Part 6 (2/2)

I endeavoured to clear up this fraud to my oing up to the mountains to say O to their God Bena word from thence what he said was much more so; that if they met with any answer, or spake with any one there, itdiscourse with hiainst God, his en himself up in the dark parts of the world to be worshi+pped instead of God, and as God, and the ems he made use of to delude mankind to their ruin; how he had a secret access to our passions and to our affections, and to adapt his snares to our inclinations, so as to cause us even to be our own tempters, and run upon our destruction by our own choice

I found it was not so easy to iht notions in hisof a God Nature assisted all reat First Cause, an overruling, governing Power, a secret directing Providence, and of the equity and justice of paying hoe to Hi of this kind in the notion of an evil spirit, of his origin, his being, his nature, and above all, of his inclination to do evil, and to draw us in to do so too; and the poor creature puzzled me once in such a manner, by a question merely natural and innocent, that I scarce knehat to say to hireat deal to him of the power of God, His o fire to the workers of iniquity; how, as He had made us all, He could destroy us and all the world in a reat seriousness tohim how the devil was God's enemy in the hearts of ood designs of Providence, and to ruin the kingdom of Christ in the world, and the like ”Well,” says Friday, ”but you say God is so strong, so great; is He not ht as the devil?” ”Yes, yes,” says I, ”Friday; God is stronger than the devil - God is above the devil, and therefore we pray to God to tread him down under our feet, and enable us to resist his teain, ”if God ht as the wicked devil, why God no kill the devil, so ely surprised at this question; and, after all, though I was now an olddoctor, and ill qualified for a casuist or a solver of difficulties; and at first I could not tell what to say; so I pretended not to hear him, and asked hiet his question, so that he repeated it in the very same broken words as above By this time I had recovered myself a little, and I said, ”God will at last punish himent, and is to be cast into the botto fire” This did not satisfy Friday; but he returns uponmy words, ”'RESERVE AT LAST!' reat ago?” ”You may as well ask me,” said I, ”why God does not kill you or s here that offend Him - we are preserved to repent and be pardoned” He hty affectionately, ”that well - so you, I, devil, all wicked, all preserve, repent, God pardon all” Here I was run down again by hiree; and it was a testiuide reasonable creatures to the knowledge of a God, and of a worshi+p or ho of God, as the consequence of our nature, yet nothing but divine revelation can fore of Jesus Christ, and of redemption purchased for us; of a Mediator of the new covenant, and of an Intercessor at the footstool of God's throne; I say, nothing but a revelation from Heaven can forospel of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, I mean the Word of God, and the Spirit of God, prouide and sanctifier of His people, are the absolutely necessary instructors of the souls of e of God and the means of salvation

I therefore diverted the present discourse betweenup hastily, as upon so hiood way off, I seriously prayed to God that He would enable , by His Spirit, the heart of the poor ignorant creature to receive the light of the knowledge of God in Christ, reconciling hiuide me so to speak to hiht be convinced, his eyes opened, and his soul saved When he ca discourse with him upon the subject of the redemption of ospel preached from Heaven, viz of repentance towards God, and faith in our blessed Lord Jesus I then explained to him as well as I could why our blessed Redeeels but the seed of Abrahaels had no share in the redemption; that He came only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel, and the like

I had, God knows, e in all the methods I took for this poor creature's instruction, and e, what I believe all that act upon the sas open to his that either I did not know or had not fully considered before, but which occurred naturally tointo thee; and I had s upon this occasion than ever I felt before: so that, whether this poor retch was better for reat reason to be thankful that ever he carew comfortable to me beyond measure: and when I reflected that in this solitary life which I have been confined to, I had not only been moved to look up to heaven ht me here, but was now to be made an instruht I knew, the soul of a poor savage, and bring hiion and of the Christian doctrine, that he ht know Christ Jesus, in whom is life eternal; I say, when I reflected upon all these things, a secret joy ran through every part of My soul, and I frequently rejoiced that ever I was brought to this place, which I had so often thought the most dreadful of all afflictions that could possibly have befallen me

I continued in this thankful frame all the remainder of my time; and the conversation which employed the hours between Friday and ether perfectly and co as complete happiness can be forood Christian, a h I have reason to hope, and bless God for it, that ere equally penitent, and comforted, restored penitents We had here the Word of God to read, and no farther off froland I always appliedthe Scripture, to let hi of what I read; and he again, by his serious inquiries and questionings, made me, as I said before, a e than I should ever have been byI cannot refrain fro here also, from experience in this retired part ofit is that the knowledge of God, and of the doctrine of salvation by Christ Jesus, is so plainly laid down in the Word of God, so easy to be received and understood, that, as the bare reading the Scripture h of reat work of sincere repentance forhold of a Saviour for life and salvation, to a stated reformation in practice, and obedience to all God's commands, and this without any teacher or instructor, I mean human; so the sa this savage creature, and bringing him to be such a Christian as I have kno equal to hi, strife, and contention which have happened in the world about religion, whether niceties in doctrines or scheovernht I can yet see, they have been so to the rest of the world We had the sure guide to heaven, viz the Word of God; and we had, blessed be God, co and instructing by His word, leading us into all truth, andand obedient to the instruction of His word And I cannot see the least use that the greatest knowledge of the disputed points of religion, which have made such confusion in the world, would have been to us, if we could have obtained it But I s, and take every part in its order

After Friday and I became more intimately acquainted, and that he could understand alh in broken English, to me, I acquainted him with my own history, or at least soto this place: how I had lived there, and how long; I let hiunpowder and bullet, and taught hiave hihted with; and I land ear hangers in; and in the frog, instead of a hanger, I gave hiood a weapon in some cases, but much more useful upon other occasions

I described to hiland, which I came from; hoe lived, hoorshi+pped God, hoe behaved to one another, and hoe traded in shi+ps to all parts of the world I gave him an account of the wreck which I had been on board of, and showed him, as near as I could, the place where she lay; but she was all beaten in pieces before, and gone I showed him the ruins of our boat, which we lost e escaped, and which I could not stir with th then; but was now fallen al this boat, Friday stood,I asked him what it was he studied upon At last says he, ”Me see such boat like coood while; but at last, when I had examined further into it, I understood by him that a boat, such as that had been, came on shore upon the country where he lived: that is, as he explained it, was driven thither by stress of weather I presently iined that some European shi+p ht get loose and drive ashore; but was so dull that I never once thought oftheir escape froht come: so I only inquired after a description of the boat

Friday described the boat to ht me better to understand him when he added with some warmth, ”We save the white mans from drown” Then I presently asked if there were any white mans, as he called them, in the boat ”Yes,” he said; ”the boat full of white ers seventeen I asked him then what became of them He told me, ”They live, they dwell at hts into ht be the ht of my island, as I now called it; and who, after the shi+p was struck on the rock, and they saw her inevitably lost, had saved themselves in their boat, and were landed upon that wild shore aes Upon this I inquired of him more critically as become of them He assured me they lived still there; that they had been there about four years; that the savages left theave them victuals to live on I asked him how it came to pass they did not kill them and eat them He said, ”No, they make brother with them;” that is, as I understood him, a truce; and then he added, ”They no eat ht;” that is to say, they never eat any ht with them and are taken in battle

It was after this so upon the top of the hill at the east side of the island, from whence, as I have said, I had, in a clear day, discovered thevery serene, looks very earnestly towards theand dancing, and calls out to me, for I was at some distance from hilad! there see my country, there my nation!” I observed an extraordinary sense of pleasure appeared in his face, and his eyes sparkled, and his countenance discovered a strange eagerness, as if he had a ain This observation of hts into me, which made me at first not so easy about my new man Friday as I was before; and I et back to his own nation again, he would not only forget all his religion but all his obligation to ive his countrymen an account of me, and come back, perhaps with a hundred or two of theht be as merry as he used to be with those of his eneed the poor honest creature very much, for which I was very sorry afterwards However, as my jealousy increased, and held some weeks, I was a little more circumspect, and not so familiar and kind to hirateful creature having no thought about it but what consisted with the best principles, both as a religious Christian and as a grateful friend, as appeared afterwards to my full satisfaction

While my jealousy of hi hihts which I suspected were in hi he said was so honest and so innocent, that I could find nothing to nourish my suspicion; and in spite of all ain; nor did he in the least perceive that I was uneasy, and therefore I could not suspect hi up the sa hazy at sea, so that we could not see the continent, I called to him, and said, ”Friday, do not you wish yourself in your own country, your own nation?” ”Yes,” he said, ”I be lad to be at my own nation” ”What would you do there?” said I ”Would you turn wild again, eat e as you were before?” He looked full of concern, and shaking his head, said, ”No, no, Friday tell theood; tell them to pray God; tell theain” ”Why, then,” said I to hirave at that, and then said, ”No, no, they no killlove learn” Heto learn He added, they learned much of the bearded o back to them He smiled at that, and told me that he could not swim so far I told hio if I would go with hio!” says I; ”why, they will eat me if I come there” ”No, no,” says he, ”me make they no eat you; me make they much love you” He meant, he would tell them how I had killed his enemies, and saved his life, and so he would make them love me Then he told me, as well as he could, how kind they were to seventeen white men, or bearded men, as he called them who came on shore there in distress

From this time, I confess, I had a mind to venture over, and see if I could possibly join with those bearded uese; not doubting but, if I could, weupon the continent, and a good coether, better than I could from an island forty miles off the shore, alone and without help So, after soain by way of discourse, and told hio back to his own nation; and, accordingly, I carried hiate, which lay on the other side of the island, and having cleared it of water (for I always kept it sunk in water), I brought it out, showed it him, and we both went into it I found he was a o alain as I could So when he was in, I said to hio to your nation?” He looked very dull at ht the boat was too ser; so the next day I went to the place where the first boat lay which I had et into the water He said that was big enough; but then, as I had taken no care of it, and it had lain two or three and twenty years there, the sun had so split and dried it, that it was rotten Friday told h vittle, drink, bread;” this was his way of talking

CHAPTER XVI

- RESCUE OF PRISONERS FROM CANNIBALS

UPON the whole, I was by this ti over with hio and o horave and sad I asked hiain, ”Why you angry mad with Friday? - what ry with hi the words several times; ”why send Friday home away to my nation?” ”Why,” says I, ”Friday, did not you say you wished you were there?” ”Yes, yes,” says he, ”e both there; no wish Friday there, nothere without o there, Friday?” says I; ”what shall I do there?” He turned very quick upon ood,” says he; ”you teach wild ood, sober, tame mans; you tell them know God, pray God, and live new life” ”Alas, Friday!” says I, ”thou knowest not what thou sayest; I anorant ood, you teachee theo without me; leave me here to live by ain at that word; and running to one of the hatchets which he used to wear, he takes it up hastily, and gives it to me ”What must I do with this?” says I to him ”You take kill Friday,” says he ”What ain He returns very quick - ”What you send Friday away for? Take kill Friday, no send Friday away” This he spoke so earnestly that I saw tears stand in his eyes In a word, I so plainly discovered the utmost affection in him to me, and a firm resolution in him, that I told him then and often after, that I would never send hi to stay with me

Upon the whole, as I found by all his discourse a settled affection tocould part hio to his own country was laid in his ardent affection to the people, and his hopes ofwhich, as I had no notion of ht or intention, or desire of undertaking it But still I found a strong inclination to atteathered from the discourse, that there were seventeen bearded men there; and therefore, without any reat tree proper to fell, and e There were trees enough in the island to have built a little fleet, not of periaguas or canoes, but even of good, large vessels; but the et one so near the water that we ht launch it when it was made, to avoid the mistake I committed at first At last Friday pitched upon a tree; for I found he knew much better than I what kind of as fittest for it; nor can I tell to this day ood to call the tree we cut down, except that it was very like the tree we call fustic, or between that and the Nicaragua wood, for it was much of the same colour and smell Friday wished to burn the hollow or cavity of this tree out, to make it for a boat, but I showed him how to cut it with tools; which, after I had showed him how to use, he did very handily; and in about a month's hard labour we finished it and made it very handsome; especially when, with our axes, which I showed him how to handle, we cut and hewed the outside into the true shape of a boat After this, however, it cost us near a fortnight's tireat rollers into the water; but when she was in, she would have carried twenty reat ease

When she was in the water, though she was so big, it amazed me to see hat dexterity and hoiftSo I asked hiht venture over in her ”Yes,” he said, ”we venture over in her very well, though great bloind” However I had a further design that he knew nothing of, and that was, to make a mast and a sail, and to fit her with an anchor and cable As to a ht young cedar-tree, which I found near the place, and which there were great plenty of in the island, and I set Friday to work to cut it down, and gave him directions how to shape and order it But as to the sail, that was my particular care I knew I had old sails, or rather pieces of old sails, enough; but as I had had them now six-and-twenty years by ining that I should ever have this kind of use for them, I did not doubt but they were all rotten; and, indeed, most of theood, and with these I went to work; and with a great deal of pains, and aard stitching, you th land a shoulder-of-o with a boom at bottom, and a little short sprit at the top, such as usually our shi+ps' long-boats sail with, and such as I best kne to e, as it was such a one as I had to the boat in which I made my escape from Barbary, as related in the first part ofthis last work, viz rigging and fittinga small stay, and a sail, or foresail, to it, to assist if we should turn to ard; and, as more than all, I fixed a rudder to the stern of her to steer with I was but a bungling shi+pwright, yet as I knew the usefulness and even necessity of such a thing, I applied ht it to pass; though, considering the many dull contrivances I had for it that failed, I think it costthe boat

After all this was done, I had ation of h he knew very well how to paddle a canoe, he knew nothing of what belonged to a sail and a rudder; and was the ain in the sea by the rudder, and how the sail jibed, and filled this way or that way as the course we sailed changed; I say when he saw this he stood like one astonished and as familiar to him, and he became an expert sailor, except that of the compass I could make him understand very little On the other hand, as there was very little cloudy weather, and seldos in those parts, there was the less occasion for a coht, and the shore by day, except in the rainy seasons, and then nobody cared to stir abroad either by land or sea

I was now entered on the seven-and-twentieth year of h the three last years that I had this creature with ht rather to be left out of the account,quite of another kind than in all the rest of the ti here with the same thankfulness to God for Hissuch additional testireat hopes I had of being effectually and speedily delivered; for I had an invincible ihts that my deliverance was at hand, and that I should not be another year in this place I went on, however, with athered and curedas before

The rainy season was in the meantime upon me, when I kept more within doors than at other tiing her up into the creek, where, as I said in the beginning, I landedher up to the shore at high-water h to hold her, and just deep enough to give her water enough to float in; and then, when the tide was out, wedam across the end of it, to keep the water out; and so she lay, dry as to the tide frohs of trees, so thick that she was as well thatched as a house; and thus aited for the ned to an to con returned with the fair weather, I was preparing daily for the voyage And the first thing I did was to lay by a certain quantity of provisions, being the stores for our voyage; and intended in a week or a fortnight's time to open the dock, and launch out our boat I was busy oneof this kind, when I called to Friday, and bid hio to the sea-shore and see if he could find a turtle or a tortoise, a thing which we generally got once a week, for the sake of the eggs as well as the flesh Friday had not been long gone when he ca back, and flew over round or the steps he set his foot on; and before I had time to speak to him he cries out to me, ”O master! O master! O sorrow! O bad!” - ”What's the matter, Friday?” says I ”O yonder there,” says he, ”one, two, three canoes; one, two, three!” By this way of speaking I concluded there were six; but on inquiry I found there were but three ”Well, Friday,” says I, ”do not be frightened” So I heartened him up as well as I could However, I saw the poor felloasran in his head but that they were come to look for him, and would cut him in pieces and eat him; and the poor fellow trembled so that I scarcely knehat to do with him I comforted hier as he, and that they would eat me as well as hiht theht, Friday?” ”Me shoot,” says he, ”but there coain; ”our guns will fright them that we do not kill” So I asked him whether, if I resolved to defend him, he would defend me, and stand by me, and do just as I bid him He said, ”Me die when you bid die, ave hireat deal left When we had drunk it, I - pieces, which ays carried, and loaded the as small pistol-bullets Then I took four s and five small bullets each; andave Friday his hatchet When I had thus prepared lass, and went up to the side of the hill, to see what I could discover; and I found quickly by es, three prisoners, and three canoes; and that their whole business seemed to be the triumphant banquet upon these three hu more than, as I had observed, was usual with them I observed also that they had landed, not where they had done when Friday made his escape, but nearer to my creek, where the shore was low, and where a thick wood came almost close down to the sea This, with the abhorrence of the inhuman errand these wretches caain to Friday, and told hio down to them and kill theot over his fright, and his spirits being a little raised with the draiven him, he was very cheerful, and told me, as before, he would die when I bid die

In this fit of fury I divided the arave Friday one pistol to stick in his girdle, and three guns upon his shoulder, and I took one pistol and the other three guns myself; and in this posture we ave Friday a large bag with ed him to keep close behindtill I bid him, and in the meantime not to speak a word In this posture I fetched a coet over the creek as to get into the wood, so that I could come within shot of thelass it was easy to do

While I was an to abate my resolution: I do not mean that I entertained any fear of their number, for as they were naked, unarmed wretches, it is certain I was superior to thehts, what call, what occasion, o and dip my hands in blood, to attack people who had neither done or intended ? who, as to me, were innocent, and whose barbarous custo in the left them, with the other nations of that part of the world, to such stupidity, and to such inhue of their actions, much less an executioner of His justice - that whenever He thought fit He would take the cause into His own hands, and by national vengeance punish them as a people for national crimes, but that, in the meantiht justify it, because he was a declared enemy and in a state of ith those very particular people, and it was lawful for hiard to hts all the way as I went, that I resolved I would only go and place ht observe their barbarous feast, and that I would act then as God should direct; but that unless so offered that was more a call to me than yet I knew of, I would not meddle with them

With this resolution I entered the wood, and, with all possible wariness and silence, Friday following close at my heels, I marched till I came to the skirts of the wood on the side which was next to them, only that one corner of the wood lay betweenhireat tree which was just at the corner of the wood, I bade hiHe did so, and caht be plainly viewed there - that they were all about their fire, eating the flesh of one of their prisoners, and that another lay bound upon the sand a little from them, whom he said they would kill next; and this fired the very soul within me He told me it was not one of their nation, but one of the bearded men he had told me of, that came to their country in the boat I was filled with horror at the very na to the tree, I saw plainly by lass a white man, who lay upon the beach of the sea with his hands and his feet tied with flags, or things like rushes, and that he was an European, and had clothes on

There was another tree and a little thicket beyond it, about fifty yards nearer to the a little way about, I saw I ht come at undiscovered, and that then I should be within half a shot of theed to the highest degree; and going back about twenty paces, I got behind some bushes, which held all the way till I caround, which gave hty yards

I had now not a moment to lose, for nineteen of the dreadful wretches sat upon the ground, all close huddled together, and had just sent the other two to butcher the poor Christian, and bring hi down to untie the bands at his feet I turned to Friday ”Now, Friday,” said I, ”do as I bid thee” Friday said he would ”Then, Friday,” says I, ”do exactly as you see ” So I set down one of the round, and Friday did the like by his, and with the otherhi him if he was ready, he said, ”Yes” ”Then fire at them,” said I; and at the same moment I fired also

Friday took his aim so much better than I, that on the side that he shot he killed two of them, and wounded three more; and on my side I killed one, and wounded two They were, you may be sure, in a dreadful consternation: and all of them that were not hurt jumped upon their feet, but did not immediately knohich way to run, or which way to look, for they knew not from whence their destruction came Friday kept his eyes close upon ht observe what I did; so, as soon as the first shot was -piece, and Friday did the like; he saw ain ”Are you ready, Friday?” said I ”Yes,” says he ”Let fly, then,” says I, ”in the na the amazed wretches, and so did Friday; and as our pieces were now loaded hat I call swan-shot, or small pistol- bullets, we found only two drop; but solike mad creatures, all bloody, and most of them miserably wounded; whereof three h not quite dead

”Now, Friday,” says I, laying down the discharged pieces, and taking up the musket which was yet loaded, ”follow e; upon which I rushed out of the wood and showed myself, and Friday close at my foot As soon as I perceived they saw me, I shouted as loud as I could, and bade Friday do so too, and running as fast as I could, which, by the as not very fast, being loaded with arms as I was, I made directly towards the poor victi upon the beach or shore, between the place where they sat and the sea The two butchers ere just going to ith him had left him at the surprise of our first fire, and fled in a terrible fright to the seaside, and had jumped into a canoe, and three more of the rest made the same way I turned to Friday, and bade him step forwards and fire at the about forty yards, to be nearer theht he had killed theh I sao of theain quickly; however, he killed two of them, and wounded the third, so that he lay down in the bottom of the boat as if he had been dead

While my man Friday fired at thes that bound the poor victi his hands and feet, I lifted hiue what he was He answered in Latin, Christianus; but was so weak and faint that he could scarce stand or speak I took ns that he should drink, which he did; and I gave him a piece of bread, which he ate Then I asked hi a little recovered, let ns he could possibly nior,” said I, with as much Spanish as I could ht now: if you have any strength left, take this pistol and sword, and lay about you” He took them very thankfully; and no sooner had he the arour into him, he flew upon his murderers like a fury, and had cut two of them in pieces in an instant; for the truth is, as the whole was a surprise to thehtened with the noise of our pieces that they fell down for mere amazement and fear, and had no more power to attempt their own escape than their flesh had to resist our shot; and that was the case of those five that Friday shot at in the boat; for as three of them fell with the hurt they received, so the other two fell with the fright

I keptto keep iven the Spaniard my pistol and sword: so I called to Friday, and bade him run up to the tree from whence we first fired, and fetch the ared, which he did with great swiftness; and then giving hiain, and bade the these pieces, there happened a fierce engagees, who reat wooden swords, the weapon that was to have killed him before, if I had not prevented it The Spaniard, as as bold and brave as could be iood while, and had cut two great wounds on his head; but the savage being a stout, lusty fellow, closing in with hi h underirdle, shot the savage through the body, and killed hi to help hi now left to his liberty, pursued the flying wretches, with no weapon in his hand but his hatchet: and with that he despatched those three who as I said before, ounded at first, and fallen, and all the rest he could coave hi- pieces, hich he pursued two of the savages, and wounded theot from him into the wood, where Friday pursued them, and killed one of theh he ounded, yet had plunged hiht off to those tere left in the canoe; which three in the canoe, with one wounded, that we knew not whether he died or no, were all that escaped our hands of one-and-twenty The account of the whole is as follows: Three killed at our first shot from the tree; two killed at the next shot; two killed by Friday in the boat; two killed by Friday of those at first wounded; one killed by Friday in the wood; three killed by the Spaniard; four killed, being found dropped here and there, of the wounds, or killed by Friday in his chase of them; four escaped in the boat, whereof one wounded, if not dea