Robinson Crusoe on Raft

Robinson Crusoe is first published by Author Daniel Defoe on April 25, 1719.

I came back to my raft, and fell to work to bring my cargo on shore, which took me the rest of that day; and what to do with myself at night, I knew not, nor indeed where to rest; for I was afraid to lie down on the ground, not knowing but some wild beast might devour me, though, as I afterwards found, there was really no need for those fears. However, as well as I could, I barricaded myself round with the chests and boards that I had brought on shore, and made a kind of a hut for that night's lodging; as for food, I yet saw not which way to supply myself, except that I had seen two or three creatures like hares run out of the woods where I shot the fowl.

I now began to consider, that I might yet get a great many things out of the ship, which would be useful to me, and particularly some of the rigging and sails, and such other things as might come to land; and I resolved to make another voyage on board the vessel, if possible. And as I knew that the first storm that blew must necessarily break her all in pieces, I resolved to set all other things apart till I got everything out of the ship that I could get. Then I called a council, that is to say, in my thoughts, whether I should take back the raft, but this appeared impracticable; so I resolved to go as before, when the tide was down; and I did so, only that I stripped before I went from my hut, having nothing on but a checkered shirt and a pair of linen drawers, and a pair of pumps on my feet.

I got on board the ship as before, and prepared a second raft, and having had experience of the first, I neither made this so unwieldy, nor loaded it so hard; but yet I brought away several things very useful to me; as, first, in the carpenter's store I found two or three bags full of nails and spikes, a great screw-jack, a dozen or two of hatchets, and above all that most useful thing called a grindstone. All these I secured, together with several things belonging to the gunner, particularly two or three iron crows, and two barrels of musket bullets, seven muskets, and another fowling-piece, with some small quantity of powder more; a large bag full of small-shot, and a great roll of sheet lead; but this last was so heavy, I could not hoist it up to get it over the ship's side. Besides these things, I took all the men's clothes that I could find, and a spare fore-top sail, a hammock, and some bedding, and with this I loaded my second raft, and brought them all safe on shore, to my very great comfort.

Robinson Crusoe and Raft by Carl Offterdinger (January 8, 1829 Stuttgart, January 12 1889 Stuttgart ) German illustrator. This image JH Campe Robinson. Ein für Kinder Lesebuch von Joachim Heinrich Campe. With 6 large color illustrations of C. Offterdinger and 23 illustrations in the text of W. Zweigle. - 17th edition .- Stuttgart: 1898 Edited by Wilhelm Effenberger. This IMAGE (or other media file) is in the public domain because its copyright has expired.This applies to the United States, where Works published prior to 1978 were copyright protected for a maximum of 75 years. See Circular 1 "COPYRIGHT BASICS" PDF from the U.S. Copyright Office. Works published before 1923 (in this case 1898) are now in the public domain.

This file is also in the public domain in countries that figure copyright from the date of death of the artist (post mortem auctoris) in this case Carl Offterdinger (January 8, 1829 - January 12 1889, and that most commonly runs for a period of 50 to 70 years from December 31st of that year.

TEXT CREDIT: Robinson Crusoe