlike, behaviour, so he was, if I may be allowed to say so, a man of good sense, and, as I believe, of great learning. He gave me a most diverting account of his life, and of the many extraordinary events of it; of many adventures which had befallen him in the few years that he had been abroad in the world; and particularly it was very remarkable, that in the voyage he was now engaged in, he had the misfortune to be five times shipped and unshipped, and never to go to the place whither any of the ships he was in were at first designed. That his first intent was to have gone to Martinico, and that he went on board a ship bound thither at St. Malo; but, being forced into Lisbon by bad weather, the ship received some damage by running aground in the mouth of the river Tagus, and was obliged to unload her cargo there; but finding a Portuguese ship there bound to the Madeiras, and ready to sail, and supposing he should easily meet with a vessel there bound to Martinico, he went on board, in order to sail to the Madeiras; but the master of the Portuguese ship, being but an indifferent mariner, had been out of his reckoning, and they drove to Fayal; where, however, he happened to find a very good market for his cargo, which was corn, and therefore resolved not to go to the Madeiras, but to load salt at the Isle of May, and to go away to Newfoundland. He had no remedy in this exigence but to go with the ship, and had a pretty good voyage as far as Banks (so they call the place where they catch the fish), where meeting with a French ship bound from France to Quebec, and from thence to Martinico, to carry provisions, he thought he should have an opportunity to complete his first design; but when he came to Quebec, the master of the ship died, and the vessel proceeded no further; so the next voyage he shipped himself for France, in the ship that was burned when we took them up at sea, and then shipped with us for the East Indies, as I have already said. Thus he had been disappointed in five voyages, all, as I may call it, in one voyage, besides what I shall have occasion to mention further of him. But I shall not make digression into other men's stories, which have no relation to my own; so I return to what concerns our affairs in the island. He came to me one morning (for he lodged among us all the while we were upon the island), and it happened to be just when I was going to visit the Englishmen's colony, at the furthest part of the island; I say, he came to me, and told me, with a very grave countenance, that he had for two or three days desired an opportunity of some discourse with me, which he hoped would not be displeasing to me, because he thought it might in some measure correspond with my general design, which was, the prosperity of my new colony, and perhaps might put it, at least more than he yet thought it was, in the way of God's blessing. I looked a little surprised at the last part of his discourse, and turning a little short, "How, sir," said I, "can it be said that we are not in the way of God's blessing, after such visible assistances and deliverances as we have seen here, and of which I have given you a large account?"-"If you had pleased, sir," said he, with a world of modesty, and yet great readiness," to have heard me, you would have found no room to have been displeased, much less to think so hard of me, that I should suggest that you have not had wonderful assistances and deliverances; and I hope, on your behalf, that you are in the way of God's blessing, and your design is exceeding good, and will prosper. But, sir, though it were more so than is even possible to you, yet there may be some among you that are not equally right in their actions: and you know, that in the story of the children of Israel, one Achan in the camp removed God's blessing from them, and turned his hand so against them, that six-and-thirty of them, though not concerned in the crime, were the objects of divine vengeance, and bore the weight of that punishment." I was sensibly touched with this discourse, and told him his inference was so just, and the whole design seemed so sincere, and was really so religious in its own nature, that I was very sorry I had interrupted him, and begged him to go on; and, in the meantime, because it seemed that what we had both to say might take up some time, I told him I was going to the Englishmen's plantations, and asked him to go with me, and we might discourse of it by the way. He told me he would the more willingly wait on me thither, because there partly the thing was acted which he desired to speak to me about; so we walked on, and I pressed him to be free and plain with me in what he had to say. "Why, then, sir," says he, "be pleased to give me leave to lay down a few propositions, as the foundation of what I have to say, that we may not differ in the general principles, though we may be of some differing opinions in the practice of particulars. First, sir, though we differ in some of the doctrinal articles of religion (and it is very unhappy it is so, especially in the case before us, as I shall show afterwards), yet there are some general principles in which we both agree-that there is a God; and that this God having given us some stated general rules for our service and obedience, we ought not willingly and knowingly to offend Him, either by neglecting to do what He has commanded, or by doing what He has expressly forbidden. And let our different religions be what they will, this general principle is readily owned by us all, that the blessing of God does not ordinarily follow presumptuous sinning against His command; and every good Christian will be affectionately concerned to prevent any that are under his care living in a total neglect of God and His commands. It is not your men being Protestants, whatever my opinion may be of such, that discharges me from being concerned for their souls, and from endeavouring, if it lies before me, that they should live in as little distance from enmity with their Maker as possible, especially if you give me leave to meddle so far in your circuit." I could not yet imagine what he aimed at, and told him I granted all he had said, and thanked him that he would so far concern himself for us: and begged he would explain the particulars of what he had observed, that like Joshua, to take his own parable, I might put away the accursed thing from us. Why, then, sir," says he, "I will take the liberty you give me; and there are three things, which, if I am right, must stand in the way of God's blessing upon your endeavours here, and which I should rejoice, for your sake and their own, to see removed. And, sir, I promise myself that you will fully agree with me in them all, as soon as I name them; especially because I shall convince you that every one of them may, with great ease, and very much to your satisfaction, be remedied. First, sir," says he, " you have here four Englishmen, who have fetched women from among the savages, and have taken them as their wives, and have had many children by them all, and yet are not married to them after any stated legal manner, as the laws of God and man require. To this, sir, I know, you will object that there was no clergyman or priest of any kind to perform the ceremony; nor any pen and ink, or paper, to write down a contract of marriage, and have it signed between them. And I know also, sir, what the Spaniard governor has told you, I mean of the agree ment that he obliged them to make when they took those women, viz. that they should choose them out by consent, and keep separately to them: which, by the way, is nothing of a marriage, no agreement with the women, as wives, but only an agreement among themselves, to keep them from quarrelling. But, sir, the essence of the sacrament of matrimony (so he called it, being a Roman) consists not only in the mutual consent of the parties to take one another as man and wife, but in the formal and legal obligation that there is in the contract to compel the man and woman, at all times, to own and acknowledge each other; obliging the men to abstain from all other women, to engage in no other contract while these subsist; and, on all occasions, es ability allows, to provide honestly for them and their children; and to oblige the women to the same or like conditions, on their side. Now, sir," says he, "these men may, when they please, or when occasion presents, abandon these women, disown their children, leave them to perish, and take other women, and marry them while these are living;" and here he added, with some warmth," How, sir, is God honoured in this unlawful liberty? And how shall a blessing succeed your endeavours in this place, however good in themselves, and however sincere in your design, while these men, who at present are your subjects, under your absolute goverzment and dominion, are allowed by you to live in open adultery?" I confess I was struck with the thing itself, but much more with the convincing arguments he supported it with; but I thought to have got off my young priest by telling him that all that part was done when I was not there: and that they had lived so many years with them now, that if it was adultery, it was past remedy; nothing could be done in it now. "Sir," says he," asking your pardon for such freedom, you are right in this, that, it being done in your absence, you could not be charged with that part of the crime; but, I beseech you, flatter not yourself that you are not, therefore, under an obligation to do your utmost now to put an end to it. You should legally and effectually marry them; and as, sir, my way of marrying may not be easy to reconcile them to, though it will be effectual, even by your own laws, so your way may be as well before God, and as valid among men. I mean by a written contract, signed by both man and woman, and by all the witnesses present, which all the laws of Europe would decree to be valid." I was amazed to see so much true piety, and so much sincerity of zeal, besides the unusual impartiality in his discourse as to his own party or church, and such true warmth for preserving people that he had no knowledge of or relation to, from transgressing the laws of God. He looked earnestly at me, seeing my confusion-injustice; because I had promised I would never send But recollecting what he had said of marrying them by "Sir," says he, "I shall be very sorry if what I have him away, and he had promised and engaged to me that a written contract, which I knew he would stand to, I said gives you any offence."-"No, no," said I, "I am he would never leave me, unless I sent him away. returned it back upon him, and told him I granted all offended with nobody but myself; but I am perfectly He seemed very much concerned at it, for he had no that he had said to be just, and on his part very kind; confounded, not only to think that I should never take rational access to these poor people, seeing he did not that I would discourse with the men upon the point any notice of this before, but with reflecting what notice understand one word of their language, nor they one of now, when I came to them; and I knew no reason why I am able to take of it now. You know, sir," said I, his. To remove this difficulty. I told him Friday's they should scruple to let him marry them all, which I "what circumstances I am in; I am bound to the East father had learned Spanish, which I found he also underkaew well enough would be granted to be as authentic Indies in a ship freighted by merchants, and to whom it stood, and he should serve him as an interpreter. So he and valid in England as if they were married by one of would be an insufferable piece of injustice to detain was much better satisfied, and nothing could persuade our own clergymen. their ship here, the men lying all this while at victuals him but he would stay and endeavour to convert them; I then pressed him to tell me what was the second and wages on the owners' account. It is true, I agreed but Providence gave another very happy turn to all this. complaint which he had to make, acknowledging that I to be allowed twelve days here, and if I stay more, I I come back now to the first part of his objections. was very much his debtor for the first, and thanked must pay three pounds sterling per diem demurrage; When we came to the Englishmen, I sent for them all him heartily for it. He told me he would use the same nor can I stay upon demurrage above eight days more, together, and after some account given them of what I freedom and plainness in the second, and hoped I would and I have been here thirteen already; so that I am had done for them, viz. what necessary things I had take it as well; and this was, that, notwithstanding perfectly unable to engage in this work, unless I would provided for them, and how they were distributed, these English subjects of mine, as he called them, had suffer myself to be left behind here again; in which which they were very sensible of, and very thankful for, lived with these women almost seven years, had taught case if this single ship should miscarry in any part of I began to talk to them of the scandalous life they led, them to speak English, and even to read it, and that her voyage, I should be just in the same condition that and gave them a full account of the notice the clergythey were, as he perceived, women of tolerable under- I was left in here at first, and from which I have been man had taken of it; and arguing how unchristian and standing, and capable of instruction, yet they had not, so wonderfully delivered." He owned the case was very irreligious a life it was, I first asked them if they were to this hour, taught them anything of the Christian re-hard upon me as to my voyage; but laid it home upon married men or bachelors? They soon explained their ligion-no, not so much as to know there was a God, or my conscience, whether the blessing of saving thirty- condition to me, and showed that two of them were a worship, or in what manner God was to be served, or seven souls was not worth venturing all I had in the widowers, and the other three were single men, or that their own idolatry, and worshipping they knew not world for. I was not so sensible of that as he was. I bachelors. I asked them with what conscience they whom, was false and absurd. This, he said, was an un-replied to him thus: "Why, sir, it is a valuable thing, could take these women, and call them their wives, and accountable neglect, and what God would certainly call have so many children by them, and not be lawfully them to account for, and perhaps at last take the work married to them? They all gave me the answer I out of their hands. He spoke this very affectionately expected, viz. that there was nobody to marry them; and warmly. that they agreed before the governor to keep them as their wives, and to maintain them and own them as their wives; and they thought as things stood with them, they were as legaily married as if they had been married by a parson, and with all the formalities in the world. indeed, to be an instrument in God's hand to convert Upon this he faced about just before me, as he walked I discovered a kind of rapture in his face while he spoke this to me; his eyes sparkled like fire, his face glowed, and his colour came and went; in a word, he was fired with the joy of being embarked in such a work. I paused a considerable while before I could tell what to say to him; for I was really surprised to find a man of such sincerity, and who seemed possessed of a zeal beyond the ordinary rate of men. But after I had considered it a while, I asked him seriously if he was in earnest, and that he would venture, on the single consideration of an attempt to convert those poor people, to be locked up in an unplanted island for perhaps his life, and at last might not know whether he should be able to do them good or not? He turned short upon me, and asked me what I called a venture? "Pray, sir," said he, "what do you think I consented to go in your ship to the East Indies for?"" Nay," said I, that I know not, unless it was to preach to the Indians."-"Doubtless it was," said he; "and do you think, if I can convert these thirty-seven men to the faith of Jesus Christ, it is not worth my time, though I should never be fetched off the island again ?-nay, is it not infinitely of more worth to save so many souls than my life is, or the life of twenty more of the same profession? Yes, sir," says he, "I would give God thanks all my days, if I could be made the happy instrument of saving the souls of these poor men, though I were never to get my foot off this island, or see my native country any more. But since you will honour me with putting me into this work, for which I will pray for you all the days of my life, I have one humble petition to you besides."-"What is that?" said I.-"Why," says he. "it is, that you will leave your man Friday with me, 'to be my interpreter to them, and to assist me; for without some help I cannot speak to them, or they to me." “I am persuaded,” says he, “had those men lived in the savage country whence their wives came, the savages would have taken more pains to have brought them to be idolators, and to worship the devil, than any of these men, so far as I can see, have taken with them to teach the knowledge of the true God. Now, sir," said he, "though I do not acknowledge your religion, or you mine, yet we would be glad to see the devil's servants and the subjects of his kingdom taught to know the general principles of the Christian religion; that they might, at least, hear of God and a Redeemer, and of the resurrection, and of a future state-things which we all believe; that they might, at least, be so much nearer coming into the bosom of the true church than they are now, in the public profession of idolatry and devil-worship." I could hold no longer: I took him in my arms, and embraced him eagerly. "How far," said I to him, "have I been from understanding the most essential part of a Christian, viz. to love the interest of the Christian church, and the good of other men's souls! I scarce have known what belongs to the being a Christian."-"Oh, sir! do not say so," replied he;" this thing is not your fault."-"No," said I; "but why did I never lay it to heart as well as you?""It is not too late yet," said he; "be not too forward to condemn yourself."—" But what can be done now?" said I: "you see I am going away."-" Will you give me leave to talk with these poor men about it?"-"Yes, with all my heart,” said I: “and will oblige them to give heed to what you say too."-"As to that," said he, "we must leave them to the mercy of Christ, but it is your business to assist them, encourage them, and instruct them; and if you give me leave, and God his blessing, I do not doubt but the poor ignorant souls shall be brought home to the great circle of Christianity, if not into the particular faith we all embrace, and that even while you stay here." Upon this I said, "I shall not only give you leave, but give you a thousand thanks for it." I now pressed him for the third article in which we were to blame. "Why, really," says he, "it is of the same nature. It is about your poor savages, who are, as I may say, your conquered subjects. It is a maxim, sir, that is, or ought to be received among all Christians, of what church or pretended church soever, that the Christian knowledge ought to be propagated by all possible means, and on all possible occasions. It is on this principle that our church sends missionaries into Persia, India, and China; and that our clergy, even of the superior sort, willingly engage in the most hazardous voyages, and the most dangerous residence amongst I was sensibly touched at his requesting Friday, murderers and barbarians to teach them the knowledge of because I could not think of parting with him, and the true God, and to bring them over to embrace the that for many reasons: he had been the companion of Christian faith. Now, sir, you have such an opportu- my travels; he was not only faithful to me, but sincerely nity here to have six or seven-and-thirty poor savages affectionate to the last degree; and I had resolved to brought over from a state of idolatry to the knowledge do something considerable for him if he outlived me, as of God, their Maker and Redeemer, that I wonder how it was probable he would. Then I knew that, as I had you can pass such an occasion of doing good, which bred Friday up to be a Protestant, it would quite conis really worth the expense of a man's whole life." found him to bring him to embrace another religiou; I was now struck dumb indeed, and had not one word and he would never, while his eyes were open, believe to say. I had here the spirit of true Christian zeal for that his old master was a heretic, and would be damned; God and religion before me. As for me, I had not so and this might in the end ruin the poor fellow's much as entertained a thought of this in my heart before, principles, and so turn him back again to his first and I believe I should not have thought of it; for I looked idolatry. However, a sudden thought relieved me in upon these savages as slaves, and people whom, had we this strait, and it was this: I told him I could not not had any work for them to do, we would have used say that I was willing to part with Friday on any as such, or would have been glad to have transported account whatever, though a work that to him was them to any other part of the world; for our business of more value than his life, ought to be of much more was to get rid of them, and we would all have been value than the keeping or parting with a servant. But, satisfied if they had been sent to any country so they on the other hand, I was persuaded that Friday would had never seen their own. I was confounded at his by no means agree to part with me; and I could not discourse, and knew not what answer to make him. force him to it without his consent, without manifest I told them that no doubt they were married in the sight of God, and were bound in conscience to keep them as their wives; but that the laws of men being otherwise, they might desert the poor women and children hereafter; and that their wives, being poor desolate women, friendless and moneyless, would have no way to help themselves. I therefore told them that, unless I was assured of their honest intent, I could do nothing for them, but would take care that what I did should be for the women and children without them; and that, unless they would give me some assurances that they would marry the women, I could not think it was convenient they should continue together as man and wife; for that it was both scandalous to men and offensive to God, who they could not think would bless them if they went on thus. All this went on as I expected; and they told me, especially Will Atkins, who now seemed to speak for the rest, that they loved their wives as well as if they had been born in their own native country, and would not leave them on any account whatever; and they did verily believe that their wives were as virtuous and as modest, and did, to the utmost of their skill, as much for them and for their children, as any women could possibly do: and they would not part with them on any account. Will Atkins, for his own particular, added, that if any man would take him away, and offer to carry him home to England, and make him captain of the best man-of-war in the navy, he would not go with him, if he might not carry his wife and children with him; and if there was a clergyman in the ship, he would be married to her now with all his heart. This was just as I would have it. The priest was not with me at that moment, but was not far off: so to try him further, I told him I had a clergyman with me, and, if he was sincere, I would have him married next morning, and bade him consider of it, and talk with the rest. He said, as for himself, he need not consider of it at all, for he was very ready to do it, and was glad I had a minister with me, and he believed they would be all willing also. I then told him that my friend, the minister, was a Frenchman, and could not speak English, but I would act the clerk between them. He never so much as asked me whether he was a Papist or Protestant, which was, indeed, what I was afraid of. We then parted, and I went back to my clergyman, and Will Atkins went in to talk to his companions. I desired the French gentleman not to say anything to them till the business was thoroughly ripe; and I told him what answer the men had given me. Before I went from their quarter, they all came to me and told me they had been considering what I had said; that they were glad to hear I had a clergyman in my company, and they were very willing to give me the satisfaction I desired, and to be formally married as soon as I pleased; for they were far from desiring to part with their wives, and that they meant nothing but what was very honest when they chose them. So I appointed them to meet me the next morning; and, in the mean time, they should let their wives know the meaning of the marriage law; and that it was not only to prevent any scandal, but also to oblige them that they should not forsake them, whatever might happen. The woman were easily made sensible of the meaning of the thing, and were very well satisfied with it, as, indeed, they had reason to be: so they failed not to attend altogether at my apartment next morning, where keep him from jumping into the sea, to swim ashore to the place. "Well, Friday," says I, " do you think we shall find anybody here or no? and do you think we shall see your father?" The fellow stood mute as a stock a good while; but, when I named his father, the poor affectiate creature looked dejected, and I could see the tears run down his face very plentifully. "What is the matter, Friday? are you troubled because you may see your father?"-"No, no," says he, shaking his head, "no see him more: no, never more see him again." "Why so, Friday; how do you know that?"-"O no, O no," says Friday, "he long ago die, long ago; he much old man." "Well, well, Friday, you don't know; but shall we see any one else then?" The fellow, it seems, had better eyes than I, and he points to the hill just above my old house; and though we lay half a league off, he cries out, "We see, we see, yes, yes, we see much man there, and there, and there," I looked, but I saw nobody-no, not with a perspective glass, which was, I suppose, because I could not hit the place; for the fellow was right, as I found upon inquiry the next day; and there were five or six men all together, who stood to look at the ship, not knowing what to think of us. As soon as Friday told me he saw people, I caused the English ancient to be spread, and fired three guns, to give them notice we were friends; and in about a quarter of an hour after we perceived a smoke arise from the side of the creek; so I immediately ordered the boat out, taking Friday with me, and hanging out a the next day to see how his passion ran out another way: in the morning, he walked along the shore, with his father, several hours, always leading him by the hand, as if he had been a lady; and every now and then he would come to the boat to fetch something or other for him, either a lump of sugar, a dram, a biscuit, or something or other that was good. In the afternoon his frolics ran another way; for then he would set the old man down upon the ground, and dance about him, and make a thousand antic gestures; and all the while he did this, he would be talking to him, and telling him one story or another of his travels, and of what had happened to him abroad, to divert him. In short, if the same filial affection was to be found in Christians to their parents, in our part of the world, one would be tempted to say there would hardly have been any need of the fifth commandment. But this is a digression: I return to my landing. It would be needless to take notice of all the ceremonies and civilities that the Spaniards received me with. The first Spaniard, whom, as I said, I knew very well, was he whose life I had saved. He came towards the boat, attended by one more, carrying a flag of truce also; and he not only did not know me at first, but he had no thoughts, no notion of its being me that was come, till I spoke to him "Senhor," said I, in Portuguese, "do you not know me?" At which he spoke not a word, but, giving his musket to the man that was with him, threw his arms abroad, saying something in Spanish that I did not perfectly hear, came forward and embraced me, telling me he was inexcusable not to know that face again that he had once seen, as of an angel from Heaven, sent to save his life: he said abundance of very handsome things, as a well-bred Spaniard always knows how, and then, beckoning to the person that attended him, bade him go and call out his comrades. He then asked me if I would walk to my old habitation, where he would give me possession of my own house again, and where I should see they had made but mean improve ments. I walked along with him, but, alas! I could no more find the place than if I had never been there; for they had planted so many trees, and placed them in such a position, so thick and close to one another, and in ten years' time they were grown so big, that the place was inaccessible, except by such windings and blind ways as they themselves only, who made them, could find. I asked them what put them upon all these fortifications: he told me I would say there was need enough of it, when they had given me an account how they had passed their time since their arriving in the island, especially after they had the misfortune to find that I was gone. He told me he could not but have some pleasure in my good fortune, when he heard that I was gone in a good ship, and to my satisfaction; and that he had oftentimes a strong persuasion that one time or other he should see me again, but nothing that ever befell him in his life, he said, was so surprising and afflicting to him at first, as the disappointment he was under when he came back to the island and found I was not there. CRUSOE MEETS THE SPANIARD ON LANDING. white flag, I went directly on shore, taking with me the young friar I mentioned, to whom I had told the story of my living there, and the manner of it, and every particular, both of myself and those I left there, and who was, on that account, extremely desirous to go with me. We had, besides, about sixteen men well armed, if we had found any new guests there which we did not know of; but we had no need of weapons. As we went on shore upon the tide of flood, near high water, we rowed directly into the creek; and the first man I fixed my eye upon was the Spaniard whose life I had saved, and whom I knew by his face perfectly well: as to his habit, I shall describe it afterwards. I ordered nobody to go on shore at first but myself; but there was no keeping Friday in the boat, for the affectionate creature had spied his father at a distance, a good way off the Spaniards, where, indeed, I saw nothing of him; and if they had not let him go ashore, he would have jumped into the sea. He was no sooner on shore, but he flew away to his father, like an arrow out of a bow. It would have made any man shed tears, in spite of the firmest resolution, to have seen the first transports of this poor fellow's joy when he came to his father: how he embraced him, kissed him, stroked his face, took him up in his arms, set him down upon a tree, and lay down by him; then stood and looked at him, as any one would look at a strange picture, for a quarter of an hour together; then lay down on the ground, and stroked his legs, and kissed them, and then got up again, and stared at him; one would have thought the fellow bewitched. But it would have made a dog laugh As to the three barbarians (so he called them) that were left behind, and of whom, he said, he had a long story to tell me, the Spaniards all thought themselves much better among the savages, only that their number was so small: "and," says he, "had they been strong enough, we had been all long ago in purgatory;" and with that he crossed himself on the breast. "But, sir," says he, " hope you will not be displeased when I shall tell you how, forced by necessity, we were obliged, for our own preservation, to disarm them, and make them our subjects, as they would not be content with being moderately our masters, but would be our murderers." I answered, I was afraid of it when I left them there, and nothing troubled me at my parting from the island but that they were not come back, that I might have put them in possession of everything first, and left the others in a state of subjection, as they deserved; but if they had reduced them to it I was very glad, and should be very far from finding any fault with it: for I knew they were a parcel of refractory, ungoverned villains, and were fit for any manner of mischief. While I was thus saying this, the man came whom he had sent back, and with him eleven more. In the dress they were in, it was impossible to guess what nation they were of; but he made all clear, both to them and to me. First he turned to me, and pointing to them, said, "These, sir, are some of the gentlemen who owe their lives to you;" and then turning to them, and pointing to me, he let them know who I was; upon which they all came up, one by one, not as if they had been sailors, and ordinary fellows, and the like, but really as if they had been ambassadors or noblemen, and I a monarch or great conqueror: their behaviour was, to the last degree, obliging and courteous, and yet mixed with a manly, majestic gravity, which very well became them; and, in short, they had so much more manners than I, that I scarce knew how to receive their civilities, much less how to return them in kind. The history of their coming to, and conduct in, the island, after my going away is so very remarkable, and has so many incidents, which the former part of my relation will help to understand, and which will, in most of the particulars, refer to the account I have already given, that I cannot but commit them, with great delight, to the reading of those that come after me. In order to do this as intelligibly as I can, I must go back to the circumstances in which I left the island, and the persons on it, of whom I am to speak. And first, it is necessary to repeat that I had sent away Friday's father and the Spaniard (the two whose lives I had rescued from the savages) in a large canoe to the main, as I then thought it, to fetch over the Spaniard's companions that he left behind him, in order to save them from the like calamity that he had been in, and in order to succour them for the present; and that, if possible, we might together find some way for our deliverance afterwards. When I sent them away, I had no visible appearance of, or the least room to hope for, my own deliverance, any more than I had twenty years before. much less had I any foreknowledge of what afterwards happened, I mean, of an English ship coming on shore there to fetch me off; and it could not be but a very great surprise to them, when they came back, not only to find that was gone, but to find three strangers left on the spot, possessed of all that I had left behind me, which would otherwise have been their own. The first thing, however, which I inquired into, that I might begin where I left off, was of their own part; and I desired the Spaniard would give me a particular account of his voyage back to his countrymen with the boat, when I sent him to fetch them over. He told me there was little variety in that part, for nothing re markable happened to them on the way, having had very calm weather, and a smooth sea. As for his countrymen, it could not be doubted, he said, but that they were overjoyed to see him (it seems he was the principal man among them, the captain of the vessel they had been shipwrecked in having been dead some time): they were, he said, the more surprised to see him, because they knew that he was fallen into the hands of the savages, who, they were satisfied, would devour him, as they did all the rest of their prisoners; that when he told them the story of his deliverance, and in what manner he was furnished for carrying them away, it was like a dream to them, and their astonishment, he said, was somewhat like that of Joseph's brethren when he told them who he was and the story of his exaltation in Pharaoh's court; but when he showed them the arms, the powder, the ball, the provisions, that he brought them for their journey or voyage, they were restored to themselves, took a just share of the joy of their deliverance, and immediately prepared to come away with him. Their first business was to get canoes: and in this they were obliged not to stick so much upon the honesty of it, but to trespass upon their friendly savages, and to borrow two large canoes, or periaguas, on pretence of going out a fishing, or for pleasure. In these they came away the next morning. It seems they wanted no time to get themselves ready; for they had neither clothes, nor provisions, nor anything in the world but what they had on them, and a few roots to cat, of which they used to make their bread. They were in all three weeks absent; and in that time, unluckily for them, I had the occasion offered for my escape, as I mentioned in the other part, and to get off from the island, leaving three of the most impudent, hardened, ungoverned, disagreeable villains behind me, that any man could desire to meet with-to the poor Spaniards' great grief and disappointment. The only just thing the rogues did was, that when the Spaniards came ashore, they gave my letter to them, and gave them provisions, and other relief, as I had ordered them to do; also they gave them the long paper of directions which I had left with them, containing the particular methods which I took for managing every part of my life there; the way I baked my bread, bred up tame goats, and planted my corn; how I cured my grapes, made my pots, and, in a word, everything I did. All this being written down, they gave to the Spaniards (two of them understood English well enough): nor did they refuse to accommodate the Spaniards with anything else, for they agreed very well for some time. They gave them an equal admission into the house, or cave, and they began to live very sociably; and the head Spaniard, who had seen pretty much of my methods, together with Friday's father, managed all their affairs; but as for the Englishmen, they did nothing but ramble about the island, shoot parrots, and catch tortoises; and when they came home at night, the Spaniards provided their suppers for them. The Spaniards would have been satisfied with this, had the others but let them alone, which, however, they could not find in their hearts to do long; but, like the dog in the manger, they would not eat themselves, neither would they let the others eat. The differences, nevertheless, were at first but trivial, and such as are not worth relating, but at last it broke out into open war: and it began with all the rudeness and insolence that can be imagined,-without reason, without provocation, contrary to nature, and, indeed, to conimon sense; and though, it is true, the first relation of it came from the Spaniards themselves, whom I may call the accusers, yet when I came to examine the fellows, they could not deny a word of it. But before I come to the particulars of this part, I must supply a defect in my former relation; and this was, I forgot to set down, among the rest, that just as we were weighing the anchor to set sail, there happened a little quarrel on board of our ship, which I was once afraid would have turned to a second mutiny; nor was it appeased till the captain, rousing up his courage, and taking us all to his assistance, parted them by force, and, making two of the most refractory fellows prisoners, he laid them in irons: and as they had been active in the former disorders, and let fall some ugly, dangerous words, the second time he threatened to carry them in irons to England, and have them hanged there for mutiny, and running away with the ship. This, it seems, though the captain did not intend to do it, frightened some other men in the ship; and some of them had put it into the head of the rest, that the captain only gave them good words for the present, till they should come to some English port, and that then they should good while, be persuaded to give them any food: as for When the Spaniards came first on shore, the business move hand or foot, they were dead men, and boldly commanded them to lay down their arms. They did not, indeed, lay down their arms, but seeing him so resolute, it brought them to a parley, and they consented to take their wounded man with them and be gone: and, indeed, it seems the fellow was wounded sufficiently with the blow. However, they were much in the wrong, since they had the advantage, that they did not disarm them effectually, as they might have done, and have gone immediately to the Spaniards, and given them an account how the rogues had treated them; for the three villains studied nothing but revenge, and every day gave them some intimation that they did so. But not to crowd this part with an account of the lesser part of the rogueries with which they plagued them continually night and day, it forced the two men to such a desperation, that they resolved to fight them all three, the first time they had a fair opportunity In order to do this, they resolved to go to the castle (as they called my old dwelling), where the three rogues and the Spaniards all lived together at that time, intending to have a fair battle, and the Spaniards should stand by to see fair play: so they got up in the morning before day and came to the place, and called the Englishmen by their names, telling a Spaniard that answered, that they wanted to speak with them. It happened that the day before, two of the Spaniards, having been in the woods, had seen one of the two Englishmen, whom, for distiuction, I called the honest men, and he had made a sad complaint to the Spaniards of the barbarous usage they had met with from their three countrymen, and how they had ruined their plantation and destroyed their corn that be all put into gaol, and tried for their lives. The mate | less they would pay rent for them. The two men, But this mutiny had brought us to an anchor for that night; the wind also falling calm next morning, we found that our two men, who had been laid in irons. had stolen each of them a musket, and some other weapons (what powder or shot they had we knew not), and had taken the ship's pinnace, which was not yet hauled up, and run away with her to their companions in roguery on shore. As soon as we found this, I ordered the longboat on shore with twelve men and the mate, and away they went to seek the rogues; but they could neither find them nor any of the rest, for they all fled into the woods when they saw the boat coming on shore. The mate was once resolved, in justice to their roguery, to have destroyed their plantations, burned all their household stuff and furniture, and left them to shift without it; but having no orders, he let it all alone, left everything as be found it, and, bringing the pinnace away, came on board without them. These two men made their number five; but the other three villains were so much more wicked than they, that after they had been two or three days together, they turned the two newcomers out of doors to shift for themselves, and would have nothing to do with them; nor could they, for a in and sit down, and see what fine houses they were they had laboured so hard to bring forward, and killed the milch-goat, and their three kids, which was all they had provided for their sustenance: and that if he and his friends, meaning the Spaniards, did not assist them again, they should be starved. When the Spaniards came home at night, and they were all at supper, one of them took the freedom to reprove the three Englishmen. though in very gentle and mannerly terms, and asked them how they could be so cruel, they being harmless, inoffensive fellows: that they were putting themselves in a way to subsist by their labour, and that it had cost them a great deal of pains to bring things to such perfection as they were then in. One of the Englishmen returned very briskly. "What had they to do there? that they came on shore without leave; and that they should not plant or build upon the island; it was none of their ground." "Why." says the Spaniard very calmly "Seignior Inglese, they must not starve." The Englishman replied, like a rough tarpauling, "They might starve; they should not plant nor build in that place." "But what must they do then, seignior?" said the Spaniard Another of the brutes returned, "Do? they should be servants, and work for them." "But how can you expect that of them?" says the Spaniard; "they are not bought with your money; you have no right to make them servants." The Englishman answered," The island was theirs; the governor had given it to them, and no man had anything to do there but themselves:" and with that he swore that he would go and burn all their new huts; they should build none upon their land. "Why, The others had fire-arms with them too; but one of seignior," says the Spaniard, " by the same rule, we must the two honest men, bolder than his comrade, and made be your servants too." "Ay," returned the bold dog, desperate by his danger, told them, if they offered to" and so you shall, too, before we have done with you;" The fellow was in such a rage at the honest man's thrusting him away, that he returned upon him, with a pole he had in his hand, and had not the man avoided the blow very nimbly, and run into the hut, he had ended his days at once. His comrade, seeing the danger they were both in, ran in after him, and immediately they came both out with their muskets, and the man that was first struck at with the pole knocked the fellow down that began the quarrel with the stock of his musket, and that before the other two could come to help him; and then, seeing the rest come at them, they stood together, and presenting the other ends of their pieces to them, bade them stand off. |