by Daniel Defoe
However, this was a great encouragement to me, and I foresaw that in time, it wou’d please God to supply me with bread: And yet here I was perplex’d again, for I neither knew how to grind or make meal of my corn, or indeed how to clean it and part it; nor if made into meal, how to make bread of it, and if how to make it, yet I knew not how to bake it; these things being added to my desire of having a good quantity for store, and to secure a constant supply, I resolv’d not to taste any of this crop, but to preserve it all for seed against the next season, and in the mean time to employ all my study and hours of working to accomplish this great work of providing myself with corn and bread.
It might be truly said, that now I work’d for my bread; ’tis a little wonderful, and what I believe few people have thought much upon, (viz.) the strange multitude of little things necessary in the providing, producing, curing, dressing, making and finishing this one article of bread.
I that was reduced to a meer state of nature, found this to my daily discouragement, and was made more and more sensible of it every hour, even after I had got the first handful of seed-corn, which, as I have said, came up unexpectedly, and indeed to a surprise.
First, I had no plow to turn up the earth, no spade or shovel to dig it. Well, this I conquer’d, by making a wooden spade, as I observ’d before; but this did my work in but a wooden manner, and tho’ it cost me a great many days to make it, yet for want of iron it not only wore out the sooner, but made my work the harder, and made it be perform’d much worse.
However, this I bore with, and was content to work it out with patience, and bear with the badness of the performance. When the corn was sow’d, I had no harrow, but was forced to go over it my self, and drag a great heavy bough of a tree over it, to scratch it, as it may be call’d, rather than rake or harrow it.
When it was growing and grown, I have observ’d already how many things I wanted, to fence it, secure it, mow or reap it, cure and carry it home, thrash, part it from the chaff, and save it. Then I wanted a mill to grind it, sieves to dress it, yeast and salt to make it into bread, and an oven to bake it, and yet all these things I did without, as shall be observ’d; and yet the corn was an inestimable comfort and advantage to me too. All this, as I said, made every thing laborious and tedious to me, but that there was no help for; neither was my time so much loss to me, because as I had divided it, a certain part of it was every day appointed to these works; and as I resolv’d to use none of the corn for bread till I had a greater quantity by me, I had the next six months to apply my self wholly by labour and invention to furnish my self with utensils proper for the performing all the operations necessary for the making the corn (when I had it) fit for my use.
But first, I was to prepare more land, for I had now seed enough to sow above an acre of ground. Before I did this, I had a weeks-work at least to make me a spade, which when it was done was but a sorry one indeed, and very heavy, and requir’d double labour to work with it; however I went thro’ that, and sow’d my seed in two large flat pieces of ground, as near my house as I could find them to my mind, and fenc’d them in with a good hedge, the stakes of which were all cut of that wood which I had set before, and knew it would grow, so that in one year’s time I knew I should have a quick or living-hedge, that would want but little repair. This work was not so little as to take me up less than three months, because great part of that time was of the wet season, when I could not go abroad.
Within doors, that is, when it rained, and I could not go out, I found employment on the following occasions; always observing, that all the while I was at work I diverted myself with talking to my parrot, and teaching him to speak, and I quickly learn’d him to know his own name, and at last to speak it out pretty loud POLL, which was the first word I ever heard spoken in the island by any mouth but my own. This therefore was not my work, but an assistant to my work, for now, as I said, I had a great employment upon my hands, as follows, (viz.) I had long study’d by some means or other, to make myself some earthen vessels, which indeed I wanted sorely, but knew not where to come at them: However, considering the heat of the climate, I did not doubt but if I could find out any such clay, I might botch up some such pot, as might, being dry’d in the sun, be hard enough, and strong enough to bear handling, and to hold any thing that was dry, and required to be kept so; and as this was necessary in the preparing corn, meal, &c. which was the thing I was upon, I resolved to make some as large as I could, and fit only to stand like jars to hold what should be put into them.
It would make the reader pity me, or rather laugh at me, to tell how many awkward ways I took to raise this paste, what odd mishapen ugly things I made, how many of them fell in, and how many fell out, the clay not being stiff enough to bear its own weight; how many crack’d by the over violent heat of the sun, being set out too hastily; and how many fell in pieces with only removing, as well before as after they were dry’d; and in a word, how after having laboured hard to find the clay, to dig it, to temper it, to bring it home and work it, I could not make above two large earthen ugly things, I cannot call them jars, in about two months labour.
However, as the sun bak’d these two very dry and hard, I lifted them very gently up, and set them down again in two great wicker-baskets, which I had made on purpose for them, that they might not break, and as between the pot and the basket there was a little room to spare, I stuff’d it full of the rice and barley straw, and these two pots being to stand always dry, I thought would hold my dry corn, and perhaps the meal, when the corn was bruised.
Tho’ I miscarried so much in my design for large pots, yet I made several smaller things with better success; such as little round pots, flat dishes, pitchers and pipkins, and any things my hand turn’d to, and the heat of the sun bak’d them strangely hard.
But all this would not answer my end, which was to get an earthen pot to hold what was liquid, and bear the fire, which none of these could do. It happen’d after some time, making a pretty large fire for cooking my meat, when I went to put it out after I had done with it, I found a broken piece of one of my earthen-ware vessels in the fire, burnt as hard as a stone, and red as a tile. I was agreeably surpris’d to see it, and said to my self, that certainly they might be made to burn whole, if they would burn broken.
This set me to studying how to order my fire, so as to make it burn me some pots. I had no notion of a kiln, such as the potters burn in, or of glazing them with lead, tho’ I had some lead to do it with; but I plac’d three large pipkins, and two or three pots in a pile one upon another, and plac’d my fire-wood all round it with a great heap of embers under them, I ply’d the fire with fresh fuel round the out-side, and upon the top, till I saw the pots in the inside red hot quite thro’, and observ’d that they did not crack at all; when I saw them clear red, I let them stand in that heat about 5 or 6 hours, till I found one of them, tho’ it did not crack, did melt or run, for the sand which was mixed with the clay melted by the violence of the heat, and would have run into glass if I had gone on, so I slack’d my fire gradually, till the pots began to abate of the red colour, and watching them all night, that I might not let the fire abate too fast, in the morning I had three very good, I will not say handsome pipkins; and two other earthen pots, as hard burnt as could be desir’d; and one of them perfectly glaz’d with the running of the sand.
After this experiment, I need not say that I wanted no sort of earthen ware for my use; but I must needs say, as to the shapes of them, they were very indifferent, as any one may suppose, when I had no way of making them; but as the children make dirt-pies, or as a woman would make pies, that never learn’d to raise paste.
No joy at a thing of so mean a nature was ever equal to mine, when I found I had made an earthen pot that would bear the fire; and I had hardly patience to stay till they were cold, before I set one upon the fire again, with some water in it, to boil me some meat, which it did admirably well; and with a piece of a kid I made some very good broth, though I wanted oatmeal, and several
other ingredients requisite to make it so good as I would have had it been.
My next concern was, to get me a stone mortar to stamp or beat some corn in; for as to the mill, there was no thought at arriving to that perfection of art, with one pair of hands. To supply this want I was at a great loss; for of all trades in the world I was as perfectly unqualify’d for a stone-cutter, as for any whatever; neither had I any tools to go about it with. I spent many a day to find out a great stone big enough to cut hollow, and make fit for a mortar, and could find none at all; except what was in the solid rock, and which I had no way to dig or cut out; nor indeed were the rocks in the island of hardness sufficient, but were all of a sandy crumbling stone, which would neither bear the weight of a heavy pestle, or would break the corn without filling it with sand; so after a great deal of time lost in searching for a stone, I gave it over, and resolv’d to look out for a great block of hard wood, which I found indeed much easier; and getting one as big as I had strength to stir, I rounded it, and form’d it in the out-side with my axe and hatchet, and then with the help of fire, and infinite labour, made a hollow place in it, as the Indians in Brasil make their canoes. After this, I made a great heavy pestle or beater, of the wood call’d the iron-wood, and this I prepared and laid by against I had my next crop of corn, when I propos’d to my self to grind, or rather pound my corn into meal to make my bread.
My next difficulty was to make a sieve, or search, to dress my meal, and to part it from the bran, and the husk, without which I did not see it possible I could have any bread. This was a most difficult thing, so much as but to think on; for to be sure I had nothing like the necessary thing to make it; I mean fine thin canvass, or stuff, to search the meal through. And here I was at a full stop for many months; nor did I really know what to do; linnen I had none left, but what was meer rags; I had goats hair, but neither knew I how to weave it, or spin it; and had I known how, here was no tools to work it with; all the remedy that I found for this, was, that at last I did remember I had among the seamens clothes which were sav’d out of the ship, some neckcloths of callicoe, or muslin; and with some pieces of these I made three small sieves, but proper enough for the work; and thus I made shift for some years; how I did afterwards, I shall shew in its place.
The baking part was the next thing to be consider’d, and how I should make bread when I came to have corn; for first I had no yeast; as to that part, as there was no supplying the want, so I did not concern my self much about it: but for an oven, I was indeed in great pain; at length I found out an experiment for that also, which was this; I made some earthen vessels very broad, but not deep; that is to say, about two foot diameter, and not above nine inches deep; these I burnt in the fire, as I had done the other, and laid them by; and when I wanted to bake, I made a great fire upon my hearth, which I had pav’d with some square tiles of my own making, and burning also; but I should not call them square.
When the fire-wood was burnt pretty much into embers, or live coals, I drew them forward upon this hearth, so as to cover it all over, and there I let them lye, till the hearth was very hot, then sweeping away all the embers, I set down my loaf, or loaves, and whelming down the earthen pot upon them, drew the embers all round the outside of the pot, to keep in, and add to the heat; and thus, as well as in the best oven in the world, I bak’d my barley-loaves, and became in little time a meer pastry-cook into the bargain; for I made myself several cakes of the rice, and puddings; indeed I made no pies, neither had I any thing to put into them, supposing I had, except the flesh either of fowls or goats.
It need not be wondred at, if all these things took me up most part of the third year of my abode here; for it is to be observ’d, that in the intervals of these things, I had my new harvest and husbandry to manage; for I reap’d my corn in its season, and carry’d it home as well as I could, and laid it up in the ear, in my large baskets, till I had time to rub it out; for I had no floor to thrash it on, or instrument to thrash it with.
And now indeed my stock of corn increasing, I really wanted to build my barns bigger. I wanted a place to lay it up in; for the encrease of the corn now yielded me so much, that I had of the barley about twenty bushels, and of the rice as much, or more; insomuch, that now I resolv’d to begin to use it freely; for my bread had been quite gone a great while; also I resolv’d to see what quantity would be sufficient for me a whole year, and to sow but once a year.
Upon the whole, I found that the forty bushels of barley and rice, was much more than I could consume in a year; so I resolv’d to sow just the same quantity every year that I sowed the last, in hopes that such a quantity would fully provide me with bread, &c.
All the while these things were doing, you may be sure my thoughts run many times upon the prospect of land which I had seen from the other side of the island, and I was not without secret wishes that I were on shore there, fancying the seeing the main land, and in an inhabited country, I might find some way or other to convey my self farther, and perhaps at last find some means of escape.
But all this while I made no allowance for the dangers of such a condition, and how I might fall into the hands of savages, and perhaps such as I might have reason to think far worse than the lyons and tygers of Africa. That if I once came into their power, I should run a hazard more than a thousand to one of being kill’d, and perhaps of being eaten; for I had heard that the people of the Carribean coast were cannibals, or man eaters; and I knew by the latitude, that I could not be far off from that shore. That suppose they were not cannibals, yet that they might kill me, as many Europeans who had fallen into their hands had been served, even when they had been ten or twenty together; much more I that was but one, and could make little or no defence: All these things, I say, which I ought to have consider’d well of, and did cast up in my thoughts afterwards, yet took up none of my apprehensions at first; but my head run mightily upon the thought of getting over to the shore.
Now I wish’d for my boy Xury, and the long boat, with the shoulder of mutton sail, with which I sail’d above a thousand miles on the coast of Africk; but this was in vain. Then I thought I would go and look at our ship’s boat, which, as I have said, was blown up upon the shore, a great way in the storm, when we were first cast away. She lay almost where she did at first, but not quite; and was turn’d by the force of the waves and the winds, almost bottom upward, against a high ridge of beachy rough sand; but no water about her as before.
If I had had hands to have refitted her, and to have launch’d her into the water, the boat would have done well enough, and I might have gone back into the Brasils with her easily enough; but I might have foreseen, that I could no more turn her, and set her upright upon her bottom, than I could remove the island: However, I went to the woods, and cut levers and rollers, and brought them to the boat, resolv’d to try what I could do; suggesting to myself, that if I could but turn her down, I might easily repair the damage she had receiv’d, and she would be a very good boat, and I might go to sea in her very easily.
I spar’d no pains indeed, in this piece of fruitless toil, and spent, I think, three or four weeks about it; at last finding it impossible to heave it up with my little strength, I fell to digging away the sand to undermine it, and so to make it fall down, setting pieces of wood to thrust and guide it right in the fall.
But when I had done this, I was unable to stir it up again, or to get under it, much less to move it forward towards the water; so I was forc’d to give it over; and yet, though I gave over the hopes of the boat, my desire to venture over for the main encreased, rather than decreased, as the means for it seem’d impossible.
This at length put me upon thinking, whether it was not possible to make my self a canoe, or periagua, such as the natives of those climates make, even without tools, or, as I might say, without hands, viz. of the trunk of a great tree. This I not only thought possible, but easy, and pleas’d myself extreamly with the thoughts of making it, and with my having much more convenience for it than any of the
Negroes or Indians; but not at all considering the particular inconveniences which I lay under, more than the Indians did, viz. want of hands to move it, when it was made, into the water, a difficulty much harder for me to surmount, than all the consequences of want of tools could be to them; for what was it to me, that when I had chosen a vast tree in the woods, I might with much trouble cut it down, if after I might be able with my tools to hew and dubb the out-side into the proper shape of a boat, and burn or cut out the in-side to make it hollow, so to make a boat of it: If after all this, I must leave it just there where I found it, and was not able to launch it into the water.
One would have thought, I could not have had the least reflection upon my mind of my circumstance, while I was making this boat; but I should have immediately thought how I should get it into the sea; but my thoughts were so intent upon my voyage over the sea in it, that I never once consider’d how I should get it off of the land; and it was really in its own nature more easy for me to guide it over forty five miles of sea, than about forty five fathom of land, where it lay, to set it a float in the water.
I went to work upon this boat, the most like a fool, that ever man did, who had any of his senses awake. I pleas’d my self with the design, without determining whether I was ever able to undertake it; not but that the difficulty of launching my boat came often into my head; but I put a stop to my own enquiries into it, by this foolish answer which I gave myself, Let’s first make it, I’ll warrant I’ll find some way or other to get it along, when ’tis done.
This was a most preposterous method; but the eagerness of my fancy prevail’d, and to work I went. I fell’d a cedar tree: I question much whether Solomon ever had such a one for the building of the Temple at Jerusalem.33 It was five foot ten inches diameter at the lower part next the stump, and four foot eleven inches diameter at the end of twenty two foot, after which it lessen’d for a while, and then parted into branches: It was not without infinite labour that I fell’d this tree: I was twenty days hacking and hewing at it at the bottom. I was fourteen more getting the branches and limbs, and the vast spreading head of it cut off, which I hack’d and hew’d through with axe and hatchet, and inexpressible labour: After this, it cost me a month to shape it, and dubb it to a proportion, and to something like the bottom of a boat, that it might swim upright as it ought to do. It cost me near three months more to clear the in-side, and work it out so, as to make an exact boat of it: This I did indeed without fire, by mere mallet and chissel, and by the dint of hard labour, till I had brought it to be a very handsome periagua, and big enough to have carried six and twenty men, and consequently big enough to have carried me and all my cargo.
