most two years after this: when I say my own circle, I
mean by it my three plantations--viz. my castle, my country seat (which I
called my bower), and my enclosure in the woods: nor did I look after
this for any other use than an enclosure for my goats; for the aversion
which nature gave me to these hellish wretches was such, that I was as
fearful of seeing them as of seeing the devil himself. I did not so much
as go to look after my boat all this time, but began rather to think of
making another; for I could not think of ever making any more attempts to
bring the other boat round the island to me, lest I should meet with some
of these creatures at sea; in which case, if I had happened to have
fallen into their hands, I knew what would have been my lot.

Time, however, and the satisfaction I had that I was in no danger of
being discovered by these people, began to wear off my uneasiness about
them; and I began to live just in the same composed manner as before,
only with this difference, that I used more caution, and kept my eyes
more about me than I did before, lest I should happen to be seen by any
of them; and particularly, I was more cautious of firing my gun, lest any
of them, being on the island, should happen to hear it. It was,
therefore, a very good providence to me that I had furnished myself with
a tame breed of goats, and that I had no need to hunt any more about the
woods, or shoot at them; and if I did catch any of them after this, it
was by traps and snares, as I had done before; so that for two years
after this I believe I never fired my gun once off, though I never went
out without it; and what was more, as I had saved three pistols out of
the ship, I always carried them out with me, or at least two of them,
sticking them in my goat-skin belt. I also furbished up one of the great
cutlasses that I had out of the ship, and made me a belt to hang it on
also; so that I was now a most formidable fellow to look at when I went
abroad, if you add to the former description of myself the particular of
two pistols, and a broadsword hanging at my side in a belt, but without a
scabbard.

Things going on thus, as I have said, for some time, I seemed, excepting
these cautions, to be reduced to my former calm, sedate way of living.
All these things tended to show me more and more how far my condition was
from being miserable, compared to some others; nay, to many other
particulars of life which it might have pleased