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How I made my first voyage

I am Robinson Crusoe and I want to tell you about the many wonderful adventures I have had in my life.Near Canary Islands, we were chased and captured by a pirate ship.I tried to make clay pots to store my grain in. It wasn't easy but I soon learnt to make ones with no wobbly edges.How I was shipwrecked

I was ready for more adventures and decided to sail with the Portuguese ship to Brazil.I paddled my raft full of the precious cargo carefully to the shore.To separate the husk from the flour, I used an old muslin cloth as a sieve.I designed my own oven and the wonderful bread and pastry I baked in it tasted better than that from any bakery!We were finally rescued by a lightship and taken ashore.A huge Portuguese ship rescued me. The captain of this ship was a very kind man and did not take any money from me. Instead, he bought my small boat and the lion skin rug.I bought a lot of land and planted tobacco and sugarcane in it. I became rich and prosperous.Huge waves crashed into the masts and ripped the sails.I was sad for my companions and thanked god for saving me. Then I realised how alone I was.I was very hungry and filled my pockets with biscuits, which I ate hungrily as I walked about the ship.Gradually, 1 brought all the sails and rigging.Thirdly, I had to be secure from attacks by savages or wild animals.Before I set up my tent, I placed two rows of sharp stakes in a semicircle.Once I was inside, I lifted the ladder over after me, so that I was completely fenced in and safe.And you can imagine my joy, when some time later, I saw that these shoots had now become stalks of barley!I even dried the grapes to make raisins for myself.I learnt how to skin the animals I had shot, and dried their skins to use later.So, after lunch, 1 often climbed into the hammock l'd made, and snoozed.Then I realised that he was saying that a ship like ours had been wrecked in a storm on the shores of his country.My father, a rich trader in England, had the family name Kreutznauer.My mother's relations were called Robinson.So my name became Robinson Crusoe.All my life I dreamt of being a sailor.The waves began to rise in a frightening way and I was scared that I would die.My first voyage was an extremely unlucky one.I travelled with him to the coast of New Guinea.I was now a trader as well as a sailor.The kind captain of the Portuguese ship helped me to get my money from the widow in London."We've hit a sandbank!"It was tossed around in the heaving sea.Then, suddenly a gigantic wave tipped it right over.I was suddenly a gigantic wave tipped it right over.flung into the sea and felt myself sinking.I was a good swimmer, but I was powerless in such a rough sea.I walked about on the shore searching for any signs of my comrades.I was scared and didn't know what to do. For safety, I spent the first night on the branches of a tree.I realised that I would need a boat to get all the things I needed to the shore.I found some spare masts and some planks of wood.I even found two dry barrels of gunpowder.There was no other land in sight except two small islands, smaller than the one I was on. The island seemed uninhabited as I could not see any sign of humans for miles.shore, I got to work to make a small tent with the I brought some nails, some more tools, more pistols, shot and powder and also some more clothing.I had to consider several factors before choosing a site for my home.Then I took the pieces of cable, which I had cut in the ship, and laid them in rows between these two lines of stakes.The fence became So strong that neither man nor beast could get into it, or over it. Behind me, the steep hill formed a natural protection.At night, I slept quite comfortably in a hammock.At night, I slept quite comfortably in a hammock.I also made some shelves upon the rock at the back of my tent, and finally a rack to hang my guns.One day, I found a little bag with some corn in it. I threw the corns on the grass outside my fence, This was just before the rainy season.How I explored my island

Thad been now on this unhappy island for almost ten months.There were many trees with various fruits on them.I loved the melons and the grapes.I felt like a king there and was tempted to live there permanently.Sometimes I clambered over the cliffs, looking for birds' eggs to cook for breakfast.I spent hours teaching Poll, my young parrot, to speak.I took it home and nursed it. It soon became tame and followed me like a dog.I made my own mortar to grind the grain out of a block of very hard wood.I first cut down a big tree and chopped off all the branches.Two savages chased him.I .

How I made my first voyage

I am Robinson Crusoe and I want to tell you about the many wonderful adventures I have had in my life. Let me first tell you about my strange name. My father, a rich trader in England, had the family name Kreutznauer. This was often changed to Crusoe. My mother's relations were called Robinson. So my name became Robinson Crusoe.

All my life I dreamt of being a sailor. My father wanted me to become a lawyer. But I was very sure of what I wanted to do. So I ran away from home when I was eighteen. After a year, I was lucky to get space on a ship bound for London. The ship belonged to one of my friend's father. The voyage cost me nothing and I was excited to finally be on a ship. As soon as the ship left the harbour, the wind began to blow strongly. The waves began to rise in a frightening way and I was scared that I would die.

I was not so sure that I wanted to be a sailor then! However, the next morning, when the wind dropped and the sea was calmer, I could appreciate the beauty of the sea once again. My first voyage was an extremely unlucky one. We were stranded on our ship in the middle of a storm for several days. Our ship got a leak and was flooded with water. We were finally rescued by a lightship and taken ashore. I did not want to give up and decided to continue my adventure. So, I went to London on foot.

In London, I became good friends with a captain of a trading ship. I travelled with him to the coast of New Guinea. I sold some goods there and earned a little bit of money. I was very happy. I was now a trader as well as a sailor. Unfortunately, my friend, the captain, died soon after we returned. I decided to go on a voyage once again. I had three hundred pounds with me. I left two hundred of that with the widow of the captain. With the balance one hundred, I bought more goods, and hoped to make a bigger profit. Little did I know that this was going to be an even unluckier trip. Near Canary Islands, we were chased and captured by a pirate ship. The captain of the pirate ship saw that I was young and made me his slave. I was a slave for two years! I really longed to be free.

One night, I managed to put some provisions in a small fishing boat, and escaped. I spent months on the sea, and along the way, I had many small adventures. I even shot a lion and made a rug with his skin. A huge Portuguese ship rescued me. The captain of this ship was a very kind man and did not take any money from me. Instead, he bought my small boat and the lion skin rug. Finally I was free, and had some money to begin a new life.

How I was shipwrecked

I was ready for more adventures and decided to sail with the Portuguese ship to Brazil. There I lived with a planter and enjoyed it very much. I decided to become a planter too. The kind captain of the Portuguese ship helped me to get my money from the widow in London. I lived in Brazil for four years. I bought a lot of land and planted tobacco and sugarcane in it. I became rich and prosperous. I spoke the local language and had many friends. Then one day some of my friends told me that they were sailing to Africa.

"Why don't you come with us," said one of them. "You are an experienced sailor and can help us too," said another. "You will be rich with all the gold and ivory that you bring back," said the third.

I felt a familiar stirring in my heart. It was the desire to have more adventures! I agreed and we set sail. Soon after we had left, we were met with a series of very violent storms. Huge waves crashed into the masts and ripped the sails. Then there was a sickening crash. "We've hit a sandbank!" cried one of the men. We all climbed into a small boat and left the ship. But the storm was too much for our little boat.

It was tossed around in the heaving sea. Then, suddenly a gigantic wave tipped it right over. I was suddenly a gigantic wave tipped it right over. I . flung into the sea and felt myself sinking. Desperately, I began to swim towards the shore.

How I reached my island

was terrified in the water. I was a good swimmer, but I was powerless in such a rough sea. A giant wave carried me and threw me upon the land. I was half dead with the water I had swallowed. I did not know what to do. I walked a bit away from the water and just sat there. I was breathless but finally felt free from danger. I walked about on the shore searching for any signs of my comrades. All I found of them were some caps and two odd shoes. I knew that I was the only one to have survived. I was sad for my companions and thanked god for saving me. Then I realised how alone I was. My clothes were wet and I had nothing to change into. I had nothing to eat or drink. All I had with me was a knife, a tobacco-pipe and a little tobacco in a box. I was scared and didn't know what to do. For safety, I spent the first night on the branches of a tree. When I woke up, it was morning and the weather was clear. I could see our ship caught in the rocks. I was surprised to see it safe and intact.

I took off my clothes and swam out to the ship. When I reached her, I found a rope hanging over the side. I climbed aboard with the help of the rope. There was a lot of water in her hold. I immediately searched for food and was pleased to discover that most of the food was safe. I was very hungry and filled my pockets with biscuits, which I ate hungrily as I walked about the ship.

I realised that I would need a boat to get all the things I needed to the shore. I found some spare masts and some planks of wood. I tied them together with a rope and made a raft for myself. I loaded it with all the useful things I could find on the ship. I put in chests of food, a box of tools and two guns. I even found two dry barrels of gunpowder. I paddled my raft full of the precious cargo carefully to the shore. My next work was to explore the area and find a safe place to store my goods. I also needed to make some shelter for myself. I took one of the guns, and climbed to the top of a cliff.

When I reached the top, I saw that I was on an island. There was no other land in sight except two small islands, smaller than the one I was on. The island seemed uninhabited as I could not see any sign of humans for miles. I decided to get as much as I could from the ship before another storm broke her into pieces.

shore, I got to work to make a small tent with the I brought some nails, some more tools, more pistols, shot and powder and also some more clothing. On a sail and some poles. I was extremely tired after a long, hard day's work and soon fell fast asleep.

Every day now, when the tide was out, I went up to the ship to bring all that was on board. Gradually, 1 brought all the sails and rigging. I even brought some iron cables. I was pleased to discover more food on board including sugar, flour and bread. I now began to plan where to build my house, as it was unhealthy for me to live in the tent. I had to consider several factors before choosing a site for my home.

Firstly, I needed a healthy place near fresh water. Secondly, I needed shelter from the heat of the sun. Thirdly, I had to be secure from attacks by savages or wild animals. And last of all, I needed a view of the sea so that if God sent any ship in sight, I would not miss it.

How I built my house

finally I found a suitable place to build my new home. It was a little plain on the side of a steep hill. The hill sheltered the plain from the sun until the evening. Before I set up my tent, I placed two rows of sharp stakes in a semicircle. They stood five feet out of the ground and had very sharp points. Then I took the pieces of cable, which I had cut in the ship, and laid them in rows between these two lines of stakes. The fence became So strong that neither man nor beast could get into it, or over it. Behind me, the steep hill formed a natural protection. I did not make a door to get into this area but used a small ladder to climb over the top of the fence. Once I was inside, I lifted the ladder over after me, so that I was completely fenced in and safe.

I made a large tent from the canvas sail and placed a smaller tent inside it. This way I was dry, however hard it rained. At night, I slept quite comfortably in a hammock. Everyday I went out at least once with my gun to explore the island and search for food. I killed two goats, which gave me fresh meat for many days. I ate carefully and saved my provisions, especially my bread.

I made a large tent from the canvas sail and placed a smaller tent inside it. This way I was dry, however hard it rained. At night, I slept quite comfortably in a hammock. Everyday I went out at least once with my gun to explore the island and search for food. I killed two goats, which gave me fresh meat for many days. I ate carefully and saved my provisions, especially my bread.

I also had a good supply of pens, ink, and paper. I decided to keep a diary of what I did everyday. And I must not forget to tell you that I had also rescued two cats and a dog from the ship. These were my companions in my lonely life. It took me a whole year to build my home the way I had wanted to. I made myself a chair and a table. I also made some shelves upon the rock at the back of my tent, and finally a rack to hang my guns.

One day, I found a little bag with some corn in it. I threw the corns on the grass outside my fence, This was just before the rainy season. About a month later, I saw some stalks of something green shooting out of the ground. And you can imagine my joy, when some time later, I saw that these shoots had now become stalks of barley! Later on, when the grain ripened, I saved it carefully and planned to plant it the following year. I did this for several years and then found that I had enough barley to be able to use for my own purpose. I did the same with some rice that I had found, and with these, I was able to make some bread and rice cakes.

How I explored my island

Thad been now on this unhappy island for almost ten months. I wondered if I would ever be able to leave it. I began a survey of the island. I discovered that my island was a very beautiful place, almost like a paradise. There were many trees with various fruits on them. I loved the melons and the grapes. I even dried the grapes to make raisins for myself. Further inland was a beautiful valley. It was green with small springs everywhere. It looked like one huge beautiful garden. I felt like a king there and was tempted to live there permanently. Instead I decided to make a small shelter where I could go and stay whenever I wanted to. I soon got used to my life on the island. Every morning I went hunting with my dog. I shot birds and wild goats for food. Sometimes I clambered over the cliffs, looking for birds' eggs to cook for breakfast. For lunch, I went home and cooked my food over a fire. I learnt how to skin the animals I had shot, and dried their skins to use later. The afternoons were often much too hot to work. So, after lunch, 1 often climbed into the hammock l'd made, and snoozed.

I made friends with the animals too. I spent hours teaching Poll, my young parrot, to speak. At first, all he could say was my name. Later, he could speak full sentences.

One day, I accidentally shot a baby goat. I took it home and nursed it. It soon became tame and followed me like a dog. During the rainy season, I could not go out at all. So I tried all kinds of experiments in my tent. I tried to make clay pots to store my grain in. It wasn't easy but I soon learnt to make ones with no wobbly edges. I even learnt to fire them so that I could store water in them and use them to cook food.

One of my biggest achievements was to make bread. I made my own mortar to grind the grain out of a block of very hard wood. To separate the husk from the flour, I used an old muslin cloth as a sieve. I designed my own oven and the wonderful bread and pastry I baked in it tasted better than that from any bakery!

How I built a boat

My clothes had started to drop to pieces. I had no trousers to wear. I needed to wear clothes to protect myself from the sun and rain. It was time for me to become a tailor. I had a number of goatskins. I used them to make myself a hat, a waistcoat and a pair of trousers. They fitted badly but kept me cool in the hot weather and dry in the wet. I also spent a lot of time making an umbrella. I must have looked very funny walking about in my strange clothes, but I was very proud of my work.

One morning I walked to a different part of the island. Looking out to the sea, I saw a land, far way. Suddenly, I felt very lonely and sad. "I'll escape!" I thought to myself. "I'll make myself a boat and escape." I immediately began work on my next project. I first cut down a big tree and chopped off all the branches. I then began to hollow out the trunk. It was a very hard work and took me weeks. When it was finished, I realised that it was huge! That was when it struck me that it would not be easy to take it down to the sea by myself. I tried to push it but it was impossible to move it. I decided to dig a canal from the boat to the sea and then float it down. I even started work on it but left it when I realised that it would take me a lifetime. "I'm stuck!" I thought to myself sadly.

I then made a smaller boat for myself. It was too small to escape in, but perfect to sail around the island. Now I was able to explore every corner of my island. Soon I knew every corner of it. I gave up all hope of leaving the island, and even began to enjoy my life there. Years flew by.

How I made my strange discovery

hen one day everything changed. I was walking along beach, I got the shock of my life. I saw a footprint in the sand. I felt as if I As the was struck by thunder. I was extremely frightened and ran back home as fast as I could. I hid in my home for a week, too scared to come out. All the stories I had heard of savages and cannibals, who ate human flesh, came back to me.

Very nervous, I was always watching for any sign of these savages. I made my home stronger by building another wall around it. I took my goats away to a safer place in the middle of the woods. Days, weeks and months passed but no one came. Just as I was beginning to feel a bit better, I saw something that filled me with horror. I was out hunting on the beach when I saw a human skull, hands, feet and some other bones! There were remains of a fire and I knew that whoever had been here had been feasting on human flesh. I felt sick with fear and rushed back home. This was my twenty-third year here but I was no longer happy on my island. I never went anywhere without my gun and pistols. Everyday1 watched the sea anxiously, wondering if these visitors would arrive again. Nothing happened for several months. Then one day I spotted a fire on the beach, far in the distance. I gathered the courage to go closer and watched from a safe distance. I saw a group of men feasting and dancing around the fire. After sometime, they jumped into their canoes and paddled away. I was very worried. I knew that if they found me on the island, they would kill me. Two more years passed in fear.

How I met Man Friday

One morning, I saw that there were five canoes on my side of the island. There were thirty or more savages who had built a huge fire. They had two prisoners in one of the canoes. They dragged one of them to the beach, hit him on the head and began to cut away pieces of his flesh. The other prisoner realised that he was not being watched and had a chance to escape. He jumped out of the canoe and ran in my direction. Two savages chased him.

As I watched from the hill, I had an idea. "I will save him and make him my friend!" I thought to myself. I was very excited at the idea of having a companion at last. I ran down the hill and stood between the prisoner and the savage. I hit one of them with my gun. The other one took out his bow and arrow but I was faster than him and shot him. I could see that the prisoner was very scared of me. I tried to smile reassuringly and beckoned to him to come closer.

At last he came right up to me and kneeled down at my feet. He kissed the ground in front of me and put my foot on his head. I raised him to his feet and he started talking to me in some strange language. I cannot describe the joy I felt on hearing human voice after over twenty-five years! The first savage I had knocked on the head began to recover and sat up. I shot him too, and then we buried the two bodies, so that the other savages could not find them.

I took the prisoner to my house and gave him bread and raisins to eat. He then lay down and was soon fast asleep. As he lay I had a good look at him. He was a strong and well-built man. He must have been about twenty-six years old. He had long black hair and a handsome face. When he woke up, I wanted to talk to him but it was difficult as he did not know any English. I began to teach him to talk to me. I called him Friday, as that was the day I had rescued him. I made some clothes for him and he was delighted with the trousers and the goatskin jacket. He soon learnt to go around in them comfortably.

He was very quick in learning and was soon able to talk to me. It was good to have someone to hunt and farm with. Soon, he became my faithful and loving servant.

How I built my second canoe

Now began the most pleasant years of my stay on the island. I taught Friday how to grind corn and bake bread. Soon he was able to do everything as well as I could. He really was my Man Friday! He also began to talk well. It was good to talk to somebody again after all these years. He told me that his people were called Caribs. I told him the story of my life. I described my life in England to him. How I had left home and travelled, and how my ship had been wrecked. When he heard this, he became thoughtful. "Me see such boat come to my nation," he said after sometime.

At first I did not understand what he was trying to say. Then I realised that he was saying that a ship like ours had been wrecked in a storm on the shores of his country. I also learnt that they had saved seventeen white men from the wreck. I was most surprised to learn that his people had not killed the white men. They all had been living together for the past four years.

One day when the weather was clear, Friday and I climbed to the top of the highest hill. Friday looked out across the sea and became very excited. He called me to his side and pointed with his finger.

"O joy, O joy," he said. "There, see my country. There my nation." He told me that he would like to go back to his own people. He also told me that after meeting me, he did not believe in eating flesh. The land he was pointing to was too far for him to swim to. I promised to make a canoe for him. I told him that I would not go with him as I was scared that his people might kill and eat me. "I won't leave you alone and go," he insisted. "I will tell my people not to kill you."

Although Friday did not want to leave without me I decided to make a canoe for him. Together we made a canoe big enough to carry twenty men. We fitted it with a mast, a sail and even an anchor. Friday learnt to sail her well. We began to gather food for his journey. But then, something terrible happened!

How we had visitors on the island

One morning, when Friday went to the seashore to find a turtle, he came running back, very excited. "O master, O master, bad things, master!" he cried out. "One, two, three canoe," he said, trembling with fear. He was scared that they were the same savages he had escaped from.

I tried to calm him down and told him that we could easily fight them with our guns. We loaded our guns and pistols and took our sword and axe as well. Armed, we climbed the hill and hid behind the bushes to see what was happening. We saw that there were twenty one savages this time. They had three prisoners with them. They were dancing around them, and I was sure that they were planning to kill and eat their prisoners. I was really angry. We crept close to them and I instructed Friday to fire when I signalled.
There was great panic amongst the savages when we fired. Most of them were killed, and the four who were wounded, left in one of the canoes. In the meantime, I ran down to the prisoner who was alive, and untied his knots. He was grateful to me for saving his life. He ate some bread I gave him. I soon discovered that he was Spanish. Friday wanted to sail after the savages who had escaped, and kill them before they reached their island and returned with a greater force. I ran with Friday to one of the canoes. Just as we were about to jump in, I noticed another prisoner lying in the bottom of the canoe. He had heard the shots and was very scared. I cut his ropes and helped him to stand. He was too weak and just lay there. As soon as Friday saw him, he began to hug and kiss the prisoner. He almost went mad and began to sing, dance and jump about in joy. It was quite sometime before he calmed down to tell me that the old man was his father!

We were lucky to have not followed the prisoners, as soon after, there was a terrible storm. And since no savages returned, we figured that our savages had drowned in the storm.

How a ship arrived on our island

Just when I was expecting the Spaniard to return with his men, a strange event happened. Friday spotted a boat sailing towards our shore. It was coming from a different direction than the one the Spaniard was expected from. "Stop!" I warned Friday, who was jumping with joy at the thought of meeting his father again. "This is not our boat." I took out my telescope and saw a larger ship anchored in the distance. I noticed joyfully that this seemed to be an English ship. But I wondered what an English ship was doing here. There had been no storm to blow it this side.

I decided to wait and watch as to what the people on the boat would do on our island. Many English sailors got off the boat. I noticed that three of them had their hands tied at their back. These three were taken to a tree, where they sat looking lost. The others wandered off along the beach. I decided to go up to the prisoners and talk to them. "Who are you gentlemen?" I shouted, as I stepped out of the bushes. They almost jumped out of their skins to hear my voice, and were even more surprised to see Friday and me in such strange clothes. "I am the captain of the ship anchored out there," said one of the prisoners. "My men mutinied against me. They were going to kill us when some of them decided to leave us on this island. They thought that we would Soon die without food or water here.'

"I will save you, if you promise to take us with you to England," I said to the captain of the ship. "I owe my life to you," replied the captain. "That would be the least I can do for you." When the sailors returned, they were taken aback. We captured the two leaders of the group, and soon made all the sailors our prisoners. They agreed to help us recapture the ship, if we spared their lives. The sailors agreed, as they did not have too much to choose from.

How I made my journey back home

That night, the captain took a few of his trusted men and recaptured his ship. That was the end of the mutiny. The next morning, the captain came and led me to the shore, from where I could see the ship. "There she is," he declared, "She, and all of us on her, belong to you!"

Now everything was ready for me. Here was a ship to take me home. I could not believe my luck. I had been on this island for 28 long years and the thought of finally leaving it made me feel faint. I could not control my emotions and burst into tears. The captain had brought a lot of good food for me from the ship. I had wine and tobacco after years.

He brought me some fine new clothes too. I felt home He brought me some fine new clothes too. I felt really strange in them now. The following morning, the boat came to take me away. Although I was happy at the thought of returning, it was not easy for me to say goodbye to my island. I took all the things that were dear to me and this included my goatskin hat and my umbrella.