The Life and Adventures of Robinson Crusoe
This renewed a contemplation which often had come into my thoughts in
former times, when first I began to see the merciful dispositions of
Heaven, in the dangers we run through in this life; how wonderfully we
are delivered when we know nothing of it; how, when we are in a
quandary as we call it, a doubt or hesitation whether to go this way or
that way, a secret hint shall direct us this way, when we intended to
go that way: nay, when sense, our own inclination, and perhaps business
has called us to go the other way, yet a strange impression upon the
mind, from we know not what springs, and by we know not what power,
shall overrule us to go this way; and it shall afterwards appear that
had we gone that way, which we should have gone, and even to our
imagination ought to have gone, we should have been ruined and lost.
Upon these and many like reflections I afterwards made it a certain
rule with me, that whenever I found those secret hints or pressings of
mind to doing or not doing anything that presented, or going this way
or that way, I never failed to obey the secret dictate; though I knew
no other reason for it than such a pressure or such a hint hung upon my
mind. I could give many examples of the success of this conduct in the
course of my life, but more especially in the latter part of my
inhabiting this unhappy island; besides many occasions which it is very
likely I might have taken notice of, if I had seen with the same eyes
then that I see with now. But it is never too late to be wise; and I
cannot but advise all considering men, whose lives are attended with
such extraordinary incidents as mine, or even though not so
extraordinary, not to slight such secret intimations of Providence, let
them come from what invisible intelligence they will. That I shall not
discuss, and perhaps cannot account for; but certainly they are a proof
of the converse of spirits, and a secret communication between those
embodied and those unembodied, and such a proof as can never be
withstood; of which I shall have occasion to give some remarkable
instances in the remainder of my solitary residence in this dismal
place.
I believe the reader of this will not think it strange if I confess
that these anxieties, these constant dangers I lived in, and the
concern that was now upon me, put an end to all invention, and to all
the contrivances that I had laid for my future accommodations and
conveniences. I had the care of my safety more now upon my hands than
that of my food. I cared not to drive a nail, or chop a stick of wood
now, for fear the noise I might make should be heard: much less would I
fire a gun for the same reason: and above all I was intolerably uneasy
at making any fire, lest the smoke, which is visible at a great
distance in the day, should betray me. For this reason, I removed that
part of my business which required fire, such as burning of pots and
pipes, &c., into my new apartment in the woods; where, after I had been
some time, I found, to my unspeakable consolation, a mere natural cave
in the earth, which went in a vast way, and where, I daresay, no
savage, had he been at the mouth of it, would be so hardy as to venture
in; nor, indeed, would any man else, but one who, like me, wanted
nothing so much as a safe retreat.
The mouth of this hollow was at the bottom of a great rock, where, by
mere accident (I would say, if I did not see abundant reason to ascribe
all such things now to Providence), I was cutting down some thick
branches of trees to make charcoal; and before I go on I must observe
the reason of my making this charcoal, which was this—I was afraid of
making a smoke about my habitation, as I said before; and yet I could
not live there without baking my bread, cooking my meat, &c.; so I
contrived to burn some wood here, as I had seen done in England, under
turf, till it became chark or dry coal: and then putting the fire out,
I preserved the coal to carry home, and perform the other services for
which fire was wanting, without danger of smoke. But this is
by-the-bye. While I was cutting down some wood here, I perceived that,
behind a very thick branch of low brushwood or underwood, there was a
kind of hollow place: I was curious to look in it; and getting with
difficulty into the mouth of it, I found it was pretty large, that is
to say, sufficient for me to stand upright in it, and perhaps another
with me: but I must confess to you that I made more haste out than I
did in, when looking farther into the place, and which was perfectly
dark, I saw two broad shining eyes of some creature, whether devil or
man I knew not, which twinkled like two stars; the dim light from the
cave’s mouth shining directly in, and making the reflection. However,
after some pause I recovered myself, and began to call myself a
thousand fools, and to think that he that was afraid to see the devil
was not fit to live twenty years in an island all alone; and that I
might well think there was nothing in this cave that was more frightful
than myself. Upon this, plucking up my courage, I took up a firebrand,
and in I rushed again, with the stick flaming in my hand: I had not
gone three steps in before I was almost as frightened as before; for I
heard a very loud sigh, like that of a man in some pain, and it was
followed by a broken noise, as of words half expressed, and then a deep
sigh again. I stepped back, and was indeed struck with such a surprise
that it put me into a cold sweat, and if I had had a hat on my head, I
will not answer for it that my hair might not have lifted it off. But
still plucking up my spirits as well as I could, and encouraging myself
a little with considering that the power and presence of God was
everywhere, and was able to protect me, I stepped forward again, and by
the light of the firebrand, holding it up a little over my head, I saw
lying on the ground a monstrous, frightful old he-goat, just making his
will, as we say, and gasping for life, and, dying, indeed, of mere old
age. I stirred him a little to see if I could get him out, and he
essayed to get up, but was not able to raise himself; and I thought
with myself he might even lie there—for if he had frightened me, so he
would certainly fright any of the savages, if any of them should be so
hardy as to come in there while he had any life in him.
I was now recovered from my surprise, and began to look round me, when
I found the cave was but very small—that is to say, it might be about
twelve feet over, but in no manner of shape, neither round nor square,
no hands having ever been employed in making it but those of mere
Nature. I observed also that there was a place at the farther side of
it that went in further, but was so low that it required me to creep
upon my hands and knees to go into it, and whither it went I knew not;
so, having no candle, I gave it over for that time, but resolved to go
again the next day provided with candles and a tinder-box, which I had
made of the lock of one of the muskets, with some wildfire in the pan.
Accordingly, the next day I came provided with six large candles of my
own making (for I made very good candles now of goat’s tallow, but was
hard set for candle-wick, using sometimes rags or rope-yarn, and
sometimes the dried rind of a weed like nettles); and going into this
low place I was obliged to creep upon all-fours as I have said, almost
ten yards—which, by the way, I thought was a venture bold enough,
considering that I knew not how far it might go, nor what was beyond
it. When I had got through the strait, I found the roof rose higher up,
I believe near twenty feet; but never was such a glorious sight seen in
the island, I daresay, as it was to look round the sides and roof of
this vault or cave—the wall reflected a hundred thousand lights to me
from my two candles. What it was in the rock—whether diamonds or any
other precious stones, or gold which I rather supposed it to be—I knew
not. The place I was in was a most delightful cavity, or grotto, though
perfectly dark; the floor was dry and level, and had a sort of a small
loose gravel upon it, so that there was no nauseous or venomous
creature to be seen, neither was there any damp or wet on the sides or
roof. The only difficulty in it was the entrance—which, however, as it
was a place of security, and such a retreat as I wanted; I thought was
a convenience; so that I was really rejoiced at the discovery, and
resolved, without any delay, to bring some of those 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—for of them I
had eight in all; so I kept in my castle only five, which stood ready
mounted like pieces of cannon on my outmost fence, and were ready also
to take out upon any expedition. Upon this occasion of removing my
ammunition I happened to open the barrel 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 inches into the powder on every side,
which caking and growing hard, had preserved the inside like a kernel
in the shell, so that I had near sixty pounds of very good powder in
the centre of the cask. This was a very agreeable 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 lead I had left for bullets.
I fancied myself now like one of the ancient giants who were said to
live in caves and holes in the rocks, where none could come at them;
for I persuaded myself, while I was here, that if five hundred savages
were to hunt me, they could never find me out—or if they did, they
would not venture to attack me here. The old goat whom I found expiring
died in the mouth of the cave the next day after I made this discovery;
and I found it much easier to dig a great hole there, and throw him in
and cover him with earth, than to drag him out; so I interred him
there, to prevent offence to my nose.
CHAPTER XIII. WRECK OF A SPANISH SHIP
I was now in the twenty-third year of my residence in this island, and
was so naturalised to the place and the manner of living, that, could I
but have enjoyed the certainty that no savages would come to the place
to disturb me, I could have been content to have capitulated for
spending the rest of my time there, even to the last moment, till I had
laid me down and died, like the old goat in the cave. I had also
arrived to some little diversions and amusements, which made the time
pass a great deal more pleasantly with me than it did before—first, I
had taught my Poll, as I noted before, to speak; and he did it so
familiarly, and talked so articulately and plain, that it was very
pleasant to me; and he lived with me no less than six-and-twenty years.
How long he might have lived afterwards I know not, though I know they
have a notion in the Brazils that they live a hundred years. My dog was
a pleasant and loving companion to me for no less than sixteen years of
my time, and then died of mere old age. As for my cats, they
multiplied, as I have observed, to that degree that I was obliged to
shoot several of them at first, to keep them from devouring me and all
I 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
them have no provision with me, they all ran wild into the woods,
except two or three favourites, which I kept tame, and whose young,
when they had any, I always drowned; and these were part of my family.
Besides these I always kept two or three household kids about me, whom