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DANIEL DEFOE.

ANIEL DEFOE (1659-1731) was the son of butcher residing in the London parish of St. Giles. His father's name was Foe, which Daniel changed into De Foe or Defoe ab. 1703. He was educated at a Dissenting academy in Newington Green to become a Nonconformist preacher. He preferred, however, the life of a merchant, and tried his hand successively at hosiery and tile-making, but with little success, probably because he neglected his business for poetry and politics. From ab. 1694 he took an active part in public affairs, always supporting the party in power and, therefore, sometimes holding a rather equivocal position. In 1698 he produced an interesting Essay upon Projects, in which he recommended the establishment of saving-banks, the construction of highways, the higher education of women, the protection of seamen, and other improvements of modern times. His most famous political pamphlet, The Shortest Way with the Dissenters (1702), brought him exhibition in the pillory and over a year's imprisonment. Released by the influence of the new Whig ministry (1704), he was employed in the secret service of the government, as, in 1706-1707, he was sent on a mission to Edinburgh to promote the Union of England and Scotland (May 1, 1707). While still in prison, he undertook the publication of a political Review (1704-1713), the first regular serial in England. Also later on he did much journalistic work, from which he derived a considerable income, besides his government salary. At any rate he was able to build a large house with pleasuregrounds and to keep a carriage. During the last two years of his life, owing to

reasons not quite evident, Defoe was compelled to flee from his home and hide himself. He died lonely at a lodging in Moorfields, London, in 1731.

When already 59 years old, Defoe wrote his first and greatest work of fiction, The Life and Strange Surprising Adventures of Robinson Crusoe (1719), which for its ingenuity of realistic invention and its simple language at once became immensely popular, and remains so to this day as a part of the world's literature. In the history of English prose fiction it holds the place of the first novel of incident. It was founded on the actual experience of a mariner Alexander Selkirk, who lived alone for four years on the island of Juan Fernandez (1705-1709). A second part, containing Robinson's second visit to his island and his travels in the East, appeared in the same year, but is of less interest. In a sequel, Serious Reflections during the Life and Surprising Adventures of Robinson Crusoe (1720), Defoe held that the book was an allegory of his own life, and that it was written to enjoin invincible patience and undaunted resolution in misery. After the great success of Robinson Crusoe he tried his pen at other works of fiction with hardly less success, of which we mention the Memoirs of a Cavalier (1720), the adventures of Captain Singleton (1720), Colonel Jacque (1722), Moll Flanders (1722), Lady Roxana (1724), and A Journal of the Plague Year, 1665 (1722). Defoe was the most voluminous writer of the 18th century; besides poetry, narratives, and some historical work, he wrote over 200 pamphlets, dealing with political, economical, didactic, and religious subjects.

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it could get no time to shoot up 20 into stalk. This I saw no remedy for, but by making an enclosure about it with a hedge, which I did with a great deal of toil, and the more, because it requir'd speed. However, 26 as my arable land was but small, suited to my crop, I got it totally well-fenced in about three weeks' time; and shooting some of the creatures in the daytime, I set my dog 30 to guard it in the night, tying him up to a stake at the gate, where he would stand and bark all night long; so in a little time the enemies forsook the place, and the corn grew very strong 85 and well, and began to ripen apace.

But as the beasts ruined me before, while my corn was in the blade, so the birds were as likely to ruin me now, when it was in the ear; 40 for going along by the place to see how it throve, I saw my little crop surrounded with fowls of I know not how many sorts, who stood as it were watching till I should be gone. I 45 immediately let fly among them (for I always had my gun with me). I had no sooner shot but there rose up a little cloud of fowls, which I had not seen at all, from among the 50 corn itself.

This touched me sensibly, for I foresaw, that in a few days they would devour all my hopes, that I should be starved, and never be able to raise 55 a crop at all; and what to do I could not tell. However, I resolved not to lose my corn, if possible, tho' I should watch it night and day. In the first place, I went among it to see what 60 damage was already done, and found they had spoiled a good deal of it, but that, as it was yet too green for them, the loss was not so great, but that the remainder was like to be a 65 good crop if it could be saved.

I stayed by it to load my gun, and then coming away I could easily see

the thieves sitting upon all the trees about me, as if they only waited till I was gone away; and the event 70 proved it to be so; for as I walked off as if I was gone, I was no sooner out of their sight, but they dropt down one by one into the corn again. I was so provoked, that I could not 75 have patience to stay till more came on, knowing that every grain that they eat now, was, as it might be said, a peck-loaf to me in the consequence; but coming up to the hedge, so I fired again, and killed three of them. This was what I wished for; so I took them up, and served them, as we serve notorious thieves in England, viz. hanged them in chains 85 for a terror to others; it is impossible to imagine almost that this should have such an effect, as it had; for the fowls would not only not come at the corn, but in short they forsook 90 all that part of the island, and I could never see a bird near the place as long as my scarecrows hung there.

This I was very glad of, you may be sure, and about the latter end of 95 December, which was our second harvest of the year, I reaped my crop.

I was sadly put to it for a scythe or a sickle to cut it down, and all I 100 could do was to make one as well as I could out of one of the broadswords or cutlasses, which I saved among the arms out of the ship. However, as my first crop was but 105 small, I had no great difficulty to cut it down; in short, I reaped it my way, for I cut nothing off but the ears, and carried it away in a great basket, which I had made, and 110 so rubbed it out with my hands; and at the end of all my harvesting I found that, out of my half-peck of seed, I had near two bushels of rice and above two bushels and half 115 of barley, that is to say, by my

guess, for I had no measure at that time.

However, this was a great encour120 agement to me, and I foresaw that, in time, it would please God to supply me with bread. And yet here I was perplexed again; for I neither knew how to grind or make meal of my 125 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 130 desire of having a good quantity for store and to secure a constant supply, I resolved not to taste any of this crop, but to preserve it all for seed against the next season, and in the 135 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 140 I worked 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, 145 curing, dressing, making, and finishing this one article of bread.

I that was reduced to a mere state of nature, found this to my daily discouragement, and was made 150 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.

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First, I had no plough to turn up the earth, no spade or shovel to dig it. Well, this I conquered by making a wooden spade, as I observed before; but this did my work in but 160 a wooden manner; and though 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 165 performed 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 sowed, I had no harrow, but 170 was forced to go over it myself and drag a great heavy bough of a tree over it, to scratch it, as it may be called, rather than rake or harrow it.

When it was growing and grown, 175 I have observed 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 180 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 observed; and yet the corn was 185 an inestimable comfort and advantage to me too. All this, as I said, made everything laborious and tedious to me, but that there was no help for; neither was my time so much loss 190 to me, because, as I had divided it, a certain part of it was every day appointed to these works; and as I resolved to use none of the corn for bread till I had a greater quantity 195 by me, I had the next six months to apply myself wholly by labour and invention to furnish myself with utensils proper for the performing all the operations necessary for the mak- 200 ing 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 205 I did this, I had a week's work at least to make me a spade, which when it was done was but a sorry one indeed, and very heavy, and required double labour to work with 210 it; however, I went through that, and sowed my seed in two large flat pieces of ground, as near my house as I could find them to my mind,

215 and fenced 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 220 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 225 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 230 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 learned him to know his own 235 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 240 an assistant to my work; for now, as I said, I had a great employment upon my hands, as follows, viz. I had long studied, by some means or other, to make myself some 245 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 250 clay, I might botch up some such pot, as might, being dried in the sun, be hard enough and strong enough to bear handling, and to hold anything that was dry and required 255 to be kept so; and as this was necessary in the preparing corn, meal, etc., which was the thing I was upon, I resolved to make some as large as I could, and fit only to stand like 260 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 misshapen 265 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 cracked by the over violent heat of 270 the sun, being set out too hastily; and how many fell in pieces with only removing, as well before as after they were dried; and in a word, how after having laboured hard to find 275 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.

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However, as the sun baked 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 285 them, that they might not break; and, as between the pot and the basket there was a little room to spare, I stuffed it full of the rice and barley straw; and these two pots, 290 being to stand always dry, I thought would hold my dry corn, and perhaps the meal, when the corn was bruised.

Though I miscarried so much in 295 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 turned to; and 300 the heat of the sun baked them strangely hard.

But all this would not answer my end, which was to get an earthen pot to hold what was liquid, and 305 bear the fire, which none of these could do. It happened 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, 310 I found a broken piece of one of my earthenware vessels in the fire,

burnt as hard as a stone, and red as a tile. I was agreeably surprised to 315 see it, and said to myself 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 320 me some pots. I had no notion of a kiln, such as the potters burn in, or of glazing them with lead, though I had some lead to do it with; but I placed three large pipkins and 325 two or three pots in a pile upon another, and placed my fire-wood all round it with a great heap of embers under them, I plied the fire with fresh fuel round the outside and 330 upon the top, till I saw the pots in the inside red-hot quite through, and observed that they did not crack at all; when I saw them clear red, I let them stand in that heat about 335 five or six hours, till I found one of them, though 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 340 run into glass if I had gone on; so I slacked 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, 345 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 desired, and one of them perfectly glazed with 350 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 355 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 learned to raise paste.

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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 365 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 oat-meal and several 370 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 875 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 380 in the world I was as perfectly unqualified 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 385 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 in- 390 deed were the rocks in the island of hardness sufficient, but were all of a sandy crumbling stone, which neither would bear the weight of a heavy pestle, or would break the 395 corn without filling it with sand; so after a great deal of time lost in searching for a stone, I gave it over, and resolved to look out for a great block of hard wood, which I found 400 indeed much easier; and getting one as big as I had strength to stir, I rounded it, and formed it in the outside with my axe and hatchet, and then, with the help of fire and 405 infinite labour, made a hollow place in it, as the Indians in Brazil make their canoes. After this I made a great heavy pestle or beater of the wood called the ironwood, and this 410

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