not rage and swell as before; but that which surprised me
most was, that the ship was lifted off in the night from the sand where
she lay, by the swelling of the tide, and was driven up almost as far as
the rock which I at first mentioned, where I had been so bruised by the
wave dashing me against it. This being within about a mile from the shore
where I was, and the ship seeming to stand upright still, I wished myself
on board, that at least I might save some necessary things for my use.

When I came down from my apartment in the tree, I looked about me again,
and the first thing I found was the boat, which lay, as the wind and sea
had tossed her up, upon the land, about two miles on my right hand. I
walked as far as I could upon the shore to have got to her; but found a
neck, or inlet, of water between me and the boat, which was about half a
mile broad; so I came back for the present, being more intent upon getting
at the ship, where I hoped to find something for my present subsistence.

A little after noon I found the sea very calm and the tide ebbed so far
out, that I could come within a quarter of a mile of the ship. And here I
found a fresh renewing of my grief; for I saw evidently that if we had
kept on board, we had been all safe: that is to say, we had all got safe
on shore, and I had not been so miserable as to be left entirely destitute
of all comfort and company, as I now was. This forced tears to my eyes
again; but as there was little relief in that, I resolved, if possible, to
get to the ship-, so I pulled off my clothes, for the weather was hot to
extremity, and took the water. But when I came to the ship, my difficulty
was still greater to know how to get on board; for, as she lay aground,
and high out of the water, there was nothing within my reach to lay hold
of. I swam round her twice, and the second time I espied a small piece of
rope, which I wondered I did not see at first, hanging down by the
fore-chains so low that, with great difficulty, I got hold of it, and by
the help of that rope got up into the forecastle of the ship. Here I found
that the ship was bulged, and had a great deal of water in her hold; but
that she lay so on the side of a bank of hard sand, or rather earth, that
her stern lay lifted up upon the bank, and her head low, almost to the
water. By this means all her quarter was free, and all that was in that
part was dry; for you may be sure my first work was to search, and to see
wha