l the
tide was at the highest, keeping the raft with my oar like an anchor to
hold the side of it fast to the shore, near a flat piece of ground,
which I expected the water would flow over; and so it did. As soon as I
found water enough, for my raft drew about a foot of water, I thrust her
on upon that flat piece of ground, and there fastened or moored her by
sticking my two broken oars into the ground; one on one side near one
end, and one on the other side near the other end; and thus I lay till
the water ebbed away, and left my raft and all my cargo safe on shore.

My next work was to view the country, and seek a proper place for my
habitation, and where to stow my goods, to secure them from whatever
might happen. Where I was I yet knew not; whether on the continent or on
an island, whether inhabited or not inhabited, whether in danger of wild
beasts or not. There was a hill not above a mile from me, which rose up
very steep and high, and which seemed to overtop some other hills which,
lay as in a ridge from it northward: I took out one of the
fowling-pieces, and one of the pistols, and an horn of powder, and thus
armed I travelled for discovery up to the top of that hill, where, after
I had with great labour and difficulty got to the top, I saw my fates to
my great affliction, viz. that I was in an island environed every way
with the sea, no land to be seen, except some rocks which lay a great
way off, and two small islands less than this, which lay about three
leagues to the west.

I found also that the island I was in was barren, and, as I saw good
reason to believe, uninhabited, except by wild beasts, of whom, however,
I saw none; yet I saw abundance of fowls, but knew not their kinds;
neither when I killed them could I tell what was fit for food, and what
not. At my coming back I shot at a great bird, which I saw sitting upon
a tree on the side of a great wood--I believe it was the first gun that
had been fired there since the creation of the world. I had no sooner
fired, but from all parts of the wood there arose an innumerable number
of fowls of many sorts, making a confused screaming, and crying every
one according to his usual note; but not one of them of any kind that I
knew. As for the creature I killed, I took it to be a kind of a hawk,
its colour and beak resembling it, but had no talons or claws more than
common; its flesh was carrion, and fit for nothing.

Contented with this discovery, I came back t